Isaiah 2:1-5 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Isaiah 2:1-5. Let’s go!
Isaiah 2:1-2 (NIV)
1 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:
2 In the last days the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.
On verses 1-2: Isaiah foresees the day when the worship of the LORD will be the most prominent movement in the world (“chief among the mountains” – v2), when the church grows from a small, miniscule, inconspicuous mustard seed of a faith to the largest force in the world that no one can ignore, and people from all nations will be a part of it.
Isaiah 2:3-5 (NIV)
3 Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4 He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.
5 Come, O house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the LORD.
On verses 3-5: What time in history is Isaiah talking about when he talks about the mountain of the Lord being established as chief among the mountains? Some think that time has already come, or has passed. Others think this is some future event. Others still suggest that Isaiah did not have a particular event in mind.
I believe this time is still to come. After all, verse 2 says “in the last days”. I believe that the greatest churches have yet to be built, the greatest worship has yet to be given. But we’re on our way there. When it comes to God’s church and God’s worship, the best is yet to come.
By the way, verses 2-4 are almost identical to Micah 4:1-3. Why is that? One theory is that Micah and Isaiah were referencing something that already existed and that people were already aware of. However, since Isaiah specifically says that this was the vision that he saw, another possible explanation is that Isaiah first wrong down this vision, and then Micah refers to it in his book later.
What can we learn from these verses?
1. When you “go up to the mountain of the Lord” (i.e. when you go out of your way to be in God’s presence), you give God room to teach you His ways (v3).
2. “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord” (v3) suggests that getting to know is a communal thing, not a strictly private individual thing. You were made to draw near to God together with your church family.
3. The mountain of the Lord’s temple, which represents the worship of God, was always meant to be the chief mountain in our lives. Let’s make God and our worship of Him our number one concern, our “chief mountain”. For when we seek the mountain of God’s kingdom first, problems and concerns (other mountains) don’t seem so scary anymore, and God adds to us everything we need.
4. God’s purpose for learning God’s Word is living God’s Word. Notice it says in verse 3 “He will teach us his ways, SO THAT we may walk in his paths”. In other words, when your heart is right, you want to learn God’s Word not simply for the sake of academic knowledge or curiosity, but “SO THAT we may walk in his paths”, i.e. we learn God’s Word so that we can know, love and follow God better.
5. God’s kingdom was meant to include people from every nation. There is no room for racism in the kingdom of God, for people from every culture, language, tribe, race and ethnicity are invited, welcomed and included.
6. God’s heart is not for war but for peace. The effect of letting God’s Word fill us is that we strive for peace and fight for peace (v4), not launching ourselves into conflict unnecessarily. Verse 4 paints the picture of one day all nations living peacefully under God’s rule.
7. By this point Judah was greatly outsized by other much more powerful nations, like Assyria. So it must have seemed to some an arrogant and unrealistic assertion for Isaiah to claim that one day all nations will turn to the Lord. That claim is just as politically incorrect today, but that’s the truth of God’s Word. For more on this, check out the message “How can Jesus be the only way to God?” from our Overcome My Unbelief series.
Thank You Jesus that one day people from every nation and culture will bow their knees and confess that You are Lord. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
