Isaiah 24:23

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:23

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23 Then the moon [labanah] shall be confounded [chapher], and the sun [chammah] ashamed [buwsh], when the LORD [Yahovah] of hosts [tsaba'] shall reign [malak] in mount [har] Zion [Tsiyown], and in Jerusalem [Yaruwshalaim], and before his ancients [zaqen] gloriously [kabowd].  KJV-Interlinear

23 Then the moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed, for the LORD of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and his glory will be before his elders.   ESV

To be an elder one must commit himself/herself to a lifetime of learning Bible doctrine, which is more than simply reading verses, but requires in depth instruction, learning and the study of truth.

A fitting contrast and conclusion for this chapter.  Whereas man sees himself as the sun and moon and even stars, in all their glory, projecting himself in that same glory, but in fact man is without glory of his own, and on his own will end up in total destruction.

And then there is God who uses a mountain, and a rather small mountain at that, and a city, to represent the vastness of His essence and truth, which by the way are more vast than the universe and heaven combined.

And God will endure, while unbelieving and arrogant man will not.

The sun and moon are often used as symbols to describe the attitudes of rulers and celebrities and others that see themselves as more than they really are.

They will be confounded, embarrassed, exposed for what they really are, namely nothing.

Gods mountain, called Zion, represents the dwelling of God, which is truth or the vast content of Bible doctrine.

Zion or doctrine, resides in the city of Jerusalem, called the City of Peace.  Doctrine resident in the city produces peace and that represents doctrine resident inside of the soul of the believer, likewise producing peace.

The believer, who studies and learns and understands and comprehends Bible doctrine, is therefore a resident of Jerusalem or peace, dwelling inside of Gods peace due to the Bible doctrine within them.

The elders are the true wise ones, so designated by anyone who has learned doctrine and has therefore advanced to spiritual maturity.

Bible doctrine has withstood the test of time since before time.

Bible doctrine resident in the souls of believers since the beginning of humanity, has produced many that are wise, and therefore many that are elders.  Those who are knowledgeable of truth.

To be an elder, one must learn bible doctrine.

To be an elder one must commit himself to a lifetime of learning Bible doctrine, which is more than simply reading verses, but requires in depth instruction, learning and study of truth.

To be an elder one must commit himself to the daily use and therefore production within ones life.

To be an elder one must advance to spiritual maturity and to the completion of ones self, as God has defined being complete.

Isaiah 24:22

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:22

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22 And they shall be gathered together ['acaph], as prisoners ['acciyr] are gathered ['acephah] in the pit [bowr], and shall be shut up [cagar] in the prison [macger], and after many [rob] days [yowm] shall they be visited [paqad].   KJV-Interlinear

22 They will be gathered together as prisoners in a pit; they will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished.    ESV

Christ deals with the condemned.  But probably not as you think.  This is the most terrifying predicament in which anyone can find themselves.  To be collected without mercy and tossed without recourse, into prison.  But not alone, but in mass with many others.

In ancient times, when enemy combatants were captured, they were chained together and tossed into a pit or a dungeon, or a prison as it were, in extreme conditions, with little food or clothing and certainly no comfort.

Captives were typically insolent, disruptive, and full of anger and hate and attitude.  The whole experience of the dungeon and chains and such, was to soften their disposition and bring about a humility into their nature.

Some would soften and want to repent, while others would remain hardened and obstinate toward their captors.

And so we have more than the symbolism of the captives and their conditions, it will be an extreme situation for those who have rejected Christ.

We have in other studies, seen that Satan initially rejected Christ and was followed by all of the angels in that rejection.  Two-thirds of the angels repented, while the remainder remained in their stubborn rejection of Christ.

Satan wanted the throne to the north, which is the seat of power at the right hand of the Father.  That seat was reserved for Christ.

And so Satan and all of His fallen angels will be placed in the Abyss, while humans who reject Christ will be imprisoned in Torments.  And this is important, in that Satans influence is overpowering, but while in prison in Torments, all of the Satanic influence will be removed and separated away from those people who will occupy that prison cell, as it were. This separation will give everyone time to think without undue influence.

