November 30, 2025
Mountains
of Peace
The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning
Judah and Jerusalem. It shall come to pass in the latter
day that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be
established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be
lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to
it, and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us
go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the
God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we
may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the
law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem He shall
judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for
many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall
not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn
war anymore. O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the
light of the Lord.
I S A I A H 2 : 1 - 5
“Start at the beginning, and when you get to the end–
stop” is good advice for the reading and writing of books, as
Lewis Carrol knew so well. However, Isaiah is not an author
who plays by the rules. Instead of starting at the beginning,
he jumps right to the end: “In the last days,” he says in verse
2. The picture he goes on to paint is nothing short of breathtaking, illustrated in both earthly and divine hues.
Isaiah begins with a mountain range, where one peak
soars head-and-shoulders above the rest. Over the years,
many rivers and streams have carved their way into this particular mountainside, rivers of every imaginable size, shape,
color, depth, and volume. But there is also something strange
about these rivers, and as we look closer at Isaiah’s painting,
we see it: These rivers are flowing upward, toward the peak!
Their waters are drawn toward the top by an unseen force.
Isaiah pictures Mount Zion–which is both the physical location of the Temple Mount and the symbolic representation
of God’s rule and reign (i.e., his Kingdom) as a city on a hill toward which all people will one day flow. Mount Zion becomes
the spiritual confluence point where all tribes and tongues and nations will meet to form one river, “a river whose streams
make glad the city of God” (Isa. 46:4).
But perhaps most surprisingly is what’s happening at the
peak of Mount Zion. Unlike Israel’s pagan neighbors, whose
deities were said to fight bloody battles atop nearby Mount
Zaphon, Mount Zion is a place of peace. Here, swords are
transformed into plows and spears re-fashioned into pruning
hooks. The agricultural imagery takes us back to Genesis 2.
On Zion’s peak, we hear echoes of Eden, where believers
enjoy peace with God and peace with one another.
No more
sin. No more curse. No more death. No more sorrow. And all
because, through Jesus Christ, we have finally arrived at a true
and better Zion (Heb. 12:22-24).
Dear Jesus,
FILL MY HEART WITH HOPE AS I’M
JOYFULLY DRAWN UP TO MOUNT ZION
EVEN AS I AWAIT YOUR RETURN.
Amen.
Living Word Lutheran Church Kingman Arizona
Copyright © 2026 | Powered by 
churchtrac
churchtrac