Commentary - Isaiah 62:10-12

Bird's-eye view

This triumphant conclusion to Isaiah 62 is a trumpet blast of gospel imperative, rooted in a glorious eschatological promise. After the Lord has declared He will not rest until Zion's righteousness goes forth as brightness, He now issues marching orders. This is not a quiet suggestion; it is an urgent, public, and demanding command. The work of preparation for the coming King is to be done by His people. Gates are to be opened, highways are to be built, and a banner is to be lifted high for all the world to see. This is the work of the Great Commission.

The reason for this flurry of activity is the announcement that follows: salvation is coming. But this is not an abstract concept; salvation is embodied in a Person. The King is on His way, and He is not coming empty-handed. He brings His reward and His recompense with Him. The passage culminates in a glorious renaming ceremony. The people of God, once desolate and forsaken, are given new names that reflect their new reality in the Messiah. They are "The holy people," "The redeemed of Yahweh," and "Sought out, a city not forsaken." This is a vision of the success of the gospel in time and history, a prophecy of the Christianization of the nations, where the Church becomes the glorious and sought-after bride of Christ.

Outline

Context In Isaiah

These verses are the climax of a section (Isaiah 60-62) that describes the future glory of Zion. In chapter 60, the nations stream to the light of Zion. In chapter 61, the Anointed One (the Messiah) announces the year of Yahweh's favor, the gospel proclamation that brings about this restoration. In chapter 62, God Himself swears an oath that He will not rest until this promised glory is realized. He sets watchmen on the walls who are to give Him no rest until Jerusalem is made a praise in the earth. Our text, verses 10-12, is the logical and practical outflow of all this divine energy and promise. Because God is irrevocably committed to glorifying His people, the people are now commanded to get to work. The promises of God do not lead to passivity, but to frenetic, Spirit-filled activity. This is the practical application of the glorious theology that has preceded it.

Key Issues

The Gospel Highway

When we moderns think of highways, we think of pavement, rest stops, and traffic jams. But in the ancient world, a highway was a remarkable feat of engineering and an instrument of empire. When a king intended to visit a part of his domain, a highway would be built. It was a raised, prepared road, with stones and obstacles removed, so that the royal procession could move swiftly and with dignity. John the Baptist picked up this very imagery when he announced the coming of Christ, quoting from Isaiah 40: "Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight."

The command here in Isaiah 62 is the same. It is a command to the people of God to build a gospel highway. This is the work of evangelism and discipleship. We are to clear the way for the gospel to run throughout the earth. This means removing the stones of stumbling, false doctrines, cultural idolatries, personal sins, and institutional corruption. It means building up a straight, clear path for people to come to Christ. This is hard, sweaty, rock-breaking work. It is the work of preaching, teaching, catechizing, and living out the faith in a way that adorns the doctrine of God our Savior. The highway doesn't build itself. God commands us to build it, and as we do, the King comes.

Verse by Verse Commentary

10 Go through, go through the gates, Clear the way for the people; Build up, build up the highway, Remove the stones, raise up a standard over the peoples.

The repetition here, "Go through, go through," "Build up, build up", communicates urgency. This is not a task for later. The time is now. The "gates" are the gates of the city, Zion. The people are being sent out from the place of worship into the world with a mission. They are to be an army of spiritual road-builders. The task has three parts. First, clear the way for the people. This is pre-evangelism, breaking up the fallow ground. Second, build up the highway. This is the positive work of constructing a clear and compelling presentation of the gospel. It must be a raised highway, elevated above the muck of worldly philosophies. Third, remove the stones. These are the obstacles, the objections, the sins and scandals that keep people from coming. And fourth, raise up a standard. A standard, or a banner, is a rallying point for an army. It shows everyone who you are and for whom you are fighting. Our standard is the cross of Jesus Christ, and we are to lift it high over all the peoples, all the nations of the earth. This is a global construction project.

11 Behold, Yahweh has announced to the end of the earth, Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your salvation comes; Behold, His reward is with Him, and His recompense before Him.”

Here is the motivation for the hard work of verse 10. This is the content of the message we proclaim. Yahweh Himself has made a global announcement, a proclamation that is to reach "the end of the earth." The message is directed to the "daughter of Zion," which in the new covenant is the Church. And what is the message? "Behold, your salvation comes." Notice that salvation is not a thing, but a Person. He is coming. This is the advent of the Messiah. And He is not coming as a pauper. He comes as a victorious king. His reward is with Him, and His recompense before Him. This is a direct echo of Isaiah 40:10. The reward He brings is for His people, the blessings of the covenant. The recompense, or work, that is before Him is the fruit of His labor, the people He has saved. He comes not only to give rewards, but He comes with His redeemed people, the reward of His suffering. This is a picture of Christ returning in glory with His bride, the Church.

12 And they will call them, “The holy people, The redeemed of Yahweh”; And you will be called, “Sought out, a city not forsaken.”

The result of the King's coming is a new identity for His people. Identity is found in what you are called. And God gives His people four glorious new names. First, they are The holy people. Set apart for God, consecrated to His service, no longer common or profane. This is our positional reality in Christ and our progressive calling in sanctification. Second, they are The redeemed of Yahweh. They are a people who have been bought back. A price was paid. They were slaves, and now they are free. Their identity is forever tied to the mighty act of redemption accomplished by Jesus Christ. Third, "you" (the city, Zion, the Church) will be called Sought out. This is a beautiful description of grace. We were not seeking God, but He was seeking us. Like the shepherd seeking the lost sheep or the woman sweeping for the lost coin, God has actively, diligently, and lovingly sought us out. And fourth, you will be called a city not forsaken. In their sin, Israel was like a wife divorced and forsaken. But in Christ, the Church is the beloved bride, cherished and secure. God will never leave her or forsake her. These are not just nice titles; they are declarations of objective, covenantal fact, purchased by the blood of Christ.

Application

This passage is a direct charge to the Church, and it demolishes any lazy, passive, defeatist view of the Christian life and mission. God has given us a job to do, and it is a glorious, world-altering construction project. We are not called to huddle in holy circles, waiting for the world to get worse so Jesus can come back and rescue us from the mess. We are called to go out through the gates and build a highway for our King.

This means we must be about the business of removing stones. In our own lives, this means repentance, mortifying the sins that are a stumbling block to our witness. In our churches, it means dealing with hypocrisy and doctrinal error that obscure the gospel. In our culture, it means confronting lies and ideologies that stand in opposition to the crown rights of Jesus Christ. At the same time, we must be building. We must build strong families, vibrant churches, and faithful Christian institutions. We must build a clear, robust, and joyful case for the truth of the gospel. We must raise the standard of the cross high, unashamedly, in the public square.

And the fuel for all this work is the promise that our King is coming. He is not coming to a defeated and bedraggled band of survivors. He is coming to a glorious bride, a city that has been sought out and will never be forsaken. He is coming with His reward. Our labor is not in vain. Every stone we remove, every bit of highway we build, is part of the preparation for that great day when the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. So let's pick up our shovels and get to work.