Isaiah 5:26 Kommentar

In this chapter the prophet, in God's name, shows the people of God their transgressions, even the house of Jacob their sins, and the judgments which were likely to be brought upon them for their sins, I. By a parable, under the similitude of an unfruitful vineyard, representing the great favours God had bestowed upon them, their disappointing his expectations from them, and the ruin they had thereby deserved (Isa 5:1-7). II. By an enumeration of the sins that did abound among them, with a threatening of punishments that should answer to the sins. 1. Covetousness, and greediness of worldly wealth, which shall be punished with famine (Isa 5:8-10) 2. Rioting, revelling, and drunkenness (Isa 5:11, Isa 5:12, Isa 5:22, Isa 5:23), which shall be punished with captivity and all the miseries that attend it (Isa 5:13-17). 3. Presumption in sin, and defying the justice of God (Isa 5:18, Isa 5:19). 4. Confounding the distinctions between virtue and vice, and so undermining the principles of religion (Isa 5:20). 5. Self-conceit (Isa 5:21). 6. Perverting justice, for which, and the other instances of reigning wickedness among them, a great and general desolation in threatened, which should lay all waste (Isa 5:24, Isa 5:25), and which should be effected by a foreign invasion (Isa 5:26-30), referring perhaps to the havoc made not long after by Sennacherib's army.

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 5 In this chapter, under the parable of a vineyard and its ruins, the Jews and their destruction are represented; the reasons of which are given, their manifold sins and transgressions, particularly enumerated, with the punishment threatened to them, and which is delivered in form of a song. The vineyard is described by the owner of it, a well beloved one; by the situation of it, in a fruitful hill; by the fence about it, and care and culture of it; and by its not answering the expectation of the owner, it bringing forth wild grapes instead of good ones, Isa 5:1 wherefore the men of Judah and Jerusalem are made judges between the owner and his vineyard, what more could have been done to it, or rather what was now to be done to it, since this was the case; and the result is, that it should be utterly laid waste, and come to ruin; and the whole is applied to the house of Israel, and men of Judah, Isa 5:3 whose sins, as the cause of their ruin, are mentioned in the following verses; their covetousness, with the punishment of it, Isa 5:8 their intemperance, luxury, and love of pleasure, with the punishment threatened thereunto, Isa 5:11 whereby haughty men should be humbled, the Lord be glorified, and at the same time his weak and innocent people would be taken care of, Isa 5:15 next, other sins are taken notice of, and woes pronounced on account of them, as, an impudent course of sinning, insolent impiety against God, confusion of good and evil, conceit of their own wisdom, drunkenness, and perversion of justice, Isa 5:18 wherefore for these things, and for their contempt and rejection of the law and word of the Lord, utter destruction is threatened them, Isa 5:24 yea, the anger of God had been already kindled against them, and they had felt it in some instances, Isa 5:25 but they are given to expect severer judgments, by means of foreign nations, that should be gathered against them; who are described by their swiftness, strength, and vigilance; by their armour, horses, and carriages; and by their terror and cruelty; the consequence of which would be utter darkness, distress, and calamities, in the land of Judea, Isa 5:26.

And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far,.... Not to the Chaldeans or Babylonians, for they were not nations, but one nation, and were a people near; but to the Romans, who consisted of many nations, and were afar off, and extended their empire to the ends of the earth; these, by one providence or another, were stirred up to make an expedition into the land of Judea, and besiege Jerusalem: and this lifting up of an ensign is not, as sometimes, for the gathering and enlisting of soldiers, or to prepare them for the battle, or to give them the signal when to begin the fight; but as a direction to decamp and proceed on a journey, on some expedition: and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth, or "to him" (i); the king, or general of them, wherever he is, even though at the end of the earth: and the phrase denotes the secret and powerful influence of divine Providence, in moving upon the hearts of the Romans, and their general, to enter upon such a design against the Jews; and which was as easily done as for one man to hiss or call to another; or as for a shepherd to whistle for his sheep; to which the allusion seems to be; the Lord having the hearts of all in his hands, and can turn them as he pleases, to do his will: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly; or "he shall come"; the king with his army; and so the Targum paraphrases it; "and behold, a king with his army shall come swiftly, as light clouds;'' this shows the swift and sudden destruction that should come upon the Jews; and is an answer to their scoffs, Isa 5:19. (i) "ei", Vatablus; Montanus; "illi", Cocceius; "ad se", Junius & Tremellius.

I give glory to Jesus Christ, the God who has imbued you with such wisdom. I am well aware that you have been made perfect in unwavering faith, like men nailed in body and spirit to the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, and confirmed in love by the blood of Christ. In regard to our Lord, you are thoroughly convinced that he was of the race of David according to the flesh, and the Son of God by his will and power; that he was truly born of the Virgin and baptized by John in order that all due observance might be fulfilled by him; that in his body he was truly nailed to the cross for our sake under Pontius Pilate and Herod the tetrarch (we are the most blessed fruit of his passion) so that, through his resurrection, he might raise for all ages in the one body of his church a standard for the saints and the faithful, whether among Jews or Gentiles.

