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Focus Text: Isaiah 2:1-5
The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. In days to come the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; all the nations shall stream to it. Many peoples shall come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the LORD!
Scriptural Commentary on Isaiah 2:1-5
The season of Advent is one of waiting and anticipation. It is a time to prepare and look forward to the coming of Israel’s Messiah, born in a manger. It is also a time to wait expectantly for the Son of God to return at the end of time. Advent is a reminder that our lives exist in the “in between”—between the incarnation and the second coming. Thus, it is fitting that Isaiah’s words are full of hope and expectation, which, if embraced, have implications for our lives now. Isaiah’s vision gives us a glimpse into the coming reign of God and draws us into a future marked by divine justice, restoration, and peace. The words of Isaiah speak about tools of destruction being transformed into tools of fruitfulness and peace. In Advent, we are invited to consider the significance of the coming of the Prince of Peace in our world.
The passage begins with “the word that Isaiah saw,” which envision the universal scope of the justice and peace which will be ushered in by God’s reign. The text describes a time (“in the days to come,” v. 2) when Mount Zion will rise above all other mountains and stand as a physical testament to Yahweh’s sovereignty and God’s dwelling place will be seen by “all the nations.” Humanity will flock to God’s temple and those outside Israel will journey as pilgrims to toward God’s holy mountain to “walk in his paths” of justice and peace.
At the mountaintop the many peoples will walk in the paths of YHWH and the nations which rage and war will no longer lift up the sword against one another. Moreover, they will disarm, transforming (literally, “crush to pieces”) their weapons into tools. Instruments once deformed to make destructive arms will be reformed into implements for tilling and keeping the earth. God’s coming reign is one of ultimate peace and an end to weapons and war.
To take Isaiah’s words to heart is to envision a world without hunger, poverty, war, violence, or fear. The prophet’s oracle challenges our endless pursuit for bigger and better weapons, the perpetuation of hatred and violence, the ever-widening gap between the rich and poor, and our insatiable appetite for more resources and power. The closing words of the passage call the reader to “walk in the light of the Lord!” We are called to be a people whose path is illuminated by God’s ways, a people who seek to put an end to violence and armament and instead sow the seeds of peace. This is the message we must hear again and again at the beginning of the liturgical year, shaping us into peacemakers and preparing us for the coming of Christ—the Prince of Peace.
By Michael Burns, Duke Divinity School Intern
Pastoral Reflection on Isaiah 2:1-5
- Unrest continues in areas like Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, and Nigeria and the U.S. war in Afghanistan continues after more than 10 years.
- Combined defense spending by all countries each year is $1.75 trillion – about 40% of which is by the U.S.
- In the U.S., private citizens own a combined arsenal of about 300 million firearms.
Many basic human needs are still not being met because of violence or defense spending.
Worship Aids about Peace
Prayers
A Prayer for Peace
Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace, as children of one God; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
(Adapted from the 1979 Episcopal Book of Common Prayer, p. 815)
For a Lasting Peace
Brothers and sisters, let us join our voices and pray for the peace and harmony of the entire world, so that all the people God loves may work tirelessly to promote justice, which alone can guarantee true and lasting peace.
O God, Creator of the universe, who extends to every creature your paternal care and guides the events of history toward the goal of salvation, we recognize your love when you soften our hardness, and open a world torn by conflict and strife to reconciliation. Renew for us the miracles of your mercy: send your Spirit to act in the depths of our hearts, so that enemies may be ready to dialogue, adversaries shake hands, and peoples come together in harmony. Help us commit ourselves to search sincerely for true peace that ends disputes, for charity that conquers hatred, for forgiveness that stifles revenge. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.
(Adapted from a prayer of John Paul II, March 6, 1991 from The Private Prayers of Pope John Paul II: An Invitation to Prayer, New York: Pocket Books, 1999.)
Their Plowshares Are Beat Into Swords
And now their plowshares are beat into swords—as are ours,
now their pruning hooks are beat into spears—as are ours.
Not only swords and spears,
but bullets, and bombs, and missiles,
of steel on flesh,
of power against bodies …
And you, in your indignation sound your mantra,
“Blessed are the peacemakers.”
We dare to believe they are the aggressor,
and we are the peacemaker.
Yet in sober night dream, we glance otherwise
and think we may be aggressor,
as we vision rubbled homes,
murdered civilians,
and charred babies.
And you, in our sadness, sound your mantra,
“Blessed are the peacemakers.”
We do not love war,
we yearn for peace,
but we have lost much will for peace
even while we dream of order.
And you, in your hope, sound your mantra,
“Blessed are the peacemakers.”
Deliver us from excessive certitude about ourselves.
Hold us in the deep ambiguity where we find ourselves,
Show us yet again the gaping space
between your will and our feeble imagination.
Sound your mantra with more authority,
with more indignation,
through sadness,
in hope … “Blessed be the peacemakers.”
Only peacemakers are blessed.
We find ourselves well short of blessed.
Give us freedom for your deep otherwise,
finally to be blessed,
in the name of the Peacemaker
who gave and did not take. Amen.
(A prayer by Walter Breuggemann written on the occasion of the bombing of Serbia in March of 1999. Found in Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth: Prayers of Walter Brueggemann, ed. Edwin Searcy (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003), pp. 113-4.)