Since the time of Cain, or the death of the very first unbeliever, all unbelievers have been in Torments, a compartment in the underworld, and there awaiting their final judgment.

Some have been there for a very long time.  And of course, at the end of history some will spend a very short time there.  Perhaps some need more time to think about their errors, while others need a very short time to come to their senses.

Now the important part of this verse is the word, visited, ‘paqad.’

After many days, is the duration, of the captivity.  And after that time has expired, then there is a visit.

The word for visit has two meanings.

In ancient times, prisoners were forced to wait in extreme conditions before their punishment is carried out, or that visit could bring a review or aiding or numbering as in evaluations for either punishment or mercy and grace to those who have had a change of heart.

Therefore, note the separation of the captives into their respective groups, namely the fallen angels in one place and unbelieving humanity in another.

They are imprisoned and that is a promise and a guarantee for all who defy Christ.

They will remain in their respective prison for a period of time.  For those who are incarcerated at the Second Advent, that period will be no less than one-thousand years, or the duration of the Millennium.

They will all receive a visit, or an evaluation or a review, and then the final promise, they will all receive a sentence of some sort, and as is implied here, some may have a change of heart, believe in Christ and as we know, since God is merciful, that may be their last and only way out of the Lake of Fire.

And since Satan and his fallen band, have had many millennia to live and fail, then any given person, should have an opportunity to see the real evil of their ways, namely a period of time spent in Torments, so that they can have a chance at rethinking their rebelliousness.

The Bible indicates that many will remain in their rejection, and they will remain stubborn all the way into the Lake of Fire, but there is always the possibility, right up to and until the actual commission to the Lake of Fire, that some or all will have at least one last opportunity to repent.

Otherwise there would be no reason for placing anyone in a temporary holding area for punishment and then again more punishment if there was no chance of reprieve.

Rejecting Christ is the absolute worst thing that anyone can do.  Many a criminal has gone into prison and become even more hardened, to their own detriment.

Isaiah 24:21

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:21

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21 And it shall come to pass in that day [yowm], that the LORD [Yahovah] shall punish [paqad] the host [tsaba'] of the high ones [marowm] that are on high [marowm], and the kings [melek] of the earth ['adamah] upon the earth ['adamah].   KJV-Interlinear

21 On that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven, in heaven, and the kings of the earth, on the earth.   ESV

In this verse we have the statement of judgment of Satan and all fallen angels.  On that day, refers to the final day of history, the final day of judgment, for it is here that the angels that have fallen and humanity that has rejected Christ, will all be judged.

At the end of the Tribulation, when Christ returns at the Second Advent, all of humanity will be in heaven because as believers in Christ they have been martyred during the Tribulation.

Or, they will be in Torments because they will have remained unbelievers and thus are judged and destroyed and sent to Torments, and there await the end of the Millennium, to be resurrected and stand before Christ at the Great White Throne, and from there sent to the Lake of Fire for all of eternity.

Or, they will be the small remnant of believers who will have survived the Tribulation and thus rescued by Christ and thus become the starter population for the Millennium.

As for the angels, referring to Satan and the fallen angels, they will be incarcerated in the Abyss and there be imprisoned for one-thousand years, during the time of the Millennium.  And at the end of that period, they will be released, then they will storm back onto the earth to lead one final rebellion against Christ, and that rebellion will be extremely short.  They will then be sent to the Lake of Fire permanently.

Therefore, the high and mighty, whether in heaven, speaking of the fallen angels, or from the earth, speaking of humanity, will be judged, incarcerated and held pending the final disposition of their sentence.

