Isaiah 25

CHAPTER 25

Praise to the Lord (25:1–12)

1–5 In this chapter Isaiah continues his vision of the end of the world; in these verses, he praises God for the way He has judged the world. God has brought down the world’s cities and strongholds, with the result that the strong and ruthless now honor Him¹¹³ (verses 2–3). Isaiah’s prophecy of Egypt and Assyria joining in the worship of God is an example of strong nations turning to God (see Isaiah 19:2325; Philippians 2:9–11).

6–9 Here Isaiah pictures a future feast that will be prepared by the Lord on His mountain (verse 6), the new Mount Zion (Isaiah 2:2–3; 24:23); this will be a spiritual feast of rich food, of spiritual blessings. Prominent among the blessings will be the elimination of death itself; God will destroy the shroud of death that enfolds all peoples (verse 7). God will swallow up death forever and wipe away the tears from all faces (verse 8).

In verse 8, we are given one of the greatest promises in the Old Testament. Death the great “swallower” will itself be swallowed up (see 1 Corinthians 15:54), and the tears of pain and mourning will be wiped away forever (see Revelation 21:4). In this one verse, the last enemy is destroyed (1 Corinthians 15:26) and the last tear is shed. No wonder God’s people will cry out in that day: “. . . let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation”¹¹⁴ (verse 9).

10–12 In these verses, Isaiah suddenly begins talking about God’s judgment on Moab (see Isaiah Chapters 15–16). Here, however, “Moab” symbolizes all nations that set themselves up against God. Moab’s major sin was pride (Isaiah 16:6); here in verse 12, the high fortified walls symbolize that pride—and the pride of all people who do not submit to God. Here, once again, we see that God opposes the proud (1 Peter 5:5) and will bring judgment upon them.¹¹⁵