World English Bible
- “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the LORD’s glory has risen on you!
- For behold, darkness will cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise on you, and his glory shall be seen on you.
- Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.
- “Lift up your eyes all around, and see: they all gather themselves together. They come to you. Your sons will come from far away, and your daughters will be carried in arms.
- Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart will thrill and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you. The wealth of the nations will come to you.
- A multitude of camels will cover you, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah. All from Sheba will come. They will bring gold and frankincense, and will proclaim the praises of the LORD.
- All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered together to you. The rams of Nebaioth will serve you. They will be accepted as offerings on my altar; and I will beautify my glorious house.
- “Who are these who fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?
- Surely the islands will wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your sons from far away, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of the LORD your God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he has glorified you.
- “Foreigners will build up your walls, and their kings will serve you; for in my wrath I struck you, but in my favor I have had mercy on you.
- Your gates also shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night, that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, and their kings led captive.
- For that nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; yes, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
- “The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, the cypress tree, the pine, and the box tree together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.
- The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you; and all those who despised you will bow themselves down at the soles of your feet. They will call you the LORD’s City, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
- “Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, so that no one passed through you, I will make you an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
- You will also drink the milk of the nations, and will nurse from royal breasts. Then you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
- For bronze I will bring gold; for iron I will bring silver; for wood, bronze, and for stones, iron. I will also make peace your governor, and righteousness your ruler.
- Violence shall no more be heard in your land, nor desolation or destruction within your borders; but you will call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.
- The sun will be no more your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon give light to you, but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.
- Your sun will not go down any more, nor will your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will end.
- Then your people will all be righteous. They will inherit the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.
- The little one will become a thousand, and the small one a strong nation. I, the LORD, will do this quickly in its time.”
Isaiah 60
“Arise, shine” is a command to a city that cannot make its own dawn. Isaiah 59 ended with truth fallen in the streets and God himself coming to save. Now Jerusalem is told to stand in the light he brings. Notice that darkness still covers the peoples. God does not ask his people to deny the night; he asks them to live by the coming of his glory.
Isaiah fills the roads with camel caravans and the sea with ships. Midian, Sheba, and Kedar bring the goods of their distant lives toward Zion. To a wounded city, such visitors might once have meant danger. Here they bring children home, help rebuild walls, and offer gifts in worship. The poem gathers the world from desert and sea, as if no distance is too great for God’s purpose.
But the most startling change may be in verse 17. The Hebrew word rendered “ruler” can also mean taskmaster; it is used of Pharaoh’s slave drivers in Exodus 5:6. God promises, in effect, that righteousness will take the taskmaster’s place. He does not merely remove cruel authority. He gives the city a new kind of authority: peace will govern it. This is the answer to Isaiah’s earlier grief that justice had been pushed aside (Isaiah 59:14). God’s glory will be seen not only in shining walls, but in streets where violence is no longer heard.
We must also hear the chapter’s hard words about defeated kings and ruined nations. People who had lived under the boot of empire longed for more than kind feelings from their oppressors. Yet Christians must not turn Zion’s vindication into permission to dominate others. Revelation takes up Isaiah’s open gates and everlasting light, then shows the nations bringing their glory into a city lit by the Lamb (Revelation 21:23–26). In Christ, former enemies can become fellow citizens (Ephesians 2:14–19).
What would change in us if peace governed our decisions and righteousness could command our habits? Isaiah’s vision reaches beyond a private sense of comfort. It asks what kind of life the light of God is making visible.
For further reading: Isaiah 59:14–21; Exodus 5:6; Revelation 21:23–26. A fitting hymn is “The Church’s One Foundation.”
Prayer: Lord, let your light reach the places where we have grown used to darkness. Put peace in charge of our dealings with others, and teach us to welcome those you are bringing home. Amen.