God’s Jesus’ Zeal for and Commitments to Jerusalem - Bible Verse Handbook

Session #3 Jesus' Zeal for and Commitments to Jerusalem
(Isa. 61-62)

I. INTRODUCTION

A. Jesus is zealous for Zion  (Jerusalem) , and He will return to Jerusalem to live there forever.

2 “I am zealous for Zion with great zeal; with great fervor I am zealous for her.” 3 Thus says the LORD, “I will return to Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, the Mountain of the LORD of hosts, the Holy Mountain.”   (Zech. 8:2-3)

II. ISAIAH 61: THE ANOINTED ONE WHO BRINGS TRANSFORMING GLORY

A. Isaiah 61 introduces the mission of the Anointed One who will bring His transforming glory to Jerusalem and all Israel as announced in Isaiah 60.

This transformation will include Israel's individuals.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2  To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord ,
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
3  To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord , that He may be glorified.” (Isa. 61: 1-3)

Her rebuilt cities

4  And they shall rebuild the old ruins,
They shall raise up the former desolations,
And they shall repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations. (Isa. 61: 4)

Her fields and flocks

5  Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,
And the sons of the foreigner
Shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. (Isa. 61: 5)

Her leadership

6  But you shall be named the priests of the Lord ,
They shall call you the servants of our God.
You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles,
And in their glory you shall boast. (Isa. 61: 6)

Her response to God.

7  Instead of your shame you shall have double honor,
And instead of confusion they shall rejoice in their portion.
Therefore in their land they shall possess double;
Everlasting joy shall be theirs. (Isa. 61: 7)

Her fame, and the impact of her ministry to the nations

8  “For I, the Lord , love justice;
I hate robbery for burnt offering;
I will direct their work in truth,
And will make with them an everlasting covenant.
9  Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles,
And their offspring among the people.
All who see them shall acknowledge them,
That they are the posterity whom the Lord has blessed.”

10  I will greatly rejoice in the Lord ,
My soul shall be joyful in my God;
For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
He has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11  For as the earth brings forth its bud,
As the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth,
So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. (Isa. 61: 8-11)

B. The Messiah and His mission are described by Isaiah 61

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,   because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2  to proclaim the year of the Lord 's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3  and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty   instead of ashes, the oil of joy   instead of mourning, and a garment of praise     instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,   a planting of the Lord    for the display of his splendor. (Isa. 61:1-3)

21Your people shall all be righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified.   (Isa. 60:21)

C. The Anointed One will transform the people spiritually, emotionally, physically

1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn, 3 to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.   (Isa. 61:1-3)

D. Jesus will rebuild broken lives, ruined cities and their fields, flocks, and economies

21  Also your people shall all be righteous;
They shall inherit the land forever,
The branch of My planting,
The work of My hands,
That I may be glorified. (Isa. 60:21)

4 They shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the ruined cities… 5 Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the foreigner shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. 6 But you shall be named the priests of the LORD, they shall call you the servants of our God. You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles…7 Instead of your shame you shall have double honor…therefore in their land they shall possess double; everlasting joy shall be theirs. (Isa. 61:4-7)

1. These cities will be gloriously rebuilt with expensive and durable materials like gold, silver, bronze, and iron, instead of with wood and stone

8  Thus says the Lord :

“In an acceptable time I have heard You,
And in the day of salvation I have helped You;
I will preserve You and give You
As a covenant to the people,
To restore the earth,
To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages;

19  “For your waste and desolate places,
And the land of your destruction,
Will even now be too small for the inhabitants;
And those who swallowed you up will be far away. (Isa. 49:8, 19)

3  For you shall expand to the right and to the left,
And your descendants will inherit the nations,
And make the desolate cities inhabited. (Isa. 54:3)

12  Those from among you
Shall build the old waste places;
You shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach,
The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. (Isa. 58:12)

10  “The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls,
And their kings shall minister to you;
For in My wrath I struck you,
But in My favor I have had mercy on you. (Isa. 60:10)

17Instead of bronze I will bring gold, instead of iron I will bring silver, instead of wood, bronze, and instead of stones, iron.   (Isa. 60:17)

4. She will enjoy the double portion of blessing that was given to the firstborn son

17  But he shall acknowledge the son of the unloved wife as the firstborn by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his. (Deut. 21:17)

Israel is God's firstborn son

22  Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord : “Israel is My son, My firstborn. (Ex. 4:22)

G. 8 “For I, the LORD, love justice; I hate robbery…I will direct their work in truth, and will make with them an everlasting covenant. 9 Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people. All who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the posterity whom the LORD has blessed.” (Isa. 61:8-9)

40  And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me. (Jer. 32:40)

H. The Anointed One has joy in His work of bringing salvation to Israel and the nations.

10I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, My soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed Me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels… 11For as the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.   (Isa. 61:10-11)

