Earth, polluted by the sins of men, will at last be made utterly desolate and empty by the judgments of God.
Satanic hosts and anti-Christian world powers will be cast into the pit.
Then it shall appear that Jehovah is King above all and He shall reign gloriously in the earth.
Isaiah 1
1 Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.
2 And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.
3 The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the LORD hath spoken this word.
4 The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world languisheth and fadeth away, the haughty people of the earth do languish.
5 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.
7 The new wine mourneth, the vine languisheth, all the merryhearted do sigh.
8 The mirth of tabrets ceaseth, the noise of them that rejoice endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth.
9 They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it.
10 The city of confusion is broken down: every house is shut up, that no man may come in.
11 There is a crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.
12 In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction.
13 ¶ When thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the people, there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree, and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is done.
14 They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the LORD, they shall cry aloud from the sea.
15 Wherefore glorify ye the LORD in the fires, even the name of the LORD God of Israel in the isles of the sea.
16 ¶ From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! the treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.
17 Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.
19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.
20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.
23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.
Isaiah 1 – J. Vernon McGee
Isaiah 24:1-13 – The Desolation of a Guilty World
This and the three following chapters form a single prophecy, describing the calamities about to desolate the land, because the inhabitants have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Primarily it describes the experiences of Palestine under the successive invasions from the Euphrates valley, first of Nineveh and then of Babylon. There is a mysterious connection between the condition of a man’s soul and the response of surrounding nature. The very vineyards would sigh in sad accord with the prevailing misery and sin, Isaiah 24:7-9; and in the great city silence would reign in streets decimated by plague and war, Isaiah 24:10-12. Both in the Old and the New Testament the blessings of sufficiency and comfort are the fruits of holy living; whereas, sooner or later, evil overtakes wrong-doing. “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed”, is always true (Psalm 37:3). —Through the Bible Day by Day
Isaiah 24:14-23 – The Inescapable Penalty of Sin
There is always a godly remnant, as we are told in Isaiah 24:13, remaining in times of shaking, on the topmost boughs. The survivors who had fled across the seas from the judgments, would adore Jehovah for His goodness and mercy.
The fires of the East are in contrast to the isles of the West, Isaiah 24:15. Perhaps they stand for the fires of tribulation, in which we must glorify God. To whatever part of the earth the fugitives fled, they would be compelled to acknowledge the glory of righteousness, or perhaps of the Righteous One. The dispersion of the Church in the early days carried the message and music of the gospel everywhere. Though we may travel to the limits of sorrow, let us glorify our God.
Note the instability of all earthly things, Isaiah 24:18, etc. Woe to those who trust in them! Remember to build within the borders of the everlasting kingdom of Hebrews 12:23-28. When all the world kingdoms are destroyed, that of Israel, God’s ancient choice, shall stand, Isaiah 24:23. May we as the brethren of the King share His glory and reign with Him in those great coming days! In the meanwhile glorify Him in the skies. —Through the Bible Day by Day
Isaiah 24:16—From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs.
This chapter exceeds in sublimity. The prophet first describes the general desolation about to overtake the world of his time, when, through the ruthless invasions of Nebuchadnezzar, it would become utterly emptied and spoiled. He describes the earth as languishing and fading away, and the high ones of the people languishing (Isaiah 24:4). Polluted nature is depicted as groaning in bitter anguish beneath the enormous sins of men, who had transgressed the law, changed the ordinance, and broken the everlasting covenant of their God. All joy is darkened; the mirth of the land is gone.
The scene is changed, and our thought is turned from the judgment and punishment of the wicked, to the blessed lot of the people of God; we are taught to see the Lord of Hosts reigning on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously. And all who see it are compelled to confess that it is well with his people who are under such a King. And as that spectacle is beheld by the sons of men, as they compare their misery with the light and joy of the people of God, they lift up their voices and sing. They shall lift up their voice, they shall shout; for the majesty of the Lord, they shall cry aloud from the sea. Where morning lights her fires they shall glorify Him; and from the uttermost parts of the earth songs roll home in a tumult of ecstasy, “Glory to the righteous.”
It is a true sentence. Though for our discipline, and to fit us to minister to men, we are often passed through the fiery furnace, yet on the whole it is well with us. Ours is the peace of God; ours the knowledge that love is over all; ours the anticipation of a morning that shall never be overcast. —Our Daily Homily