Isaiah 26:16-21
26:16 a While waiting for God’s salvation (26:1 b), the godly were in distress and longed for their vindication. They prayed beneath the burden of God’s discipline. In Hezekiah’s time, Judah was in distress when Sennacherib attacked and destroyed the whole nation except for Jerusalem.26:17 c The imagery of a pregnant woman in childbirth describes the nation’s pain when Assyrian king Sennacherib attacked it in 701 BC (see 37:3 d).
26:18 e Only God can give salvation and bring life (see 59:9-15 f).
26:19 g those who die ... will live: There is hope for the remnant. Some hold the minimal interpretation that this means the people would be restored to the land after the Exile (see Ezek 37:11-12 h) or that the Lord would preserve Jerusalem (see Isa 29:4 i, 6-8 j). More likely it refers to the resurrection of the body from the grave (see 25:7-8 k). The Old Testament has little to say about the resurrection, but this text anticipates fuller development in the New Testament (see 1 Cor 15:12-58 l).
26:20 m God will punish the wicked, so the godly should go home and stay out of the way.
26:21 n The wicked retain power now, but their oppressive rule will end in the day of the Lord’s wrath, when he will punish them for their sins.
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