Isaiah · chapter 27 of 66
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Isaiah 27 closes the Isaiah apocalypse with three pictures: the Lord punishes Leviathan, the fleeing serpent; he guards his vineyard, watering it and keeping it night and day; and he gathers Israel's scattered one by one, from Assyria and Egypt, at the sound of a great trumpet to worship on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.
This chapter is the last of the section called the Isaiah apocalypse (24-27). It takes up earlier themes of the book, such as the Lord's vineyard in Isaiah 5, and transforms them: the vineyard that once gave sour grapes will now be tended and will fill the world with fruit. It is a promise of restoration for the scattered people.
The chapter begins with a short, powerful sentence: on that day the Lord will punish with his hard, great and strong sword Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and will slay the dragon that is in the sea. It is a picture of organized evil and chaos, defeated by God.
On that day a song will be sung about a pleasant vineyard. The Lord himself keeps it, waters it every moment and guards it night and day so that no one will harm it. He has no wrath against it; if there are thorns and briers, he will march against them, unless they take hold of his protection and make peace with him. In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will blossom and fill the face of the world with fruit.
Verses 7-11 reflect on Israel's punishment: the Lord has not struck them as he struck those who struck them, but with measure. The atonement of Jacob's guilt and the fruit of removing his sin appear in the altar stones being ground to powder and no Asherah poles or incense altars left standing. The fortified city is left desolate, because the people lacked understanding. At the end, the Lord will thresh from the Euphrates to the Brook of Egypt, and the children of Israel will be gathered one by one. A great trumpet will sound, and those lost in Assyria and those scattered in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain at Jerusalem.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The Lord will punish Leviathan, the fleeing and twisting serpent, and slay the dragon of the sea. It is a picture of the powers of evil and chaos that only God can defeat and that the people could not overcome by themselves.
The Lord keeps the vineyard, waters it every moment and guards it night and day. It contrasts with Isaiah 5, where the vineyard gave sour grapes, and shows that God's care is constant.
In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will blossom and fill the world with fruit. Israel's promised blessing reaches the whole earth, echoing Abraham's call to be a blessing to all families.
A great trumpet will sound, and those lost in Assyria and scattered in Egypt will come and worship the Lord in Jerusalem. The chapter ends with a summons: God gathers his people to worship him.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: He will punish it with his hard, great and strong sword and slay the dragon of the sea. — Isaiah 27:1
Answer: He keeps it, waters it every moment and guards it night and day. — Isaiah 27:3
Answer: Take root, blossom and fill the face of the world with fruit. — Isaiah 27:6
Answer: Their stones will be like chalk stones crushed to pieces, and no Asherah poles or incense altars will remain. — Isaiah 27:9
Answer: The sound of a great trumpet. — Isaiah 27:13
Answer: On the holy mountain at Jerusalem. — Isaiah 27:13
Isaiah 27 reminds us that organized evil and chaos do not have the last word. When a person or a group faces forces that seem too big, the text invites us to remember that the Lord defeats them with his own sword. In a Sunday school class, this can open a conversation about where we look for strength when we feel small.
The picture of the vineyard tended day and night also speaks of God's care for his church. We are not asked to produce fruit by our own effort, but to remain under his care and make peace with him. In a small group we can ask which thorns and briers, that is, which rebellious attitudes, we need to hand over to him so that he can bear fruit in us.
Isaiah 27 ends with the summoning of the scattered and with Jerusalem as the place of worship, closing chapters 24-27. Chapter 28 then opens a new series of woes directed at Ephraim and the leaders of Judah who trust in alliances and their own wisdom.
Leviathan is a sea creature that appears in Old Testament poetry, as in Job 41 and Psalm 74. In Isaiah it stands for the powers of chaos and evil, sometimes linked with nations hostile to Israel. Interpreters debate whether it points to a specific historical power or a spiritual enemy; either way, the text says the Lord defeats it.
In Isaiah 5 the vineyard produced sour grapes and was given over to judgment. In Isaiah 27 it is called pleasant and the Lord guards it night and day. The contrast shows that after judgment God restores his people and makes them fruitful.
The text uses the image of gathering grain by hand to describe the people being collected from the nations, from the great river of the east to the southwestern edge of the promised land. It is figurative language saying that none of the scattered will fall outside his care.