What does the book of Isaiah have to say about the Resurrection, Salvation, the Regathering of Israel, the Inclusion of the Gentiles, the Judgment, the Slaying of Satan/Leviathan, the Vindication of the Martyrs, and the Messianic Wedding Banquet?
In this post, I am going to prove to you that all the above events are tied temporally in prophecy to a specific time and place in the eschatology of Israel’s Last Days. This is irrefutable proof that should leave no doubts in anyone’s mind as to the spiritual finality of the events of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. We’ll begin by looking at Paul’s doctrine of the Resurrection found in 1 Corinthians 15.
In 1 Corinthians 15:54-55, the apostle Paul cites verses from Isaiah 25:8 and Hosea 13:14 as foundational passages for his doctrine of the Resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:54-55 [KJV]
So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?Isaiah 25:8 [KJV]
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: for the LORD hath spoken it.Hosea 13:14 [KJV]
I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
This correlation is foundational to the Resurrection. However, there is a lot more prophetic gold to be mined from the book of Isaiah that I want us to look at today. I want to give you some irrefutable PROOF from the Old Testament that shows definitively that the Resurrection, the Messianic Banquet (also known as the Marriage Supper of the Lamb in Revelation), the Regathering of the Diaspora (lost 10 Tribes of Israel), the in-gathering of the Gentiles with Israel, the post-Millennial Judgment, the Slaying of Satan/Leviathan, the Vindication of God’s Martyrs….ALL of these prophetic events and themes have their termination and fulfillment at the coming of the Lord against Israel of the flesh in 70 A.D.
Most of us have been told and taught from our earliest Sunday School lessons as good Protestant Christians that Christ is supposed to return someday yet in the future to establish his Kingdom here on earth and that we will be “raptured” to meet him in the air. Some folks are pre-tribulation rapture believers, some post-tribulation, amillennialists, and all variants in between. But I am going to prove to you by the scriptures that all of these future views of the Coming of the Lord are absolutely falsified by the Old Testament prophecies.
I will use a few supporting scriptures from other O.T. books, but the main passage from the end of Isaiah 24 through chapter 28 will suffice. Let’s start by establishing the two main temporal statements which Isaiah uses to describe WHERE and WHEN all these prophetic events will unfold. The two key phrases are “in that day” and “in this mountain.” The phrase “in that Day” refers to the Great & Terrible Day of the Lord which occurs in the Last Days of Israel’s Old Covenant. The second phrase, “in this mountain,” refers to Mount Zion which is where the spiritual House of God (the Messianic Temple) will be established in the Last Days of Israel’s Covenant when Messiah comes.
In Acts 2, we have the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost where, on that day alone, over 3000 Jewish converts believe in Jesus Christ and are washed of their blood guilt for having slain the Lord. This was the fulfillment of Zechariah 13:1 and Joel 2. Peter says that what they were witnessing that day with the supernatural gift of tongues was THE FULFILLMENT of Joel chapter 2 which is a prophecy of the Last Days of Israel’s covenant just before the “Great and Terrible Day of the Lord”:
Joel 2:28-32 [KJV]
And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.Zechariah 13:1 [KJV]
In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.
Notice also that Joel’s prophecy also makes mention of Mount Zion and Jerusalem as being the place of deliverance for the remnant whom the LORD shall call. The term “Mount Zion” represented the very hope of Israel. Zion is the Mountain of the House of God established in the LAST DAYS as spoken in Micah 4:
Micah 4:1-2 [KJV]
But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
So then, let us now look at Isaiah chapter 25 and begin to identify the end time prophetic events which will occur “in that day” and “in this mountain.” The first one is the Messianic Banquet, or Marriage Supper of the Lamb as described in Revelation 19:7-9.
Revelation 19:7-9 [KJV]
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.Isaiah 25:6 [KJV]
And in this mountain shall the LORD of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.
There you have the Great Feast of the Lord “in this mountain” made unto ALL PEOPLE. This is also known as the Messianic Banquet. But how do we know that “in this mountain” is really speaking of “Mount Zion” in Isaiah 25? We can positively identify this mountain by going back to the antecedent reference of Mount Zion found at the end of Isaiah chapter 24. Remember that chapter and verse headings were not inserted into scripture until well after these things were written for easy reference.
