by Larry Ferrell | December 22, 2017
The expression “in that day” has run like a refrain through the whole preceding judgment section, from 2:6 to 4:1. But now here in 4:2 the expression is used climatically as Isaiah’s attention is fixed again on the very end of history, the goal towards which everything is moving under God. The great and final day of the Lord, then has a double aspect. It’s both terrible (2:6-22) and glorious (4:2-6). But the way the text refers to glory as the climax reminds us that God’s ultimate purpose for His people is not destruction but salvation, a truth confirmed by the apostle Paul with resounding clarity (1 Thess. 5:9). Peter is no less definite (1 Pet. 1:5). That salvation which will be fully realized when Christ returns to draw history to its triumphant conclusion is represented here under four images.

The Branch of the Lord (4:2a): The Branch of the Lord or simply ‘the Branch’ is used as a technical term for the Messiah, and the motif of a ‘shoot’, ‘branch’ or ‘root’ springing up will later be used in some fairly specific ways within the book of Isaiah. Here however, it seems best to take the full-grown plant in conjunction with what follows, as a general image of the Lord’s saving purposes come to fruition and on display for all to see on the last day. Every gardener knows how a healthy plant in full bloom reflects credit on the one who planted and cultivated it. In a similar way the salvation that the Lord will achieve for His people will reflect great credit on Him on that final day. The Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious. The next three images reveal just what that salvation will involve.

A fruitful land (4:2b): The fruitful land of Canaan had been God’s gift to the Israelites in the days of Joshua in fulfillment of the promises made to their ancestors. The land therefore had religious significance for them. It was a visible sign or sacrament of the grace that the Lord had shown in choosing them to be His people. In Isaiah’s day that relationship was strained almost to breaking –point, and the land lay desolate and ravaged by Israel’s enemies, right up to the gates of Jerusalem itself (1:2, 7-8). But Isaiah was confident that the ancient promises would not fail. God would not destroy the nation; nor would He divorce her permanently from the land. A remnant would survive and enjoy in full measure what had been promised to their fathers long ago. It’s an image of abundant provision and deep contentment.

A holy city (4:3-4): Now the focus narrows from the land to Zion or Jerusalem, the city which had acquired a special significance for Israel in the time of David. In those days it had been holy in a double sense. It had been holy in that God, the Holy One of Israel, had chosen it as the place where David (His chosen king) and his descendants would rule over His people forever, and where God’s people would meet with Him in His temple. It was also holy in the sense that it had exhibited in its corporate life the very character of the one who had chosen it. It had been ‘faithful’ and ‘full of justice’. The Zion of Isaiah’s day had become a corrupt, harlot city, but Isaiah never doubted that it was still chosen to play a key role in the Lord’s purposes. In these two verses he sees the Zion of the future inhabited by an elect remnant, living in a city which has been purged of its moral corruption by divine judgment. Zion will then once more be holy in both senses: elect and faithful. The holy city represents perfect community.

A canopy of glory (4:5-6): The final image is of journey’s end, of the pilgrim people of God at last secure in God’s presence forever. There are many allusions here to the period of the exodus. That journey was punctuated by encampments, and at such times, rest in the land had never been perfectly achieved, even in the time of David. Now, in Isaiah’s time it seemed further off than ever. Isaiah believed that the final encampment of God’s people would be in the new Zion. In the final encampment the glory of the Lord’s presence fills the whole camp, and the protecting cloud, like a vast canopy or pavilion, covers the entire site and all who are assembled there (v. 5). There will no longer be any need for the tabernacle or temple, for the glory of the Lord will be directly accessible to all. And those with whom God is present in this way will be perfectly secure forever (v. 6). This is no out-of-date dream, but one which Jesus prayed to be realized, and which the apostle John sets before us again at the climax of the Bible as the vision of our own future in God which should still inspire us and draw us on. We too, are pilgrims.

Isaiah 4:2-6 Reflection Questions:
Putting yourself into this study, where are you in your spiritual pilgrimage?
Have you experienced the glory of The Lord?
What does it mean when you don’t feel close to the Lord’s presence in your life (according to your spiritual pilgrimage)?

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