Isaiah 59 & 60 - Selected Verses
"And he will come to Zion as Redeemer, to those
in Jacob who turn from transgression, says the Lord" (Isaiah 59:20).
59:20 he will come to Zion as Redeemer. Chapter 59, for the most part,
is quite harsh in its judgment and promises justice from God for those who
have been disobedient. It is remarkable, given that tone, that the last word
of the poetry in verse 20 is an offer of well-being. It is an announcement
that even the distorted society of Judaism, in the purview of the poet, is
still an arena in which the saving God may come. The condition of the redeemer's
entry into the city of Jerusalem, however, is that there must be a "turn." The
whole of the address is to summon Israel to get its "neighbor practices" in
order because such practices become the matrix in which the presence of God
is possible. Thus verse 20, which promises the redeemer on the basis of "turning," is,
in its argument, very much like the "if-then" articulations of
chapter 58.
"Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord
has risen upon you" (Isaiah 60:1).
60:1 Arise, shine. Chapters 60, 61, and 62 are among the most lyrical and
eloquent of all of the poetry of Third Isaiah. They are the most forceful
articulation of hope and, in terms of their lyrical power, have most in common
with Second Isaiah in chapters 40-55. Chapter 60 is a great summons to hope;
parallel to Isaiah 9:2, it announces that the light of God's goodness and
blessing in the form of an amazing economic revival will soon displace the
darkness of misery, despondency, and malaise in the community. In what follows
the poet envisions a scenario in which the great wealth of the nations shall
flow to Israel so that Jerusalem will again be the economic center of the
Near East as it was for a brief moment in the time of Solomon in the 10th
century B.C.E. The recovery of commerce is a concrete form of God's blessing;
the creator gives gifts in economic modes as well as according to the more
natural processes of creation.
"A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian
and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense,
and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord. All the flocks of Kedar shall
be gathered to you, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall
be acceptable on my altar, and I will glorify my glorious house. Who are
these that fly like a cloud, and like doves to their windows? For the coastlands
shall wait for me, the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your children from
far away, their silver and gold with them, for the name of the Lord your
God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he has glorified you. Foreigners
shall build up your walls, and their kings shall minister to you; for in
my wrath I struck you down, but in my favor I have had mercy on you. Your
gates shall always be open; day and night they shall not be shut, so that
nations shall bring you their wealth, with their kings led in procession" (60:6-11).
60:6-11 A multitude of camels. This verse envisions great caravans of camels
loaded with goods that will enhance the economy of Jerusalem. The reference
to Sheba is a nice connection to the prosperity of Solomon in 1 Kings 10:1-13.
More interesting, however, is the reference to gold and frankincense as particularly
precious commodities that will come to the revivified city. This imagery
of precious commodities is taken up in the narrative of Matthew concerning
the visit of the wise men to the Christ-child. In Matthew 2:11 it is said
that the wise men from the east bring gifts of "gold, frankincense and
myrrh," clearly a replication of the promise of this verse. Notice,
moreover, that in Matthew, as here, these goods are brought by "Gentiles" to
enhance the "Jewish" center of reality. Lavish recovery of the
economy of Jerusalem that is anticipated also includes the "ships of
Tarshish" in verse 9, indicating great sea commerce. In verse 11, moreover,
it is anticipated that the commercial enterprise of Jerusalem will stay open
day and night because there will be so much traffic. The exuberance of this
economic recovery is astonishing and it is closely tied to the transformative
intrusion of God into what is in the present tense a dismal situation for
Judaism.
 
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E-newsletter Archive
September/October 2004
