Discovering Eschatological Leadership in the Book of Isaiah. The Motif of Animal Peace between Messianic Hope and New Creation

Abstract

Abstract Animal peace as a motif appears in two places in the book of Isaiah, thereby connecting two texts that are each committed to a different concept of rulership. On the one hand, it appears in the context of the promise of a future Jewish king (Isa 11:6–9); on the other, it is embedded in the context of Yahweh’s universal role, which is associated with a new cosmic order (Isa 65:25). This article examines the literary-historical and theological-historical relationship between the texts as well as their conceptions of rulership from a redaction-historical perspective. This leads to the hypothesis that Isa 11 was redactionally aligned with Isa 65 by adding vv. 7–9, a process that is understood to be a clear indication of royal leadership becoming increasingly eschatologized.