"O Jehovah, You are my God: I will exalt You; I will praise your name: For You have effected wonderful things; Counsels of old time, promises immutably true. For You have made the city a heap; The strongly fortified citadel a ruin; The palace of the proud ones, that it should be no more a city; That it should never be built up again. Therefore shall the fierce people glorify You; The city of the formidable nations shall fear You. For You have been a defence to the poor; A defense to the needy in his distress; A refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat; When the blast of the formidable rages like a winter storm. As the heat in a parched land, the tumult of the proud shall You bring low; As the heat by a thick cloud, the triumph of the formidable shall be humbled. And Jehovah God of Hosts shall make, For all the peoples, in this mountain, A feast of delicacies, a feast of old wines: Of delicacies exquisitely rich, of old wines perfectly refined. And on this mountain shall He destroy The covering, that covered the face of all the peoples; And the vail, that was spread over all the nations. He shall utterly destroy death for ever; And the Lord Jehovah shall wipe away the tear from off all faces; And the reproach of His people shall He remove from off the whole earth; For Jehovah has spoken it. In that day shall they say: Behold, this is our God; We have trusted in Him, and He has saved us: This is Jehovah; we have trusted in Him; We will rejoice, and triumph, in His salvation." (Isaiah 25:1-9,Lowth) "O Lord, You are my God." (Isaiah 25:1)
Whoever says this understandingly, from the heart, has everything. Nothing can make him discontented; nothing can cause him to worry; nothing can make him afraid.
What is the Lord to Us?
To find out what the Lord is, read: "And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation." (Exodus 34:6-7) and also: "Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and You are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come of You, and You reign over all; and in your hand is power and might; and in your hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all." (1 Chronicles 29:11-12)
And to learn His power, read: "For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In His hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is His also. The sea is His, and He made it: and His hands formed the dry land." (Psalm 95:3-5)
And then think what an infinite treasure everyone has who can say, "O Lord, You are my God." (Isaiah 25:1)
Jehovah is not merely the Being whom we worship, to whom we bow down in reverence as One infinitely above us, but He is ours. He belongs to us, as truly as we belong to Him. "The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup." (Psalm 16:5)
To as many as receive Christ: "gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name." (John 1:12)
By believing we become sons of God, "and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ." (Romans 8:17)
Through faith we become partakers of the nature of God, just as Christ is one with Him. He is ours to the extent that everything that He has, and everything that He is, belongs to us. We have Him.
It was this knowledge that gave Jehoshaphat and all Israel the victory over a vastly superior force, even before the battle had begun, and when everything seemed against them. They were in an extremity, and there was no earthly prospect that they could escape. Then Jehoshaphat stood in the midst of the congregation of Israel, and said, "Lord God of our fathers, are not You God in heaven? and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in your hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand You?" (2 Chronicles 20:6)
The fact that God is in heaven, shows that He is over all, and does whatever pleases Him. "But our God is in the heavens: He has done whatsoever He has pleased." (Psalm 115:3)
Nothing is hard for Him, (Jeremiah 32:27; Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?) and no enemy can withstand Him. Therefore when in addition to this Jehoshaphat could say, "Are not You our God?" he had the victory already; for since God was his, all who came against him came also against the Lord; and their overthrow was assured. Accordingly when this prayer of faith had been uttered, the assurance came, "Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's. ... You shall not need to fight in this battle; set yourselves, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you." (2 Chronicles 20:15,17)
To God belongs victory; "His right hand, and His holy arm, has gotten Him the victory." (Psalm 98:1)
When by faith we claim Him as ours, then we prove that faith is the victory that has overcome the world.
The Age of Miracles
"You have done wonderful things." (Isaiah 25:1) "His name [is] Wonderful," (Isaiah 9:6) so that it is His nature to do wonderful things. He does nothing that is not wonderful. The age of miracles is the age of God. "Who is so great a God as our God? You are the God that does wonders: You have declared your strength among the people." (Psalm 77:13-14) "Many, O Lord my God, are your wonderful works which You have done, and your thoughts which are toward us; they cannot be reckoned up in order unto You; if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered." (Psalm 40:5)
Therefore let us "Sing unto the Lord a new song; for He has done marvelous things." (Psalm 98:1) "I will speak of the glorious honor of your majesty, and of your wondrous works." (Psalm 145:5)
Here is something to talk about. "All your works shall praise You, O Lord; and your saints shall bless You. They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and talk of yourpower." (Psalm 145:10-11)
If men would do this all the time, such a thing as discouragement or fear would be unknown.