Isaiah 24:20

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:20

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20 The earth ['erets] shall reel [nuwa`] to and fro [nuwa`] like a drunkard [shikkowr], and shall be removed [nuwd] like a cottage [maluwnah]; and the transgression [pesha`] thereof shall be heavy [kabad] upon it; and it shall fall [naphal], and not rise [quwm] again [yacaph].   KJV-Interlinear

20 The earth staggers like a drunken man; it sways like a hut; its transgression lies heavy upon it, and it falls, and will not rise again.   ESV

Isaiah continues his description of the worlds destruction, with the description of both a drunk and the earthquake.

The important principle of this verse is that the world will not rise again.  That is, on its own.

This is the absolute destruction of the entire planet.

History has seen many disasters and the subsequent recover y of the land after the disaster.  But this disaster, in the end time, will be so horrible and so thorough and so complete, that the world or nature, as it were, will not be able to recover.

It will take the act of Christ, to bring about recovery to the planet.

And not only will the planet recover under the direction of Christ, its entire nature will change, as we have already studied in other passages.

The cottage, mentioned in this verse is symbolic of all of the manmade things.  Whether towers or roads or bridges or whatever that man has constructed, whether large or small, they will all be like a the humble and simple cottage, that when struck by a severe storm will collapse, blown away, and be utterly destroyed.

And so, we have it here, in these few verses, the absolute end of the world, will see total destruction, with no ability for recovery from its own resources.

Isaiah 24:19

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:19

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19 The earth ['erets] is utterly [ra`a`] broken down [ra`a`], the earth ['erets] is clean [parar] dissolved [parar], the earth ['erets] is moved [mowt] exceedingly [mowt].KJV-Interlinear

19 The earth is utterly broken, the earth is split apart, the earth is violently shaken.   ESV

Everything here is intense and dramatic and is designed to get your attention.  But the lack of attention from those who are not really interested, is the loss that humanity will eventually experience, simply because of that attitude.

The verbs are in the strongest form: ‘By breaking, the land is broken;’ ‘by scattering, the land is scattered;’ ‘by turmoil, the land is moved.’ The repetition, is a strong form of emphasis; and the whole passage is designed to denote the utter misery and destruction and ruin, that will come upon the land.

This is the end result of the heavens opening up and pouring phenomenal judgment upon humanity.

It is not the land, not the rocks or the soil or the vegetation or the animals that have sinned, but it is man who has sinned and in so doing, has brought all of the destruction, destruction beyond imagination, upon himself.

The violence is extreme.  The destruction is extreme.  The survivors, survive only because of Gods specific protection for them, and that protection is due to their immovable obedience to His Word.

That obedience is something that is severely lacking in the world today.

Far too many give lip service, to God, but no obedience to His mandates.  Most do not even have a clue as to what exactly that obedience requires. They believe that their emotional driven sincerity is enough, but that is not even close to what God commands.

The mandates of confession, pursuing a daily study through instruction, and so forth are excluded from most folks daily lives, and thus their life pattern is the example that will eventually get the entire world in trouble.

And of course most folks will never believe this, because they simply never learn, because they never pursue instruction.  And the pattern of world destruction follows the pattern of the worlds lack of understanding due to indifference and disobedience.

If you have ever found yourself in the middle of a massive earthquake or severe storm, then try to imagine the entire world under the siege of a huge earthquake breaking up entire continents, that never seems to end.

Isaiah 24:18

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:18

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18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth [nuwc] from the noise [qowl] of the fear [pachad] shall fall [naphal] into the pit [pachath]; and he that cometh up [`alah] out of the midst [tavek] of the pit [pachath] shall be taken [lakad] in the snare [pach]: for the windows ['arubbah] from on high [marowm] are open [pathach], and the foundations [mowcadah] of the earth ['erets] do shake [ra`ash].   KJV-Interlinear

18 He who flees at the sound of the terror shall fall into the pit, and he who climbs out of the pit shall be caught in the snare. For the windows of heaven are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble.   ESV

Isaiah’s description of endless and futile calamities, continues for those who ignore Gods mandate to learn His Word.  Fleeing from the noise comes from the activity of the hunt, wherein men gather in a line and make noise as they advance. The prey is frightened and runs.  But the array of men is such that the prey is forced to run right into preset traps where they are caught and then they come to their end of life.

