The prophet Isaiah addresses a restored Jerusalem, describing its future glory after exile. God promises that nations will bring their wealth to Zion, and Jerusalem's gates will remain perpetually open to receive tribute. The city will no longer need sun or moon because God's glory will provide eternal light, and its people will possess the land forever as the work of God's hands. The Lord will make the smallest family become a mighty nation and will accomplish this swiftly in its time. Isaiah is addressing the exiled people of Israel with this prophetic vision of restoration.
[20] Your sun shall no longer go down,
Nor shall your moon withdraw itself;
For the Lord will be your everlasting light,
And the days of your mourning shall be ended.
[21] Also your people shall all be righteous;
They shall inherit the land forever,
The branch of My planting,
The work of My hands,
That I may be glorified.
[22] A little one shall become a thousand,
And a small one a strong nation.
I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time.”
[1] “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
[2] To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
[3] To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
[4] And they shall rebuild the old ruins,
They shall raise up the former desolations,
And they shall repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations.
[5] Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,
And the sons of the foreigner
Shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.
[6] But you shall be named the priests of the Lord,
They shall call you the servants of our God.
You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles,
And in their glory you shall boast.
[7] Instead of your shame you shall have double honor,
And instead of confusion they shall rejoice in their portion.
Therefore in their land they shall possess double;
Everlasting joy shall be theirs.
The author has been providing practical instructions for Christian living, including warnings against various sins and encouragements to maintain faith. He has just urged believers to remember their spiritual leaders who spoke God's word to them and to imitate their faith, while emphasizing that Jesus Christ remains unchanging. He warned against being carried away by strange teachings and reminded them that Christians have an altar from which those serving the earthly tabernacle have no right to eat. He explained that just as the bodies of sacrificial animals were burned outside the camp, Jesus suffered outside the city gate to sanctify people through his own blood, calling believers to go to him outside the camp and bear his reproach. He encouraged them to continually offer sacrifices of praise to God and to do good and share with others, as such sacrifices please God.
[17] Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
[18] Pray for us; for we are confident that we have a good conscience, in all things desiring to live honorably. [19] But I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.
[20] Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, [21] make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Peter and the other disciples have been following Jesus throughout Galilee and Judea, witnessing his teachings and miracles. They recently encountered a rich young ruler who asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus instructed him to keep the commandments and then challenged him to sell all his possessions, give to the poor, and follow him. The young man went away sorrowful because he had great wealth. Jesus then taught his disciples about how difficult it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven, using the illustration of a camel passing through the eye of a needle. The disciples were astonished and asked who then could be saved. Jesus responded that with God all things are possible. Peter is now addressing Jesus.
[27] Then Peter answered and said to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?”
[28] So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. [29] And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life.
The wicked who persecuted the righteous during their earthly lives now stand before God's judgment seat in terror. They witness the righteous standing confidently before God, transformed in glory and vindicated for their faithfulness. The wicked suddenly recognize their catastrophic error in mocking and persecuting those who suffered for righteousness. They confess among themselves how they foolishly considered the righteous as mad and their death as dishonorable, yet now see them numbered among God's children and receiving their inheritance among the saints. In anguish, they acknowledge their own lives were spent in wickedness and pride, leaving no lasting legacy.
[1] Then shall the righteous man stand in great boldness before the face of such as have afflicted him, and made no account of his labors. [2] When they see it, they shall be troubled with terrible fear, and shall be amazed at the strangeness of his salvation, so far beyond all that they looked for. [3] And they repenting and groaning for anguish of spirit shall say within themselves, This was he, whom we had sometimes in derision, and a proverb of reproach: [4] we fools accounted his life madness, and his end to be without honor: [5] how is he numbered among the children of God, and his lot is among the saints! [6] Therefore have we erred from the way of truth, and the light of righteousness hath not shone unto us, and the sun of righteousness rose not upon us. [7] We wearied ourselves in the way of wickedness and destruction: yea, we have gone through deserts, where there lay no way: but as for the way of the Lord, we have not known it. [8] What hath pride profited us? or what good hath riches with our vaunting brought us?