Isaiah 2:22

The only sure *foundation for any human life is God himself.

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.
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.
Lord ~ God’s name in the Bible. In the original language, God’s names mean ‘head over all’ and ‘God always’.
worship ~ to praise God and to pray to him.
Philistines ~ people from Philistia, which was a nation near Judah and a frequent enemy of God’s people.
weapons ~ the equipment that soldiers use to fight the enemy.
tower ~ a tall building that is very strong, like a castle.
earthquake ~ when the earth shakes powerfully.
foundation ~ something strong that you can trust in order to establish something else firmly.

Isaiah: New *Heavens and a New Earth

Isaiah Begins to *Prophesy

Isaiah Chapter s 1 to 6

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 2

v1 This is what Isaiah, the son of Amoz, ‘saw’ (understood) about Judah and Jerusalem.

Notes

In the note about Isaiah 1:1, we have explained that the word ‘saw’ in Isaiah often means ‘understood’. Really, the original meaning of the *Hebrew word was this. It meant ‘to split [something] open in order to see what is inside’. It is what you would do with a nut. You would break the shell to find the nut inside. Isaiah saw the things that were happening in his country. But he did not just look at the outside of those things. He ‘saw’ inside things. He ‘saw’ what they meant. He understood history.

This verse here (Isaiah 2:1) probably refers to Isaiah 2:2-4. Nearly all of that passage is about Jerusalem. It contains three descriptions of Jerusalem:

• Jerusalem as God would like it to be (Isaiah 2:2-5).

• Jerusalem as it was in Isaiah’s time (Isaiah 2:6-3).

• Jerusalem as it would be when God saved his people (Isaiah 4:2-6).

Hope for the people that trust in God

v2 This is what will happen in the last times. The mountain, where the house of the *LORD is, will be permanent. It will be the chief one among the mountains. It will be higher than the hills [round it. People from] every country will flow towards it.

v3 And people [from many countries] will come. And they will say, ‘Come! Let us go to the mountain of the *LORD. Let us go to the house of Jacob’s (Israel’s) God. Then he (God) will teach us his ways, so that we can walk in his paths.’ So, the rules [that God made] will go out from Zion (Jerusalem). The *LORD’s message will go out from Jerusalem.

v4 [God] will be the judge between the nations. He will say who [is right. And he will say] who is wrong. They will hammer their swords to make parts of ploughs. And they will hammer their *spears to make knives [with which] to *prune plants. Nations will not attack other nations with swords, and neither will they learn how to fight again.

v5 Family of Jacob, come and let us walk in the *LORD’s light.

Notes

A section about religion in Judah and Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:6-21) follows these verses. But here in verses 2-5, we read about the ideal Jerusalem. It is what God wants Jerusalem to be. It will be like this when Jesus returns to the Earth. The New Jerusalem will be on the New Earth. God’s people will live there. Then in Isaiah 2:6-21, Isaiah describes the time when he himself was alive. He tells us what religion in Jerusalem was really like then. In chapter 4, Isaiah adds the promise that one day the ideal Jerusalem will exist. It is typical of Isaiah that he reminds people about God’s promises. God promised a New Jerusalem on a New Earth.

Micah 4:1-4 is very similar to Isaiah 2:2-5. Bible students are not sure who wrote the words first. Perhaps both *prophets used words from a popular poem.

Verse 2 For ‘last times’, the *Hebrew text actually has ‘last days’. ‘In the last times’ probably means ‘in the future’. It does not have to mean ‘at the end of the world’. It describes what Isaiah believed. These things would happen one day. Christians believe that they will happen at the time of Jesus’ return to the Earth. The house of the *LORD was the *temple in Jerusalem. It was on a hill (small mountain) called Zion. That was not the highest hill, but it was the most important hill. ‘[People from] every country’ means people that are not *Jews. The *Jews were God’s people, who lived in Judah and Israel. Here ‘flow’ is a way to say ‘go’. Very many people will go. So it will be like a river of people! It will be like a river that flows up the hill called Zion! Some Christians believe that this is a special way to describe the New Earth. People from every country will come to the New Jerusalem.

