Isaiah

Isaiah Series 02: Who is “Israel”?

POST OVERVIEW. A post in “The Isaiah Series,” a series of devotional studies based on selected passages from Isaiah 41-66. Each devotional study will seek to reveal the beauty and the power of Isaiah’s prophecy and will interpret the meaning of the passage so that the disciple of Jesus is encouraged.

This study examines the two possible identities and interpretations of “Israel” in Isaiah 41-66.

NARRATIVE HISTORY AND BIBLICAL PROPHECY

NARRATIVE HISTORY. When reading the Pentateuch and the historical books of Joshua through Nehemiah, we are reading narrative history. These are factual accounts of what took place in the lives of the patriarchs, the kings, the prophets and select other people, and of how God led and interacted with His people, the twelve tribes of the children of Israel in the land of Canaan, the physical descendants of Jacob. Because these are factual, historical narratives, we use a literal interpretive lens. That is, we assume that the events literally happened as described by the biblical authors and we interpret the proper names literally, as representing the actual person or country or place. For example, if you read the word “Babylon” in an account from the book of 2 Kings, you assume that the story is about the people of the Chaldeans who lived in the north beyond the river Euphrates. You would think about a literal kingdom and people group and king and so on. Likewise, if you read the word “Israel” in the book of Numbers, you would understand that the author (Moses) is referring to the literal nation of Israel, the twelve tribes of the Hebrews who came out of Egypt and settled in Canaan. In virtually all occurrences in narrative literature, “Israel” means ethnic Israel, the nation of the Hebrews, the physical descendants of Jacob. There would need to be a strong reason for you to interpret “Israel” otherwise.

BIBLICAL PROPHECY. With the book of Isaiah, however, the Bible enters a new genre called biblical prophecy, and this new genre requires a new interpretive lens. When reading biblical prophecy, we must be alert for figurative and symbolic meanings rather than simply the literal. But the task of interpreting prophecy is more complex still because, even when the student correctly identifies the use of a figure or a symbol, the student must then determine the meaning of that figurative or symbolic word.

This process is the essence of interpreting biblical prophecy. When reading a given passage, the first question is, “Is this passage speaking figuratively or literally?” If figuratively, the second question is, “What do the symbols mean or what do the figures represent?” Once the meaning is determined, the third question is, “Based on the meaning of these symbols, what is the message that we are to take from this passage?” It is necessary to become skilled at this interpretive process if we are to mine the true riches of biblical prophecy.

THE IDENTITY OF “ISRAEL” AND “JACOB” IN ISAIAH 41-66

There are many examples of symbolic and figurative meanings in biblical prophecy, but perhaps the most significant example is the meaning of “Israel.” In our study passage of Isaiah 41-66, we will find that the word “Israel” (and its aliases or synonyms*) occurs many times, but the meaning of “Israel” is not the same in all cases. Correctly determining the intended meaning of “Israel” in Isaiah 41-66 is crucial to understanding the prophet’s message, both in individual sections and overall, because “Israel” has major theological and redemptive-historical significance. If we correctly interpret what the LORD is saying through Isaiah, we will find the beauty and the power of the LORD’s plan and we will see that plan unfolding in both Old and New Testament. If, however, we get the identity of “Israel” wrong, we will be confused about what the Lord is doing and about how and when Isaiah’s prophecies are ever fulfilled.

“ISRAEL” – MEANING 1. LITERAL – NATIONAL, ETHNIC ISRAEL

The first meaning of “Israel” is the literal one. There are times in Isaiah when “Israel” means the same thing that it means in an historical narrative. That is, sometimes “Israel” is to be understood literally, referring to ethnic Israel, the nation of the Hebrews, the twelve tribes that came out of Egypt and settled in the Promised Land, the physical descendants of Jacob.

There are several characteristics about ethnic Israel which will help the student identify this meaning as the correct interpretation of “Israel” for a given passage. The most prominent characteristic is ethnic Israel’s persistent rebellion and disobedience. When the text is addressing Israel in their sin and rebellion and idolatry, we can assume that the prophet is speaking to national Israel. Also, if the text is speaking about an historical event that is occurring or has occurred, ethnic Israel is in view. Finally, this meaning of Israel has a temporary existence, since the idea of ethnic Israel came into being in Genesis 32:28 when “the man” who had wrestled with Jacob renamed him “Israel.” If the prophet is referring to Israel in temporal (not eternal) terms, he is speaking of ethnic, national Israel.

