1 Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.
4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.
9 Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noon day as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;
13 In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.
15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.
16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.
17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.
19 So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.
20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD.
21 As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.
1 Behold, H2005 the LORD'S H3068 hand H3027 is not shortened, H7114 that it cannot save; H3467 neither his ear H241 heavy, H3513 that it cannot hear: H8085
2 But your iniquities H5771 have separated H914 between H996 you and your God, H430 and your sins H2403 have hid H5641 his face H6440 from you, that he will not hear. H8085
3 For your hands H3709 are defiled H1351 with blood, H1818 and your fingers H676 with iniquity; H5771 your lips H8193 have spoken H1696 lies, H8267 your tongue H3956 hath muttered H1897 perverseness. H5766
4 None calleth H7121 for justice, H6664 nor any pleadeth H8199 for truth: H530 they trust H982 in vanity, H8414 and speak H1696 lies; H7723 they conceive H2029 mischief, H5999 and bring forth H3205 iniquity. H205
5 They hatch H1234 cockatrice' H6848 eggs, H1000 and weave H707 the spider's H5908 web: H6980 he that eateth H398 of their eggs H1000 dieth, H4191 and that which is crushed H2116 breaketh out H1234 into a viper. H660
6 Their webs H6980 shall not become garments, H899 neither shall they cover H3680 themselves with their works: H4639 their works H4639 are works H4639 of iniquity, H205 and the act H6467 of violence H2555 is in their hands. H3709
7 Their feet H7272 run H7323 to evil, H7451 and they make haste H4116 to shed H8210 innocent H5355 blood: H1818 their thoughts H4284 are thoughts H4284 of iniquity; H205 wasting H7701 and destruction H7667 are in their paths. H4546
8 The way H1870 of peace H7965 they know H3045 not; and there is no judgment H4941 in their goings: H4570 they have made them crooked H6140 paths: H5410 whosoever goeth H1869 therein shall not know H3045 peace. H7965
9 Therefore is judgment H4941 far H7368 from us, neither doth justice H6666 overtake H5381 us: we wait H6960 for light, H216 but behold obscurity; H2822 for brightness, H5054 but we walk H1980 in darkness. H653
10 We grope H1659 for the wall H7023 like the blind, H5787 and we grope H1659 as if we had no eyes: H5869 we stumble H3782 at noonday H6672 as in the night; H5399 we are in desolate H820 places as dead H4191 men.
11 We roar H1993 all like bears, H1677 and mourn H1897 sore H1897 like doves: H3123 we look H6960 for judgment, H4941 but there is none; for salvation, H3444 but it is far off H7368 from us.
12 For our transgressions H6588 are multiplied H7231 before thee, and our sins H2403 testify H6030 against us: for our transgressions H6588 are with us; and as for our iniquities, H5771 we know H3045 them;
13 In transgressing H6586 and lying H3584 against the LORD, H3068 and departing away H5253 from H310 our God, H430 speaking H1696 oppression H6233 and revolt, H5627 conceiving H2029 and uttering H1897 from the heart H3820 words H1697 of falsehood. H8267
14 And judgment H4941 is turned away H5253 backward, H268 and justice H6666 standeth H5975 afar off: H7350 for truth H571 is fallen H3782 in the street, H7339 and equity H5229 cannot H3201 enter. H935
15 Yea, truth H571 faileth; H5737 and he that departeth H5493 from evil H7451 maketh himself a prey: H7997 and the LORD H3068 saw H7200 it, and it displeased H3415 H5869 him that there was no judgment. H4941
16 And he saw H7200 that there was no man, H376 and wondered H8074 that there was no intercessor: H6293 therefore his arm H2220 brought salvation H3467 unto him; and his righteousness, H6666 it sustained H5564 him.
17 For he put on H3847 righteousness H6666 as a breastplate, H8302 and an helmet H3553 of salvation H3444 upon his head; H7218 and he put on H3847 the garments H899 of vengeance H5359 for clothing, H8516 and was clad H5844 with zeal H7068 as a cloke. H4598
18 According to H5921 their deeds, H1578 accordingly he will repay, H7999 fury H2534 to his adversaries, H6862 recompence H1576 to his enemies; H341 to the islands H339 he will repay H7999 recompence. H1576
19 So shall they fear H3372 the name H8034 of the LORD H3068 from the west, H4628 and his glory H3519 from the rising H4217 of the sun. H8121 When the enemy H6862 shall come in H935 like a flood, H5104 the Spirit H7307 of the LORD H3068 shall lift up a standard H5127 against him.
