Is there anything that God cannot use? Throughout my ministry, I've come across people who are convinced that they have screwed up so badly in this life that they are beyond redemption. They simply have no faith that they could ever be of value or use to God. But God does not suffer from our lack of imagination and creativity! God is able to use anything as His instrument to accomplish His will.
In Genesis, God used Joseph's eleven jealous brothers to advance His plan. Even though they sold Joseph into slavery attempting to do him ill, God meant it for good.
In Exodus, God took a murderer who had been exiled to the wilderness to come back to Egypt and be the shepherd-leader to deliver His people, Israel. Even though Moses questioned his credentials and urged God to send somebody else, God knew what He was doing in choosing Moses.
In II Samuel, God worked through an adulterous king who treacherously murdered one of his loyal soldiers to establish the nation in strength and prepare for the building of the Temple. Even though David suffered as a consequence of his choices, God did not abandon him but used him to bring forth the Messiah.
So it is with Isaiah's proclamation in chapter 13. God is assembling an army from among the far-flung nations of the earth. "I myself have commanded my consecrated ones, have summoned my warriors, my proudly exulting ones, to execute my anger. Listen, a tumult on the mountains as of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar of kingdoms, of nations gathering together! The Lord of hosts is mustering an army for battle. They come from a distant land, from the end of the heavens, the Lord and his weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole earth" (vs. 3-5).
While we might be discouraged at God's plan of destruction, we recognize that He is able to work His will through His chosen instruments, whatever they may be. There isn't anything God cannot use!
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