And as to those who are strong and able, and are able to somehow climb out of the trap, then there are even more snares to catch them.  Their effort is futile and useless. Their demise is inevitable.

The windows of heaven, is a representation of the floodgates of heaven releasing the storms of judgment.  When the rains poured down as in the flood of Noah’s day, there was no place to hide.  The entire planet was inundated, such that everything was subject to the rains and the flood that engulfed all.  None escaped, except those who God preserved.

And so, the warning is presented, as it is so often presented throughout the Bible.  Ignore God, ignore Christ, ignore doctrine and you have only one life to live, which is that of the helpless prey of this world.  Endless traps, endless snares, and the inevitable doom, all preset and you are running right at them.

Too many, ignore Gods call to study and learn and grow in their spiritual life. Too many believe that their talents, abilities, intelligence, connections, wealth and such are sufficient for them to make for themselves, a good life, separate and apart from God.  Even if they make some semblance of acknowledgement of God in some fashion.  They do not believe that their destiny is doom, but of the glory of their own making.

Pretense and delusion, bring the inevitable doom at the end of ones life.

Note that God provides for all talents, intellect, notoriety, and so forth, never man himself.

Note too, that life ends for everyone.  There is no one on this planet who has been alive since the beginning of time, and certainly not too many that are over a hundred years old.  Where does that leave everyone?  At deaths door, just waiting to enter in and take that which no one can prevent.

Do not be short sighted.  Do not look only at this world and believe that, that is all there is.

Beyond death, there is a far greater existence than anything imaginable in this world.

Recognize it, acknowledge it, learn it, and then receive the advantages of it, lest you die a fool.

Isaiah 24:17

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:17

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17 Fear [pachad], and the pit [pachath], and the snare [pach], are upon thee, O inhabitant [yashab] of the earth ['erets].   KJV-Interlinear

17 Terror and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth!   ESV

Those who resist advancing in their spiritual life by refusing to engage in a daily study and be taught Bible doctrine, have this to look forward to in their life, namely going from one problem to the next, to the next, to the next, and so forth.

The fear, the pit, the snare, is an expression of going from bad to worse to worse, and there is no end to it.

If a person has one problem and manages to get out of it, then he will only find himself in another problem.  And, if he manages to get out of that one, then he will find himself in yet another problem, and so life in this world goes.

God is the sum total of life and truth and all of existence.

To reject God is to reject all that is reality.

To reject God is to reject all of the advantages that exist in life.

To reject God is to reject all of the help and resources and support that exist in life.

Only a fool, a really big fool, would reject all of the truths of life.

Only a fool, would refuse to learn all that is possible to learn, so as to make their life and future, better.

Without Christ, who is God, you have nothing but problems, and no future, no good future.

Without doctrine in your soul, which means that you reject Gods mandate to be taught Bible doctrine, then you have no orientation and no sense of where you are in life.  You remain in a fog and have little or nothing to figure life out.

To pretend knowledge, when you resist learning knowledge, is the quintessence of arrogance and stupidity.

There is only one good life and one good future and that requires knowing Bible doctrine.  Without Bible doctrine and the spiritual growth that accompanies it, you have only problems and worse.

Isaiah 24:16

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:16

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16 From the uttermost part [kanaph] of the earth ['erets] have we heard [shama`] songs [zamiyr], even glory [tsabiy] to the righteous [tsaddiyq]. But I said ['amar], My leanness [raziy], my leanness [raziy], woe ['owy] unto me! the treacherous dealers [bagad] have dealt treacherously [bagad]; yea, the treacherous dealers [bagad] have dealt very [beged] treacherously [bagad].   KJV-Interlinear

16 From the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise, of glory to the Righteous One. But I say, “I waste away, I waste away. Woe is me! For the traitors have betrayed, with betrayal the traitors have betrayed.”    ESV

Leanness and leanness and treachery and treacherousness, betray and betrayal, deceit and deception, are all wrapped up in this verse.

