In the previous chapter, we dealt with oracles of doom in the book of Isaiah. Isaiah has some terrifying messages of doom. But, in general, Isaiah is a very hopeful prophet, who sees a bright future for God's people. The book of Isaiah is filled with oracles of hope. For example, at the beginning of chapter 40, there is a short one:

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that her warfare is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned,
that she has received from the LORD's hand
double for all her sins.
(Isaiah 40:1-2)

In the coming chapters, we will explore many oracles of hope in the book of Isaiah. In this chapter we will look primarily at two. We will be considering a few verses near the beginning of chapter two of Isaiah, and also at the first part of chapter eleven, concentrating on verses six through nine. From chapter two:

It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the LORD
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
and many peoples shall come, and say:
"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths."
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
(Isaiah 2:2-4 [RSV])

And, from Isaiah chapter eleven:

First, the prophecy in Isaiah chapter two:

This passage is almost identical to the first three verses of Micah chapter four. The interpretation of this passage is more problematic than some of Isaiah's prophecies. Many of Isaiah's prophecies are cited in the New Testament, and therefore at least some information about their interpretation can be gained from there. This prophecy is not quoted in the New Testament, which is somewhat surprising since it occupies a prominent place in the book of Isaiah. There are a few things, though, that can help in determining the interpretation.

One thing that is helpful is to look at the other prophecies in the book of Isaiah and notice a pattern in them. They tend to deal, at least in part, with the prophet's own day and time. This is characteristic of most Old Testament prophets as well. Contrary to the overly dramatic claims of some people today, the Old Testament prophets don't typically deal with modern-day Russia, or China, or Iran. However, Isaiah does have a recurring wonderful peculiarity about his prophecies, in that, regardless of where they start, they will usually end up looking forward to the more distant future: to the time of the Messiah and the coming of God's kingdom in a special way, or even to the kingdom's crowning perfection in heaven after time is no more. So a typical prophecy in Isaiah would look both to the present and to the future.

A second thing that is helpful is that, although the passage in chapter two is not quoted in the New Testament, there is one passage that perhaps refers to it. In Luke 24:44-47, we read,

Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled." Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem."
(Luke 24:44-47)

In these verses, Jesus is referring to certain teachings in the Old Testament that were not as obvious nor as plainly understood before their fulfillment as other prophetic messages were. Some Messianic prophecies were very obvious, and the Jewish people were waiting for a Messiah to come in fulfillment of those prophecies. But some prophecies were not so obvious at the time. They might be in the form of types and antitypes, wherein the type was a merely a dim shadow of the substance or fulfillment that would come later in the antitype (such as the three days of Jonah in the belly of the great fish paralled with the three days that Jesus would spend in the belly of the earth). Or a prophecy might be extremely obvious after the fact, but mysterious beforehand (such as the prophecy of the suffering servant in Isaiah 53 that had confused the Ethiopian eunuch until he learned about Jesus). The passage in Luke 24, where Jesus is referencing repentance and forgiveness of sins being preached to all nations "beginning from Jerusalem", has, as its most likely Old Testament reference, this passage in Isaiah chapter two, which says,

For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide for many peoples;
(Isaiah 2:3b-4a [RSV])

If this is the Scripture that Jesus is referring to, then this passage has Messianic implications.

Third, there is a certain similarity in thought between the prophecy in chapter two and the prophecy in chapter eleven, particularly in verses six through nine of chapter eleven. Both have elements that speak very dramatically of an unusual and wondrous time of peace. Chapter two verse four talks about beating swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks. Chapter eleven talks about the wolf dwelling with the lamb, and the lion eating straw and living with the fatted calves, and a little child safely playing over the viper's nest. Although the prophecy in chapter two isn't quoted in the New Testament, verse ten of chapter eleven is quoted (by Paul) in the New Testament in Romans 15:12 and applied to the inclusion of the Gentiles into God's kingdom at the time of Christ. If the prophecies in chapters two and eleven are related, and the prophecy in chapter eleven has Messianic implications, then it is likely that the prophecy in chapter two also has Messianic implications.

Fourth, the passage itself is helpful in its interpretation. In the Old Testament, the phrase "the latter days" in many cases appears to have a reference to the Messianic Age (e.g., Hosea 3:5). Also, the figurative language (e.g., "...the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills...") is also characteristically used among Old Testament prophets to refer to spiritual events rather than to just physical ones.

This doesn't mean that the passage has no application to Isaiah's day. It is rare that an Old Testament prophet ignores the people and circumstances of his day when prophesying. Isaiah's characteristic habit of referring both to his day and to a more distant future in many of his prophecies would also lend credence to the idea that this prophecy has at least some application to Isaiah's day as well.

It would seem, though, from an initial reading that an application to the time of Christ would be the primary emphasis in this prophecy, and that is almost certainly the case. But there can be comfort also for the people of Isaiah's day in a secondary fulfillment in an earlier period.

