Isaiah appeals to unfaithful Israel of his day in verse 2:5 saying,
“Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord.”
He says this after having presented them the prophetic logic found in verses 2:1-4. The Lord their God is the one to follow today because he will eventually be the one the whole world seeks when all has been revealed in the end and his kingdom is established.
Isaiah proclaims these things about the future age called “the last days” which is literally “in the afterward of these days.” In the mind of the modern Western man we view time future as being before us. We walk into the future with our backs to the past. The Hebrew mind visualized time in the opposite way. They saw themselves as always facing the past (since they could actually see or know the past) and walking backward into the future with the backs towards the future (since it was unknown and unseen). “In the last days” is used as a technical term for the days at the end of time in Jeremiah 48:47; 49:39; Ezekiel 38:16; Daniel 10:14 and Hosea 3:5.
In those future days Isaiah says it will be clear that YHWH was the true God and his ways were the right ways. Isaiah says:
Mount Moriah with the Temple of the Lord standing on it will be
- Established as the highest mountain
- Exalted above the hills
This seems to speak of a literal change in the topography (Zechariah 14:10; Ezekiel 40:2), but is also an indication that all the other religious systems and philosophies have been defeated and proven inadequate.
After it has been made clear that the Lord is the Way, the Truth and the Life, all nations will come to him seeking his teaching and his instruction so they can prosper and succeed as he has.
From Zion (Mount Moriah or the Temple Mount) the Word of the Lord will go out into the world.
The nations will come to the Lord’s presence in Jerusalem for resolution of international conflicts.
The wisdom in the Lord’s international advice and legal decisions will be so successful that nations will convert their weaponry into agricultural equipment to be used for production rather than destruction.
Isaiah’s point to the people of his generation is simple and clear. If this is the power of the Lord’s presence, wisdom, and counsel in the future we should pay attention to it today! Since God has already revealed himself to Israel, should we not follow him? Why do we rebel against the one who will be sought by the world when he reveals himself to them? Israel has a great opportunity to have a head start, but instead they are choosing to forsake the Lord and instead follow the worthless and empty gods of the pagan world. |
