And this is an entirely normal usage of lisp: define a domain specific language (DSL) on top of the lisp, to manipulate the natural objects of the domain in a natural way.

I've always thought Mathematica would have been a better system build on top of a "real" lisp, and would have got there faster. I've never heard any of Wolframs statements about the parallels that have made me question that, but I could be missing something.