Verse 3 ‘The mountain of the *LORD’ means ‘the place where people will find the *LORD’. ‘The house of Jacob’s [Israel’s] God’ is the *temple in Jerusalem. ‘Jacob’ here is a name for the *Jews, as well as for Jacob himself. Here Isaiah compares a person’s life to a journey along a path. ‘His ways’ means the things that God wants people to do. ‘Walk in his paths’ means ‘obey God’s rules’. ‘The rules that God made’ means the same as ‘the *LORD’s message’. They both mean the things that God wants people to do. Isaiah does not tell us how the message will go out from Jerusalem. Probably God’s servants, the priests and the *prophets, will tell people what God is saying. But notice that God’s laws will go ‘out from Zion (Jerusalem)’. They will go out to the whole world! This is what Christians are doing today. They are declaring God’s message across the world. But when Jesus returns to the Earth, that will happen on the New Earth!

Verse 4 This verse continues from verse 3, which refers to God as the maker of laws. So here God acts as the judge. He says which nation is right or wrong. He makes that decision. At that time, people will change the things that they used to fight with. They will use the metal to make objects that will help them to produce food in their fields. A ‘spear’ is a long stick with a sharp point at its end. Or it is a knife with a very long handle. When a gardener ‘prunes’ a plant, he cuts part of it off. Then the plant grows better. Ploughs are tools that people use on a farm. And so are knives with which to *prune plants. Instead of war, there will be peace. Today, Isaiah would probably say ‘guns’ and ‘bombs’ instead of ‘swords’ and ‘*spears’. Some bombs contain a chemical called ‘potassium nitrate’, which would actually make plants grow better!

Verse 5 In verses 5 and 6, the *Hebrew text actually has ‘house of Jacob’. It means ‘family of Jacob’, Jacob’s *descendants. In other words, they were the people in Judah and Israel, also called the ‘*Jews’. ‘Walk’ means ‘do things’. It means how we behave. ‘Light of the *LORD’ probably means ‘what the *LORD teaches’. In some other verses, we can see that the ‘light of the *LORD’ does have that meaning. They include Psalms 4:6-7; Psalms 36:9-10 and 119:105.

The problems of religion in Judah and Israel

v6 But you, [*LORD], have gone away from your people, who are the family of Jacob. [You have gone away] because they are full [of magic. The magic comes from countries in] the east. They have *soothsayers, as the people in Philistia [have them]. Also, they shake hands with foreigners.

v7 Their country is full of silver and gold and they have many valuable things. Their country is full of horses and they have many chariots (carts that soldiers ride in).

v8 Images that are worth nothing fill their country. [They] have made [those] things [with] their hands. [Then] they bend down on their knees in front of [them]. [They] have made [them with] their own fingers. [And] they go down on their knees in front of [them].

v9 So, [the *LORD] makes people humble and everyone becomes low! [*LORD], do not lift them up again!

Notes

Verse 6 God has gone away from his people because they are doing wrong things. Now Isaiah starts to make a list of those wrong things. The words in the *Hebrew Bible mean, ‘They are full from the east.’ It does not say what they are full of! But Bible students think that it means this. ‘The country is full of magic. The magic comes from countries in the east.’ God’s rules do not allow people to do magic. The Philistines were a group of people that lived in Philistia. Philistia was west from Jerusalem. People called soothsayers use magic to discover what will happen in the future. ‘Shake hands with’ here means ‘agree with’. The *Jews did not ask God to help them. Instead, they asked people from other countries to help them. ‘Shake hands with foreigners’ may mean ‘agree with religions from the east and west’.

Verse 7 Bible students ask a question about this verse, and they are not sure about the answer. The question is this. ‘Why were the *Jews wealthy when they agreed with foreigners?’ Perhaps they traded with foreigners and that made the *Jews wealthy. Also, the *Jews’ army was strong, with many horses and chariots. ‘Chariots’ were carts that horses pulled. Soldiers rode in the chariots. In 1 Kings 10:28, we read that King Solomon bought horses from Egypt.

