Chapter Six - Punisment Followed by Kingdom Blessing (24-27)
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As a result of this chapter, you should be able to:
describe the contents of Isaiah 24-27 as it relates to the outline given in the commentary;
explain how Isaiah relates a near-future judgment with the judgment in the book of Revelation;
list Paul and John's use of Isaiah 25:8;
explain the place of Isaiah 26:1-19 in the Millennium; and
compare Israel as the vine in Isaiah 5 and 27.
This chapter is divided into the following four parts:
troubles followed by the reign of the Lord of hosts (24:1-23);
praise of God for His wonderful works (25:1-12);
a song of Salvation (26:1-19); and
God's indignation and the regathering of Israel (26:20-27:13).
This section has been called by some commentators "Isaiah's little apocalypse." In apocalyptic prophecy the prophet is allowed by God to witness the future spread out as a panorama. Thus, he visually experiences what is coming to pass. Outstanding examples of apocalyptic prophecies in the Scriptures are found in Ezekiel, Daniel, Zechariah and, of course, in the Apocalypse, the book of Revelation.
Isaiah's repetition of themes has been noted several times, particularly the repetition of the two major themes of judgment and comfort. In chapters 24-27 the same sequence that is continually encountered in this book is seen again. It seems as though God would convince His people by sheer force of repetition. In fact, this is the order of life, and is found in other places as well as in Isaiah: first suffering, then glory. So it was with our blessed Lord Himself: "Seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow" (1 Peter 1:11). It is the same with believers:
"If indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him" (Romans 8:17).
"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you" (1 Peter 5:10).
The outline of this section may be connected to that of the whole book in this way:
4. Punishment Followed by Kingdom Blessing (24:1-27:13)
4.1 Troubles Followed by the Reign of the Lord of Hosts (24:1-23)
4.2 Praise of God for His Wonderful Works (25:1-12)
4.3 A Song of Salvation (26:1-19)
4.4 God's Indignation and the Regathering of Israel (26:20-27:13)
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1. TROUBLES FOLLOWED BY THE REIGN OF THE LORD OF HOSTS (24:1-23)
Verses 24:1-3
At the beginning of chapter 24 the prophecy turns away from the burdens (God's grievous judgments on the Gentile nations) to God's own people. The judgments that are coming on Judah will be such as to empty the land (v. 3). The same Hebrew word can be translated either "earth" or "land." Here it seems to refer to the land of Israel rather than to the worldwide devastation pictured in Revelation and other Scripture passages.
Verses 24:3-12
The immediate reference is undoubtedly to the Babylonian conquests and the transmigration of the population according to the custom of that day. All classes of the people will suffer. The passage makes it clear that these judgments are retributive - that God is taking vengeance for the sins of His people (v. 5). The capture and desolation of Jerusalem is most emphatically included in the judgment (v. 12). The prophet Jeremiah, who lived a century after Isaiah's time and through the terrible period of the Babylonian invasions, elaborates on some of those prophecies.
Verses 24:13-20
Even in the midst of grievous afflictions there will be those who will glorify the Lord "in the fires" (v. 15, KJV). That is the response of the godly remnant, so different from the general populace, but always present in any era.
Verses 24:21-23
This is obviously a prophecy of the Babylonian conquest and captivity, but that captivity manifestly does not exhaust its full import, for the prophet looks ahead to "that day" (v. 21). The catastrophic disruptions on earth and the signs in the heavenly bodies seem to go far beyond the Babylonian desolations, terrible as those were to be. There is undoubtedly a foreshadowing of those cataclysmic judgments that are to overtake the "earthdwellers" in the end time, described so graphically in the book of Revelation.
That this double fulfillment is in view seems to be conclusively shown by the allusion to the reign of the Lord of hosts on Mount Zion, in Jerusalem (v. 23). The glorious kingdom age will be a time of rejoicing and praise to God for the people of God, both the glorified saints of all ages (including the church) and the as yet unglorified subjects of the millennial kingdom, including living Israel of that day and a great multitude of Gentiles (Matthew 25:41).
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2. PRAISE OF GOD FOR HIS WONDERFUL WORKS (25:1-12)
Verses 25:1-7
The contemplation of God's literally earthshaking works brings forth an exclamation of praise: "0 Lord, Thou art my God; I will exalt Thee, I will give thanks to Thy name; for Thou hast worked wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness" (v. 1).
Verse 25:8
It is important to observe the harmony of the Old and New Testaments. In this chapter are found examples of Old Testament teachings that are carried over into the New Testament and amplified there. Verse 8 is referred to by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:54 and the second clause of verse 8 is restated in Revelation 7:17 and 21:4.
Verses 25:9-12
In "that day" God's people will be glad they waited for Him (v. 9). That is indeed a contrast to the impatience of the restless world. Patient waiting is the difficult but sublime appointment for God's people. It will not always be so. The day of waiting, interminable though it sometimes seems, will have an end; the day of rejoicing in God's completed salvation will be eternal.
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3. A SONG OF SALVATION (26:1-19)
The song of praise that begins chapter 26 will be sung "in that day"; that is, in the kingdom age when it will be completely appropriate. Now it cannot be sung in its full meaning. Thankfully, however, a timeless application can be made now or at any time. No matter in what period of history he lives, the believer can find in God the perfect peace described in the song (v. 3). Note that the Hebrew idiom is: "in peace, in peace," correctly rendered by the English translators as "in perfect peace" (KJV, NASB, NIV). It would be interesting to trace the many hymns and gospel songs that have been based on that passage. Frances Havergal's hymn "Like a River Glorious" not only draws on the verse indirectly in its first stanza, but goes on in its refrain to paraphrase the verse:
"Stayed upon Jehovah hearts are fully blessed, Finding as He promised, perfect peace and rest.:"
Perhaps best known of all is Augustus M. Toplady's immortal hymn "Rock of Ages" (written in 1776), with its title taken from the literal rendering of the Hebrew in verse 4: "For in Yahweh is the Rock of ages."
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4. GOD'S INDIGNATION AND THE REGATHER ING OF ISRAEL (26:20-27:13)
Verses 26:20-21
The indignation mentioned in this passage (26:20) is the Day of the Lord, mentioned so many times in the Prophets. In that period of judgment the godly remnant of Israel will be protected (cf. Revelation 12:1-12). The church, raptured to meet the Lord Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18), will be kept out of the Tribulation (cf. Revelation 3:10); the godly remnants of Israel will be kept through the Tribulation.
The punishment of the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity (v. 21) is described in considerable detail in the book of Revelation.
Verses 27:1-12
The mention of the vineyard in 27:2-6 portrays a different set of circumstances from the song of the vineyard in chapter 5. The prediction that Israel "will fill the whole world with fruit" (v. 6) is similar to Paul's exclamation in Romans about the blessing that will come on the world when Israel is restored:
"Now if their transgression be riches for the world and their failure be riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! ... For if their rejection be the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?" (Romans 11:12, 15)
Verse 27:13
Chapter 27 closes with a description of the regathering of Israel, a gathering such as the world has not seen. This is undoubtedly the same regathering mentioned by the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:31:
"And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other."
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5. REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDATION FOR FURTHER STUDY
An Introduction to the Old Testament Prophetic Books, Chapter 6, Moody Press: Chicago, 1986 Edition, by C. Hassell Bullock.
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