1 In that day will Jehovah,with his great and powerful sword,punish severelya Leviathan,the evasive maritime serpent,Leviathan, that devious sea monster,when he slays the dragons of the Sea.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
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2 In that day, sing of the earthbas of a delightful vineyard
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
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3 of which I, Jehovah, am keeper.I water it constantly, watch over it night and day,lest anything be amiss.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
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4 I have no more anger toward her.Should briars and thorns come up,I will ruthlessly attack themand altogether set them ablaze.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
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5 But should they take hold of me for a refugeand make peace with me,they shall be reconciled to me.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
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6 For in days to come, when Jacob takes rootand Israel bursts into blossom,the face of the earth shall fill with fruit.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
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7 Was he smitten as were his smiters?Or was he slain as were they who slew him?
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
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8 You have dealt with themby utterly banishing them, O Jehovah.By his fierce blasts they were flung awayin the day of the burning east wind.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
red
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy a corrupt world; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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9 But by this shall Jacob’s iniquity be expiated,as a result of this his sins removed:when he makes like crushed chalkstoneall altar stones,leaving no idols of prosperityand shining images standing.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
red
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy a corrupt world; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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10 Because of them the fortified cities lie forlorn,deserted habitations, forsaken like a wilderness;steers forage and recline there,stripping bare the young branches of trees.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
red
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy a corrupt world; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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11 A harvest of twigs dries, broken off by womenwho come to light their fires with them.They are not a discerning people.Therefore their Maker shows them no mercy;he who formed them favors them not.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
red
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy a corrupt world; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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12 In that day Jehovah will thresh out his harvest from the torrent of the River to the streams of Egypt. But you shall be gleaned one by one, O children of Israel.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
red
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy a corrupt world; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
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A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, a power of chaos that overflows the lands of Jehovah's people and the nations but that Jehovah's servant subdues.
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13 In that day a loud trumpet shall sound, and they who were lost in the land of Assyria and they who were outcasts in the land of Egypt shall come and bow down to Jehovah in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy chaotic entities; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, who cause chaos in the earth in Jehovah's Day of Judgment but whom Jehovah's servant vanquishes when their work is done.
red
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, who personifies Jehovah's anger toward his unrepentant people and the nations but who comes to an end when he has served Jehovah's purpose.
red
A pseudonym of (1) the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon, whom Jehovah empowers to destroy a corrupt world; and (2) Jehovah's end-time servant, whom Jehovah empowers to deliver his people.
purple
A pseudonym of the end-time king of Assyria/Babylon and his alliance, a power of chaos that overflows the lands of Jehovah's people and the nations but that Jehovah's servant subdues.
red
A pseudonym of Jehovah's end-time servant, who rallies a remnant of Jehovah's people dispersed among the nations to renew their covenant with Jehovah and gather in a new exodus to Zion.
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Apocalyptic Commentary
Isaiah 27
Among those whom Jehovah punishes in his Day of Judgment are the “dragons” (tannin) of the “Sea” (yam) or their modern equivalents that are named after Leviathan, the legendary sea monster of ancient Near Eastern myth. Jehovah’s sword is two, depending on how one reads it: (1) Jehovah’s servant (Isaiah 31:8-9; 41:2; 49:2); or (2) the king of Assyria/Babylon (Isaiah 34:5-6; 65:12; 66:14-16). While the archtyrant destroys the wicked of the world, in the end Jehovah’s servant subdues the chaotic power of the Sea (Isaiah 10:26; 11:15; 51:9-10) by vanquishing him (Isaiah 9:4; 30:30-32; 41:2).
Jehovah’s vineyard—the Promised Land (Isaiah 1:8; 5:1-7)—which was once a national locale, in the millennial age encompasses the earth. Although the vineyard—also Jehovah’s people (Isaiah 3:14-15; 5:7)—once brought forth evil fruit (Isaiah 5:2, 4; 17:5-6), it now brings forth good fruit (v 6; Isaiah 4:2; 11:1; 37:31). As the keeper of his millennial vineyard, Jehovah himself watches over it. Those who broke into it, who burned and desolated it (Isaiah 5:5-6), are no more. The briars and thorns that overgrew it were burned (Isaiah 9:18-19) and now the vineyard is “delightful” or “desirable” (hamed).
