More oracles. Oracle is another word for prophecy–a word of truth about the future. When prophets really speak for God, their word is always true. The punishment for a prophet who spoke false words was death by stoning, so people were not clamoring to be prophets! God usually called them kicking and screaming because they did not want to be bearers of bad news. But prophets did not only predict doom. They also foretold future hope. Isaiah is an especially dramatic example of a prophet of judgment AND hope. The judgment of God is always meant to redirect his people the right way where they will find blessings unimaginable.
So in the midst of all the oracles of Isaiah that bring judgment chapter 19:19-25 is one of many messages of hope for Israel. “In that day” is a very important expression in the Old Testament. It is a very clear reference to a day when the king of kings will reign in righteousness. His righteous judgment will mean that some will perish but it will also mean that some will be saved and restored. It is a “day” when justice will prevail in all things.
Isaiah, is not linear in its presentation of God working behind the scenes. It is cyclical. This means that the author tells the story of God’s revealing himself to his people and dealing with them by moving in and out of the past, present and future very rapidly. Sometimes, because it is prophetic text, the events refer to future events but ones that are close to the time of the prophet. But they sometimes also have another far reaching application and can be speaking of events far, far in the future. The deliverer in chapter 19 could have been a relatively contemporary reference to a military deliverer that came and gave freedom to those oppressed at the time Isaiah spoke. But often, Isaiah also refers to a much more far reaching deliverance–that of the Messiah, the Son of God.
This oracle about “that day” is particularly interesting because it speaks of a foreign nation, Egypt, who will worship the Lord and as a result be a testimony to other nations about the greatness and mercy of God. It is a beautiful testament once again to the tender heart of God toward those who are oppressed. Verse 20 says that when they cry out he will hear them and will rescue them. Verse 22 is reflective of the Exodus story where God struck Pharoah (the oppressor) with plagues and delivered his people (the slaves, descendants of Joseph) at the same time.
In that day there will also be harmony between the warring factions. There will be a “highway” from Egypt to Assyria and they will worship together! Whoa! What a day that must have been and what a day it will be! And the final verse 25 is a particularly powerful portent of the kind of peace THE Deliverer will bring…Egypt, Assyria, and Israel will be blessed. This can only be done by the hand of the Lord. Thousands of years of conflict and war that no human leader has been able to settle will finally be settled by God himself. We ought to long for that day! And in the meantime, we need to be working on bringing peace to the parts of the world that we can influence…our homes, our workplaces, our schools, our churches. If we worship God in Spirit and in truth, his Spirit will work in us to bring it to pass. Pass the peace!