Verse 8 The writer is ‘playing with words’ here, so that one word makes you think about another word. There is one *Hebrew word for ‘images that are worth nothing’. And it is very like the *Hebrew word for God. Perhaps we should translate that word as ‘gods’ (with a small letter g). Such gods are worth nothing! The people themselves have made those images of gods. The images are not the real God. The people are wrong to bend down on their knees in front of them.

Verse 9 Here the writer is ‘playing with words’ again. Look again at verse 8. There, people bent down low on their knees in front of their images. But here, it is God that makes the people humble and low. They will not be important or powerful. God will make them the opposite. Isaiah prays that God will not lift them up again. ‘Lift them up again’ means ‘make them important and powerful again’.

v10 Go into [the holes in] the rocks. And hide in the ground. [Hide] because you are afraid. [You are afraid] of what the *LORD [will do. And hide] from his great power, which can frighten [people].

v11 [The *LORD] will stop the way that proud people look at other people. And [he will make] very proud people humble. At that time, only the *LORD will be important. He will be more important than anyone else.

v12 Yes! The *LORD of Everything will choose a time. Then, [at that time, the *LORD] will make humble everyone that is proud. [He will make humble everybody that is] very proud and important.

v13-16 [At that time, the *LORD will be] against all these things:

• the high, very tall trees called cedars in Lebanon

• the trees called oaks in Bashan

• the very high mountains

• the high hills

• high towers (tall, strong buildings)

• strong walls

• boats from Tarshish

• beautiful ships.

v17 [The *LORD] will stop the way that proud people look at other people. And he will make very proud people humble. At that time, only the *LORD will be important. [He will be] more important than anyone else.

v18 And every *idol will disappear.

Notes

Verse 10 Isaiah tells bad people to hide from God, because God will punish them. We can also translate the *Hebrew words for ‘his great power, which can frighten’ more exactly as ‘his glorious majesty’. ‘Majesty’ is a quality that a king has. It is ‘glorious’, which means ‘very wonderful’. In the verses above, we read about magic (verse 6), money (verse 7) and armies (verse 7). We also read about false religion (verse 8). Verse 10 means that those things cannot protect people from God’s power. That is why God’s power frightens people. God made people out of earth (Genesis 2:7). Now people will go back to the ground.

Verse 11 The *Hebrew words for ‘the way that proud people look’ mean ‘the eyes of proud man’. The word ‘man’ here means all men and women, so our translation has ‘people’. These people will have to become humble. In other words, everyone will see that these people are bad and unimportant. They will see that really these people are not good or important.

Verse 12 In verses 11 and 12, the *Hebrew word that the writer uses for ‘time’ can also mean ‘day’. Many Bible students call this time that the *LORD chooses ‘the Day of the *LORD’. Such a time has often happened in the past, but one day it will happen for the last time. Very proud and important people think that they are very special. But God does not think that they are special! The ‘*LORD of Everything’ is a special name for God. Some Bible students translate it ‘*LORD of Armies of Angels’. An ‘angel’ is a servant of God. Angels live in heaven (God’s home). There are very many angels. They continue to do God’s work on the Earth also, although we cannot see them.

Verses 13-16 The trees called ‘cedars’ in Lebanon (a country north from Israel) were special. Cedar trees are large and they are very beautiful. Their leaves do not fall off in winter. But the leaves of the trees called ‘oaks’ fall off in winter. People made *idols (false gods) from the oak trees in Bashan. Those people also thought that gods lived in tall mountains and very high hills. People build tall, strong buildings in order to show their own strength. We call these buildings ‘towers’. Guards could watch from them, so high towers made cities safe. And so did strong walls. Boats from Tarshish (in Spain) were important for trade. And so were other ships.

God is against everything that people were thinking about because of all the things in the list. Those things made people think about false gods, war and trade. Trade may be good. But it is not good if it helps false gods and war.

Verse 17 This verse is similar to verse 11. The *Hebrew word here for ‘time’ can also mean ‘day’.

