Isaiah 60 Arise, Shine!

Introduction Chapters 60-62 are the centerpiece of chapters 56-66, with chapter 60 as the first unit and 61-62 as the second. As Oswalt states, these are 3 chapters of “unremitting promises of blessing and salvation.”1 As a message to the exiles returning to Jerusalem, chapter 60 is a vision of hope in the face of a bleak reality. They see Jerusalem torn down, burnt, abandoned, neglected. The vision here is one of how it will one day be transformed by God into the glorious city fit for the glory of the LORD and a beacon of light to the world. This is a message for us as well. We live in the “now, but not yet” of a broken, difficult world. And in such a world such promises may be hard for us to accept – hard to be believed and irrelevant to what we face now. But what is in these promises helps us to press on with the hope of what God is doing now and will do in the end. This unit is addressed to the city of Jerusalem as denoted by the message and the use of feminine, singular nouns. Thematically, it is connect to chs. 56-59 with the themes of “light”, but also how that connotes “righteousness.” In 59:9, it was the absence of righteousness that leads to darkness instead of light. Goldingay calls it the “Longest, unstructured stream-of-consciousness prophecy in Isaiah,”2 but it is connected by dominant themes that run through it:  Light vs. darkness  The return of the people to Jerusalem  Coming of foreigners bringing wealth, acknowledging the city of God  The reversal of fortune  The splendor and beauty of God’s house extended to His city

Arise, Shine! – Vs. 1-3 The opening verse recalls 51:17 and 52:1-2 calling on the exiles to “Awake” and “Get Up” as the end of the LORD’s wrath was at hand, but here the call is to Jerusalem and to those already returned to her. The picture is of the city on the hill reflecting the glory of the rising sun. In vs. 2 this is contrasted with the darkness covering all the other peoples – an image that Oswalt says3 recalls the curse on Egypt during the plagues when darkness covered all of Egypt, but not the land of Goshen where the Israelites dwelled. This also recalls chapter 9 which describes people in darkness on whom a light would shine in the form of a promised child. Here that light has arisen! That one has come, and Israel is the first to experience that light and then in turn reflect it to the rest of the world still in darkness. This then will cause the rest of the world to turn to Jerusalem and the light of God shining upon her and within her. As seen in the previous chapter and mentioned above, “light” and “darkness” are metaphors for the presence or lack of peace and righteousness. Thus, it will be the righteousness of God finally reflected in His people as brought about by God’s power that will attract the nations.

Nations Come – Vs. 4-9 As the nations come, they will not come empty handed! They will bring back Jerusalem’s sons and daughters and the means to rebuild. Vs. 4 commands Jerusalem to lift up your eyes and see (as in 49:18) – a call to behold the promises of God as they are fulfilled. The first thing to be seen is the people

1Oswalt, John N. – The Book of Isaiah. Grand Rapids, MI: William B Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1986 p. 534 2 Goldingay, John. – Isaiah. Grand Rapids, MI: BakerBooks a division of Baker Publishing Group. 2001 p. 338 3 Ibid. p. 538 – 1 – Isaiah 60 Arise, Shine! being brought back to Jerusalem. The response described in verse 5 is one of incredible wonder and amazement. The word for “thrill” or “throb” is the same as to tremble as with fear, but here, the cause is rejoicing. For not only are the sons and daughters being brought home, but there is an abundance being brought as well. In verse 5, that abundance is from the sea, from Phoenicia to the northwest. Vs. 6 describes multitudes of caravans of camels from “Midian and Ephah” (the son and grandson of Abraham through Keturah, cf. Gen. 25) and Sheba to the southeast bringing frankincense and gold, symbols of wealth. So essentially this abundance is flowing in from all sides and all means. Vs. 7 describes flocks of Kedar and Nebaioth (grandsons of Abraham through Ishmael, cf. Gen 25) brought to serve them as well. The mention of other descendants of Abraham suggests a reunion of all of Abraham’s descendants. And why would the nations do this? As vs. 6 (“proclaiming the praise of the LORD”) and vs. 7 (“they will be accepted as offerings”) suggest, this is not to repay Israel for its suffering or because they deserve it, but these are gifts to the LORD in gratitude, and the LORD allows Israel to enjoy it. We also see the theme of “beauty” (adorn, glorify) introduced here. The root of this word is used 31 times in Isiah and 14 times alone in chs. 60-64. In vs. 7, the gifts (and praises) will make God’s house glorious, but His beauty/glory would also be extended to His people (vs. 9). Vs. 8-9 reiterate the same themes with different a metaphor – the picture of the children returning like clouds of doves. All the ends of the earth have been waiting for the LORD, for this moment, and immediately send the great ships of Tarshish with the children along with silver and gold. Again, the reason is because of the name of the LORD, which represents his character and what the LORD has done for Israel – He has made her beautiful! Note that this is the next to last use of the title, the Holy One of Israel, in the book. The climax of its uses is in vs. 14 as his full plan for the redemption of His people is revealed.

