Isaiah 25, 26, 27

So tonight is one week from Christmas Day.

Tonight we will continue in our journey into Isaiah’s prophesies. Remember Isaiah is quoted more than any other prophet in the NT. Some refer to it as the 5th gospel as it has so much about Jesus. Isaiah has 66 chapters, the bible has 66 books. Isaiah can be divided in two halves 1- 39, the OT has 39 books, and 40 - 66, 27 chapters the NT has 27 books.

We ended last week completing chapter 24 and we mentioned that this section, ch 24 - 27, are referred to as the little apocalypse as Isaiah is focusing now on the that entire world at the very end.

1 O LORD, You are my God.

​​I will exalt You,

​​I will praise Your name,

​​For You have done wonderful things;

​​Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

Here we are continuing the thought of ch 24 where the tribulation saints are praising and exalting the Lord. When Jesus is your Lord you cannot help but praise Him. Just think of it, the Creator of all there is has called you by name and it pleased Him to bring you into His family. It doesn’t get better than that!

He says, ​​For You have done wonderful things; what things? look at

​​3 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,

​​The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,

4 ​​What is man that You are mindful of him,

​​And the son of man that You visit him?

5 ​​For You have made him a little lower than the angels,

​​And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

6 ​​You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;

​​You have put all things under his feet,

7 ​​All sheep and oxen—

​​Even the beasts of the field,

8 ​​The birds of the air,

​​And the fish of the sea

​​That pass through the paths of the seas.

9 ​​O LORD, our Lord,

​​How excellent is Your name in all the earth!

2 ​​For You have made a city a ruin,

​​A fortified city a ruin,

​​A palace of foreigners to be a city no more;

​​It will never be rebuilt.

3 ​​Therefore the strong people will glorify You;

​​The city of the terrible nations will fear You.

4 ​​For You have been a strength to the poor,

​​A strength to the needy in his distress,

​​A refuge from the storm,

​​A shade from the heat;

​​For the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.

5 ​​You will reduce the noise of aliens,

​​As heat in a dry place;

​​As heat in the shadow of a cloud,

​​The song of the terrible ones will be diminished.

God always has a heart for the poor and needy, verse 4. it reminds me of God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.

Sometimes when we are in trouble we forget that God is there. Run to Him. .. the name of the Lord is a strong tower the righteous run into Him and are saved.

Interestingly the word for song in verse 5 can also be translated “branch” ( as in KJV) and may be a play on words to contrast the “Branch out of Jesse” (Jesus) with the branch out of Satan, the Antichrist.

Isaiah continues:

6 ​​And in this mountain

​​The LORD of hosts will make for all people

​​A feast of choice pieces,

​​A feast of wines on the lees,

​​Of fat things full of marrow,

​​Of well-refined wines on the lees.

In several places, the Bible speaks of what is often called the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. says, Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb! According to , we might say that this great feast takes place on earth, not in heaven.

Did you know that Jesus is really looking forward to this banquet. He said to His disciples at the Last Supper, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom (). In this, Jesus spoke of His longing expectation for the day when He would take communion with His people at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Jesus is excited about this event; are you?

7 ​​And He will destroy on this mountain

​​The surface of the covering cast over all people,

​​And the veil that is spread over all nations.

The picture is that there is a veil that is spread over all nations that keeps them from seeing God, loving God, and obeying God. In this glorious day, the LORD will destroy that veil.

8 ​​He will swallow up death forever,

​​And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces;

​​The rebuke of His people

​​He will take away from all the earth;

​​For the LORD has spoken.

​This is the great hope of all believers, that death is done away with! Death came because of sin but then sin is all gone. I can hardly wait.

There has been much sadness on this earth, many tears but then God Himself shall wipe away your tears. How beautiful!

9 ​​And it will be said in that day:

​​“Behold, this is our God;

​​We have waited for Him, and He will save us.

​​This is the LORD;

​​We have waited for Him;

​​We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”

Do ever fell like it is a long wait but here the waiting is over.

