Isaiah 9:13 Komentář

The prophet in this chapter (according to the directions given him, Isa 3:10, Isa 3:11) saith to the righteous, It shall be well with thee, but Woe to the wicked, it shall be ill with him. Here are, I. Gracious promises to those that adhere to the law and to the testimony; while those that seek to familiar spirits shall be driven into darkness and dimness, they shall see a great light, relief in the midst of their distresses, typical of gospel grace. I. In the doctrine of the Messiah (Isa 9:1-3). 2. His victories (Isa 9:4, Isa 9:5). 3. His government and dominion as Immanuel (Isa 9:6, Isa 9:7). II. Dreadful threatenings against the people of Israel, who had revolted from and were enemies to the house of David, that they should be brought to utter ruin, that their pride should bring them down (Isa 9:8-10), that their neighbours should make a prey of them (Isa 9:11, Isa 9:12), that, for their impenitence and hypocrisy, all their ornaments and supports should be cut off (Isa 9:13-17), and that by the wrath of God against them, and their wrath one against another, they should be brought to utter ruin (Isa 9:18-21). And this is typical of the final destruction of all the enemies of the Son of David and his kingdom.

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 9 This chapter contains a prophecy, partly of comfort to the church and people of God, against the calamities predicted in the preceding chapter Isa 8:1; and partly of punishment, to be inflicted upon the ungodly Israelites by their enemies. The comfort promised arises from the appearance of Christ, the great light, in some certain places of the land mentioned, said before to be afflicted, Isa 9:1 which would occasion a joy among them; illustrated by some similes, by the joy in harvest, and at the dividing of spoils, Isa 9:3 the cause of which is a deliverance from a burdensome yoke of tyranny and bondage, wrought in like manner as that by Gideon formerly; different from all other salvations, which are usually obtained with noise and blood, Isa 9:4 the author of which is the Messiah; who is described by his birth as man, and by his divine sonship as God; or by his person, having two natures united in him; and by the government devolved on him; and by his several names, which express the greatness and glory of his person and office; and by the increase and administration of his government, Isa 9:6 then follows a denunciation of judgment on Israel, Isa 9:8 the instruments of which are pointed at, Isa 9:11, and the persons described that should suffer, high and low, rich and poor, young and old, Isa 9:14 the reasons of it, their making light of former corrections, Isa 9:9 their impenitence and hardness under chastenings, Isa 9:13 their going astray by means of their leaders; and their hypocrisy and wickedness, Isa 9:16 all which would occasion the wrath of God to burn against them, and consume them, Isa 9:18 yea, through hunger and want of provisions, should destroy one another, Isa 9:20.

For the people turneth not to him that smiteth them,.... Who was the Lord of hosts, as it is explained in the next clause; it was he that had smote the people with the rod of correction and chastisement, by various afflictions and distresses which he had brought upon them; in order to bring them to a sense of their sin and duty, to reclaim and recover them from their backslidings; but they had not such an effect upon them; they returned not to him by repentance and reformation, from whom they had turned themselves by their evil ways; nor to his worship, as the Targum interprets it, to his word and ordinances; for afflictions; unless sanctified, are of no use to restore backsliders. This is to be understood of the people of Israel, the ten tribes, whom the prophet calls "the people", not my people, nor the people of the Lord, because unworthy of that character. The Septuagint render the words, "the people returned not until they were smitten", and so the Syriac version intimating, as if they did return when smitten; but the following words, and the whole context, show the contrary: neither do they seek the Lord of hosts; by prayer and supplication, for pardoning grace and mercy through Christ the Mediator; nor in his word and ordinances, for his presence and communion with him, or instruction or doctrine from him, as the Targum; to be taught true doctrine, and their duty to God and man; this is one part of the character of an unregenerate man, Rom 3:11.

It is better to turn again when we err than to be free from correction when we stumble. For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and a rebuke is a fatherly action. Every soul that is not chastised is not healed. Is not then freedom from chastisement a hard thing? But to fail to be corrected by the chastisement is still harder.

