So. The word “visit” ( paqad ) is also used seven times in the “little apocalypse” of Isaiah (24:21, 22; 26:14, 16, 21; 27:1, 3). Again, if nothing else, we have a numerical link with the days of creation, appropriate to a passage concerning the destruction and reconstruction of a world.
The correlation with specific days is even less clear than with the phrase “in that day,” but there are some general links. The first use (24:21) speaks of the Lord’s visitation on the kings of the earth, imagined as heavenly lights. The sixth usage refers to the visitation of Leviathan, the serpent who enticed Adam to fall, and the last describes Yahweh’s diligence in guarding His vineyard from those who would “visit” (27:3).
However this shakes out, the fact that we have at least two key words/phrases that occur seven times in this section is suggestive. Not only does it confirm that Isaiah 24-27 functions as a unit, but it hints at the kind of unit it is. (By my count, “Yahweh” or “Yah” occurs 28x, 4 x 7).
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
The Church in the Age of Therapy
In 1966, Philip Rieff wrote in The Triumph of the Therapeutic that “Religious man was born to…
Canada’s Deadliest Blind Spot
On September 20, the Daily Mail ran a story with the provocative headline, “Our 83-year-old Christian grandmother…
The Faithful Joy of Dolly Parton and Fulton Sheen
Dolly Parton and Fulton Sheen seem to have had little in common. She favored rhinestones; he wore…
