1._O Lord, thou art my God. _Hitherto Isaiah has prophesied about the judgments of God, which threatened not only a single nation, but almost the whole world. Now, it was impossible that the contemplation of calamities so dismal as those which he foresaw should not give him great uneasiness; for god... [ Continue Reading ]
2._For thou hast made of a city a heap. _Some refer this to Jerusalem; but I think that there is a change of the number, as is very customary with the prophets; for the Prophet does not speak merely of a single city, but of many cities, which he says will be reduced to heaps. As to the view held by... [ Continue Reading ]
3._Therefore shall the strong people glorify thee. _This is the end which I mentioned; (139) for if the Lord should destroy the world, no good result would follow, and indeed destruction could produce no feeling but horror, and we would never be led by it to sing his praise; but, on the contrary, we... [ Continue Reading ]
4._For thou hast been a strength to the poor. _Hence we see the fruit of conversion, namely, that the Lord raises us from the dead, and brings us, as it were, out of the grave, stretching out his hand to us from heaven, to rescue us even from hell. This is our first access to him, for it is only in... [ Continue Reading ]
5._As the heat in a dry place. _If the Lord did not aid when violent men rush upon us, our life would be in imminent danger; for we see how great is the rage of wicked men, and if the Lord overturn walls, what can a feeble man do against him? These things therefore are added in order to magnify the... [ Continue Reading ]
6._And the Lord of hosts shall make. _This passage has received various interpretations. Some think that the Prophet threatens the Jews, and threatens them in such a manner as to invite various nations to a banquet. This mode of expression is also found in other passages, for the Lord is said to fat... [ Continue Reading ]
7._And he will destroy the face of the covering. _(143) Here also commentators differ, for by the word _covering _is meant the disgrace with which believers are covered in this world, so that the glory of God is not seen in them; as if he had said, “Though many reproaches oppress the godly, yet God... [ Continue Reading ]
8._He hath destroyed death eternally. _(144) The Prophet continues his subject; for in general he promises that there will be perfect happiness under the reign of Christ, and, in order to express this the more fully, he employs various metaphors admirably adapted to the subject. That happiness is re... [ Continue Reading ]
9._And it shall be said. _The verb אמר (ā_măr_) is indefinite, “He shall say;” but as the discourse does not relate to one or another individual, but to all in general, I chose to render it in a passive form. (146) This is an excellent conclusion; for it shews that God’s benefits are not in any resp... [ Continue Reading ]
10._For the hand of Jehovah shall rest. _The design of the Prophet in the beginning of this verse, I have no doubt, was to comfort the godly, who but for this would have thought that God had forsaken and abandoned them; for the opinion of those who view it as describing the judgment which the Lord w... [ Continue Reading ]
11._And he shall spread out. _The Prophet now explains and confirms the former statement; but he employs a different metaphor, by which he means, that the Lord will spread out his hand to the innermost part of the country of Moab, and not merely to its extremities. Some explain the metaphor thus: “A... [ Continue Reading ]
12._And the fortress. _The Prophet now directs his discourse to the country of Moab. It was highly fortified, and was proud of its walls and fortifications; and he affirms that the lofty towers, and other defences, however strong and seemingly impregnable, will be of no avail. The ancients, it is we... [ Continue Reading ]