Chapter IX - (Verses 8 onwards) The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it hath lighted upon Israel. And all the people shall know, even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria, that say in the pride and stoutness of heart, The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycomores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars. Therefore the LORD shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and join his enemies together; The Syrians before, and the Philistines behind; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. In all these things his anger is not turned away, but his hand is still stretched out, and the people have not turned back to the one who struck them, and they have not sought the Lord of hosts. We read above (2 Kings 16) that in the days of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin king of Syria went up, and Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came to Jerusalem to attack it. And (Isaiah 7) it is said that Isaiah the prophet was sent to meet Ahaz with his son Shear-Jashub, to tell him not to fear, and not to let his heart be faint because of the two smoldering stumps of firebrands, for the rule of Syria and Israel would soon come to an end. When he did not believe because of the magnitude of the matter and the immediate danger, he is ordered to ask for a sign for himself. And because he was an idolater, he did not want to do this either: therefore the Lord did not give a sign to the king himself, but to the house of David he gives a sign of his son who will be born of a Virgin, through whose invocation they will be delivered from imminent danger, and other things that we have interpreted up to this point. Therefore, with many mysteries being placed in the midst, now he returns to what he had begun, and prophesies the overthrow of Rezin and Ephraim, that is, of Syria and Samaria: The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it has fallen upon Israel. Among the Hebrews, Dabar (), which is written with three consonant letters Daleth, Beth, and Res, depending on the quality of the places, if read as Dabar, it signifies 'word,' if Deber, 'death' and 'pestilence.' For this reason, many, being deceived by the ambiguity of the language, do not say that the word was sent, but death. Therefore, the Lord sent his word to Jacob, and it fell upon Israel. He wanted Judah to reign, as prophesied by Jacob in Genesis (Ch. XLIX): and Israel, that is, the ten tribes, claimed authority for themselves, of whom it was said: 'They have reigned, but not by me' (Hosea VIII, 4). Therefore, the dignity of the kingdom, which had passed from the rejected Saul to David through the anointing of Samuel, was transferred to Jacob, that is, to the twelve tribes, which were formerly called Jacob, in Israel: not as the LXX translated, 'came,' but fell among the wicked: which had been established for the righteous. Therefore, let the people of Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria, who are lifted up in pride because of their multitude, know that the kingdom of Judah is small and most insignificant compared to ours. Therefore, as their walls collapse, let us build ourselves a house with square stones. While their sycamore trees, which are cheap wood, are cut down in enemy attacks, let us construct our empire with cedars, which are indestructible, to signify an everlasting kingdom. Therefore, let all the people of Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria know that the Syrian who is now their ally will become their enemy. Or indeed, let sudden wars rise up against the Syrian himself, and let all things be turned into chaos, so that Syria may be moved against Israel from the east, and the Philistines, that is, the Palestinians, may be moved against them from the west, and together devour Israel. And when they have done these things, my hand is still stretched out, whether it is high above Israel, and it does not cease to strike them. And those who are cut off from God will not return to the one who strikes them, nor will they seek the Lord of hosts, worshipping golden calves instead of God. According to the anagoge, our scholars have explained this passage as follows: God sent his Son to Jacob, that is, to the Jews, and he came to Israel, that is, to the people of the nations, whom the Apostle also refers to as Israel (Rom. 9). But others say this: The Lord sent His word to the Church, which supplanted the former people, and fell in Israel, that is, in the heretics who boast of seeing God. Therefore, let their leaders and all who dwell in Samaria, that is, those who claim to keep God's law and to have an abundance of virtues and bring forth the fruits of righteousness (for this is what Ephraim signifies), know that they despise the Church in the pride of their hearts and consider its simplicity as ignorance. They say, 'Instead of its stones, we will build our own churches with square stones and the strongest ones, and instead of fruitless trees that quickly perish, we will construct the tallest cedars, which the Lord will destroy, and the righteous, speaking in the person of the wicked, will say, 'I have seen them but they have no place' (Psalm 36).' Therefore, the Lord says that Rasin, which is interpreted as secular wisdom, whom Ephraim relied on for help, will turn against him and all his enemies will fight against him, and he will be conquered from the East and the West, and they will devour Israel with their whole mouth. For these things, the LXX interpreted: Let us build a tower for ourselves, and God will crush those who rise against Mount Zion, and He will scatter its enemies. For they desire to build themselves a temple in Samaria, in imitation of the Temple of God; but although they have moved their feet from the East and have said, 'Come, let us build a tower and make a name for ourselves before we are scattered' (Gen. XI, 4): The Lord opposing them, their unity will be dissolved and their agreement will be scattered, and their tongues will be divided against each other, so that they do not become more evil by agreeing with each other, but rather destroy each other. And when they are thus struck and devoured by their enemies, they will not return to the Lord; but his hand is still ready to strike, according to what we read in Jeremiah: 'I struck your children in vain; you did not receive discipline' (Jerem. II, 30).

