"Draw near, O you nations, and hearken; And attend unto me, O you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all the fullness thereof; The world, and all that spring from it. For the wrath of Jehovah is kindled against all the nations; And His anger against all the orders thereof: He has devoted them; He has given them up to the slaughter. And their slain shall be cast out; And from their carcasses their stink shall ascend; And the mountains shall melt down with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall waste away; And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll: And all their host shall wither; As the withered leaf falleth from the vine, And as the blighted leaf from the fig tree. For my sword is made bare in the heavens: Behold, on Edom it shall descend; And on the people justly by me devoted to destruction. The sword of Jehovah is glutted with blood; It is pampered with fat: With the blood of lambs, and of goats; With the fat of reins of rams: For Jehovah celebrates a sacrifice in Botsrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom. And the wild goats shall fall down with them; And the bullocks, together with the bulls: And their own land shall be drunken with their blood, And their dust shall be enriched with fat. For it is the day of vengeance to Jehovah; The year of recompense to the defender of the cause of Sion. And her torrents shall be turned into pitch, And her dust into sulphur; And her whole land shall become burning pitch: By night or by day it shall not be extinguished, For ever shall her smoke ascend; From generation to generation she shall lie desert; To everlasting ages no man shall pass through her; But the pelican and the porcupine shall inherit her; And the owl and the raven shall inhabit there: And He shall stretch over her the line of devastation, And the plummet of emptiness over her scorched plains. No more shall they boast the renown of the kingdom; And all her princes shall utterly fail. And in her palaces shall spring up thorns; The nettle and the bramble, in her fortresses: And she shall become a habitation for dragons, A court for the daughters of the ostrich. And the jackals and the mountain-cats shall meet one another; And the satyr shall call to his fellow: There also the screech-owl shall pitch; And shall find for herself a place of rest. There shall the night-raven make her nest, and lay her eggs; And she shall hatch them, and gather her young under her shadow: There also shall the vultures be gathered together; Everyone of them shall join her mate. Consult the book of Jehovah, and read: Not one of these shall be missed; Not a female shall lack her mate: For the mouth of Jehovah has given the command; And His Spirit itself has gathered them. And He has cast the lot for them; And His hand has meted out their portion by the line; They shall possess the land for a perpetual inheritance; From generation to generation shall they dwell therein." (Isaiah 34:1-17,Lowth)
The subject of this chapter is very easy to discern, and is manifestly that indicated in the title. The whole chapter is devoted to the one subject, so that it is easy of comprehension.
For All Nations
"Come near, you nations, to hear; and hearken, you people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it." (Isaiah 34:1)
Here is a proclamation of something that concerns the whole earth. All the earth, and all the nations on it are called to hear what the Lord has to say. It is nothing less than the proclamation of the wrath of God against all the nations. "For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and His fury upon all their armies: He has utterly destroyed them, He has delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falls off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree. For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment. The sword of the Lord is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea. And the unicorns shall come down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls; and their land shall be soaked with blood, and their dust made fat with fatness. For it is the day of the Lord's vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion. And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch." (Isaiah 34:2-9)
The most cursory reading of the chapter must convince anybody that the things here set forth are not limited to any one section of the earth, nor to any one people.
There is a strange idea very prevalent among readers of the Bible, and in religious circles, namely, that in ancient times God confined His attentions specially to one people--the Jews; that He was shut up to them, and cared little or nothing for any other people. How anybody who reads the Bible could get such an idea is most strange. This chapter alone is enough to show the contrary; it is addressed to all the nations of the earth. The prophet is commissioned to preach to all mankind, and so understands his mission.
Think how much of the book of Isaiah is directly addressed to other people than the Jews. Chapters 15 to 23 are entirely devoted to other nations, who are directly appealed to by name: Moab, Tyre, Egypt, Assyria, and all the great nations are addressed one by one. And then other chapters mention the whole earth, showing that the events with which the prophet had to deal were not local. Indeed, the book begins with an appeal to the whole earth, and to heaven as well.
From the earliest times God has showed himself the God of the Gentiles as well as of the Jews. There were no Jews at all until more than two millenia of the world's history had passed, yet in all that time God had faithful men, a proof that He was revealing himself to whomsoever would accept Him. The Jews themselves originated from a man taken from the midst of heathendom.
People in these days seem to think that they must perpetuate the blindness of people of other days. Because the Jews in their national conceit imagined that the Lord did not care for any other people than themselves, most Bible readers have thought that it must have been so. But the fact was very evident from the beginning, to any person who would use his eyes and reason, that: "God is no respecter of persons, But in every nation he that fears Him and works righteousness is accepted with Him." (Acts 10:34-35)
The book of Isaiah, as indeed the books of all the other prophets, was addressed to the nations at large as well as to the Jews. And it concerns all the nations on earth today.
If one follows the book of Revelation in connection with Isaiah, it will be very apparent that the prophet John had no new message given him for the people. The Apostle Peter testifies that the message given to the ancient prophets was the same that the apostles had to give. "Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into." (1 Peter 1:10-12)
Compare for instance verse 4 of this chapter with Revelation 6:12-14.
