Isaiah 26 THE SONG OF THE RIGHTEOUS At the end of the age Judah (and Israel) will be a righteous nation finally at peace. The redeemed people will testify of their trust in the Lord, and the poor and needy who have been ignored and persecuted by those who crushed them, will see them come under the justice and judgment of God. This chapter is a song of praise and joy to the Lord on the part of the righteous and is contrasted with the judgment of the wicked. Isaiah was looking ahead to the time the Lord will establish His kingdom, when after the turmoil and terrors of the tribulation, peace will come.
Israel will be as a “strong city” after having been defeated and destroyed many times. Not only will the city be the capital of the world under the rule of the Great Sovereign, the Lord Jesus Christ, but the people will be secure in a city whose moral strength will be stronger than the stones that form the walls. The walls had fallen before, but in the reign of Christ, the blessings of righteousness, justice and peace will bring stability, and the people of God will sing songs of praise, security and contentment because of Him, not stone walls.
Their testimony will be that God is trustworthy, and peace and joy come from Him. God’s truth and His glory will be seen openly when His “kingdom comes” and His will is done on earth as it is in heaven. The wicked who reject the Lord and put no faith in Him and the word of the Gospel, will be rejected. The redeemed will confess their righteousness is from the Lord Himself. “The lofty city” seems to refer to all the proud, the high and mighty of earth who will be humbled before the great King, Jesus. When God’s judgments come on the earth, people will repent and turn to Him. God will bring deliverance to Judah and punishment to their oppressors. God’s name alone will endure among all rulers because he alone can bring the “increase.”
The song describes the people of the “strong city” who are “just.” The way of life in that day will be without the things that make people stumble because God’s path is clear and comforting to those who set their mind on Him. He provides, gives wisdom and makes plain the path of life believers of all ages are to take. The character of the Lord is imparted to all those who believe on Him. They in turn will give honor to Him who deserves all honor and glory as they remember His past patience with them and His blessing on them.
Their worship in prayer and thanksgiving will be from “my soul” and “my spirit” as they sing to the praise of His glory. They even sing of God’s grace to the wicked who reject righteousness and the Lord Himself. The “other lords” are false gods who have no life and those who worship such things will find their attitudes and actions toward such evil will overwhelm them and devour them. The false gods of today may not be made as visible idols before which people burn incense, but anything that takes the place of God as supreme in our lives, is a false god. Believers of any age, including us, live because of His blessings and under the banner of His authority in contrast to those who “had dominion” in the past of our lives. Any person or things that had conquered us previous to our day of salvation, have been conquered by the One who “conquered them who had conquered us.”
We too sing of the glories of our Lord and His kingdom. Isaiah writes of those who will sing of the glories of the coming kingdom that will increase in size of numbers and territory as the promised land extends in that day to the boundaries described by the Lord long ago. What He promised, will actually take place. However, the next part of the song goes back to describe what will happen to Israel before the kingdom blessings are fulfilled. The tribulation will be a time of chastening and anguish for the Jews. There will be an urgency in their prayer for deliverance as they admit their need of correction. The people of Israel will feel the pain of disappointment, frustration and helplessness at their inability to deliver themselves. It is then they will turn to the Lord for His deliverance.
Then there will come deliverance as God intervenes, and the nation that was as good as dead, will be revived, and instead of hopelessness, hope comes again. Finally, they turn to the Lord in faith, and He comes to bring the deliverance they could not achieve. That nation that was as good as dead and buried, will be reborn. God turns to His people and calls them to “come” into the place of refuge He provides for them. It is there they hide until the punishment of the wicked living on earth who have sought to eradicate the Jews from the world, are dealt with by the iron hand of divine justice. That righteous judgment that exposes all evil and what is behind it, will make possible a reign of peace and moral order on earth.
When God gives to us benefits that enrich us in some way and helps us to get through the hard times because of His goodness and grace, our response should be thankfulness, gratitude and devotion to Him. When God allows difficulties to come upon us, we need to remember He has the right to do, or allow to happen, that which is for His sovereign purposes, not necessarily our comfort or well-being. It is incumbent on us to be patient in trials; to wait quietly with grace and acceptance; to put our hope in Him even when we have questions; and to seek Him and serve Him with all our hearts in spite of what our human desires are.