As Dr. Leanne Van Dyk, President of Columbia Theological Seminary (retired July 2022) has noted, "This Advent text contains some of the most famous words of Isaiah. The images of 'swords into plowshares' and 'spears into pruning hooks' and 'neither shall they learn war any more' are embedded in Christian imagination and piety."
She further observes that "these images have found their way into both Christian hymnody and anti-war folk songs. They stir the hopes and longings of people exhausted by the senselessness of war and violence. Songs like 'Down by the Riverside' contain lyrics that evoke Isaiah 2:4, 'Gonna lay down my sword and shield, down by the riverside, and I ain't gonna study war no more.'" This song has its roots in traditional African-American culture and dates back to before the Civil War.
Many versions of the song include the following images:
Gonna lay down my sword and shield...
Gonna lay down my burden...
Gonna put on that long white robe...
Gonna put on that starry crown...
Gonna walk with the Prince of Peace...
Gonna shake hands around the world...
I ain't gonna study war no more.
Dr. Leanne Van Dyk's full reflections on Isaiah 2:1-5 can be found in Connections: A Lectionary Commentary, 2019, Year A, Volume 1, page 3.