25:1 This song opens with a deeply personal testimony (“You are my God”), but the language makes clear that the focus is on Yahweh and his mighty acts, echoing Moses’ song in Exodus 15. The theme of Yahweh as the God of the exodus who rescued and continues to rescue his people runs through the book. This God deserves praise and honor—the appropriate response to who he is and what he does. He is the God of surprise who does “wonderful things,” with the Hebrew word peleʾ (“wonderful”) describing acts beyond human power. The term for “plans” (ʿetsot) is related to the “counselor” of Isaiah 9:6 and relates particularly to God’s activities on behalf of his people, in contrast to the capricious unreliability of the pagan gods. In 37:26 this faithfulness is exemplified in the defeat of Sennacherib. This is not merely a God who is rather good at responding to emergencies; this is a God who is in total control of what has happened, what is happening, and what will happen.

25:2 The Lord’s power is shown in the humbling of the world city, whether specific places in the present or the final destruction of Babylon in the future. The city is a symbol of power and a concentration of strength that easily breeds pride in human security. That is no true security, however, and salvation cannot be found in the city.

25:3 This will ultimately be understood when the proud of the city56 and the strong people come to recognize that worldly power is illusory. This is what conversion is about: turning from our own strength and sources of security to fear the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom.

25:4–5 But the destruction of pride is not an end in itself. Rather, it is meant for the relief of the oppressed and downtrodden. The theme of God as refuge is common in the hymns of the Bible (including in Isaiah; cf. 32:1–2). The Lord protects his people against violent storms and searing heat, not only in the form of natural phenomena but as they represent the fierce opposition of enemies. The enemy’s song will be short-lived as the song of victory resounds from Zion.

25:6 A lavish eschatological banquet is being prepared on Zion at God’s command, at which all the redeemed nations will gather to praise and feast. There is a breathtaking generosity about God, which this passage abundantly demonstrates. The richness of the food and wine make an important point: these are good gifts and, when received with gladness, are blessings. It is in the world city, where gluttony and drunkenness abound, that they become perverted. This will be emphasized again in 55:1–3. The same picture occurs in Proverbs 9, where Wisdom and Folly issue invitations to their parties. They both speak in public places using similar words, but whereas Wisdom invites to a beautiful house and a lavish meal, Folly invites people down to Sheol with stolen bread and water. The idea further occurs in the parable of the great banquet (Luke 14:12–24) and in the wedding feast of the Lamb (Rev. 19:9).

25:7–8 But all these victories will remain hollow without deliverance from the ultimate enemy. Unless death itself is defeated and destroyed, everything is destined to end in tears. Death is the ultimate leveler and the grim frontier post that ends all our hope and ambitions. In the face of this specter, the tenderness of the Lord is powerfully conveyed; it is not just that there will be no more tears but that God will wipe the tearstained faces of his people as a parent comforts a child. The “veil” here is the shroud casting its universal fear and blight over all humanity and mocking the power of the nations. This not only will be removed but will utterly vanish; it is not just that no one will die but that even the possibility of death will be absent. The swallower will be swallowed.57

This is glorious poetry, but like all good poetry it is a window into reality, pointing to the death and resurrection of Jesus, who by dying destroyed “the one who has the power of death” (Heb. 2:14) and thus opened the way for the last enemy to be defeated forever (1 Cor. 15:12–17). The “reproach of his people” is their failure to obey and their consequent exile, as well as, more generally, the way that as God’s people we still sin and die. But in the new creation sin and death will be gone forever.

Many argue that there is no clear picture of resurrection here and that such a picture does not occur until Daniel 12:2. This is unnecessarily skeptical. Enoch and Elijah were both evidently taken to heaven without dying, showing that even in the fallen world death operates only under God’s permission. Until the resurrection and the empty tomb of Christ the picture was not as clear, but it is hard to believe that people of faith throughout the OT did not look forward to a life in God’s immediate presence (cf. Pss. 16:10–11; 23:6; 139:8). As so often, Isaiah underlines the reality of what he describes with the words “The Lord has spoken.”

25:9 “On that day” shows that here the last day has come and God’s people are rejoicing in the arrival of the long-awaited kingdom. The wait has been worth it, as salvation is fully realized and the party begins. Such a spirit marked Paul in his last days as he looked forward to resting from his labors and enjoying his full salvation, anticipating this joy with “all who have loved his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:8). Waiting, of course, is a major part of faith, an important theme in Isaiah.

25:10 The hand of the Lord resting on Zion is paralleled by his foot resting on Moab. Throughout these chapters addressing the nations, attention has been focused on both big and small powers. Moab has already been addressed in Isaiah 15–16. Here she represents arrogant self-sufficiency that refuses the offer of salvation. The language here is stark. Motyer expresses it vividly: “The alternative to the banquet is the midden.”58

25:11–12 In spite of this, Moab will not yield but instead attempts self-assertion, conveyed here by the simile of the swimmer. The picture then changes back to that of the walled city, which will be completely demolished from top to bottom. Indeed, not even ruins will remain; dust will be Moab’s only memorial.