Isaiah 60:13Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

The Holy Scriptures occasionally compare such trees to the assembly of saints. For instance, God, speaking through Isaiah, declared, “I will create water in the wilderness and in the waterless river; I will place the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, the cypress, and the poplar in the desert” (Isaiah 41:18, 19). The dry and desolate land symbolizes the Gentiles, who were without the divine word capable of imparting life and fostering righteousness and knowledge of God. However, they had the cedar, the beech, the myrtle, the cypress, and the poplar—those majestic and wonderful trees—about which the divine Psalmist speaks, stating, “Bread will strengthen the heart of man. The trees of the field, the cedars of Lebanon which you have planted” (Ps. 103:15, 16); indeed, as the insightful Paul writes, we are God’s fellow workers (1 Cor. 3:9). Therefore, this glory of Lebanon, he affirms, will be bestowed upon you, meaning you will be adorned with many remarkable saints. This will occur so that my sacred dwelling may be honored, for the glory of the churches is found in those who have ascended in virtue and who harbor no lowly or impure thoughts due to carnal desires; rather, they look upward, wise among the mountains, as if they have transcended earthly confines, dwelling in both the mountain and heavenly realms (Phil. 3:20).

Lebanon, a mountain in Phoenicia, is known for its towering trees, as noted by the Psalmist: I have seen the wicked flourish like the cedars of Lebanon (Psalms 36:33), and further, the Lord uproots the cedars of Lebanon (Psalms 28:5), among other references which I will not elaborate on here. It is noteworthy that Hiram, the king of Tyre, once sent timber to King Solomon in Joppa for the construction of God’s temple (1 Kings 5). The Scriptures affirm that the spruce, beech, and pine—or in the Septuagint, cypress, pine, and cedar—will be harvested for building the temple of Zion. If this is true, what remains of Jerusalem adorned in gold and precious stones? Where is the Lamb's bride? Where are the twelve gates decorated with various gems? Perhaps only the walls and foundations will be formed from precious stones while the temple itself, to be even more splendid, will be made of wood?

We are to comprehend these symbols in a spiritual light: that the fir, cypress, pine, and cedar, once mighty trees in Lebanon, will glorify God's temple and the place of His presence, enhancing its beauty. To illustrate my point succinctly, I refer to holy figures such as the eminent martyr Cyprian and our confessor Hilary, who were like towering trees in the world; do they not appear to have contributed to the establishment of the Church of God?

Additionally, the reference to the descendants of those who persecuted you approaching you in humility, indicates those who have become Christians not out of desire but out of obligation. They bow down in fear before those in power, or we could also interpret this as those who were once persecutors but later believed. Such is the case with the apostle Paul, who once persecuted the churches of God and later became a chosen instrument (Acts 9; 1 Tim. 1). Once the full number of the Gentiles comes in, then all Israel shall be saved. And she shall be known as the city of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel—she who is elevated and gathered from both nations.

Many other benefactors, devoted to the honor of Jerusalem and its temple, likely contributed similar offerings, yet it is not the renewed Old Testament Jerusalem and temple that the prophetic vision perceives, but rather the New Jerusalem, the New Testament Church. The exaltation of God's name within her, her temples, and especially the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, will witness the same richness and splendor bestowed upon them by the worshippers of the true God, akin to that of the Old Testament sanctuary.

The connection of this interpretation to the feasts of the Cross is revealed in how the Church celebrates the Cross of Christ through the verses of this reading. In accordance with the Church's hymns, the Cross of Christ is depicted as constructed from precious trees—cypress, pine, and cedar—and serves as the footstool of Christ. Although the prophet refers to these trees in relation to the temple rather than the Cross, Church leaders interpret these references as applying to the Cross in a spiritual and moral context. Cypress, pine, and cedar symbolize the strength of Christ's Cross, which embodies the power of the Crucified to dispel demons and wicked thoughts, just as the scent of cedar repels snakes. Through the Cross of Christ, we find strength to endure hardships, mirroring how a cypress maintains its grace and resilience even in fierce winds. Furthermore, the Cross brings healing from mental afflictions caused by a troubled conscience, akin to the healing power of song over physical ailments.