Usually this “Israel” which refers to ethnic Hebrews, to the physical descendants of Jacob, does not have aliases. These are “the sons of Israel,” “the house of Israel” or simply “Israel.”

“ISRAEL” – MEANING 2. FIGURATIVE – TRUE, ELECT ISRAEL

The second possible meaning of “Israel” uses the name as a figurative reference to true Israel, to those who were chosen by God for salvation before the foundation of the world. In this case, “Israel” is referring to the elect, to those who will be called to salvation and who will be justified and glorified (Romans 8:30). For them, the LORD is a Redeemer and a Savior, and so they are redeemed and saved in time. True Israel is eternal, having existed in eternity past when God elected them to salvation (Eph. 1:4) and true Israel is going to exist forever in the new heaven and the new earth as those who will be worshiping before the throne and before the Lamb forever and ever (Rev. 7:9-17).

We will see in our study of Isaiah 41-66 that true, eternal “Israel” has a number of aliases (synonyms), including “Jacob,” “Judah,” “Jerusalem,” Jeshurun,” and so on. We will make note of them as we progress through our studies.

Also, since in Isaiah we have entered the realm of biblical prophecy and are using our new interpretive lens, we now expect to encounter figurative and symbolic meanings in our study. In fact, as we progress through our studies in Isaiah, we will find that the figurative has become our default interpretation and that “Israel” as the elect of the LORD is our expected understanding of the passage.

SUMMARY

This article has presented that the idea that, in the prophecy of Isaiah, it is necessary for the student to correctly determine the identity of “Israel” in a given passage. “Israel” can be interpreted literally as meaning the twelve tribes of the Hebrews, the physical descendants of Jacob or it can be interpreted figuratively as meaning true Israel, the elect of God. Some characteristics of each of these two identities were given to help in determining which one might be correct for a given text.

In the next article, we will begin our studies with Isaiah 41:8-16 and see an application of this “identity of Israel” question.

Soli Deo gloria            rmb                 12/27/2023                 #687

Isaiah Series 01: Understanding Isaiah’s role as prophet

POST OVERVIEW. The first post in “The Isaiah Series,” a series of devotional studies based on selected passages from Isaiah 41-66. Each devotional study will seek to reveal the beauty and the power of Isaiah’s prophecy and will interpret the meaning of the passage so that the disciple of Jesus is encouraged.

This study will serve both as a preamble for the series and as a description the role of the prophet in biblical prophecy.

This post inaugurates what I hope to be a series of devotional studies covering the writings of Isaiah from chapter 41 through the end of the book in chapter 66.

THE ROLE OF THE PROPHET IN BIBLICAL PROPHECY

The prophecy of Isaiah is some of the finest prose ever penned in terms of its rhetorical quality. The imagery Isaiah evokes and the mystery and power of the LORD that he conveys are breathtaking. But Isaiah is not the focus of his book. In fact, for all the accolades that could be heaped on this man, Isaiah’s personal characteristics and his own thoughts and opinions disappear and are rendered inoperative as the LORD’s voice thunders forth His divine truth. For all his literary talent, Isaiah the prophet was merely the human conduit through whom the LORD spoke His message. The son of Amoz became a chosen instrument, an amanuensis appointed to precisely record the words dictated to him by the Spirit of the living God. For we know that “all Scripture is God-breathed” (2 Tim. 3:16), and if God breathes out the Word, then His scribe must merely record what he hears. We also know that the Old Testament prophets often did not understand what they themselves wrote but obediently wrote God’s Word as they received it, knowing that God would use His Word for His glory (1 Peter 1:10-12). Finally we know that God’s Word is sure because it is not made up by an act of human will but was written by “men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:19-21).

And so it is that when we read the powerful words of Isaiah’s prophecy, we read not the mere musings of a Hebrew man who lived in the 8th century before Christ, but we read the words of the eternal God. Through His chosen instrument the infinite God infinitely condescends to communicate His truth to His people. The goal of these studies is to understand the message of the LORD in these passages so that we may be edified and we may glorify the LORD with our lives.

Soli Deo gloria            rmb                 12/4/2023                   #680

The Eschatology of Isaiah – 27:1 Punish Leviathan, Slay the Dragon

The prophet Isaiah wrote powerful prophecies not only of the events of Jesus the Messiah’s first advent, but also about the events of that day, the final day when the glorified Jesus Christ, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the resurrected Lamb of God, returns from heaven on a white horse (Revelation 19:11ff) to judge all the earth.