When Isaiah speaks to the problems of his day, sometimes he speaks of a very speedy and almost immediate resolution. For example, with regard to a raging war between Syria, Israel, and Judah from 734 to 732 B.C., sometimes referred to as the Syro-Ephraemitic War, Isaiah comforts the people of Judah by prophesying in chapter seven that the leaders of those two enemy nations--Syria and Israel--would very soon be defeated and no longer be a threat to Judah. He prophesied it; it happened, and quickly. But many of Isaiah's prophecies look farther forward--more than 150 years forward--to a return from Babylonian captivity, and there are possible echoes of that return and its consequences in this prophecy in chapter two as well.

In this scenario, the mountain of the house of the Lord being exalted as the highest of the mountains (v.2) fits in well with the resulting history. Out of the original twelve tribes, ten are removed from political existence by the Assyrian army. The eleventh, Benjamin, is so minor that it is basically absorbed and assimilated by the tribe of Judah, and the nation would be known simply as Judah. Thus, Judah, the site of Mount Zion ("the mountain of the house of the Lord") would be exalted above all the other tribes. Many peoples would come to it because they are returning from captivity and from banishment to distant lands after the Babylonian captivity ends. In speaking of that time, Isaiah prophesies elsewhere:

And in that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lost in the land of Assyria and those who were driven out to the land of Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain at Jerusalem.
(Isaiah 27:13)

The people being eager to have God teach them his ways (v.3) can be seen in the instituting of synagogue worship at the time of the Babylonian captivity. And the peace in the land (v.4) can be seen in the extended peace following the defeat of the Babylonians and the successful peace instituted by the Persian Empire.

But the application obviously isn't primarily to Isaiah's day, but to a later time--to the "latter days"--to a time in which God will exercise a wonderful rule over his people in a special way.

It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the LORD
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
and many peoples shall come, and say:
"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths."
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
(Isaiah 2:2-4 [RSV])

In the movie Field of Dreams, there is a famous line that is attributed to the movie that says, "If you build it, they will come." However, that line is never actually found in the movie. The correct line that is found several times in the movie is, "If you build it, he will come.", referring to the father of Ray Kinsella, the Iowa farmer who built the baseball field. But three times in the movie the line, "people will come" is found. That phrase accurately describes the growth of the church. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus said that he will build his church. If he builds it, people will come--from all nations and all peoples.

Jesus started with twelve disciples. Today, those who claim to be adherents of some form of Christian religion--right or wrong however they may be--number over two billion people. Indeed the influence that Jesus has exerted on our world can be seen, at least in part, in that almost one out of every three people on Earth claim to be an adherent of some form of Christianity.

"...all the nations shall flow to it,"

Isaiah spoke elsewhere also of a time when God's flock would not just be the Jews, but all people from all nations:

Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.
For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the LORD will arise upon you,
and his glory will be seen upon you.
And nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your rising.
(Isaiah 60:1-3)

For I know their works and their thoughts, and I am coming to gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and shall see my glory, and I will set a sign among them. And from them I will send survivors to the nations, to Tarshish, Put, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the coastlands afar off, that have not heard my fame or seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.
(Isaiah 66:18-19 [RSV])

Isaiah speaks essentially about a different type of kingdom than that which the people of the world had known up to this point. He speaks of a kingdom without political boundaries--a kingdom that would be universal. We see this fulfilled in the plans and accomplishments of the New Testament period in the first century and beyond.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...
(Matthew 28:19a)

And he said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.
(Mark 16:15 [RSV])

Immediately before his ascension back into heaven, Jesus told his disciples:

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
(Acts 1:8 [BSB])

At the occasion of that first gospel sermon, on the day of Pentecost, many had made pilgrimage for the day of Pentecost from far and wide:

Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven.
(Acts 2:5)

That message of hope and salvation and redemption would be preached to and find a home with all nations and peoples--to an innumerable throng:

...the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven...
(Colossians 1:23b)

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"
(Revelation 7:9-10)

Continuing with the oracle of hope in Isaiah, chapter two, we come to a fairly well-known passage of peace:

...and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
(Isaiah 2:4b [RSV])

This prophecy from Isaiah has found its way into modern culture. In the United Nations Art Collection in New York City is a statue (by Evgeniy Vuchetich) entitled "Let Us Beat Swords into Plowshares".












  "Let Us Beat Swords
    into Plowshares"
 
     by Evgeniy Vuchetich
















(Credit: Rian Castillo; BY 2.0 Creative Commons License)

The phrase is also used to describe the conversion of military discoveries or weaponry into beneficial peaceful purposes. Some items that had their origin, at least in principal, in military applications include microwave ovens, super glue, computers, ultrasound, GPS, Kleenex, the internet, Silly Putty, and WD-40.

Although physical peace among the nations can be a byproduct of righteous behavior, it is peace in a different setting that is the primary focus of this passage. There will be a transcendent peace between members of God's kingdom, regardless of their history and background, that surpasses anything that this world has to offer. And it is reflected in part in the passage in Isaiah chapter eleven:

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
and the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall feed;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den.
They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea.
(Isaiah 11:6-9 [RSV])

This part of Isaiah is sometimes called "The Peaceable Kingdom" and has inspired the creation of many paintings, books, poems, songs, short stories, and films.

