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typically fertile areas of Lebanon, Sharon, Bashan and Carmel had withered away. Now he names Lebanon, Carmel and Sharon as prime examples of the land’s revitalization, but it is clear that the land’s restoration reflects the presence of God. Isaiah says that in the “glory” of Lebanon and the “majesty” of Carmel, “they shall see the glory of the LORD, the majesty of our God” (v. 2). The power of water in a dry land is obvious to anyone who has ever flown over the southwestern U.S., where giant circles of farmland or lush fairways of golf courses sit amid a barren landscape. Ancient travelers in Israel’s environs would have seen the wonder of places such as Jericho, where a single spring can turn desert land into an oasis.
way to land so saturated that it gives rise to tall grass, reeds and rushes. The NRSV’s use of the word “swamp” is an unfortunate translation, obscuring the positive image with one that most readers would find unappealing, as we think of a swamp as an unpleasant place crawling with alligators, snakes and dangerous insects. There is no word for “swamp” in the text, which says that the former lairs or “resting places” of jackals will sprout lush plants that normally grow only in water-fed wetlands, usually near riverbanks.
Sufferers who rejoice (vv. 3-7)
A highway to Zion (vv. 8-10)
In vv. 3-6a, Isaiah’s imagery shifts from a transformed landscape to people who need renewing. With striking imperative verbs, he offers encouragement to his hearers and challenges them to pass on their hopeful confidence to others. The redeemed should actively “strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees,” inspiring others to be strong and not fear (vv. 3-4a). The prophet goes on to call forth an image of God deleting what is evil and opening the door to a new world in which the blind and weak will leap for joy at God’s salvation, introducing an era in which physical or spiritual disabilities are no hindrance to experiencing God (vv. 4b-6a). With v. 6b-7, Isaiah returns to his overriding image of a land that is not only renewed to its former state, but also more verdant than ever before. “Waters shall break forth in the wilderness,” he said, “and streams in the desert” (v. 6b). The “burning sand” of v. 7 may describe a desert mirage in which heat waves create the image of water. In God’s new day, visions of desert lakes will become real, and the former wilderness haunts of wild jackals will give
Isaiah’s paean to God’s restoration of Israel concludes by describing a highway for redeemed pilgrims to use as they return through the transformed desert on their way to Jerusalem. While we may call our roads expressways or parkways, this road would be called “the Holy Way,” a limited-access road where the toll would be paid by divine grace and only the righteous could travel. Those who would follow the holy highway, furthermore, would be perfectly safe. Only the righteous would be there, and none of them would need to fear lions or other predators that could make travel by foot a dangerous enterprise. The wild beasts that had previously terrorized the way might be symbolic of the Edomites, who had previously controlled the southern highway leading from the Negev to Jerusalem. Isaiah envisions a day when “the ransomed of the LORD” return to Zion amid songs of everlasting joy. Just as desolation would depart from the land and the wicked would be barred from the Holy Way, he says, “sorrow and sighing shall flee away” (v. 10, compare 65:19). The scene echoes Isa. 25:8, a promise that God will wipe away all tears, an image that reappears much
LESSON FOR DECEMBER 15, 2013
are available at nurturingfaith.net
later in Rev. 7:17 and 21:4. This image of a secure freeway by which pilgrims could joyfully sing their way toward Jerusalem was so appealing that v. 10 appears again in Isa. 51:11, where it appears less suited to the context than here. The question we must ask about this text is whether the prophet spoke in metaphoric hyperbole – wildly exaggerating the change in fortunes of the exiles as they returned to Jerusalem – or whether he was thinking eschatologically, as in 2:1-5 and 11:1-10, the texts for our previous two lessons. If we assume an exilic setting, it’s likely that the prophet had in mind the exiles’ return to Jerusalem along a highway not unlike that spoken of in Isa. 62:10, and that he used the metaphor of a transformed landscape as a hopeful image of a better future. If this is the case, we wonder why the text references the desolation of Israel’s ancient enemy Edom rather than the Babylonian captors. Perhaps “Edom” served to symbolize any evil power that oppressed Israel. If we assume the earlier setting, perhaps connected to Hezekiah’s revolt against the Assyrians, the people would have already been in Jerusalem, so the picture of a journey back to Zion seems less likely. In that context, it would be more likely that the prophet was envisioning a future day when God would destroy the wicked and establish Jerusalem and its environs as a new Eden, lush with vegetation that shouts of life and hope on every side. It is possible to see elements of either reading. While the immediate purpose of the text may have been to encourage the exiles by promising that God would make a way for them to return home, some elements of the text could only be fulfilled in a new age, a transformation far greater than a return from exile. Whichever option we choose, the take-home message is clear: no matter what trials we face, those who are wise will choose God’s way, and they can trust God to bring them safely home. BT
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