DCLM Daily Manna 22 July 2026: Dawning of Restoration
KEY VERSE
“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with water, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim” (Joel 3:18).
Bible Reading: Joel 3:14-21 (KJV)
16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.
18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim.
19 Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.
20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
21 For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion.
READ OTHER DCLM DAILY DEVOTIONAL HERE
It was in Alfred Tennyson’s poem, The Lotos-Eaters, that the following picture of hope is captured: “Courage!” he said, and pointed toward the land. “This mounting wave will roll us shoreward soon. In the afternoon they came unto a land, in which it seemed always afternoon. All around the coast the languid air did swoon, Breathing like one that hath a weary dream.” The sea-wearied mariners finally found the shore of solace, where they excitedly burst into a joyful chorus: “Our island home is far beyond the wave; We will no longer roam.” A day of hope and restoration awaits the Israel of God after the Lord has dealt with their Gentile enemies. Prophet Joel saw in his vision hordes of God’s enemies rushing headlong and mindlessly into the ‘valley of God’s decisive judgment.’
A day of divine recompense is yet in the womb of time. Israel should be assured of God’s unfailing day of their full restoration to the land promised to them by the Lord. Over many generations, their enemies had enslaved, deprived and vexed them with untempered bitterness. The Assyrians had ill-used them; the Egyptians had abused them; the Babylonians had traduced them; they had suffered untold hardship under the rule of the Medians and the Persians. The Greeks had not spared them too. The Romans had ruthlessly brutalised them and razed down Jerusalem finally in 70 AD.
However, “weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” These pains and pangs of many centuries under alien nations will soon be over, and a new dawn of peace, prosperity, and divine presence will be in the offing for Israel.
As it was for the enemies of Israel, so it shall be in the end for the enemies of the church of Christ. In contrast, the future is bright for those who have a cordial relationship with the Lord. People who trust Jesus Christ as their Saviour will never be called into God’s judgment court, and they no longer need to fear the storm. Therefore, let the beloved of the Lord take heart and be patient in times of bitter trials, temptations and fierce persecutions. “Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you. Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and the latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.” Like the chorus of the Lotos-Eaters, these mounting waves of trials and temptation shall roll us eventually to the shore of rest!.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Every adversity confronting God’s people bears an expiry date
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR
Exodus 20-22
DCLM Daily Manna 22 July 2026
Comments 1