Chapter 32 follows the general pattern of the first 39 chapters of the Book of Isaiah: warnings concerning rebellion against Adonai interspersed with intimations of restoration. Isaiah’s repeated warning is that continued rebellion will bring on the curses of the Mosaic covenant. The nation of Judah continues to be threatened by Assyria, the agent of Adonai.

Outline of Chapter 32.

Verses 1 – 5. The future reign of the righteous king.

Verses 6 – 8. The sorry state of Judah in Isaiah’s time.

Verses 9 – 15. Consequences of complacency (the kingdom has not yet come).

Verses 16 – 20. In the kingdom, social justice and righteousness will permeate every aspect of life, resulting in peace, safety and confidence.

Verses 1 – 5. The future reign of the righteous king.

Verse 1.

“Behold a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice.”

In contrast to the contemptible leaders of chapters 28 and 29, the prophet turns to the future reign of the messianic King. It is possible that the “princes” referred to here are His assistants in government, possibly the apostles.

Luke 22: 29 – 30. The Lord speaking to His disciples.

“And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel”.

There will be a role also for the saints.

1 Corinthians 6: 2. “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?”

2 Timothy 2: 12. “If we endure, we shall also reign with Him.”

Revelation 2: 26 – 27.

“And he who overcomes and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations …”

Verse 2.

“A man will be as a hiding place from the wind, and a cover from the tempest, as rivers of water in a dry place, as a shadow of a great rock in a weary land.”

The prophet uses four similes to describe the future king’s protection and provision for His people (He will be “a hiding place from the wind”, “a cover from the tempest”, “rivers of water in a dry place”, and “the shadow of a great rock” – all very welcome at the appropriate time.)

This contrasts sharply with Israel’s leaders in Isaiah’s time. Those leaders, Isaiah observed, were more a threat to the people than an aid to the people’s well-being. They “erred through wine”. They were “blind”. They had “a spirit of deep sleep”. They were “rebellious”, “trusting in the shadow of Egypt”, “a home of evildoers”, who did not “look to the Holy One of Israel”

The Lord Yeshua will provide shelter, protection, refreshment and shade. No longer will judicial blindness afflict the people.

Isaiah 4: 5 – 6.

“… the Lord will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a covering. And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain.”

Verse 3.

“The eyes of those who see will not be dim, and the ears of those who hear will listen.”

Clear eyes and listening ears will be the blessing on the future sensible leadership of Israel. This will contrast sharply with the current corrupt leaders whom Isaiah has experienced. The future generation will experience a reversal of receptivity compared to Isaiah’s generation whose arrogance prevented them from hearing Isaiah’s warnings.

Isaiah 6: 9, 10.

“And He said, “Go, and tell this people: “Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.” Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with the eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed.”

In Israel there will be a future return of wisdom.

Isaiah 29: 18, 24.

“In that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness … These also who erred in spirit will come to understanding, and those who complained will learn doctrine.”

These reversals result from the actions of the Servant of the Lord.

Isaiah 42: 7.

“To open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison, those who sit in darkness from the prison house.”

Verse 4.

“Also the heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.”

The future sensible leaders will not make rash decisions but will have a heart that has understanding.

They will not stutter over their words like a drunkard uttering nonsense in a stupor. They will speak plainly and make themselves understood.

The previous leaders were described in chapters 28 and 29.

Isaiah 28: 7 – 8.

“But they also have erred through wine, and through intoxicating drink are out of the way. The priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink, they are swallowed up by wine, they are out of the way through intoxicating drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment. For all tables are full of vomit and filth; no place is clean.”

And …

Isaiah 29: 9.

“Pause and wonder! Blind yourself and be blind! They are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with intoxicating drink. For the Lord had poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, namely the prophets; and He has covered your heads, namely the seers.”

Verse 5.

“The foolish person will no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be bountiful …”

In the future earthly kingdom, seen by Isaiah in his vision, false appraisal of leadership qualities will not be made; everyone will see and speak clearly.

Moral distinctions will no longer be blurred. The senseless person will not be honoured. The coming of Messiah will reveal people in their true light. The fool and the rogue will be exposed as such (and punished accordingly). The generous man will be acknowledged and blessed.

Verses 6 – 8. Life in Israel as Isaiah saw it in his own time.

Verse 6.

“For the foolish person will speak foolishness, and his heart will work iniquity: to practice ungodliness, to utter error against the Lord, to keep the hungry unsatisfied, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.”

Isaiah describes life in Judah as he is experiencing it. Foolish talk and evil hearts are commonplace. There is no respect for Adonai and no compassion for others. The unwillingness to care for the needy reflects the character of a fool.

Isaiah 29: 20 – 21.

“… all who watch for iniquity are cut off – who make a man an offender by a word, and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate, and turn aside the just with empty words.”

Proverbs 24: 7 – 9.

“Wisdom is too lofty for a fool; he does not open his mouth in the gate. He who plots to do evil will be called a schemer. The devising of foolishness is sin, and the scoffer is an abomination to men.”

Verse 7.

“Also the schemes of the schemer are evil; he devises wicked plans to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaks justice.”

The person who meditates on evil, will speak and act treacherously; “destroy the poor with lying words”.

Jeremiah 5: 26 – 28.

