Isaiah 24
1 Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.
2 And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.
3 The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the Lord hath spoken this word.
4 The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world languisheth and fadeth away, the haughty people of the earth do languish.
5 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.
7 The new wine mourneth, the vine languisheth, all the merryhearted do sigh.
8 The mirth of tabrets ceaseth, the noise of them that rejoice endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth.
9 They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it.
10 The city of confusion is broken down: every house is shut up, that no man may come in.
11 There is a crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.
12 In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction.
13 When thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the people, there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree, and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is done.
14 They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the Lord, they shall cry aloud from the sea.
15 Wherefore glorify ye the Lord in the fires, even the name of the Lord God of Israel in the isles of the sea.
16 From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! the treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.
17 Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.
19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.
20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.
23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.
Isaiah 24 Commentary
Chapter Overview
Isaiah 24 widens the horizon after the judgments on individual nations in Isaiah 13–23. The prophet now describes the earth itself emptied, shaken, and brought under judgment. Social rank, wealth, religion, and political power offer no exemption because the Lord confronts the rebellion shared by humanity as a whole.
The chapter is not unbroken darkness. A scattered remnant praises the majesty of the Lord from distant coastlands, and the final verse announces his reign in Zion. Isaiah therefore moves between worldwide collapse and worldwide worship. Judgment strips away false security so that God’s holiness, justice, and kingship become unmistakable.
Key Themes
The Hebrew word translated “earth” can also mean “land,” and some details may reflect historical devastation familiar to Isaiah’s first hearers. Yet the repeated language of the world, the inhabitants of the earth, the ends of the earth, and the powers of heaven reaches beyond one local invasion. The chapter gathers historical judgments into a vision with an ultimate, universal horizon.
Verse 2 levels every social distinction: people and priest, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower. Isaiah is not denying that these roles differ in ordinary life. He is declaring that status cannot shield anyone from divine judgment. God judges persons by truth and righteousness, not by title, influence, or economic advantage.
Verse 5 gives the moral reason for the devastation: people have transgressed laws, changed an ordinance, and broken an everlasting covenant. The exact covenant is debated. Some connect the language with God’s covenant with Noah in Genesis 9; others understand a broader, enduring moral order established by the Creator. Either way, humanity is accountable to God rather than free to redefine his requirements.
The “curse” that devours the earth recalls covenant warnings such as Leviticus 26. Sin is not merely a mistake with no lasting effect. It brings guilt and exposes people to God’s righteous sentence. The few who remain in verse 6 anticipate the remnant theme that soon interrupts the desolation with praise.
Verses 7–12 describe the death of public joy. Wine, tambourines, harps, songs, streets, houses, and city gates all become images of a society whose celebrations can no longer hide its ruin. Isaiah does not condemn music or feasting in themselves. He exposes joy built upon a world that refuses its Maker and assumes the party can continue indefinitely.
The “city of confusion” is literally a city of emptiness or chaos. Isaiah does not identify it by name, which allows the ruined city to represent proud human civilization more broadly. Houses are shut, the gate is shattered, and the ordered life of the city collapses toward disorder. Human society without God ultimately cannot preserve the security it promises.
The olive-tree and grape-gleaning images in verse 13 picture severe loss with a small remainder. After harvest, only a few olives or grapes remain for gleaners. Likewise, judgment removes the abundance, yet it does not erase every witness. The remnant is small, but its existence shows that God remembers mercy even while judging.
Verses 14–16 suddenly carry songs across the earth. Survivors praise the Lord’s majesty from the sea and the distant coastlands. Their worship resembles the worldwide summons of Psalm 96: the God who judges the world rightly is worthy of praise among all peoples. The song begins before every sorrow has disappeared, making it an act of faith as well as celebration.
The KJV phrase “glorify ye the Lord in the fires” in verse 15 reflects a difficult Hebrew expression. Many translations understand it as “in the east” or “in the regions of light,” while others retain imagery of fires. The surrounding parallel with the “isles of the sea” suggests worship rising from far regions in every direction.
Isaiah hears “glory to the righteous,” but he immediately cries, “My leanness, my leanness.” The distant praise is real, yet the prophet still sees treachery operating in the present. Biblical hope does not require pretending that evil has already vanished. Isaiah can rejoice in God’s promised victory and grieve deeply over continuing betrayal at the same time.
“Fear, and the pit, and the snare” form a memorable sequence in verses 17–18. Escape from one danger leads into another: the frightened person falls into the pit, and the one climbing out is caught in the trap. The image denies the illusion that cleverness alone can escape judgment. Safety must come from the Lord, not merely from choosing a different route.
The opening of the “windows from on high” echoes the flood language of Genesis. At the same time, the foundations below shake. Judgment surrounds humanity from above and beneath, showing that the created order people treat as stable is fully subject to its Creator. The flood echo strengthens the chapter’s worldwide and covenantal dimensions without requiring every image to describe the same physical event.
