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Isaiah 24

Behold, the LORD will empty the earth and make it desolate, and he will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants.

And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the slave, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor.

The earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered; for the LORD has spoken this word.

The earth mourns and withers; the world languishes and withers; the highest people of the earth languish.

The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant.

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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.

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.”

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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.

Scripture quotations marked “ESV” are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Isaiah 24

This chapter marks the transition to the Isaiah Apocalypse (chapters 24-27), shifting from prophecies against specific nations to a cosmic vision of universal judgment and renewal affecting the entire earth. Isaiah describes a scene of total upheaval where the earth will be completely laid waste and emptied, where high and low will be treated the same, and where the foundations of society will collapse under divine judgment. The oracle emphasizes that this judgment is universal and comprehensive, affecting all inhabitants of the earth regardless of social status or national identity, establishing that divine justice operates on a cosmic scale. The specific sins condemned—breaking the everlasting covenant, violating statutes, and transgressing the laws—establish that the judgment is not arbitrary but grounded in violation of divine commandments. The imagery of the earth reeling like a drunkard and swaying like a hut in the wind conveys cosmic instability and the dissolution of created order. Yet even within this vision of cosmic chaos, the passage promises that a remnant will be preserved and will lift their voices in songs of joy and praise to the Lord. The oracle establishes that judgment, however severe and comprehensive, is purposive and leads toward the vindication of God's name and the emergence of a renewed and faithful community. The chapter demonstrates that Isaiah's vision extends beyond particular historical crises to encompass ultimate cosmic renewal and the establishment of God's justice across all creation. Isaiah 24 establishes the eschatological framework that will shape the final chapters of the book, where history culminates in divine judgment and the transformation of all things.

Isaiah 24:21

On that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven in heaven, and the kings of the earth on the earth, establishing that judgment extends to cosmic heights—the heavenly host—and earthly depths—human kings—suggesting a comprehensive reordering of creation. The punishing of the host of heaven suggests that even angelic or divine powers are subject to God's judgment, that the rebellion extends beyond human history to cosmic dimensions. The parallel punishment of earthly kings with heavenly hosts establishes a correspondence between heavenly and earthly rebellion, between cosmic and political disorder. This verse suggests that Isaiah's vision encompasses not merely human history but the entire cosmos and all the powers operating within it.

Isaiah 24:22

They will be gathered together like prisoners in a pit, and will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished, establishing that judgment involves confinement and the deferral of full punishment, suggesting an interim period before final reckoning. The gathering of prisoners and their confinement suggest a holding pattern, a restraint of evil until the appointed time of final judgment. The many days represent an extended period, perhaps the interim between the first judgment and the final consummation. This verse introduces complexity into the apocalyptic timeline, suggesting that judgment operates in phases rather than as a single decisive event. The deferred punishment allows for mercy and the possibility of repentance during the interim.

Isaiah 24:23

Then the moon will be abashed, and the sun ashamed; for the LORD of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His elders, glory will be manifested, establishing that the judgment issues in the revelation of God's reign centered on Zion, with the celestial bodies themselves responding to the manifestation of God's glory. The abashment of moon and sun suggests their loss of primacy and their subordination to God's glory, which far surpasses their light. The reign of the LORD on Mount Zion establishes Jerusalem as the center of the renewed cosmos, the place from which God's rule is exercised. The assembly of elders suggests the restored community gathered to behold God's glory. This verse represents the apocalyptic vision's culmination in the revelation of God's reign and the gathering of the faithful in God's presence.

Isaiah 24:4

The earth mourns and fades away, the world languishes and fades away; the exalted of the people of the earth languish, establishing that the earth itself responds to judgment with grief and loss of vitality, and that this cosmic response encompasses the humbling of human exaltation. The personification of earth and world as mourning and languishing suggests that the judgment is not merely political or social but reaches to the ontological level, affecting the created order itself. The specific mention of the languishing of the exalted—those who had been elevated in the human order—suggests that the cosmic judgment enacts the humbling of pride that has characterized many of Isaiah's oracles. Yet the expansion to include the earth itself suggests that the judgment has consequences and significance that transcend human history.

Isaiah 24:5

The earth lies polluted under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant, establishing that the judgment's cause is human covenant-breaking, the violation of the laws and statutes that constitute the terms of humanity's relationship with God. The pollution of earth by its inhabitants suggests that human sin has cosmic consequences, that rebellion against God affects the created order itself. The specific mention of breaking the everlasting covenant identifies the transgression as one directed against God's fundamental covenant with humanity, not merely against particular laws or regulations. This verse establishes the theological causality underlying the apocalyptic judgment: judgment flows from covenant-breaking and is proportional to the seriousness of the violation. The everlasting covenant suggests either the Noahic covenant (with all humanity) or a universal articulation of God's covenant with creation.

