740_The day of Lord’s vengeance (Isaiah 63:1-6)
Isaiah 63:1-6 Who is this who comes from Edom,
in crimsoned garments from Bozrah,
he who is splendid in his apparel,
marching in the greatness of his strength?
“It is I, speaking in righteousness,
mighty to save.”
2 Why is your apparel red,
and your garments like his who treads in the winepress?
3 “I have trodden the winepress alone,
and from the peoples no one was with me;
I trod them in my anger
and trampled them in my wrath;
their lifeblood spattered on my garments,
and stained all my apparel.
4 For the day of vengeance was in my heart,
and my year of redemption had come.
5 I looked, but there was no one to help;
I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold;
so my own arm brought me salvation,
and my wrath upheld me.
6 I trampled down the peoples in my anger;
I made them drunk in my wrath,
and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”
Before the advent of modern lighthouses, sailors often depended on warning beacons, bonfires lighted on the cliffs above a dangerous rocky shore. A captain who ignored the warning lights would eventually crash upon the rocks. God’s warnings in Scripture serve the same purpose. They are not given to satisfy our curiosity about the future but to call us to safety while there is still time.
Isaiah 63:1–6 is one such warning. It reminds us that while today is the day of God’s mercy, a day is coming when His justice will be fully revealed.
This passage expands on Isaiah 61. When the Lord read from that chapter in the synagogue, He stopped after the words, “to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Isaiah 61:2; Luke 4:18–21). He deliberately left unspoken the next phrase, “and the day of vengeance of our God.” The first coming of the Messiah as the suffering Servant inaugurated the season of grace, inviting sinners to repentance and offering forgiveness in his name. At his second coming he will arrive as the righteous Judge, as Isaiah foresaw. We still live in the year of the Lord’s favor, but that appointed day of judgment is drawing nearer with every passing moment.
As Isaiah’s vision unfolds, he describes the majestic figure coming from Edom, with garments stained crimson as though He had been treading grapes in a winepress. The prophet asks, “Who is this?” The answer comes with unmistakable authority: “It is I, speaking in righteousness, mighty to save” (Isaiah 63:1, ESV). The Lord who comes in judgment is He who acts in righteousness and who is mighty to save. His judgments are never arbitrary or cruel. Everything He does arises from His righteousness and his power to save.
The people of Edom descended from Esau, Jacob’s brother. Esau would normally have inherited the covenant blessings promised to Abraham in double measure, as Jacob’s firstborn. But he traded his birthright for a single meal. Later, the nation of Edom repeatedly opposed Israel. When Israel journeyed from Egypt, Edom refused them passage through their land. Centuries later, when Babylon destroyed Jerusalem, Edom rejoiced over Judah’s downfall, crying, “Lay it bare, lay it bare, down to its foundations!” (Psalm 137:7, ESV). Their history became a picture of those whose contempt for God’s great promises and gracious privileges reveals itself in hostility toward His people. Edom becomes a fitting symbol of all who continually refuse God’s mercy.
Yet we must not misunderstand this passage as depicting a God eager to destroy. For God’s judgment always flows from His righteousness. 2 Thessalonians 1:5–8 reminds suffering believers that God’s justice is necessarily double-pronged. He will vindicate his faithful people when he acts in justice to repay those who afflict them.
This shows us that for God, justice delayed is not justice denied. God’s patience is just as remarkable as His justice. He waits long for sinners to repent. Peter writes, “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9, ESV).
Yet ultimately every wrong will be answered. Every act of evil will receive its righteous response. The wait for justice is not evidence that God ignores sin or is powerless. Rather, it is evidence of His extraordinary mercy. Every sunrise is another invitation to repent. Every gospel message is another expression of His compassion. Every day that Christ has not yet returned is another day in which sinners may find forgiveness.
Moreover, throughout history God never brought judgment without due and ample warning. Before the flood, Noah preached righteousness for many years. Before Nineveh’s destruction, Jonah proclaimed God’s warning. Before Jerusalem fell to Babylon, the prophets repeatedly called the people to repentance. The warnings reveal His gracious heart. He does not delight in the death of the wicked but desires that they turn and live.
Yet his patience will reach its predestined end one day. And Isaiah presents the striking image of the Lord treading the winepress alone. He declares, “I have trodden the winepress alone… their lifeblood spattered on my garments” (Isaiah 63:3, ESV). This points to the glorious return of Christ described in Revelation 19. John writes, “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war” (Revelation 19:11, ESV). The One who was rejected by the nations will return to rule them with justice. History is moving toward that certain day.
Yet the Lord says, “I looked, but there was no one to help… so my own arm brought me salvation” (Isaiah 63:5, ESV). This repeats the words of Isaiah 59, “The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice.
He saw that there was no man;
He was amazed that there was no one to intercede.
So His own arm brought salvation,
and His own righteousness sustained Him.
He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
and the helmet of salvation on His head;
He put on garments of vengeance
and wrapped Himself in a cloak of zeal.”
In both salvation and judgment, God acts alone. No human being can atone for his own sin, nor can anyone prevent God’s final judgment. The same mighty arm that stretched out in mercy at Calvary will one day be stretched out in justice. Our only refuge is not in anything we have done or can do, but in Jesus Christ, who made atonement for our sins and lives today to intercede for us. In him, his people need not fear the coming day of God’s judgment because there is no condemnation for them. Yet the wicked are warned that the day of reckoning will surely come. On that day, God will save the oppressed, in his justice and righteousness, but those who persist in evildoing will be condemned.
We rightly proclaim God’s love, His grace, and His forgiveness to the world. But let us not forget to warn of the coming judgment. Paul declared in Athens, “The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed” (Acts 17:30–31, ESV). God has fixed a day, and He has appointed the Judge. Neither will change. The certainty of that coming day gives urgency to the message we proclaim today.
Let us receive the message of Isaiah 63 with gratitude and seriousness. We who trust and follow Christ know that our Savior is our Judge, and our Judge our Savior. The One who is “mighty to save” is able to save to the utmost every one who comes to God through him. Today still belongs to the year of the Lord’s favor. His arms are open to all who call on him in truth. His call to rest still stands. His patience continues.
But His patience will not last forever. The warning fires are still burning. The safest place to be is in Christ before the day of the Lord’s vengeance arrives. As those who know His mercy, let us lovingly share both the hope of the gospel and the certainty of His coming judgment. Thus, others may turn from sin and find refuge in the Savior while there is still time. God bless.
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