Verse 18 An ‘idol’ may be a picture of a false god. Or it may be a false god that people have made from wood or stone. The *Hebrew words for ‘idol’ and ‘God’ are similar to each other. But the *Hebrew word for ‘idol’ does not mean ‘God’. It means ‘no god’. Idols are really ‘no-gods’! They are ‘no good’!

v19 And [people] will run to caves in the rocks. [They will] also [run] to holes in the ground. [They will run] because they are afraid of the *LORD. [They will run] from his great power because it frightens them. [They will run] when he comes to shake the Earth.

v20 At that time, people will throw away their *idols [that they made from] silver. And [they will throw away] their *idols [that they made from] gold. The people made [those *idols] in order to *worship them. [But they will throw them all] to small animals called rats and bats.

v21 Then people will run to caves in the rocks. And [they will run] to holes in mountains’ [sides. They will run] because they are afraid of the *LORD. [They will run] from his great power because it frightens them. [They will run] when he comes to shake the Earth.

Notes

Verse 19 People will do what Isaiah said in verse 10. God will ‘shake the Earth’. In other words, he will do something big that everybody knows about. At the start of verse 19, the *Hebrew words just mean ‘they will run’. Perhaps ‘they’ means the *idols in verse 18. Or perhaps it means the people that made the *idols.

Verse 20 The *Hebrew word for ‘time’ here can also mean ‘day’. Silver and gold are valuable metals. People made *idols from them. People ‘worshipped’ those *idols. In other words, they loved the *idols and they praised them. And they thought that the *idols were wonderful! But when the *LORD does something big, people will throw away their *idols. They will throw them to the rats and to the bats. ‘Rats’ are like large mice. They live in holes in the ground. They bring diseases to people. ‘Bats’ are like mice that can fly. They fly at night. As in verse 18, the *Hebrew word for *idol means ‘no god’!

Verse 21 The note about verse 10 shows what ‘his great power’ means. For ‘shake the earth’, read the note about verse 19.

v22 Do not [trust] in people. They breathe through their noses! They do not have very much value.

Notes

Verse 22 People breathe through their noses because God made them like that. They only breathe while God allows them to breathe. The *Hebrew Bible actually has a question here, ‘What value do they have?’ The answer to the question is probably: ‘They are not as great as God!’ So, Isaiah tells us not to trust in people. They have no value in themselves only. We may ask, ‘If people cannot help you, who can?’ The answer is ‘God’! This verse really starts the next section about bad leaders (Isaiah 3:1-8).

Something to do

1. Read more about the light of the *LORD. You can read about it in Psalms 4:6-7; Psalms 36:9-10 and 119:105.

2. Make the words in Isaiah 2:2-4 into a prayer. Use them to pray for peace in our world. Use them when you think about the New Earth.

3. Compare true, good religion (Isaiah 2:2-5) with false, bad religion (Isaiah 2:6-9). To do that, use the arrangement of boxes below.

Good Religion	Bad Religion
The people in the world come to God and his people, 2:2.	God’s people go to the world and its gods, 2:6.
The world’s people look for God’s rules by which to live, 2:3.	God’s people want money and goods, 2:7.
The world’s people come to God and there is peace, 2:4.	God’s people gather together things to make war, 2:7.
The world’s people come to the one real God, 2:3.	God’s people make their own false gods, 2:8.
God says who is right. Also, he says who is wrong, 2:4.	God does not forgive people with bad religion, 2:9.

heavens ~ another word for ‘skies’. It can also mean the place where God lives and the skies above us.
prophesy ~ tell people what God is saying.
Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
LORD ~ a special name for God that only his servants should use. It is not a translation. It represents the Hebrew word YHWH. It probably means that God is always alive.
lord ~ master. When it has a capital L (that is, ‘Lord’) it is a name for God.
Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
spear ~ a knife with a very long handle.
prune ~ cut off part of a plant to make the plant grow better.
prophet ~ someone who says what God is saying. There is a note at Isaiah 1:1.
temple ~ God’s house in Jerusalem. False gods also had temples.
Jews ~ the people that lived in Judah (which sounds like ‘Jew-dah’) and Israel.
descendants ~ future members of a family.
soothsayer ~ someone that uses magic to find out what will happen in the future.
idol ~ a false god that people made.
worship ~ to tell God (or a false god) that he is wonderful; and also, to tell him that you love him.