THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Isaiah: Jahweh Is Salvation

Part XL: Learning From The Song Of The Redeemed In The Kingdom, Isaiah 26:1-21

B. Lessons From The Testimony Of The Redeemed Who Come Through The Great Tribulation

(Isaiah 26:7-21)

I. Introduction

A. After the Great Tribulation period, the thousand-year, millennial reign of Christ will occur, and the redeemed in that Kingdom will praise the Lord with the song recorded by Isaiah in Isaiah 26:1-21.

B. Verses 7-21 of that song contain the testimony of the redeemed who will have come through the Great Tribulation, and they offer invaluable insight for us since they will have faced far greater trials than we face:

II. Lessons From The Testimony Of The Redeemed Who Come Through The Great Tribulation.

A. Believers who will have survived the Great Tribulation will assert that God makes the path of the righteous "straight" in the sense of God's removing obstacles that stand in their way of heeding what is right, Isaiah 26:7; Edward J. Young, The Book of Isaiah, 1974, v. II, p. 211-212. This does not mean that God will make one's way easy, but that He makes it possible for the righteous to do what is upright even under great trials.

B. This insight will have led the redeemed who survived the Great Tribulation to yearn for God's continued guidance through such "straight" paths of blessing amid great trials, Isaiah 26:8-9a.

C. In striking contrast to this experience, those who had refused to learn God's ways will have been forced to learn of His righteousness when His judgment had come upon them in the Great Tribulation, Isaiah 26:9b.

D. The wicked do not learn from trials even if God's grace is extended to them, so they continue doing evil even in a land of uprightness without regarding the sovereign majesty of the Lord, Isaiah 26:10-11a.

E. Accordingly, the redeemed will call on the Lord to let these wicked parties see His zeal for His redeemed people and so be put to shame, being inflamed in the fires of God's judgment on His evil foes, Isaiah 26:11b.

F. Testifying of their spiritual victory under trial of the Great Tribulation, the redeemed will tell of God's provision of peace, of His work in their behalf, that though ungodly masters [like the antichrist] had ruled over them, they had learned to glory only the Name of the Lord, for these former masters were now dead, their spirits no longer rising due to God's judgment, and even their memory will have been erased, Isaiah 26:12-14.

G. In contrast, God will have enlarged the nation of Israel, all to His own glory, and He will have extended the borders of their land in great contrast to the deceased enemy foes of redeemed Israel, Isaiah 26:15.

H. Indeed, the redeemed will testify how they who were once under repression to wicked rulers had come to God in distress when He was using such rulers to discipline them and they could barely whisper a prayer for help in their distress, Isaiah 26:16. They were like a woman in labor who writhes in pain and cries out before the Lord, only have figuratively given birth to the wind in not literally bringing salvation to the earth nor causing the wicked people of the world to fall down slain, Isaiah 26:17-18 ESV; Ibid., Young, p. 225.

I. Yet, by God's grace and power, in contrast to Israel's futile helplessness, He will have caused her dead to live, their bodies to rise and to shout for joy, being refreshed like the morning dew, Isaiah 26:19.

J. Accordingly, Isaiah directs those about to face the Great Tribulation era to enter their rooms and shut the doors behind them, to hide themselves for a little while until God's wrath in the form of His severe judgment that includes horribly heartless, persecuting rulers passes them by, Isaiah 26:20.

K. Indeed, the Lord will come out of His dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins, for the earth will disclose the blood that has been shed upon her, no longer concealing its slain, meaning the day of divine reckoning will have come on a sinful world, Isaiah 26:21. Such words would encourage the upright that God will eventually fully judge the world's wrongs, Bible Know. Com., O. T., p. 1075.

Lesson: (1) The redeemed will testify how they had entered the Great Tribulation in sin and so suffered very harsh treatment in judgment under wicked rulers until they had repented in contrast to the wicked who never did repent and were destroyed. The upright will have learned of God's great deliverance and of His great relief. (2) The upright who thus will face such tribulation will need to hide themselves until God's wrath has been expended.

Application: (1) May we believers today adhere to righteousness and trust the Lord alone for help to avoid His dreadful discipline. (2) If we face God's severe discipline now, may we repent and trust in the Lord alone for restoration. (3) If God starts to discipline others around us, may we evaluate ourselves and repent if needed to avoid similar discipline (Galatians 6:1-2), and humbly "hide" until His discipline on others is passed.