It is Isaiah’s eschatology that we have been exploring in this series of studies from one brief passage of four verses, Isaiah 26:19-27:1. Here the prophet tells us of things to come at the end of time. As we have seen in the post of December 1 of last year, Isaiah 26:19 told us about the great final resurrection of the dead when the tomb will become a womb and the dust will give birth to those who will sing for joy. A little later in December of 2019, we examined Isaiah 26:20, where the prophet writes about the time of tribulation of God’s people. We recently (October 2, 2020) examined the next verse in the passage in which the prophet tells us about when “the LORD is coming out of His place,” telling of when Jesus returns. This post will be the final one of the four, examining Isaiah 27:1, which tells of the punishing of Leviathan and the killing of the dragon, and seeing how this relates to the events surrounding the return of the Lord Jesus from heaven.

PART 4 – The LORD will punish the serpent and will slay the dragon

“In that day the Lord with His hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent and He will slay the dragon that is in the sea.”

In the context of this passage that we have studied, in the context of what we can now see as a vision of Christ’s return, the meaning of this verse must be obvious. What to Isaiah the prophet must have been puzzling and mysterious, to us with the New Testament is clear. For Jesus the Messiah has already come to fulfill the prophecies of His first advent and has told us Himself of His imminent return. In the book of Revelation, we read of precisely these events coming to pass at the end of the age, exactly consistent with the other events surrounding the Second Coming of the Lord. Isaiah has already told us of the resurrection of the dead, of the great tribulation that will come upon God’s people, and of the glorious time when the Lord Himself will come from heaven. Now Isaiah tells us what will become of Leviathan the fleeing serpent and the dragon.

  • In that day – What day? This expression, “in that day,” is used throughout the writings of the Old Testament prophets and almost always refers to “the day of the LORD.” So here, Isaiah is making a reference to the day of the LORD, that day when the LORD will return to judge the earth. The prophets describe this as a terrifying day, a day when the unrighteous will find no place to hide and when the LORD will recompense all sin. That is the day tIsaiah intends here.
  • Leviathan the fleeing serpent – Who is Leviathan? Although there are several Old Testament passages that speak of Leviathan, the creature’s exact identity is difficult to determine. The overall impression is that “Leviathan” is a picture of evil, and of threat and destruction. Leviathan is dangerous and foreboding, and his appearance brings with it imminent threat. The background music strikes a minor key. That is certainly the picture here.
  • But notice that Leviathan is no longer the hunter but is the hunted. Leviathan, that creature of chaos and destruction, is fleeing from the LORD’s “hard and great and strong sword.” His imminent doom is certain, for the LORD’s sword never returns to its sheath until it has accomplished its work. The LORD’s sword “will punish Leviathan.” “Punish” describes the reason for the LORD’s sword (to punish for evil), but the effect is the death of Leviathan. The LORD says, “I have created the smith who produces a weapon for its purpose (Isaiah 54:16).” The LORD’s sword is created to kill the LORD’s enemies. When Leviathan is punished, it will certainly be slain.
  • Leviathan is a fleeing serpent and a twisting serpent – Observe carefully the descriptions of Leviathan. Twice he is called a serpent. Now it is time for Bible 101. “Who is the serpent?” This is the one who tempted Eve in the Garden and thus led man into sin. This is the one who is called that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world (Revelation 12:9).” Yes, in this context, Leviathan is another word for the devil and Satan.
  • Leviathan, the serpent, is also the dragon – We know that the Bible is written such that what appears later sheds light on what was written formerly. For example, what was written in the New Testament sheds light on and informs what was written in the Old Testament. Therefore, based on Revelation 12:9, we just confirmed that Leviathan, the serpent, is also the devil, the serpent. Now, from that same verse (Revelation 12:9) we can see that the serpent is the dragon, for it is the dragon who is explicitly identified as the serpent (“the great dragon, that ancient serpent”). It can thus be concluded that Isaiah 27:1 is not about the destruction of two creatures, Leviathan and the dragon, but is actually about the slaying of the one creature, the dragon. And we know from the New Testament that the dragon is a symbol for Satan.
  • OUR CONCLUSION – What we see is that Isaiah 27:1 is prophesying the slaying of Satan on the final day, “in that day,” when the Lord Jesus comes from heaven on the day of His glorious return. And that is exactly what we find described in the book of Revelation. On that day, Jesus returns from heaven on a white horse with a sharp sword in His mouth to strike down the nations. Then “He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty (Rev. 19:11, 15).” His final act of judgment will be “the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where (he) will be tormented day and night forever and ever (Revelation 20:10).” Isaiah has seen the events of the last day.

