The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 19: “The Little Apocalypse”: The Earth’s Destruction (Isaiah 24:1–23)

The Prophecy of Isaiah
Lesson 19: “The Little Apocalypse”: The Earth’s Destruction (Isaiah 24:1–23)

The Earth’s Destruction (24:1–23)*

1. General Aspects of the Destruction (24:1–6)

a. The Lord Is in Charge (24:1)

 24 See, the Lord is going to lay waste the earth

and devastate it;

he will ruin its face

and scatter its inhabitants—

b. The Lord Doesn’t Play Favorites (24:2)

² it will be the same

for priest as for people,

for the master as for his servant,

for the mistress as for her servant,

for seller as for buyer,

for borrower as for lender,

for debtor as for creditor.

c. The Lord Judges Thoroughly (24:3–6)

³ The earth will be completely laid waste

and totally plundered.

The Lord has spoken this word.

⁴ The earth dries up and withers,

the world languishes and withers,

the heavens languish with the earth.

⁵ The earth is defiled by its people;

they have disobeyed the laws,

violated the statutes

and broken the everlasting covenant.

⁶ Therefore a curse consumes the earth;

its people must bear their guilt.

Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up,

and very few are left.

2. Specific Aspects of the Destruction (24:7–23)

a. Gloom and Despair (24:7–13)

⁷ The new wine dries up and the vine withers;

all the merrymakers groan.

⁸ The joyful timbrels are stilled,

the noise of the revelers has stopped,

the joyful harp is silent.

⁹ No longer do they drink wine with a song;

the beer is bitter to its drinkers.

¹⁰ The ruined city lies desolate;

the entrance to every house is barred.

¹¹ In the streets they cry out for wine;

all joy turns to gloom,

all joyful sounds are banished from the earth.

¹² The city is left in ruins,

its gate is battered to pieces.

¹³ So will it be on the earth

and among the nations,

as when an olive tree is beaten,

or as when gleanings are left after the grape harvest.

b. Glory to God (24:14–16a)

¹⁴ They raise their voices, they shout for joy;

from the west they acclaim the Lord’s majesty.

¹⁵ Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord;

exalt the name of the Lord, the God of Israel,

in the islands of the sea.

¹⁶ From the ends of the earth we hear singing:

“Glory to the Righteous One.”...

c. Universal Upheaval (24:16b–23)

...But I said, “I waste away, I waste away!

Woe to me!

The treacherous betray!

With treachery the treacherous betray!”

¹⁷ Terror and pit and snare await you,

people of the earth.

¹⁸ Whoever flees at the sound of terror

will fall into a pit;

whoever climbs out of the pit

will be caught in a snare.

The floodgates of the heavens are opened,

the foundations of the earth shake.

¹⁹ The earth is broken up,

the earth is split asunder,

the earth is violently shaken.

²⁰ The earth reels like a drunkard,

it sways like a hut in the wind;

so heavy upon it is the guilt of its rebellion

that it falls—never to rise again.

²¹ In that day the Lord will punish

the powers in the heavens above

and the kings on the earth below.

²² They will be herded together

like prisoners bound in a dungeon;

they will be shut up in prison

and be punished after many days.

²³ The moon will be dismayed,

the sun ashamed;

for the Lord Almighty will reign

on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,

and before its elders—with great glory.

* The outline for this study was drawn from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Theological and Historical Survey (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007).