Biblical Research Studies Group-The Message of the Prophet Isaiah-The Final Call For Israel To Lay Aside Formalism and Wickednes and To Accept Her Messiah

Dr. D.L. Cooper Commentary On Isaiah Biblical Research Monthly-March 1946

THE FINAL CALL FOR ISRAEL TO LAY ASIDE FORMALISM AND WICKEDNESS AND TO ACCEPT HER MESSIAH Chapters 58, 59, 60

Chapters 58, 59, and 60 constitute a single literary unit, a sermon. In chapter 58 the prophet calls upon Israel to lay aside all of her formalism and to turn to God. If she will only do this, the Messiah will come and deliver her. In 59:1-15a Isaiah portrays very vividly and graphically the prevalence of sin in Israel of the end time. Following this prediction, in 59:15b-60:3, appears a forecast of the Messiah's coming in glory and power. In 60:4-9 is a prophecy of Israel's final and complete regathering to the land of the fathers. The discourse closes with a most wonderful description of the millennial Jerusalem (60:10-22).

When a person recognizes that these three chapters constitute a single sermon, and when he notices the fact that Jehovah looks upon the situation, and, finding no one who can intercede, He puts on His garments of wrath, prepares for the battle, and comes to the earth, he sees that the entire sermon was focused upon this second coming of our Lord and the conditions that will demand His reappearance upon earth. In view of these facts, therefore, we must realize that this is God's final call to Israel of the end time to lay aside all formalism and pretension, to forsake her wickedness, and to accept her long-rejected Messiah.

Formalism Denounced

In chapter 58 we see one of the most scathing denunciations of formalism to be found anywhere in the Word of God. In verse 1 the prophet is urged to spare not, to lift up his voice like a trumpet, and to declare unto his people, the Jewish nation, their transgressions and their sins. Only those who know God and who fear Him in the correct scriptural sense of the Word will thus speak to people and expose their sins.

From verses 2-5 we see Israel of this future day seeking God and His worship, delighting in His ways, just as a nation that knows righteousness and does not forsake the ordinances of their God. Constantly they ask of Him righteous judgment--decisions relative to matters of vital importance to them. They draw near to God and delight in His service. Moreover, they fast and afflict their souls--especially at such seasons as that of Yom Kipper, the Day of Atonement. Nevertheless, their worship is not recognized by heaven, and they realize this fact and ask why it is that their services are not acceptable. To such queries the prophet shows that in the fasting of the people and in the services in which they are engaged they are not seeking the glory of God, but their own pleasure. They are holding to a form of godliness, but are denying the power thereof. Worship and service rendered in such a spirit is not acceptable to God and can never be of profit or of benefit to the worshiper. Finally the prophet asks, "Is such the fast that I have chosen? the day for a man to afflict his soul?" Even though a person bows his head as a rush and spreads forth sackcloth and ashes upon his body, the Lord will not answer such outward, formal worship.

When we compare this passage of scripture with others relating to the same time, we see that the Temple will be standing in Jerusalem and the nation of Israel will there congregate and engage in worship according to Judaism and Israel's interpretation of the Mosaic law. As we shall see in our study of Isaiah 66:1-5, the Jewish Temple will be rebuilt, the ancient sacrifices will be re-inaugurated, and Israel will in this formal manner be approaching God--but not so as to be heard on high. Moreover, when we come to the New Testament (Matt. 24:15f), we see that our Lord, in talking of the end time, assumed the existence of the Jewish Temple. Furthermore the Apostle Paul in II Thessalonians, chapter 2, assumed its existence in the end time. In Revelation 11:1-14 we see the same temple standing.

It will not benefit Israel in the least to rebuild her Temple and to re-establish her ancient sacrifices. Those have been done away with since they were fulfilled in Christ. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness unto all who believe. There is therefore no wonder that the prophet here rejects Israel's worship.

In verses 7-9a we have the first of three conditional sentences and offers that are found in verses 6-14. In this first condition the prophet introduces his statement by asking the question, "Is not this the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?" These questions demand an affirmative answer. Instead of fasting, as the Jews according to this prediction will do and instead of engaging in religious exercises, as here foretold, they must break the bonds of wickedness and loose the yoke of bondage and treat the one with whom they have dealings fairly and honestly. Moreover, they are to deal their bread to the hungry and to assist the poor and the needy, doing these things because they love God and have a feeling for suffering humanity. Thus if they put into practice in their every day conduct the fundamental principles of life, the prophet promises, "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thy healing shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of Jehovah shall be thy rearward. Then shalt thou call, and Jehovah will answer; thou shalt cry, and he will say, Here I am." In other words, if Israel will turn from her formalism and all evil, wicked practices, living up to all the light which she has, then the promise is made that her light shall break forth as the morning and her healing shall spring forth speedily. Then will her righteousness go before her and the glory of Jehovah will be her rearward. This language is an echo of the deliverance of the people of Israel from Egyptian bondage under Moses, as we learn in the Book of Exodus. When Israel does this, she will call, and God will answer, and her "light," who is none other than her righteous Messiah, will return and restore her to her own land.

