“Mine Elect Shall Inherit It”
“And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there.” — Isaiah 65:9
Everything in this verse has a double application. It speaks first of Christ and then of God’s elect in Christ.
A Seed
“I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob.” — This must be applied to Christ. He is the Seed of woman, the Seed of Abraham, and the Seed of David. He sprang from Jacob, out of the tribe of Judah. He is very beautifully represented as a cluster of grapes in which the new wine of all the blessings of God and his grace are found (v. 8). In him are clusters of all divine perfection (Col. 2:9). Clusters of grace, all grace, are in him (Eph. 1:3). Clusters of promises are in him yea and amen (2 Cor. 1:20). Our great Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man, our Redeemer is that Seed in whom all the nations of the earth are blessed (Gal. 3:16).
Yet these words have an application to God’s elect in Christ. We who believe are God’s chosen seed in him, brought forth out of Jacob and Judah, for we are one with Christ. The grace of God in us is as a cluster of new wine. All the benefits and blessings of grace are ours in him (Eph. 1:3-14). The Fruit of God’s grace is brought forth in believing sinners by the mighty operations of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23).
An Inheritor
“And out of Judah,” God says, I will bring forth “an inheritor of my mountains.” — Certainly, this is true of Christ. He who is the Heir of all things (Heb. 1:2) is the inheritor of God’s mountains. Christ is the inheritor of all things by nature as the Son of God, the Creator of all things. He is the inheritor of all things by divine appointment as our Mediator (John 17:2). The Lord Jesus Christ has all creation, all things, all men, all angels, and all devils in his hands (Matt. 20:15). And he has inherited all the blessings of the heavenly inheritance as the Forerunner for his people (Heb. 6:20).
And all God’s elect are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ. — “All things are yours, for ye are Christ’s.” God’s elect shall inherit all things with Christ (Rom. 8:17; John 17:5, 22). We shall inherit all the blessings and benefits of the covenant, all the fulness of God’s grace, all the perfection of righteousness, and all the bliss, glory, happiness, and fulness of heaven. God’s mountains speak of those mountains upon which Jerusalem and his temple were built. They represent the fullness of heaven’s glory, both the throne of God and the temple of his presence.
“Mine Elect”
“And mine elect shall inherit it.” — Christ is God’s first and chief Elect (Isa. 42:1). We were chosen in him by the grace of God unto eternal glory. That is the meaning of the next line. — “And my servants shall dwell there.” God’s people are his servants. They shall dwell in his holy mountains (in his churches) in this world. And they shall dwell in his holy mountains of everlasting glory.
The Pledge
In verse 10 we see that grace experienced and possessed in the soul here is the pledge and hope of everlasting glory hereafter. — “And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me.” Sharon was a rich, fertile land around Joppa and Lydda in which shepherds found rich pastures for their herds and flocks (1 Chron. 27:29). Perhaps, as Gill suggests, this is a prophecy of the conversion of some in those parts, which was fulfilled during apostolic times (Acts 9:35). There Christ had his sheep; and there he established a fold for his sheep. Even if that is the case, Sharon is to be looked upon allegorically, representing the Word of God and the ordinances of the gospel, which are green pastures for Christ’s sheep (Ps. 23:1-2).
The valley of Achor was the place where Achan was stoned because of his sin. This valley of Achor the Lord promises shall be given to his people for a door of hope (Hos. 2:15). Here, in this land of destruction, death, and sin, the Lord God gives us hope. The valley of Achor was also the very first spot of ground upon which the children of Israel set their feet after crossing over the Jordan River into the land of promise. As such, it represents the beginnings of salvation and grace in us, the earnest and firstfruits of the Spirit, which is the pledge, promise, and hope of glory to come (Eph. 1:13-14; 4:30). Grace experienced and possessed in the heart is the pledge of everlasting glory with Christ.
Specific People
This promise from God is for a specific people. It is given “for my people that have sought me.” Notice how these people to whom God gives this door of hope are described by him. They are called “My People.” They are a people “Which have sought Me.” These are the people who have been sought and found by God’s almighty grace (v. 1). In verses 8-10 the Lord God gives us a sevenfold description of his people in this world. Starting at verse ten and going back up to verse eight, we are described as...
God’s people are, as Matthew Henry wrote, “blessings to the places where they live; and sometimes God spares whole cities and nations for the sakes of a few such men. How ambitious we should be of this honor, not only to be distinguished from others, but serviceable to others!”
Don Fortner