SUMMARY
God’s coming kingdom will be like a feast of rich food, celebrated on God’s mountain where God promises to swallow up death forever.
ANALYSIS
This is one of the most positive “day of the Lord” passages. To be sure, the judgment of the wicked is not far off (25:10b-12), but here God makes clear that the heavenly banquet is meant for “all peoples.” The promise is especially appealing to the poor and needy (25:4), who, no doubt, would never in their lives have experienced a dinner of “rich food” and “well-aged wines.” Alas, many affluent readers in our day have a hard time appreciating these offerings because not only are we never without them, but we have become addicted to them so they no longer seem good. The problem, of course, is ours, not the text’s. As with many biblical promises, they are properly understood only from a situation of need.
God’s mountain, earlier the scene of eternal peace (2:2-4), is now the place where even death is overcome and all tears wiped away. Israel will say on that day, “Lo, this is our God”–and rightly so. There are many descriptions and images of God in the Bible, some more positive than others. But the text is clear: This is the image of GodAccording to the book of Genesis, humans were created in the likeness, or the image, of God. The phrase is generally taken to refer to the uprightness and dignity of human nature. Because of disobedience the image of God has been corrupted or, some say,... par excellence. This is our God–the God of life and abundance who intimately and personally reaches out to wipe the tears from the eyes of those in pain.
