Isaiah 19 provides a beautiful portrait of where everything is headed. What you see in this chapter is both the end of the universal story and the goal of the gospel message. It’s imperative that followers of Jesus—at every phase of life—locate their own story in the vision of the world found in Isaiah 19.

In this post, I’ll unpack that thesis in six steps. The first two sections explain that the various aspects of the gospel are best held together with a narrative structure. The gospel is a story that includes one major plot and one major subplot. The next three sections explain how Isaiah 19, with help from Isaiah 11, portrays the resolution of both plot and subplot. The final section draws one conclusion: In light of the universal nature of the gospel story, throughout the various phases of our lives, our mission is always the same, until wolf and lamb dwell together.

1. The Narrative Structure of the Gospel
2. The Plot and Major Subplots
3. The Universal Vision of Isaiah 19
4. The Catalyst for Change
5. Plot and Subplot Resolved
6. Conclusion

The Narrative Structure of the Gospel

The story of God reaches its climax in the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, but the resolution of that story is portrayed in the final chapters of Revelation. In a similar way, one might say this statement from Paul is the climax of the gospel message:

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve (1 Corinthians 15:3–5, ESV).

I think it is helpful to blend together the concept of story and plot with the concept of the gospel. Doing so helps make clear that the good news is essentially a story with many parts, including an ending or a resolution. The story of Jesus is the climax of the gospel, but the end of the gospel is new creation, as portrayed in Revelation 21–22. Thinking and speaking about the gospel as a story helps hold together and bring structure to the various parts of the good news. The gospel has plots and subplots that stretch from Genesis to Revelation. You can speak about portions of the story with abstract statements (“Jesus is Lord” or “Jesus died for our sins”), but the overarching structure of the gospel is the biblical story.

The Plot and Major Subplots

Isaiah 19 is similar to Revelation 21–22; it’s another vision of the end of the story. In Isaiah 19, the plot conflict that began in Genesis 1–11 is resolved. Genesis 1–11 portrays a cycle of human rebellion that threatens the partnership God initiated with humanity in Genesis 1–2. That’s the overarching plot of the Bible: God desires to partner with humanity to lead the world into greater flourishing, but humanity rebels.

When humanity threatens the plan, God initiates the Bible’s major subplot with Abraham. Through Abraham’s family, God will renew creation—including humanity—and his partnership with humanity, thereby leading the world into greater flourishing as originally intended. That’s the goal, and you can see it in the final clause of Yahweh’s call to Abraham in Genesis 12:3:

… In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

The subplot that focuses on Abraham (and Israel) is therefore designed to address overarching problem of universal human rebellion. Understanding the story of Scripture in this way is important for making sense of what is happening in Isaiah 19. I tried to visualize these plot lines—and a couple others—in this little sketch:

That sketch is simply trying to illustrate how the story moves …

• From a universal focus
• To a focus on Israel
• To a focus on a faithful remnant within Israel,
• And then finally, once the story reaches its climax in Jesus, it moves again to its original universal scope.
  

The Universal Vision of Isaiah 19

With this paradigm in place, one that understands the story of Israel as a subplot, the vision of Isaiah 19 makes much more sense. This section of Isaiah is characterized by a series of “oracles against the nations,” and chapter 19 starts off with the usual portraits of decreative judgment. Yahweh leads Egypt into confusion and self-destruction (19:1–4), their water sources dry up and their land withers (19:5–10), and because of their confusion and disarray, there is no one who can save them (19:11–15).

The vision shifts radically in verse 16–17, where suddenly Egypt responds to Yahweh’s judgment with fear. Verse 18 explains the nature of this fear: Egypt’s fear leads them to swear allegiance to Yahweh and adopt the language of Canaan. Suddenly there are altars to Yahweh throughout the land (Is 19:19), and in Isaiah’s vision Egypt begins to looks and sound a lot like Israel. How can this be?

Just as Israel cried out to Yahweh for help in Exodus 2:23, and Yahweh heard them and responded with redemption, so also Isaiah envisions a similar experience for Egypt.

When they cry to the LORD because of oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them (Is 19:20).

When God delivered Israel from Egypt in the Exodus, the goal was to make his name known throughout the land (Exod 9:16). In Isaiah’s vision, this same reality will take place for Egypt. Through Egypt’s salvation, Isaiah says,

Yahweh will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know Yahweh in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering … (Is 19:21).

It’s a remarkable vision that just keeps getting more and more remarkable. The same “salvation through judgment” that happened for Israel will happen for Egypt.

Yahweh will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to Yahweh, and he will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them (Is 19:22).

The end of the chapter makes clear that salvation for the nations outside of Israel isn’t just for Egypt. It’s for another archenemy, too: Assyria.

In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians (Is 19:23).

How can this be?

The Catalyst for Change

The broader context of Isaiah fills out the portrait of new creation in Isaiah 19. According to Isaiah, the catalyst for change is “the sprout” or shoot—new growth—from “the stump of Jesse” (Is 11:1). You don’t have to wait until the New Testament to see that the climactic moment in the unfolding story will be focused on a small (singular?) faithful remnant. Isaiah 11 itself describes how a descendant of David, marked by the Spirit of Yahweh, will bring justice and righteousness for the meek and poor (Is 11:1–4), he’ll eliminate the threats posed by the wicked (Is 11:4–5), and the result will be new creation, signified by the wolf and the lamb dwelling together (Is 11:6–9).¹

Now, the second half of Isaiah 11 makes the connection between new creation and the ingathering of the nations. Isaiah 11:12–16 says that the “shoot from the stump” will “raise a signal for the nations,” leading to a highway from Assyria and from Egypt. Here, in chapter 11, it seems as though the highway is just for exiles of Israel and Judah to return to the land. It’s Isaiah 19 that makes clear that Egypt and Assyria will be coming, too.

In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians (Is 19:23).

Plot and Subplot Resolved

Together, Isaiah 11 and 19 bring into focus the resolution of the Bible’s plot and major subplot. The subplot that focused on Abraham and Israel was intended to lead to the blessing “of all the families of the earth” (Gen 12:3). In Isaiah, this story reaches its climax in the “shoot from the stump.” The messianic king brings the blessing of Israel to all nations. The advent of this king simultaneously overcomes the human rebellion (Is 11:1–5) that created the initial plot conflict in Genesis 3–11.

The final verse of Isaiah 19 proclaims the goal of prophet’s good news, which is the end of the biblical story. Israel, Egypt, and Assyria are “a blessing in the midst of the earth” (Is 19:24).

In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, whom Yahweh of armies has blessed, saying “Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance” (Is 19:24–25).

Conclusion

This is Christ the King Sunday in our church tradition, and it’s a good day to remember that the gospel story focuses on the messianic king. No matter our phase of life, we always have to locate our personal story in biblical story. The story of Scripture provides the overarching structure for our gospel message and life mission.

Our mission in life is to partner with God by aligning ourselves with the person and work of the messianic king, Jesus. We trust the Spirit to flow from him, through us, and to lead to new creation. Isaiah 11 and 19, like Revelation 21 and 22, provide portraits of what it might look like “in that day” when the story finally resolves, but who knows what sort of Spirit-inspired new creation might break through as we share the good new now, in word and in deed.

1. I walked through Isaiah 11 in more detail in this post. ↩