SUMMARY OF THE PASSAGE

            In this four-part study, it has been shown that Isaiah, the son of Amoz, who lived 700 years before Jesus the Messiah’s first advent, prophesied the events of Jesus’ Second Coming with great accuracy. As we compare Isaiah 26:19-21 and 27:1 with the prophecies of Jesus’ Second Coming in the New Testament, we see the resurrection of the dead, the testing of God’s people, the great coming of the Lord, and the punishment and destruction of Satan all predicted. To me, there are two applications of this.

  • First, I am again convinced of the Bible’s being breathed out by God (2 Timothy 3:16), for there is no other explanation for the Bible’s supernatural accuracy.
  • Second, it reminds me that there is a final day coming when all the joys and difficulties of all the ages will come to an end. There is coming a day, perhaps very soon, when Jesus will come from heaven with a shout. Jesus will come on a white horse with a sword to judge the unrighteous without mercy. It reminds me that “the Lord is a warrior (Exodus 15:3)” and that His favor will not be extended forever; there is coming a terrible day of the Lord. It reminds me that I have been promised persecution in this world, but that Jesus has also promised me an eternity with Him in heaven. It reminds me that I am to warn the unrighteous of their need for a Savior.

SDG                 rmb                 10/08/2020

The Eschatology of Isaiah – 26:21 The Coming of the LORD

The prophet Isaiah wrote powerful prophecies not only of the events of Jesus the Messiah’s first advent, but also about the events of that day, the final day when the glorified Jesus Christ, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the resurrected Lamb of God, returns from heaven on a white horse (Revelation 19:11ff) to judge all the earth.

It is Isaiah’s eschatology that we have been exploring in this series of studies, from one brief passage of four verses, Isaiah 26:19-27:1. Here the prophet tells us of things to come at the end of time. As we have seen in the post of December 1 of last year, Isaiah 26:19 told us about the great final resurrection of the dead when the tomb will become a womb and the dust will give birth to those who will sing for joy. A little later, in late December of 2019, we examined Isaiah 26:20, where the prophet writes about the time of tribulation of God’s people. Now, about nine months later, I want to examine the next verse in the passage in which the prophet tells us about when “the LORD is coming out of His place.”

PART 3 – The LORD is coming out of His place – 26:21

“For behold, the LORD is coming out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity, and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it and will no more cover the slain.”

There are definitely passages in the prophecy of Isaiah that are difficult to understand, but this is not one of them. Just to state the obvious, there will be a time in the future when “the LORD (YHWH) is coming out of His place.” For anyone familiar with the passages in the New Testament that talk about the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, the meaning of this phrase is clear. Isaiah is prophesying the return of the risen Christ at the end of the age to judge the living and the dead (confirm from Matt. 24:30-31; 25:31; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thess. 4:14-18; 2 Thess. 1:7-8; 2 Tim. 4:1-2; Titus 2:13; 1 Peter ; 1 John 3: ; Revelation 19:11-21; etc.) Revelation 19:11ff, for example, is virtually identical to Isaiah’s prophecy and will be used as a comparison in the exegesis below.

            Phrase by phrase, the passage in Isaiah 26:21 says:

  • The LORD is coming out of His place. The Bible confirms that, in this instance at least, “the LORD (YHWH)” is Jesus, and that He will be coming “out of His place.” “His place” is heaven. This is exactly what Rev. 19:11 says as heaven opens, and a white horse appears and seated on the horse is the one called Faithful and True.
  • To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. When Jesus returns to earth from heaven at the end of the age, He is coming to judge the living and the dead (2 Timothy 4:1). As Isaiah says in other words, He is coming to punish the unrighteous for their iniquity. Now is the favorable year of the LORD (Isaiah 61:2) when the gospel is proclaimed and men and women can repent and believe the gospel and be saved from the wrath to come. But when Jesus returns and is “revealed from heaven in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance (2 Thess. 1:7-8);” when “He judges and makes war,” “strikes down the nations,” and “treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty (Rev. 19:11, 15),” there will be no more repentance, but only punishment and recompense.
  • The earth will disclose the blood shed on it and will no more cover the slain. Without going through this phrase word by word, the meaning of this phrase is that, when the Lord returns in judgment at the end of the age, there will be no sin that will not be exposed to the light of God’s holiness and there will be no iniquity that will not receive the full fury of God’s judgment. In this age it can seem that the unrighteous prosper and seem to get away with murder (see Psalm 73, for example). While God’s judgment is delayed, people can believe that sin is not a big deal and that, because punishment is delayed, punishment for sin will never occur. But there is no sin that God does not see and record (Revelation 20:12-13 – “and the books were opened”). Every sin matters to God, because every sin of His people required the death of His Son on the cross, and because every sin of the unrighteous requires eternal punishment. So, there is no sin that escapes His notice. “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, for all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do (Hebrews 4:13).”
  • Because the Lord will return to bring wrath on the unrighteous, now is the day to repent and trust in Christ (2 Cor. 6:1-2). When Isaiah wrote his prophecy about the coming of the LORD in judgment, there were yet 700 years before the First Advent of the Lord Jesus. When Isaiah wrote his prophecy, there were no miracles of Jesus, there were no apostles, there was no perfect Man who fulfilled the Law, there was no cross, and there was no empty tomb, There was no gospel to proclaim that allows sinners to be saved. There was no New Testament which clearly tells of the coming judgment and of the return of the glorious Lord Jesus, and that warns men and women to repent before the time to repent is gone. But we have no such ignorance, and now the time is short. Soon, and very soon, the LORD is coming out of His place to judge. “Behold, NOW is the favorable time; behold NOW is the day of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2).”

