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Isaiah 62 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
*If you haven’t read the Isaiah 61 blog entry, it would be helpful for context. Isaiah 62 is picking up on the new status of Israel after their redemptive moment in Isaiah 61.*
Holy people. Redeemed. Sought out. Not forsaken.
A relational God uses relational language for His people. They will go from captivity to redemption. They will go from a destructive relationship to one of empowerment. Interestingly, this status change will come with a “new name.”
“Nations will see your righteousness and all kings, your glory. You will be given a new name that the LORD’s mouth will announce. [3] You will be a glorious crown in the LORD’s hand, and a royal diadem in the palm of your God’s hand.”
Isaiah 62:2-3 CSB
Where else in the Bible do we read this same language?
“Let anyone who has ears to hear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name is inscribed that no one knows except the one who receives it.
Revelation 2:17 CSB
The prophecy in Isaiah 62 is contextually speaking to Israel. John, in the book of Revelation, is writing to churches in Asia Minor (a primarily Gentile region). So, the question is, what is the connection? G.K. Beale believes there is a common thread that runs through both of these prophecies. The concept of receiving a “new name” is related to ownership and identity.
“This conclusion is also pointed to by observing that the ‘new name’ of 2:17 is an allusion to the prophecy of Isa. 62:2 and 65:15 about Israel’s new standing in the future. The saints of Israel are referred to figuratively (by metonymy) as Jerusalem which ‘will be called by a new name.’ There, the ‘new name’ designates Israel’s future kingly status (62:3), restoration to Yahweh’s covenantal presence (62:4a; cf. the same significance for ‘name’ in 56:4–8; 65:15–19).”
“The promised blessings of this prophecy will be fulfilled among those in the church, the latter-day Israel, who do not compromise. Isaiah’s prophecy of Israel’s restoration to God’s latter-day presence lies as the substratum also for all the other references in the book to the believers’ ‘name’ (3:12; 14:1; 22:4) and God’s or Christ’s ‘name’ (3:12 and 22:4, as well as 19:12–13, 16).”
G.K. Beale
In Isaiah, the “new name” symbolizes a future status change for Israel. There will come a royal day when they will be restored to a special relationship with God. In Revelation, we learn that these promises also apply to believers in the church who remain faithful and do not compromise their beliefs. It is also significant to mention that (as Beale states) the concept of a “new name” also appears in other parts of the Bible, symbolizing a close relationship with God or Christ.
What does all this mean? God is a relational Father. He loves you as a son or daughter. He has a redemptive plan that positions you in your new eternal identity. And the beautiful thing about all of this is that He gives us the Holy Spirit who empowers us to live the rest of our lives here on earth in that new identity.