Isaiah 40:12-17

Who hath measured the waters, &c.— The prophet here, in the most sublime manner, celebrates the divine majesty and greatness, but particularly his wisdom. Rapt into an extacy, after he had described the beginning and the nature of the new oeconomy, he sees that there would be many men of worldly prudence, who would hesitate at the methods of the divine counsel; and that the pious themselves, considering the extent and firmness of the kingdom of Satan in the world, the obstinate prejudices of the Gentiles, and the power of idolatry, would have their fears and doubts of the effect and success of the kingdom of the Messiah; a spiritual kingdom, to be established without any external means, by the mere preaching of the word, and to oppose itself to whatever was great or strong among men. The prophet, therefore, occurs to these thoughts; teaching, that the divine counsel, though it might seem strange to carnal judgment, was yet founded in the sovereign and most perfect wisdom and knowledge of God, whereof the clearest proofs were discernible in the structure of this world; that God was wiser than men; that his counsel was maturely weighed; that it pertained to his wisdom and glory to establish and promote his kingdom in the world, rather by this method than any other; that he might put to shame all carnal wisdom both of the Jews and Gentiles; for that the foolishness of God, as it seems to carnal men, is wiser than men, and the weakness of God stronger than men (according to the apostle, whose whole discourse in 1 Corinthians 1:22; 1 Corinthians 1:31 contains a paraphrase of this period): therefore he knew that this method of establishing his kingdom would have its certain effect; that this word, this faith, would overcome the world, and subvert idolatry. This is the connection, and this the sum of the passage. The prophet discourses concerning the prudence of the divine counsel, in the verses here marked out; and concerning idolatry, from Isaiah 40:18. In this period he first praises the prudence and wisdom of God, in constituting the state of his kingdom such as he had above described it, Isaiah 40:12 and herein he observes, that God has shewn the same perfection of wisdom and judgment in the oeconomy of this spiritual world, as all men who have eyes to see must discern in the admirable structure of the natural world. He then particularly praises the justification of the sinner, recommended in the Gospel (wherein the kingdom of the Son of God should be founded), comparatively, and oppositely to some other righteousness or justification of Jews and Gentiles, which was esteemed as nothing in the sight of God; Isaiah 40:15 which contain an illustration of the evangelical cry in the 6th verse, All flesh is grass. The meaning of the 16th verse is this, that, though the nations might consume all their riches upon their false religion, though they might offer to God in sacrifice all the beasts on their mountains, and all the cattle of their fields; and though they might employ for this purpose all the wood of Lebanon, it would avail nothing before him: that he would admit no other righteousness, no other justification, than that recommended in the Gospel; that being the only ransom, that the only sacrifice which he would approve. What is said of the nations, the carnal Jews might apply to themselves. See a remarkable passage in Psalms 50:8. &c. to the same purpose with the present; Romans 8:6; Romans 8:39.; and Vitringa.