Present the Old Testament

There is a lot of visual imagery in this reading. Project or display images to illustrate and accompany the words.

Introduce the reading by inviting people to listen for all the good things that are going to happen: What does God promise will happen to the land? And how does God encourage the people? And to draw out the contrast between the land and the people, divide the reading between two readers. One reads about the land (vv.1-2 and 6b-7) and the other reads about the people (vv.3-6a and 8-10). After the reading, you could sing the chorus ‘Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return’.