Dwell in the Word: Isaiah 24:1-23

Consider these questions as you dwell in Isaiah 24:1-23:

1. In this passage, Isaiah prophesies a day of judgment when all the earth will be judged, regardless of their status or position. How does this emphasize the impartiality and righteousness of God's judgment? What can we learn from this about the nature of God's justice?

2. Despite the impending judgment described in the passage, there is a call to give glory to the Lord and sing songs of praise to His Majesty. How does this contrast between judgment and praise reflect the complex nature of God's character? How can we maintain a sense of awe and reverence for God even in the face of His judgment?

3. The passage highlights the importance of finding refuge in the Lord, especially in the midst of His righteous judgment. How does the concept of refuge in the Lord apply to our lives today? In what ways can we seek refuge in God's grace and righteousness through Jesus Christ?

Transcript:

So, isn't this just another happy passage? More words of judgment. This is the norm for us, and this is what we should expect in a book of prophecy. We've seen this as we've gone through some of the minor prophets. But here we're seeing this in a larger book, and it almost feels like it's unrelenting, right? That there's this constant idea of judgment. And we've seen in the last few chapters on these judgments on these different nations. But here we come to a point where Isaiah is declaring that there's going to be judgment on the whole earth. And so this is interesting because here we see in verses two and three, this idea of a great leveling that is occurring, I guess you could say. It doesn't matter who you are. All the earth is going to be judged. It doesn't matter if you are at the top of the spectrum or at the bottom, you will be judged. Everyone is going to be judged, basically. And we see this verse 2, And it shall be as with the people, so with the priests, the slave, with the master, the maid, with her mistress, the buyer, with the seller, the lender, with the borrower, the creditor, with the debtor, the earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered for the Lord has spoken this word, this judgment is absolute.

It's happening to everyone. Everyone experiences it. And the idea that we feel in this entire chapter is that we need to remember that the Lord is righteous, that God is righteous, He is above all things, that any judgment that He does is good and right, and He does it for a purpose. We've seen that many times in Isaiah, right? That there's this purpose behind the judgment of God, that He is doing this in order to bring people back to Himself, to bring glory to Himself. In this case, it's about so much more than just one people group or that people group. We're seeing that God is judging all things. We know that we deserve judgment. We understand that when it comes down to it, we are sinners in need of forgiveness. We are sinners who deserve the judgment of God. We see here that people are going to see this about God. We look at verses 14 through 16. In the midst of all of this, people are lifting up their voices and they're singing for joy over the Majesty of the Lord. They shout from the West. Therefore, in the East, give glory to the Lord in the closeness of the sea.

Give glory to the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. From the ends of the earth, we hear songs of praise of glory to the righteous one. He is worthy of praise. God is worthy of praise. Even though we would be terrified at His judgment, we see His Holiness. We see His glory. We see His Majesty. And so as we dwell on this passage, we remember and we understand that while this is terrifying, this is bad stuff, right? Some of the language here is very strong, but we remember that God is good and He is holy and just, and He deserves to judge. He is the righteous judge over all the earth. And we are deserving of judgment. And so we look for an understanding of how we can find refuge in the midst of this, right? Because we understand verse 21, On that day, the Lord will punish the host of heaven, in heaven, and the Kings on the earth, on the earth. All judgment is coming, whether it is devils, demons being judged in the spiritual realm, whether it is the people who are in high powers on the earth, everyone is being judged.

We understand this. And at the end of the chapter, we see then that the moon will be confounded and the son ashamed for the Lord of host reigns on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, and his glory will be before his elders. God comes out on top in this. He is the one who is going to set things to right. He is the one who is going to judge the earth justly. Our judgment isn't going to be just. It would be terrible. We would be biased, et cetera. But God's judgment is good, and we see that here from Isaiah. But we also have this continual reminder that here we see this idea of a judgment, and we understand that we are sinners and we are in need of a refuge here. We're reminded of that great refuge that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ. That when this day comes, we are able to stand as though we are perfectly righteous because he has taken our sins upon himself that we might be dressed in the perfect robes of his righteousness. And so may we rest that truth, and may we desire to bring glory to our God because he is great and mighty and he is righteous.

And so may our lives today reflect His goodness, His holiness, and His Majesty.