Isaiah 11:15-16

As still another example of his power, the *Lord makes his people’s return easier by his control of nature.

stump ~ short lower piece of a tree that remains in the ground after the rest of the tree has gone.
Lord ~ God’s name in the Bible. In the original language, God’s names mean ‘head over all’ and ‘God always’.
rights ~ the rules that protect weaker people in a country with good government.
worship ~ to praise God and to pray to him.
Temple ~ special building in Jerusalem where Jews praised God and offered him prayers and gifts.
Jerusalem ~ at the time of David and Solomon, the capital of the country called Israel. During the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was the capital of the country called Judah.
Jews ~ people who belong to the countries called Judah and Israel; people who belong to the 12 tribes of Israel.
tribe ~ a group of the later family of one father.
Jerusalem ~ at the time of David and Solomon, the capital of the country called Israel. During the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was the capital of the country called Judah.
Messiah ~ Old Testament title for Christ.

Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible. It contains 39 books, all from the time before Jesus was born.
Philistine ~ a person from the country called Philistia, or anything that had a relationship with the country called Philistia.
seize ~ to take a person’s possessions away from that person, either by law, or in a war. Or, to overcome a city or nation in order to rule it. Or, to take a person as a prisoner or a slave.'

Isaiah: New *Heavens and a New Earth

King Ahaz

Isaiah Chapter s 7 to 12

Gordon Churchyard

The words in brackets, […], are not in the *Hebrew Bible. They make the book easier to understand in English. Isaiah wrote his book in the *Hebrew language.

Chapter 11

What a wonderful world!

Note

The two previous Chapter s have contained a special description of God as a ‘forester’ (someone that looks after forests). Some Bible students think that this chapter continues that idea. God used Assyria’s army to cut down the ‘forests’. The ‘forests’ meant Israel and Judah. But God left a part of Judah. In verse 1 of this chapter, Isaiah calls that part a ‘stump’. The ‘stump’ is part of a tree. When a forester has cut down a tree, he leaves the part called the ‘stump’ in the ground. It is a well-known fact that trees can grow again from stumps. The section called ‘Something to do’ has a list of the verses about the ‘forester’. There are some such verses at the end of chapter 10. They link directly to chapter 11, if the theory here is correct.

Many verses in Isaiah describe a New Earth. In Isaiah 65:17 we read, ‘I will create New Heavens and a New Earth.’ This world is the one that God will create again. He will do it when Jesus comes back to the Earth. At that time, God will not destroy our Earth, but he will remove all the bad things from it. (However, some Bible students think that God will create a completely New Earth at that time.) When God has removed all the bad things from the Earth, then good things will happen on it. They will happen to the people called ‘the *remnant’ or ‘the *stump’. When we realise that, verses 1-11 of this chapter become possible! And other similar verses in Isaiah become possible. They are not a poet’s special descriptions of what will happen. They are the simple truth! And ‘the *remnant’ in Isaiah 10:22 will be those people that trust Jesus. The ‘branch’ is one of Jesus’ many names! The *remnant will live on this New Earth and Jesus will be their King!

v1 A shoot (small new branch) will come from the *stump of Jesse (Jesse’s family). And a branch will grow from its roots.

v2 The Spirit of the *LORD will come on him. [He will have these qualities:]

• A spirit that has wisdom and that understands.

• A spirit [that gives] advice and that has authority.

• A spirit that has knowledge and that respects the *LORD.

v3 And he will be pleased to respect the *LORD. He will not make judgements [only] by what his eyes see. [He will not] make decisions [only] by what his ears hear.

v4 But he will *judge poor people rightly and fairly. Also, the decisions that he will make about ordinary people will be fair. [He] will punish wicked people [by means of] his judgements. And [he] will destroy (kill) them [by means of] his words.

v5 [He will do] what is truly fair and right. [He will wear that quality] like a belt round him. [He will] always perform his promises, [so that people] can trust him [to do it]. [He will wear that quality] also, as [if it is his] clothes.

v6 Wolves (wild animals like large dogs) will live with young sheep, [and they will not eat them]! And leopards (wild animals like huge cats) will lie down with young goats! Young cows and [adult] lions will eat together, and young children will lead them!

v7 Cows and bears will eat [together], and their young [animals] will lie down together. And lions will eat straw as oxen (strong animals like cows) [eat straw].

v8 And a tiny baby will play [safely] near the hole where a cobra (big poisonous snake) [lives]. And a young child [will be safe] if he puts his hand onto an adder’s (another poisonous snake’s) nest.

v9 They (the animals) will not hurt [each other] nor [will they] kill [each other] in all my holy mountain. Then [people shall all know] the *LORD. [So] that knowledge shall fill the Earth, as water fills the sea.

v10 In those days, the root [will have come] from Jesse (Jesse’s family). [That root] will be like a flag to [all] countries. Nations will come to him. And the place where he lives will be wonderful.