Isaiah 24:23 [KJV]
Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.
Ok, so we have the Messianic Banquet occurring in Mount Zion and we know Mount Zion is specifically the Last Days establishment of the Mountain and House of God (Messianic Temple). We know that Revelation speaks of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb at the end of the Millennial reign of Christ in Revelation 19:7-9 following the destruction of the city of Babylon. In previous studies, we have identified “Babylon” as a spiritual or prophetic code word for the city of Jerusalem.
The next two prophetic events on the list are found immediately in the next few verses after the Messianic Banquet reference and they are Salvation and the Resurrection.
Isaiah 25:7-9 [KJV]
And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations. 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: for the LORD hath spoken it. 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.
Here again we have the reference to “in this mountain” and now we have the first “in that day” key reference. God will destroy the vail of separation that covers the nations which is the removal of their sin and shame, or “the rebuke of his people.” This is the salvation of the Lord which occurs at the Resurrection. Remember also that this section contains Isaiah 25:8 which Paul cited in 1 Corinthians 15:54 in his doctrine of the Resurrection where Death is swallowed up in victory and God wipes away tears from off all faces!
The last prophetic event tie we find in chapter 25 is to the destruction and judgment of Jerusalem in the Last Days, especially in the final verse of the chapter. Notice the language used where God says “the fortress of the high fort of thy walls shall he bring down, law low, and bring to the ground, even to the dust.” This is exactly what happened at the destruction of Jerusalem in AD70. Josephus says that the Roman army plowed up the very foundations of the city right down to the dust of the ground.
Isaiah 25:10-12 [KJV]
For in this mountain shall the hand of the LORD rest, and Moab shall be trodden down under him, even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill. And he shall spread forth his hands in the midst of them, as he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his hands to swim: and he shall bring down their pride together with the spoils of their hands. And the fortress of the high fort of thy walls shall he bring down, lay low, and bring to the ground, even to the dust.
In Isaiah 26, the prophecy continues with the odd combination of the song of salvation being sung at the same time the city of brought down to the dust. This theme of simultaneous destruction and redemption in Jerusalem is also found in other O.T. prophesies, especially the book of Hosea where we find the story of God divorcing, slaying and departing from Israel for her spiritual idolatry and harlotry, but in her Last Days he Returns, Resurrects, and Remarries her. Note this similar combination of rejoicing and destruction in this passage and almost a verbatim repeat of the language from Isaiah 25:12 about bringing down those that dwell on high and laying them low, “even to the dust”:
Isaiah 26:1-5 [KJV]
In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks. Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength: For he bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, he layeth it low; he layeth it low, even to the ground; he bringeth it even to the dust.
Near the end of the chapter, we find the combined message of Resurrection of the people with Christ associated with the vindication of the martyrs when “the LORD cometh out of his place to punish inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity” at which time the earth discloses her blood and reveals her slain.
Isaiah 26:19-21 [KJV]
Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.
In the VERY next verse at the beginning of chapter 27, we find the slaying of Leviathan, which is the great crooked, piercing serpent, which is none other than Satan the “dragon that is in the sea.” Notice again that his slaying occurs with the temporal referent of IN THAT DAY:
Isaiah 27:1 [KJV]
In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.
Immediately following in the next few verses, also “IN THAT DAY,” we have a song being sung to Israel/Jacob of blessing and protection of the LORD after Leviathan is slain:
Isaiah 27:2 [KJV]
In that day sing ye unto her, A vineyard of red wine. I the LORD do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day. Fury is not in me: who would set the briers and thorns against me in battle? I would go through them, I would burn them together. Or let him take hold of my strength, that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me. He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.
