“On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined. And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.” (Isaiah 25:6-7)
Isaiah described the Kingdom of God in terms of a great banquet in which all the redeemed take part. This means that there will be no physical, emotional, or spiritual hunger or thirst in God’s Kingdom. There will be rejoicing because there will be no shame or guilt. The banquet celebrates the comfort, peace, and freedom from pain, strife, anxiety, fear, and worry that comes from being in the presence of the Lord.
Isaiah’s words ought to provide comfort to us all in these days of social unrest, including those crying out for justice for the oppressed. He speaks of the veil that covers all people. This veil is the fear of death as well as the veil of sin. These are the things that weigh heavily on the hearts of all people. This is the same veil that covers those who are afflicted with racism as well as those who cry out against it. As people try to cope with this veil, many lash out with hatred, violence, and anger, They feel the oppressive and horrible weight of that veil of sin and death but either do not understand its essence or else refuse to admit to its reality. Consequently, they cannot combat it effectively, let alone remove it try as they might.
The Lord invites all these to His heavenly banquet. This banquet is a victory celebration. As with every victory there is a winner and a loser. The losers are those who are not redeemed, those who have rejected Christ’s offer of grace and mercy. They reject the Lord in favor of gorging themselves without limit in this life and so will miss out on the eternal feasting and rejoicing. With Isaiah we can rejoice in the glory of God and the wonders with which He blesses His chosen ones, but while here we will still mourn for the lost for many of them will be those we love and admire, those celebrities and leaders we think are so wonderful as well as our friends and family. Thus we must make every effort to ensure that these will not miss that heavenly feast. We must preach the gospel of salvation in Jesus alone not just in words but in deeds that demonstrate the saving power and love of Jesus. We must do this in spite of the opposition and ostracism with which they will assault us.