Connect Isaiah 60:20 with Revelation 21:4 regarding the end of sorrow. Setting the Scene • Scripture opens and closes with the theme of God dwelling with His people—first in Eden (Genesis 3:8) and finally in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21–22). • In between, sorrow, darkness, and death mark human history (Romans 5:12). • Isaiah 60:20 and Revelation 21:4 shine like twin beacons, promising an age when sorrow itself is abolished. Isaiah’s Picture of Endless Light Isaiah 60:20: “Your sun will no longer set, and your moon will not wane; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and the days of your sorrow will cease.” • A perpetual day: no sunset, no waning moon—symbolizing unbroken joy. • “The LORD will be your everlasting light” points to God Himself as the source of illumination (cf. Isaiah 60:19; John 8:12). • Result: “the days of your sorrow will cease.” Not merely reduced—ended. Revelation’s Promise of Wiped-Away Tears Revelation 21:4: “‘He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,’ and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away.” • Personal touch: God wipes the tears Himself (cf. Isaiah 25:8). • Four enemies gone forever—death, mourning, crying, pain. • “Former things” pass away; a new order begins (2 Peter 3:13). Uniting the Visions • Same Author: The Spirit who spoke through Isaiah also revealed the finale to John (2 Peter 1:21). • Same setting: both passages look to the millennial kingdom’s culmination in the eternal state where God’s glory lights the city (Revelation 21:23; Isaiah 60:19). • Same outcome: sorrow ends because the causes of sorrow—sin and death—are eradicated (1 Corinthians 15:26, 54-55). • Same certainty: prophetic language is literal; God’s character guarantees fulfillment (Numbers 23:19). The Certainty of Fulfillment • Historical proofs: past prophecies already fulfilled (e.g., Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:22-23) bolster confidence in future ones. • Covenant faithfulness: the promises to Israel in Isaiah flow into the blessings for all nations in Revelation (Galatians 3:14). • Divine presence: God’s light replaces the sun and moon, underscoring permanency (Psalm 36:9). What This Means for Us Today • Hope shapes perspective—“our light and momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18). • Grief has an expiration date; joy does not (John 16:20-22). • Security in Christ anchors the soul while waiting (Hebrews 6:19-20). Living in Anticipation • Walk in the light now (Ephesians 5:8-9). • Comfort one another with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:18). • Serve faithfully, knowing labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58). The day is coming when, just as Isaiah foresaw and John affirmed, sorrow will not simply lessen—it will end, replaced forever by the unsetting light of our Lord. |
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