Introduction
In the latter chapters of Isaiah, a stunning convergence of themes reaches its climax: covenantal judgment, bloodguilt recompense, jubilant salvation, and the wedding of the Messiah to His purified bride. Isaiah 59–62 vividly portrays a Redeemer clothed in vengeance, arriving not at the end of world history but at the appointed kairos—God’s divinely set time—to repay His adversaries and redeem His covenant people. Far from being detached future abstractions, these prophecies are the foundational source material for Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, Paul’s epistles to the Romans and Thessalonians, and John’s Apocalypse.
Isaiah 59 launches this section with accusations of Israel’s bloodguilt and injustice, culminating in the Lord Himself donning armor to execute judgment and inaugurate a new covenant with the repentant. The result, in Isaiah 60, is the shining light of the new Jerusalem—her gates forever open, her mourning ended, and her glory made manifest to the nations. This is not a literal post-apocalyptic world but the dawning of a new covenant order fulfilled in the first century.
The kairos—the appointed time—is the interpretive key. The New Testament writers, following Jesus, declared with one voice that their generation was living in the time long foreseen by Moses and Isaiah. The perpetual day of Isaiah 60, the vengeance of Isaiah 61, and the eschatological wedding of Isaiah 62 are all woven into the apostolic proclamation of the gospel’s climax in AD 70. In these chapters, Isaiah becomes the prophetic lens through which the destruction of old covenant Jerusalem and the rise of the new Jerusalem—the glorified Church—are clearly seen.
Isaiah 59–60 – Israel’s Bloodguilt and God’s Swift Judgment and Salvation
Isaiah 59 opens with a sharp rebuke: God has hidden his face because “their hands are defiled with blood” and they are “swift to shed innocent blood” (Isa. 59:1–2). This recalls Isaiah 2–5, where Israel’s bloodguilt prompts the “Day of the Lord” judgment. Isaiah 59:16–20 describes the Lord’s intervention as both judgment and salvation—judgment for His enemies, salvation for the repentant. Paul and John both echo this passage in describing Christ’s return (1 Thess. 5:8; Rom. 11:26–28; Rev. 18–19).
This section also introduces the new covenant:
He saw that there was no man … then His own arm brought Him salvation … He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation … According to their deeds, so will He repay—wrath to His adversaries … And a Redeemer will come to Zion … this is My covenant with them,” says the Lord… (Isa. 59:16–21)
In Revelation 18–19, Christ comes in blood-stained garments to judge the “Great City”—symbolically called Babylon, Egypt, or Sodom—identified as Jerusalem, “where the Lord was slain” (Rev. 11:8). This judgment avenges “the blood of His servants,” (Rev. 18:20; 19:2), just as Isaiah foretold. As in Isaiah 2–5 and 24–27, this judgment is paired with the messianic wedding: the old covenant Jerusalem is judged, while the new covenant bride is purified and celebrated. Revelation repeatedly affirms this would happen “soon,” (Rev. 1:1, 19; 22:6–7, 10, 20).
Isaiah 60 describes the aftermath of this judgment: the arrival of salvation and the light of the new Jerusalem. God’s renewed people become a beacon to the nations:
Arise, shine, for your light has come … nations shall come to your light … Your gates shall be open continually … the Lord will be your everlasting light … your days of mourning shall be ended (Isa. 60:1–20, selections).
John applies this imagery directly to the Church in Revelation 21–22: the new Jerusalem shines with God’s glory, and the nations are invited in to receive healing and eternal life (Rev. 22:2, 17). This is not the end of world history, but a post-AD 70 reality—the Church as the new covenant temple, filled with God’s Spirit, bringing light to the nations.
The Appointed Time and Swift Fulfillment
When would this salvation and new Jerusalem emerge? The Septuagint of Isaiah 60:22 clarifies: “I am the Lord; in the appointed time [kairos] I will bring it about quickly.” This matches the pattern seen throughout Isaiah 2–5 and 24–27: in Israel’s “last days” or the messianic “day of the Lord,” fulfillment comes swiftly.
