Isaiah 4:1 – 6 Remnant in Zion
“In that day seven women will take hold of one man and say, “We will eat our own bread and provide our own clothes. Just let us be called by your name. Take away our disgrace!”
On that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of Israel’s survivors. Whoever remains in Zion and whoever is left in Jerusalem will be called holy—all in Jerusalem who are recorded among the living— when the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains from the heart of Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire.
Then the LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud of smoke by day and a glowing flame of fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a canopy, a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and the rain.”
At first reading this short chapter, we might be confused. It helps to realize that Isaiah never chopped up his prophecies into chapters; that was done centuries later. Verse 1 of this chapter actually works better if you consider it a continuation of verse 26 of Chapter 3. That verse reads “And the gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.” Continuing with that thought, ““In that day seven women will take hold of one man and say, “We will eat our own bread and provide our own clothes. Just let us be called by your name. Take away our disgrace!”
In that day, women without husbands were fair game to be taken advantage of. That is why God repeatedly assures us that He is the Protector of widows and orphans. Verse 1 describes a time when so many of the men in Jerusalem will have been killed that seven women will beg one remaining man to claim them as wives, simply so they will bear his name and be under his protection. These women will be so desperate that they will promise to provide for themselves, if only they will be able to claim the status of married women instead of widowhood.
Verse 2 is one of the many Messianic prophecies in Isaiah. The Branch referred to is the coming Messiah, a Branch of the root of Jesse, the family of David. But has this prophecy been fulfilled or is it still in the future? From our recent study of the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah, it is obvious that some of the exiles who returned from Babylon did not behave in a holy fashion. True, some returnees were thrilled to be back in Jerusalem and enthusiastically helped rebuild its walls and hang its gates. But there were those who returned, only to intermarry with the mongrel peoples the Babylonians had moved in to occupy the land. And some of these same individuals turned into loan sharks, forcing the poor into prostitution and slavery.
No, verses 2 – 6 are part of the prophecies concerning the final return of the Messiah. But what promises! “On that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of Israel’s survivors.” All who are in Jerusalem – in fact, all true believers – will see the Messiah as beautiful and glorious. How will they see Him? We are not told; we only know that He will be with the people who have known and loved Him without having seen Him. Because of the presence of the Messiah, the land will yield so bountifully that the fruit will be “the pride and glory of Israel’s survivors.” This part of the passage is already coming true. The Israelis lead the world in research on drip irrigation and have caused many parts of Israel to produce wonderful fruit and other crops.
“Whoever remains in Zion and whoever is left in Jerusalem will be called holy— all in Jerusalem who are recorded among the living— when the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains from the heart of Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire.” Consider Jerusalem! Centuries after Isaiah, Jesus lamented over Jerusalem, saying, ”O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!” (Luke 13:34)
Through the years, the streets of Jerusalem have run red with the blood of its citizens countless times. And prophets have fared badly there. Isaiah himself is believed to have suffered martyrdom by being sawn in two under the orders of wicked King Manasseh. But now, God is promising that Jerusalem and everyone in it will be totally cleansed by a spirit of judgement and a spirit of fire. Water may wash away some things, but when dealing with wicked things such as fetishes, fire is the only true answer.
Verses 5 and 6 are some of the most comforting promises in Isaiah. “Then the LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud of smoke by day and a glowing flame of fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a canopy, a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and the rain.”
APPLICATION: Who doesn’t need shelter? Who doesn’t need protection? Here God through Isaiah is promising to totally protect His people so that neither heat nor storm nor rain can harm them. Today, there are many standing for righteousness who feel as if they are the “last man standing” in their situations. While some workers do as little as possible, there are those who continue to be faithful even in little things. While false media tars reputations, there remain those who are trying to behave as righteously as possible, even in the face of extreme opposition. What rest is there for these tired souls?
Here God is promising to be a shelter and a shade and a protection. There’s an old spiritual that says, “Jesus is a rock in a weary land, a weary land, a weary land; My Jesus is a rock in a weary land, a shelter in the time of storm.” There is no shelter on earth that cannot be breached or invaded in some fashion. But when God is our Protector, we can smile at storms, even if we are “last men standing.”
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, thank You for being our Shelter, our Protector, and our Redeemer. Help us to remember that we are never alone, even when all others have forsaken us for You will NEVER leave us or forsake us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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