Prophecies of Peace

MEMORY VERSE: “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” —Isaiah 9:7

ISAIAH 11:1-9

WHEN considering the Bible’s prophecies of peace, it is important to realize that their fulfillment will be accomplished by “the zeal of the Lord of hosts,” as pointed out to us in our memory text. Many earnest ‘believers fail to take this into consideration, and they suppose that the only way lasting and universal peace will ever come to this earth is through human efforts.

There are many people of good will throughout the earth who are laboring diligently to establish peace. But God has his own peace plan, and when his due time comes he will “speak peace” to the nations. (Zech. 9:10) Then “they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks; nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”—Micah 4:1-4

Our memory verse speaks of a government of peace. This is Christ’s kingdom. The angel Gabriel announced to Mary that her son Jesus would sit upon the throne of David. This will not be a literal throne, made of gold, or other material. A throne is used in this prophecy to suggest rulership, a rulership typified by David’s rulership over ancient Israel. In this rulership, David sat upon the throne of the Lord; that is, he represented the Lord as king of Israel. This arrangement came to an end with the overthrow of Zedekiah. The Bible shows that Jesus will be the antitypical David and that he reigns for the purpose of re-establishing the sovereignty of Jehovah, the Creator, throughout the earth.

“Of the increase of His government and peace,” Isaiah wrote, “there shall he no end.” It will continue to spread its sphere of influence until the whole earth is brought under its control, and when that is accomplished, there will be world-wide peace—peace among the nations, peace within the nations; yes, peace even within human hearts. Above all, there will be peace between God and man—all men.

The fact that God’s power will accomplish this grand design is further brought out in our lesson by the assurance that “the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,” that is, upon the One whom he has appointed to be the great King and “Prince of Peace.” The Spirit of the Lord resting upon this One who comes “out of the stem of Jesse” will give him “the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.” What a wise, just, and sympathetic Ruler he will be!

Because the Spirit of the Lord will be upon earth’s new Ruler and Judge, and because he has been highly exalted to the divine nature, “he shall not judge after the sight of the eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears.” This means that in the establishment of peace through a just rulership, there will be no errors of human judgment.

“With righteousness shall he judge the poor,” and according to the marginal translation, he will “argue with equity for the meek of the earth.” Those who wilfully transgress the laws of that kingdom of peace shall be destroyed from among the people; or, as Isaiah states it, the exalted Jesus will slay the wicked “with the breath of his lips.”—ch. 11:4; Acts 3:23

Isaiah’s description of wild and domestic animals dwelling amicably together, with a little child leading them, is probably largely symbolic of the peace that will be established throughout the earth under the rulership of Christ. It is to be remembered, however, that when God created man he gave him dominion over the lower animals. All that man lost because of sin will be restored during the reign of Christ, including the dominion over the animals; so this prophecy may also have a literal fulfillment.

“They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa. 11:9) In that “holy mountain” or kingdom of the Lord, nothing will be permitted to injure those who are faithfully serving the Lord; nor will there be any areas of the earth where the people will not be given a true knowledge of the Lord.

Nor will the knowledge of the Lord then be merely a superficial understanding of him. The Scriptures assure us that the Lord will write his law in the hearts of the people and that all shall know him; from the least unto the greatest.—Jer. 31:31-34

QUESTIONS

Will man ever be able to establish peace on earth by his own efforts?

What is the “government” referred to in our memory verse?

Why do we know that Jesus, as the great Judge in his kingdom, will deal justly and effectively with the people?

When will the knowledge of the Lord fill the earth?

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