Isaiah 56
by Pastor David Groendyk

This last major section of Isaiah from chapters 56–66 depicts what it will look like for God’s people to experience the New Jerusalem (chapter 60), their coming salvation (chapter 62), the year of the Lord’s favor (chapter 61). What will it look like for God’s people to inherit this brand new kingdom and new life? It begins in chapter 56 with a total reversal.

The true “people of God” are redefined in the first half of this chapter (vv. 1–8). Notice who the recipients of salvation are—the foreigner (v. 3) and the eunuch (v. 4). These are two groups of people that normally wouldn’t have been allowed to come into God’s presence. But instead of being barred and condemned, they are given an everlasting name (v. 5) and a home at the holy mountain (v. 7). How is that possible? Because they’ve kept God’s covenant. This goes to show how the true people of God are redefined. It isn’t national and ethnic Israelites who are saved; it’s all those who keep the covenant of God. Sprinkled throughout the Old Testament are examples of non-Israelites defying our expectations and becoming part of the true people of God by putting their faith in God and worshiping him (for example, Rahab who hid the spies, Ruth the daughter-in-law of Naomi, Naaman the Syrian leper, and the sailors and Ninevites in the prophecy of Jonah). But when full and final salvation comes through the messianic suffering servant, this global salvation would explode. And so it did.

My guess is that almost no one reading this is an Israelite or Jew. That means that you are the ‘outcast’ and ‘other’ (v. 8) that at one time had no hope, and if you have put your trust in Christ alone for salvation, you are the beneficiary of God promising to bring the nations in to worship him and be saved. Kenyans, Kazakhstanis, Russians, Peruvians, Americans, Cubans, and Sudanese are today worshiping the one true God because God is committed to seeing his own glory recognized throughout the world. Let’s not have too small a view of what God is doing in the world throughout history. God is carrying out a massive plan in showing grace, gifting salvation, and entering into a covenantal relationship with believers from all over the world over thousands of years. Suddenly I feel a little small… To paraphrase Psalm 8: who am I that, out of billions of people, you would be mindful of me? In addition to seeing how great God’s plan is, we should also experience how much he must love us. He’s picked you to be in relationship with him and know his grace. Praise God that he extends his love and mercy to outcasts and others!

But we should also be spurred on to be obedient in this covenantal relationship, because the second we start to feel privileged and presume upon God’s grace and exploit his gifts to us, we end up like the wicked leaders of Israel (vv. 9–12). This is actually the flip side of the redefinition of God’s people. Not only are the foreigners included in God’s people, but the false “people of God” are exposed and excluded. In contrast to the foreigners who keep justice, do righteousness, observe the Sabbath, and don’t let their hands do any evil, these wicked watchmen of Israel seek only to fill themselves up and get their own gain. You would have thought that the top of the top of the Israelites surely would be part of the New Jerusalem, but they’re not. They’ve become like the unbeliever. Therefore, we must all take heed: just because we are in the covenant people of God by name doesn’t mean that we ourselves are actually keeping the covenant. Let’s not be puffed up with the privilege of being God’s chosen people. Let’s be humbled that salvation belongs fully to the Lord, and let’s seek to spur one another on to keep the covenant and remain in a right relationship with our Savior and King.