Daily Devotions
Isaiah
"All joy is darkened"
Text: Isaiah 24:11
A PICTURE OF GLOOMY DARKNESS
A sad description is given about a city that is struck by war and destruction. The text here described the deep sense of forlornness of the destroyed city.
“There is a cry for wine in the streets,
All joy is darkened,
The mirth of the land is gone.
In the city desolation is left,
And the gate is stricken with destruction.
When it shall be thus in the midst of the land among the people,
It shall be like the shaking of an olive tree,
Like the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is done.”
Isaiah 24:11-13
1. A city deprived of happiness.
a) There is a longing for wine that does not exist.
b) Whatever joy that was felt in the heart was darkened by foreboding.
c) There was no more mirth in the land.
d) It was as if Joy had been sucked out of the city.
2. The city destroyed by war.
a) Desolation was all that was left.
b) The city gates were struck down and destroyed.
c) Despair hit all who lived in the city that was once filled with joy and mirth.
3. Stark comparisons.
a) The olive trees were usually shaken to cause the fruit to drop.
i) But the olive tree was already bare.
ii) The shaking of the olive tree continued but only brought forth
an even greater sense of despair.
b) The harvest of grapes usually brought great cheer.
i) The vintage would be noted.
ii) All would celebrate a great year of harvest.
iii) But the harvest was long past and there were no more grapes.
iv) The poor gleaners would feel great sorrow because there was nothing left
for them to glean.
c) This imagery was employed to describe the depth of sadness and gloom that had descended on the city of Jerusalem!
d) Both the Olive Grove and the Vineyard were symbols of ancient Israel.