The Last Days and the Day of Yahweh for Jerusalem: With two visions of Zion/Jerusalem’s restoration (1:1–2:1 and 5:1–30) bracketing substantial declarations of coming calamity for Zion/Jerusalem/Judah, chapters 1–5 as a whole have a trouble-promise-trouble-promise-trouble arrangement. Worrisomely, trouble enfolds the community even though blessing is its background destiny. Or, encouragingly, blessing does lie enfolded even if trouble dominates the community’s immediate prospects. We do not know the date of any of the material or of the composition of the whole.

2:1  In 1:1, the word “vision” drew attention to the revelatory content of what Isaiah was to say about the future. In this companion tailpiece (lit. “the word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw . . .”), “word” draws attention to its verba…