Isaia 66:16 Commento

The scope of this chapter is much the same as that of the foregoing chapter and many expressions of it are the same; it therefore looks the same way, to the different state of the good and bad among the Jews at their return out of captivity, but that typifying the rejection of the Jews in the days of the Messiah, the conversion of the Gentiles, and the setting up of the gospel-kingdom in the world. The first verse of this chapter is applied by Stephen to the dismantling of the temple by the planting of the Christian church (Act 7:49, Act 7:50), which may serve as a key to the whole chapter. We have here, I. The contempt God puts upon ceremonial services in comparison with moral duties, and an intimation therein of his purpose shortly to put an end to the temple, and sacrifice and reject those that adhered to them (Isa 66:1-4). II. The salvation God will in due time work for his people out of the hands of their oppressors (Isa 66:5), speaking terror to the persecutors (Isa 66:6) and comfort to the persecuted, a speedy and complete deliverance (Isa 66:7-9), a joyful settlement (Isa 66:10, Isa 66:11), the accession of the Gentiles to them, and abundance of satisfaction therein (Isa 66:12-14). III. The terrible vengeance which God will bring upon the enemies of his church and people (Isa 66:15-18). IV. The happy establishment of the church upon large and sure foundations, its constant attendance on God and triumph over its enemies (Isa 66:19-24). And we may well expect that this evangelical prophet, here, in the close of his prophecy, should (as he does) look as far forward as to the latter days, to the last day, to the days of eternity.

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 66 This chapter treats of the same things as the former, the rejection of the unbelieving Jews, and the regard had to them that did believe; the conversion of that people in the latter day; the calling of the Gentiles, and the happy state of the church in the last times. The causes of the rejection of the Jews were their unworthy notions of God, as if he was confined to the temple of Jerusalem, and to be pleased with external sacrifices, now both at an end under the Gospel dispensation; a better sacrifice being offered, and a more spiritual worship set up everywhere; which notions are considered, Isa 66:1, and because they were set upon their ways and works, and rejected the Gospel of Christ, they are threatened with ruin, Isa 66:3 and the disciples of Christ, whom they excommunicated and persecuted, have a promise of divine appearance for them, while vengeance shall be taken on their enemies, their city and temple, Isa 66:5, nevertheless, in the latter day, there will be a large and sudden conversion of this nation of the Jews, which is signified by the birth of them, which will be matter of great joy to all the true lovers of the interest of Christ, Isa 66:7 and what will add to the prosperity, joy, and comfort of the church of Christ at this time, will be the bringing in of the fulness of the Gentiles, Isa 66:12 at which time the vials of God's wrath will be poured out upon antichrist and his followers, Isa 66:15 and the chapter is concluded with a fresh account of large conversions of men of all nations, and of the union of Jews and Gentiles in one church state, which shall long remain, and be undisturbed by enemies, who will be all slain, and their carcasses looked upon with contempt, Isa 66:18.

For by fire, and by his sword, will the Lord plead with all flesh,.... With the Mahometans, the Turks, the Ottoman empire, against whom he will call for a sword, and will rain upon them fire and brimstone, signified by Gog and Magog, Eze 38:22 and with the other antichristian powers at the battle of Armageddon; and when the fourth vial will be poured upon the sun, and men will be scorched with fire; see Rev 16:8, and the slain of the Lord shall be many; that is, those that will be slain by the Lord, both in the attempt of the Turks to recover the land of Canaan out of the hands of the Jews, possessed of it; whose numbers of slain will be so many, that the burying of them will last seven months, Eze 39:12 and in the battle between the Christian princes, Christ at the head of them, and the antichristian armies, led on by the beast and the kings of the earth; when the fowls of the air will be invited to the great supper of the Lord, to eat the flesh of kings, captains, and mighty men, so great will the slaughter be, Rev 19:17, see also Isa 11:13.