Whereas Isaiah speaks of the songs of worship, songs that will occur throughout the entire world, it will not be so until after the Lord has judged the entire world and has destroyed all evil which has led to all of the deceit and treachery and betrayal resulting in the leanness of the population of humanity.

There is not one nation, not one empire, throughout history, that has had the best interests of its citizens at heart.

The nature of man, is evil.  You cannot look to one group or class or culture or segment and lay the blame on them.  All of humanity is at fault.

When leadership seeks to deceive, then those being deceived are so deceived for a reason, namely they did not desire to learn to discern, but instead preferred the deceptions believing that they were getting something for nothing.

The deceivers are at fault.  Those who are deceived are at fault.

Morality and integrity are thrown out the window and the lusts of treachery rule.

The end result, is the leanness of humanity.  Any and all theft from truth, results in the starvation of humanity.  And unhindered starvation always ends up in death.

That is the nature of and the picture of human history.

The treachery will continue from generation to generation, from nation to nation, until it all collapses in what will eventually become the last and final age of history, the Tribulation.

And it will be in that seven year period that the magnitude of human treachery, which is repeated here in this verse, will be demonstrated for all of history to witness.

Today and in every generation, various peoples have been blamed for the ills of life.  But not so.

It is the rejection of, and the indifference toward, Jesus Christ and truth, which will be the real culprit.

And the end result will be Gods judgment. And that final judgment will be thorough and complete.

Isaiah 24:15

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:15

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15 Wherefore glorify [kabad] ye the LORD [Yahovah] in the fires ['uwr], even the name [shem] of the LORD [Yahovah] God ['elohiym] of Israel [Yisra'el] in the isles ['iy] of the sea [yam].   KJV-Interlinear

15 Therefore in the east give glory to the LORD; in the coastlands of the sea, give glory to the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.   ESV

Isaiah continues to call upon all those who have survived, to glorify the Lord.  Fires, ‘uwr,’ refers to light and typically the morning light, usually caused by the morning fires or the light of dawn.

And in the isles, is a reference to the coastlands and beyond.

The celebration, one in which the heavy burdens of fear and life are lifted and removed, is a celebration in tears of joy and thanks.

When you have been under the strain and pressures of life, even severe pressures for an extended period of time, and when they are lifted and removed, then the happiness is typically combined with tears, which is a normal response of the deep emotions that have been released.

And that is what is being portrayed here, not only in Jerusalem, but throughout Judah and Israel and beyond the borders to the rest of the world.

People who have been in hiding for many months or even years, probably could not light camp fires for very long periods, if at all, since the fire light or smoke would give away their location and they would have been caught.

But now the fires are freely lit and kept burning for all to see, as the fire of faith in the heart is kept burning with doctrine.

Isaiah 24:14

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:14

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14 They shall lift up [nasa'] their voice [qowl], they shall sing [ranan] for the majesty [ga'own] of the LORD [Yahovah], they shall cry aloud [tsahal] from the sea [yam].   KJV-Interlinear

14 They lift up their voices, they sing for joy; over the majesty of the LORD they shout from the west.    ESV

The grieving and weeping and sounds of sorrow, will be replaced with songs and sounds of joy and happiness and celebration.

To lift up the voice can mean two different things.  On the one hand it can refer to the pains and sorrows of destruction and loss, and on the other hand, as it is here, it can refer to the celebration of deliverance or rescue.

And when combined with the phrase, for the majesty of the Lord, the meaning here is one of great and phenomenal celebration.

These verses in Isaiah refer to the final days of history.  And if a person has been hiding and surviving for many months and even years under the tremendous strain and pressure of those dreadful days, then when it is all finally over, the relief will have to be huge, and the celebration will likewise be huge. 

That is what is meant here.  The singing of joy, is the direct result of Christs victory and the rescue and deliverance of all mature believers that have survived until the very end of the Tribulation.

Cry aloud from the sea, is a reference to the whole world.

