‘Peace to Those Far and Near’

22. What future does Jehovah foretell for (a) the repentant? (b) the wicked?

²² Contrasting the future of those who repent with that of those who persist in their wicked ways, Jehovah declares: “I am creating the fruit of the lips. Continuous peace there will be to the one that is far away and to the one that is near, . . . and I will heal him. But the wicked are like the sea that is being tossed, when it is unable to calm down, the waters of which keep tossing up seaweed and mire. There is no peace . . . for the wicked ones.”​—Isaiah 57:19-21.

23. What is the fruit of the lips, and in what way is Jehovah “creating” this fruit?

²³ The fruit of the lips is the sacrifice of praise offered to God​—public declaration to his name. (Hebrews 13:15) How is Jehovah “creating” that public declaration? In order to offer a sacrifice of praise, an individual first has to learn of God and then put faith in him. Faith​—a fruit of God’s spirit—​moves that person to tell others what he has heard. In other words, he makes public declaration. (Romans 10:13-15; Galatians 5:22) It should be remembered, too, that Jehovah is ultimately the one who commissions his servants to tell forth his praise. And Jehovah is the one who liberates his people, making it possible for them to offer such sacrifices of praise. (1 Peter 2:9) Hence, Jehovah can well be said to create this fruit of the lips.

24. (a) Who come to know God’s peace, and with what result? (b) Who do not come to know peace, and what is the result for them?

²⁴ What thrilling fruit of the lips the Jews must be offering as they return to their homeland singing praises to Jehovah! They must be joyful to know God’s peace, whether they are “far away”​—distant from Judah, still waiting to return—​or “near”​—already in their homeland. In broad contrast, how different things are for the wicked! Any who fail to respond to Jehovah’s disciplinary acts, the wicked whoever and wherever they are, have no peace at all. Seething like the restless sea, they keep producing, not the fruit of the lips, but “seaweed and mire,” everything that is unclean.

25. How are many far and near coming to know peace?

²⁵ Today, too, Jehovah’s worshipers everywhere declare the good news of God’s Kingdom. Christians far and near in more than 230 lands offer the fruit of their lips, sounding forth praise of the only true God. The praises they sing are heard “from the extremity of the earth.” (Isaiah 42:10-12) Those who hear their expressions and respond are embracing the truth of God’s Word, the Bible. Such ones are coming to know peace, which comes from serving “the God who gives peace.”​—Romans 16:20.