“Look! The Lord is about to destroy the earth and make it a vast wasteland. He devastates the surface of the earth and scatters the people. Priests and laypeople, servants and masters, maids and mistresses, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, bankers and debtors—none will be spared. The earth will be completely emptied and looted. The Lord has spoken! The earth mourns and dries up, and the land wastes away and withers. Even the greatest people on earth waste away. The earth suffers for the sins of its people, for they have twisted God’s instructions, violated his laws, and broken his everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse consumes the earth. Its people must pay the price for their sin. They are destroyed by fire, and only a few are left alive. The grapevines waste away, and there is no new wine. All the merrymakers sigh and mourn. The cheerful sound of tambourines is stilled; the happy cries of celebration are heard no more. The melodious chords of the harp are silent. Gone are the joys of wine and song; alcoholic drink turns bitter in the mouth. The city writhes in chaos; every home is locked to keep out intruders. Mobs gather in the streets, crying out for wine. Joy has turned to gloom. Gladness has been banished from the land. The city is left in ruins, its gates battered down. Throughout the earth the story is the same— only a remnant is left, like the stray olives left on the tree or the few grapes left on the vine after harvest. But all who are left shout and sing for joy. Those in the west praise the Lord’s majesty. In eastern lands, give glory to the Lord. In the lands beyond the sea, praise the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. We hear songs of praise from the ends of the earth, songs that give glory to the Righteous One! But my heart is heavy with grief. Weep for me, for I wither away. Deceit still prevails, and treachery is everywhere. Terror and traps and snares will be your lot, you people of the earth. Those who flee in terror will fall into a trap, and those who escape the trap will be caught in a snare. Destruction falls like rain from the heavens; the foundations of the earth shake. The earth has broken up. It has utterly collapsed; it is violently shaken. The earth staggers like a drunk. It trembles like a tent in a storm. It falls and will not rise again, for the guilt of its rebellion is very heavy. In that day the Lord will punish the gods in the heavens and the proud rulers of the nations on earth. They will be rounded up and put in prison. They will be shut up in prison and will finally be punished. Then the glory of the moon will wane, and the brightness of the sun will fade, for the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will rule on Mount Zion. He will rule in great glory in Jerusalem, in the sight of all the leaders of his people.”
Isaiah 24:1-23 NLT
God’s story is not hidden in hindsight. In truth it rests in plain sight amongst the works of the prophets. From the protoevangelion in Eden to the words of Isaiah, the story is clear. God will preserve a people, a small but strong number, from the vast sea of humans to have lived. Humanity will not be wiped out though it has invited its own destruction. This theme of redemption and destruction is prevalent all throughout. Its culmination in John’s Revelation should come as no surprise. We see mirrored events here. In both places, we see judgment. We find that creation is being upended while the remnant is being preserved. We see destruction and judgment for the heavenly rulers who warred against God. We see God reigning from Jerusalem. These end times tropes are foretold long before John became the revelatory, and one must do little to see that God is an extremely consistent storyteller, despite his prolific nature. In uncertain times, this is where we can find our certainty. In difficult times, this is where we can find our ease. As believers, we know the end of the story. It is all there and ready to be understood and relied upon. These times of trial and tribulation may come in our lifetime, but God’s end always comes to bear.
JOSH McGARY.COM 