ISAIAH CHAPTER 2 ---------------- 1) The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. a) Again we see that this prophecy concerns Judah and the city of Jerusalem. Gill has in his exposition "the church and what shall befall the people of God in the latter day." However our verse says nothing about the church. That was a mystery. The following verses are prophetic concerning the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ on the earth. While we think that the Church will be part of that reign, yet Israel and Jerusalem will be the center of attention during that Golden Age. 2) And it shall come to pass in the last days, [that] the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. 3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. a) Mountains are usually symbolic of Kingdoms: Compare: Da 2:34 Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. This was the Stone which the builders refused, Jesus Christ, whose reign will fill the whole earth during the Golden Age. b) Gill thinks this to be the Church age and completely spiritualizes the whole thing. He says that the mountain of the Lord's house is the church since the New Testament does call the church the Lord's house. 1Ti 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. He does admit however that the part of verse 4 where it says "they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" must be yet future because that has never happened during the Gospel period as of yet. c) While the Church is the house of God during this present time, yet this verse is speaking about a future time during the reign of Christ physically and in person on the earth, and concerns the seat of that reign. d) he will teach: Christ himself, and not through the Church but personnally. e) The seat of Christ's government will be Jerusalem and not London or Washington D.C. I realize that the Word of God did spread forth from Jerusalem in the beginning of the Church age, but our verse concerns the Golden Age. Ps 48:8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it for ever. Selah. Zech 8:2 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury. 3 Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain. Zech 14:17 And it shall be, [that] whoso will not come up of [all] the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. Joel 3:17 So shall ye know that I [am] the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more. 18 And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim. f) The form of this Government: That Christ will have a government is established from Isaiah. Isa 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of [his] government and peace [there shall be] no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. It will be a theocratic form of government and not democratic. It will be God ruling as king over the entire kingdom. Zec 14:8 And it shall be in that day, [that] living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. 9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. ( see verses 1-7 for context - end time ) g) The scope of this government: "all nations shall flow unto it." While it is true that out of all nations (Gentiles) the gospel has saved many people, yet we see here something different. This is discriptive of a time in which Christ will rule over all nations. Verse 4 gives us a picture of the scene, "And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people..." This is not symbolic of the Gospel Church but a govenment in which all nations are ruled. The scope of this government will be worldwide. Ps 72:7 In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. 8 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. 9 They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust. 10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. 11 Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him. Da 2:44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, [but] it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Da 7:14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that ALL people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed. Zech 9:10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion [shall be] from sea [even] to sea, and from the river [even] to the ENDS OF THE EARTH. Re 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of THIS WORLD are become [the kingdoms] of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. h) The character of his government: "He will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem." His ways are the ways of righteousness. Ps 72:2 He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment. Ps 96:13 Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth. Ps 98:9 Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity. Rev 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. Isa 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: 2 And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; 3 And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: 4 But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. 5 And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. 6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. Jer 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. i) The results of this reign: It will be the "Golden Age" that the world has longed to see, but it will be brought about by God ruling and not by the goodness of men. The world will be at peace because the "prince of peace" will be ruling with a rod of iron. Verse 4 says, "And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." Ps 46:8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he hath made in the earth. 9 He MAKETH WARS TO CEASE UNTO THE END OF THE EARTH; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. 10 Be still, and know that I [am] God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. j) The Law and the kingdom: "for out of Zion shall go forth the LAW." What is the purpose of the law? We know that a man is not saved by the law. The law convicts of sin. Kingdoms must have laws while sinners remain in them. Mic 4:2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the LAW shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 3 And he shall JUDGE among many people, and REBUKE strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. COMPARE WITH: 1Ti 1:9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, There will be sinners in the kingdom: Isa 65:20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the SINNER [being] an hundred years old shall be accursed. Verse 4 said, "And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people..." Only sinners need to be rebuked. In Isa 9:7 it says, "and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever." ( Only a kingdom in which there are sinners needs to be established with judgement and justice.) These sinners that are not saved will be destroyed at the end of the Golden Age. It will be a testimony to the depravity of man, that even though there will be 1000 years of peace Satan will be able to entice sinners to revolt against God. Rev 20: 7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom [is] as the sand of the sea. 9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. 10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet [are], and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. k) Before this kingdom comes, SATAN WILL TRY AND COUNTERFEIT THIS KINGDOM. 1Th 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. Da 8:25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify [himself] in his heart, and by PEACE shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand. Satan through the Antichrist will set up his counterfeit kingdom which seems to be worlwide. Rev 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. 5) O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD. a) Does this verse go with the preceeding verses in which is described the Millennium or does it go with what follows? Is it a call from the Lord through the Prophet to the House of Jacob in his time, or the end times, or the Millennial period. Gill says could be a call from the Gentiles to the House of Jacob. Matthew Henry says concerning verses 1-9, "The calling of the Gentiles, the spread of the gospel, and that far more extensive preaching of it yet to come, are foretold. Let Christians strengthen one another, and support one another. It is God who teaches his people, by his word and Spirit. Christ promotes peace, as well as holiness. If all men were real Christians, there could be no war; but nothing answering to these expressions has yet taken place on the earth." It seems that Matthew Henry nor Gill see verses 2-4 as Christ's Millennial reign on earth. b) Gill says the light of Christ or the Gospel of Christ. 6) Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and [are] soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers. 7 Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither [is there any] end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither [is there any] end of their chariots: 8 Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made: 9 And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not. a) Gill: "What is hereafter said does not agree with the Jews, literally understood, neither in the times of Isaiah, nor when they returned from Babylon, nor in the times of Christ, nor since the destruction of Jerusalem, or in the latter day, a little before their conversion; for after the Babylonish captivity they were not given to idolatry, nor did they abound in riches, and much less since their dispersion among the nations; nor will this be their case in the latter day: wherefore Kimchi applies the whole to the times of Solomon, when the land abounded with gold and silver, with horses and chariots, and with idolatry also, in the latter part of his life: but it seems best to interpret this of antichrist and his followers, who call themselves the people of God, and the house of Jacob, say they are Jews, but are not, and are of the synagogue of Satan; and are therefore rejected of the Lord, and will be given up to utter ruin and destruction, for the evils found in them, hereafter charged with." Our verse however says "thy people the house of Jacob" NOT those who call themselves the house of Jacob. Verse 1 of our chapter says, "concerning Judah and Jerusalem." b) replenished from the east, and [are] soothsayers: In the Poel stem to practise soothsaying, conjure 1) to observe times, practice soothsaying or spiritism or magic or augury or witchcraft 2) soothsayer, enchanter, sorceress, diviner, fortuneteller, barbarian, Meonenim (participle) Compare: 2Ch 33:1-11 This was done by Manasseh who was the son of Hezekiah who was reigning at the end of Isaiah's time. Compare: Rev 9:21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. Babylon: Rev 18:23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. Isa 47:9 But these two [things] shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, [and] for the great abundance of thine enchantments. ( "O virgin daughter of Babylon" vs 1 ) c) Idolatry in the Book of Revelation: Re 9:20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: d) Riches in the Book of Revelation: (Babylon) Re 18:3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. Re 18:15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, Re 18:17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, Re 18:19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate. e) Gill applies verses 7-9 to Popery. Idols of the Virgin Mary, the riches of the Catholic Church, who claim to be the people of God, but are not. This is speaking of israel in the past or yet future during the latter time and into the beginning of the reign of Antichrist. It seems that verses 10-22 give us the time frame in which this happens. It is the "day of the LORD" (vs 12). 10) Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty. 11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. 12 For the day of the LORD of hosts [shall be] upon every [one that is] proud and lofty, and upon every [one that is] lifted up; and he shall be brought low: 13 And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, [that are] high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan, 14 And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills [that are] lifted up, 15 And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall, 16 And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures. 17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. 18 And the idols he shall utterly abolish. 19 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. 20 In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made [each one] for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; 21 To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. 22 Cease ye from man, whose breath [is] in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of? a) These verses speak of the "day of the Lord," when "he ariseth to shake terribly the earth" (vs 21). Ho 10:8 The high places also of Aven, the SIN OF ISRAEL, shall be destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; and to the hills, Fall on us. Lu 23:30 Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us. Re 6:15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; Re 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: b) loftiness of man shall be bowed down: Isa 13:11 And I will punish the world for [their] evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. (Read Isa 13:1-11 for context) Gill says, especially of the man of Sin. c) the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day: This will mark the beginning of the 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth. Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become [the kingdoms] of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. Zec 14: 9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. Isa 2:2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, [that] the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. d) Matthew Henry on verses 10-22: "The taking of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans seems first meant here, when idolatry among the Jews was done away; but our thoughts are led forward to the destruction of all the enemies of Christ. It is folly for those who are pursued by the wrath of God, to think to hide or shelter themselves from it. The shaking of the earth will be terrible to those who set their affections on things of the earth. Men's haughtiness will be brought down, either by the grace of God convincing them of the evil of pride, or by the providence of God depriving them of all the things they were proud of. The day of the Lord shall be upon those things in which they put their confidence. Those who will not be reasoned out of their sins, sooner or later shall be frightened out of them. Covetous men make money their god; but the time will come when they will feel it as much their burden. This whole passage may be applied to the case of an awakened sinner, ready to leave all that his soul may be saved. The Jews were prone to rely on their heathen neighbours; but they are here called upon to cease from depending on mortal man. We are all prone to the same sin. Then let not man be your fear, let not him be your hope; but let your hope be in the Lord your God. Let us make this our great concern." e) It seems that when we place it all together, that history will repeat itself in the last days. Israel will again be guilty of sorcery, and idolatry. Notice verses 5-9 says that the house of jacob was guilty of idolatry, living in riches, and practices of the east. And then in verses 10-22 we see the day of God's wrath against these very things. f) cedars of Lebanon, ... the oaks of Bashan": Gill says this referrs to kings and princes and nobels in the last time. Isa 14:8 Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, [and] the cedars of Lebanon, [saying], Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us. ( When the antichrist is destroyed. ) Isa 44:14 refers to making of idols: Isa 44:14 He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it. g) upon all the ships of Tarshish: Tarshish or Tharshish = "yellow jasper" 1) a city of the Phoenicians in a distant part of the Mediterranean Sea to which the prophet Jonah was trying to flee 1a) site unknown but perhaps in Cyprus or Spain 2) a city somewhere near and accessible to the Red Sea to which ships constructed at Ezion-geber on the Elanitic Gulf on the Red Sea were to sail Rev 18:17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, h) The connection of Israel with end time Babylon: Rev 18:18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What [city is] like unto this great city! 19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate. 20 Rejoice over her, [thou] heaven, and [ye] holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her. Mat 23:29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? 34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: 35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. 36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. 37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. i) There will be believing Jews in end-time Babylon: READ: Jer 50:1-8. Notice "... the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together..." (vs 4) Verse 8, they come "out of the midst," or the middle "of Babylon." If there are believing Jews, then there will probably be unbelieving Jews there also.