In the glorious age that follows his Day of Judgment, Jehovah won’t tolerate further evils that turn his people away from what is good. In a time when his holy Spirit prevails throughout the earth (Isaiah 32:15; 44:3; 59:21), when every system besides Jehovah’s has been tried and found wanting, those who don’t serve Jehovah must perish (Isaiah 60:12). Because briars and thorns—the world’s wicked—have no place in his kingdom, they will burn up as in his Day of Judgment. Alternatively, they may make peace with Jehovah and find refuge in him the same as his elect people have done (Isaiah 12:2; 25:4).
In the millennial age of peace, when Jehovah’s vineyard extends to the entire earth, all things flourish (Isaiah 51:3; 58:11; 61:11; 65:10, 21-22). Many of the Jacob/Israel category of Jehovah’s people who were persuaded to repent and return ascended spiritually and qualified to inherit the earth at Jehovah’s coming (Isaiah 10:20-22; 35:10; 59:20; 60:21). Just as Jacob—Israel’s progenitor—ascended spiritually and received the name Israel (Genesis 32:28), so his descendants “take root” as Jacob, “burst into blossom” as Israel, and bear fruit as Zion/Jerusalem (Isaiah 4:2-3; 37:31-32; 55:10-13).
Those who smote and slew Jehovah’s covenant people—before and during his Day of Judgment—end up worse off than those whom they persecuted. As according to the terms of Jehovah’s covenant the curses of the covenant come upon those who violate the rights of his people who keep the terms of his covenant, those who attempt to annihilate Jehovah’s people are themselves annihilated in his Day of Judgment. The “fierce blasts” and “east wind” apply initially to the archtyrant who destroys the wicked and lastly to Jehovah’s servant who delivers the righteous (Isaiah 17:12-14; 29:5-6; 57:13).
In the same way the ancient Israelites expiated their sin of worshiping the Golden Calf by grinding it to powder (Exodus 32:17-20), so the sin of idolatry of Jehovah’s end-time people is “expiated” by their removing all vestiges of idols. Hurtful conditions such as the land’s takeover by animals and desiccation of its foliage are seldom perceived as Jehovah’s covenant curses by the wicked, who are interested only in filling their immediate needs. Because by their idolatry they have become “an undiscerning people,” they come under Jehovah’s law of justice, not of mercy (Isaiah 1:3; 42:17-25; 56:10).
Harvest imagery—signifying the destruction of the wicked in Jehovah’s Day of Judgment—extends to the deliverance of Jehovah’s elect who are “gleaned one by one” (Isaiah 17:5-6; 24:13). These individuals respond to the trumpet—the worldwide mission of Jehovah’s servant (Isaiah 58:1)—by gathering in an exodus to Zion to escape annihilation by the king of Assyria/Babylon—the River (Isaiah 7:20; 8:7-8; 11:10-12): “All you who live in the world, you inhabitants of the earth, look to the ensign when it is lifted up in the mountains; heed the trumpet when sounded!” (Isaiah 18:3; emphasis added).
In the end, “they who were lost in the land of Assyria”—Israel’s Ten Tribes—and “they who were outcasts in the land of Egypt”—Egypt’s covenanters (Isaiah 19:20-21)—come to worship Jehovah in his holy mountain (Isaiah 2:3; 30:29; 56:7-8): “Jehovah will dry up the tongue of the Egyptian Sea by his mighty wind; he will extend his hand over the River and smite it into seven streams to provide a way on foot. And there shall be a pathway out of Assyria for the remnant of his people who shall be left, as there was for Israel when it came up from the land of Egypt” (Isaiah 11:15-16; emphasis added).