6 For you have rejected your people,
the house of Jacob,
because they are full of things from the east
and of fortune-tellers like the Philistines,
and they strike hands with the children of foreigners.
7 Their land is filled with silver and gold,
and there is no end to their treasures;
their land is filled with horses,
and there is no end to their chariots.
8 Their land is filled with idols;
they bow down to the work of their hands,
to what their own fingers have made.
9 So man is humbled,
and each one is brought low—
do not forgive them!
10 Enter into the rock
and hide in the dust
from before the terror of the Lord,
and from the splendor of his majesty.
11 The haughty looks of man shall be brought low,
and the lofty pride of men shall be humbled,
and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.
12 For the Lord of hosts has a day
against all that is proud and lofty,
against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low;
13 against all the cedars of Lebanon,
lofty and lifted up;
and against all the oaks of Bashan;
14 against all the lofty mountains,
and against all the uplifted hills;
15 against every high tower,
and against every fortified wall;
16 against all the ships of Tarshish,
and against all the beautiful craft.
17 And the haughtiness of man shall be humbled,
and the lofty pride of men shall be brought low,
and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.
18 And the idols shall utterly pass away.
19 And people shall enter the caves of the rocks
and the holes of the ground,
from before the terror of the Lord,
and from the splendor of his majesty,
when he rises to terrify the earth.
20 In that day mankind will cast away
their idols of silver and their idols of gold,
which they made for themselves to worship,
to the moles and to the bats,
21 to enter the caverns of the rocks
and the clefts of the cliffs,
from before the terror of the Lord,
and from the splendor of his majesty,
when he rises to terrify the earth.
22 Stop regarding man
in whose nostrils is breath,
for of what account is he? – Isaiah 2:6-22 ESV
This is a book of prophecy and like all other prophetic books in the Bible, it has a now-not yet aspect to it. In other words, there are parts of the content of Isaiah that will have their fulfillment in the not-so-distant future. The people of Judah were going to experience first-hand the judgments God was warning them about. If they did not repent and return to the Lord, He would punish them for their rebellion against Him. And it would come in the lifetimes of the people to whom Isaiah’s book was addressed – his fellow citizens of Jerusalem and Judah.
But there is another aspect to these judgments that we must not overlook: Many of them are as yet unfulfilled. They have not taken place. Or they have taken place in part, but not completely. And the verses for today are a perfect example.
The key to determining whether a prophetic statement is of the now or not-yet variety, you must examine its content to see if it has already been fulfilled. This requires a careful study of Judah’s history as revealed in the rest of Scripture. It is usually quite easy to determine if a prophecy has been fulfilled or not. And for all those which predict events that remain unfulfilled, we must recognize that they fall into the not-yet category. They are outstanding and still pending.
But these two categories of prophetic statements from God are both based on the same criteria. The people of Judah had proven to be unfaithful to God. And He has already provided ample evidence of their guilt. Yet, these verses reiterate the actions of the people of Judah that have forced God to predict their pending doom – both near-term and distant.
Isaiah provides a reason for God’s rejection of His people.
“…they are full of things from the east and of fortune-tellers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners.” – Isaiah 2:6 ESV
They had made alliances with pagan nations, against the expressed will of God. Not only that, they had begun to practice the false religions of those nations. And all the while, they had enjoyed increased prosperity and what appeared to be apparent blessings. Their land, the land of Judah, was filled with idols to false gods. The people whom God had chosen as His own, were bowing down to statues made with human hands. They were worshiping false gods that were lifeless and powerless, in place of the one true God: Yahweh.
Then, suddenly and somewhat surprisingly, Isaiah describes these rich and satisfied individuals as having been brought low.
“So man is humbled,
and each one is brought low—
do not forgive them!” – Isaiah 2:9 ESV
But Isaiah seems to be emphasizing the predictable and inevitable outcome of a life of pride. The Scriptures are filled with admonitions and warnings against pride.
