ISAIAH - Chapter 25 - The Lord's Banquet
ISAIAH – Chapter 25
The Lord’s Banquet
Tuesday, February 10, 2014, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
This chapter is a song of praise to God for the deliverance of His people from the bondage of Babylon, and thus points to the deliverance of the creature into the glorious liberty of the sons of God.
This is the praise of God’s people for Kingdom blessing. Then the blessing of all nations is described under the figure of a great feast and reveals the Feast of Tabernacles in all its glory! The Feast of Tabernacles is the Glory of God.
The principle of praise in 25:1 will determine whether one lives in chapter 24 (the wicked) or chapter 26 (the righteous). Where are you living in the Day of the Lord?
“O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt You. I will praise Your name; for you have done wonderful things. Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.”
Then in 25: 2-5, we must learn to see the Goodness of God in all things. Those who truly believe that God will act and bring His plans in history to fruition, may already enter into the good of them; to the eye of faith, the downfall of the enemies of God’s people has already happened.
“For You have made of a city a heap; of a defensed city a ruin; a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built. Therefore shall the strong people glorify You, the city of the terrible nations shall fear You. For you have been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.”
“The blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall” speaks of the religious and political systems of men.
Verse four reveals four designations for Jesus and His brethren:
- Strength to the poor.
- Strength to the needy in distress.
- A refuge from the storm
- A shadow from the heat
God is all these four things to men who trust in Him whenever the terrible ones storm into the land like the blast.
I am now in direct warfare with the demonic strong-hold of Obama-care with the care of my Mother. I can be armed with this verse when the terrible ones of the political systems of men come against the needy in distress. The Obama-care system of heath-care is not set up to give health care to the aging. This verse also declares “the strong people shall glorify you” and “the city of the terrible nations shall fear You.” In my world at this time, this covers multiple situations. The Lord dropped into my spirit that Obama-care is driven by a spirit of death. Health care and health workers should be trained to save life. It is the Lord who “calls” and determines the day we are “taken” by Him into Glory. It is Satan through the spirit of death who is trying to usurp that authority. The Lord has given life and death in the tongue of the saints. We, the church must take authority over the spirit of death driving Obama-care.
(Vs.5) “You shall bring down the noise of strangers, as the heat in a dry place; even the heat with the shadow of a cloud; the branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low.”
The heat of the Babylonian Captivity was shut out by the intervening of a Cloud to stay the fury of their wrath, and render them impotent to do injury, just as the intense burning rays of the sun are completely checked by an interposing cloud. Present truth for the church is the spirit of Babylon in the political and religious systems of the world.
25:6: “And in this mountain shall the Lord of hosts make to all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.”
This verse reveals the Feast of Tabernacles in the 7th month, in the Most Holy Place. It takes place in and from Mount Zion. The “true hill” of God is Mt Zion in the heavenlies with the saints and adoring angels worshiping the glorified Son of God. An exclaiming as the disciples did at the Mt. of Transfiguration, “It is good for us to be here”. It is for all nations. This will irrigate humanity with the river of Ezekiel 47 and Revelation 22. The fat parts of the animal which in ordinary sacrifice were reserved for the Lord---were regarded in the East as the best. The wine at this feast is the richest or the best.
John 2: 5-7: “There were six water-pots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing twenty to thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them; fill the water pots with water. And they were filled to the brim. Jesus said to thee, Draw out now, and bear to the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not where it was; (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, Every man at the beginning does set forth good wine and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse; but you have kept the good wine until now.”
The six water pots speaks of six previous days (ages; dispensations) and are filled with water (word/truth) turned into wine (Holy Spirit), and poured out in the Kingdom! If there were twenty gallons in each pot, then there was 120 gallons of wine in the vessels! “When the day of Pentecost was fully come, there were (120) with one accord in one place.”
The fat things and wines are descriptive of the sons of God, anointed and shining with the anointing of Isa. 11:1-2: “…the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;” They are the watchmen and saviors of Obad. 21. These have been hedged in to do the will of the Father according to the principles of the Cross (thorns). Their blood (marrow) is going to be cleansed in that day. Joel 3:21: “For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed; for the Lord dwells in Zion.” The blood is light and life. Heb. 7:16: “Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.”
Sin and death will be abolished, dealt with and wiped out! This is building on the message given to us two weeks ago “Partakers of the Divine Nature”.
