Isaiah 2-4 "The Latter Days"

From Advent through Epiphany

we will be looking at Isaiah's prophecy of the coming of the Messiah in Isaiah 2-12.

Chapters 2-4 set forth

"the word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem."

The focus of this vision is the "latter days."

Jerusalem's present is pretty dismal.

Her future is bleak

Syria and Israel are breathing threats from the north,

Assyria is rising in the east,

and Egypt is making a comeback in the south.

The vassal states of Edom and Moab are rebelling,

and the Philistines still harass the lowlands.

Judah is a tiny kingdom ringed by enemies.

And yet Isaiah sees a vision of the latter days,

when the mountain of the house of Yahweh-Jerusalem-

"Shall be established as the highest of the mountains;

and shall be lifted up above the hills;

and all the nations shall flow to it."

There will come a day when Zion will be the center of worship for the nations.

Yahweh will be acknowledged as the true God.

No longer will Jerusalem be the capital city of a beleaguered little kingdom,

but it will be the exalted above all the cities of the earth!

And many peoples will say,

"Come, let us go up to the mountain of Yahweh,

to the house of the God of Jacob,

that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths." (2:3)

The nations will desire to hear the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem.

And because they will accept Yahweh as the judge of the nations,

they will no longer need their weapons.

"He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples;

and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,

and their spears into pruning hooks;

nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

neither shall they learn war anymore." (2:4)

This is the vision that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

These words also appear almost verbatim in Micah 4:1-4.

Since Isaiah is a contemporary of Micah, there is no way to know who used them first,

or whether it might be a familiar hymn that both prophets used.

But Isaiah uses it to call the house of Jacob to repentance.

One day the nations will say "come, let us go up to the house of the God of Jacob;"

Someday the nations will seek to learn the law of Zion

so that they might walk in the paths of Yahweh.

If the nations will seek those paths, shouldn't the house of Jacob?

"O House of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of Yahweh."

This echoes the language of Psalm 119:105

"Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

The nations are ignorant and must learn the law of Zion,

but Judah knows better.

Judah must simply live up to what he already knows.

But there are two basic problems with Judah.

We heard of those last time.

In chapter one we saw that Judah's worship was unacceptable

because of their failure to provide justice for the poor.

But here in chapters 2-4 Isaiah expands on the problem.

Judah has been compromised by idolatry and oppression.

Chapter two focuses on the idolatry of Judah, while chapter three turns to the oppression.

The reason why God has rejected his people is because

"they are full of things from the east." (2:6)

What was in the east?

Assyria and Babylon

Judah was turning to fortunetellers, like the Philistines,

and they were entering alliance "with the children of foreigners."

In their fear of the surrounding nations,

Judah was forgetting their God.

He had promised that he would protect and deliver them,

but only if they would trust in him alone.

But instead Judah was "full of things from the east."

"Their land is filled with silver and gold

and there is no end to their treasures."

Foreign alliances had definite advantages for trade and commerce.

"Their land is filled with horses,

And there is no end to their chariots"

Foreign alliances had definite advantages for military strength.

"Their land is filled with idols;

They bow down to the work of their hands,

to what their own fingers have made."

Foreign alliances bring not only wealth and strength,

but also idolatry.

And so Isaiah calls out to God,

"So man is humbled, and each one is brought low-do not forgive them!" (2:9)

God has rejected his people and will not forgive them

because they have turned their backs on him, and are worshiping the gods of the nations.

Isaiah then turns to Judah and warns them of the coming wrath of the LORD.

"Enter into the rock and hide in the dust before the terror of Yahweh,

and from the splendor of his majesty.

The haughty looks of man shall be brought low,

and the lofty pride of men shall be humbled,

and Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day." (2:11)

If you will not humble yourself and serve the LORD, then prepare to be humbled.

For Yahweh of hosts has a day.

Verses 12-16 form a single sentence.

