We do not usually like talking about war. We live in a post World War era, and the world has known global peace in the past few decades. Peace is good for business, and this results in prosperity and comfort. Therefore, war disrupts these comforts.
But as we approach this text, we need to know God as He revealed Himself, and not based on our modern sensibilities. As we look at this text, let’s consider what is being conveyed.
(A) God the mighty arrives (Isa 63:1)
As this chapter opens, we see a military figure that is coming from Edom and Bozrah (Isa 63:1a). In Isaiah 34:6, we had seen that God had already spoken of judgement against the nation Edom and Bozrah, a city in Edom.
It is important for us to understand the origins of the nation of Edom. Edom traces their origins to Esau and we see early characterisation in the book of Genesis. These are not the people of God and like their father Esau, they are a people of worldly pleasure. In Exodus, they strike Israel after they leave Egypt and God declared that He will remember their actions against Israel.
Another minor prophet, the book of Obadiah is devoted to Edom, as God sends a prophet to the nation to call them out of their sin.
In the New Testament, King Herod is a descendant of Edom. He is also the same king who commands the mass slaughter of Jewish boys when he hears of one that is King of the Jews.
Edom is therefore a picture of those who are opposed to God and His people. This is a symbolic reference to worldliness and godlessness, and is what God is going to war against.
Who answers the prophet’s question (Isa 63:1b)? Notice how he does not identify himself with a name. Sometimes, it is more helpful to answer with a description rather than to just provide a name. Through this description, we are told that this is not a lawless tyrant or vigilante. He identifies himself by His moral character and His saving power (Isa 63:1b).
Instead of giving us a name, the speaker would rather us know that His words are those of righteousness and salvation. He fights not to gain and plunder, but to liberate and save. This is why we need to be careful readers of the Bible! This answers questions of just war and moral duty, and the kind of God we ought to think about when we speak of a biblical picture of God. We all have an idea of God — perhaps one of love and peace, a Father who wants to bless. How many of us would think immediately of His righteousness and moral uprightness? What do we think about when we think about salvation? Would we say it’s about God’s power or do we immediately think about ourselves?
If we lose sight of His righteousness, we will easily replace it with our comfort. The more we are immersed in our ideas of God and not let it be shaped by Scripture, the more we are making a religion and God in our image. We ought not to conform to the patterns of this world, but let our minds be renewed by His word.
Is there an area of your life today that you are not seeing right, because you have no properly prioritised God’s righteousness, strength and power? Are there problems that seem too big because we do not have the right view of His strength and power? Are there things we are doing that no one knows that arise because we have not rightly understood His righteousness?
Friends, this is a God who wages war against ungodliness, and His robes are soaked in blood because of this battle.
(B) The story of His battle garb (Isa 63:2-4)
The prophet next notices and asks about his clothes (Isa 63:2). In Revelation 14:19-20, John lift this language out of Isaiah 63 and into his vision. Bible commentators fall into two main camps. One camp says that John is seeing metaphorical and symbolic events. The other camp (which we are more inclined to adopt) thinks that John is seeing something in the future and is using what he knows from the Old Testament to describe what he is seeing. Thus, John is referencing what he knows of Isaiah’s prophecy.
God answers this question in 3 (or 4) points. Firstly, God recognises the state of the warriors’ garments, but also spoke of the action and the motion behind it. He has trodden the winepress in anger and in wrath (Isa 63:3b). He is not dispassionate! When God is trampling on His enemies, He is not cool and distant about it. There is just wrath and anger. There is a God who is angry with sinners, and His anger is not something we can ignore.
Secondly, notice that He treads this alone (Isa 63:3,5). This is something only He can do. No one else is able.
Thirdly (and fourthly), God also speaks of the day of vengeance and the year of redemption in Isaiah 63:4. Now, the mention of the year of redemption should stand out to us, because it doesn’t belong here!
This figure has a personal stake in this vengeance. And we should not shy away from this! God is deeply offended by the sin of man and is deeply opposed to people who rebel against Him!
Does this make us uncomfortable? Perhaps, we should also consider the basis with which we are judging and evaluating if this is acceptable. As Genesis 18:25 puts it, shall not the Lord of all the earth do what is right?
Earlier in Isaiah 34:8, we were reminded that God’s actions were in response to their sins (vertical dimension). But there is also a horizontal dimension, with the mention of Zion in the verse. God sees all sin in this way — with both a horizontal AND vertical dimension.
Thus, in Isaiah 63:3-4, God was dealing with Edom’s actions towards Zion. This deals with the day of vengeance.
But what about the year of redemption. In Isaiah 61:1-3, the verses spoke about the freedom and restoration as a result of redemption but in Isaiah 61:2, there is a mention of vengeance. How do we get salvation through vengeance?
(C) God’s fight for salvation (Isa 63:5-6)
God acted in this way because no one else could save, judge, avenge and redeem (Isa 63:5a). This is the context that causes God to act. This is a world that is so broken with no one to intervene.
And, this is the same world we live in.
This helps us to avoid a nostalgic view of the past, and an overly romanticised view of the future. It helps us to be honest about our sin, and the sin of this world. And to see that God too, sees our sin for what it is, and also our failure to save and remedy this.
And God went to war against sin (Isa 63:3b).
How does God describe His own actions? In Luke 4:16-21, Jesus read the words of Isaiah 61:1-2 in the synagogue. Notice what Jesus left out — “and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn”.
When Jesus came, He came to proclaim salvation. He has also made it possible to escape the day of vengeance — when He took on the full vengeance and wrath of God on behalf of all who trust in Him. Jesus is trampled on the cross and He spills His blood, so that there is a way of salvation for all who trust in Him.
Salvation comes to us because vengeance falls on Him! The gospel is substitutionary. This is the logic that Scripture insists on. We can be sure that the blood on the garments is not ours if we place our faith and trust in Christ. We can be sure that God is a just God who speaks righteousness and is mighty to save will not demand that our blood be spilt! This is the joy of the gospel, but is also the horror of the gospel. He was crushed for our sins and we do no one any favours if we tell them the good news without the bad.
Being a Christian means trusting that all our sins go to Him, and all His righteousness is now ours in Christ.
What is God saying to you today?