Notes

Verse 1 A ‘shoot’ is a new branch that grows on a plant or tree. The ‘stump’ is also part of a tree. That part remains in the ground after someone has cut the tree down. It is a special description of Jesse’s family. Jesse was the father of King David. So ‘the stump of Jesse’ means ‘what remains from King David’s family’. David died 250 years before Isaiah wrote his book. But a new king would be born. And David would be among his ancestors (members of his family that lived in previous centuries). The stump (part of the tree that remains) means the family of that new king. And the ‘shoot’ (new part that grows up) means the new king himself.

Verse 2 Christians understand that ‘the Spirit of the *LORD’ is a name for the Holy Spirit. However, we do not know whether Isaiah thought that. But he did know that the *LORD’s power would come to the new king.

Isaiah wrote his book in the *Hebrew language. The *Hebrew word for ‘spirit’ means many things. They include ‘air’, ‘breath’, ‘spirit’, ‘mind’, ‘wind’, ‘storm’ and ‘anger’. So we could translate the rest of the verse like this:

• A mind that is wise and that understands [people and things].

• A mind that gives good advice and that has authority.

• A mind that knows about the *LORD and that respects him.

When God gives his Spirit to a person, that person’s own spirit becomes new. However, this verse describes the new King from David’s family. We know now that his name is King Jesus.

Verse 3 The word ‘judgements’ reminds us of a court of law. One day God will make decisions about all his people. Read the note about Isaiah 1:2. And read the notes about the Easy English translation of Psalms 50, level A. Also, look at 2 Corinthians 5:10. The new king will be pleased to respect God. The *Hebrew word for ‘pleased’ here is like another *Hebrew word. That word means ‘it will smell nice to him’! The *Hebrew word for ‘respect’ also means ‘have fear towards’ someone. In Proverbs 1:7 we read this. ‘To have fear towards the *LORD is the beginning of knowledge.’ And Isaiah 11:2 also links fear towards the *LORD together with knowledge. ‘What his eyes see’ means this. It means ‘what something or someone seems like to him’. ‘What his ears hear’ means this. It means ‘what people say about something or someone’. The new king will look for the truth about people and things. That includes ordinary people especially.

Verse 4 The poor people are those people that are not powerful. Often, kings of Judah and Israel were not fair or kind to those people. But the new king would not be like that.

Verse 5 Kings used to wear special clothes. These clothes helped everyone to know who the king was. But people will know this king because of the things that he does.

Verse 6 Wolves (plural of wolf) are like large wild dogs. They like to catch small animals such as young sheep and then they eat those animals. Leopards are like huge wild cats with big spots. They also like to catch animals such as young goats and then they eat them. Wolves, leopards and lions are all dangerous wild animals. But when the new King comes, they will not be dangerous! Young children led cows and sheep in those days when Isaiah was alive. But at this future time, young children will lead wild animals too, in the same way. What Isaiah says here does not seem possible to us. But it will happen when God creates the New Earth. Wonderful things will happen. The *Hebrew words for the animals are not plural. In *Hebrew, ‘the wolf will live with the young sheep’, and so on. These verses show to us that there will be animals on the New Earth.

Verse 7 ‘Oxen’ is the plural of ‘ox’. An ‘ox’ is an animal like a cow. This verse continues the ideas from verse 6. The main idea is that there will be no danger. Life will be wonderful on the New Earth. Again, the animals are not plural in *Hebrew. For example: ‘A cow and a bear will eat together.’

Verse 8 Cobras and adders are different kinds of dangerous, poisonous snakes. Again, the idea is wonderful safety. Although the writer in the *Hebrew Bible does not use those words, he gives that idea. The New Earth will be completely safe for the people that live there.

Verse 9 ‘They’ means all the animals in verses 6-8. ‘Holy’ means ‘very, very good’. Only God is really holy. The holy mountain is the hill called Zion. That was where the *Jews built God’s house in Jerusalem. Here it will be in the New Jerusalem. Revelation 21:2 shows us that the New Jerusalem will come to the New Earth. ‘That knowledge shall fill the Earth’ means ‘everybody on the Earth will know the *LORD’. Only the *LORD’s own people will live on the New Earth.

Verse 10 This section started in verse 1 with Jesse. And the section ends in verse 10 with Jesse. Verses 1-10 are about the time when the new king has come. They link with verses 11-16 also, because those verses probably refer to a time after the new king. Probably, that new king originally meant Hezekiah or Josiah. But Christians believe that Isaiah’s message here has two meanings. One meaning is about that new king. And the other meaning is about the *Messiah, King Jesus! The ‘place where he lives’ is a place for all the *LORD’s people. So it may mean the place that Jesus mentioned in John 14:2. It will be the New Earth!

v11 And in those days, my *Lord will do something for the second time. He will rescue the *remnant of his people that are still [alive. He will take them] from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar and Hamath. And [he will take them] from countries by the sea.

v12 [The *LORD] will lift up a flag for those nations [to see]. He will gather together the people from Israel [that Assyria’s army] took away. He will bring back Judah’s people that were in *exile. [He will bring them back] from the four corners of the Earth.

v13 Ephraim’s people will not be jealous [of Judah’s people] again, and Judah’s [people] will not attack [Ephraim’s people] any longer. Ephraim’s people will not be jealous of Judah’s people any longer, and Judah’s people will not bother Ephraim’s people again.

v14 But together they will attack the low hills in Philistia, in the west. They will defeat the people on the east [side of the Jordan river]. They will fight against Edom and Moab. And the people in Ammon will obey them.

v15 The *LORD will completely destroy part of the Sea of Egypt. He will wave his hand over the [Euphrates] river. He will send a hot wind that burns things. It will divide [the river] into seven channels (routes along which the water flows). So [then] people can cross [the river] with dry feet.

v16 And there will be a good road from Assyria for the *remnant. [They are the *LORD’s] people that will remain. It will be [as good a road] as [the one] when Israel’s [people] came out of the country called Egypt.