He [God] says the following about the Gentiles, those he was about to call together from the ends of the earth: “Behold, they shall come swiftly with speed.” He says “swiftly” because of the hastening toward end times. He says “with speed” because they will not be weighed down by the weights of the ancient law. He says “they shall be filled” because it is a promise made only to those who hunger and thirst.

And he will raise a signal among the nations far away, and he will whistle for them from the ends of the earth, and behold, they will come quickly and swiftly. The Hebrews understand this passage to prophesy about the Babylonians and Nebuchadnezzar, that by the will of God he was led into Judah and Jerusalem, and he destroyed the temple. But we, following the order, and connecting the following things with those that came before, therefore, we say that the sign, elevated far away among the nations, signifies the Lord, or that he has hissed at them like a serpent, or has dragged them with the boundary of the land; because they have cast aside the law of the Gospel, and have blasphemed the holy word. For if there had been discourse regarding the Babylonians, according to the prophetic custom, it would have said: I will call him who is from the North, because the Assyrians and Chaldeans are situated near Judea in the northern region. He certainly described the Babylonians and Assyrians more clearly. But now, saying, 'He will raise a signal among the nations far away, and will whistle for them from the ends of the earth,' he signifies distant nations and those who dwell at the ends of the earth, undoubtedly including the Romans and all the peoples of Italy, Gaul, and Spain, who were subjected to the Roman Empire under Vespasian and Hadrian. Hence why Italy was called Hesperia, because the evening star sets there. And with this, he was struck down, and all the hills of Judea were troubled, as Theodotion and Symmachus interpreted, or disturbed, as Aquila put it, or embittered, as the LXX translated, so that the streets were filled with the bodies of the dead, as if by the assault of enemies. I read in the commentary of someone that this which is said: He will raise a signal among the nations afar off, and will whistle to him from the ends of the earth, is to be understood from the calling of the Gentiles, that when the sign of the Cross is raised and the burdens of sins are laid aside, they will come quickly and believe. But I do not know how the following things can agree with this interpretation.

197. Second, the raising of the standard, and he will lift up a sign, that is, a standard: set up the sign in Zion. Strengthen yourselves, stay not: for I bring evil from the north, and great destruction (Jer 4:6). Third, the calling together of the army, and will whistle, that is, he will blow upon, below: and it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall whistle for the fly, that is in the uttermost parts of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. And they shall come, and shall all of them rest in the torrents of the valleys (Isa 7:18-19). And to frighten them more, he adds the foreignness of the people, as to cult: to the nations, so that they do not revere your holy things; and as to language, afar off, lest they be appeased by words; and as to customs: from the ends of the earth, lest they make an alliance with them.

The prophet, having described the judgments impending over his countrymen, enlarges on the corruptions which prevailed among them. Their profession of religion was all false and hypocritical, Jer 5:1, Jer 5:2. Though corrected, they were not amended, but persisted in their guilt, Jer 5:3. This was not the case with the low and ignorant only, Jer 5:4; but more egregiously so with those of the higher order, from whose knowledge and opportunities better things might have been expected, Jer 5:5. God therefore threatens them with the most cruel enemies, Jer 5:6; and appeals to themselves if they should be permitted to practice such sins unpunished, Jer 5:7-9. He then commands their enemies to raze the walls of Jerusalem, Jer 5:10; that devoted city whose inhabitants added to all their other sins the highest contempt of God's word and prophets, Jer 5:11-13. Wherefore his word, in the mouth of his prophet, shall be as fire to consume them, Jer 5:14; the Chaldean forces shall cruelly addict them, Jer 5:15-17; and farther judgments await then as the consequence of their apostasy and idolatry, Jer 5:18, Jer 5:19. The chapter closes with a most melancholy picture of the moral condition of the Jewish people at that period which immediately preceded the Babylonish captivity, Jer 5:20-31.

He will - hiss "He will hist" - "The metaphor is taken from the practice of those that keep bees, who draw them out of their hives into the fields, and lead them back again, συρισμασι, by a hiss or a whistle." - Cyril, on this place; and to the same purpose Theodoret, ib. In Isa 7:18, the metaphor is more apparent, by being carried farther, where the hostile armies are expressed by the fly and the bee: - "Jehovah shall hist the fly That is in the utmost parts of Egypt; And the bee, that is in the land of Assyria." On which place see Deu 1:44; Psa 118:12; and God calls the locusts his great army, Joe 2:25; Exo 23:28. See Huet, Quest. Alnet. 2:12. שרק sharak or shrak, he shall whistle for them, call loud and shrill; he shall shriek, and they (their enemies) shall come at his call. With speed - This refers to the Isa 5:19. As the scoffers had challenged God to make speed, and to hasten his work of vengeance, so now God assures them that with speed and swiftly it shall come.