Pride goes before destruction,
and a haughty spirit before a fall. – Proverbs 16:18 ESV
The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. – Proverbs 8:13 NLT
Isaiah knew that it was only a matter of time before God responded to the pride and arrogance of His people. God would not allow them to live in open rebellion forever. Their actions were going to bring the judgment of God. If they failed to humble themselves before God, He would humble them in His own way. Their behavior had brought shame to the name of God, something He had warned them not to do.
…you must not bring shame on the name of your God. I am the LORD. – Leviticus 18:21 NLT
Like an adulterous wife, the nation of Judah had turned their back on a faithful, loving God, prostituting themselves to an assortment of false gods. And Isaiah warned them that God had had enough. They were going to find themselves hiding from the wrath to come.
Enter into the rock and hide in the dust from before the terror of the Lord,from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty.… – Isaiah 2:10 ESV
And this is a perfect illustration of one of those now/not-yet prophetic statements. We know from recorded history, that Judah was eventually defeated by the Babylonians and a great many of their most prominent citizens were taken as slaves and transported to King Nebuchadnezzar’s capital city. They were humbled. They went from riches to poverty. From enjoying power and influence to experiencing the humiliating life of a slave.
But there is another aspect of this prophecy that is yet to be fulfilled. Did the people of Judah actually enter into the rock and hide in the dust in an attempt to escape the Babylonians? Possibly. But in the New Testament book of Revelation, we have an as-yet-unfulfilled aspect of this prophecy. It will take place during the days of the Tribulation.
Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” – Revelation 6:15-17 ESV
Here we have a picture of the people of Judah, along with the rest of mankind who will be living on the earth during the Tribulation, facing the wrath of the Lamb. And they will attempt to hide and caves and among the rocks, hoping to escape the judgment that is coming on the earth. And Isaiah describes what will happen on that day.
The haughty looks of man shall be brought low, and the lofty pride of men shall be humbled, and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. – Isaiah 2:11 ESV
Notice his use of the phrase, “in that day.” Isaiah is predicting a specific moment in time when God will do something to bring low the pride and arrogance of sinful mankind.
For the Lord of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low. – Isaiah 2:12 ESV
And ten different times, Isaiah uses the word, “against.” On that day, God will bring His judgment against a variety of things.
against all that is proud and lofty
against all that is lifted up
against the cedars of Lebanon
against the oaks of Bashan
against all the lofty mountains
against all the uplifted hills
against every high tower
against every fortified wall
against all the ships of Tarshish
against all the beautiful craft
This list includes places far outside the borders of Judah. God seems to be predicting a more widespread judgment to come. Judah’s unfaithfulness would spread. Their failure to live in faithful a covenant relationship with God would end up impacting the entire world. They had been chosen by God to be a model to the nations of what it looks like for a people group to live in a righteous relationship with God Almighty. But they had failed. And over the centuries, they would continue to do so. And when God sent His Son to be their long-awaited Messiah, they would reject Him as well.
But Isaiah warns of a coming day when all men will be humbled before the wrath of God.
And the haughtiness of man shall be humbled, and the lofty pride of men shall be brought low, and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. – Isaiah 2:17 ESV
Has this happened yet? No. The entire world lives in open rebellion against God, filled with pride and arrogance, determined to live as the masters of their own fates. And Isaiah goes on to point out that the day will come when these very same people throw away their false gods because of the judgment of the one true God.
In that day mankind will cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold. – Isaiah 2:20 ESV
Again, has this happened yet? No. Yet, Isaiah says three different times that they will “enter the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs, from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth” (Isaiah 2:21 ESV). God was going to punish Judah for their sins. They would end up in captivity in Judah. But that is only a small example of what God is going to do to all of mankind because of their rejection of Him. We should take the warnings against Judah seriously. But we should not see this as ancient history. God is warning Judah and the rest of the world that He will deal with sin. He is a holy God and He hates sin.
And Isaiah provides his readers with a timeless warning.
Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he? – Isaiah 2:22 ESV
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson