Isaiah — Chapter 2
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1This is the message that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz concerning Judah and Jerusalem:
2In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.
3And many peoples will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4Then He will judge between the nations and arbitrate for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor train anymore for war.
5Come, O house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the LORD.
6For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled with influences from the east; they are soothsayers like the Philistines; they strike hands with the children of foreigners.
7Their land is full of silver and gold, with no limit to their treasures; their land is full of horses, with no limit to their chariots.
8Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made.
9So mankind is brought low, and man is humbled—do not forgive them!
10Go into the rocks and hide in the dust from the terror of the LORD and the splendor of His majesty.
11The proud look of man will be humbled, and the loftiness of men brought low; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.
12For the Day of the LORD of Hosts will come against all the proud and lofty, against all that is exalted—it will be humbled—
13against all the cedars of Lebanon, lofty and lifted up, against all the oaks of Bashan,
14against all the tall mountains, against all the high hills,
15against every high tower, against every fortified wall,
16against every ship of Tarshish, and against every stately vessel.
17So the pride of man will be brought low, and the loftiness of men will be humbled; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day,
18and the idols will vanish completely.
19Men will flee to caves in the rocks and holes in the ground, away from the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.
20In that day men will cast away to the moles and bats their idols of silver and gold—the idols they made to worship.
21They will flee to caverns in the rocks and crevices in the cliffs, away from the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.
22Put no more trust in man, who has only the breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?
1The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.
6Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.
7Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots:
8Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made:
9And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not.
10Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty.
11The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
12For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
13And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
14And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up,
15And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall,
16And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.
17And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
18And the idols he shall utterly abolish.
19And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
20In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
22Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?
1The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2And it shall come to pass in the latter days, that the mountain of Jehovah`s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3And many peoples shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of Jehovah from Jerusalem.
4And he will judge between the nations, and will decide concerning many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of Jehovah.
6For thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they are filled [with customs] from the east, and [are] soothsayers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners.
7And their land is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land also is full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots.
8Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.
9And the mean man is bowed down, and the great man is brought low: therefore forgive them not.
10Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty.
11The lofty looks of man shall be brought low, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
12For there shall be a day of Jehovah of hosts upon all that is proud and haughty, and upon all that is lifted up; and it shall be brought low;
13and upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
14and upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up,
15and upon every lofty tower, and upon every fortified wall,
16and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant imagery.
17And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
18And the idols shall utterly pass away.
19And men shall go into the caves of the rocks, and into the holes of the earth, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake mightily the earth.
20In that day men shall cast away their idols of silver, and their idols of gold, which have been made for them to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21to go into the caverns of the rocks, and into the clefts of the ragged rocks, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake mightily the earth.
22Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for wherein is he to be accounted of?
1Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz.
2In future days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure as the most important of mountains and will be the most prominent of hills. All the nations will stream to it;
3many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain, to the temple of the God of Jacob, so he can teach us his requirements, and we can follow his standards.” For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; the Lord’s message will issue from Jerusalem.
4He will judge disputes between nations; he will settle cases for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not take up the sword against other nations, and they will no longer train for war.
5O descendants of Jacob, come, let us walk in the Lord’s guiding light.
6Indeed, O Lord, you have abandoned your people, the descendants of Jacob. For diviners from the east are everywhere; they consult omen readers like the Philistines do. Plenty of foreigners are around.
7Their land is full of gold and silver; there is no end to their wealth. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots.
8Their land is full of worthless idols; they worship the product of their own hands, what their own fingers have fashioned.
9Men bow down to them in homage, they lie flat on the ground in worship. Don’t spare them!
10Go up into the rocky cliffs, hide in the ground. Get away from the dreadful judgment of the Lord, from his royal splendor!
11Proud men will be brought low, arrogant men will be humiliated; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.
12Indeed, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has planned a day of judgment for all the high and mighty; for all who are proud—they will be humiliated;
13for all the cedars of Lebanon that are so high and mighty, for all the oaks of Bashan,
14for all the tall mountains, for all the high hills,
15for every high tower, for every fortified wall,
16for all the large ships, for all the impressive ships.
17Proud men will be humiliated, arrogant men will be brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.
18The worthless idols will be completely eliminated.
19They will go into caves in the rocky cliffs and into holes in the ground trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord and his royal splendor, when he rises up to terrify the earth.
20At that time men will throw their silver and gold idols, which they made for themselves to worship, into the caves where rodents and bats live,
21so they themselves can go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs and the openings under the rocky overhangs, trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord and his royal splendor, when he rises up to terrify the earth.
22Stop trusting in human beings, whose life’s breath is in their nostrils. For why should they be given special consideration?
1This is what Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2It shall happen in the latter days, that the mountain of Yahweh’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it.
3Many peoples shall go and say, “Come, let’s go up to the mountain of Yahweh, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths.” For out of Zion the law shall go out, and Yahweh’s word from Jerusalem.