​​​For on this mountain the hand of the LORD will rest,

​​And Moab shall be trampled down under Him,

Moab and Edom are sometimes used idiomatically for false believers.

​​As straw is trampled down for the refuse heap.

11 ​​And He will spread out His hands in their midst

​​As a swimmer reaches out to swim,

​​And He will bring down their pride

​​Together with the trickery of their hands.

12 ​​The fortress of the high fort of your walls

​​He will bring down, lay low,

​​And bring to the ground, down to the dust.

All pride will be taken down, the picture here is of a swimmer reaching out to stroke so God will swat down all pride and crush it to the dust.

Chapter 26

1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

​Remember, that Day is when Jesus is ruling on the earth at Mt Zion.

​​“We have a strong city;

​​God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks.

2 ​​Open the gates,

​​That the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in.

3 ​​You will keep him in perfect peace,

​​Whose mind is stayed on You,

​​Because he trusts in You.

We could talk about this verse all night. Memorize this one. If you lack peace Focus your thoughts on the Lord. The Hebrew word for “stayed” is camak , it means to lean, lay, rest, support, put, uphold, lean upon. Paul alluding to Isaiah when he wrote in

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

4 ​​Trust in the LORD forever,

​​For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.

5 ​​For He brings down those who dwell on high,

​​The lofty city;

​​He lays it low,

​​He lays it low to the ground,

​​He brings it down to the dust.

6 ​​The foot shall tread it down—

​​The feet of the poor

​​And the steps of the needy.”

7 ​​The way of the just is uprightness;

​​O Most Upright,

​​You weigh the path of the just.

8 ​​Yes, in the way of Your judgments,

​​O LORD, we have waited for You;

​​The desire of our soul is for Your name

​​And for the remembrance of You.

9 ​​With my soul I have desired You in the night,

​​Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early;

​​For when Your judgments are in the earth,

​​The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

10 ​​Let grace be shown to the wicked,

​​Yet he will not learn righteousness;

​​In the land of uprightness he will deal unjustly,

​​And will not behold the majesty of the LORD.

11 ​​LORD, when Your hand is lifted up, they will not see.

​​But they will see and be ashamed

​​For their envy of people;

​​Yes, the fire of Your enemies shall devour them.

Even in that day some will rebel but Gods retribution will be immediate.

12 ​​LORD, You will establish peace for us,

​​For You have also done all our works in us.

Did you realize that all the good works you do were prepared ahead of time by God? For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

13 ​​O LORD our God, masters besides You

​​Have had dominion over us;

Other masters include Satan, the reason for all in justice.

​​But by You only we make mention of Your name.

14 ​​They are dead, they will not live;

​​They are deceased, they will not rise.

​​Therefore You have punished and destroyed them,

​​And made all their memory to perish.

15 ​​You have increased the nation, O LORD,

​​You have increased the nation;

​​You are glorified;

​​You have expanded all the borders of the land.

16 ​​LORD, in trouble they have visited You,

​​They poured out a prayer when Your chastening was upon them.

17 ​​As a woman with child

​​Is in pain and cries out in her pangs,

​​When she draws near the time of her delivery,

​​So have we been in Your sight, O LORD.

Note the idiom of ChildBirth - birth pangs.

18 ​​We have been with child, we have been in pain;

​​We have, as it were, brought forth wind;

​​We have not accomplished any deliverance in the earth,

​​Nor have the inhabitants of the world fallen.

Verses 19 - 20 are very interesting:

19 ​​Your dead shall live;

​​Together with my dead body they shall arise.

​​Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust;

​​For your dew is like the dew of herbs,

​​And the earth shall cast out the dead.

Take Refuge from the Coming Judgment

This seems to be referring to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Look at

​51 Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, 52 and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

20 ​​Come, my people, enter your chambers,

​​And shut your doors behind you;

​​Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment,

​​Until the indignation is past.

