Isaiah 60:1-5
Alternative devotions for Thursday 31st December
Review
Chapter 60 begins the last great section of the book of Isaiah, which describes the glory of God’s work of redemption. The nature of the prophecy changes, and if you were to be able to read the Hebrew of the original text, you would find a quite distinct and significant change in the style of writing here. Just as Paul’s great prayer of praise in Ephesians 1 is all one long sentence, with repeating phrases and themes, and with sentences tumbling over each other to try and express the inexpressible, the same is true of Isaiah 60! The great prophet appears to have been caught up in a vision so glorious that his language bubbles over with expressive phrases connected with each other in long sentences. It sounds very technical, but it is generally true that when people become excited, their speech has such characteristics of flow and energy.
Caught up in a great vision of the glory of God, Isaiah attempts to describe it with these wonderful words, portraying a very emotional response to such wonders. We can find other passages of scripture where the same things happens; Ephesians 1 (as above), Malachi 3,4, and Psalm 72. Interestingly, if you read Psalm 72, not only will you find a number of common themes with Isaiah 60 (justice, prosperity, peace, worldly rule, blessings and abundance), you will find that it is about the glory of God granted to the King (and written by Solomon). It is quite reasonable to suggest that Isaiah prophesied with Psalm 72 and other great Scriptures describing the glory of God in his mind. When we pray or speak about the things of God we often use Biblical words and themes we know within what we are saying, and doubtless, Isaiah did the same!
Here, Isaiah is inspired to describe the Lord’s glory in several highly significant ways, and the first of these uses the theme of ‘light’. Earlier in these prophecies we heard the Lord declare that He intended His people to be a ‘light to the nations’ (42:6, 49:6), but they had failed in their task. However, the Servant was the one who brought the light of God’s redemption (53, 59:21), and although it had burned so dimly in the past, Isaiah caught sight of this light breaking into brightness, ‘Arise, shine, your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen on you’ (60:1). Of course this light is set against the dark clouds of God’s judgement (60:2), but nothing can stop the progress of God’s glory, for ‘nations will travel to your light, and kings to the brilliance of your dawn!’ (60:3). Having said so much about the reaction of God’s people to the coming of the Servant in the previous chapters (54-59), Isaiah now returns to describing the wondrous glory of the Lord’s work to draw all people to Himself.
The next great theme to emerge in this passage is the gathering and return of God’s people (60:4f.). Isaiah has spoken about this on a number of occasions throughout his prophecies, believing that God always wanted to gather and unite His people (11:2, 40:11, 43:5 etc.) around His holy dwelling place of Zion, from where He could provide for them (as indicated in 59:20). Sometimes Isaiah spoke about Zion as being a real place (Jerusalem), and sometimes he spoke about Zion as God’s spiritual dwelling with His people (just as Christians speak of God’s ‘Kingdom’. Now there are some strange expressions in this passage, such as ‘daughters supported at the side’ (60:4) or ‘the wealth of the sea’ (60:5), but it is the gathering that is important.
We will have to study this passage further to find out its many other secrets and revelations. However, we must start with the bold picture of wonder and awe at a God who intervenes in human history to bring the light of His redemption and glory, and the anticipation of the return of all people to their Creator. This is the clear meaning of these opening verses, and they praise God for the work He has done through the Servant, our Saviour Jesus Christ.
1 Arise, shine; for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen on you.
2 For look! darkness covers the earth,
and thick clouds the peoples;
but the Lord will arise over you,
and His glory will be seen over you.
3 Nations will travel to your light,
and kings to the brilliance of your dawn.
4 Lift up your eyes all around and see;
they have all gathered together and come to you;
your sons will come from far away,
with your daughters supported at the side.
5 Then you will see and be radiant;
your heart will swell with awe,
because the wealth of the sea will be brought to you,
the wealth of the nations will come to you.
© All text and pictures on this page copyright Paul H Ashby 2009 - all rights reserved
We ask for mercy, Heavenly Father, on all who struggle this day with work, with family, with life itself, and also with faith. Have compassion on all who are depressed, and save them from its cruel destructive web. Give us Your love and understanding as we walk alongside those who suffer in this way; and may they be drawn them back to hope in You. In the name of Jesus, AMEN
Treasure your life, though it may seem hard at times;
For your courage is the starting point of greater things,
And the Lord delights to use a willing heart.
Enjoy your life, even if you have to work at it;
For perseverance brings the great prize of joy,
And the Lord will bless your love of life.
Be careful with your life, it is valued beyond price;
For the Creator loves each person He has made,
And the Lord has given His life for yours.
Give your life away, to friends as well as enemies
For as you do, you gain far more than you can ever lose
And the Lord will say to you at last; ‘well done’
Prayer ideas
Scan a news website for a country other than your own, and look for items for prayer
On-going prayers
- Pray for major industrial nations Pray for Malaysia, a large and diverse country covering many islands; pray for political stability
- Give thanks for the past year, and God’s blessings within it
- Pray for the family of Akmal Shaikh, put to death in China
