Connect Job 14:7 with another Bible verse about renewal or restoration. Setting the Scene • Job 14:7 – “For there is hope for a tree: if it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its tender shoots will not fail.” • In the middle of deep suffering, Job looks at a felled tree and sees an illustration: even what appears dead can live again. The Second Witness: Isaiah 40:31 • Isaiah 40:31 – “But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.” • Here the prophet comforts weary exiles, declaring that God’s people are never without the promise of fresh strength and new beginnings. Connecting the Passages • Both verses anchor hope in God’s ongoing power to bring life where it seems impossible. – Job sees the tree’s stump “sprout again.” – Isaiah promises weary believers they will “renew their strength.” • Job’s picture is agricultural; Isaiah’s is athletic and soaring. Yet each image points to God’s revitalizing work that defies human limitation. • The shared theme: apparent endings are not the final word when God is involved. Life Application: Expecting God’s Renewal 1. Recognize the “stump moments.” • Circumstances may look chopped down—relationships, health, finances, spiritual vitality. 2. Wait on the LORD. • Waiting is active trust, not passive resignation. • Like roots drawing unseen water, faith drinks deeply from God’s promises. 3. Look for visible sprouts. • Renewal may begin small: a softened heart, a new opportunity, a restored joy. 4. Keep moving forward. • As strength is renewed, step out—running without weariness, walking without fainting—confident that God finishes what He starts. Supporting Scriptures • Psalm 23:3 – “He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” • Lamentations 3:22-23 – “Because of the LORD’s loving devotion we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness!” • 2 Corinthians 4:16 – “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.” In every season, the stump and the soaring eagle together testify: God specializes in renewal. |
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