In verses 9b-12 we have our second conditional sentence: "If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke ... and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul: then shall thy light rise in darkness and thine obscurity be as the noonday." If Israel, according to this promise, will only trust the Lord and will live up to all the light that she has, He will give her more light. As we walk in the light, He will grant more light and opportunities to us. Cornelius, of whom we read in Acts, chapter 10, was living up to all the truth that he had and was seeking for more light. The result was that the Lord gave him special privileges and advantages. But the Saviour has no pets. If anyone, regardless of who he is, will only live up to the light that God gives him, the Lord will give him more light and will lead him onward. Those of Israel who thus fulfill the conditions of this second proposition will be guided continually and safely and will become like a watered garden and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. They shall return to the land of the fathers and shall build up the old waste places of many generations.

The third conditional sentence is found in verses 13, 14. "If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day ... then shalt thou delight thyself in Jehovah; and I will make thee to ride upon the high places of the earth; and I will feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father; for the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it." According to this proposition as with the two former ones, all Israel will have to do is to live up to the light that she has, walking forward as God leads her. Then He will give her the full light of day, and her "light," who is none other than her righteous Messiah, will come and bring the long desired rest and victory.

The Wickedness of the Chosen People in the End Time

In Isaiah 59:1-15a we have one of the dark pictures which shows to us the spiritual condition of Israel in the end of this age. To the people of that time it will appear as if the heavens are brass and as if the Lord is no longer interested in His Chosen people. But the prophet in 59:1-8 shows that the trouble is not with the Lord, but with Israel herself. He has just as much power now as ever and will always have. Moreover He can hear their petitions just as much as he heard the prayers of Moses, Samuel, and other great warriors of faith in the past.

The trouble, according to verses 2 and 3, is that her sins and her iniquities have separated between her and her God and He has hidden His face from her. From verse 3 we see that Israel's hands will be defiled with blood and her fingers with iniquity. Moreover their lips speak lies and their tongues mutter wickedness. None at that time will be suing in righteousness and pleading in truth. They will love vanity and speak lies, will conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity. According to verse 5 they hatch adders' eggs and weave spiders' webs. He who eats of those eggs dies, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper. In other words, the prophet says that everything which they do is with design, that wickedness and impure motives prompt all actions. The webs which they weave will not be for garments, neither will their works cover them. Their works are those of iniquity and violence. They are swift to do evil and they haste to shed blood. Their thoughts are of iniquity, and desolation and destruction are in their paths, but the way of peace they do not know and there is no justice in their goings.

Are we to take this language in the absolute or the relative sense? From what we learn in other passages relating to the same time, we know that there will be those who will be exceptions to this general rule. This language therefore is that of a relative character and not of the absolute sense.

It is hard to see how such people, who have enjoyed so much light as the Hebrew people have, can yet sink to such depths as are here foretold. But these characteristics are not simply those of the nation of Israel. When we look in the New Testament, we see that even in the so-called Christian world there will be those who sink to the same depths or even lower than these do. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. There is no telling what one will do.

In verses 9-15a the prophet makes a confession for the people of Israel of the end time. Thus he is carried forward in vision and is let down in the midst of the crooked and perverse generation of that future day. He feels the bond of affinity joining him to his brethren according to the flesh. He therefore confesses that justice is far from the nation and that righteousness never overtakes them. They "look for light, but, behold, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in obscurity." They will be like men groping for the wall; like the blind they grope as they who have no eyes, they stumble in the noonday just as one would in the evening, or at twilight. They roar like bears and mourn sore like doves. They look for someone to give them a square deal, but none is forthcoming. They plead for salvation, but it is far from them. The transgressions of the nation will be multiplied. Their sins will testify against them, their transgressions and their iniquities will be before them constantly. They will commit presumptuous sins and will knowingly deny Jehovah and turn away from following their God. Thus the generation as a group will be abandoned of the Lord.

The Coming Messiah

In verses 59:15b-60:3 we have a vivid, graphic description of the return of the Messiah in glory at the conclusion of the Tribulation Period. God must punish wickedness wherever He finds it and in whomever it is discovered, whether it be the individual or the nation, whether it be in Israel or among the Gentiles.