Not only will a remnant in Jerusalem and Judah be delivered, but remnant in the entire world will be delivered.  This indicates that many believers, gentiles, around the world in other nations, will likewise survive to the Second Advent and they too, will celebrate their rescue and deliverance.

Isaiah 24:13

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:13

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13 When thus it shall be in the midst [qereb] of the land ['erets] among [tavek] the people [`am], there shall be as the shaking [noqeph] of an olive tree [zayith], and as the gleaning grapes [`olelah] when the vintage [batsiyr] is done [kalah].   KJV-Interlinear

13 For thus it shall be in the midst of the earth among the nations, as when an olive tree is beaten, as at the gleaning when the grape harvest is done.    ESV

Two things are revealed within these metaphors that Isaiah employs. 

The first is that the previous verses which have been describing the destruction and chaos of the city, namely Jerusalem, is also applied to the nations.  The word for people, ‘am,’ refers to the collections of peoples as referring to collections of multiple groups or nations.  The word for earth or land, ‘erets,’ can often times refer to a single place, but here it is referring to many lands, or to the whole world.

And so, in the midst of the world, this destruction will be wide spread and thorough and complete and extremely bad.

But there is one more thing being mentioned here.

As in a harvest, and the vines of trees are shaken, and most of the fruit falls to the ground, there is still left on the tree or vine, and few, a remnant, of fruits remaining on the branches or vine.

And so, even though in the final days of history, the whole world will be literally turned upside down and the destruction will leave virtually nothing, there will still be a few, as in the gleanings, a very few, that will survive the end of the world scenario.

It is not the fruits that save themselves, but God who will protect and deliver them.

The fruits are merely hanging on and happen to remain on the branches, while all of the rest fall to the ground.

And so too, when the end of the world occurs, there will be a remnant that survive.  And if you could count the fruits in a given tree and then compare that count to the count of those that fall and those that remain in the branches, then you would know that the remaining number in the branches will be very small, perhaps less than one percent of the total.

That alone makes a dramatic statement as to just how severe the final judgments on humanity, will be.

Also, all who are delivered, will be in a totally helpless state.  Their only hope is Christ.  And when the world is falling apart all around, then faith alone becomes a frightful yet powerful thing.

To rely on a mere belief is difficult.  And when you do not know if your belief is correct, then that too, makes for a scary ordeal.  But faith in the Bible is not unsupported, but based on the substance of Bible doctrine.

Therefore, to have true faith and correct faith, you have to learn doctrine so that you will know with certainty and confidence.

Those who do not pursue a daily study, cannot have the quality of faith that God intends, because they will not have the inner resources to formulate their faith.

Isaiah 24:12

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:12

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12 In the city [`iyr] is left [sha'ar] desolation [shammah], and the gate [sha`ar] is smitten [kathath] with destruction [sha'iyah].   KJV-Interlinear

12 Desolation is left in the city; the gates are battered into ruins.   ESV

Isaiah first mentions the city in general, and then he identifies a specific part of the city, namely the gates or entrances to the city.

In ancient days as it is today, the city identifies the community of people who live and work and trade with a certain degree of security and freedom within the confines of the city walls.

The gates to the city, provide a central place for traffic coming and going, and often times represents the public place for justice or public notices.

Desolation, often times means the absence of people.  And, the gates being destroyed and no longer functioning as they should, represent the breakdown in commerce and freedom and security.

In other words, the community is destroyed and no longer functioning.  There is no freedom, no protection, no security, no social order, no public services, no emergency services, and no commerce. Life, if it even exists, has ground to a halt.

Isaiah 24:11

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:11

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11 There is a crying [tsavachah] for wine [yayin] in the streets [chuwts]; all joy [simchah] is darkened [`arab], the mirth [masows] of the land ['erets] is gone [galah].   KJV-Interlinear

11 There is an outcry in the streets for lack of wine; all joy has grown dark; the gladness of the earth is banished.   ESV

Isaiah’s description of the final days of history, continues.  When people live in prosperous times, they often times do not see the advantage that those prosperous times give them for the purpose of growing in their spiritual lives.