Yahweh of hosts has a day

against all that is lifted up-and it shall be brought low;

against all the cedars of Lebanon, lofty and lifted up;

against all the oaks of Bashan;

against all the lofty mountains,

against all the uplifted hills;

against every high tower;

against every fortified wall;

against all the ships of Tarshish;

against all the beautiful craft.

Isaiah points to all those things that are high and lofty.

The greatest trees-that were used for carving idols;

The highest mountains-that were used for pagan worship;

The mighty cities-that used their power against the people of God;

The greatest wealth-that was used to fund idolatry.

But all of things are but tributary to the real problem.

The real problem is found in the hearts of man.

Therefore verse 17 echoes verse 11:

"All the haughtiness of man shall be humbled,

and the lofty pride of men shall be brought low,

and Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day,"

with the result that "the idols shall utterly pass away."

And as he called upon the people to hide in the dust in verse 10,

so now in verse 19, he says that

"People shall enter caves of the rocks and holes of the ground

from before the terror of Yahweh, and from the splendor of his majesty,

when he rises to terrify the earth."

The conclusion to the first section is signaled with the phrase "in that day"

"in that day mankind will cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold,

which they made for themselves to worship, to the moles and to the bats,

to enter the caverns of the rocks, and the clefts of the cliffs,

from before the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth."

God promised that he "has a day" for all those who exalt themselves.

So "stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he? (2:22)

Isaiah calls Judah to stop worrying about the nations.

Do not fear men.

You must be more concerned with what God thinks, than with what others think.

Indeed, those who regard man more than God have already fallen prey to idolatry.

Chapter three then turns to the judgment that is coming upon Judah and Jerusalem.

And just as Judah is masculine and Jerusalem is feminine,

so also God proclaims judgment upon both men and women.

Verses 1-15 start with the destruction of the Leaders of Jerusalem and Judah

For behold Yahweh of hosts is taking away the strength of Jerusalem and Judah

verses 1-5 detail the collapse of the social order

the language of lacking bread and water in verse one

is connected to the loss of leadership in verses 2-5.

The coming judgment will destroy all the male leadership in the land,

from the holy leaders-the judge and the prophet,

to the pagan leaders-the skilled magician and the expert in charms.

Whether military, political, or religious,

Judah will have no one left but boys to lead them.

Indeed verses 6-7 express the desolation of the land nicely:

anyone who has a cloak is sufficient to be king of rubble!

But no one will take the job.

All this is because "Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen,

because their speech and their deeds are against Yahweh,

defying his glorious presence." (8)

Just look at them!

You can tell from the look on their faces that they have sinned.

And Isaiah proclaims two woes against them:

1) Woe to them! For they have brought evil on themselves.

Tell the righteous that it shall be well with them,

for they shall eat the fruit of their deeds.

2) Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him,

for what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him.

Notice that the righteous are spoken of in the plural (God views them collectively);

But the wicked are addressed in the singular (God views them individually).

God will single out the wicked and ensure that they get what they deserve!

Isaiah laments in verse 12

"My people-infants are their oppressors, and women rule over them-

O my people, your guides mislead you

and they have swallowed up the course of your paths."

But Yahweh will not sit silent.

He has taken his place to contend; he stands to judge the peoples.

Yahweh is not merely the local deity who judges Judah alone,

he judges all peoples.

But now he turns his judgment against his own people,

and especially their elders and princes.

"It is you who have devoured the vineyard, the spoil of the poor is in your houses.

What do you mean by crushing my people, by grinding the face of the poor?

declares the Lord Yahweh of Hosts."

"Come, let us reason together, says Yahweh,

though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow."

That's what Isaiah had said in chapter 1:18,

but remember the caveat in the next verse:

"If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land;

but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword."

As the covenant lawsuit progresses, it's not looking very good for the leaders of Judah.

And neither is it looking very good for the daughters of Zion.

The second half of chapter three turns to their wanton ways.

