The first thing we do upon arrival in the new system, apparently, is chow down. Finally, we have arrived and all the promised blessings being to flow. We have been breaking eggs for the first 23 chapters of Isaiah. Finally, an omelette is emerging. The broken eggs were not for nothing.
It’s such a departure from what threatened to become same ‘ol, same ‘ol, that one theologian wrote a book about it, as though chapters 24-27 itself was a new book, a book within a book in Isaiah. This book is ‘Isaiah 24-27 and the Origin of Apocalyptic.’ by William R. Millar, published in 1976. The four chapters, he and his fellows maintain, find their origin in post-exilic community conflicts, as though those later exiled Jews say: “We may be down but we’re not out! Just wait till next season! Just you wait, ‘enry ‘iggins, there will be payback! Not only will your cans be kicked to the curb, but the rewards to us faithful will be out ‘a sight!. It’s all for us and none for you. Nyah, nyah!” This is about as much as you can expect from higher critics who don’t necessarily believe what they are critiquing, nor is its truthfulness their main concern.
There are omelettes aplenty in the banquet of well oiled dishes, prepared by Jehovah for all the nations at his table. Being from Jehovah’s Mountain, that is Mount Zion, it is the place where the temple was located. It stands symbolically as representative of God‘s government. Today, we would call it God‘s kingdom. When it comes to power, then is served the omelettes. Omelette do not really appear in any of the verses discussed, but it is on the menu. You can order one if you like:
“In this mountain Jehovah of armies will make for all the peoples A banquet of rich dishes, A banquet of fine wine, Of rich dishes filled with marrow, Of fine, filtered wine.” (Isaiah 25:6)
“Squeet!” would grunt my supposed Native American friend, poking fun at himself with his own made-up supposed Native American word, which, when translated, means “Let’s go eat.” Throughout his life, he had told one and all that he was Native American. His Innuet appearance easily convinced non-savvy chums. He believed it himself. But, in his eighties, he took one of those ancestry tests and discovered he had not a drop of Indian blood in him. It was all Swedish. His father had taken off before he was born. Turned out that all his neighbors, perhaps dad himself, were know-nothings. He believed what he had always been told and had come to have a special sympathy for Native Americans.
As to chowing down, Jehovah prepares his feast on the aforementioned “mountain.”—Mt. Zion, where the temple stood. It comes to symbolize God’s presence, wherever he is. It is when his will has come to overshadow everything else, everything that would oppose. Furthermore, he spreads this feast “for all peoples,” not just his own Israel. Many mysteries have been unveiled for that to take place.
Echoes and glimmers and even the exact same thing appear elsewhere in Scripture, both in the Old Testament, as prophetic parallels or echoes, and in the New Testament, as fulfilled in Jesus and the kingdom. Isaiah 55:1-2, for example, and Psalm 23:5, 36:8, Exodus 24:9-11.
In the New Testament: “I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 8:11), in the parable of the wedding banquet (Matthew 22:1–14): A king prepares a magnificent wedding feast for his son. When the originally invited guests decline—they’re all busy— the invitation goes out to everyone—good and bad alike—until the hall is filled. This reflects the universal scope of Isaiah 25:6.
The promise to his eleven, after Judas has been dismissed: “You will eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones…” Luke 22:29–30
The parable of the great banquet: A man prepares a great dinner and sends servants to compel people from the highways and hedges to come in, so his house may be full. Again, the emphasis is on abundant provision and inclusion of unexpected guests, echoing the “all peoples” of Isaiah. (Luke 14:15–24)
The foretaste of Matthew 26:29, with parallels at Mark 14:25 and Luke 22:18: “I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
The Last Supper and the future Messianic Banquet: Jesus connects the Passover wine to a future joyful drinking of new/aged wine in the fulfilled kingdom—directly recalling the “finest of wines” and “aged wine” of Isaiah 25:6.
The Grand Finale itself in Revelation 19:6–9: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad… Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”
Really, every time Jesus fed the masses it was a precursor of the messianic feast.
So it is that meetings and publications of Jehovah’s Witnesses love to dramatize this scene. Take the 2021 Regional Convention, for example, which I wrote up in ‘In the Last of the Last Days: Faith in the Age of Dysfunction.’ All the trimmings are there, the participants are exchanging recipes, all of which are from the same recipe book, and there is contained even the extra-apocalyptic account of the guard who came into the faith because the guard of Acts 16 did. And then—knock me over with a feather!—a special guest of honor is there. It was the resurrected Joseph at the convention, though I made him the resurrected Mephibosheth in my book. Both are sure that the fellow guests will have many questions to ask. In my book, the first question is mine, and it is how did he ever get stuck with such an unpronounceable turkey of a name, to which he replied that it was just one of those things. Nonetheless, the great evening banquet scene was sort of a show-stopper at the convention, as it will be when the fulfillment of Jehovah’s promises in the kingdom of his son brings it about.
****** The bookstore
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