What we have seen so far in our reading of Isaiah 26:19-21 is that, even though Isaiah wrote at least 700 years before the New Testament was written, his prophecies about the events of the Second Coming of Jesus the Messiah are entirely consistent with the prophecies of the New Testament. This is yet another confirmation of the “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16) nature of the entire Bible, and evidence that the same God who inspired Isaiah in his writings is also the God who inspired the New Testament authors. This should increase still more our confidence in the Scriptures and should persuade us that, when we handle the Bible, we are indeed handling the word of God.

The next post in this series will look at Isaiah 27:1 which will tell us more about the events surrounding the return of Jesus.

SDG                       rmb                        10/02/2020

Can the prey be taken from the mighty man?

24 “Can the prey be taken from the mighty man,
Or the captives of a tyrant be rescued?” – Isaiah 49:24

            Picture a scene in the dungeon of a medieval castle. There are two captives in the cell of the dungeon dressed in filthy tattered clothes. Their ankles are adorned with shackles and a ball-and-chain. At the door of the cell is an armed guard, muscular and cruel, who is talking to the king of the land, dressed in ermine and silk robes. This is the type of scene that the prophet Isaiah has in mind as he asks his question about the mighty man and the tyrant. Can this prey be taken, or can these captives be rescued? The operation seems hopeless. The mighty man is too strong, and the tyrant is too well-fortified. The captives are doomed, because where would you ever find a rescuer who would be willing and able to deliver such miserable wretches?       

WHO ARE THE CAPTIVES?

            To understand what the prophet Isaiah is saying by this illustration of captives and tyrants, we must realize that, in Bible prophecy, something greater than the actual picture is being communicated. Isaiah tells us of prey and captives who are oppressed by overwhelming enemies and troubles. He asks the question he does in 49:24 to highlight the impossibility of the rescue. We also know that biblical prophecy has universal application, meaning that the story of the captives and the tyrants is not a mythical story of folklore, but is a story that involves you and me. From these pieces of information, it becomes clear that we are the captives. You and I are the ones who need to be rescued from the tyrant. We are the prey of the mighty man.

WHO IS THE MIGHTY MAN AND THE TYRANT?

            If we are the captives and the prey, then to what or to whom are we captive? Who is this mighty man that holds us under his power?

            In one sense, the “mighty men” who hold us captive are all the things that cause damage and destruction in our life and in the lives of others. We all have these types of “tyrants” who oppress us and who seem to show up just when we want them least. These are “tyrants” like shame about our past or fear and anxiety about the future. The “mighty man” might come in the guise of loneliness, or feelings of failure or of hopelessness. Maybe they are anger or guilt or insecurities or jealousy. All of these can oppress us and hold us captive and in chains.

            But in the true sense, the “mighty man” who is holding us captive and who threatens to destroy our life is sin and all the manifestations and the effects of sin. Sin has been the great tyrant of mankind since Adam ate of the fruit in the Garden. Sin is the mighty man who oppresses us and abuses us and brings us under God’s wrath and condemnation. Jesus said that, “everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin (John 8:34).”

WHO CAN RESCUE THE CAPTIVES OF A TYRANT?

            Now we come to the crux of the matter. We now know that we are the captives and that sin is the tyrant and the mighty man, but there is also talk of a rescue.

