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Pope John Paul II met with more than 12,000 people in St. Peter's Square for his general audience on April 2 and reflected on a canticle from Isaiah 42. It was part of his ongoing catechesis on the canticles and psalms of the Liturgy of the Hours.

Isaiah's canticle, he pointed out, calls for a “new song” of praise to God, who liberates his people and brings them salvation. Composed at the time of Israel's return from exile in Babylon, it invites all creation to sing the triumph of God's justice and saving power.

The Holy Father reminded his listeners that God is always present among his people and is at work in the course of history. If, at times, God appears to be silent amid oppression, injustice and evil in the world, he never ceases to love his people and always comes to their assistance. This “silence” is a prelude to his decisive intervention on behalf of his faithful ones.

“In fact,” he noted, “ the Lord raises up a new world, an era of freedom and salvation. The eyes of the blind are opened, so they can enjoy the shining light. The road is made straight and hope flourishes, thereby making it possible to continue trusting in God and in his future of peace and happiness.”

The Pope urged those present to reaffirm their faith in the fact that God is the Lord over history, to discern the signs of his presence in our world and to trust in the fulfillment of his saving promises.

Within the book that bears the name of the prophet Isaiah, scholars have identified the presence of various voices, all of which are attributed to this great prophet who lived in the eighth century B.C. This is the case of this powerful hymn of joy and victory that we just heard, which is part of morning prayer during the fourth week of the Liturgy of the Hours. Exegetes attribute this hymn to the so-called Deutero Isaiah, a prophet who lived in the sixth century B.C., when the Israelites were returning from their exile in Babylon. The hymn begins with a call to “sing to the Lord a new song” (see Isaiah 42:10), a call that also occurs in other psalms (see Psalm 96:1 and Psalm 98:1).

The “newness” of the song the prophet invites us to sing certainly refers to the prospect of freedom, which was a radical turning point in the history of a people who had experienced oppression and sojourn in a foreign land (see Psalm 137).

In the Bible, “newness” often has the ring of a reality that is perfect and definitive. It is almost like a sign of the beginning of an era in which the fullness of salvation seals the troubled history of mankind. The canticle of Isaiah has this ring to it and is easily adapted to Christian prayer.

A New Song

The world in its totality, including the earth, sea, coastlands, steppes and cities, is invited to raise a “new song” to the Lord (see Isaiah 42:10-12). Every bit of space is involved, from its farthest horizontal limits, which even includes the unknown, to its vertical dimension, which begins in the desert plain where the nomadic tribes of Kedar are found (see Isaiah 21:16-17) and rises up into the mountains. The city of Sela is located there, which many identify as Petra, in the territory of the Edomites, a city situated among rocky peaks.

All the inhabitants of the earth are invited to form a sort of im -mense choir and acclaim the Lord in exultation and give him glory.

Every day the believer must know how to discern the signs of God's action.

A Mighty Warrior

After the solemn invitation to song (see verses 10-12), the prophet has the Lord appear on the scene. He is portrayed as the God of the Exodus, who has freed his people from slavery in Egypt: “The Lord goes forth like a hero, like a warrior ...” (verse 13). He sows terror among his adversaries, who oppress others and carry out injustice.

The canticle of Moses also de -picts the Lord during the crossing of the Red Sea as a “warrior” who is ready to extend his powerful right hand to shatter the enemy (see Exodus 15:3-8). Upon the return of the Israelites from their deportation to Babylon, a new exodus is about to take place and the faithful must be certain the course of history is not left up to fate, chaos or op -pressive powers: The last word be -longs to God, who is just and strong. As the psalmist already sang: “Give us aid against the foe; worthless is human help” (Psalm 60:13).

God's Silence

Once he has appeared on the scene, the Lord speaks and his angry words (see Isaiah 42:14-16) are laced with judgment and salvation. He begins by recalling that for a long time he “kept silence” and did not intervene. God's silence is often a reason for the just man to be perplexed and even scandalized, as Job's lenghty lament attests (see Job 3:1-26). However, it is not a silence that indicates an absence — almost as if the course of history were left in the hands of the perverse while the Lord remained indifferent and unfeeling. In reality, such a silence results in a reaction that is similar to the pain of a woman in labor who is anxious, panting and crying out. It is, rather, God's judgment on evil, represented in images of dryness, destruction and desert (see verse 15), which has as its goal an outcome that is life-giving and fruitful.

A New World

In fact, the Lord raises up a new world, an era of freedom and salvation. The eyes of the blind are opened, so they can enjoy the shining light. The road is made straight and hope flourishes (see verse 16), thereby making it possible to continue trusting in God and in his future of peace and happiness.

Every day the believer must know how to discern the signs of God's action, even when it is hidden by the apparently monotonous and pointless passing of time. As an esteemed modern Christian author wrote, “The earth is permeated by a cosmic ecstasy. There is in it an eternal reality and presence that, however, normally is asleep under the veil of habit. The eternal reality must now reveal itself, as in an epiphany of God, through everything that exists” (R. Guardini, Sapi enza dei Salmi, Brescia, 1976, p. 52).

Discovering through eyes of faith God's presence in space and time — and also in ourselves — is a source of hope and trust, even when our hearts are troubled and upset “as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind” (Isaiah 7:2). In fact, the Lord appears on the scene to rule and judge “the world with justice and the peoples with faithfulness” (Psalm 96:13).

(Register translation)