Isaiah 62-65
Revival and the Return of the Lord
Bestowing a New Name Is 62
Announcing a New Victory Is 63-64
Blessing of a New Creation Is 65
Intro: Grand Canyon
This summer we took a road trip as a family with our first stop being the Grand Canyon
Driving all that way and trying to convince our kids that a hole in the ground was cool was tough
Even walking up to it they were reluctant
Was it going to be fun? What are we going to do?
Typical questions kids have for something they can’t picture in their mind
Then there is that magical moment when they first see the majesty of that hole in the ground
It literally takes your breath away and leaves you speechless
I had been to the Grand Canyon before so I just watched their reactions and it was worth the trip
Sometimes we treat God’s word like the Grand Canyon
We miss the majesty of it all because we are too focused on what we’re going to get out of it
What’s in it for me? How can I benefit from it?
Especially when we hit passages that hard to understand
The end of Isaiah is like that. Lots of stuff that is hard to understand but so full of God’s majesty
When it's opened up we are blown away
Today we are going to look the Return of the Lord
Read Isaiah 62:1-4
Transition:
Isaiah startles us with the complexity of God.
He structures this passage around three main points.
First, God assures us that he’s preparing a place for us so great we’ll never want to leave
Thirdly, God reminds us of his steadfast love throughout our history—and in spite of us too
But between those two statements God reveals the triumphant anger of Christ, the bloodied victor in a war of vengeance against human evil (63:1–6).
Future promise, past faithfulness, bloody vengeance, all in one passage. Why?
Because God is not a simplistic person. He is complex
Isaiah invites us to look at the grandeur of God. His text is a Biblical Grand Canyon.
We step up to the edge, we take a long, thoughtful look, and we see more of God than we’ve ever seen before.
That’s helpful. How so?
We look at the world today, we see the brutality, the sufferings, the insecurity of our own lives, and we wonder, “God, are you asleep? Why don’t you do something about all this? You have the power. Why don’t you act?” That’s the way we think, looking at our surroundings.
But when we look beyond this world and enlarge our vision of God and accept him for all that he is, our frustrations melt, and we are strengthened to face anything
This passage answers the prayer of our hearts when we sing “Be Thou My Vision.”
Without a vision of Christ before us, we’re overwhelmed.
Without a clear view of Christ in his glory, all we can see is the world around us, and we’re thrown back on the defensive. We feel threatened.
We then become aggressive and complicate our problems still further.
But with Christ himself clearly before us, when his glory weighs upon us as it should, we know what to fear and what not to fear.
Bestowing a New Name Is 62
God will not hold His peace (Isa. 62:1-5)
God promises to keep speaking and working till His purposes for Jerusalem are fulfilled.
This is not only for the sake of Zion but also for the sake of the nations of the world.
There will be no righteousness and peace on this earth till Jerusalem gets her new name and becomes a crown of glory to the Lord.
Vs. 4 You shall be called “My Delight is in Her”
As an unfaithful wife, Israel was “forsaken” by the Lord, but not “divorced”.
Her trials will all be forgotten when she receives the new name “Hephzibah,” which means “my delight is in her.”
God delights in His people and enjoys giving them His best.
The idea of a new name also extends to Christians
In heaven, when our transformation is complete, we will receive a new name that matches our completely transformed nature.
The old name “Desolate” will be replaced by “Beulah,” which means “married” (see also 54:1).
When a bride marries, she receives a new name. In the case of Israel, she is already married to Jehovah; but she will get a new name when she is reconciled to Him.
Zeph 3:17 The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing
The watchmen must not hold their peace (Isa. 62:6–12).
God gave His people leaders to guide them, but they were not faithful (56:10).
Now He gives them faithful watchmen, who constantly remind God of His promises.
The watchmen are not critics; they are prayer warriors, who constantly pray, giving God “no rest” until God’s people and His city are restored.
Is 62:7 “Give Him no rest till He establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth”
What an encouragement to us to “pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Ps. 122:6).
God promises that the Jews will never again lose their harvests to the enemy but will enjoy the fruit of their labors in the very courts of His sanctuary. What a privilege!
Having received their Messiah, they will now clearly understand the spiritual meaning of their worship.
Today, their minds are veiled but then, their eyes will be opened.
2 Cor. 3:14 But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away
Isaiah 62:10 is another reference to “the highway”, and there is an urgency about these words.
The Lord is about to arrive, and the people must get the road ready!
When the work is completed, they must lift a banner to signal they are ready.
“See, your Savior comes!”
This is a proclamation that goes to the ends of the earth! And when He comes, He shares more new names: Israel is called “the Holy People” and “the Redeemed of the Lord”; and Jerusalem is called “Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted” (v. 12, NIV).
God will have no rest till He accomplishes His purposes for His people, and the world will have no peace till He succeeds. He asks us to “give Him no rest” (v. 7) but to intercede for Israel and Jerusalem, for the prayers of His people are an important part of the program of God.
Announcing a New Victory Is 63-64
The prophet looks ahead in 63:1–6 and sees Jesus Christ returning from the battle of Armageddon that climaxes the Day of the Lord
Rev. 19:11–16 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Edom is named here as a representative of the nations that have oppressed the Jews.
Bozrah was one of its main cities, and its name means “grape gathering.”
