Catholic Commentary on Isaiah 32

“The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.” (Isaiah 32:17)

The Kingdom of Righteousness

See, a king will reign in righteousness and rulers will rule with justice. Each one will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land. Then the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field. The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.

The Catechism identifies the peace that is the fruit of righteousness as the biblical concept of shalom, the comprehensive wellbeing that flows from right relationship with God and one another (CCC 2304).

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, the fruit of righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. Peace is not the starting point but the harvest. You do not manufacture peace by seeking peace; you receive it as the fruit of righteousness. Plant righteousness. Harvest peace.

Prayer

Lord God, pour your Spirit on us from on high and let the fruit of righteousness in us be peace. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

32
A Righteous King
1 Behold, a king will reign in righteousness,
and princes will rule with justice.
2 Each will be like a shelter from the wind,
a refuge from the storm,
like streams of water in a dry land,
like the shadow of a great rock in an arid land.
3 Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed,
and the ears of those who hear will listen.
4 The mind of the rash will know and understand,
and the stammering tongue will speak clearly and fluently.
 
5 No longer will a fool be called noble,
nor a scoundrel be respected.
6 For a fool speaks foolishness;
his mind plots iniquity.
He practices ungodliness
and speaks falsely about the LORD;
he leaves the hungry empty
and deprives the thirsty of drink.
7 The weapons of the scoundrel are destructive;
he hatches plots to destroy the poor with lies,
even when the plea of the needy is just.
8 But a noble man makes honorable plans;
he stands up for worthy causes.
The Women of Jerusalem
 
9 Stand up, you complacent women;
listen to me.
Give ear to my word,
you overconfident daughters.
10 In a little more than a year you will tremble,
O secure ones.
For the grape harvest will fail
and the fruit harvest will not arrive.
 
11 Shudder, you ladies of leisure;
tremble, you daughters of complacency.
Strip yourselves bare
and put sackcloth around your waists.
12 Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields,
for the fruitful vines,
13 and for the land of my people,
overgrown with thorns and briers-
even for every house of merriment
in this city of revelry.
 
14 For the palace will be forsaken,
the busy city abandoned.
The hill * 32:14 Hebrew the Ophel and the watchtower will become caves forever-
the delight of wild donkeys
and a pasture for flocks-
15 until the Spirit is poured out
upon us from on high.
 
Then the desert will be an orchard,
and the orchard will seem like a forest.
16 Then justice will inhabit the wilderness,
and righteousness will dwell in the fertile field.
17 The work of righteousness will be peace;
the service of righteousness will be quiet confidence forever.
 
18 Then my people will dwell in a peaceful place,
in safe and secure places of rest.
19 But hail will level the forest,
and the city will sink to the depths.
 
20 Blessed are those who sow beside abundant waters,
who let the ox and donkey range freely.

*32:14 32:14 Hebrew the Ophel

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