25 Surely, thus says the Lord,

“Even the captives of the mighty man will be taken away,
And the prey of the tyrant will be rescued.

For I will contend with the one who contends with you,
And I will save your sons.”

            In the next verse, Isaiah 49:25, the prophet makes clear who will perform the rescue. It is none other than the LORD Himself! But we also need to keep in mind that, in this section of Isaiah, the prophet is telling about the LORD’s suffering servant who will come to rescue His people. Later, in the gospel of John, after declaring that “everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin,” Jesus goes on to say, “So if the Son sets you free, you shall be free indeed (John 8:34, 36).”

Thus, the full picture is revealed. We were held captive, enslaved to sin, with no ability to escape ourselves. But the LORD, in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, has the power to take away sin’s captives and to set them forever free. And the Son has set us free.

SDG                 rmb                  8/10/2020

The Eschatology of Isaiah – 26:19 The Resurrection

The prophet Isaiah wrote powerful prophecies not only of the events of Jesus’ first advent, but also about the events of that day, the final day when the glorified Jesus Christ, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the resurrected Lamb of God, returns from heaven on a white horse (Revelation 19:11ff) to judge all the earth.

It is Isaiah’s eschatology that I want to explore with this study, from one brief passage of four verses, Isaiah 26:19-27:1. Here the prophet tells us of things to come at the end of time. As we will see, Isaiah will tell us about the great final resurrection of the dead, about the time of tribulation of God’s people, about the coming of the Lord and about the destruction of Satan.

PART 1 – THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD – 26:19

“Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise.

You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy.

For your dew is a dew of light,

And the earth will give birth to the dead.” – Isaiah 26:19

This verse is certainly a prophecy of the great and final resurrection that will occur when Jesus the Messiah returns to end time. The words that Isaiah uses here are very similar to words that other biblical writers will use later in the Bible. In fact, what is remarkable about these words and expressions of Isaiah written about 700 BC is that they express the same eschatology as that of the Lord Jesus Himself and the same eschatology as the apostle Paul and other New Testament writers. Those who wrote God’s word wrote under the inspiration of the same Holy Spirit and so their theology is the same.

“Your dead shall live.” Surely this is as straightforward as it can be. When in human experience do dead people live? Dead people do not live. They have died, and their lives are over. Yet the prophet speaks of dead people living. The only possible explanation for the dead living is that they are resurrected, when those who were physically dead are raised to new life. This is not figurative, but literal. The dead shall live when they are raised to life by the command of Jesus Christ on the last day.

“Their bodies shall rise.” Now we can see that Isaiah is not talking about something figurative, for he mentions physical bodies. As biblical revelation unfolds, we will discover that, even if the bodies of believer’s ‘fall asleep’ and are buried and decay, yet they will be transformed into glorified bodies that will rise to meet Jesus Christ in the air (1 Thess. 4:14-18). At the last day, the glorified bodies of saints will rise. Isaiah speaks of this day and this event in this prophecy. The dead shall live, and their bodies shall rise.

“You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!” In this context, the phrase, “dwell in the dust,” refers to those who are dead and buried and whose bodies have gone back to the dust (Genesis 3:19; Psalm 103:14). Isaiah is saying the same thing that he said earlier in the verse using other words. Notice that this verse is a command. Those who dwell in the dust are commanded to “awake and sing for joy.” But how can “those who dwell in the dust” obey this command to awake and sing? The Lord Himself must cause their dead bodies to awake and to sing for joy. Isaiah is prophesying the resurrection of the last day. This is precisely what Jesus foretells in John 5:28-29, “when all who are in the tombs will hear the voice of the Son of Man and come out.” Jesus echoes the resurrection that Isaiah foretold. They are talking about the same event.

“And the earth will give birth to the dead.” Again, the imagery is unmistakable. Those who dwell in the dust of the earth will emerge and will live again. The earth will literally “give birth to the dead” as those who have been in the tombs and in the graves and in the caves and catacombs will rise. As the earth has received the dead, so there will come a time when the earth will yield up its dead. The tomb will become a womb as the earth gives birth to the dead. This is yet another phrase for describing the final, glorious resurrection of the dead at the end of time.

Seven hundred years before the birth of Jesus, Isaiah made astonishingly accurate prophecies about events at the end of the age. We have looked at the prophet’s eschatology with regard to the final resurrection when the dead bodies will rise. Next time we will see that Isaiah also foretold a time near the coming of the Lord when God’s people would need to hide from the fury, which I see as a reference to the tribulation.

SDG               rmb               12/01/2019