4He will judge between the nations, and will decide concerning many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5House of Jacob, come, and let us walk in the light of Yahweh.
6For you have forsaken your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled from the east, with those who practice divination like the Philistines, and they clasp hands with the children of foreigners.
7Their land is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures. Their land also is full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots.
8Their land also is full of idols. They worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.
9Man is brought low, and mankind is humbled; therefore don’t forgive them.
10Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust, from before the terror of Yahweh, and from the glory of his majesty.
11The lofty looks of man will be brought low, the haughtiness of men will be bowed down, and Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day.
12For there will be a day of Yahweh of Armies for all that is proud and haughty, and for all that is lifted up; and it shall be brought low:
13For all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, for all the oaks of Bashan,
14For all the high mountains, for all the hills that are lifted up,
15For every lofty tower, for every fortified wall,
16For all the ships of Tarshish, and for all pleasant imagery.
17The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; and Yahweh alone shall be exalted in that day.
18The idols shall utterly pass away.
19Men shall go into the caves of the rocks, and into the holes of the earth, from before the terror of Yahweh, and from the glory of his majesty, when he arises to shake the earth mightily.
20In that day, men shall cast away their idols of silver, and their idols of gold, which have been made for themselves to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21To go into the caverns of the rocks, and into the clefts of the ragged rocks, from before the terror of Yahweh, and from the glory of his majesty, when he arises to shake the earth mightily.
22Stop trusting in man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for of what account is he?
Summary
Isaiah looks ahead to the last days, when the mountain of the LORD's house will stand highest of all and the nations will stream to it to learn God's ways and turn their weapons into farm tools (vv. 2-4). He then contrasts that future glory with Judah's present idolatry — the land is full of foreign customs, silver, horses, and handmade idols, and its people bow down to their own works (vv. 6-9). Isaiah calls them to hide from the terror of the LORD when he rises to shatter every proud and lofty thing — towers, ships, cedars, and human pride alike (vv. 10-17). Idols will be thrown to the moles and bats as people flee into caves, for that day belongs to the LORD alone; humanity's own breath gives it no basis to boast (vv. 18-22).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Jerusalem (v.1, v.3): Capital of Judah; the holy city where the Temple stood.
- Zion (v.3): The hill on which Jerusalem/the Temple stood; often used poetically for God's dwelling.
- Lebanon (v.13): Region north of Israel known for its cedar forests.
- Bashan (v.13): Fertile region east of the Sea of Galilee.
- Tarshish (v.16): Distant port city (possibly Spain); represents the farthest reaches of the known world.
Places on this map
- JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia
- LebanonMount Lebanon range, LebanonIn the Bible this is the mountain range, not the modern country: a snow-capped wall rising over 10,000 feet behind the Phoenician coast. Its cedar was the prestige timber of the ancient Near East and both the tabernacle's successors and Solomon's temple were built from it. Wikipedia
- BashanGolan and Hauran, SyriaThe volcanic tableland north-east of the Sea of Galilee, deep in basalt soil and famous for cattle and oak. The bulls of Bashan in the Psalms are a compliment to the pasture before they are an insult to anyone. Wikipedia
- Sea of GalileeLake Kinneret, IsraelA freshwater lake 13 miles by 8, sunk 700 feet below sea level in a bowl of hills. Cold air spilling over the rim onto warm water is what produces the sudden violent squalls the Gospels keep describing. Wikipedia
- Tarshishprobably southern SpainUsually identified with Tartessos near the mouth of the Guadalquivir in southern Spain, at the far western end of the Phoenician trade routes, though the identification is not certain. Either way it meant the end of the known world, and it lies almost exactly opposite Nineveh from Joppa. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik explores the contrast between the glorious future mountain and the present-day pride, noting how the Day of the LORD targets everything humans elevate above God.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- BibleProject: bibleproject.com On the whole book: the promised king who runs through Isaiah from beginning to end.
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Isaiah -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- The Nations Drawn by God's Glory (v.2) — The mountain of the LORD is exalted, and it's this exaltation — not compromise — that draws the nations to it. Is your faith attractive because it's authentic, or because it's easy?
- Swords Into Plowshares (v.4) — God's future peace repurposes weapons of war into tools for growth. What in your life — a sharp tongue, a combative spirit — needs to be turned toward building rather than fighting?
- Proximity to Truth Without Participation in It (vv.7-8) — Even as this vision of peace is given, Judah is filled with idols and self-reliance. Can you be near God's truth and still be missing His kingdom?
- Pride Will Be Brought Low (vv.12-17) — The Day of the LORD targets everything exalted — towers, cedars, mountains. What do you rely on for security or status apart from God?
- Stop Building Your Life on People (v.22) — "Cease ye from man" — Isaiah calls Judah to stop trusting in human strength. What human systems or relationships are you building your security on instead of God?