It is far better and easier, to study and learn and grow up spiritually when life is at its easiest.

Unfortunately, too many, become unsatisfied with their prosperity or luxuries, and become greedy and selfish in life, and indifferent toward the one person who makes it all possible, namely Christ.

And so when the chips fall and life gets tougher, then there are two possible responses or reactions.

The first is the obvious, or should be the obvious, and that is to turn to God, to repent and begin the tougher task under the duress's of life for growing up in ones spiritual life.

But the second is the more common reaction to hardship.  And, that is to complain, to become bitter, to whine about the loss of earthly things, which by the way are all temporary and unfulfilling, rather than to focus on the things of God, which are permanent.

And to demonstrate the unreasonableness of this reaction and the high degree that stubbornness can rise to even more, remember that in those fateful final days of history, the worlds population is dying off in droves, as the world itself is literally falling apart with all sorts of natural disasters.

But what is on the mind of people?  Their wine.  Their pleasures.  The absolute inconvenience in their lives, that this end of the world situation is having on them!

Isaiah 24:10

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:10

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10 The city [qiryah] of confusion [tohuw] is broken down [shabar]: every house [bayith] is shut up [cagar], that no man may come in [bow'].   KJV-Interlinear

10 The wasted city is broken down; every house is shut up so that none can enter.   ESV

The word for confusion, ‘tohuw,’ means emptiness, vanity, waste, destitution of form, and refers to the destructive state of the city, as well as the wilderness that results from its destruction and depopulation.

Broken down, describes the destruction.  The buildings and roads and all that makes up a city, are in a shambles.

Homes shut up, refers to both the destruction of buildings making it impossible to enter them, or they no longer have an entry, as well as anyone who is inside is shut up and either hiding in extreme fear or they are trapped and unable to get out.

All of these things, describe the state of the city.

Isaiah is typically writing about Jerusalem, but later he uses the plural referring to many cities or many nations that will be brought to judgment, and so this state of destruction applies to all of the world.  The magnitude of the destruction worldwide will be beyond imagination.

Note quickly, that these prophecies are for future events, and perhaps a future generation. The timing of course we do not know.  But in as far as the future of humanity is concerned, it is not going to be a bright one, but one of a total cleansing of the evils that will have saturated the human race.

Most of these events and disasters will be brought on by mans own actions.

Isaiah 24:9

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:9

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9 They shall not drink [shathah] wine [yayin] with a song [shiyr]; strong drink [shekar] shall be bitter [marar] to them that drink [shathah] it.   KJV-Interlinear

9 No more do they drink wine with singing; strong drink is bitter to those who drink it.   ESV

When the pressures of life are overwhelming, then the pleasures expected from distractions no longer appease, no longer satisfy, no longer achieve their intended purpose.

The relief, sought through escapism activities, becomes elusive.  The activity, whether drinking or music or through drugs or whatever it is that is used to hide the ugly realities of life, not only don’t provide relief, but the escape activities become bitter.

Sorrows and anxieties and the pressures of life, prevent anything from easing their burdens.

And when you pursue relief through activities that are unable to solve your problems, then failure and worse is the only outcome.  The emotional and mental spiral downward only adds to the misery.

Distractions from reality, never solve problems, they only aggravate the problems into far worse problems.

Isaiah 24:8

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:8

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8 The mirth [masows] of tabrets [toph] ceaseth [shabath], the noise [sha'own] of them that rejoice [`alliyz] endeth [chadal], the joy [masows] of the harp [kinnowr] ceaseth [shabath].   KJV-Interlinear

8 The mirth of the tambourines is stilled, the noise of the jubilant has ceased, the mirth of the lyre is stilled.    ESV

Mirth, ‘masows,’ refers to the joy or the euphoria feelings one gets from escaping the realities of life through various pleasures.  And here music is described as one of the pleasures or distractions that people seek generally at inappropriate times.

Note that this is still a part of the end times prophecy.  And specifically the final seven year period known as the Tribulation.

