NOTES ON ISAIAH 2:1-5
February 13th, 2007 by Dim Bulb
2:1 this is the word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
This verse is similar to the superscription which opens the book (1:1). As noted in the comments there the Hebrew word for vision can refer to both optical and auditory experiences, therefore, the statement that the prophet “saw” the “word” should not cause us to wonder. God speaks both by what he says and by what he does. Visions, like pictures, can speak a thousand words. Do you “see” what I’m “saying”?
The supercsirtion introduced the entire book; this statement in 2:1 is an introduction to chapters 2-5. this suggests that the book was developed, at least in part, from existing written oracles. Wether these were written by Isaiah himself or one of his disciples we shall probably never know.
2:2-5 And it shall come to pass in the last days that the mountain of Yahweh’s house shall be established as the highest of mountains, raised up above all the hills. All nations shall flow towards it; many people will come, saying, “Come, let us ascend the mountain of Yahweh, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us concerning his ways, so that we might walk in his paths. For out of Zion instruction will go forth, the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem. He will judge among the nations and set terms on many people.
they will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. No nation shall lift the sword against another, nor will they train for war again. O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord.
These words are nearly identical to what is found in Micah 4:1-3. Micah was a contemporary of isaiah and it is difficult to say which of the two prophets was the first to receive it. The claim made by some that the two passages are both later interpolations from the post-exilic period has not been well received by scholars. Here we will focus on the literary context of the passage.
The last days. the underlying Hebrew words are variously translated in English. The words need not imply the end of all time but rather the end of an age or era.
the mountain of Yahweh’s house shall be established as the highest of mountains, and raised up above all hills. In chapter 1 the nation was suffering military invasion and Jerusalem was under seige becuase of its sins (1:7-8). Its primary sin was idolatry, the worship of false gods. Such worship often took place under terebinth trees and in groves or gardens (1:29). Often these were located on elevated places like hills (often called in the bible “the high places”). In this current oracle we have a promise that the mountain of the Lord’s house will be established and raised above such places. All the nations will worship God in true fashion and therefore he will not have to punish them with war (see Deuteronomy 28:49-57).
the Lords house established. The Hebrew word for established is often associated in the OT with the place where God’s presence was manifested (Ex 15:17; 1 kings 8:13;) Here the word house obviously refers to his temple. With the coming of the Holy Spirit God’s temple is now the Church, built of “living stones,” (1 Pet 2:4-8) “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone” (Eph 2:19-22) See here, and here.
all nations shall flow towards it. Like streams or rivers. Of course, water does not run uphill. (see what follows)
come, let us ascend the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. “Who may abide in your tabernacle? who may dwell on your holy mountain? Whoever walks without blame, whoever does what is right, whoever speaks the truth from the heart.” (Psalm 15:1-2) But no more than water can flow uphill can man ascend to God by his own power, let alone dwell with God. God must draw him up and invite him in, therefore:
he must teach us concerning his ways, so that we might walk in his paths. it is for this reason that out of zion instruction will go forth, from Jerusalem the word of Yahweh. This happened as a result of Pentecost (see Acts 1:6-8). As a result, those who were far off (gentiles=people of the nations) have become near to the community of the true Israel (the Church, Gal 6:16) by the blood of Christ. they are now no longer strangers, they have become fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred to the Lord…into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (see Eph 2:11-22)
Posted in Bible, NOTES ON ISAIAH |
February 19th, 2007 at 10:02 am
While Baltimore has always been a relative mess, our worse period- the 1830s-1850s, was a period marked by religiously motivated warfare. In 1839, we had the nunnery riot, where a Carmelite convent was nearly burned down by Protestant mob.
Dim, Baltimore has a had a lot of religiously motivated violence and persecution. From 1688 to the revolution, Protestants persecuted Catholics, denying them the rights and such.
Throughout the 1850s the Catholic Irish and the Protestant gangs associated with the Know-Nothings regularly turned Baltimore into a war zone, particularly on election days.
And thats today’s history lesson :)
February 19th, 2007 at 8:11 pm
Hoodlum,
You are of course responding to a statement I made in someone elses combox. In the future I would appreciate it if when we engage in discussion on a third website we keep the conversation there rather than in my combox which has no connection to the discussion.
What the above response has to do with your original comment and my response to it is a mystery to me. It appears you’ve wandered off onto an entirely different subject.
As far as the history lesson goes, I am well aware of the religious strife in this country’s past, having learned about it as an eighth grader at St Joseph’s school. Since you’re an atheist I suggest you worry about modern atheism’s persecution of religion-or is it only the moral failings of religious people that bother you?