1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: “We have a strong city; God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks. 2 Open the gates, That the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in. 3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. 4 Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength. 5 For He brings down those who dwell on high, The lofty city; He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He brings it down to the dust. 6 The foot shall tread it down— The feet of the poor And the steps of the needy.” Isaiah 26:1–6 (NKJV)

1 On that day they will sing this song against the land of Judea: “Look, a strong city! And he will make its wall and surrounding wall a salvation. 2 Open the gates! Let a people that keeps righteousness and keeps truth enter, 3 that lays hold of truth and that keeps peace. Because in you with hope 4 they hoped, Lord, until eternity, the great, eternal God, 5 who, bringing them low, took down those who live in haughty places. You will overthrow secure cities and take them down to the ground, 6 and meek and low people’s feet will tread on them. Isaiah 26:1–6 (LES2)

Verse three is where the translations part ways. The MT is beautiful, and most people I know, who are Bible literate, know and quote this verse, as recorded in the MT. The LXX, however. says that verse three is a continuation of verse 2, concluding that such people hope in God. Verse 4 says this hope is eternal because God is. This meek and humble people will eventually tread on the proud.

The “people that keeps righteousness and keeps truth” are those who confess Christ.

7 The way of the just is uprightness; O Most Upright, You weigh the path of the just. 8 Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O LORD, we have waited for You; The desire of our soul is for Your name And for the remembrance of You. 9 With my soul I have desired You in the night, Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; For when Your judgments are in the earth, The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. Isaiah 26:7–9 (NKJV)

7 The pious people’s path has become straight; the way of the godly is also prepared. 8 For the path of the Lord is judgment; we hoped in your name and in the remembrance 9 that our soul desires. Beginning in the night my breath rises early to you, God, because your ordinances are light on the land. Learn righteousness, you who dwell on the land. Isaiah 26:7–9 (LES2)

Verse 7 in the MT does not agree with the same verse in the LXX. The LXX reminds us of Jesus’ words: 

13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Matthew 7:13–14 (NKJV)

Since I believe that all scripture points to Christ (John 5:39), and the LXX more clearly does this, I interpret verses 8 and 9 to mean that Christ endured the judgment for our sins. We hope or believe in his name and remember what he did for us in the Lord’s Supper. The ordinances of the Royal Law (James 2:8) instituted through the New Covenant bring light to the earth. (John 1:9) The world must learn righteousness by hearing the gospel. (Romans 1:17) There is only one righteous one – Jesus. We become righteous by putting our faith and allegiance in him. (Romans 3:21-22)

10 Let grace be shown to the wicked, Yet he will not learn righteousness; In the land of uprightness he will deal unjustly, And will not behold the majesty of the LORD. 11 LORD, when Your hand is lifted up, they will not see. But they will see and be ashamed For their envy of people; Yes, the fire of Your enemies shall devour them. Isaiah 26:10–11 (NKJV)

10 For the impious has ceased; everyone will certainly not learn righteousness on the land; he will surely not enact truth. The impious should be taken away so that he does not see the glory of the Lord. 11 Lord, your arm is high, and they have not seen it; but when they know it, they will be ashamed. Zeal will take hold of an undisciplined people, and now fire will consume the opponents. Isaiah 26:10–11 (LES2)

I believe this passage describes the Jews in Christ’s time and the world in general at the end. Those Jews who refused the gospel and denied Christ were summarily judged by God in 70 AD and 135 AD when the Roman army destroyed Jerusalem and temple in the first case and expelled the Jews from the land and renamed it Palestine in the second.

At the end of time, the ungodly, those who refuse Christ and the gospel.  will be removed and not see the glory of God that will cover the earth. (Matthew 13:36-43)

12 LORD, You will establish peace for us, For You have also done all our works in us. 13 O LORD our God, masters besides You Have had dominion over us; But by You only we make mention of Your name. 14 They are dead, they will not live; They are deceased, they will not rise. Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, And made all their memory to perish. 15 You have increased the nation, O LORD, You have increased the nation; You are glorified; You have expanded all the borders of the land. Isaiah 26:12–15 (NKJV)

12 O Lord, our God, give peace to us; for you have delivered all things to us. 13 Take possession of us, O Lord; we do not know any other except you; we name your name. 14 But the dead certainly will not see life, and healers will certainly not rise up. Because of this you have brought and destroyed, and you have taken away every male of theirs. 15 Give evils to them, Lord, give evils to the esteemed of the land. Isaiah 26:12–15 (LES2)

Going with the LXX, the peace that God established for us is only found in Christ. (Romans 5:1) Through Christ, God has given all things to those who believe in Him. (1 Corinthians 3:21, 2 Peter 1:3) Those who call Christ Lord admit that they belong to him as a result of having been purchased by God. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) Those who refuse the gospel will be destroyed and not see life. (Luke 23:34-36) God will judge the highly esteemed of the earth, the rich and powerful, who refuse to humble themselves by acknowledging that Christ is Lord.

