There have been and will continue to be periods of judgment up until the last days: judgments against the Lord's people for idolatry in the Bible days, judgments against the wicked idolaters of other nations, judgments against those who have persecuted the Lord's people. But what is primarily in view here is the final day of judgment.
Isaiah says, "See, the Lord is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; He will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants---it will be the same for priest as for people, for the master as for his servant, for the mistress as for her servant, for seller as for buyer, for borrower as for lender, for debtor as for creditor. The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The Lord has spoken His word." (Isaiah 24:1-3)
The nations that existed in Isaiah's day were going to experience some devastation, to be sure, and in that sense the prophecy has been partly fulfilled. The known world of his day was going to fall under the rule of powerful empires, such as the Assyrian Empire, then the Neo-Babylonian Empire, then the Medo-Persian Empire, then the Greek Empire, then the Roman Empire. But a larger picture is also in view here and Isaiah's prophecy won't find its complete fulfillment until the end of days when the Lord judges all the wickedness that has ever taken place upon the earth.
Isaiah makes it clear that this judgment is due to wickedness. "The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the heavens languish with the earth. The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth's inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left." (Isaiah 24:4-6)
The Lord created the earth in a perfect condition. But when man fell from grace, his sin brought a curse upon the earth, as we studied in the book of Genesis. This curse is why we must work hard to make a living. This curse is why disease befalls man, animals, and plants. This curse is why accidents occur. This curse is why death exists. We have all experienced the effects of this curse but in the end times the curse is going to reach its ultimate point---because that is when sin will reach its ultimate point---and the Lord is going to pour out His wrath such as never before.
In the coming days we will be studying Isaiah 24 in conjunction with other passages of Scripture regarding the time known as the Great Tribulation and the final judgment. But I want to conclude today's study session by looking at Isaiah's statement that the people "must bear their guilt". He is talking about unrepentant people. He is not talking about the people who have placed their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and who have been redeemed by the sacrifice He made. Those of us who are saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are not the ones in view here, for Christ has borne our guilt!
We need not be overcome with anxiety when we study end times prophecy. The dreadful woes pronounced upon mankind and upon the earth in those days are pronounced against those who have rejected the Lord. You and I, as believers, are to be looking for Christ to appear to call us up to be with Him. We are not to be fearfully looking about us for signs that the end of days is near. We are to be listening for the Bridegroom to call our names, not listening for bad news.
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