PARABLE OF JEHOVAH'S VINEYARD. (Isa. 5:1-30) to--rather, "concerning" [GESENIUS], that is, in the person of My beloved, as His representative [VITRINGA]. Isaiah gives a hint of the distinction and yet unity of the Divine Persons (compare He with I, Isa 5:2-3). of my beloved--inspired by Him; or else, a tender song [CASTALIO]. By a slight change of reading "a song of His love" [HOUBIGANT]. "The Beloved" is Jehovah, the Second Person, the "Angel" of God the Father, not in His character as incarnate Messiah, but as God of the Jews (Exo 23:20-21; Exo 32:34; Exo 33:14). vineyard-- (Isa 3:14; Psa 80:8, &c.). The Jewish covenant-people, separated from the nations for His glory, as the object of His peculiar care (Mat 20:1; Mat 21:33). Jesus Christ in the "vineyard" of the New Testament Church is the same as the Old Testament Angel of the Jewish covenant. fruitful hill--literally, "a horn" ("peak," as the Swiss shreckhorn) of the son of oil; poetically, for very fruitful. Suggestive of isolation, security, and a sunny aspect. Isaiah alludes plainly to the Song of Solomon (Sol 6:3; Sol 8:11-12), in the words "His vineyard" and "my Beloved" (compare Isa 26:20; Isa 61:10, with Sol 1:4; Sol 4:10). The transition from "branch" (Isa 4:2) to "vineyard" here is not unnatural.

lift . . . ensign--to call together the hostile nations to execute His judgments on Judea (Isa 10:5-7; Isa 45:1). But for mercy to it, in Isa 11:12; Isa 18:3. hiss-- (Isa 7:18). Bees were drawn out of their hives by the sound of a flute, or hissing, or whistling (Zac 10:8). God will collect the nations round Judea like bees (Deu 1:44; Psa 118:12). end of the earth--the widely distant subject races of which the Assyrian army was made up (Isa 22:6). The ulterior fulfilment took place in the siege under Roman Titus. Compare "end of the earth" (Deu 28:49, &c.). So the pronoun is singular in the Hebrew, for "them," "their," "whose" (him, his, &c.), Isa 5:26-29; referring to some particular nation and person [HORSLEY].

Jehovah finds the human instruments of His further strokes, not in Israel and the neighbouring nations, but in the people of distant lands. "And lifts up a banner to the distant nations, and hisses to it from the end of the earth; and, behold, it comes with haste swiftly." What the prophet here foretold began to be fulfilled in the time of Ahaz. But the prophecy, which commences with this verse, has every possible mark of the very opposite of a vaticinium post eventum. It is, strictly speaking, only what had already been threatened in Deu 28:49. (cf., Deu 32:21.), though here it assumes a more plastic form, and is here presented for the first time to the view of the prophet as though coming out of a mist. Jehovah summons the nations afar off: haggōyim mērâchok signifies, as we have rendered it, the "distant nations," for mērâc is virtually an adjective both here and Isa 49:1, just as in Jer 23:23 it is virtually a substantive. The visible working of Jehovah presents itself to the prophet in two figures. Jehovah plants a banner or standard, which, like an optical telegraph, announces to the nations at a more remote distance than the horn of battle (shophâr) could possibly reach, that they are to gather together to war. A "banner" (nês): i.e., a lofty staff with flying colours (Isa 33:23) planted upon a bare mountain-top (Isa 13:2). נשׂא alternates with הרים in this favourite figure of Isaiah. The nations through whom this was primarily fulfilled were the nations of the Assyrian empire. According to the Old Testament view, these nations were regarded as far off, and dwelling at the end of the earth (Isa 39:3), not only inasmuch as the Euphrates formed the boundary towards the north-east between what was geographically known and unknown to the Israelites (Psa 72:8; Zac 9:10), but also inasmuch as the prophet had in his mind a complex body of nations stretching far away into further Asia. The second figure is taken from a bee-master, who entices the bees, by hissing or whistling, to come out of their hives and settle on the ground. Thus Virgil says to the bee-master who wants to make the bees settle, "Raise a ringing, and beat the cymbals of Cybele all around" (Georgics, iv 54). Thus does Jehovah entice the hosts of nations like swarms of bees (Isa 7:18), and they swarm together with haste and swiftness. The plural changes into the singular, because those who are approaching have all the appearance at first of a compact and indivisible mass; it is also possible that the ruling nation among the many is singled out. The thought and expression are both misty, and this is perfectly characteristic. With the word "behold" (hinnēh) the prophet points to them; they are approaching mehērâh kal, i.e., in the shortest time with swift feet, and the nearer they come to his view the more clearly he can describe them.