Against them the prophet complains to the Lord, saying, “You have bruised them, and they have refused to receive correction.” … Hence again the Lord says, “The people are not returned to him who has struck them.” … Hence the Lord reproaches the people of Israel, captive yet not converted from their iniquity, saying, “The house of Israel is become dross to me; all these are brass, and tin, and iron and lead, in the midst of the furnace.” This is as though he said unmistakably, “I wished to purify them in the fire of tribulation, and I wanted them to become silver or gold. But they have turned from me in the furnace into brass, and tin, and iron and lead, because even in tribulation they have rushed forward not to virtue but to vices.” When brass is struck, it gives off a greater sound than do other metals. He … who when chastised breaks forth into sounds of murmuring has turned to brass in the midst of the furnace. Tin, however, when skillfully treated, presents the deceptive appearance of silver. He therefore who is not free from the vice of pretence in the midst of tribulation has become tin in the furnace. But he uses iron who plots against the life of the neighbor, and he is iron in the furnace when he does not put away in his tribulations the wickedness of doing harm to neighbors. Lead, again, is heavier than the other metals. He then is found to be lead in the furnace who is so weighed down by the burden of his sin that even in tribulation he is not raised above earthly desires.

The reason for adding punishment to punishment is the incorrigibility of the people, and this is what he says, and the people are not returned to him who has struck them: in vain have I struck your children, they have not received correction (Jer 2:30).

The prophet bitterly laments the terrible judgments about to be inflicted upon his countrymen, and points out some of the evils which have provoked the Divine Majesty, Jer 9:1-9. Judea shall be utterly desolated, and the inhabitants transplanted into heathen countries, Jer 9:10-17. In allusion to an ancient custom, a band of mourning women is called to lament over the ruins of Jerusalem, Jer 9:17, Jer 9:18; and even the funeral dirge is given in terms full of beauty, elegance, and pathos, Jer 9:19-22. God is the fountain of all good; man, merely an instrument by which a portion of this good is distributed in the earth; therefore none should glory in his wisdom, might, or riches, Jer 9:23, Jer 9:24. The judgments of God shall fall, not upon the land of Judea only, but also upon many heathen nations, Jer 9:25, Jer 9:26.

CONTINUATION OF THE PROPHECY IN THE EIGHTH CHAPTER. (Isa 9:1-7) Nevertheless, &c.--rather, "For darkness shall not (continually) be on it (that is, the land) on which there is (now) distress" [HENGSTENBERG and MAURER]. The "for" refers, not to the words immediately preceding, but to the consolations in Isa 8:9-10, Isa 8:17-18. Do not despair, for, &c. when at the first, &c.--rather, "as the former time has brought contempt on the land of Zebulun and Naphtali (namely, the deportation of their inhabitants under Tiglath-pileser, Kg2 15:29, a little before the giving of this prophecy); so shall the after-coming time bring honor to the way of the sea (the district around the lake of Galilee), the land beyond (but HENGSTENBERG, "by the side of") Jordan (Perea, east of Jordan, belonging to Reuben, Gad, and half-Manasseh), the circle (but HENGSTENBERG, "Galilee") (that is, region) of the "Gentiles" [MAURER, HENGSTENBERG, &c.]. Galil in Hebrew is a "circle," "circuit," and from it came the name Galilee. North of Naphtali, inhabited by a mixed race of Jews and Gentiles of the bordering Phœnician race (Jdg 1:30; Kg1 9:11). Besides the recent deportation by Tiglath-pileser, it had been sorely smitten by Ben-hadad of Syria, two hundred years before (Kg1 15:20). It was after the Assyrian deportation colonized with heathens, by Esar-haddon (Kg2 17:24). Hence arose the contempt for it on the part of the southern Jews of purer blood (Joh 1:46; Joh 7:52). The same region which was so darkened once, shall be among the first to receive Messiah's light (Mat 4:13, Mat 4:15-16). It was in despised Galilee that He first and most publicly exercised His ministry; from it were most of His apostles. Foretold in Deu 33:18-19; Act 2:7; Psa 68:27-28, Jerusalem, the theocratic capital, might readily have known Messiah; to compensate less favored Galilee, He ministered mostly there; Galilee's very debasement made it feel its need of a Saviour, a feeling not known to the self-righteous Jews (Mat 9:13). It was appropriate, too, that He who was both "the Light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of His people Israel," should minister chiefly on the border land of Israel, near the Gentiles.

Second strophe. turneth not--the design of God's chastisements; not fulfilled in their case; a new cause for punishment (Jer 2:20; Jer 5:3).

