"Put On Your Strength, O Zion!"

Jehovah, through Isaiah, calls out to His beloved city, Zion:  "Wake up, wake up, put on your strength, O Zion!  Put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city!  For no more will there come again into you the uncircumcised  and unclean one.  Shake yourself free from the dust, rise up, take a seat, O Jerusalem.  Loosen for yourself the bands on your neck, O captive daughter of Zion."  (Isaiah 52:1, 2)   Because her inhabitants have provoked Jehovah's anger, Jerusalem has lain desolate for 70 years.  (2 Kings 24:4; 2 Chronicles 36:15-21; Jeremiah 25:8-11; Daniel 9:2)  Now it is time for her to wake up from her long period of inactivity and don the beautiful garments of liberty.  Jehovah has moved the heart of Cyrus to free the "captive daughter of Zion" so that the former  inhabitants of Jerusalem and their offspring can leave Babylon, return to Jerusalem, and restore true worship.  No uncircumcised  and unclean ones must be found in Jerusalem. -Ezra 1:1-4.

These words of Isaiah also have a fulfillment on the Christian congregation.  The congregation of anointed Christians can be described as the modern-day "daughter of Zion," since "Jerusalem above" is their mother. Set free from pagan teachings and apostate doctrines, the anointed must maintain a clean standing before Jehovah, no, not by circumcised in the flesh, but by being circumcised   in their hearts.  (Jeremiah 31:33; Romans 2:25-29) This includes maintain spiritual, mental, and moral cleanness before Jehovah. -1 Corinthians 7:19; Ephesians 2:3)

True, "Jerusalem above" has never disobeyed Jehovah.  During the first world war, however, her representatives on earth-anointed Christians - unwittingly broke Jehovah's law because they did not properly understand true Christian neutrality.  Losing divine favor, they came into spiritual captivity to "Babylon the Great," the world  empire of false religion.  (Revelation 17:5)  Their condition of being in slavery climaxed in June 1918 when eight staff members of the Watchtower Society  were imprisoned on false charges, including conspiracy. At that  point the organized preaching of the good news virtually stopped. In 1919, however, a clarion call to spiritual  wakefulness was sounded forth.  Anointed Christians began to separate themselves more completely from the moral and spiritual  uncleanness of Babylon the Great.  They rose from the dust of captivity, and  "Jerusalem above" came to have the splendor of a "holy city" where spiritual uncleanness is not allowed. 

Both in 537 B.C.E. and in 1919 C.E., Jehovah had a perfect right to liberate his people, Isaiah explains:  "This is what Jehovah has said: 'It was  for nothing that you people were sold, and it will be without money that you will be repurchased.' " (Isaiah 52:3) Neither ancient Babylon nor Babylon the Great paid anything when they took possession of God's covenant people as slaves.  Since no transaction involving money took place.  Jehovah was still the legal Owner of his people.  Should he have felt indebted to anybody?  Of course not.  In both cases, Jehovah could rightly purchase his worshipers without giving any compensation to their captors. -Isaiah 45:13.

Jehovah's  enemies had not learned any lessons from history. We read:  "This is what the Sovereign  Lord Jehovah has said:  'It was to Egypt that my people went down in the fist instance to reside there as aliens; and without cause Assyria, for its part, oppressed them.' " (Isaiah 52:4)  Pharaoh of Egypt enslaved the Israelites, who had  been invited to his land to reside as guests.  But Jehovah drowned Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea.  (Exodus 1L11-14; 14:27, 28)  When King Sennacherib of Assyria threatened Jerusalem, Jehovah's angel struck down 185,000 of the king's soldiers.  (Isaiah 37:33-37) Similarly, neither ancient Babylon nor Babylon the Great can escape the consequences of oppressing God's people.

Next time: "My People Will Know My Name"

From the Book Isaiah's Prophecy Light for all Mankind, Volume II, 2001