INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 44 In this chapter the Lord comforts his people with the promise of the effusion of his Spirit, and the blessings of his grace upon them; the consequence of which would be fruitfulness in them, and the conversion of others, who should profess themselves the Lord's people, Isa... [ Continue Reading ]
YET NOW HEAR, O JACOB MY SERVANT,.... These words are directed to a remnant according to the election of grace among the Jews, about the time when their princes should be profaned, and the body of the people should be given to curse and reproaches; and who are distinguished from them by the title of... [ Continue Reading ]
THUS SAITH THE LORD THAT MADE THEE, AND FORMED THEE FROM THE WOMB,.... Which is not to be understood of the forming of the people of Israel into a commonwealth or church state, for this is not said of the body of them; nor of the natural creation and formation of these individuals, but of their new... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR I WILL POUR WATER OH HIM THAT IS THIRSTY,.... Or rather upon the thirsty land, as the Targum; and so the Syriac version, "in a thirsty place"; as a dry land is a thirsty land; it thirsts for water, gapes and opens for it: see Psalms 63:1 "and floods upon the dry ground"; large quantities of rain... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THEY SHALL SPRING UP AS AMONG THE GRASS,.... That is, such on whom the Spirit of the Lord shall be poured with his gifts and grace, and with the blessings of it: by the "grass" may be meant common believers, comparable to green grass, for their numbers, being many; for their weakness in themselv... [ Continue Reading ]
ONE SHALL SAY, I AM THE LORD'S,.... This expresses the success of the apostles' ministry, not only among the Jews, but more especially among the Gentiles, who were not called by the name of Jacob and Israel; but now should call themselves by those names, as the following clauses show, being called b... [ Continue Reading ]
THUS SAITH THE LORD THE KING OF ISRAEL,.... The King of the whole world, and Governor among the nations; and in a peculiar manner King of Israel, that nation being a theocracy; and especially King of spiritual Israel, or King of saints, be they of what nation they will: AND HIS REDEEMER, THE LORD O... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WHO AS I SHALL CALL,.... Which of the idols of the Gentiles can do as the king of Israel, the Lord of hosts has done? call things that are not, as though they were? call all creatures into being? call men by their names before they were born, as Isaac; Josiah, and Cyrus, of whom mention is made... [ Continue Reading ]
FEAR YE NOT, NEITHER BE AFRAID,.... Of the accomplishment of prophecies and promises, and of professing the true God, and of adhering to Jesus Christ, the only Redeemer and Saviour; or of the gods of the Heathens, and of persecuting tyrants, and what they can do against you, and in favour of their i... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY THAT MAKE A GRAVEN IMAGE ARE ALL OF THEM VANITY,.... They show themselves to be vain men, by making such vain things as graven images are; both images, makers, and worshippers of them are all vain, yea vanity itself: AND THEIR DELECTABLE THINGS SHALL NOT PROFIT; their idols made of gold and si... [ Continue Reading ]
WHO HATH FORMED A GOD,.... Who ever made one? was such a thing ever known? or can that be a god which is made or formed? who so mad, foolish and sottish, as to imagine he has made a god? or is it possible for a creature to be the maker of a god? or any so stupid as to fancy he had made one? yet such... [ Continue Reading ]
BEHOLD, ALL HIS FELLOWS SHALL BE ASHAMED,.... Either such who join with them in the worship of the molten graven image, or god formed, when they find it is profitable for nothing; so the Targum, "behold all their worshippers shall be confounded;'' or their fellow workmen, who took their several pa... [ Continue Reading ]
THE SMITH WITH THE TONGS,.... Or, "the worker of iron" c; the blacksmith, who had a concern in making of idols, for some were made of iron, Daniel 5:4, or in making plates to cover them, or nails to fasten them with, or instruments which the carpenter made use of in cutting down trees, and fitting t... [ Continue Reading ]
THE CARPENTER STRETCHETH OUT HIS RULE,.... Or, the worker of trees e; that works in wood, or makes images of wood; having cut down a tree, he stretches out his rule or line upon it, and takes the dimensions of it, and measures the length and the breadth of it, as much as is for his purpose to make a... [ Continue Reading ]