The earth breaking, dissolving, reeling like a drunkard, and moving like a temporary hut communicates total instability. Isaiah’s poetry is not a scientific description of the planet’s structure. It portrays a world staggering beneath the weight of transgression. What seems permanent to human beings becomes fragile when the Lord calls sin to account.
Verse 20 says the earth’s transgression is heavy upon it. Evil is often presented as liberating, but Isaiah describes it as crushing weight. A civilization can celebrate independence from God while accumulating burdens it cannot carry: injustice, distrust, violence, exploitation, and guilt. The fall is not arbitrary; it is connected to the weight of rebellion.
Verse 21 joins “the host of the high ones that are on high” with earthly kings. The wording may include rebellious spiritual powers as well as human rulers. Isaiah’s main point is comprehensive: no authority, visible or invisible, stands beyond God’s jurisdiction. The Lord judges both the powers that influence nations and the rulers who exercise power on earth.
The gathered prisoners in verse 22 are shut in a pit and visited after many days. “Visited” can describe God’s decisive attention in judgment and, in some contexts, release. Here the emphasis is that punishment may be delayed but not forgotten. God’s timetable is not evidence of indifference; every imprisoned power remains under his control.
The moon being confounded and the sun ashamed are poetic ways of saying that the brightest created lights fade before the glory of the Lord. They are not morally guilty beings. Their splendor becomes insignificant when God openly reigns. Revelation 21 uses similar imagery when God’s glory illuminates the holy city.
The chapter ends not merely with destruction but enthronement: the Lord of hosts reigns in Mount Zion and Jerusalem. His glory is displayed before the elders, representatives of the worshiping community. The conclusion prepares for the songs and feast of Isaiah 25, where death is swallowed up and the redeemed rejoice in God’s salvation.
Important Verses and Questions
Does Isaiah 24 describe one historical event or the end of the world? The language grows from real judgments that could be recognized in Isaiah’s age, but its scope exceeds a single conquest. The safest reading sees historical disasters as patterns and anticipations of God’s final judgment, when every human and spiritual power will answer to him.
What is the “everlasting covenant” in verse 5? Isaiah does not name it directly. It may recall the covenant with Noah and the obligations placed upon humanity, or it may describe God’s enduring moral order more generally. The essential point is clear: the inhabitants of the earth have violated standards established by God.
Who are the singers in verses 14–16? They are survivors or a remnant scattered across distant regions. Their song shows that judgment does not have the final word for everyone. God preserves worshipers who recognize his majesty, and their praise begins to fulfill Isaiah’s repeated vision of the Lord’s glory becoming known among the nations.
What is the city of confusion? No specific city is named. It can represent the proud city of humanity brought back toward emptiness and disorder. Babylon may stand in the background, especially after Isaiah 13, but the undefined wording lets the image apply to every urban power that builds security while excluding God.
Why does Isaiah use cosmic language? The shaking earth, darkened lights, and opened heavens express judgment on the whole created order and on the powers people assume are immovable. Similar imagery appears in Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 24 and in the seals of Revelation 6. It signals divine intervention of the highest magnitude.
What hope remains after such severe judgment? A remnant sings, God reigns, and the next chapters unfold salvation, resurrection hope, and restored worship. Isaiah 24 strips away false refuges, but Isaiah 26 will speak of a strong city whose salvation is appointed for walls and bulwarks. Judgment clears the stage for God’s righteous kingdom.
Practical Applications
Do not build identity on social rank or financial position. Isaiah’s list in verse 2 reminds every reader that profession, authority, debt, wealth, and religious standing cannot replace repentance and faith. The Lord sees through the categories by which society measures importance and judges impartially.
Treat creation and community as morally connected to human choices. Personal sin rarely remains private. Dishonesty, exploitation, violence, and contempt for God spread into homes, markets, institutions, and the land itself. Faithfulness likewise has public consequences as believers practice truth, mercy, restraint, and responsible stewardship.
Refuse joy that depends upon ignoring God. Music, celebration, food, and drink are gifts, but they cannot carry the weight of ultimate hope. Isaiah’s silent instruments and bitter wine warn against using entertainment to avoid repentance. Lasting joy grows from reconciliation with the Lord.
Praise God even while grieving unfinished evil. The remnant sings from the coastlands, yet Isaiah still laments treachery. Christians do not need to choose between hope and honesty. They can worship because God will reign while also mourning injustice, betrayal, and suffering that still demand faithful response.
Live in light of the kingdom that cannot be shaken. Isaiah 24 ends with the Lord reigning, and Isaiah 27 will conclude this unit with gathered worshipers at Jerusalem. Because God’s rule is certain, believers can loosen their grip on temporary securities, remain faithful under pressure, and direct attention toward his glory.