God Gathers God's People and the Peoples of Every Tongue in Jerusalem (Isa 2 and 66)

Abstract

The city of Jerusalem occupies a central place in the Jewish Bible. It is the city loved by the Jewish people because God resides there in the Holy Temple. The purpose of this article is to revisit the theme – announced in Chapter 2 and taken up again in Chapter 66 – which is the framework for the entire prophetic book presenting the great pilgrimage of the peoples of the earth to the new Jerusalem. The inaugural vision presents the fresco of the pilgrimage of the people to Jerusalem and of universal peace, with the use of two metaphors: the pilgrimage and the cosmic shalom. The final vision, in Is 66:18-24, describes the eschatological gathering. The final chapter of the book is divided into three sections: 1. the true temple of God; 2. the refounding of Jerusalem and its motherhood coming from the Lord; 3. the pilgrimage of peoples. These great prophetic visions allow us to understand, even today, God’s plan for the holy city.