Yahweh commands his people to take comfort from what he is going to do. And what is he going to do? He is going to forgive their iniquities that there might be peace between them and him! John the Baptist brings the same message to the people: Forgiveness of sins and peace with God. But in John’s time he can point directly to Yahweh walking in their midst, Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Image: St John the Baptist in the Wilderness, Cornelis Cort, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons. Image location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_John_the_Baptist_in_the_Wilderness_MET_DP874337.jpg