Isaiah 60:2 (ESV)

Bible Commentary

Isaiah 60:2 is a Bible verse from the Old Testament where the Lord is revealing what has been and the promise of what is to come. The entire Book of Isaiah is an amazing book of prophecy. It is filled with wonderful promises and also contains some dire warnings.

The first part of Isaiah 60:2 is one such warning.

The words are daunting and intriguing at the same time. Wouldn’t we see this darkness that is supposed to cover the earth? What does He mean by thick darkness?

We must bear in mind that God is Spirit, and He operates in the spiritual and in the natural. These words were written many, many years ago and it is already in effect in the spiritual realm, which manifests in the physical realm.

The Hebrew meaning of “darkness” is: misery, destruction, death, sorrow, wickedness, obscurity.

We have all seen and experienced these things upon the earth in our lifetime. The sin of man caused the curse of this darkness, which we can read about in Genesis 3. This curse was applied to the whole earth.

What is Your “Thick Darkness”?

More specifically in Isaiah 60:2, God warns us about thick darkness covering the people. The Hebrew meaning of “thick darkness” is: gloom, dark cloud.

Seeing this definition causes me to recall a personal struggle with finances, which I wrote about in the Bible Commentary of Psalm 23:1. In my own family, we have endured a perpetual dark cloud that seems to cling to our finances. Though we have had some successes and enjoyed prosperity in seasons, our finances seem to always be drawn back down to gloom.

Maybe there is an area of your life where you can also relate. You don’t know exactly why, but maybe there is a deep sense of dread or even anger toward someone or something in your life. Maybe you can see a reason for it, or maybe there’s not one. You just know there is an aversion (gloom) down deep in your heart about it (or them). A dark cloud in your life.

After God had given the Ten Commandments to Moses and the people of Israel,

“…the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, ‘You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.’ Moses said to the people, ‘Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.’ The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.” (Exodus 20:19-21)

The people were so afraid of this darkness they thought they would die. The “thick darkness” God warns us about is something we have all experienced in some way, but it is for our good and for His glory. Let’s look at the last part of Isaiah 60:2.

but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.

Unlocking the Truth – Draw Near

Before we can recognize the brightness and glory of God, we must understand where we’ve been or where we are currently. In the spiritual realm, we don’t realize we’re in the dark until someone flips on the light switch, so-to-speak.

This part of the verse doesn’t say that light will arise upon us. It says the Lord will arise upon us.

Wow. Let that sink in a moment.

The word “arise” in Hebrew means: irradiate (or shoot forth beams), to rise (as the sun), to appear.

In other words, the Lord can shoot forth like a laser beam or be more gradual like the rising of the morning sun. Jesus Christ is the Morning Star (Revelation 2:28). His appearance is described as light and brightness in the Bible.

The Antidote for the Darkness

His bright shining is the antidote for all that ails the darkness in our hearts. What happens to the dark when a light switch is turned on? It flees…instantly. Glory to God! Oh, how we need Him.

The last part of Isaiah 60:2 says His glory will be seen upon us. Our healed hearts will spark such a change in us and upon us that it will be apparent to others. We will radiate the glory of Jesus Christ, like a reflection of light in a mirror. Hallelujah!

Note that He is speaking to Israel, which means the body of Christ–all who have accepted Him as their Savior. As Christians, we have the most amazing promises of God available to us. We don’t have to live with dark gloom in our hearts, praise God!

We have the peace and healing of Jesus Christ in us, if we only believe and call upon Him, and then have the courage to receive it. Remember that Moses “drew near to the thick darkness where God was” in Exodus 20:21. That takes courage, and in Christ we have it.

Study the Bible verse of Isaiah 60:2 and believe for the Lord to arise upon you so His glory will be evident in your life.