Question: "What does it mean to mount up with wings like eagles?"

Question: "What does it mean to mount up with wings like eagles?"

Answer: The phrase mount up with wings like
eagles can be found at the end of Isaiah 40 , in
verse 31, “But they who wait for the Lord shall
renew their strength; they shall mount up with
wings like eagles; they shall run and not be
weary; they shall walk and not faint” (ESV).
During Isaiah’s lifetime, the dispirited nation of
Israel suffered a period of great distress
politically as oppressive Assyrian powers
invaded and conquered their lands. Isaiah
chapters 40–48 contain promises of redemption
and deliverance from the suffering. That section
of the book starts with the words “Comfort,
comfort my people, says your God” ( Isaiah
40:1 ). Israel had nearly given up hope, thinking
God had abandoned them, yet Isaiah drives his
point home in Isaiah 40:27–31 , “Why do you
say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, ‘My way is
hidden from the Lord, and my right is
disregarded by my God’? Have you not known?
Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting
God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He
does not faint or grow weary; his understanding
is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases
strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted; but they
who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they
shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and
not faint” (ESV).
Ancient Hebrew culture revered eagles as
mighty warriors that also cared fiercely for their
young. Eagles carry their eaglets to safety,
away from the threat of predators. Eagles are
also known for their strength and courage in
dangerous, turbulent weather, soaring above
storm clouds and to safety. Eagles’ wings was a
figure of speech commonly used to attribute
these fine characteristics to a person. The Lord
references eagles’ wings in Exodus 19:1–6 ,
which is a recollection of how God delivered
Israel from the Egyptians. In this passage, the
Lord gives Moses a message for His people:
“You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt,
and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and
brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully
and keep my covenant, then out of all nations
you will be my treasured possession” (verses 4–
5).
The prophet Isaiah uses wings like eagles in the
same way, attributing the great characteristics
of eagles to those who remain faithful to God
and look forward to their heavenly reward. The
phrase mount up is a translation of the Hebrew
word ˈalah , which means “to go up, ascend, to
go up over a boundary.” Isaiah is communicating
the promise that God will provide renewed
strength and courage to overcome obstacles, if
Israel would only have patience and trust in the
Lord’s sovereign timing.
Upon reading Isaiah’s words, perhaps Israel
recalled what God had said to them long ago as
they fled Egypt, about how the Lord had
delivered them “on eagles’ wings” with His great
strength and power. Isaiah tells them that they,
too, could have access to such deliverance. If
they remained faithful to God, they would soar.
Christians today can apply the principle of
Isaiah 40:31 by trusting in God’s sovereignty
and waiting faithfully for Him. “We do not lose
heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away,
yet inwardly we are being renewed day by
day” ( 2 Corinthians 4:16 ). God in His grace will
provide power, strength, and courage to the
weary, weak, and downtrodden when they are
willing to be patient and wait on Him. God will
cause us to mount up on eagles’ wings.