20 And the Redeemer H1350 shall come H935 to Zion, H6726 and unto them that turn H7725 from transgression H6588 in Jacob, H3290 saith H5002 the LORD. H3068
21 As for me, this is my covenant H1285 with them, saith H559 the LORD; H3068 My spirit H7307 that is upon thee, and my words H1697 which I have put H7760 in thy mouth, H6310 shall not depart H4185 out of thy mouth, H6310 nor out of the mouth H6310 of thy seed, H2233 nor out of the mouth H6310 of thy seed's H2233 seed, H2233 saith H559 the LORD, H3068 from henceforth and for H5704 ever. H5769
1 Behold, Jehovah's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
2 but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, so that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue muttereth wickedness.
4 None sueth in righteousness, and none pleadeth in truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch adders' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth; and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no justice in their goings: they have made them crooked paths; whosoever goeth therein doth not know peace.
9 Therefore is justice far from us, neither doth righteousness overtake us: we look for light, but, behold, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in obscurity.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind; yea, we grope as they that have no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the twilight; among them that are lusty we are as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears, and moan sore like doves: we look for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them:
13 transgressing and denying Jehovah, and turning away from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 And justice is turned away backward, and righteousness standeth afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness cannot enter.
15 Yea, truth is lacking; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. And Jehovah saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.
16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his own arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it upheld him.
17 And he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense.
19 So shall they fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which the breath of Jehovah driveth.
20 And a Redeemer will come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith Jehovah.
21 And as for me, this is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah: my Spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever.
1 Lo, the hand of Jehovah Hath not been shortened from saving, Nor heavy his ear from hearing.
2 But your iniquities have been separating Between you and your God, And your sins have hidden The Presence from you -- from hearing.
3 For your hands have been polluted with blood, And your fingers with iniquity, Your lips have spoken falsehood, Your tongue perverseness doth mutter.
4 There is none calling in righteousness, And there is none pleading in faithfulness, Trusting on emptiness, and speaking falsehood, Conceiving perverseness, and bearing iniquity.
5 Eggs of a viper they have hatched, And webs of a spider they weave, Whoso is eating their eggs doth die, And the crushed hatcheth a viper.
6 Their webs become not a garment, Nor do they cover themselves with their works, Their works `are' works of iniquity, And a deed of violence `is' in their hands.
7 Their feet to evil do run, And they haste to shed innocent blood, Their thoughts `are' thoughts of iniquity, Spoiling and destruction `are' in their highways.
8 A way of peace they have not known, And there is no judgment in their paths, Their paths they have made perverse for themselves, No treader in it hath known peace.
9 Therefore hath judgment been far from us, And righteousness reacheth us not, We wait for light, and lo, darkness, For brightness -- in thick darkness we go,
10 We feel like the blind `for' the wall, Yea, as without eyes we feel, We have stumbled at noon as at twilight, In desolate places as the dead.
11 We make a noise as bears -- all of us, And as doves we coo sorely; We wait for judgment, and there is none, For salvation -- it hath been far from us.
12 For our transgressions have been multiplied before Thee, And our sins have testified against us, For our transgressions `are' with us, And our iniquities -- we have known them.
13 Transgressing, and lying against Jehovah, And removing from after our God, Speaking oppression and apostacy, Conceiving and uttering from the heart Words of falsehood.
14 And removed backward is judgment, And righteousness afar off standeth, For truth hath been feeble in the street, And straightforwardness is not able to enter,
15 And the truth is lacking, And whoso is turning aside from evil, Is making himself a spoil. And Jehovah seeth, and it is evil in His eyes, That there is no judgment.
16 And He seeth that there is no man, And is astonished that there is no intercessor, And His own arm giveth salvation to Him, And His righteousness -- it sustained Him.
17 And He putteth on righteousness as a breastplate, And an helmet of salvation on His head, And He putteth on garments of vengeance `for' clothing, And is covered, as `with' an upper-robe, `with' zeal.
18 According to deeds -- so He repayeth. Fury to His adversaries, `their' deed to His enemies, To the isles `their' deed He repayeth.
19 And they fear from the west the name of Jehovah, And from the rising of the sun -- His honour, When come in as a flood doth an adversary, The Spirit of Jehovah hath raised an ensign against him.