We could paraphrase verses 16-17 very simply: The daughters of Zion are sluts

and God is going to shame and disgrace them publicly.

And for a second time we hear the phrase "in that day."

We last heard it at the end of chapter 2,

as God spoke of the judgment that was falling upon

the idolaters of Judah and indeed, of all mankind.

But in that same day God will also bring judgment upon the daughters of Zion

for their worldy ways.

All of their fancy clothes, and perfumes, and jewelry will be taken away.

And as he used the phrase "against all" of that which was haughty and lifted up,

now he speaks of five replacements for the beauty of women:

"Instead of perfume there will be rottenness

Instead of a belt, a rope;

instead of well-set hair, baldness;

instead of a rich robe, a skirt of sackcloth;

and branding instead of beauty."

These women had once tried to allure the men of Judah

with their charms and their fancy clothes,

but now they will have nothing to offer.

But of course, given what has happened to all the men,

they will have no one to offer it to! (3:25-4:1)

With their men slaughtered in battle,

the daughters of Zion will seek for a husband just like Judah sought for leaders,

and with about the same success.

All of their worldly allurement are of no use.

Verses 25-26 are sobering.

Isaiah seems to suggest that the enticing allurements of the daughters of Zion

are connected to the death of their mighty men in battle.

Their gates are empty, at least in part, because of them.

And here I must pause to praise the women in this church.

I have seen churches where every Sunday is a fashion show,

and often enough their men fall by the sword;

but you have been an example of the modesty and simplicity that is too rare.

May God grant that your men not fall in battle.

But in that day,

and after hearing that phrase twice now to their damnation,

we are expecting the worst!

But "In that day the branch of Yahweh shall be beautiful and glorious,

and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel."

Frequently the "Branch" language refers to the branch of David,

but here it is the branch of Yahweh.

God has pruned away most of the tree,

but he has left himself a branch.

And this branch is everything that the degraded daughters of Zion are not:

Beautiful and glorious!

But the Branch will come, the fruit of the land, which will be the pride and honor of Israel

Yes, that is Israel, not Judah.

Isaiah speaks of the restored kingdom.

There is a day coming when Jerusalem shall be restored as the city of the Great King,

when "he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy,

everyone who has been recorded for life in Jerusalem,

when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion

and cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst

by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning."

A day will come when God will cleanse his holy city,

and all the remnant of Israel will be holy.

But this cleansing is a cleansing by a spirit of judgment and burning/or purging.

It is this sort of description that led John the Baptist to say that Jesus

would come with a baptism of spirit and fire.

Spirit and fire baptism is at the heart of the coming of the Messiah.

The Messiah - and Isaiah is plainly referring to the Messianic age -

will come and purify Zion,

not just restoring the glory of Moses,

but fulfilling the glory of Moses,

bringing about that to which Moses himself only pointed.

(Read 5-6)

The canopy in the OT is always a marriage chamber

(this will be a prominent theme later in Isaiah)

Isaiah uses the language of Mosaic glory-

the cloud by day and smoke and shining flame by night-

but this is not simply a pillar of cloud over the tabernacle,

but a canopy over the entire "site of Mt Zion"

Isaiah sees the glory of the Messianic age and he calls those on the brink of exile

to forsake their foolish ways.

Why are you focused on temporary gain?!

Why do you oppress your neighbor?

Why do you concern yourself with how good you look?

Why do you run after your own pleasures?

God is going to remove all those things.

For those of us who live as elect exiles in the midst of a kingdom that is not our home,

we need to hear these words as well.

The only way that Isaiah's hearers can survive the coming wrath of God,

is to keep their hearts and minds fixed upon the beautiful and glorious branch.

To endure through the dark hours of exile,

you must remember the vision of the glory of the shining flame of fire

that will rest over the whole site of Mount Zion.

you must remember the canopy-the marriage chamber-

where God himself will bring you at the consummation of all things.