Duck in the Pulpit

God’s Holy Mountain (Isaiah 2.1-5)

The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains and shall be raised above the hills. The people of all nations shall flow to it. “And in the last days it shall be,” God declares, “that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” In these last days God has spoken to us by a Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom He also created the worlds.

On God’s holy mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined. The hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain, and proud nations shall be trampled down in their place, as straw is trampled down in a dunghill. It will come about also on that day that a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and who were scattered in the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

“The gentiles shall bring all your brothers and sisters from all the nations as an offering to the Lord, on horses and in chariots and in litters and on mules and on dromedaries, to My holy mountain Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “just as the Israelites bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the Lord. They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” The Lord of armies will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and His glory will be before His saints. “Even those I will bring to My holy mountain and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar. For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.”

So, cry out, unbelievers, let your collection of idols deliver you! The wind will carry them all off; a breath will take them away. “But those who take refuge in Me shall possess the land and shall inherit My holy mountain.” Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Once more they shall use these words in the land of Judah and in its cities when I restore their fortunes: ‘The Lord bless you, O habitation of righteousness, O holy hill!’ So, you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who dwells in Zion, My holy mountain. The lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation.” The Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore. “I will bring forth offspring from Jacob, and from Judah possessors of My mountains. My chosen shall possess it, and My servants shall dwell there.” O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in the day of trouble, to you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth and say: “Our ancestors have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit.” Nations will revere the name of the Lord, and all the kings of the earth will revere Your glory.

Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let’s go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob so that He may teach us about His ways, and that we may walk in His paths.” For the law and gospel will go out from Zion and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Peoples shall yet come, the inhabitants of many cities. The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, ‘Come, let us go to entreat the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts; I myself am going.’ Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the Lord.” Thus says the Lord of hosts: “In those days ten men from nations of every language shall take hold of a Jew, grasping his garment and saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’ By Myself I have sworn; from My mouth has gone forth in righteousness a word that shall not return: ‘To Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.’”

Listen to me, O coastlands; pay attention, you peoples from far away! Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. O holy mountain, lift your eyes all around and see; they all gather; they come to you. Your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be carried on the hip. Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and exult because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you; the wealth of the nations shall come to you. A multitude of camels shall cover you, O holy mountain, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord. The descendants of those who oppressed you shall come bending low to you, and all who despised you shall bow down at your feet; they shall call you the City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel. The Lord declares, “For I know their works and their thoughts, and the time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. They shall come and see My glory.”

At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord, and all nations shall gather to it, to the presence of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they shall no longer stubbornly follow their own evil heart. “I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter judgment with them there on account of My people and My heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations. They have divided my land. Therefore, wait for me,” says the Lord, “for the day when I arise as a witness. For My decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them My indignation, all the heat of My anger, for in the fire of My passion all the earth shall be consumed.” Thus says the Lord: “The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over to you and be yours; they shall follow you; they shall come over in chains and bow down to you. They will plead with you, saying: ‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other, no god besides Him.’” Behold, these shall come from afar, and behold, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene. Now you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you. You shall call peoples to your mountain; there they offer right sacrifices; for they draw from the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand. If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill! Repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in His name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom! Listen to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah! For the Lord is our judge; the Lord is our ruler; the Lord is our king; He will save us. “Give attention to Me, My people, and give ear to Me, My nation; for a law will go out from Me, and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples. My righteousness draws near, My salvation has gone out, and My arms will judge the peoples; the coastlands hope for Me, and for My arm they wait.”

He shall judge between the nations and shall decide disputes for many peoples, and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore, and never again will they train for war. Arise, O Lord, in your anger; lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies; awake for me; you have appointed a judgment. Rise up, O Lord! Do not let mortals prevail; let the nations be judged before the Lord, for He comes, for He comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in His faithfulness. At the presence of the Lord, He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity. Zion shall be redeemed by justice, and those in her who repent, by righteousness. The Lord rises to argue His case; He stands to judge the peoples. Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over His kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. He will not grow faint or be crushed until He has established justice on the earth, and the coastlands wait for His teaching. “Listen to Me, My people, and give heed to Me, My nation, for a teaching will go out from Me and My justice for a light to the peoples. Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision!” The day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between His feet, until tribute comes to Him, and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples. The effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness, and trust forever. “My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.” Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness! In His days may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the moon is no more.

“I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem,” and the battle bow shall be cut off, and He shall speak peace to the nations. His rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth. “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; He burns the shields with fire. “Peace, peace, to the far and the near,” says the Lord, “and I will heal them. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, but the serpent—its food shall be dust! They shall not hurt or destroy on all My holy mountain,” says the Lord. “Then fear not, O Jacob my servant,” declares the Lord, “nor be dismayed, O Israel; for behold, I will save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease, and none shall make him afraid.”

O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord! Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift your voice like a trumpet; declare to the people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and His glory will be seen upon you. The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended. This is the message we have heard from Him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light