Glory
God’s glory will one day provide light to the world. There will be a time when there will be no sin in the world. This will happen in God’s eternal kingdom.
This is a Bible Study. Have your own Bible handy to look up the references mentioned.
If you do not have a Bible, I invite you to go to BibleGateway.com or another online Bible.
1. “God’s glory had once dwelt in the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-38), only to depart because of Israel’s sin (1 Samuel 4:21). God’s glory then came into the temple (1 Kings 8:11), but it departed when the nation turned to idols (Ezekiel 9:3; 10:4, 18; 11:22-23). (Wiersbe, Warren W, The Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament Prophets. [Colorado Springs: David C Cook, 2002], 67)
2. “The glory came to Israel in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14), but the nation nailed that glory to a cross.” (Wiersbe, 67)
3. The darkness of despair and defeat would cover the earth, but God would shine his glory upon them, so that the light of his glory would attract the nations to Jerusalem. [Max Anders and Trent C. Butler (2012). HOTC Vol. 15: Isaiah. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from https://read.lifeway.com]
“Today, God’s glory dwells in His people individually (1 Corinthians 6:19-20); but one day His glory will be revealed to the earth when He answers His people’s prayer: ‘Thy kingdom come.’” (Wiersbe, 67)
Jerusalem
4. “This does not refer to the rather small population of Hebrews that returned to Jerusalem after the exile, but to what will happen at the time when God establishes his eternal kingdom.” (Smith, Gary V., The New American Commentary, Volume 15B, Isaiah 40-66. [Nashville, B & H Publishing Group, 2009], 615)
5. “This transformation of Zion’s attitude describes their joyfulness, and their amazement at the miraculous thing God will do.” (Smith, 616)
“Isaiah sees ships and caravans bringing people and wealth to Jerusalem (60:5-7), and the nations that refuse to honor the Lord and His city will be judged (v. 12).” (Wiersbe, 67)
6. “Again wise men, not only from the East but from all over the world, will come with gifts of gold and incense for the Redeemer.” (McGee, J. Vernon, Thru the Bible: Volume III. [Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1983], 333)
7. “Through all these gifts and activities, God will be glorified, and he will make his temple in Jerusalem a glorious place.” (Smith, 617)
8. “Although these verses continue to refer to the nations coming to Zion, new groups of people from the west (the area of the Mediterranean Sea) are observed approaching.” (Smith, 617)
9. These people are identified “as people from distant coastland of the Mediterranean Sea who ‘trustfully wait for, eagerly looking for’ God.” (Smith, 617)
Strangers
10. “God will transform the foreign nations as well as his ways of dealing with his own people.” (Smith, 619)
“In the past God used the foreign nations as instruments of his wrath to bring judgment on his people, but in the future God’s relationship with his own people will change and he will change and he will have compassion on them and deal with them and the foreign nations in a completely new way.” (Smith, 619)
“The Gentiles will come to Jerusalem to worship the Lord and to share their wealth. (Wiersbe, 67)
11. “The notification that the gates of Jerusalem will be open ‘night and day’ in 60:11 means all the time.” (Smith, 620)
“The nations of the world that are saved are going to come to Jerusalem in the Millennium.” (McGee, 333)
12. “The Lord Jesus made it clear that His judgment upon the nations would be based on their treatment of the Jews (see Matthew 25:31-46).” (McGee, 333)
13. “There will be no opposition to God’s plans; instead, the glorious things found in Lebanon will come to Zion to beautify it.” (Smith, 621)
14. “All people must humble themselves completely, forsake all temptations of pride and self-worth, and confess their total dependence on the majestic Holy One who rules this world.” (Smith, 623)
15. “God’s marvelous new day of salvation would not be a passing fancy, but it would be everlasting. Self-esteem and joy would again mark the people of Jerusalem.” [Max Anders and Trent C. Butler (2012). HOTC Vol. 15: Isaiah. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from https://read.lifeway.com]
16. This verse “explains a second change involving God’s gracious care of Zion. Zion is metaphorically compared to a child being nursed in the royal household or to a child drinking the milk of the nations (similar to 49:23).” (Smith, 622)
God thy Glory
17. “This paragraph begins with contrasts between good building materials (copper, iron, word, and stone) and the best building material (gold, silver, copper, and iron) that could be used to build the new city of Jerusalem.” (Smith 624)
18. “Peace and righteousness would rule the land. Defense walls would now be referred to as Salvation. Violence and destruction would vanish.” [Max Anders and Trent C. Butler (2012). HOTC Vol. 15: Isaiah. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from https://read.lifeway.com]
19. “The text now returns to the theme of God’s glory as the light that will remove all darkness.” (Smith, 626)
20. “Since God’s light will replace the sun and moon, their new sun (God himself) and their new moon (God himself) will never set or grow dim ‘again any longer.’” (Smith, 626)
“The city Isaiah describes is the capital city of the restored Jewish nation, and Jesus Christ shall sit on the throne of David and judge righteously.” (Wiersbe, 67)
21. “These new conditions of no sinfulness or sorrow are due to the fact that all the Hebrews and foreigners from the nations ‘will be’ righteous and holy (4:3-4). (Smith, 627)
22. “The promise to Abraham of many descendants could again be fulfilled. Such promises depend not upon human effort, but upon God’s power. His people will gather for the glorious day when he will display his splendor among them (cp. 49:3; 61:3).” [Max Anders and Trent C. Butler (2012). HOTC Vol. 15: Isaiah. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from https://read.lifeway.com]
“Chapter 60 describes a future eschatological era when all of God’s sinful enemies are already judged (60:12), so these chapters refer to a future time when this world and all the people in it will undergo a great spiritual transformation.” (Smith 627)
References
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
In this article Scripture quotations taken from KJV.
Max Anders and Trent C. Butler (2012). HOTC Vol. 15: Isaiah. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from https://read.lifeway.com
McGee, J. Vernon, Thru the Bible: Volume III. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1983
Smith, Gary V., The New American Commentary, Volume 15B, Isaiah 40-66. Nashville, B & H Publishing Group, 2009
Wiersbe, Warren W, The Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament Prophets. Colorado Springs: David C Cook, 2002