We are told in verse 15b that Jehovah sees this condition of the nation and is highly displeased that there is no justice. Moreover He looks to see if there is a man and is amazed that there is no intercessor. Of course this language is what we speak of as anthropomorphic, that is, we speak of God as if He were a person possessing a human body and the faculties of the same. According to II Chronicles 16:9 "... the eyes of Jehovah run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." When Israel at Sinai made the golden calf, the Lord said to Moses for him to move away to allow Him to destroy the entire nation. But Moses fell down in the breach and pleaded for the Lord to slay him, but to spare His Chosen People whom He had just delivered from Egyptian bondage. See, for instance, Exodus 32:30-35; Psalm 106:23. Thus Moses had power with God and his intercession preserved the nation from extermination on that occasion. Moreover, Noah, Daniel, and Job had great power in prayer with the Lord, as we see in Ezekiel 14:12-20. In Psalm 99:6 we learn that Moses, Aaron, and Samuel likewise had power with God in prayer. Jeremiah mentions these, too, as being able to pray the effectual, fervent petition (Jer. 15:1).

But in the end time there will not be any man in Israel whose spiritual stature and standing with God will be such that he can step into the breach and can spare the nation from judgment. A like situation existed in the days of Ezekiel, as we see in chapter 22:30: "And I sought for a man among them, that should build up the wall, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none." That Isaiah 59:16 is thus to be interpreted is evident from the fact that, in verse 20, we see that there will be those who turn from transgression in Zion unto God. This fact demands that we understand verses 15 and 16 as language used in the relative sense. In other words there will be no outstanding spiritual giant who will be able to take the situation in hand as did Moses.

Under these conditions there is but one thing which a righteous and a holy God can do and which is set forth in verses 16b-18: "Therefore his own arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it upheld him. And he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle. According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense." In this passage the Lord Jehovah is represented as a warrior who prepares himself to go into action. Of course He spoke of Himself in terms of the equipment of soldiers of that day and time. Another picture of this same battle action of the Messiah is set forth in 63:1-7--a passage which we shall soon study.

According to 59:18 the Lord, when He comes and thus deals with His adversaries, will mete out justice to them according to their deeds and their actions. Not only will He deal with Israel, but also with the nations of the earth, as is shown in the last statement of verse 18.

When He thus appears upon the earthly scene and recompenses all His enemies, He will introduce a new era. At that time all people will fear the name of Jehovah from the rising of the sun to the setting thereof. At the time of His coming, however, He will come as a mighty, rushing stream, which is driven by the Spirit of God. This figure indicates the rapidity and the irresistible force and speed with which He will return to earth. This same thought is set forth in the smiting stone which strikes the image of Daniel, chapter 2, on the feet and which destroys the metallic image, the symbol of the four world governments from Nebuchadnezzar's day unto the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

When the Messiah returns, He will come to those in Jacob who turn away from transgression and sin. There has always been a faithful remnant in Israel. There always will be, no matter to what depths mankind or any portion of the race plunges, found faithful, honest, conscientious souls who want to do the will of God and who, to the best of their ability and strength and power, are doing it.

When Messiah thus returns, He will enter into a covenant with the faithful remnant of His ancient people and will put His words in their mouths and His spirit in their souls. He will never reject them anymore and they will be faithful and true to His covenant.

With such a vision of the coming of Messiah to execute vengeance on His enemies, to enter into covenant relationship with His faithful people, and to show mercy to them, the prophet shouts to Zion, "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee" (Isa. 60:1). In this passage the nation is represented as lying prostrate upon the ground. This fact is seen in the exhortations which are found in Isaiah 51:17 and 52:1,2. Thus in our verse the prophet is simply using the same imagery. She is therefore to arise and to welcome Him at this coming.

Immediately after the days of the Tribulation, darkness will envelop the globe. This is seen by the utterance of our Lord found in Matthew 24:29. That is what is foretold here in Isaiah 60:2,3. Darkness and gross darkness will encircle the globe. Then suddenly the sign of the Son of man coming with the clouds of heaven, with power and glory, will lighten the entire earth.

The Gathering of Israel

The prophet, continuing his figure of Israel's lying prostrate upon the ground, in verses 4-9 foretells the return of the Jews to the land of their fathers. Zion, the mother city, is to lift up her eyes round about and see all her sons and daughters coming from afar. Isaiah sees them coming from the east, using the regular method of travel of the ancient East, namely, riding upon camels and dromedaries. Then he looks into the skies and sees those who "fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows" (vs. 8). These whom he sees are actually flying. Their flying reminds him of doves soaring to their homes or as floating clouds. When these words are allowed their full import, we see that this is a prediction of Israel's returning home by means of air transportation. This interpretation is demanded by a candid and an honest acceptance of the words at their literal value. There is nothing in the context to indicate a departure from the natural meaning. We therefore are forced to accept this as a prediction of air transportation. Moreover, we see, in verses 8 and 9, Jews returning to their homeland by means of the ships of Tarshish, the merchant marine of Tarshish. Who is Tarshish? When all the facts are taken into consideration, one is driven inevitably to the conclusion that this is the ancient name for Britain.

