Photo credit: Leonardo Rizzi
Road to Perdition
Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Isaiah 40:3-5
by Craig C. White
They say that the road to perdition is paved with good intentions. I say that it is paved with asphalt. This commentary is about that road. It is about a highway in the desert. I am talking about a particular highway that Jesus will travel as he pours out his wrath on Israel’s enemies. Buckle your seat-belts as we travel along the road to perdition. Perdition means ruin or loss. In our study Perdition means physical death and spiritual damnation. That is to say that a person will die and go to hell. The road to Perdition is a pernicious highway (2Pe 2:2).
Isa 40:3-4 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
According to Isaiah (above) the road to perdition is a highway in the desert. Wilderness means desert. Instructions are given to build a highway for God. In order to build this highway, valleys will be filled in or lifted up; also mountains and hills will be cut down in order to make a level road. Curves will be straightened and rough terrain will be graded until they are smooth. The road to perdition is a high-speed highway.
Isa 40:5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
The Lord Jesus will be seen traveling along the road to perdition (above). His glory will be seen by every person. How is this possible? Jesus is very glorious. Besides, God says so!
God sent Isaiah (above) plus two other people to instruct us to “Prepare ye the way of the Lord”. They are the prophet Elijah and John the Baptist. In Malachi below God even told us that he would send a messenger to prepare the road to perdition.
Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
Below, John the Baptist repeats the words of Isaiah (Esaias). John is one of the messengers that God promised to send before his coming.
Luk 3:4-6 As it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth; 6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
John told us to prepare ourselves for Jesus’ arrival.
Mat 3:2 Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
John the Baptist said these things in the same location as our highway! Bethabara (below) is a place on the east side of the Jordan River. It is located in today’s Jordan. Bethabara literally means “house of the ford, or place of crossing”. I think this is the same place that the nation of Israel entered into the land of Israel after the exodus. It is east of Jericho. I think that this is also the same place that our Lord Jesus Christ will enter into the land of Israel at his second coming.
Joh 1:28-29 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Jesus came the first time to take away the sin of the world. He removed the penalty of our sin.
Psa 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
He humbled himself for us to the point of his own death.
Php 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Guess what? Jesus is coming back to Jerusalem. This time he isn’t coming to die for our sin. This time he is coming as a conquering king. God sent one messenger to proclaim his coming the first time. God will send another messenger to herald Christ’s second coming. Elijah will prepare the road to perdition.
Mal 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
God will send the prophet Elijah to proclaim Jesus’ coming in wrath. Jesus himself confirmed Elijah’s coming.
Mat 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.
Elijah never died. Instead he was taken alive up into heaven. Elijah is alive today and feeling fine.
2Ki 2:11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
Elijah was taken to heaven east of the Jordan River across from Jericho. This is the same location that John the baptist proclaimed “Prepare ye the way of the Lord” (Mat 3:3) . You can read about Elijah’s ascent in 2Kings 2:6-11. Folks this location is extraordinary. At least five extraordinary events happen here.
- Moses was buried here (Deu 34:5-6).
- The nation of Israel crossed into the land of Israel after the exodus out of Egypt (Jos 3:16). God dried up the Jordan River so Israel could cross.
- Elijah was taken to heaven here (2Kings 2:6-11). God dried up the Jordan River twice so Elijah and Elisha could cross.
- Jesus was baptized here by John the Baptist (Mat 3:13-17).
- I think Christ will enter the land of Israel here at his second coming (Jer 48:40-44)! I think that he will again dry up the Jordan River.
This is my observation. I think Jesus will access this crossing of the Jordan River by way of the Desert Highway in Jordan!
Finally we can identify the “Road to Perdition”. The Desert Highway is the major north-south highway in the country of Jordan today. It is a high-speed four lane highway that stretches from Aqaba on the Red Sea in the south, toward Amman; Jordan’s capital in the north. There are two other north-south highways in Jordan but they do not fit the description of the highway in Isa 40:3-4 (top of our study). They are the “Dead Sea Highway” and the “Kings Highway”. Both are twisting rugged mountainous roads. The Desert Highway is built along the western edge of the North Arab Desert. This is the same path that Israel took when they were forced to circumnavigate Edom during the exodus. It is flat, straight, and runs through a wide open desert plain.
Until recently Jordan’s transportation system was underdeveloped. Before 1989 fifty percent of the Desert Highway was only two lanes wide. Some of the roadway was unpaved. In the late 1970s and early 1980s Jordan executed a major transportation improvement campaign. Most of the effort was directed toward the Desert Highway. There was also a major paving campaign in 2003; it was completed a few years ago. Today the Desert Highway is a modern, well maintained four lane Highway. There is a greenway effort in the planning stages now.
Isa 40:3-4 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
“Make straight in the desert a highway for our God”. Jordan has obeyed God’s command. The road to perdition is prepared. It is a sign that Jesus is coming soon!
High Time to Awake 
This question is probably a bit naive, but since the highway Jesus will travel on at his second coming has been immensely improved recently and The Desert Highway is now a 4-lane one that can accommodate vehicles that travel at a relatively high rate of speed, do you believe that Jesus will also travel by some kind of vehicle on it?
One of your other commentaries, “The Sign of Jesus’ Return”, quoted 2 Sa 22:11 as stating that he will come to earth riding on a cherubim and that the wind would propel him like a jet-propelled engine. Would Jesus still be riding on this cherubim when he travels on this Desert Highway? I thought if he flew he wouldn’t need to have a well-paved highway, and I didn’t think he would walk as he will be in destructive mode coming from Egypt and traveling quite far before he gets to Jerusalem. I imagine he as God can travel pretty much any way he wants to, but wondered if you had any definite ideas about that.
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Hi Nancy:
Zechariah 14:5 is describing the moment when Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives and splits it north and south making a way for the last remaining Jews in Jerusalem to escape to the wilderness east of Jerusalem.
I think that Jesus will not be alone when he returns. He will require a wide road for his large entourage.
In Zechariah below “all the saints” will be with him. The last word “thee” is not in the original Hebrew text. So I think it means that the saints will be with Jesus, and not referring to the Jews being rescued from Jerusalem.
Zec 14:5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
The word “saints” here means “sacred” or “pronounced as clean”. Jesus could be accompanied by returning Church age believers and possible his angels.
1Th 3:13 To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.
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