“According as His divine power has given unto us all things that pertain unto life and Godliness, through the knowledge of him that has called us to glory and virtue; whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises that by these we may be partakers of the Divine Nature.” (2 Pet. 1: 3-4).
“By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him; for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God” (Heb. 11:5).
Enoch was translated into a realm where he did not see the realm of death. He could not relate to a realm of death. Enoch walked in the powers of an age to come.
Hebrews 6:4-5: “…those who have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come…”
There is a man child company arising on the earth who are moving into a realm of the spirit who will walk in the powers of the age to come.
Enoch could not be found! Likewise we are dead and our life is hid away in Christ in God (Col. 3: 1-3. We are dead to our trespasses and sins. The first one who will notice that you are missing out from among the fearful and unbelieving is the devil. He is seeking after you, but he cannot find you.
“The wines on the lees shall be refined”. The richest and most colorful of wines will be purged. These sons are like the wine that has been made perfectly clear. These sons are God’s Jubilee in the earth.
A feast such as this is the emblem of a great victory!
25:7: “”And He will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations.”
The carnal mind is death! God will remove and will swallow up the blinded mind, just as the land of Ethiopia (and the river Nile with Leviathan in it) will be swallowed up by the river out of Eden (Gen. 2: 10-14; Isa. 18: 1-7). Jesus is the King in Zion, and He destroyed death! It is finished! The veil has been rent from the top to the bottom, completely revealing all that is within the Holiest of all! The warp and woof of man’s thinking is shrouded over by death. He has not only entered in and made a covenant with death and hell, but he has married and become one with it; and now he busies himself reproducing more of the same! But Jesus is the Heavenly antidote for sin and death. He is the resurrection and the Life…Now!!! Men worship death, and Satan has become their king and their god. The nations are made with their idolatry and spiritual harlotry. But the Lord is victor over all!
25:8: “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of His people shall He take away from off all the earth; for the Lord has spoken it.”
To summarize verses 6-8, we see (1) that Jesus Christ has already destroyed death. He did it in the mountain of Calvary! This is the primary meaning of the “mountain” of verses 6-7; and (2). Here in verse 8 we see that the victory of the Lord Jesus in His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension is endless in its conquest of all enemies! It is eternal and permanent. He is the high priest of an unchanging, immutable priesthood which is energized by the power of an endless life. The full consummation of this verse is yet to be manifested in the earth, but the basis and ground of it (Jesus is the foundation -1 Cor. 3: 9-11) has already been established. The napkin that adorned the head is neatly wrapped and in its proper place (Jn. 20:7). Death has been conquered once. Jesus has entered into His rest at the right hand of the Father. Now he waits for His brethren to arise and become the second witness to His eternal victory and establish life in the earth! The mantle of Him who has ascended (11 Kg. 2) shall become an unfurled banner of truth, and the garments which grace His Body shall also enter in, and some must enter in! The reproach of Egypt shall be rolled off his people. The Word of Jehovah has not only spoken this truth, but the Word of Jehovah became flesh and performed this truth! So death has been annihilated by the Lord Jesus! (Rev. 21:4). Paul preaches and translates this scripture in 1 Cor. 15:54: “When this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“Eis Nikos” = unto or into victory”; a conquest; the means of success; a subduing; overcoming; prevailing”).
Verses 9-12 describes the humiliation of Moab, and emblem of Israel’s enemies.
“It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God (Elohim); we have waited for Him, and He will save us; this is the Lord; we have waited for Him; and we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation. For in this mountain shall the hand of the Lord rest, and Moab shall be trodden down under Him, even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill. He shall spread forth his hand sin the midst of them, as he that swims spreads forth his hands to swim; and He shall bring down their pride together with the spoils of their hands. And the fortress of the high fort of your walls shall He bring down, lay low, and bring to the ground, even to the dust.
The chief point of these verses is that God will lay low all human pride which opposes itself to God’s plan and God’s people.
The Hand of the Lord denotes His power, deliverance, and protection over His
people. Jehovah will stretch forth His
hands; prostrate His enemies; and bring
down their pride; making all under subjection as easily as a swimmer makes his
way through the water by stretching out his hands.
The reproach, contempt, shame and defeat will be taken away from his people in that Day.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries, Inc.
Scripture from K.J.V.; I entered into the labors of Principles of Present Truth on Isaiah by: Kelly Varner; F. F. Bruce Bible Commentary; and sermon by Pastor Carolyn Sissom on 2/2/14, “Partakers of the Divine Nature”.