A recurring theme in Chapters 24–27 is the contrast between two symbolic fortresses representing opposite ideas. On one side stands the “walled city,” symbolizing the enemy — a tyrannical and self-assured city. Not tied to any specific nation, this city serves as a metaphor and is destined to fall: “You have turned town to rubble heap, walled city to ruin, the palace of strangers to no more town, never to be rebuilt” (25:2).

In contrast to the fortified city, which faces destruction, stands the city of the righteous, symbolizing salvation: “On that day, this song will be sung in the land of Yehuda: How mighty – this our city: He has turned wall and bulwark to salvation. Open wide the gates; let a righteous nation in that kept its faith’” (26:1–2). One of the city’s defining features is that its inhabitants seek shelter and protection within the city walls: “For You have been a stronghold to the vulnerable, the stronghold of the poor man in his anguish, shelter from the storm, and shade from searing sun, for the spirit of oppression is a storm against the wall” (25:4).

These symbols are familiar to us. The imagery of the wicked as mighty waters echoes Yeshayahu’s description of Assyria, while the imagery of Jerusalem as a miraculous refuge from flooding waters or parching heat first appeared in Chapter 4, where Yeshayahu prophesied about Jerusalem in the days of redemption: “And that shelter will be shade all day from searing heat and a covering, a hiding place from the deluge, from the rain” (4:6).

The juxtaposition of these two cities sharpens and perfects the message Yeshayahu has been conveying throughout the book, beginning with the Day of the Lord in Chapter 2: Human fortifications and man-made power are illusions — they will not endure the Day of the Lord, when humanity will recognize its place and the futility of its strength. In contrast, the stable and reliable fortress will be revealed in Jerusalem, where strength comes from God, and where people find their security by trusting Him. Realizing this consciousness across existence will bring about a complete rectification of creation itself, as we find another fundamental correction to the story of Creation: “He will swallow up death forever; the Lord God, He will wipe every tear from every face. He will sweep His people's shame away from all the earth. The Lord has spoken” (25:8).