Isaiah 59:16 says, And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. Isaiah said that God could not find an intercessor within His chosen people, so He brought salvation and righteousness to them. We are all guilty of sin, and we can never bring salvation to anyone, even ourselves, but by the mercy of God, He provided a way for us to have salvation from our sins and be made righteous through the shed blood of Jesus, Christ. He is the only One qualified Who can offer us salvation, so there is no need to look anywhere else.
Verse seventeen adds, For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. Isaiah said that the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ, would put on the breast plate of righteousness and the helmet of salvation, but He would also wear garments of vengeance and wear zeal as a cloak. The people of Israel, and people today, cannot be saved by their own righteousness so we come to God through the righteousness of Jesus Christ and then accept the salvation that He alone can provide. The people of Israel often seemed to lack the zeal to do what they know they needed to do, so Jesus Christ did it for them with zeal. As followers of Christ, we should have zeal to do what He calls us to do, but too often we don’t. This does not mean that God’s work won't be done, but God may have to call someone else to do it. Of course, this doesn’t apply to salvation, since here is only one Person qualified to bring us salvation, and that is Jesus Christ.
Verse eighteen continues, According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence. Isaiah said that God would pay people according to their deeds, but this doesn’t mean that we can earn our salvation. God is one day going to hold people accountable for their sins if they don’t accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, but it will be because of their choice and not God’s vindictiveness.
Verse nineteen states, So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. Isaiah said there was going to come a day when everyone who has not accepted His gift of salvation will fear the name of the Lord. He also said that the Spirit would lift up His standard against them. Matthew Henry says that when God’s people are too weak to stand against all the forces of evil, the Holy Spirit will fight the fight for them. We just need to rest secure in that promise.
Verse twenty adds, And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord. Though the people might have been temporarily redeemed at times, the Redeemer Who will redeem those who put their faith in Him forever is Jesus Christ. Whether we claim that redemption or not is up to each individual, but God has made it available to everyone.
Verse twenty-one continues, As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the Lord, from henceforth and for ever. God said that those who entered into a covenant relationship with Him by putting their faith in Jesus Christ are His from now until forever. We are not one day going to be a part of the Kingdom of God, but we are so from the time we accept Jesus Christ and forever after that. The Holy Spirit indwells us from the moment we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, and He will always guide us by the word of God, as long as we allow Him to.
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