Strophe 2. "But the people turneth not unto Him that smiteth it, and they seek not Jehovah of hosts. Therefore Jehovah rooteth out of Israel head and tail, palm-branch and rush, in one day. Elders and highly distinguished men, this is the head; and prophets, lying teachers, this is the tail. The leaders of this people have become leaders astray, and their followers swallowed up. Therefore the Lord will not rejoice in their young men, and will have no compassion on their orphans and widows: for all together are profligate and evil-doers, and every mouth speaketh blasphemy. With all this His anger is not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still." As the first stage of the judgments has been followed by no true conversion to Jehovah the almighty judge, there comes a second. עד שׁוּב (to turn unto) denotes a thorough conversion, not stopping half-way. "The smiter of it" (hammaccēhu), or "he who smiteth it," it Jehovah (compare, on the other hand, Isa 10:20, where Asshur is intended). The article and suffix are used together, as in Isa 24:2; Pro 16:4 (vid., Ges. 110, 2; Caspari, Arab. Gram. 472). But there was coming now a great day of punishment (in the view of the prophet, it was already past), such as Israel experienced more than once in the Assyrian oppressions, and Judah in the Chaldean, when head and tail, or, according to another proverbial expression, palm-branch and rush, would be rooted out. We might suppose that the persons referred to were the high and low; but Isa 9:15 makes a different application of the first double figure, by giving it a different turn from its popular sense (compare the Arabic er-ru 'ūs w-aledhnâb = lofty and low, in Dietrich, Abhandlung, p. 209). The opinion which has very widely prevailed since the time of Koppe, that this v. is a gloss, is no doubt a very natural one (see Hitzig, Begriff der Kritik; Ewald, Propheten, i. 57). But Isaiah's custom of supplying his own gloss is opposed to such a view; also Isaiah's composition in Isa 3:3 and Isa 30:20, and the relation in which this v. stands to Isa 9:16; and lastly, the singular character of the gloss itself, which is one of the strongest proofs that it contains the prophet's exposition of his own words. The chiefs of the nation were the head of the national body; and behind, like a wagging dog's tail, sat the false prophets with their flatteries of the people, loving, as Persius says, blando caudam jactare popello. The prophet drops the figure of Cippâh, the palm-branch which forms the crown of the palm, and which derives its name from the fact that it resembles the palm of the hand (instar palmae manus), and agmōn, the rush which grows in the marsh. (Note: The noun agam is used in the Old Testament as well as in the Talmud to signify both a marshy place (see Baba mesi'a 36b, and more especially Aboda zara 38a, where giloi agmah signifies the laying bare of the marshy soil by the burning up of the reeds), and also the marsh grass (Sabbath 11a, "if all the agmim were kalams, i.e., writing reeds, or pens;" and Kiddsin 62b, where agam signifies a talk of marsh-grass or reed, a rush or bulrush, and is explained, with a reference to Isa 58:5, as signifying a tender, weak stalk). The noun agmon, on the other hand, signifies only the stalk of the marsh-grass, or the marsh-grass itself; and in this sense it is not found in the Talmud (see Comm on Job, at Isa 41:10-13). The verbal meaning upon which these names are founded is evident from the Arabic mâ āgim (magūm), "bad water" (see at Isa 19:10). There is no connection between this and maugil, literally a depression of the soil, in which water lodges for a long time, and which is only dried up in summer weather.) The allusion here is to the rulers of the nation and the dregs of the people. The basest extremity were the demagogues in the shape of prophets. For it had come to this, as Isa 9:16 affirms, that those who promised to lead by a straight road led astray, and those who suffered themselves to be led by them were as good as already swallowed up by hell (cf., Isa 5:14; Isa 3:12). Therefore the Sovereign Ruler would not rejoice over the young men of this nation; that is to say, He would suffer them to be smitten by their enemies, without going with them to battle, and would refuse His customary compassion even towards widows and orphans, for they were all thoroughly corrupt on every side. The alienation, obliquity, and dishonesty of their heart, are indicated by the word Chânēph (from Chânaph, which has in itself the indifferent radical idea of inclination; so that in Arabic, Chanı̄f, as a synonym of ‛âdil, (Note: This is the way in which it should be written in Comm on Job, at Isa 13:16; ‛adala has also the indifferent meaning of return or decision.) has the very opposite meaning of decision in favour of what is right); the badness of their actions by מרע (in half pause for מרע (Note: Nevertheless this reading is also met with, and according to Masora finalis, p. 52, col. 8, this is the correct reading (as in Pro 17:4, where it is doubtful whether the meaning is a friend or a malevolent person). The question is not an unimportant one, as we may see from Olshausen, 258, p. 581.) = מרע, maleficus); the vicious infatuation of their words by nebâlâh. This they are, and this they continue; and consequently the wrathful hand of God is stretched out over them for the infliction of fresh strokes.