This is significant since the image here is that of the wine press
Joel 3:13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great
The name “Edom” means “red” and was a nickname for Esau (Gen. 25:30).
The ancient wine press was a large, hollowed rock into which the grapes were put for the people to tread on them.
The juice ran out a hole in the rock and was caught in vessels.
As the people crushed the grapes, some of the juice would splash on their garments.
Our Lord’s garments were dyed with blood as the result of the great victory over His enemies
When Jesus came to earth the first time, it was to inaugurate “the acceptable year of the Lord”
When He comes the second time, it will be to climax “the day of vengeance of our God”
The enemy will be crushed like grapes and forced to drink their own blood from the cup of God’s wrath.
These images may not appeal to sophisticated people today, but the Jews in that day fully understood them.
Then the prophet looks back at what God has done for Israel (Isa. 63:7–14).
He praises God for His loving-kindness and goodness, for the pity and love bestowed on Israel.
God identified with their sufferings as He does with His people today
1 Peter 5:6-7 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
The prophet looks up and calls on God to bare His arm and display His power
For Abraham’s sake, for Israel’s sake, because God is their Father, he pleads for a demonstration of power just as God did in the ancient days.
He asks God to “look down” (63:15) and to “come down” (64:1).
This is one of the greatest “revival prayers” found in Scripture.
Just as God came down in fire at Sinai, so let Him come down again and reveal His awesome power to the nations.
The Jews asked, “Where is our God who did wonders for His people? Why is He not working on our behalf?”
They trust in dead idols, so let them see what the living God of Israel can do!
Why is God not working wonders?
They have sinned (Isa. 64:5–6) and must confess their sins and turn from them.
If our righteousness is filthy, what must our sins look like in His sight!
According to verse 4, God has planned for His people wonderful things beyond their imagination; but their sins prevent Him from sharing His blessings.
1 Cor. 2:9 What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”
Eph. 3:20–21 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen
Is there any hope? Yes, because God is a forgiving Father and a patient Potter (Jer. 18).
He can cleanse us and make us anew if we will let Him have His way.
This prayer (and the believing remnant) ends with a question: Why is God silent?
His temple has been destroyed, His glorious land has been ravaged, and His people are in exile.
Is 64:12 “After all this, O Lord, will You hold Yourself back? Will You keep silent and punish us beyond measure?”
God’s reply is found in the next two chapters.
Blessing of a New Creation Is 65
“I will not keep silent, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom” (65:6).
God now replies.
First, He announces that His salvation will go to the Gentiles (v. 1), even though they did not seek the Lord or experience the blessings that He gave to Israel.
Paul applies this verse to the Gentiles
Romans 10:19–20 But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says, “I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation; with a foolish nation I will make you angry.” 20 Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, “I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”
If Israel did not want what God had to offer, then He would give it to others.
Then, God describes the sins of His people that kept Him from answering their prayers
They resisted His grace and His loving appeals, though He held out His arms to them and spoke to them through His Word
Rom. 10:21 But of Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”
They went their own way (Isa. 53:6) and provoked Him with their evil worship of false gods, getting involved with the occult and demons.
They ate food that was unclean and openly worshiped idols in the high places.
And yet these rebellious people considered themselves to be better than others! “I am holier than thou!”
God then explains that He had to judge the nation for her sins (65:8–16).
He called the Babylonians to be His instrument of punishment to teach His people that they could not sin and get away with it.
However, in mercy He preserved a remnant—like a few grapes rescued from the wine press—and that remnant would return to the land and restore the nation.
When His people sincerely seek Him (v. 10), then He will bless them
“The Valley of Achor” was the place where Achan was stoned to death because he disobeyed the Lord (Josh. 7).
When the Lord restores His estranged wife, Israel, the Valley of Achor will become for them “a door of hope”
In Isaiah 65:11–16, God sees two kind of people in the land:
Those who forsake the Lord and those who serve the Lord. (“My Servant” has now become “My servants.”)
Those who forsake the Lord ignore His temple and worship false gods, such as Fortune and Destiny (in v. 11, “that troop” and “that number”).
These disobedient Jews will not live but be destroyed, and those who do survive will not enjoy it.
In fact, their very names will be used as curses in the years to come!
God saves the best for the last: His description of “the new heavens and new earth” (the millennial kingdom) in 65:17–66:24.
aBehold, I create new heavens and a new earth:
As the ultimate answer to the problem of man’s sin, God will create a new heavens and a new earth. This takes place after the millennium, the glorious thousand-year reign of Jesus Christ, when this very earth and sky is done away with and God makes a new heavens and a new earth.
Peter used this promise to encourage believers to holy living:
2 Peter 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells
In the book of Revelation, John also sees this: And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea (Revelation 21:1).
From John’s context we see that this new heavens and a new earth comes after the Great White Throne judgment (Revelation 20:11-15) and is connected not with the millennial earth, but with the eternal state.
If all we had to go by was Isaiah’s statement, we would automatically connect this new heavens and a new earth with the millennial earth, because immediately after Isaiah 65:17-19, we clearly find the millennial earth described.
But based on what we find in 2 Peter and Revelation, we must see that Isaiah is in the prophetic habit of switching quickly from one time frame to another, speaking of the eternal state in Isaiah 65:17, and of the millennial earth in Isaiah 65:20-25.
Closing:
