Isaiah 66:15-24

Worship or destruction 66:15-24

This pericope concludes the sections on the culmination of Israel’s future (Isaiah 65:17 to Isaiah 66:24), Israel’s future transformation (chs. 56-66), Israel’s hope (chs. 40-66), and the whole book-Yahweh’s salvation. Like Isaiah 56:1-8, it clarifies the difference between being a true servant of the Lord and one of His enemies, i.e., a rebel.

"God does not deliver his servants so that they can revel in the experience of sharing his glory (cf. chs. 60-62). Rather, he delivers them so that they can be witnesses of that glory to the world (cf. Isaiah 6:1-10). . . . This book is not about the vindication of Zion, but about the mission of Zion to declare the God whose glory fills the earth (Isaiah 6:3; Isaiah 66:18) to all the inhabitants of that earth (Isaiah 12:4; Isaiah 51:5; Isaiah 60:9; Isaiah 66:19)." [Note: Oswalt, The Book . . . 40-66, p. 684.]