(Verse 15, 16.) For behold, the Lord will come in fire: and like a whirlwind, his chariots, to render his anger with indignation, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire will the Lord judge, and by his sword, all flesh: and the slain by the Lord shall be multiplied. Septuagint: Behold, the Lord will come like fire, and his chariots like a storm, to render his vengeance in fury: and his rebuke in flames of fire. For in the fire of the Lord all the earth shall be judged: and all flesh shall fall by the sword thereof: many shall be wounded by the Lord. The hand of the Lord, which shall be made known to his servants, and which shall threaten the unbelievers and his enemies, so that if they do not repent, they shall suffer what follows: For behold, says the Lord, he shall come in fire, and like a whirlwind or storm shall be his chariot. Which we should understand as the angelic powers, when the Lord is coming in the glory of the Father with his angels, to judge the living and the dead: not that the Lord is fire, but that to those who endure punishment, he appears to be fire. And although Moses said (Deut. IV, 24), the same thing is confirmed by the Apostle (Hebr. XII, 29): God is a consuming fire. However, the Savior, expressing the substance of divinity, says: God is Spirit (John IV, 24). But between spirit and fire, according to corporeal understanding, there is much difference. For if fire or spirit, how is it said that they have eyes, ears, hands, feet, a stomach, and other members of the body, when these do not belong to spirit or fire? Therefore, the consuming fire is called God, so that it may consume whatever vices are in us, like hay, wood, and straw, and thorns, that is, the anxieties of this world, which the unfruitful earth brought forth instead of good seed, of which it is said to the Hebrews: But that which brings forth thorns and thistles is rejected, and is near to being cursed: whose end is to be burned (Hebrews 6:8). The Lord also spoke of this fire in the Gospel: I came to cast fire upon the earth (Luke 12:49). And above we read: Iniquity will burn like fire, and dry grass will be consumed by the fire (Isaiah 9:18), and all the weeds that the enemy sowed will grow while the father of the family sleeps (Matthew 13). Concerning this, it is also written in the Letter of James: A small fire kindles a large fuel (James 3:5)! And in Proverbs: Fire thrives on many logs (Proverbs 26:20). Although in that which is a Proverb, another meaning can be understood (Sirach 28). I believe this fire sat upon the tongues of all the apostles and believers when they spoke in various tongues, and it dispelled the darkness of error and illuminated the hearts of those who received the word of the Lord (Acts 2). And what follows: Like a storm, we proclaim the examples of the Psalms, in which it is written: God will come openly, our God, and he will not keep silent. A fire will burn before him, and around him there will be a powerful storm (Psalm 49:3-4). And elsewhere: The chariot of God is ten thousandfold, thousands of joyful ones (Ps. 67:18). With these chariots and horses, Elisha was surrounded, which his servant could not see. Therefore he said: Lord, open the eyes of this boy so that he may see. And when his eyes were opened, he saw the chariots and the charioteers and the horses all around (2 Kings 6:17). With this fiery chariot, Elijah was taken up to heaven, when Elisha cried out: My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its charioteer (2 Kings 2:12). But all these things are narrated, not because God has chariots or horses or is carried by their speed; about whom it is written elsewhere: 'Who walks upon the wings of the wind' (Psalm 103:3); but rather, it is said that He sits on a throne when He assumes the appearance of a judge; and when He comes for vengeance, to destroy His adversaries, He is displayed in the appearance of a victor and triumphalist. We have frequently spoken of the anger of the Lord, which should be understood as His forgetfulness, and repentance, and sadness, and other affections that do not befit His majesty. And in this fire and fury, in these chariots and in the flame of fire, all flesh shall be judged, whether the Lord himself with his creatures, so that he may appear to give judgment not by his power, but by the truth of judgment, according to what is said more fully in Micah, and more briefly in the fiftieth psalm: That you may be justified in your words, and may overcome when you are judged (Psalm 50:5). But the sword by which all flesh is to be judged, that must be understood, of which we have spoken before, and now we will speak in part: Unless you be converted, he will brandish his sword (Psalm 7:13). The Israelites complain about this avenging sword, given into the hands of Pharaoh, against the flesh of sinners and all vices; and they say to Moses and Aaron: May God see and judge you, for you have made our odor abominable before Pharaoh, so that the sword would be given into his hand and he would kill us. (Exod. IV, 21). Concerning this sword, it is also written in Amos: By the sword, all the sinners of the people will perish (Amos IX, 10): while certainly there are other kinds of punishments. Therefore, whatever pricks, strikes, twists, and torments is called a sword in the Holy Scriptures, by which sword those who do not do God's will shall be wounded or killed; and having forsaken the light of truth, they shall be enveloped in the darkness of error. Concerning whom it is written in Jeremiah: 'Can the Ethiopian change his skin?' (Jeremiah 13:23). And in Zephaniah: 'You Ethiopians who have been wounded or killed by my sword.' (Zephaniah 2:12). The Apostle explained in more detail the meaning of the entirety of this passage when he wrote to the Romans: 'But according to your hardness and unrepentant heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who will render to each one according to his deeds.' To those indeed who, according to patience in good work, seek glory and honor and incorruption, eternal life. But to those who are contentious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury, tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man who works evil, Jew first and Greek' (Rom. 2:5-10).

“For he will come like fire.” … For he will descend from heaven in the glory of God the Father and with the angels. This is his chariot, as it is praised in the Psalms: “The chariot of the Lord is ten thousand in dimensions with thousands of those rejoicing.” For he will come to give judgment in anger and to cast them off with a flame of fire. For “casting off” means rejection, just as he says to those who are dead in their sins, “Depart from me, you evildoers.”

They shall fall by the sword of God (Amos 9:10). And he sets out the multitude of those who are punished: the slain of the Lord shall be many, above: for there is a victim of the Lord in Bosra and a great slaughter in the land of Edom (Isa 34:6).