Isaiah 24:6

Therefore a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are scorched, and few people are left, establishing that the judgment manifests as a curse—a reversal of blessing—that affects earth and inhabitants. The suffering of inhabitants as a consequence of their guilt establishes the justice of the judgment: consequences follow violations. The scorching of the earth and the diminishment of the population suggest ecological disaster and demographic catastrophe as manifestations of the judgment. The reference to few people being left introduces the theme of a remnant—those who survive the judgment—that becomes important in the following chapters. This verse connects personal moral accountability to cosmic consequences.

Isaiah 24:7

The new wine fails, the vine languishes, all the merry-hearted sigh, establishing that the judgment affects human culture, celebration, and the basic sources of joy and sustenance. The failure of wine and languishing of vine represent the destruction of the agricultural bases of life and culture. The sighing of the merry-hearted suggests that even those most inclined toward celebration cannot maintain joy in the face of judgment. The oracle's focus on cultural and agricultural disruption establishes that judgment is not merely spiritual but affects the material and social conditions through which humans live. The connection between vine and wine links the oracle to the theme of covenant (wine as a sign of covenant), suggesting that the failure of wine represents a failure of covenant.

Isaiah 24:8

The mirth of the tambourines is stilled, the noise of the jubilant ends, the joy of the harp ceases, establishing that the judgment silences the instruments and practices through which humans celebrate and express joy. The accumulation of musical instruments—tambourines, harps—and associated practices—jubilance, mirth, joy—emphasizes the totality of cultural disruption, that judgment reaches to the deepest sources of human meaning-making and celebration. The stilling and ceasing of sound suggest a kind of death, an ending of vitality and expression. The oracle's focus on music establishes that judgment affects not merely material survival but the spiritual and cultural expressions that make life meaningful.

Isaiah 24:9

They do not drink wine with a song; strong drink is bitter to those who drink it, establishing that the basic practices of sustenance and celebration are corrupted by judgment, that food and drink lose their capacity to nourish and gladden. The bitterness of strong drink suggests that judgment poisons even the sources of comfort and relief. The absence of song with wine represents a fundamental separation of eating and celebration from the culture and meaning that had surrounded them. This verse suggests that judgment affects not merely material survival but the quality and meaning of that survival, that one can be alive yet bereft of the conditions that make life worth living.

Isaiah 24:10

The city of chaos is broken down; every house is shut up so that none can enter, establishing that human habitation and social organization—the city—become sites of chaos and abandonment. The breaking down of the city represents the destruction of the built environment and the social structures that the city embodies. The shutting of houses suggests abandonment, the death or flight of inhabitants. The personification of the city as chaotic establishes that human civilizational achievement is subject to judgment and dissolution. The oracle's focus on the city suggests that Isaiah's vision of judgment encompasses the urban centers of civilization, that no human achievement in social organization provides immunity from the judgment.

Isaiah 24:11

There is an outcry in the streets for lack of wine; all joy has turned to gloom; the gladness of the earth is gone, establishing that the basic conditions of life—the availability of wine, the possibility of joy—have been destroyed, replaced by gloom and the outcry of the desperate. The outcry in the streets suggests public lamentation and the visibility of suffering, that the consequences of judgment are not hidden or private but evident to all. The turning of joy to gloom represents a cosmic reversal of conditions and emotional states. The emphasis on gladness being gone establishes that the judgment's impact extends to the psychological and spiritual states of survivors, that those who remain live in darkness and despair.

Isaiah 24:1

Behold, the LORD will empty the earth and make it desolate, and He will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants, introducing the Isaiah Apocalypse and establishing a vision of cosmic judgment affecting the entire created order rather than particular nations. The emptying, desolation, and scattering suggest a comprehensive undoing of the created order, reaching to the fundamental level of habitation and stability. The universality of the judgment—the earth, not merely nations—establishes this as a different kind of oracle, one concerned with cosmic rather than merely political upheaval. The twisting of the surface suggests a violation of the created order's integrity, a return to chaos. This apocalyptic vision introduces a shift in Isaiah's prophecy from particular oracles against nations to cosmic eschatology.

Isaiah 24:13

For thus it shall be in the midst of the earth among the peoples, as when an olive tree is beaten, or as the gleanings when the grape harvest is done, establishing that the judgment will leave a remnant—gleanings—even as it overwhelms the majority. The imagery of the beaten olive tree and the remaining gleanings suggests a harvest in which much is destroyed but some remains. The focus on what remains after destruction introduces the theme of the remnant that becomes increasingly important in Isaiah's vision of salvation. This verse offers the first hint in this apocalyptic section that judgment, while comprehensive, does not mean complete annihilation. The remnant motif establishes that judgment and salvation are intertwined in God's purposes.

Isaiah 24:14

They lift up their voices, they sing for joy; over the majesty of the LORD they shout from the west, establishing that survivors of the judgment gather to praise God and celebrate the majesty revealed in judgment. The lifting of voices and singing for joy suggest that joy returns, but now in a transformed context: joy occasioned by the revelation of God's majesty rather than by human cultural achievement. The shouting from the west suggests the gathering of remnant survivors from the far reaches of the earth. The shift to praise establishes that the oracle's vision is not purely destructive but moves toward salvation and the restoration of right relationship with God.