21 ​​For behold, the LORD comes out of His place

​​To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity;

​​The earth will also disclose her blood,

​​And will no more cover her slain.

Now here, we have a picture of the Rapture of the Church. Look at After these things (meta tauta) I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”

Chambers refers to - in my Fathers house are many dwelling places

We are hidden until, the indignation is past. Paul wrote in :For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, Verse 21 tells us that this is His Wrath, the LORD comes out of His place

​​To punish the inhabitants of the earth.

Thank God we will not be here.

Chapter 27

Israel Will Be Restored

1 In that day the LORD with His severe sword, great and strong,

​​Will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent,

​​Leviathan that twisted serpent;

​​And He will slay the reptile that is in the sea.

So what is meant here by Leviathan? Some see Leviathan as alluding to the enemies of Israel but more likely it is referring to Satan himself.

What do we know about Leviathan from other passages of Scripture? Leviathan is referred to in passages like , , , and . These passages reinforce the idea of Leviathan as a mighty, serpent-like creature, connected with the sea, who resists God and will be crushed by the LORD.

We are familiar with the reference to Satan as a serpent (), but here the picture is of a sea-serpent or a perhaps what we would know as a dragon. This reference may be a literal reference, and at some point in history, either past or present, Satan may manifest himself as monster connected with the sea. Certainly, Revelation uses this imagery in describing the emergence of the Antichrist ().

The Restoration of Israel

2 ​​In that day sing to her,

​​“A vineyard of red wine!

3 ​​I, the LORD, keep it,

​​I water it every moment;

​​Lest any hurt it,

​​I keep it night and day.

4 ​​Fury is not in Me.

​​Who would set briers and thorns

​​Against Me in battle?

​​I would go through them,

​​I would burn them together.

5 ​​Or let him take hold of My strength,

​​That he may make peace with Me;

​​And he shall make peace with Me.”

6 ​​Those who come He shall cause to take root in Jacob;

​​Israel shall blossom and bud,

​​And fill the face of the world with fruit.

This prophesy is true today. Israel supplies fruit to the whole world now. Third largest exporter of fruit in the world.

7 ​​Has He struck Israel as He struck those who struck him?

​​Or has He been slain according to the slaughter of those who were slain by Him?

8 ​​In measure, by sending it away,

​​You contended with it.

​​He removes it by His rough wind

​​In the day of the east wind.

9 ​​Therefore by this the iniquity of Jacob will be covered;

​​And this is all the fruit of taking away his sin:

​​When he makes all the stones of the altar

​​Like chalkstones that are beaten to dust,

​​Wooden images and incense altars shall not stand.

The LORD shows His mercy to Israel, in that even though the LORD struck Israel when Israel went astray, He did not strike Israel as severely as He did the other nations that went astray.​ The iniquity of Jacob will be covered: The LORD shows His mercy to Israel in that He covers their sin. This is ultimately fulfilled in the Kingdom of the Messiah, when all Israel will be saved ().

10 ​​Yet the fortified city will be desolate,

​​The habitation forsaken and left like a wilderness;

​​There the calf will feed, and there it will lie down

​​And consume its branches.

11 ​​When its boughs are withered, they will be broken off;

​​The women come and set them on fire.

​​For it is a people of no understanding;

​​Therefore He who made them will not have mercy on them,

​​And He who formed them will show them no favor.

Here God is talking about the “city of man” or the world system that will not stand. Only God’s kingdom will survive.

12 ​​And it shall come to pass in that day

​​That the LORD will thresh,

​​From the channel of the River to the Brook of Egypt;

​​And you will be gathered one by one,

​​O you children of Israel.

13 ​​So it shall be in that day:

​​The great trumpet will be blown;

​​They will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria,

​​And they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt,

​​And shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.

Finally here we see a remnant out of Assyria and Egypt worshipping the Lord on Mt Zion in Jerusalem. Echos were Assyria Egypt and Israel are worshipping the Lord together.