20 And come to Zion hath a redeemer, Even to captives of transgression in Jacob, An affirmation of Jehovah.
21 And I -- this `is' My covenant with them, said Jehovah, My Spirit that `is' on thee, And My words that I have put in thy mouth, Depart not from thy mouth, And from the mouth of thy seed, And from the mouth of thy seed's seed, said Jehovah, From henceforth unto the age!
1 Behold, Jehovah's hand is not shortened that it cannot save, neither his ear heavy that it cannot hear;
2 but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid [his] face from you, that he doth not hear.
3 For your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips speak lies, your tongue muttereth unrighteousness:
4 none calleth for justice, none pleadeth in truthfulness. They trust in vanity, and speak falsehood; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch serpents' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths;
8 the way of peace they know not, and there is no judgment in their goings; they have made their paths crooked: whoso goeth therein knoweth not peace.
9 Therefore is justice far from us, and righteousness overtaketh us not: we wait for light, and behold darkness; for brightness, [but] we walk in obscurity.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at midday as in the twilight; amongst the flourishing we are as the dead.
11 We roar all like bears, and mourn grievously like doves: we look for judgment, and there is none; for salvation, [but] it is far from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us; and our iniquities, we know them:
13 in transgressing and lying against Jehovah, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 And judgment is turned away backward, and righteousness standeth afar off; for truth stumbleth in the street, and uprightness cannot enter.
15 And truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. And Jehovah saw [it], and it was evil in his sight that there was no judgment.
16 And he saw that there was no man, and he wondered that there was no intercessor; and his arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness, it sustained him.
17 And he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on garments of vengeance [for] clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.
18 According to deeds, so will he repay: fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.
19 And they shall fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and from the rising of the sun, his glory. When the adversary shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of Jehovah will lift up a banner against him.
20 And the Redeemer will come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith Jehovah.
21 And as for me, this is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah: My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever.
1 Behold, Yahweh's hand is not shortened, that it can't save; neither his ear heavy, that it can't hear:
2 but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue mutters wickedness.
4 None sues in righteousness, and none pleads in truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch adders' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he who eats of their eggs dies; and that which is crushed breaks out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they don't know; and there is no justice in their goings: they have made them crooked paths; whoever goes therein does not know peace.
9 Therefore is justice far from us, neither does righteousness overtake us: we look for light, but, behold, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in obscurity.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind; yes, we grope as those who have no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the twilight; among those who are lusty we are as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears, and moan sore like doves: we look for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them:
13 transgressing and denying Yahweh, and turning away from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 Justice is turned away backward, and righteousness stands afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness can't enter.
15 Yes, truth is lacking; and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. Yahweh saw it, and it displeased him who there was no justice.
16 He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his own arm brought salvation to him; and his righteousness, it upheld him.
17 He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense.
19 So shall they fear the name of Yahweh from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which the breath of Yahweh drives.
20 A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from disobedience in Jacob, says Yahweh.
21 As for me, this is my covenant with them, says Yahweh: my Spirit who is on you, and my words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, nor out of the mouth of your seed, nor out of the mouth of your seed's seed, says Yahweh, from henceforth and forever.
1 Truly, the Lord's hand has not become short, so that he is unable to give salvation; and his ear is not shut from hearing:
2 But your sins have come between you and your God, and by your evil doings his face has been veiled from you, so that he will give you no answer.
3 For your hands are unclean with blood, and your fingers with sin; your lips have said false things, and your tongue gives out deceit.
4 No one puts forward an upright cause, or gives a true decision: their hope is in deceit, and their words are false; they are with child with sin, and give birth to evil.
5 They give birth to snake's eggs, and make spider's threads: whoever takes their eggs for food comes to his death, and the egg which is crushed becomes a poison-snake.
6 Their twisted threads will not make clothing, and their works will give them nothing for covering themselves: their works are works of sin, and violent acts are in their hands.
7 Their feet go quickly to evil, and they take delight in the death of the upright; their thoughts are thoughts of sin; wasting and destruction are in their ways.
8 They have no knowledge of the way of peace, and there is no sense of what is right in their behaviour: they have made for themselves ways which are not straight; whoever goes in them has no knowledge of peace.
9 For this cause our right is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us: we are looking for light, but there is only the dark; for the shining of the sun, but our way is in the night.
