Isaiah Chapter 61

SALVATION FOR THE JEWISH REMNANT

This is a chapter about the Messiah: His ministry during His first coming (verses 1 and 2), His ministry during His second coming (verses 2 and 3), the results of His ministry at the second coming (verses 4-9), and the joy of His ministry (verses 10 and 11).[fn]

In Isaiah chapter 61, Isaiah tells us that the Messiah will bring both comfort and vengeance. He will take vengeance on God’s enemies and bring comfort to His people. This is a summary of the mission of Christ. He brought comfort and salvation at His first coming during His earthly ministry according to Luke 4:18–19 NAS:

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed,
19 To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

However, He said nothing of taking vengeance on God’s enemies at that time, for that part of his mission will not be fulfilled till He returns triumphant at the end of time.[fn] In the Millennium, Israel will receive “beauty for ashes” and “clothing of salvation” (61:3, 10). They will all receive the “double portion” of the firstborn son (61:7). Israel will at last fulfill its destiny as a nation of priests (61:6; Exodus 19:6), while its former enemies serve her (61:5). God considered the entire Israelite nation His “firstborn” (Exodus 4:22; Jeremiah 31:9).[fn] Listen to Isaiah’s words beginning in Isaiah 61:1-3 NAS:

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the Lord has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners;
2 To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,
3 To grant those who mourn in Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.

Remember that Isaiah is giving this message to Israelites who will soon be facing captivity in Babylon. This message is certainly one of hope to all people who read it, but it must have been of tremendous comfort to the Jews to know that their captivity would not last forever and that there was a glorious reward awaiting them one day in the future.

This messianic prophecy in Isaiah 61:1, 2 was quoted by Christ in the synagogue at Nazareth, but only in part. He closed the scroll after reading the proclamation of the Lord’s favor and made no mention of “the day of vengeance of our God” (Luke 4:17–21). The incident is significant for a couple of reasons. First, it was a public announcement by Jesus of Nazareth that He was the Messiah promised by the prophets. Second, it suggests two comings of Christ, the first to save, the second to judge.

In His First coming He did the things mentioned in Isaiah 61:1-2; in His Second Coming He will do the things in verses 2-3. When He returns He will bring judgment on unbelievers.[fn] This will be the day of God’s “vengeance.”[fn] But the Messiah will also comfort Israel, for she will have undergone great persecution during the Great Tribulation, in the preceding years.[fn]

In verse 1 all three Persons of the Trinity are mentioned: the Holy Spirit, God, and the Messiah. Three factors indicate that Me refers to the Messiah: (1) The association of the Holy Spirit with the anointing points to Jesus Christ. After being anointed with oil, Israel’s first two kings, Saul and David, were blessed with the Spirit’s ministry.[fn] Similarly Christ was anointed by the Holy Spirit according to Matthew 3:16-17 to be Israel’s King. The Hebrew word for Messiah (māš?a?) means the Anointed One, and Christ[fn] is the Greek equivalent of māš?a?. (2) Part of this passage (Isaiah 61:1-2a) was read by Jesus in Luke 4:18-19 in reference to Himself. (3) The mission of this Anointed One was Jesus’ ministry to preach good news, to heal and free,[fn] to proclaim favor
and…vengeance, and to comfort (Isaiah 61:1,2).

At His second coming Jesus will change believing Israelites’ sadness to joy, a truth Isaiah mentioned frequently. In place of ashes put on one’s head as a sign of mourning they will wear a crown.[fn] Light olive oil, when applied to one’s face and hair, would soothe them and brighten their spirits, eliminating their mourning.[fn] Another sign of joy is a bright garment (Ecclesiastes 9:7-8). Israel will be righteous[fn] and like stalwart oak trees will display God’s splendor.[fn]

The background of this passage is the “Year of Jubilee” described in Leviticus 25:7ff. Every seven years, the Jews were to observe a “sabbatical year” and allow the land to rest. After seven sabbaticals, or forty-nine years, they were to celebrate the fiftieth year as the “Year of Jubilee.” During that year, all debts were canceled, all land was returned to the original owners, the slaves were freed, and everybody was given a fresh new beginning. This was the Lord’s way of balancing the economy and keeping the rich from exploiting the poor.

