An Ideal King Establishes a Kingdom of Peace, 1-9

11:1 A shoot will grow out of Jesse’s root stock,
a bud will sprout from his roots.
11:2 The LORD’s spirit will rest on him—
a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom,
a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans,
a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the LORD.
11:3 He will take delight in obeying the LORD.
He will not judge by mere appearances,
or make decisions on the basis of hearsay.
11:4 He will treat the poor fairly,
and make right decisions for the downtrodden of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and order the wicked to be executed.
11:5 Justice will be like a belt around his waist,
integrity will be like a belt around his hips.
11:6 A wolf will reside with a lamb,
and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;
an ox and a young lion will graze together,
as a small child leads them along.
11:7 A cow and a bear will graze together,
their young will lie down together.
A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.
11:8 A baby will play
over the hole of a snake;
over the nest of a serpent
an infant will put his hand.
11:9 They will no longer injure or destroy
on my entire royal mountain.
For there will be universal submission to the LORD’s sovereignty,
just as the waters completely cover the sea.

Grudem (Systematic Theology, 2nd ed.) cites vv6-9 in favour of historicl (classical) premillennialism):

‘This passage clearly speaks of a momentous renewal of nature that takes us far beyond the present age, a time in which “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (v. 9).’

Yet, Grudem adds, in vv10-11

‘Some are still seeking the Messiah and apparently coming to salvation, and here also the Lord is still gathering the remnant of his people from various nations of the earth. It does not seem, therefore, that the eternal state has begun, yet the reversal of nature far exceeds anything that will happen in this present age.’

Grudem concludes that this indicates ‘a future millennial kingdom’.

Israel is Reclaimed and Reunited, 10-16

11:10 At that time a root from Jesse will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, and his residence will be majestic. 11:11 At that time the sovereign master will again lift his hand to reclaim the remnant of his people from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and the seacoasts.

At that time the sovereign master will again lift his hand to reclaim the remnant of his people – NIV: ‘The Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant’ –

Goldingay: the first ‘reaching out’ was at the exodus (cf. Isa 10:24, 26; 11:15–16).  The second took place (or at least, began) with the fall of Babylon.

Thomas agrees: a first return is implied, and this would refer to the Exodus.  This second return would happen in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah.

Wagner (TOTC): The first return was probably the return from Babylon.  The second is from all four points of the compass, and will usher in a period of world peace.

Ryrie, a dispensationalist, writes about this ‘second’ return:

‘Refers to a yet future regathering of the Jewish people at the second coming of Christ (Matt. 24:31), the first being the regathering under Zerubbabel in 537 B.C.’ (Study Bible)

Again:

‘The first captivity was known as the Babylonian captivity, and it lasted 70 years. From it, some Jews returned to Palestine to restore Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. But under the Roman rule, the Jews were dispersed (A.D. 70) to all corners of the earth. The return from this dispersion is “the second time” Isaiah spoke of. This return will bring Jews from all parts of the world—not simply from Babylon, as the first time.’ (The Final Countdown)

Wiersbe accepts a double fulfilment – one in the ealtively near future, the other in the distant future:

‘In a limited sense, this promise was fulfilled after the Assyrian conquest and when the Jews left Babylonian Captivity; but the ultimate fulfillment will be at the end of the age when Messiah regathers His people (27:12–13; 49:22–23; 56:7–8; Matt. 24:31; Rom. 11:25–29).’

11:12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations;
he will gather Israel’s dispersed people
and assemble Judah’s scattered people
from the four corners of the earth.
11:13 Ephraim’s jealousy will end,
and Judah’s hostility will be eliminated.
Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah,
and Judah will no longer be hostile toward Ephraim.
11:14 They will swoop down on the Philistine hills to the west;
together they will loot the people of the east.
They will take over Edom and Moab,
and the Ammonites will be their subjects.
11:15 The LORD will divide the gulf of the Egyptian Sea;
he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River and send a strong wind,
he will turn it into seven dried-up streams,
and enable them to walk across in their sandals.
11:16 There will be a highway leading out of Assyria
for the remnant of his people,
just as there was for Israel,
when they went up from the land of Egypt.

This passage (Isa 11:11-16), along with Isa 2:1-4, is used by Christian Friends of Israel to support the following article of faith:-

‘We believe that the restoration of the Jewish people to the land of Israel is a fulfillment of the prophetic Scriptures of the Old Testament, and that the restored nation of Israel has a predominant role to play in the final purposes of God among the nations.’

It is of interest that of nine articles of faith, this is the only one that appeals for support only to passages from the OT.

Derek Thomas notes that v11f has been thought to refer, firstly, to the restoration of the Jews to Palestine and the creation of the state of Israel on 14th May 1948, and then to a future gathering at the time of Christ’s return.  He comments that this interpretation fails by being inconsistently literalistic: ‘Verse 14 mentions the subjugation of the Philistines, Edomites, Moabites and the Ammonites. That this did indeed take place during the time of the Maccabees is clear from history, but any belief that this has any reference to the twentieth century is ill-informed for the simple reason that the Philistines, Edomites, Moabites and Ammonites do not exist any more.’

Of this passage and others that speak of the restoration of Israel (e.g. Jer. 23:3–6; Amos 9:11–15; Micah 4:1–4; Zech. 14:1–9, 16–21), Thomas says that

‘All these passages seem to predict that Israel will once again be gathered in the land of Canaan and enjoy a time of blessing and prosperity. Since these have not yet been fulfilled, some (dispensationalists) expect their fulfilment during the millennium. This all seems unlikely. It is true that Isaiah 11:11 refers to a second recovery, but the context makes clear that here the first refers to the exodus in the time of Moses. The second therefore refers to the return from Babylonian exile in the time of Ezra and Nehemiah.’