"And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falls off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree." (Isaiah 34:4) "And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places." (Revelation 6:12-14)
In many cases the words in Revelation are but a repetition of those used by the earlier prophet. That does not show that he was a mere borrower of the message of other men, but that the Holy Spirit had the same message to give by the two men. Both had a message for the last days.
Order of Last Day Events
A few facts gleaned from various parts of the Bible will help us to read this chapter more understandingly. First, we must remember that when the Lord comes the second time it is for the consummation of the salvation of His people, and this is effected by the destruction of the wicked, who will be on the point of exterminating them. For, "Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." (2 Timothy 3:13)
This statement immediately following the one that "All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution," (2 Timothy 3:12) shows that at the last day the people of God will be in more bitter persecution than at any other time in the world's history. Before the flood, the earth was filled with violence, and at the coming of the Lord it is to be in the same condition as then. "The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth." (Genesis 6:11-12) "But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (Matthew 24:37)
Remember also that both righteous and wicked live together on this earth until the end of the world: "Another parable put He forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? from whence then has it tares? He said unto them, An enemy has done this. The servants said unto him, Will you then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while you gather up the tares, you root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and His disciples came unto Him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. He answered and said unto them, He that sows the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who has ears to hear, let him hear." (Matthew 13:24-43)
There is no secret coming of the Lord, but that when He comes it will be openly, so that all can see Him, and the pomp and awful majesty will be such that none can help giving heed. "Behold, He comes with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen." (Revelation 1:7) "This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven." (Acts 1:11) "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth: behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shines even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (Matthew 24:23-27)
At that time the wicked who still remain alive after the plagues that have come on the earth, will be destroyed by the brightness of Christ's coming, and the righteous, both dead and living, will be caught up, immortal, to be ever with the Lord. "And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming." (2 Thessalonians 2:8) "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
This is the first resurrection. "Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection: on such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years." (Revelation 20:6)
But the rest of the dead, that is, the wicked, will not live again until the thousand years are finished. At the end of that time they will be raised, and will be deceived by Satan into thinking that they can capture the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, which has come down from God out of heaven, and while surrounding it will be destroyed. "But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. ... And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." (Revelation 20:5,7-9)
This is in brief the outline of events in connection with the coming of the Lord, as set forth in the Scriptures.
During this thousand years, in which the saints are reigning with Christ in heaven, sitting in judgment on the earth and on fallen angels, (1 Corinthians 6:2-3) the earth will be a desolate waste, as set forth in the chapter before us. In the 20th chapter of Revelation we read of "the bottomless pit." (Revelation 20:1-3) Now the word there used in the Greek corresponds exactly with the Hebrew word in the 1st chapter of Genesis, where we are told that: "In the beginning ... The earth was without form, and void." (Genesis 1:1-2)
It was chaos. The Septuagint has exactly the same word: "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the abyss." (Genesis 1:2)
In the 11th verse of chapter 34 of Isaiah, we have, in "the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness," the exact words that occur in Genesis 1:2. So we find that during the thousand years the earth will be desolate, uninhabited by man, and unfit for human habitation. This is the time described in this chapter. In the th chapter of Isaiah the condition is set forth, in the account of the judgment upon Babylon.
For Ever and Ever
This condition of things is said to last for ever and ever: "It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever." (Isaiah 34:10)
Yet the very next chapter describes a condition of Eden beauty on this earth. In 2 Peter 3:10-13 we read of the destruction of the earth in the day of the Lord, yet we are assured that there shall be, "according to His promise, ... new heavens and a new earth." (2 Peter 3:13)
So we learn that the duration of that which is spoken of as being "for ever and ever," depends on the nature of the thing spoken of. When God is the subject, or the saints whom He has made immortal, then we know that there is never any end; but when it is something that is contaminated by sin, then we know that there will be a limit to its continuance. "Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities round about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire," (Jude 7) yet the places where they once stood are now a desolate plain.
One special lesson must be indicated before we leave the chapter. Notice how the vilest and most loathsome creatures are described as inhabiting the desolate earth. "But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and He shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness. They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there, and all her princes shall be nothing. And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls. The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest. There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow: there shall the vultures also be gathered, everyone with her mate. Seek out of the book of the Lord, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it has commanded, and His spirit it has gathered them. And He has cast the lot for them, and His hand has divided it unto them by line: they shall possess it for ever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein." (Isaiah 34:11-17) "But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there." (Isaiah 13:21)
They hold sway over it while it is destitute of men. This is the natural end of the first sin, and of all that have succeeded.
In the beginning man was given complete dominion over the earth, and over everything on it. That dominion was the rule of righteousness. But man sinned, and the dominion and the glory departed from him. More and more has he been losing his control over the earth and its creatures. Instead of governing the lower orders of animals, he is exterminating them as fast as possible. Wherever man goes, destruction marks his course.
Finally, when sin has come to the full, and has ripened to the harvest, the condition that existed at the first will be utterly reversed, and only vile and hateful creatures--scavengers--will rule where once man had sway. All this terrible fall is involved in every sin. This is what the rule of man brings the earth to. Then will be seen in its fullness, or rather, in its emptiness, the result of man's having his own way.
Shall we not be warned in time, and submit ourselves to the rule of the One who has power to govern with stability?--Present Truth, July 13, 1899--Isaiah 34:1-17.