If you have trusted Christ as your Savior, you are already living today in a spiritual “Year of Jubilee.” You have been set free from bondage; your spiritual debt to the Lord has been paid; you are living in “the acceptable year of the Lord.” Instead of the ashes of mourning, you have a crown on your head; for He has made you a king (Revelation 1:6). You have been anointed with the oil of the Holy Spirit, and you wear a garment of righteousness (Isaiah 61:3, 10).

In her days of rebellion, Israel was like a fading oak and a waterless garden (1:30); but in the kingdom, she will be like a watered garden (58:11) and a tree (oak) of righteousness (61:3). But all of God’s people should be His trees (Psalm 1:1–3), “the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified.”[fn]

Isaiah 61:4-9 NAS:
4 Then they will rebuild the ancient ruins, They will raise up the former devastations; And they will repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations.
5 Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks, And foreigners will be your farmers and your vinedressers.
6 But you will be called the priests of the Lord; You will be spoken of as ministers of our God. You will eat the wealth of nations, And in their riches you will boast.
7 Instead of your shame you will have a double portion, And instead of humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion. Therefore they will possess a double portion in their land, Everlasting joy will be theirs.
8 For I, the Lord, love justice, I hate robbery in the burnt offering; And I will faithfully give them their recompense And make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Then their offspring will be known among the nations, And their descendants in the midst of the peoples. All who see them will recognize them Because they are the offspring whom the Lord has blessed.

After the Messiah’s Second Coming Israel will rebuild her ruined cities, even those that had been destroyed many years before. Israel will be so revered that Gentiles, that is aliens and foreigners, will join her (14:1; 60:10) in her farming and shepherding. As a nation of priests each one will know Christ and have access to Him, and mediate on behalf of others, as did the Levitical priests. This was to be one of Israel’s functions in the world (Exodus 19:6), but unfortunately she will not fully carry out that responsibility until the Millennium. Nations will bring their wealth to Israel (Isaiah 60:5, 11). The double portion refers to the inheritance the eldest son in a family would receive from his father’s estate (Deuteronomy 21:17). The eldest son was given special honor. Similarly Israel, like the Lord’s firstborn (Exodus 4:22), will be honored. Because of these blessings and God’s giving Israel an everlasting covenant, the New Covenant as promised in Jeremiah 32:40,[fn] people everywhere will acknowledge that she is indeed God’s special people.[fn]

Those who enter into the millennial kingdom will marry, have families, and enjoy God’s blessings on the earth for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1–5). They will study God’s Word from generation to generation (Isaiah. 59:21).[fn]

Isaiah 61: 10,11 NAS:
10 I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise To spring up before all the nations.

Paul uses the image of salvation’s clothing in Romans 13:14 and Ephesians 4:22–24. Christ used it in several parables, for instance where the guests were dressed in special garments provided by the host (Matthew 22:11–14). Being dressed in such garments showed the wearer to be an invited guest, with a right to join the celebration. Only if we are clothed with God’s salvation will we enjoy life in the future kingdom of God.

In these verses Isaiah seems to be speaking for the redeemed remnant of Israel who will rejoice in response to God’s blessings mentioned in 61:1-9. Salvation and righteousness are pictured as clothes worn by the people.[fn] In other words the Israelites are characterized by salvation (God’s redeemed people) and righteousness (those who are living by God’s standards; cf. 58:8; 60:21). To picture their joy and blessing a bridegroom wore a fancy headgear, like a priest’s turban, and the bride wore costly jewelry. God will cause Israel’s righteousness to spring up in, that is be known by, other nations (61:11; 62:1-2) much as the soil sustains the growth of plants.[fn]

Israel rejoices over the fact that God has cleansed them and clothed them and turned their desert into a fruitful garden (55:10). They have gone from a funeral to a wedding.[fn]

Considering the situation in the Middle East, the message of these chapters might suggest we’re getting close to the fulfillment of Isaiah’s end time prophecy.