Context for Isaiah 60
God promises the redemption of Zion and of His people. This is a glorious vision of a conquered people becoming the conquerors, not because of their own might or greatness, but because God has redeemed them.
It is tempting to look at the verses of Isaiah 60 and expect to see Jerusalem someday shining with silver and gold, Capitol of the World and home to the King of Nations. It is tempting simply because what we want from our lives is the greatest satisfaction possible, to live without need or want and in security and peace.
God’s promised redemption of Israel and Judah in these verses, however, points beyond a temporal city and the concerns of people and nations. Instead, it points to a different kind of city, the New Jerusalem, that is Heaven. God’s promised redemption is not just for some earthly benefit or gain, God promises to redeem us for eternity.
What we see in Isaiah 60 is a shimmering glimpse, like a city across a wide desert, of what our eternal home will be. We long for this vision because we long for the completion of God’s promises to us, His promise to bring us into our eternal home. Until then, we remember that God has promised that home to us through the promise He as already fulfilled through Jesus Christ our Savior.
DLH
