_I saw_ Namely, in a vision or ecstasy; _the Lord_ That is, the glory and majesty of the Lord, as Isaiah did, Isaiah 6:1, or a bright glorious light, indicating the presence of God; _standing upon the altar_ Resting upon, or over the altar. The altar of burnt-offering seems to be meant here, and the... [ Continue Reading ]
_Though they dig into hell_, &c. Here the subject is enlarged upon to impress it more deeply on the minds of all that read or hear it. Though they hide themselves in the deepest holes or caverns of the earth, (see Isaiah 2:10,) or take refuge in the highest fortresses, they shall not escape my venge... [ Continue Reading ]
_And_ Or, _for, the Lord toucheth the land, and it shall melt _ The least token of God's displeasure is sufficient to put the whole frame of nature out of order. See the margin. And when God's hand is visibly stretched out against a people, they become altogether dispirited; the stoutest men lose th... [ Continue Reading ]
_Are ye not as the children of the Ethiopians_, &c. The prophet, to take away from the Israelites their false confidence, that the Lord was too much interested in their preservation to permit their total ruin, says, that in consequence of their idolatry and other sins, they were no more esteemed by... [ Continue Reading ]
_The eyes of the Lord are upon the sinful kingdom_ See Amos 9:4. _Saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob_ God still promises to preserve a remnant in the midst of his heaviest judgments, that he may perform the promises made to their fathers. _Lo, I will sift the house of Israel a... [ Continue Reading ]
_In that day_ In this and the following verses, to the end of the chapter, we have a most consolatory conclusion of this prophecy in sundry evangelical promises, after so many very severe and sharp menaces. The phrase, _in that day_, signifies here the same as _afterward_, or, _after this_, for so S... [ Continue Reading ]
_That they may possess the remnant of Edom_ This the restored Jews did in the time of Hyrcanus, when they made an entire conquest of Edom, as Josephus relates. _And of all the heathen_ (or nations) _which are called by my name_ Or rather, _which have been called by my name;_ for so it is rendered in... [ Continue Reading ]
_Behold the days come_ Here we have another promise, literally to be understood of the abundant plenty which God would bestow on the returned captives, and mystically of the abundant grace given and blessings conferred in gospel days. _That the ploughman shall overtake the reaper_ He who breaks up t... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will bring again the captivity of my people_ I will restore them to their own country, and settle them in it. See the following verse, and notes on Isaiah 11:12; and Ezekiel 28:25. _They shall build the waste cities_, &c. Compare the texts referred to in the margin. This and the following part of... [ Continue Reading ]