In verses 10-22 we have a marvelous description of the rebuilding of Zion. Jerusalem of the Millennial Age will be entirely different from what it is at the present time. The distance around the walls of the old city of Jerusalem is two and three-quarter miles. The millennial Jerusalem, according to the last chapters of Ezekiel, will be a city ten miles in length and ten in breadth. Its total area therefore will be one hundred square miles. The distance around it will be forty miles. It will be located on the southern extremity of the mountain of the heights of Israel. This fact is described in the latter chapters of Ezekiel.

According to Isaiah 60:10 foreigners will be employed to build up the city walls, and kings will minister unto the Jews. The reason for this is stated in the following words: "For in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favor have I had mercy on thee." Israel has had advantages that no other nation has ever enjoyed. With increased opportunities, there come added responsibilities. She will be punished double for all her sins; yet, when this glorious era dawns, the people will have double instead of persecution and dishonor--as we shall see in the study of Isaiah, chapter 61.

In ancient times the gates of the city were closed at sundown. This was a precautionary measure against enemies; but in the city of Jerusalem of the Millennium the gates will always be open day and night. Then the nations will bring their wealth into the city and the kings will be led captive.

The tables will be turned then from what they are now. Israel is despised, persecuted, and efforts have been made from time to time to exterminate this people from the face of the globe. But the nation of Israel is imperishable. She is the nation of destiny. She is the tail of the nations, as Moses tells us, now. But then she will be the head of the peoples of earth. That nation and kingdom, therefore, that will not serve Israel shall utterly perish from the face of the globe.

The glory of Lebanon--the cedars of Lebanon, the most glorious of ancient days--will be given unto Zion. All of the very best materials upon the face of the globe will be used in the reconstruction of the Temple, as we learn from verse 13 of this chapter. The prophet, in speaking of the sanctuary, declares, "I [Jehovah] will make the place of my feet glorious." Jehovah, then, according to this prediction, will be there in person. This prediction is in perfect harmony with Ezekiel 43:7: "And he said unto me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom and by the dead bodies of their kings in their high places." This passage is to be taken literally, at its face value. In keeping with all the Scriptures is this one which foretells that Jehovah himself will be in Zion personally and will reign there as her King. (See Zeph. 3:14-17.) At that time men will call Zion "The city of Jehovah, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel." It will be thus named because Jehovah in person, the Messiah--the Lord Jesus Christ--will reign there. Jerusalem therefore will be called the throne of Jehovah. (See Jer. 3:16, 17.)

Whereas Zion has been hated and forsaken by the nations in the past, she has a glorious future before her; for, God declares, "I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations." The people of Zion will share in the wealth and the blessings of the nations. The guarantee that this prophecy will be fulfilled is this: "I, Jehovah, am thy Saviour, and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob" (vs. 16).

When Zion is thus rebuilt, gold will be used where silver now is; and brass where silver now is used and the like. Thus Zion is to be built upon a much more magnificent scale than at the present time.

There will be no need of a police force, for violence will be never more heard in the land. There will never more be any desolation, nor destructive powers that will enter the land or the city of Jerusalem. People will call her walls salvation and her gates praise.

As we see in Isaiah 4:5,6, there will be a great canopy created over Jerusalem, which will protect it from the showers and from the sunshine. This promise is in perfect accord with 60:19. The sun shall not strike it by day, neither shall the moonlight fall upon its streets, the reason being that Jehovah will be an everlasting light and Israel's God will be her glory. From His person will radiate the light that will illuminate this great, marvelous, millennial Jerusalem. The sun rises in the morning and sets in the evening. Then darkness rests upon that portion upon which the sun is not shining. There will be no day and night in Jerusalem, because the light emanating from Messiah's person will illuminate the city twenty-four hours out of every day.

There will be no wicked, unprincipled Jews, for they will all be righteous, as we see from verse 21. They, the rightful owners of the land of Palestine, will inherit the land. When they are thus established there, they will be "the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified." Israel then will multiply and become a strong nation. She will become as the stars of heaven and as the sand beside the sea. Great and wonderful things are in store for the Chosen People. God will hasten the fulfillment of this prediction in His own time.

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