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D. Apocalypse of Isaiah[a]

Chapter 24

Judgment upon the World and the Lord’s Enthronement on Mount Zion[b]

See! The Lord is about to empty the earth and lay it waste;
    he will twist its surface,
    and scatter its inhabitants:(A)
People and priest shall fare alike:
    servant and master,
Maid and mistress,
    buyer and seller,
Lender and borrower,
    creditor and debtor.(B)
The earth shall be utterly laid waste, utterly stripped,
    for the Lord has decreed this word.

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Footnotes

  1. 24:1–27:13 Although it has become traditional to call these chapters “Apocalypse of Isaiah,” and although they do contain some apocalyptic traits, many others are lacking, so that the title is imprecise as a designation. These chapters are not a unified composition and their growth into their present form was a long, complicated process. They echo many themes from chaps. 13–23, “Oracles Against the Foreign Nations,” as well as from earlier parts of Isaiah (e.g., the reversal of the “vineyard song,” 5:1–7, in 27:2–5). Of particular interest is an unnamed city (24:10–13; 25:2; 26:5–6; 27:10–11), a wicked city, doomed to destruction; to the extent that it is identifiable, it may be Babylon, but more generally it symbolizes all forces hostile to God. And it stands in contrast to another city, also unnamed but no doubt to be identified with Jerusalem (26:1–2).
  2. 24:1–23 The world is about to be shaken by a devastating judgment that will overthrow both the human and divine enemies of the Lord, who will then reign in glory over his people on Mount Zion.

The Lord’s Devastation of the Earth

24 See, the Lord is going to lay waste the earth(A)
    and devastate(B) it;
he will ruin its face
    and scatter(C) its inhabitants—
it will be the same
    for priest as for people,(D)
    for the master as for his servant,
    for the mistress as for her servant,
    for seller as for buyer,(E)
    for borrower as for lender,
    for debtor as for creditor.(F)
The earth will be completely laid waste(G)
    and totally plundered.(H)
The Lord has spoken(I) this word.

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