Isaiah 26

In that day, this song will be sung in the land of Judah: “We have a strong city. God appoints salvation for walls and bulwarks.

Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter: the one which keeps faith.

You will keep whoever’s mind is steadfast in perfect peace, because he trusts in you.

Trust in the LORD forever; for in the LORD, the LORD, is an everlasting Rock.

For he has brought down those who dwell on high, the lofty city. He lays it low. He lays it low even to the ground. He brings it even to the dust.

The foot shall tread it down, even the feet of the poor and the steps of the needy.”

The way of the just is uprightness. You who are upright make the path of the righteous level.

Yes, in the way of your judgments, LORD, we have waited for you. Your name and your renown are the desire of our soul.

With my soul I have desired you in the night. Yes, with my spirit within me I will seek you earnestly; for when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

Let favor be shown to the wicked, yet he will not learn righteousness. In the land of uprightness he will deal wrongfully, and will not see the LORD’s majesty.

LORD, your hand is lifted up, yet they don’t see; but they will see your zeal for the people and be disappointed. Yes, fire will consume your adversaries.

LORD, you will ordain peace for us, for you have also done all our work for us.

LORD our God, other lords besides you have had dominion over us, but we will only acknowledge your name.

The dead shall not live. The departed spirits shall not rise. Therefore you have visited and destroyed them, and caused all memory of them to perish.

You have increased the nation, O LORD. You have increased the nation! You are glorified! You have enlarged all the borders of the land.

LORD, in trouble they have visited you. They poured out a prayer when your chastening was on them.

Just as a woman with child, who draws near the time of her delivery, is in pain and cries out in her pangs, so we have been before you, LORD.

We have been with child. We have been in pain. We gave birth, it seems, only to wind. We have not worked any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.

Your dead shall live. Their dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust; for your dew is like the dew of herbs, and the earth will cast out the departed spirits.

Come, my people, enter into your rooms, and shut your doors behind you. Hide yourself for a little moment, until the indignation is past.

For, behold, the LORD comes out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth also will disclose her blood, and will no longer cover her slain.

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview. This chapter presents a song of trust and deliverance sung by Judah in the aftermath of God’s judgment, portraying the security of the righteous in a divinely protected city and the futility of the wicked. It moves between praise for God’s salvation and reflection on His justice, culminating in a promise of resurrection and a call to wait faithfully through coming wrath.

Flow.

Begins with a prophetic song celebrating God’s establishment of a strong city guarded by salvation, where the faithful nation gains entrance.
Expresses confidence in God’s peace for those who trust Him, contrasted with His leveling of the arrogant city and exaltation of the poor.
Shifts to the moral order of God’s way: the righteous yearn for His name, learn righteousness through His judgments, while the wicked remain unrepentant.
Concludes with a lament over past fruitlessness, a dramatic promise of resurrection for the dead of God’s people, and a summons to take refuge as divine judgment approaches.

Connections. Following chapter 25, which climaxes with a feast for all peoples and the swallowing up of death, chapter 26 continues the theme of universal judgment and covenant hope, now focusing on Jerusalem’s restoration and the resurrection hope of the faithful. The song of confidence in God’s protection and the vision of the dead rising prepare the way for chapter 27, which resolves these themes by depicting the final defeat of chaos and the regathering of Israel, extending the promise of redemption to the ends of the earth.

What it teaches. The chapter reveals God as the eternal Rock (WCF 2.1; WSC Q9) who saves those who trust in Him and brings low the proud. It upholds the principle that divine judgment instructs the world in righteousness (WCF 3.7), even if the wicked remain blind (HC LD 3). The promise of the dead rising (v. 19) anticipates the resurrection of the body (Apostles’ Creed; HC LD 17), while the call to wait in chambers during God’s indignation reflects His sovereign timing in wrath and mercy (WCF 5.4). God alone works salvation and peace for His people (WCF 8.1; LC Q69), breaking the dominion of foreign rulers (v. 13), and ultimately renewing creation.

Apply. Walk in steadfast trust during judgment, knowing God shelters His people and will raise them to life.

AI-generated. Not a substitute for Scripture, your pastor, or the confessions.