Isaiah 24:15

Therefore in the east give glory to the LORD; in the coastlands of the sea, give praise to the name of the LORD, the God of Israel, extending the call to praise to all the earth, establishing that judgment leads to universal recognition of God's glory and the proper acknowledgment of God's name. The east and west, coastlands and sea represent the far reaches of the earth, suggesting that the judgment and salvation are cosmic in scope and affect all peoples. The specific mention of "the LORD, the God of Israel" establishes that the universal recognition of God's majesty and power is grounded in Israel's covenantal faith. The oracle's expansion to universal praise suggests that God's purposes with Israel encompass the salvation and transformation of all humanity.

Isaiah 24:16

From the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise, "Glory to the Righteous One." But I say, "I am ruined, I am ruined. Woe is me! The treacherous deal treacherously, and the treacherous act very treacherously," introducing a note of tension between the songs of praise and the prophet's lament, between the revelation of God's righteousness and the persistence of treachery. The praise from the ends of the earth represents the cosmic response to judgment and the manifestation of God's righteousness. Yet the prophet's response—ruination, woe—suggests that the revelation of God's righteousness leaves the prophet devastated, perhaps by the recognition of human treachery and faithlessness. The repetition of ruination and treachery emphasizes their persistence despite the revelation of God's righteousness.

Isaiah 24:17

Terror and pit and snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth, establishing that those who survive judgment remain threatened by various forms of destruction and danger. The triplet—terror, pit, snare—suggests multiple forms of threat, perhaps both literal (physical dangers) and metaphorical (psychological and spiritual dangers). The address to the inhabitant of the earth suggests that these threats are universal, affecting all survivors. Yet the verse's position in the oracle suggests that these threats serve the purposes of judgment and salvation, that they are not incidental but contribute to the deeper transformation God is effecting.

Isaiah 24:18

He who flees at the sound of 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, establishing that escape from one form of danger leads to another, that the judgment is inescapable because it operates at cosmic level—heaven and earth coordinating in the judgment. The imagery of windows opening and foundations trembling suggests the dissolution of the structures that separate and organize creation, a return to chaos. Yet this chaos serves God's purposes of judgment. The verse establishes that the judgment is not localized or escapable through flight or cleverness; it encompasses all creation.

Isaiah 24:19

The earth is utterly broken, the earth is split apart, the earth is shaken violently, establishing the totality and comprehensiveness of cosmic disruption, that the very foundation of creation is affected by judgment. The three-fold repetition of the earth's destruction emphasizes its severity and totality. The breaking, splitting, and violent shaking suggest multiple forms of destruction affecting the earth simultaneously. The oracle's cosmic imagery echoes creation accounts and flood narratives, suggesting that judgment represents a reversal of creation and a return to primordial chaos. Yet this chaos is ordered and purposeful, serving God's larger redemptive vision.

Isaiah 24:20

The earth reels to and fro like a drunkard, and sways like a hut; its transgression lies heavy upon it, and it falls, and will not rise again, personifying the earth as staggering and swaying under the weight of accumulated transgression, establishing that judgment is the consequence of persistent covenant-breaking. The images of drunkenness and the swaying hut suggest instability and the loss of secure foundation. The weight of transgression lies heavy, suggesting that violations of covenant accumulate and eventually become unsustainable. The finality—"will not rise again"—emphasizes the totality of the fall and the judgment's irrevocability. Yet this verse's position in the oracle suggests that the fall of the old order prepares for the rise of a new one oriented toward God.

Isaiah 24:12

Desolation is left in the city, and the gate is battered in ruins, establishing the physical destruction that accompanies the judgment: cities emptied, defensive structures broken. The focus on gates emphasizes the violation of the boundaries and protections upon which urban life depends. The desolation and ruin suggest that the judgment does not merely kill inhabitants but makes the physical environment hostile and uninhabitable. The oracle's concrete imagery—battered gates, desolate streets—grounds the apocalyptic vision in historical reality, suggesting that such devastation has been witnessed in human experience.

Isaiah 24:2

And it shall be: as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor, establishing that the judgment erases all social distinctions and hierarchies, affecting all classes and statuses equally. The systematic pairing of opposites—people and priest, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, creditor and debtor—suggests that the judgment reaches to the fundamental structures of society and all the relationships that constitute it. The leveling of all humans before the judgment suggests both justice (all accountable) and totality (no exemptions). This verse establishes that apocalyptic judgment transcends the particularities that have defined human social organization.

Isaiah 24:3

The earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered; for the LORD has spoken this word, establishing the absolute certainty and completeness of the judgment through the assertion of God's word as its source and guarantee. The repetition—utterly empty, utterly plundered—emphasizes the totality and finality of the judgment. The causal connection—"for the LORD has spoken"—grounds the certainty in divine utterance itself, in the performative power of God's word. This verse maintains the pattern throughout Isaiah of grounding prophecy in God's word as the source of its reality and authority. The apocalyptic vision is not merely imaginative or poetic but a statement about what will inevitably occur because God has declared it.