Isaiah 35:2 Commentary: Seeing God's Glory in the Transformed Wilderness

Isaiah 35 follows the oracle against Edom (chapter 34), which describes that nation reduced to a wasteland. Now the prophet pivots: where the enemy land is ruined, the wilderness, often symbolising Judah under judgment and exile, will be restored. The historical background is the 8th-century-BC Assyrian crisis, when the northern kingdom fell and Judah was threatened. The 'wilderness' likely alludes both to the physical land laid waste by invasion and to the spiritual barrenness of a people estranged from God.

The three regions named, Lebanon, Carmel, Sharon, were proverbial for their natural gifts. Lebanon was famous for its towering cedars (used in Solomon's temple); Carmel for its lush vineyards and orchards; Sharon for its fertile coastal plain and pasturelands. To say their glory is 'given to it' means the desert will receive the accumulated beauty of Israel's most celebrated landscapes. This is more than poetic hyperbole, it signals a new creation, a reversal of the curse.

At the core stands the vision of Yahweh's glory. The phrase echoes Exodus 33:18, where Moses asks to see God's glory, and the answer is a proclamation of God's name and character. In Israel's worship, the glory (kabod) of Yahweh filled the tabernacle and temple as a visible, fiery presence. Here the prophet promises that transformation culminates in a restored theophany: the people will again 'see' their God. The following verses (3-6) make explicit that this vision comes when God himself arrives to save, heal, and lead his people home, a coming that Isaiah later links to a harbinger's voice crying in the wilderness (40:3-5). The chapter thus stands as one of the Bible's great promises of restoration, read by both synagogue and church as a hope for God's decisive intervention.

The primary textual issue in Isaiah 35:2 is the reading in the first half of the verse. The Masoretic Text has yᵊrannēn ('singing' or 'shouting for joy'), but the Septuagint apparently read yarden ('Jordan'), translating 'the deserts of Jordan.' Barnes notes that Lowth adopted this reading, rendering 'The well-watered plain of Jordan shall rejoice,' but adds that no Hebrew manuscripts support the change. Jerome followed the Septuagint, applying it to John the Baptist's preaching. The form yᵊśuśum (third masculine plural imperfect with m suffix) in verse 1 has puzzled commentators; Lange, following Aben Ezra and Delitzsch, explains it as assimilation of n to m before a labial, a known phonetic phenomenon. The consulted sources note no other significant variants, and the main flow of the verse is stable across manuscripts.

Isaiah 35:2 has been read in both Jewish and Christian traditions as a promise of radical restoration. The Targum and early rabbinic commentaries connected it to the return from exile and the rebuilding of the temple. In the Christian tradition, Jerome applied the verse to John the Baptist's preaching in the wilderness of Jordan, interpreting the blossoming as the response to his call to repentance. The Reformers, Calvin, Luther, and the Geneva Bible, saw the chapter as describing the spiritual blessings of Christ's kingdom. Matthew Henry and Gill read it as a prophecy of the Gentile church flowering under the gospel. The verse appears frequently in Advent liturgies as a herald of God's coming, and its imagery ('the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose') has been set to music in hymns of hope and restoration across denominations.

Three-point outline

1. The certainty of transformation. 'Blossoming it shall blossom', the Hebrew double verb assures that the wilderness will not merely change but flourish abundantly. The preacher can show that God's restoration is not half-hearted; it overflows with life.
2. The gift of borrowed glory. Lebanon, Carmel, Sharon represent the best of the land. Their glory is given to the desert. This is not self-improvement but a bestowed beauty. The church receives a beauty not her own, the righteousness and presence of Christ.
3. The ultimate vision. 'They will see the glory of the LORD.' All transformation aims at this: the perception of God. Calvin insists that knowledge of God is the root of all fertility. The sermon should press that our deepest need is not repaired circumstances but the sight of God's face.

Five-point outline

1. Abundant blossoming: The God who makes deserts bloom.
2. Uncontainable joy: The wilderness itself rejoices and sings.
3. Transferred glory: The best of the old land becomes the new land's heritage.
4. Seeing God: The goal of every promise, the vision of Yahweh.
5. Our God: The covenant name that personalises the glory. 'The excellency of our God' ties the vision to relationship.

Illustration hooks

• Landscape after fire: A visitor to a burned forest expects barrenness, but within months wildflowers carpet the blackened ground. The desert blooms not in spite of destruction but because of it, a picture of resurrection.
• Borrowed finery: A child given a hand-me-down gown that once belonged to someone celebrated. The gift transforms the child's bearing. So the wilderness wears Lebanon's cedars, Carmel's vineyards, Sharon's pastures, a dignity that comes from outside.
• Fog lifting to reveal a mountain: All along the glory was there, hidden by weather. The restoration is not adding something new but removing what obscures. The people 'see' what was always true: Yahweh is glorious.

Questions your congregation is asking

• Is this promise only for ancient Israel, or can I expect a 'wilderness' in my life to blossom?
• How do I 'see the glory of the LORD' in a world that often feels barren and joyless?
• If God promises abundant transformation, why does my healing or deliverance sometimes feel slow?

This passage turns a prophecy of judgment into a vision of hope. As you discuss, notice how the prophet moves from landscape to people: the desert rejoices, the glory is given, and finally the people see God. The physical images carry spiritual weight.

Discussion questions

1. Observation: What landscapes does the prophet name, and what does each contribute to the picture of restoration? (Lebanon, cedars/majesty; Carmel, beauty; Sharon, fertility)
2. Observation: The Hebrew doubles the verb 'blossom' (blossoming it shall blossom). What effect does that have on the promise?
3. Interpretation: Barnes says the doubling denotes 'certainty, abundance, fullness.' How does certainty about God's promise sustain faith when the wilderness feels endless?
4. Interpretation: The glory of Lebanon, Carmel, and Sharon is 'given' to the wilderness. What does this say about where true renewal comes from, can a desert transform itself?
5. Interpretation: Commentators differ on whether 'they shall see the glory of the LORD' refers to a physical vision or a spiritual perception. Why is this distinction important for understanding how we encounter God today?
6. Application: In what areas of your life right now do you need a 'blossoming', and how might you wait for it with hope rather than despair?
7. Application: The verse ends by calling God 'our God.' How does the communal pronoun shape the way you pray for restoration, not just for yourself but for your church, your community, the world?