The Amen
"Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth." (Isaiah 25:1)
Both of these words, "faithfulness" and "truth," are from the one root which we have Anglicized as "amen." The word means firmness, steadfastness, solidity, immovability. So we might read, "Your counsels of old are amen and amen," or, as Lowth has it, "immutably true." Jesus Christ is "the Amen, the faithful and true witness." (Revelation 3:14)
His name also is Counselor: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
So, "All the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen." (2 Corinthians 1:20)
All the promises of God center in the one great promise, the promise of Christ's coming. He is not slack concerning His promise, even though unbelieving men may think He is. "Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. ... The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:3-4,9)
This has been the purpose of God since the world began, and "[He] works all things after the counsel of His own will." (Ephesians 1:11)
His promises are "immutably true." (Hebrews 6:17-18) His faithfulness is established "in the very heavens," (Psalm 89:2) so that as true as the heavens is the promise of Christ's coming. Always true to their appointed times are the heavenly bodies; those who observe their movements, and keep note, know that they will keep their appointments to the very second; even so will it be with Christ's coming in glory to judgment and salvation. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1)
The children of men take refuge under the shadow of His wings: "How excellent is your lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of your wings." (Psalm 36:7) "Because you have made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, your habitation; There shall no evil befall you, neither shall any plague come near your dwelling." (Psalm 91:9-10)
The Lord is everything that anybody requires. "[He is] a refuge from the storm, [and] a shadow from the heat," (Isaiah 25:4) yet He is a sun, even "a consuming fire," (Hebrews 12:29) and, "[He] has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm." (Nahum 1:3)
From Him we get light and heat, and also shade. That is, in Him we find evenness of temperature. But those who do not put their trust in Him will be in darkness, and at the same time consumed by the heat. "Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him." (Psalm 2:12)
The Lord of hosts will make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, that is, all sorts of delicacies. He provides the table for all, and whoever will may come and eat, "without money and without price." (Isaiah 55:1) "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies: You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over." (Psalm 23:5)
Even though the enemy may be coming on in full strength, raging and boasting, and threatening dire calamity, we can quietly sit down and eat. The Lord invites us to His feast, and even when He comes to us as our guest, He provides the food.
Taking Away the Vail
"In this mountain." (Isaiah 25:6)
That is, in Mount Zion. See the last verse of the preceding chapter: "When the Lord of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before His ancients gloriously." (Isaiah 24:23)
That is God's dwelling-place, (Psalm 2:6; 48:1-2) and it is there that He has prepared the feast of salvation for all people. "The covering that is cast over all people, and the vail spread over all nations," (Isaiah 25:7) is to be taken away in Mount Zion. Over all the earth and over all minds and all lives, rests the shadow of the curse. "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us." (Galatians 3:13)
It is through the blood of the new covenant,--the everlasting covenant,--that remission of sins is found. But, "The god of this world has blinded the minds of all that believe not," (2 Corinthians 4:4) and this vail of unbelief keeps the glory of the cross, which swallows up the curse, from shining in. "Nevertheless when [the heart] turns to the Lord, the vail is taken away." (2 Corinthians 3:16) "The true light now shines," (1 John 2:8) and whoever will may see light in His light. (Psalm 36:9) Even though the majority will not believe, but persist in walking in darkness, the time is coming when even they shall see that God's way is perfect, and shall be compelled by force of evidence to acknowledge that He is just. The covering which has concealed God's gracious working will be removed in the Judgment, and God will stand clear. It will then be too late, however, for any to receive benefit from the light that will shine, since they have rejected light when they might have walked in it.
This vail, the curse, which is even now taken off from all who truly believe, is to be forever removed from the earth. The very earth itself is to be "delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glory of the liberty of the sons of God." (Romans 8:21)
Eternal Victory
For, "He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of His people shall He take away from off all the earth." (Isaiah 25:8)
Tears will be wiped away, because the cause of tears--sin and death--will be removed. Compare Revelation 21:1-5 for further evidence that in the prophecy of Isaiah we have in detail the things that are only briefly mentioned in the New Testament. "He will swallow up death in victory." (Isaiah 25:8)
Literally, "He will swallow up death in eternity," or forever. In 1 Corinthians 15:54 we have this same thing quoted, and there the Greek has it plainly, "victory," while in the Hebrew of Isaiah 25:8 it is just as plainly "eternity." Does this indicate a contradiction, or any lack of harmony in the two texts? Not the slightest; it simply shows that the two words mean the same thing. Victory, in order to be really victory, must be eternal. A seeming victory, which does not last, is no victory at all. When God gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ, it is for eternity, for: "Whatsoever God does, it shall be for ever." (Ecclesiastes 3:14)
But the final victory over death is only the present victory over sin, which is the sting of death. The power by which the righteous will be raised from their graves, immortal, is identical with the power by which in their lifetime they were raised above the power of sin. That is the power of Christ's resurrection. It was not possible for death to hold Him, (Acts 2:24) because guile was not found in His mouth. "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth." (1 Peter 2:22)
John, in prophetic vision saw the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, "and with Him a hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father's name written in their foreheads. ... And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God." (Revelation 14:1,5)
So we see that there will be found a people over whom death will have no more power than it had over the Lord Jesus. We know that He could not die except by His own will, because He was sinless. In like manner those who "keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus," (Revelation 14:12) will be superior to death. No man, not even Satan, can take their life from them, and hence they will be translated. Their translation without seeing death is not due to the accident of their being on earth when Christ comes, but to their life of perfect righteousness by faith. There is nothing accidental about it; it is the natural working out of the life of Christ. At any time in the past God's people might have been translated, if at any time it could have been said of them, "Here are they that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus." (Revelation 14:12)
Men are saved only by the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. It is not abstract righteousness, but the righteousness of Christ's real life, "unto all and upon all them that believe; for there is no difference," (Romans 3:22) that saves us. The instant any man, however sinful he may be, believes on the Lord Jesus, and confesses Him, he is counted righteous. God declares him righteous, and that makes him righteous. If he should die that very hour, as was the case with the thief on the cross, he would be saved, and would appear in heaven as though he had never sinned.