This chapter treats of the same subject with the foregoing. God, by his prophet, tells the Jews, who valued themselves much on their temple and pompous worship, that the Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; and that no outward rites of worship, while the worshippers are idolatrous and impure, can please him who looketh at the heart, Isa 66:1-3. This leads to a threatening of vengeance for their guilt, alluding to their making void the law of God by their abominable traditions, their rejection of Christ, persecution of his followers, and consequent destruction by the Romans. But as the Jewish ritual and people shadow forth the system of Christianity and its professors; so, in the prophetical writings, the idolatries of the Jews are frequently put for the idolatries afterwards practiced by those bearing the Christian name. Consequently, if we would have the plenitude of meaning in this section of prophecy, which the very content requires, we must look through the type into the antitype, viz., the very gross idolatries practiced by the members of Antichrist, the pompous heap of human intentions and traditions with which they have encumbered the Christian system, their most dreadful persecution of Christ's spiritual and true worshippers, and the awful judgments which shall overtake them in the great and terrible day of the Lord, Isa 66:4-6. The mighty and sudden increase of the Church of Jesus Christ at the period of Antichrist's fall represented by the very strong figure of Sion being delivered of a man-child before the time of her travail, the meaning of which symbol the prophet immediately subjoins in a series of interrogations for the sake of greater force and emphasis, Isa 66:7-9. Wonderful prosperity and unspeakable blessedness of the world when the posterity of Jacob, with the fullness of the Gentiles, shall be assembled to Messiah's standard, Isa 66:10-14. All the wicked of the earth shall be gathered together to the battle of that great day of God Almighty, and the slain of Jehovah shall be many, Isa 66:15-18. Manner of the future restoration of the Israelites from their several dispersions throughout the habitable globe, Isa 66:19-21. Perpetuity of this new economy of grace to the house of Israel, Isa 66:22. Righteousness shall be universally diffused in the earth; and the memory of those who have transgressed against the Lord shall be had in continual abhorrence, Isa 66:23, Isa 66:24. Thus this great prophet, after tracing the principal events of time, seems at length to have terminated his views in eternity, where all revolutions cease, where the blessedness of the righteous shall be unchangeable as the new heavens, and the misery of the wicked as the fire that shall not be quenched. This chapter is a continuation of the subject of the foregoing. The Jews valued themselves much upon their temple, and the pompous system of services performed in it, which they supposed were to be of perpetual duration; and they assumed great confidence and merit to themselves for their strict observance of all the externals of their religion. And at the very time when the judgments denounced in Isa 65:6 and Isa 65:12 of the preceding chapter were hanging over their heads, they were rebuilding, by Herod's munificence, the temple in a most magnificent manner. God admonishes them, that "the Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands;" and that a mere external worship, how diligently soever attended, when accompanied with wicked and idolatrous practices in the worshippers, would never be accepted by him. This their hypocrisy is set forth in strong colors, which brings the prophet again to the subject of the former chapter; and he pursues it in a different manner, with more express declaration of the new economy, and of the flourishing state of the Church under it. The increase of the Church is to be sudden and astonishing. They that escape of the Jews, that is, that become converts to the Christian faith, are to be employed in the Divine mission to the Gentiles, and are to act as priests in presenting the Gentiles as an offering to God; see Rom 15:16. And both, now collected into one body, shall be witnesses of the final perdition of the obstinate and irreclaimable. These two chapters manifestly relate to the calling of the Gentiles, the establishment of the Christian dispensation, and the reprobation of the apostate Jews, and their destruction executed by the Romans. - L.

THE HUMBLE COMFORTED, THE UNGODLY CONDEMNED, AT THE LORD'S APPEARING: JERUSALEM MADE A JOY ON EARTH. (Isa. 66:1-24) heaven . . . throne . . . where is . . . house . . . ye build--The same sentiment is expressed, as a precautionary proviso for the majesty of God in deigning to own any earthly temple as His, as if He could be circumscribed by space (Kg1 8:27) in inaugurating the temple of stone; next, as to the temple of the Holy Ghost (Act 7:48-49); lastly here, as to "the tabernacle of God with men" (Isa 2:2-3; Eze 43:4, Eze 43:7; Rev 21:3). where--rather, "what is this house that ye are building, &c.--what place is this for My rest?" [VITRINGA].

Rather, "With fire will Jehovah judge, and with His sword (He will judge) all flesh." The parallelism and collocation of the Hebrew words favor this (Isa 65:12). all flesh--that is, all who are the objects of His wrath. The godly shall be hidden by the Lord in a place of safety away from the scene of judgment (Isa 26:20-21; Psa 31:20; Th1 4:16-17).

Jehovah appears with these warlike terrors because He is coming for a great judgment. "For in the midst of fire Jehovah holds judgment, and in the midst of His sword with all flesh; and great will be the multitude of those pierced through by Jehovah." The fire, which is here introduced as the medium of judgment, points to destructive occurrences of nature, and the sword to destructive occurrences of history. At the same time all the emphasis is laid here, as in Isa 34:5-6 (cf., Isa 27:1), upon the direct action of Jehovah Himself. The parallelism in Isa 66:16 is progressive. Nishpat 'ēth, "to go into judgment with a person," as in Eze 38:22 (cf., עם in Isa 3:14, Joe 3:2; Ch2 22:8; μετά, Luk 11:31-32). We find a resemblance to Isa 66:16 in Zep 2:12, and this is not the only resemblance to our prophecy in that strongly reproductive prophet.