polluted by the sins of men, therefore it is made desolate by God's judgments. Carnal joy will soon
be at end, and the end of it is heaviness. God has many ways to imbitter wine and strong drink to
those who love them; distemper of body, anguish of mind, and the ruin of the estate, will make
strong drink bitter, and the delights of sense tasteless. Let men learn to mourn for sin, and rejoice
in God; then no man, no event, can take their joy from them.
Is. 24:13-15 There shall be a remnant preserved from the general ruin, and it shall be a devout
and pious remnant. These few are dispersed; like the gleanings of the olive tree, hid under the
leaves. The Lord knows those that are his; the world does not. When the mirth of carnal worldlings
ceases, the joy of the saints is as lively as ever, because the covenant of grace, the fountain of their
comforts, and the foundation of their hopes, never fails. Those who rejoice in the Lord can rejoice
in tribulation, and by faith may triumph when all about them are in tears. They encourage their
fellow-sufferers to do likewise, even those who are in the furnace of affliction. Or, in the valleys,
low, dark, miry places. In every fire, even the hottest, in every place, even the remotest, let us keep
up our good thoughts of God. If none of these trials move us, then we glorify the Lord in the fires.
Is. 24:16-23 Believers may be driven into the uttermost parts of the earth; but they are singing,
not sighing. Here is terror to sinners; the prophet laments the miseries he saw breaking in like a
torrent; and the small number of believers. He foresees that sin would abound. The meaning is
plain, that evil pursues sinners. Unsteady, uncertain are all these things. Worldly men think to dwell
in the earth as in a palace, as in a castle; but it shall be removed like a cottage, like a lodge put up
for the night. It shall fall and not rise again; but there shall be new heavens and a new earth, in
which shall dwell nothing but righteousness. Sin is a burden to the whole creation; it is a heavy
burden, under which it groans now, and will sink at last. The high ones, that are puffed up with
their grandeur, that think themselves out of the reach of danger, God will visit for their pride and
cruelty. Let us judge nothing before the time, though some shall be visited. None in this world
should be secure, though their condition be ever so prosperous; nor need any despair, though their
condition be ever so deplorable. God will be glorified in all this. But the mystery of Providence is
not yet finished. The ruin of the Redeemer's enemies must make way for his kingdom, and then
the Sun of Righteousness will appear in full glory. Happy are those who take warning by the sentence
against others; every impenitent sinner will sink under his transgression, and rise no more, while
believers enjoy everlasting bliss.
Chapter 25
A song of praise. (Is. 25:1-5) A declaration of the gospel blessings. (Is. 25:6-8) The destruction
of the enemies of Christ's church. (Is. 25:9-12)
Is. 25:1-5 However this might show the deliverance of the Jews out of captivity, it looked
further, to the praises that should be offered up to God for Christ's victories over our spiritual
enemies, and the comforts he has provided for all believers. True faith simply credits the Lord's