To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.
Isaiah 61:3, NKJV
One day Jesus visited his hometown of Nazareth and read in the synagogue from a passage in Isaiah. Jesus sat down and said that these Scriptures had now been fulfilled, but stopped before He came to today’s verse, for it applies to His second coming rather than His first.
One day we will trade our tears for the oil of gladness. Jesus will place beautiful crowns on our ashen foreheads. Our heavy hearts will become coverings of praise. We will all be filled with righteousness like trees planted by a stream are richly supplied with water.