October 11, Isaiah 34
For the LORD is enraged against all the nations, and furious against all their host; he has devoted them to destruction, has given them over for slaughter. - Isaiah 34:2
Two long, dominant threads of the Bible's storyline pass through Isaiah 34. God's judgment against rebellious sinners is here, as well as Esau’s perpetual hatred for Jacob. Note that God calls all the nations, the earth and the whole world to hear the message about his wrath and judgment. But if it is addressed to all nations, why does God only name one nation as he describes the fury of his wrath destroying rebellious people?
I believe that Edom is used as a symbol for all nations who oppose God's people and rebel against God. The symbol gets its meaning from the animosity between the descendants of Esau and Jacob that dated back a thousand years from Isaiah’s time to their forefathers. All the way back in Genesis, these sons of Isaac dealt treacherously with one another. The Edomites (who descended from Esau) would help and encourage the Babylonians when they came to overthrow Jerusalem and lead the surviving Israelites away as captives. Even in New Testament times, King Herod (an Idumean or Edomite) tried to murder baby Jesus and in the process killed many little boys in Judea. His successor would also be involved in the mockery of justice that passed for Jesus' trial before he was crucified. That Herod also killed John the Baptist. Another Herod would kill the apostle James, and intended to kill Peter and the others before God struck him dead. From Esau the father of Edom all the way down to first century times, the Edomites persecuted Jacob's descendants who became Israel. So they were a fitting symbol of people in rebellion against God and opposing the Lord and his people.
All through the Bible, the judgment is described as the time of the final destruction of Satan along with all the enemies of God, and the end of the world as we know it. That final day event will divide all humanity into two groups. One group will be welcomed and rewarded for their faithful service to Jesus as Lord. The other group will be condemned and punished, sent away from the presence of God forever in condemnation and punishment.
Some of the metaphors here that described the wrath God would pour out on the guilty are echoed in other passages. The desolate land, the ruined cities, the shaken and fallen powers, the slaughter and bloodshed — all these images point to the awful destruction and final ruin of the wicked that will take place at judgment. Some of Isaiah's images seem to point to judgment events when God punished his people and their enemies at specific times in history. Other descriptions look out to the judgment at the end of the world. And through it all, God remains in complete control of all things.
Judgment, whether it takes place against a nation in time or all the world at the end of time is a fulfillment of God's decree to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. God told them they would die if they disobeyed, and they did. But their descendants did, too. The warning that disobedience brings death is Bible-wide. Ezekiel wrote that soul that sins shall die. Paul said the wages of sin is death and that death came into the world by sin. But in every case, those people who humbled themselves and stayed faithful or returned to God would be sheltered from the flood and preserved. That salvation ultimately came true in Christ for people of every nation who trust in him and come to God. The spiritual descendants of Abraham will be saved from the great flood of God's wrath at the last day judgment when all the rebels go into everlasting punishment.
Surely there is no more sobering thought than the certainty of judgment and the eternal destiny that will follow it. Jesus Christ, our Savior, the promised seed of Abraham, is our hope and security in the face of threatened destruction. Thank God for the mercy and grace he shows us through his Son and our Savior.
Copyright © 2023 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Today in God's Word—October 2023
East Tallassee Church of Christ
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