The kairos motif recurs in the Septuagint, linking Deuteronomy 32:35, Daniel 7:22; 9:26–27; 12:4, and Joel 2:28–3:1, 14 to an imminent “appointed time” of judgment that would come in the first century.
Moses foretold that in Israel’s “last days,” a “crooked generation” would face a “near” judgment (Deut. 31:29; 32:5, 20, 35–43). Jesus identified His generation as this fulfillment, warning of a soon-coming judgment (Matt. 17:17; 24:3–34). Peter affirmed this, calling his audience that generation and declaring the “end of all things is at hand” (Acts 2:40; 1 Pet. 4:5–7, 17).
Paul agreed, labeling his generation as Moses’ terminal one, with the “appointed time” being “near” (Phil. 2:15; Rom. 13:11–12; 1 Cor. 7:29–31). John reinforced this, stating that the prophesied that the “appointed time” of the events of Revelation were “near” (Rev. 1:3; 11:18; 22:10). The New Testament writers consistently saw themselves living in the kairos—the appointed time of fulfillment promised by the prophets and confirmed by Christ.
Jesus, Paul, and Isaiah 59–60
In Matthew 23–24, Jesus teaches that the Pharisees’ bloodguilt fulfills the eschatological kairos. His second coming, ending the old covenant age, brings “vengeance” on Jerusalem—who is surrounded, trampled, and judged by Rome in AD 70—within “this generation” (Matt. 23:29–36; 24:3–34; cf. Mark 13:1–33; Luke 21:8, 24–32).
Does this include the perpetual light of Isaiah 60? Many translate Matthew 24:27 and Luke 17:24 as Christ coming like “lightning” from “east to west,” but the Greek astrape simply means “great light.” The Aramaic English New Testamentand A Faithful Version render it as “sunshine” or “light of day”:
“For as the sunshine [astrape] comes out from the east and is seen even in the west, thus will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt. 24:27, Aramaic English New Testament).
“For as the light of day [astrape], whose light shines [astraptousa] from one end under heaven to the other… so also shall the Son of Man be in His day” (Luke 17:24, A Faithful Version).
Christ’s parousia—His presence and righteousness—fills the post-AD 70 Church/new Jerusalem with perpetual glory. This matches Revelation’s portrayal of His “soon” coming as the “Morning Star,” whoseface was “like the sun shining in full strength” (Rev. 1:16; 2:28).
Paul, in 1–2 Thessalonians, links Christ’s AD 70 coming to relief for the Thessalonians and wrath for their Jewish persecutors, who were “filling up” their bloodguilt (1 Thess. 2:14–16; 2 Thess. 1:5–10). Citing Isaiah 59:17, he writes, “Since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet” (1 Thess. 5:8). This imagery blends Isaiah 60’s perpetual day with Isaiah 59’s armor, assuring the Thessalonians they are clothed like Messiah for the imminent “Day of the Lord.” Paul connects this to Isaiah again in Romans 11:26–27, quoting Isaiah 59:20–21 to describe the near salvation of the Jewish remnant (Rom. 9:27–28). He concludes in Romans 13:11–12:
“You know the critical period [kairos] at which we are living… salvation is now nearer… The night is far advanced, and the day is about to dawn. We must… clothe ourselves with the armor of light” (WNT).
Paul’s Use of Isaiah in Romans and 1 Thessalonians
Drawing on Isaiah 59–60, Paul presents new covenant salvation as a “perpetual day.” In 1 Thessalonians 5:8, he calls believers to wear spiritual armor; in Romans 13:11–12, he uses the term kairos to emphasize themes of awakening, resurrection, and imminent fulfillment.
