Chapter 27
Israel described as a vineyard that God has tended
--> That they will fill the World with fruit (Isa 27:6)
7 - "Has he struck Israel as He struck those who struck him?"
8-9 - "Sending it away" = captivity; "by this the iniquity of Jacob will be covered"
- So, what is the fruit of the vineyard? The altars, idols, fortified cities destroyed
12 - "in that day" = final coming
- Israel will once and for all be brought back from "captivity" to Jerusalem to worship
- What is this "captivity"?
- 70 AD: First Jewish–Roman War in which the Romans destroy the Second Temple and most of Jerusalem. This eliminates the symbolic center of Judaism and Jewish identity and Jews to reformulate a new self-definition and existence not tied to this physical location and an indefinite period of displacement.
- 132: Bar Kokhba leads a rebellion connected with the renaming of Jerusalem as Aelia Capitolina. After four years of devastating warfare, the uprising is suppressed and Jews are forbidden access to Jerusalem.
- 1492: expulsion from Spain
- 1290: expulsion from England
- WWII: fleeing from the Nazis
- 1948-73: expulsion from Arab countries
Chapter 32 - Christ's millennial reign
- There will be a "good" leader in contrast to the "evil" leaders previously discussed in the book
- Also in contrast, will be the people under him who will hear, and see, and speak as opposed to Isaiah's generation (v. 3-4)
- And people will be genuine (true generosity, and true foolishness); we will not be able to hide our motives behind good sounding speech
v. 9-14 - a warning to the women (similar to chapter 3) against of coming destruction that will lead to famine
- We again have vineyard imagery, but now destruction of the vineyard instead of tending (cf. Isa 27:2-6)
v. 15 - The Spirit will be the transformation that will bring about the change in people's hearts and actions of v. 3-8
- Has this (Isa 32:15-20) happened yet?
Chapter 35 - The future glory of Zion
Christ's future reign described with:
- Blossoming plants (Isa 35:1-2, 6-7) (cf. Isa 27:2-6)
- Healing (Isa 35:5-6)
- Joy and singing (Isa 35:10)
All of this is a reflection of God's glory (Isa 35:2)
So, we have a description of the eventual kingdom of God, but we are also part of the kingdom of God now (Mark 1:15). Isa 35:5-6 is a description of the future kingdom of God, yet Jesus uses this very passage to proclaim the coming of the kingdom in Mat. 11:2-6. So, Jesus brought about the kingdom, and yet the kingdom is yet to come.
We have the Holy Spirit, enabling us to be reflections of the kingdom NOW.
- What does that look like?
