Why do you say, Jacob, Why do you say, Israel, “The LORD is not aware of what is happening to me, My God is not concerned with my vindication”? (Isaiah 40.27)
Waiting is hard. That should not be news to anyone. It shows itself in this chapter in the verse quoted above. The claim is that the God of Israel has forgotten about his exiled people. He is not aware of what is happening to them. After all, that's how it feels as they sit in far away Babylon. How much fun could that be? And then there is all the injustice suffered - and God doesn't care. At least, that's what it looks like.
Again, though Isaiah's original audience was a group of Jewish exiles stuck in Babylon long ago, by the Spirit, this prophecy is about us. We are the exiles that they prophetically pictured. So, it is no surprise that this verse describes what the Christian often feels: forgotten and struggling with what's going on. And that makes sense. We are, after all, exiled from our home. And because the Spirit lives within us we can feel the burden of that exile, even though, like so many of those Jews in Babylon, we were born in exile. But it's not just our experience of homesickness. The tempter is busy. He whispers words of doubt. 'Your life is so hard. Time after time you get the short end of the stick, and no one does anything about it, not even your supposed 'heavenly Father' who made all those promises. Face it, you are forgotten. You're on your own. You need to accept that and deal with it.' There is no sin in hearing his words. Jesus also heard Satan's tempting words. It's all about how we respond. And that's why Isaiah has written this chapter.