Notes

Verse 11 ‘Lord’ with only one capital letter is a name for God. It means ‘master’. That is, ‘someone with authority’. Some old *Hebrew Bibles have ‘*LORD’ here, a different name for God. The first time when God rescued his people, he rescued them from Egypt. The account about that is in the Book of Exodus. This second time, God will rescue the *remnant from all the places in this verse. The ‘remnant’ means the few people that will still be alive from Israel and Judah. They will live in all those areas because an enemy has taken them away from their own country. The people in Assyria will not allow them to come home, but God will bring them home. He will do it ‘in those days’, at a future time. Again, that probably means two things:

• God will bring all his people that are in *exile back to Israel and Judah.

• God will bring everyone that loves him to the New Earth.

Verse 12 The flag means a signal to the nations. We do not know exactly what that signal was. But we do know this. It shows us that God has authority over all the nations. ‘In exile’ means that the people have to live abroad because of an enemy’s actions. They are living away from their own country because the enemy has taken them away. ‘The four corners of the Earth’ is a special way to say ‘everywhere on the Earth’. The Earth has no real corners, because it is almost round! The *Hebrew words actually mean ‘the four wings of the Earth’.

Verse 13 When King Solomon died, the people divided his country into two parts. The northern part was Israel. It was also called Ephraim. The southern part was Judah. The two countries were not friendly towards each other. But Isaiah says that after some time they will not be enemies any longer. Bible students do not agree about how to translate ‘Judah’s [people] will not attack’. Some people say that it should be ‘Nobody will attack Judah’s [people]’. But the important fact is this. There will be peace between Ephraim (Israel) and Judah.

Verse 14 All these are places over which King David ruled. Edom, Moab and Ammon were on the east side of the Jordan river. Isaiah says that Israel and Judah will become united with each other. Their nation will be powerful again.

Verse 15 Here Isaiah seems to say this. What God did in Egypt, he will also do in Assyria. The ‘Sea of Egypt’ is called the Red Sea. God led his people through it and their feet did not get wet. God will do a similar thing again when he leads his people out from Assyria. However, this time the water will be the Euphrates river. Actually, when God’s people returned from *exile, they returned from Babylon. And the Euphrates river did become dry when King Cyrus defeated Babylon’s army! The king made his soldiers dig a huge ditch. That took the water away from the river where it flowed in the city called Babylon. So the river became dry inside the city. Then the soldiers walked into the city where the river had been! Here we have ‘wind’ and in verse 2 we had ‘spirit’. The *Hebrew Bible has the same word for them both. So some Bible students say that the hot wind is the breath of God.

Verse 16 ‘As [the one] when Israel’s [people] came out of the country called Egypt’ reminds us of verse 11. There we read that God will rescue his people ‘for the second time’. The first time was the return from Egypt.

Something to do

1. Read Ruth 4:18-22 to find out who Jesse was.

2. Isaiah’s book often describes God as a forester (someone who looks after a forest). Study these special descriptions in Isaiah 9:10; Isaiah 9:14; Isaiah 9:18-19; Isaiah 10:15; Isaiah 10:17-19; Isaiah 10:23; Isaiah 10:33 to 11:1.

heavens ~ another word for ‘skies’. It can also mean the place where God lives and the skies above us.
Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
remnant ~ a small part of something that is larger. In Isaiah, it often means the few people that still obeyed God.
stump ~ when someone cuts down a tree, they usually leave the stump in the ground.'Lord/lord ~ lord means master; Lord is a name for God. It is not the same as LORD.

Lord/lord ~ lord means master; Lord is a name for God. It is not the same as LORD.
LORD ~ LORD is a special name of God. In the Hebrew language it is YHWH. It may mean ‘always alive’. So LORD is a sign that the Hebrew word is YHWH.
Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
judge ~ to act as a judge; to issue judgement in a court.
Jews ~ the people that lived in Judah (which sounds like ‘Jew-dah’) and Israel.
messiah ~ a leader such as a king. With a capital M (that is, ‘Messiah’), it means Jesus for Christians.'Lord/lord ~ lord means master; Lord is a name for God. It is not the same as LORD.

Lord/lord ~ lord means master; Lord is a name for God. It is not the same as LORD.
LORD ~ LORD is a special name of God. In the Hebrew language it is YHWH. It may mean ‘always alive’. So LORD is a sign that the Hebrew word is YHWH.
Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
exile ~ away from your own country or people.