This reflects Isaiah 25–27 and 59–60 (LXX), Daniel 9:24–27, and Daniel 12:2–4—all pointing to an appointed time near in Paul’s day. He saw Christ’s parousia as imminent, a moment to awaken the Church from the death inherited from Adam and usher her into the eternal day of the kingdom (1 Thess. 4–5).
Isaiah 61–62: Messiah’s Jubilee Salvation, Day of Vengeance, Recompense, and Wedding
In Isaiah 61–62, the Messiah is depicted as ushering in the new covenant salvation, fulfilling the typological significance of the Jubilee year. The Jubilee brought good news to the poor and captives: debts were canceled, land was returned to the impoverished (who had leased it to the wealthy during hard times), and prisoners or slaves were set free. This message would have deeply resonated with Jews during the Babylonian captivity, who had lost their land and lived as slaves under Babylonian rule.
The Messiah not only proclaims liberty to the oppressed but also announces “the day of vengeance” (Isa. 61:2). This dual theme—salvation for the faithful and vengeance on the wicked—continues in Isaiah 62: “Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him” (Isa. 62:11). The brokenhearted and oppressed receive restoration, while their persecutors receive just recompense. The messianic wedding motif also returns, as in Isaiah 4 and 25. Isaiah 61:10 and 62:2–5 portray God rejoicing over His people as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.
Jesus, Paul, and Isaiah 61–62
In Luke 4:16–21, Jesus explicitly identifies Himself as the fulfillment of Isaiah 61, bringing the long-awaited Jubilee rest and salvation. In Luke 21, He also applies Isaiah’s “day of vengeance” to the destruction of Jerusalem, declaring that it would happen within His generation (Luke 21:20–32; cf. Isa. 61:2).
This promise is reinforced in Luke 9:26–27, Matthew 16:27–28, and Mark 8:38–9:1, where Jesus promises to return in judgment and reward before some of His listeners die.
Similarly, in Matthew 24–25, Jesus places the eschatological wedding—foretold by Isaiah—at His parousia, to be fulfilled within the first-century generation (Matt. 24:27, 31, 36; 25:1–31).
Paul confirms this same expectation. Christ would return soon to bring salvation and relief to the Thessalonians, while inflicting wrath on their persecutors. This return is described using wedding imagery: the “trumpet,” the “meeting,” and the union of Christ and His people (1 Thess. 1:10; 2:14–16; 3:13; 4:15—5:23; 2 Thess. 1:5–10; 2:1–8).
Conclusion
Isaiah 59–62 offers no vague or speculative vision of the end. It declares a sharp, covenantally-rooted transition—a day of vengeance against a bloodguilty people and the arrival of redemptive light for the faithful remnant. This dual outcome—judgment for the persecutors and salvation for the persecuted—is precisely how Jesus and Paul interpreted Isaiah. The Messiah would come not at the end of world history, but at the climax of Israel’s story—to avenge His martyrs, establish a new covenant, and gather His bride into perpetual union.
Paul, echoing Isaiah’s armor imagery, declared that his generation was clothed and ready for that “day” (1 Thess. 5:8; Rom. 13:11–12). Jesus quoted Isaiah 61 to announce the arrival of the Jubilee—a liberation that would culminate in the fall of Jerusalem and the vindication of the Church. And John, in Revelation, framed this very transition as a wedding banquet, a recompense, and a city shining with God’s glory—all grounded in Isaiah’s vision and fulfilled “soon.”
This was not the end of time. It was the end of the age. The end of the old world of shadows, and the beginning of a new world of light. The gates of the new Jerusalem now stand open. The nations stream in. The Bridegroom rejoices over His bride. The day has dawned, and it will never fade.
In Part 3, we will examine Isaiah 63–66, where the Redeemer’s vengeance and the creation of new heavens and a new earth bring the final crescendo of Isaiah’s prophetic symphony. Once again, we will see Jesus and Paul drawing deeply from these texts to proclaim the glory and completeness of Christ’s finished work in the first-century consummation.
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