And how does Jacob make peace with God and receive the blessing? It is through God’s judgment which purges the iniquity (blood-guilt) of Jacob, when he makes the stones of the altar into CHALKSTONES that are beaten in sunder and the defenced city is forsaken and made desolate! This is when God shows the people which he formed NO MERCY and NO FAVOR…this was undeniably, irrefutably done at Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
Isaiah 27:9-11 [KJV]
By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged; and this is all the fruit to take away his sin; when he maketh all the stones of the altar as chalkstones that are beaten in sunder, the groves and images shall not stand up. Yet the defenced city shall be desolate, and the habitation forsaken, and left like a wilderness: there shall the calf feed, and there shall he lie down, and consume the branches thereof. When the boughs thereof are withered, they shall be broken off: the women come, and set them on fire: for it is a people of no understanding: therefore he that made them will not have mercy on them, and he that formed them will shew them no favour.
In the last portion of Isaiah 27, after the slaying of Satan and the blessing of Jacob through his judgment and purging of sin is the consummative Regathering of the Diaspora and the Gentiles, represented by Assyria and Egypt, together with Israel IN THAT DAY when the Great Trumpet is blown and all men come to worship God in his holy mount (Zion) at Jerusalem. However, please note something VERY important. The physical temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D. was NOT built on Mount Zion. It was built on Mount Moriah. That is because Mount Zion and the Messianic Temple are a spiritual mountain and temple not made by human hands. Remember in Revelation there is a NEW Jerusalem and a New Heavens and Earth because the first (the types and shadow versions) are destroyed. Also important to note is the symbology of the phrase “Heaven and Earth” as it relates directly to the Temple, not the physical planet earth and the universal cosmos.
Isaiah 27:12-13 [KJV]
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall beat off from the channel of the river unto the stream of Egypt, and ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.
Now, chapter 28 I will try to summarize and wrap this study up. What we find in chapter 28 is the decree of judgment to those who sit in judgment, but refuge to the residue of his people who trust in the cornerstone that God laid in Mount Zion. It would be good if you will read the entire passage of Isaiah 25 through 28 to see how it all flows together as I have described. But here are the key verses from chapter 28 which establish the main theme of this chapter.
Isaiah 28:1-6 [KJV]
Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower, which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are overcome with wine! Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand. The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet: And the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up. In that day shall the LORD of hosts be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people, And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate.
Note that any time you see the phrase “Lord of Hosts” it is generally referring to the armies of the Lord in battle for judgment. Here we have the armies of the Lord presented as a crown, or diadem of beauty to the RESIDUE of his people….only the faithful few who believe and trust in him. To the rest who are scornful and sit in judgment over Jerusalem, he comes as a spirit of judgment, giving strength to the Roman armies who brought the battle to the gate of Jerusalem and destroyed it in 70 A.D.
Isaiah 28:13-19 [KJV]
But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it. From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.
In summary, the Lord’s plan all along was to lay in ZION the chief cornerstone, Jesus Christ, Yeshua Messiah, in Israel’s Last Days when the New Covenant would be established at the passing of the Old Covenant system. This cornerstone would be the foundation of the Messianic Kingdom and Temple, the spiritual house of God in Mount Zion, that would be radically different than the old temple and kingdom. This is the Temple not made with human hands:
Acts 7:48-49 [KJV]
Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet, Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?
Instead, this temple would be made of “lively stones” which Peter spoke of in 1 Peter 2:4-6. Notice also that Peter cites Isaiah 28:16 in this passage:
1 Peter 2:4-6 [KJV]
To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
Instead of a nebulous 2000+ year “Last Days” period, the Last Days of Israel lasted roughly 40 years. This was from the time of Jesus’ public ministry from AD30 through the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D. All the scripture I just gave you from Isaiah and other supporting scriptures (and MUCH more I could have provided) shows that ALL these events, the Resurrection, the Salvation of God, the Slaying of Satan, the Messianic Banquet, the in-gathering of the Gentiles, the Regathering of Israel, occurred and culminated with the judgment of Israel and the vindication of the Martyrs of God in 70A.D. There was and IS NO 2000 YEAR GAP…
The Messianic Kingdom and Temple are HERE NOW…inside the hearts of those who trust in the King of Kings and Lord of Lords who established them in Israel’s Last Days, Yeshua Messiah, Jesus Christ.
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Thy Kingdom Came... 