During the Tribulation, the disasters in the world will be horrendous.  The population of the world will be falling drastically.  The horrors and atrocities being committed will be beyond description.  And yet people will be turning to their music rather than God.  The music and the false sense of euphoria that comes with an escapist activity will be a hopeless attempt to remove the troubles that are at hand, from ones life.

Not everyone will have access to drugs or alcohol, but certainly that too will be a popular means of escaping reality.  But everyone can hum to themselves or listen to recorded music or play their own version of some sort of instrument.  The instruments described here are stringed instruments, but musical instruments are not limited to only those with strings.

The emphasis here is on the sounds of the reality escape process, and then the silence that follows.

On the one hand, disasters are all around and instead of turning to God, people turn to distractions.  This needless to say applies to everyone throughout history as people ignore God in favor of various distrations.

And the results are total loss and nothing more.

With God there is a future and heaven and far more, especially greater joy and music and so forth.

But without God, the noise of a false sense of euphoria ends in silence, meaning death and worse.

Isaiah 24:7

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:7

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7 The new wine [tiyrowsh] mourneth ['abal], the vine [gephen] languisheth ['amal], all the merryhearted [sameach] [leb] do sigh ['anach].  KJV-Interlinear

7 The wine mourns, the vine languishes, all the merry-hearted sigh.    ESV

Isaiah continues speaking of the future as though it was or is the present.  Having enjoyed the abundances of life, for which the new wine symbolizes, and now there is not only no new wine, but no one to plant or cultivate or harvest, or squeeze the juices from the grapes of prosperity.

And that indeed leaves no one to enjoy the fruits of the vineyard.  No one to enjoy the fruits of life.

In our prior study we spoke of languishing as that which lacks strength, lacks water, lacks the will to live because the resources of life are non-existent.

When one has no water, it loses its bloom, it loses its life, it wilts and fades and dies.

And here, the vines lack human interaction, because the humans, the merry-hearted, are no longer around.

And so the new wine, has no one to tend the vineyards, has no one to squeeze the juices, no one to bottle the juice, no one to oversee the fermentation, and no one to drink from its pouches.  It goes without processing or care.

This continues the vastness of the disaster and destruction of humanity.  And as goes humanity, so go the repercussions that overflow onto the earth.

And it all comes as a result of mans indifference toward truth.

Isaiah 24:6

Copyright Ó 2014 J. Neely

Isaiah 24:6

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6 Therefore hath the curse ['alah] devoured ['akal] the earth ['erets], and they that dwell [yashab] therein are desolate ['asham]: therefore the inhabitants [yashab] of the earth ['erets] are burned [charar], and few [miz`ar] men ['enowsh] left [sha'ar].   KJV-Interlinear

6 Therefore a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are scorched, and few men are left.   ESV

These are symbolic expressions that have real effects on humanity.

The curse is the sinfulness of man.  The sinfulness of man includes all manner of transgressions against God, including but not the least of which is mans indifference or disregard of truth.

This indifference or disregard is generally hidden behind a veil of pretense or dedication to other beliefs that have simply been invented to replace truth.

The result is the desolation of emptiness of the human soul.

Going back to Gen. 3:17-18, we know that it is mans sin that changed the earth to produce thorns and thistles rather than fruit and foods.  We also know that the earth was not immediately covered in thorns, since the world obviously does produce foods sufficient to support humanity all of these many thousands of years.

But when man stacks sin upon sin, indifference upon indifference, then the earth withholds its production from time to time, even rebelling with many forms of natural catastrophes, so that man can remember his sins and repent.

Unfortunately most do not learn or even see the connection, and consequently do not repent. Therefore, scorched is the word used here to describe the punishment or the many punishments that result.

This leaves few men.

Few men is both symbolic in that the few, describes those who are the spiritually mature that survive any or all catastrophes, as well as those who God preserves in order to perpetuate His plan for future generations.  But also, when the end of the world finally arrives, then that ‘few’ term will be more literal, and there won’t be very many people left alive.