ISAIAH LXVI by John B. Frisbie

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Aug 12, 1858

ISAIAH LXVI.

By John B. Frisbie

This chapter brings to view the coming of the Lord both at the beginning and end of the thousand years. We may learn this by comparing scripture with scripture.

From the fifth to the end of the fourteenth verse, we have the coming of the Lord and the destruction of the wicked, at the beginning of the thousand years, brought to view. Then from the fifteenth verse to the end of the twenty-fourth verse, we have the scenes after the thousand years.

Verse 5. The Lord . . shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. Matt. xxiv, 30. Son of man coming. John xiv, 3. I will come again. Acts i, 11. This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. 1 Thess. iv, 16. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven. Heb ix, 28. And unto them that look for him, (Christ) shall he appear the second time.

Verse 6. A voice of the Lord. Jer. xxv, 30. The Lord shall roar from on high and utter his voice from his holy habitation. Joel iii, 16. The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem. Rev. xvi, 17. A great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. This locates the time.

Verse 7. A man child. Rev xii, 5. A man child. Christ.

Verse 8. Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? Is. xxvi, 19. Thy dead men shall live together, with my dead body shall they arise, . . . and the earth shall cast out the dead. Ezek. xxxvii, 12, 22. Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And I will make them one nation in the land. John v, 28, 29. All that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life. Rev. xx, 5. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. Col. i, 18. Christ was the firstborn from the dead. 1 Cor. xv, 23. Christ the first fruits; afterwards they that are Christ's at his coming. The earth's bringing forth a nation in one day, is the resurrection of God's people from their graves; and this is called a birth, as is the resurrection of Christ. "For as soon as Zion travailed she brought forth her children." Zion here appears to be a figure of the people of God, referring back to the commencement of the gospel dispensation, during which time the subjects for this nation were to be brought in.

Verse 12. I will extend peace to her like a river; and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream. Acts. xv, 7-17. God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. Rom. ix, 23-30.

Verse 13. As one whom his mother comforteth so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted IN JERUSALEM. This must refer to the saints in the New Jerusalem in heaven after the second appearing of Christ, and the first resurrection. Gal. iv, 26. But Jerusalem, which is above, is free, which is the mother of us all. For it is written, Isa. i, 10. John xiii, 36. Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, whither I go, thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow me afterwards. Chap. xiv, 2, 3. In my Father's house are many mansions; . . . I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself. Verse 12. I go unto my Father. Luke xi, 2. When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven. 1 Thess. iv, 16. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven . . . and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air, &c.

Here the saints, dead and living, are caught up to meet their Lord in the clouds in the air; and according to the promise of Christ to Peter, they follow him whither he went, to heaven, to his Father's house. If this is not a promise of going to heaven when Jesus comes, I do not know what would be. But again: Heb xii, 22. But ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. But ye are come unto: not that this has come to you. This city Abraham looked for. Heb. xi, 10, 16; xiii, 14; x, 34. Ye have in heaven a better and enduring substance. 1 Pet. i, 4. To an inheritance . . . reserved in heaven for you.

This is proof without going to the book of the Revelation. But let us turn and read a few quotations there. Rev iv, 1, 2, 5, 6; xv, 2. Sea of glass before the throne, and the saints on the sea, and the throne in heaven. Rev xix, 1. And after these things (the seven last plagues) I heard a great voice of much people in heaven. How could the voices of many people be heard in heaven, unless they went there, after the seven last plagues?

Verse 14. And his indignation towards his enemies. Here we have the destruction of all the ungodly in the seven last plagues. Rev xvi. Rev. xix, 15. Christ shall smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; same as Ps. i, 9. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Verse 21. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse. Now if the nations are dashed to pieces and the remnant slain, there cannot be any left.

Scenes at the end of the 1000 years. Verse 15. For behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. Verse 16 For by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh; and the slain of the Lord shall be many.

This is the same company whose carcasses are looked upon at the end of the thousand years. Verse 24. And they (the saints) shall go forth and look upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against me; for their worm dieth not, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh. That is, the all flesh, that comes up to worship, [verse 23,] when the earth is being purified, [verse 22,] and being made new.

Verse 18. I will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory. Verse 19. And I will set a sign (Christ, Luke ii, 34) among them. Matt. xxv, 31, 32, 46. When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he shall sit upon the throne of his glory. And before him shall be gathered all nations. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment. This must be at the end of the one thousand years, as at this time the wicked receive their everlasting punishment. Rev. xx, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 14. The rest of the dead live again when the thousand years are expired, and then Satan goes out to deceive the nations that are raised, and they then are gathered together to the battle against the saints, around the beloved city, and fire comes down from God out of heaven and devours them. And at this same time the great white throne appears (the same as in Matt. xxv, 31) and Christ who sits upon it. Then all the wicked die the second death.

Verse 19. I will send those that escape of them, &c. These are the saints, as may be seen by verse 22. So shall your seed and your name remain Verse 24. And they shall go forth and look upon the carcasses, or dead bodies. These are the wicked, resurrected dead who have been gathered and destroyed.

"Unto the nations that have not seen the glory of Christ, and they shall declare his glory among the Gentiles," (heathens.) These are the nations gathered to be consumed by fire. Verse 20. And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering

unto the Lord out of all nations . . . to my holy mountain Jerusalem. Verse 22. For as the new heaven and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me saith the Lord.

These look like scenes in the new earth and at the end of the thousand years, when the new Jerusalem comes down from heaven to the new earth, as the capital of the kingdom of God. If we are right in our application of this chapter, much is made plain that was dark before.

Verse 21. And I will also take of them for priests, &c. Rev. i, 6, 7 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father. Behold he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him, and all kindreds shall wail because of him. When they which pierced Christ see him coming, it must be at the end of the 1000 years. Rev. v, 1. And hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the new earth. Then every creature living will praise God. Verse 13.

J. B. FRISBIE.