Thousands will appear in the kingdom of God without fault, who never in their lifetime knew all the commandments of God, nor all that is involved in the faith of Jesus. Consequently not all the righteousness of the law has been exhibited in their lives. They have unconsciously been living in violation of some precepts of the law, but from all these secret, hidden faults they have been cleansed. But these have learned the lesson of submission to God, and were willing to serve Him. They can be taken to heaven, therefore, they will make no break in its harmony, for the instant they see the fullness of God's righteousness they will embrace it with joy.
But if all the righteous were saved in this way there would be an opportunity for the accuser of the brethren, who accuses them before God day and night, (Revelation 12:10) to say that it is impossible for God to make men absolutely perfect in this world; that He is obliged to take them to heaven, and get them out of the reach of Satan's temptations, in order to make them perfectly righteous.
To be sure, he can be confronted with the case of Christ, who lived an absolutely perfect life, in spite of all Satan's temptations; but he would evade the force of that by saying, as men, and even Christian men, do now, that Christ was different from other men. Therefore, in order to:
• show that Christ was here in this world with no advantages over other men, and
• that what God did by Him, He is able to do for all,
• to exalt the power of God,
• to show that Christ has power over all flesh, and
• effectually to stop the mouths of all gainsayers, God will not send Jesus the second time until He can point to a people who, like Jesus, are absolutely without fault, and who, surrounded by sin, and subject to Satan's onslaughts, live entirely above the power of sin and death. They will be complete possessors of the victory that has overcome the world. (1 John 5:4; For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.)
Thus will not only the mouths of all the wicked be stopped, but there will be given the perfect witness of God's power to salvation, which will draw many in the last days from the world to God.
It is eternity--eternal life--that swallows up death. Absolutely perfect faith means perfect knowledge of God's Word, because "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." (Romans 10:17) "The just shall live by faith," (Romans 1:17)--so that perfect faith means perfect life,--the life of Jesus manifest in our mortal flesh. When this is experienced, the individual will be delivered from all diseases, even though in weak, mortal flesh, with disease attacking him, just the same as he will be delivered from all sin, even while beset and in heaviness by manifold temptations.
Thus will Christ and those whom God gives Him be for signs and wonders. They will walk unscathed in the midst of raging pestilence, just as the three Hebrews did in the burning, fiery furnace, because "the form of the Fourth" (Daniel 3:25) is with them. And this will be not only in the time when the plagues of the unmingled wrath of God are falling on the reprobate, but before men have made their final decision, so that the witness will tell for the salvation of many. It is just as easy for God to make a man perfectly whole now, and to keep him so, as it is to keep him alive at all; for it is the one life that does all.
Salvation Now and Forever
"And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation." (Isaiah 25:9)
In that day shall they say, "Behold, this is our God, we have trusted in Him, and He has saved us."
Not merely, "He will save us," but, "He has saved us."
A present, complete salvation is the assurance of future salvation. All that is necessary for anybody to be able to say is, "The Lord has saved me, and He saves me now."
Keep trusting, and the salvation will continue. Those who have become acquainted with the Lord, will know Him when He comes. The Lord himself will come, and He will not be a stranger. "We will rejoice, and triumph in His salvation," (Isaiah 25:9,Lowth) because we have trusted in Him, and have proved the power of that salvation. But the power of the salvation now is worth rejoicing over just as much as it will be at the coming of the Lord. Therefore, "Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, rejoice," (Philippians 4:4) because it is with rejoicing that the redeemed of the Lord come to Zion, the mountain of God. (Isaiah 51:11)--Present Truth, April 13, 1899--Isaiah 25:1-9.