Vision of the new Jerusalem.
In chs. 60-62: After setbacks and dissensions in chs. 56-59. 60--62 recover the vision of the future central to chs. 40-55. Jerusalem will be rebuilt, a city of peace and righteousness. These chapters reflect the spiritual reawakening that came with the rebuilding and restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem in 520-516 BCE. More broadly, these chapters express a positive, if ideal, portrayal of human beings living in peace, prosperity, and harmony. They reveal a goal to strive for, not a simplistic expectation of a condition of human a happiness that will drop down as a gift from heaven.
Read Isaiah 60.1-22. In 60.1-22: Arise, shine for your light has come. In verses 1-7: The expected return had not occurred. At best, only token numbers of the former population had come back. The vision of a great return was still a distant dream. A new pattern of Jewish life emerged that established rules of conduct for living as peaceably as possible in alien lands. In verses 8-14; The high point of the great vision of 45.22-23, that foreigners too would share in the coming salvation and prosperity, is here sharply reduced to granting them the role of being servants and suppliers to the restored Israel. In verses 15-22: Hope for the future Jerusalem as a city of wealth, learning, and authority contrasts with the revelations of conflict and violence that 59.1-8 has revealed. The need to restore a vision of God's intentions for Jerusalem became urgent as a counterweight to the current difficulties. The Temple was restored and a new focus provided for those who worshipped the Lord in every land. Comments or Questions..
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