“For among My people are found wicked men; they lie in wait as one who sets snares; they set a trap; they catch men. As a cage is full of birds, so their houses are full of deceit. Therefore they have become great and grown rich. They have grown fat, they are sleek; yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked; they do not plead the cause, the cause of the fatherless; yet they prosper, and the right of the needy they do not defend.”

Micah 7: 3.

“That they may successfully do evil with both hands – the prince asks for gifts, the judge seeks a bribe, and the great man utters his evil desire; so they scheme together.”

Verse 8.

“But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand.”

The “generous man” stands in sharp contrast to the “schemer” of verse 7. The generous man is receptive to and dependent on Adonai. Therefore, he provides for the poor. In the present time, as Isaiah sees things, that man is in the minority, but he will become manifest and blessed. His qualities will be evident to everyone in the age to come.

Verses 9 – 15. The consequences of complacency (the kingdom had not yet come).

Verses 9 and 10.

“Rise up you women who are at ease, hear my voice; you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech. In a year and some days you will be troubled; you complacent women, for the vintage shall fail, the gathering will not come.”

But the kingdom has not yet come. Some of the women of Judah are still living in luxury, ease and complacency. Isaiah has a dire warning for them; great trouble is coming.

The prophet specifies a time when the Assyrian army will come and devastate the land.

He warns of how Adonai’s judgment will spoil agricultural production and cause depopulation and desolation. Although the Assyrians will not take Jerusalem, they will cause devastation in the land.

Amos had a similar warning.

Amos 6: 1.

“Woe to you who are at ease in Zion, and trust in Mount Samaria, notable persons in the chief nation, to whom the house of Israel comes!”

The same false confidence was described by Zephaniah.

Zephaniah 2: 15.

“This is the rejoicing city that dwelt securely, that said in her heart, “I am it and there is none besides me.” How has she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down! Everyone who passes by her shall hiss and shake his fist.”

Verses 11 and 12.

“Tremble you women who are at ease; be troubled; you complacent ones; strip yourselves, make yourselves bare, and gird sackcloth on your waists. People shall mourn upon their breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.”

In the ancient Middle East, women in mourning would remove their normal clothing and wear rough “sackcloth” around their waists.

Jacob responded similarly to reports of Joseph’s death.

Genesis 37: 34.

“Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his waist and mourned for his son many days.”

For the complacent women of Judah, their satisfaction with their present situation is about to give way to a very different set of emotions. These women should prepare themselves for disaster.

Verses 13 and 14.

“On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers, yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city; because the palaces will be forsaken, the bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, a joy of wild donkeys and a pasture of flocks …”

As all gardeners know, “thorns and briers” spring up when the land is left desolate and is not worked. The Assyrian invasion will disrupt agricultural production.

The abandoned cities and palaces are also the result of the Assyrian invasion in the day of Adonai’s judgment. Without Adonai’s blessing for obedience, the land will become just as desolate as any other forsaken territory.

Isaiah 7: 23 – 25.

“It shall happen in that day that wherever there could be a thousand vines, worth a thousand shekels of silver, it will be for briers and thorns. With arrows and bows men will come there, because all the land will become briers and thorns. And to any hill that could be dug with the hoe, you will not go there for briers and thorns; but it will become a range for oxen and a place for sheep to roam.”

Verse 15.

“Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is counted as a forest.”

Judah’s troubles will continue until the Spirit of God is poured out on them (the Second Coming of Messiah).

The infusion of the Spirit of Adonai will transform the land into productive fruitfulness.

Joel 2: 28.

“And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh …”

This new age will depend on the work of the Spirit. The promised kingdom will come with fruitfulness, peace and security. The desert will become a fruitful field and, what is considered to be a fruitful field, will be as luxuriant as a forest.

Verses 16 –20. The peace of Adonai’s reign.

Verses 16 and 17.

“Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field. The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.”

This is the reversal of the judgment predicted in Isaiah 29: 17.

“Is it not yet a very little while till Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be esteemed a forest?”

In the promised kingdom, which will eventually come to Israel, social justice and righteousness will permeate to every aspect of life, resulting in peace, quietness, safety and confidence. Noble spiritual values will thrive in this kingdom.

Isaiah 2: 4.

“He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people. They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”

James also recognised the glorious peace that Adonai will bring.

James 3: 17 – 18.

“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Verses 18 and 19.

“My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places, though hail comes down on the forest and the city is brought low in humiliation.”

The “forest” is Israel’s enemies. The “hail” which comes down on them, will be the judgment of Adonai. But for the people of Adonai, this will be a happy time of peace, security and assurance.

That the “city is brought low in humiliation”, means that Jerusalem must learn humility before these prophesied, ideal conditions can become a reality.

Isaiah 30: 15.

“For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved: in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”

Verse 20.

“Blessed are you who sow beside all waters, who send out freely the feet of the ox and the donkey.”

In this happy time, the people will safely sow their seeds in good conditions, and their livestock will be free to roam without danger.

Isaiah 14: 3.

“It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from the fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve …”

Isaiah 30: 23, 24.

“Then He will give rain for your seed with which you sow the ground, and bread of the increase of the earth; it will be fat and plentiful. In that day your cattle will feed in large pastures. Likewise the oxen and the young donkeys that work the ground will eat cured fodder, which has been winnowed with the shovel and fan.”