 Sight and Sound Theatre
  (Lancaster, Pennsylvania)












(Credit:

One question is whether it is meant to be literal or figurative? Well, probably figurative. The animal imagery suggests this ("the lion shall eat straw like the ox"), and previous verses do as well ("he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth").

Many have seen this as a time of a literal return to a time such as at the Garden of Eden. But almost certainly that is not what is intended here. As mentioned earlier, the Apostle Paul quotes verse ten as being fulfilled in Christ, referring to the inclusion of the Gentiles in the church and the hope that the Gentile nations would have through the gospel. He is referring to a time when Christ would rule over his people in the church. The prophecy doesn't look backward to Eden but forward to a time when the Prince of Peace will rule over his kingdom. It looks forward to the church, and ultimately to the church being transformed into the heavenly kingdom. The symbolic language, as elsewhere in Isaiah, isn't to be taken literally, but is used to describe spiritual events. It isn't speaking of a time when lions will literally eat straw. It is referring to a time when enemies will no longer be enemies but will be at peace with each other.

The gospel has the power to change the fierce into the kindly, the wicked into the innocent--just as Saul, the persecutor of the church who sought to kill Christians, was changed into the apostle Paul who sought their redemption.

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
(Acts 9:1-2)

But this enemy of the church and murderer of Christians was changed by the gospel. To the Christians at Thessalonica, Paul wrote:

So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us.
(I Thessalonians 2:8 [NRSV])

The man who had once dedicated his life to capturing and killing Christians later said to the Christians at Corinth:

I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls.
(II Corinthians 12:15a [WEB])

To those at Philippi, he said:

Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.
(Philippians 2:17)

These aren't just words. His life was poured out on behalf of those whom he had previously despised and persecuted.

In the book of Romans, in speaking about the Jewish people, he writes:

I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit—that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.
(Romans 9:1-3)

What Paul is apparently saying here is that, if it were possible, he would be willing to spend an eternity in Hell if it would result in the salvation of his people.

Some people say that everything that we do is prompted by self-interest--that there is no such thing as altruism, or disinterested benevolence--that all of our actions are motivated by what we personally will get out of it. Well, it doesn't seem that self-interest is what rules Paul's decision here. He is compelled rather by his interest for others. He would later write,

Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility count others better than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
(Philippians 2:3-4 [RSV])

His life was changed by the gospel.

Another example of the power of the gospel to change lives can be seen in the time of Christ. Among his twelve Apostles were Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot. Matthew was a tax collector for the Roman government. He represented a faction that cooperated with and facilitated Roman domination of the Jewish people. Simon the Zealot represented a faction that advocated killing those who cooperated with the Romans. And yet we have these two seemingly natural enemies brought together as apostles of the Prince of Peace--in communion with each other, breaking bread with each other at the first Communion service long ago, working with each other to spread a message of a redemption provided by God.

We see in this an example of what Christ can do. It is perhaps in this light that the prophet Isaiah spoke of a time when

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together...
(Isaiah 11:6 [RSV])

Perhaps this is also what is indicated in chapter two where Isaiah says,

...and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
(Isaiah 2:4 [RSV])

Paul says that in Christ:

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
(Galatians 3:28 [NHEB])

In the book of Colossians, Paul says, referring to life in Christ and Christ in us:

Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, or free, but Christ is all and is in all.
(Colossians 3:11 [BSB])

In the church, whether we are American or Iranian, British or Albanian, Russian or Nigerian, we are not just friends. We are family.

There is a poem of sorts that I like by Bob Benson. It is called "Just Wood".

"Just Wood" Isn't it strange that we should glorify the cross, put it on our churches wear it on our lapels and around our necks-- that we should sing about it and that it should become a symbol of faith and inspiration-- the cross--a dark, dirty, excruciating way of legalized killing in the name of justice. Had the Romans chosen to hang or behead, or mutilate or shoot would we sing of the precious old rope or would our steeples lift rifles to the sky? Isn't it moving that His love could transform the long-ago counterpart of electric chairs and gas chambers into a symbol of faith and devotion? But then love changes everything it touches: it makes heavy burdens light, long hours short, ordinary faces beautiful, houses into homes, picnics into banquets, wilted daisies into bouquets, God into sacrifice, and sinners into saints. And if He could take a cross and fashion it like He fashioned wood in His earthly father's carpenter shop into a depiction of deepest love, doesn't it make you wonder what He might be able to do with you if you yielded to His love? (Benson, Bob. Come Share the Being. pp.58-59)

(Credit: congerdesign [at Pixabay]; Public Domain [Pixabay license]) (Credit: Lee Honeycutt; BY-SA 2.0 Creative Commons License) (Credit: Myriams-Fotos [at Pixabay]; Public Domain [Pixabay license])