God Saves
Isaiah 25:1–10a
Chapters 24–27 of Isaiah are called Isaiah’s Apocalypse. These chapters follow the revelation of God’s judgment on the nations and now turn to judgment on the entire earth. These sections should call to mind sections of the gospel in which Jesus tells the disciples about the end times (see Matt. 24–25, Mark 13 and Luke 21).
Singing Praise (1–5)
Chapter 24 ends with God defeating His enemies and reigning on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, signaling God’s reign on earth. Isaiah praises God for silencing the enemies of His people, destroying the city and turning it into a pile of rocks. This city is a symbol of any city or people who oppose God — they will be destroyed. Isaiah praises God for His judgment.
In modern America and the West, people often recoil at the judgment of God, seeing it as a petty thing or something not worthy of God. However, this misses a major aspect of who God is. God is holy love — neither characteristic ought to be downplayed.
In modern times, people focus on love (as they define it) and think it beneath God or unlike God to actually bring judgment. This ideology is very dangerous.
God is holy; He demands justice. Because we are all sinners, we all fail to live up to God’s standards, thereby rightly incurring His wrath (see Rom. 3). But because God loves us, He sent Christ to die in our place, taking on the wrath we deserve and pouring it out on Jesus (Rom. 5:8, 2 Cor. 5:21).
We can rejoice knowing that God will bring justice and right every wrong. This of course gives us hope when we face uncertain times, knowing that God is going to triumph over evil in the end.
For those who trust in Jesus for their salvation, we will be together with God throughout eternity with the righteous God in charge. Not only does this encourage us, but it should also spur us on to encourage one another and to tell people about the gospel so they, too, can experience salvation.
Feasting Together (6–8)
Those who trust in the Lord will celebrate with Him forever. The Bible often uses feasting metaphors to indicate the level of celebration and joy believers will experience in the eternal presence of God. God desires for all people to worship Him, and people from every tribe and nation will be at this feast.
Thus, Christians cannot hold to any form of racism or superiority because God created all people in His image (Gen. 1:27). This has always been a motivating factor in missionary enterprises and continues to fuel missions today. Christians long for all people to be reconciled to God.
Lastly, God will swallow up death forever. Death is the consequence of humanity’s sin, but it does not have the final say. When Christ rose from the dead, He defeated death, removing its power over us (see 1 Cor. 15 for an excellent summary). What a comforting thought to know death is not the final word for us. We can now face death with the knowledge that Christ has defeated death and prepared a home for us.
Trusting God (9–10a)
The ones who are present at this feast are those who trusted in God. Salvation always has depended upon humanity’s trust in God, not on works. Sometimes people say following the Ten Commandments is enough to save us. However, Paul says the law was never meant to save. In fact, he says righteousness cannot come through the law (Gal. 2:21). How then can one be saved? By trusting in Christ for our righteousness, not ourselves (2 Cor. 5:21). Salvation depends upon what God does for us, not what we can do for God. If we trust in ourselves and our own righteousness, then we stand condemned. It is only in Christ that we are redeemed and reconciled to God.
By Robert L. Olsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
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