Isaia 22:10 Commento

We have now come nearer home, for this chapter is "the burden of the valley of vision," Jerusalem; other places had their burden for the sake of their being concerned in some way or other with Jerusalem, and were reckoned with either as spiteful enemies or deceitful friends to the people of God; but now let Jerusalem hear her own doom. This chapter concerns, I. The city of Jerusalem itself and the neighbourhood depending upon it. Here is, 1. A prophecy of the grievous distress they should shortly be brought into by Sennacherib's invasion of the country and laying siege to the city (Isa 22:1-7). 2. A reproof given them for their misconduct in that distress, in two things: - (1.) Not having an eye to God in the use of the means of their preservation (Isa 22:8-11). (2.) Not humbling themselves under his mighty hand (Isa 22:12-14). II. The court of Hezekiah, and the officers of that court. 1. The displacing of Shebna, a bad man, and turning him out of the treasury (Isa 22:15-19, Isa 22:25). 2. The preferring of Eliakim, who should do his country better service, to his place (Isa 22:20-24).

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 22 This chapter contains two prophecies, one concerning the invasion of Judah and Jerusalem, not by the Medes and Persians, but by the Assyrian army, under which they served; and the other of the removal of Shebna, an officer in Hezekiah's court, and of the placing of Eliakim in his stead. After the title of the former of these prophecies, the distress of the people, through the invasion, is described, by their getting up to the housetops, Isa 22:1 by the stillness of the city, having left both trade and mirth; by the slain in it, not by the sword, but through fear or famine, Isa 22:2 by the flight of the rulers, and by the lamentation of the prophet, Isa 22:3 the instruments of which distress were the Persians and Medes serving under Sennacherib, who are described by their quivers and shields, their chariots and horsemen, Isa 22:6 the methods the Jews took to defend themselves, and their vain confidence, are exposed; for which, with their disrespect to the Lord, and his admonitions, their carnal security and luxury, they are threatened with death, Isa 22:8 then follows the prophecy of the deposition of Shebna, who is described by his name and office, Isa 22:15 whose pride is exposed as the cause of his fall, Isa 22:16 and he is threatened not only to be driven from his station, but to be carried captive into another country, suddenly and violently, and with great shame and disgrace, Isa 22:17 and another put in his place, who is mentioned by name, Isa 22:20 and who should be invested with his office and power, and have all the ensigns of it, Isa 22:21 and should continue long in it, to great honour and usefulness to his family, Isa 22:23 yet not always, Isa 22:25.

And ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem,.... To know what number of men were in them, and how many could be spared to do duty, either as watchmen or soldiers; or to know how to levy the tax, and what money they would be able to raise, to defray the charge of the defence of the city; or to see what provisions they had, and so make a computation how long they could hold out the siege; or else to observe what houses might be annoyed by the enemy, and what stood in the way of the repair of the walls, or were proper to pull down, that with the stones and timber of them they might make up the breaches of the wall, and that the stronger, as follows: and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall; either such as were without the wall, which, had they let them stand, would either have been destroyed by the enemy, or have been a harbour for them; or those upon it, and near it within, which stood in the way of the repair, and were easily beat down by the enemy; or might be a means of communication between them and such as were inclined to be treacherous; with the stones and timber of which houses, when broken down, they strengthened the wall, and so served a better purpose than if they had stood.

(Vers. 10, 11.) And you gathered the waters of the lower pool, and you counted the houses of Jerusalem, and you destroyed houses to fortify the wall. And you made a reservoir between the two walls, and the water of the Old Pool. And you did not look to the One who made it, and you did not see the One who fashioned it from afar. It tells how they prepared the city for siege, and transferred the waters of the lower pool to the upper fortification, and after destroying the houses, they built walls, and through each family, they counted the amount of water that each house should receive, and they made a cistern between the two walls, and restored the old pool to preserve the water. And they did not call upon the help of God, who is the creator of the city and the Lord of the pool; as if God had said in other words: You trusted in man and not in God, who is the maker of man. Certain people, according to a mystical understanding, understand the old pool to be a shadow of the Law, and between two walls, namely the new and old Testament, they see a lake built by the Pharisees' traditions and commands, which cannot contain water: and they did not look to the Son of God, nor did they believe in His presence, whom they had never seen before, because they have always been incredulous to God's precepts.

(Vers. 10, 11.) And you gathered the waters of the lower pool, and you numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and you destroyed houses to build a wall. And you made a reservoir between two walls, and the water of the old pool. And you did not look to Him who made it, and the worker of it from afar you did not see. LXX: And they turned the water of the old pool into the city, and they destroyed the houses of Jerusalem to strengthen the city wall. And you made water between two walls within the old pool, and you did not look to Him who made it from the beginning, and you did not see its creator. You who know the divisions of the city of David, that is, the Church, will see or have seen, which have multiplied throughout the world; you who have gathered the waters of your pool and your doctrine, not of the higher, but of the lower, and have counted the houses of Jerusalem, whether you have destroyed them to fortify your wall, you have not dug wells that would have had life-giving and eternal water, but broken cisterns that cannot hold water. And you have made them between the two walls of the old and new covenant, and you have neglected the water of the old pool, and you have not considered the giver of the law, God, and you have completely neglected the operator of the world. This is according to the Hebrew. Moreover, according to the Septuagint, the heretics considered themselves many, and with this confidence, they turned the teaching of the old Testament away from the city of God, which is the Church, and destroyed the houses of Jerusalem, in order to build meeting places of the wicked; and while they reject the old Testament, they have not followed the new, because the new is confirmed by the testimonies of the old Testament. Therefore, between the two walls of the old and the new, they have made for themselves new waters, which they think are interior and contain greater mysteries than those contained in the old Testament; and they have not respected God, who is the creator of the old Testament, and they did not even want to see his maker from afar.

And have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, that water may be dispensed by number and measure; and have broken down houses which were next to the wall, so that they wouldn't impede the defenders.

This section of prophecy, extending to the end of the eighth verse of the next chapter, is addressed to the king of Judah and his people. It enjoins on them the practice of justice and equity, as they would hope to prosper, Jer 22:14; but threatens them, in case of disobedience, with utter destruction, Jer 22:5-9. The captivity of Shallum, the son of Josiah, is declared to be irreversible, Jer 22:10-12; and the miserable and unlamented end of Jeconiah, contemptuously called Coniah, is foretold, Jer 22:13-19. His family is threatened with the like captivity, and his seed declared to be for ever excluded from the throne, Jer 22:20-30.

PROPHECY AS TO AN ATTACK ON JERUSALEM. (Isa 22:1-14) of . . . valley of vision--rather, "respecting the valley of visions"; namely, Jerusalem, the seat of divine revelations and visions, "the nursery of prophets" [JEROME], (Isa 2:3; Isa 29:1; Eze 23:4, Margin; Luk 13:33). It lay in a "valley" surrounded by hills higher than Zion and Moriah (Psa 125:2; Jer 21:13). thee--the people of Jerusalem personified. housetops--Panic-struck, they went up on the flat balustraded roofs to look forth and see whether the enemy was near, and partly to defend themselves from the roofs (Jdg 9:51, &c.).

numbered--rather, "ye shall number," namely, in order to see which of them may be pulled down with the least loss to the city, and with most advantage for the repair of the walls and rearing of towers (Ch2 32:5). have ye broken down--rather, "ye shall break down."