HE HEWETH HIM DOWN CEDARS, AND TAKETH THE CYPRESS AND THE OAK,.... To make gods of, trees both pleasant and durable, but all unfruitful: WHICH HE STRENGTHENETH FOR HIMSELF AMONG THE TREES OF THE FOREST; taking a great deal of pains in seeking out such trees as were most fit for his use, and a great... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN SHALL IT BE FOR A MAN TO BURN,.... And which indeed is the proper use of it, but not all that this man puts it to; only the boughs, and what he cuts off as useless to his purpose, and the chips he makes, which he commits to the fire: FOR HE WILL TAKE THEREOF, AND WARM HIMSELF; with some part o... [ Continue Reading ]
HE BURNETH PART THEREOF IN THE FIRE,.... To warm himself with, as before: WITH PART THEREOF HE EATETH FLESH; that is, with part of it he dresses flesh, and makes it fit to eat; unless the meaning is, with part of it he makes tables and trenchers to eat meat off of; but the former sense seems most l... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE RESIDUE THEREOF HE MAKETH A GOD, EVEN HIS GRAVEN IMAGE,.... What remains of the tree, that is not consumed by making a fire to warm with, by heating the oven to bake bread with, and by using it in the kitchen to roast meat with, this is made an image of, and being graved and carved, is calle... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN NOR UNDERSTOOD,.... Who the true God is, nor the worship that is due to him alone; they do not know nor understand divine and spiritual things; nay, they have not the knowledge and understanding of men; they want common sense that can do and say such things as before mentioned, b... [ Continue Reading ]
AND NONE CONSIDERETH IN HIS HEART,.... Or, "and he does not return it to his heart" k; he does not come to himself again, or return to his right mind, but lives and dies under the infatuation; never once revolving it in his mind, pondering within himself what he has done, or is doing, whether right... [ Continue Reading ]
HE FEEDETH OF ASHES,.... That is, the idolater delights in his idol, pleases himself with seeks comfort and satisfaction from it, fills and feeds himself with hopes and expectations of being helped and delivered by it; but this is all vain hope, a mere delusion; it is as if a man fed on ashes instea... [ Continue Reading ]
REMEMBER THESE, O JACOB, O ISRAEL,.... Remember these persons, these idolaters before spoken of; or these things, the gross idolatries they were guilty of, and loath and abhor them, shun and avoid them, and not imitate them, and do the same things: or remember that this was formerly your case, and a... [ Continue Reading ]
I HAVE BLOTTED OUT AS A THICK CLOUD THY TRANSGRESSIONS, AND AS A CLOUD THY SINS,.... Sins and transgressions are compared to clouds, for the number of them, they being many as the fleeting clouds of the air; and for the nature and quality of them: as clouds are vapours rising out of the earth and se... [ Continue Reading ]
SING, O YE HEAVENS, FOR THE LORD HATH DONE IT,.... Done what he promised, the forgiveness of the sins of his people, and the redemption of them. So the Targum, "because the Lord hath wrought redemption for his people.'' The Vulgate Latin version adds, "mercy" o; and so the Septuagint version, "bec... [ Continue Reading ]
THUS SAITH THE LORD, THY REDEEMER,.... These are the words of the Son of God, of Christ, the Redeemer of his people; and the following show him to be the mighty God, and so able to redeem them, and therefore was appointed to this work, and undertook it: AND HE THAT FORMED THEE FROM THE WOMB; that f... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT FRUSTRATETH THE TOKENS OF THE LIARS,.... Struck dumb the oracles of the Heathens, disappointed their lying priests, and made void all the signs and tokens they gave the people, that such and such things would come to pass, which did not, and which proved them to be liars: AND MAKETH DIVINERS M... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT CONFIRMETH THE WORD OF HIS SERVANT, AND PERFORMETH THE COUNSEL OF HIS MESSENGERS,.... Who, as he confirmed the word of Isaiah and other prophets, and fulfilled their predictions concerning the captivity of the Jews, and their deliverance from it; so he has confirmed and established the word pre... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT SAITH TO THE DEEP, BE DRY,.... The Targum is, "that saith to Babylon, be desolate;'' and most interpreters, Jewish and Christian, understand it of Babylon, which was situated in a watery place, by rivers of water, particularly the river Euphrates, and in a low valley: AND I WILL DRY UP THY R... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT SAITH OF CYRUS, HE IS MY SHEPHERD,.... Or Coresh, as his name in the Hebrew language is; and in the Persian tongue signifies the "sun"; from whence he had his name, as Ctesias q and Plutarch r say; to which the Hebrew word "cheres", which signifies the "sun", has some affinity; though Joseph Sc... [ Continue Reading ]