Reversal – Vs. 10-16 Not only will foreigners bring gifts to the LORD and for Jerusalem, but they will serve her as well. No longer seeking to tear down the city, the “sons of foreigners” will now help to rebuild the walls. Note that the term for foreigners here means sons of foreigners which is used in 56:3 & 6 to indicate those who have joined themselves to the LORD. And kings will serve her as well! Note that the bringing of gifts and the service here is voluntary. They have not been brought in as slaves of a conquered nation, but choose to minister. And why? Because the wrath of God which brought the punishment and discipline from other nations is over, and in His favor and mercy, so now these nations are now used in service of Jerusalem. In vs. 11, the promise is that the gates will be open 24 hours – not because there is no threat, but because of the traffic of wealth being brought in! This includes “kings led in procession.” Unlike vs. 10, this is the image of a captured king being led in as a slave in a victory march of the conquering nation. As it says in vs. 12, these nations will come willingly or will perish. We turn away from God and fight Him at our peril. Vs. 13 pulls from images in both first and second Isaiah sections. The phrase, glory of Lebanon, is used only in 35:2 as God transforms the desert. And 41:19 has a similar picture of trees being planted in the wilderness. Here, however, they will be gifts used to beautify His temple where the ark of the covenant, God’s footstool, would reside. Vs. 14-16 a number of reversals. First in vs. 14, those nations that oppressed Israel will now become subservient to her. However, not because of what she has done or what she deserves, but all because of the LORD who is in her and is her God. This is the climax usage of “the Holy One of Israel.” And as she has been transformed by Him, and so she is now able to share in His glory, but the honor is all His. In vs. 15, using the language of a rejected wife and image of an abandoned city, Jerusalem is transformed from a forsaken, hated, deserted city to a majestic one, and a joy forever. Rather than being drained to serve other nations – as tribute had been paid to king after king, those nations/kings will now

– 2 – Isaiah 60 Arise, Shine! seek to sustain and care for her! As has been the intent from the beginning, all this has been done so that first, Israel might truly know and understand their LORD as a savior and redeemer and in turn show that to the rest of the world.

From Better to Best – Vs. 17-22 Oswalt describes this last stanza as the most lyrical of all as it sums up the transformation that will take place. In vs. 17, everything will be made better as bronze is replaced with gold, iron with silver, wood with bronze, and stones with iron. The whole city will be made of metal which suggests permanence and security. The end of verse 17 has an interesting juxtaposition of negative and positive terms. Where the NIV has “governor” is a more negative “officer” and the word for “ruler” is better interpreted as “taskmaster”. But these will now bring the positive results of peace (shalom) and righteousness which will now reign in God’s city and of which they were bereft in chapter 59. The violence and destruction that has been its experience for so long will be replaced with walls of “Salvation” and gates of “Praise.” In vs. 19, the text now returns to the theme of light that opened the chapter. As the greatest light has now shown on them, there is no need for the lesser lights of the sun and the moon. And there is no more darkness, for God’s light is everlasting. And even as in John prophecies in Revelation that God will wipe every tear from our eyes or as Ps. 30:5 says that “weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning,” so here is the promise of the end of their mourning (vs.20). The goal of all the book has been the righteousness of God’s people – from the call to righteousness, to the chastisement to cleanse the people, and now to the transformation by God of His people that they might be righteous and so truly reflect His glory. The promise of vs. 21 is that God’s people will finally be truly righteous and deserve to possess the land truly as His people, and He will be able to bless them so that His kingdom grows (vs. 22). Even as God introduced His covenant with “I am the LORD” as a seal, so those words here seal this promise that He will bring it pass in its time.

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