The MT says quite the opposite by concluding in verse 15, “You have expanded all the borders of the land.” Instead of judgment, the MT claims that God is prospering Israel, which is what Zionists want us to believe. We see that nation’s ungodly attempt to accomplish this through genocide today. Israel’s rebellion against Christ’s rule continues unabated to this day.

16 LORD, in trouble they have visited You, They poured out a prayer when Your chastening was upon them. 17 As a woman with child Is in pain and cries out in her pangs, When she draws near the time of her delivery, So have we been in Your sight, O LORD. 18 We have been with child, we have been in pain; We have, as it were, brought forth wind; We have not accomplished any deliverance in the earth, Nor have the inhabitants of the world fallen. Isaiah 26:16–18 (NKJV)

16 “Lord, in distress I remembered you; with a little distress was your discipline toward us. 17 And as the woman in labor approaches childbirth, and cries out at her pangs, this is how we have become to your beloved. 18 Because of fear of you, O Lord, we conceived in the womb and had pangs and gave birth; we made a wind of your deliverance on the land, but all those who dwell on the land will fall. Isaiah 26:16–18 (LES2)

The Brenton translation of the LXX does a good job with this passage.

16 Lord, in affliction I remembered thee; thy chastening was to us with small affliction. 17 And as a woman in travail draws nigh to be delivered, and cries out in her pain; so have we been to thy beloved. 18 We have conceived, O Lord, because of thy fear, and have been in pain, and have brought forth the breath of thy salvation, which we have wrought upon the earth: we shall not fall, but all that dwell upon the land shall fall. [Brenton, Sir Lancelot C. L.. English Translation of the Greek Septuagint, Including the Apocrypha . E.C. Marsh. Kindle Edition]

Israel gave birth to Christ and the New Covenant, which resulted in the outpouring of the Spirit – “the breath or spirit of thy salvation.” Those who put their faith in Christ will never perish (John 3:16), but those who refuse will fall. 

After we understand the proper way of looking at this passage, it is plain that the MT is so much gibberish designed to hide the truth.

19 Your dead shall live; Together with my dead body they shall arise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust; For your dew is like the dew of herbs, And the earth shall cast out the dead. Isaiah 26:19 (NKJV)

19 The dead will rise, and those in the tombs will be raised, and those in the earth will be cheerful; for the dew from you is a remedy [Greek – healing] for them, but the land of the impious will fall.” Isaiah 26:19 (LES2)

The MT sounds nice, but the LXX once again captures the truth of the New Covenant, which had to be covered up by the Masoretes. After Christ’s resurrection, many arose from the dead as a foreshadowing of the general resurrection. (Matthew 27:51-53) Those who saw and believed in the risen Christ were filled with joy. Christ arose with “healing in his wings.” (Malachi 4:2) Lastly, the LXX predicts the fall of Israel for their rejection of the Messiah. The MT is a smokescreen to hide the truth from people.

20 Come, my people, enter your chambers, And shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, Until the indignation is past. 21 For behold, the LORD comes out of His place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; The earth will also disclose her blood, And will no more cover her slain. Isaiah 26:20–21 (NKJV)

20 Go, my people, enter into your chambers; shut your door; hide a little while until the anger of the Lord passes. 21 For look, the Lord is bringing from the holy place the anger against those dwelling upon the land; and the land will uncover its blood, and it will not cover up the slain. Isaiah 26:20–21 (LES2)

The MT basically agrees with the LXX in verse 20. Verse 21 can apply both to the end of time, as the MT indicates, but also, and even more perfectly, to 70 AD, just as Jesus prophesied.

49 Therefore the wisdom of God also said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,’ 50 that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation. Luke 11:49–51 (NKJV)