III. ISAIAH 62: THE ANOINTED ONE'S PASSION FOR JERUSALEM AND HER DESTINY

C. Most conservative commentators identify God, the Anointed One, as the speaker in Isaiah

1 For Zion's sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns.   (Isa. 62:1)

6  I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem;
They shall never hold their peace day or night.

8  The Lord has sworn by His right hand
And by the arm of His strength:
“Surely I will no longer give your grain
As food for your enemies;
And the sons of the foreigner shall not drink your new wine,
For which you have labored. (Isa.62: 6a, 8)

1. God promises to speak and act rather than holding His peace and resting with regard to Jerusalem.

14  “I have held My peace a long time,
I have been still and restrained Myself.
Now I will cry like a woman in labor,
I will pant and gasp at once. (Isa. 42:14)

15  Truly You are God, who hide Yourself,
O God of Israel, the Savior! (Isa. 45:15)

11  “And of whom have you been afraid, or feared,
That you have lied
And not remembered Me,
Nor taken it to your heart?
Is it not because I have held My peace from of old
That you do not fear Me? (Isa. 57:11)

12  Will You restrain Yourself because of these things, O Lord ?
Will You hold Your peace, and afflict us very severely? (Isa. 64:12)

6  “Behold, it is written before Me:
I will not keep silence, but will repay—
Even repay into their bosom— (Isa. 65:6)

2. Jesus will not stop until Jerusalem's righteousness shines bright like the sun and her ministry impact burns in the nations like a torch (lamp).

Arise, shine;
For your light has come!
And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.
2  For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,
And deep darkness the people;
But the Lord will arise over you,
And His glory will be seen upon you.
3  The Gentiles shall come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising . (Isa. 60:1-3)

D. The Lord's resolve is that Jerusalem arises to impart what she has to the nations

2 The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory.   (Isa. 62:1-2a)

E. Jerusalem's new name is based on the delight that the Bridegroom God has in her

2 You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD will name. 3 You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. 4 You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, nor…termed Desolate; but you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the LORD delights in you, and your land shall be married. 5 For as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your sons marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.   (Isa. 62:2b-5)

F. The Lord is pictured as holding Jerusalem in His hand like a crown that He will jealously guard as His own special treasure

5  Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. (Ex. 19:5)

17  “They shall be Mine,” says the Lord of hosts,
“On the day that I make them My jewels.
And I will spare them
As a man spares his own son who serves him.” (Mal. 3:17)

G. The new names promised in verse 2 are Hephzibah ( My delight in her ) and Beulah ( Married ).

God delights in Jerusalem and has pleasure in its people

4  For the Lord takes pleasure in His people;
He will beautify the humble with salvation. (Ps. 149:4)

H. The Lord is committed to setting intercessors in place to cry out for Jerusalem's destiny.

6 I have set watchmen [intercessors] on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent, 7 and give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth . (Isa. 62:6-7)

I. The Lord swore an oath that Jerusalem would never be oppressed again.

8The LORD has sworn by His right hand…“Surely I will no longer give your grain as food for your enemies; and the sons of the foreigner shall not drink your new wine, for which you have labored. 9 But those who have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord…   (Isa. 62:8-9)

J. 10Go through, go through the gates! Prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway! Take out the stones, lift up a banner for the peoples  [Gentiles]! 11Indeed the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the world [ Gentile nations]: “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Surely your salvation is coming; behold, His [Jesus'] reward is with Him, and His work before Him.'” 12And they  [Gentiles]  shall call them  [Jerusalem]  the Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken. (Isa. 62:10-12)

K. Isaiah uses the image of preparing an eschatological highway in different ways.

First, to prepare a highway for God to come to Jerusalem

3  The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
“Prepare the way of the Lord ;
Make straight in the desert
A highway for our God. (Isa. 40:3)

Second, for the dispersed Jews to come back to Jerusalem

12  He will set up a banner for the nations,
And will assemble the outcasts of Israel,
And gather together the dispersed of Judah
From the four corners of the earth. (Isa. 11:12, 16)

8  A highway shall be there, and a road,
And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.
The unclean shall not pass over it,
But it shall be for others.
Whoever walks the road, although a fool,
Shall not go astray. (Isa. 35:8)

11  I will make each of My mountains a road,
And My highways shall be elevated. (Isa. 49:11, 18)

4  “Lift up your eyes all around, and see:
They all gather together, they come to you;
Your sons shall come from afar,
And your daughters shall be nursed at your side. (Isa. 60:4)

Third, for the peoples or the Gentiles to come to Jerusalem to worship God and/or escort the Jews home

23  In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians. (Isa. 19:23)

16  And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. 17  And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain. 18  If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. (Zech. 14:16-18)

L. The Lord requires the Church to make proclamations to comfort Jerusalem and to pray.

7 Thus says the Lord: “Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘O Lord save Your people, the remnant of Israel!'…10Hear the word of the LORD, O nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him as a shepherd does his flock.'”   (Jer. 31:7-10)

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Jerusalem Series

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Download Part 3 Jesus zeal and commitment to Jerusalem

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