10 We go on our way, like blind men feeling for the wall, even like those who have no eyes: we are running against things in daylight as if it was evening; our place is in the dark like dead men.
11 We make noises of grief, like bears, and sad sounds like doves: we are looking for our right, but it is not there; for salvation, but it is far from us.
12 For our evil doings are increased before you, and our sins give witness against us: for our evil doings are with us, and we have knowledge of our sins:
13 We have gone against the Lord, and been false to him, turning away from our God, our words have been uncontrolled, and in our hearts are thoughts of deceit.
14 And the right is turned back, and righteousness is far away: for good faith is not to be seen in the public places, and upright behaviour may not come into the town.
15 Yes, faith is gone; and he whose heart is turned from evil comes into the power of the cruel: and the Lord saw it, and he was angry that there was no one to take up their cause.
16 And he saw that there was no man, and was surprised that there was no one to take up their cause: so his arm gave salvation, and he made righteousness his support.
17 Yes, he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and salvation as a head-dress; and he put on punishment as clothing, and wrath as a robe.
18 He will give them the right reward of their doings, wrath to his attackers, punishment to his haters, and even on the sea-lands he will send punishment.
19 So they will see the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the east: for he will come like a rushing stream, forced on by a wind of the Lord.
20 And as a saviour he will come to Zion, turning away sin from Jacob, says the Lord.
21 And as for me, this is my agreement with them, says the Lord: my spirit which is on you, and my words which I have put in your mouth, will not go away from your mouth, or from the mouth of your seed, or from the mouth of your seed's seed, says the Lord, from now and for ever.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Isaiah 59
Commentary on Isaiah 59 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
This second prophetic address continues the reproachful theme of the first. In the previous prophecy we found the virtues which are well-pleasing to God, and to which He promises redemption as a reward of grace, set in contrast with those false means, upon which the people rested their claim to redemption. In the prophecy before us the sins which retard redemption are still more directly exposed. “Behold, Jehovah's hand is not too short to help, nor His ear too heavy to hear; but your iniquities have become a party-wall between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.” The reason why redemption is delayed, is not that the power of Jehovah has not been sufficient for it (cf., Isaiah 50:2), or that He has not been aware of their desire for it, but that their iniquities ( עונתיכם with the second syllable defective) have become dividers ( מבדּלים , defective), have grown into a party-wall between them and their God, and their sins (cf., Jeremiah 5:25) have hidden pânı̄m from them. As the “hand” ( yâd ) in Isaiah 28:2 is the absolute hand; so here the “face” pânı̄m ) is that face which sees everything, which is everywhere present, whether uncovered or concealed; which diffuses light when it unveils itself, and leaves darkness when it is veiled; the sight of which is blessedness, and not to see which is damnation. This absolute countenance is never to be seen in this life without a veil; but the rejection and abuse of grace make this veil a perfectly impenetrable covering. And Israel had forfeited in this way the light and sight of this countenance of God, and had raised a party-wall between itself and Him, and that משּׁמוע , so that He did not hear, i.e., so that their prayer did not reach Him (Lamentations 3:44) or bring down an answer from Him.
The sins of Israel are sins in words and deeds. “For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips speak lies, your tongue murmurs wickedness.” The verb גּאל , to spot (see Isaiah 63:3), is a later softening down of גּעל (e.g., 2 Samuel 1:21); and in the place of the niphal נגאל (Zephaniah 3:1), we have here, as in Lamentations 4:14, the double passive form נגאל , compounded of niphal and pual . The post-biblical nithpaël , compounded of the niphal and the hithpael , is a mixed form of the same kind, though we also meet with it in a few biblical passages (Deuteronomy 21:8; Proverbs 27:15; Ezekiel 23:48). The verb hâgâh (lxx μελετᾶ ) combines the two meanings of “thought” (meditation or reflection), and of a light low “expression,” half inward half outward.
The description now passes over to the social and judicial life. Lying and oppression universally prevail. “No one speaks with justice, and no one pleads with faithfulness; men trust in vanity, and speak with deception; they conceive trouble, and bring forth ruin. They hatch basilisks' eggs, and weave spiders' webs. He that eateth of their eggs must die; and if one is trodden upon, it splits into an adder. Their webs do not suffice for clothing, and men cannot cover themselves with their works: their works are works of ruin, and the practice of injustice is in their hands.” As קרא is generally used in these prophetic addresses in the sense of κηρύσσειν , and the judicial meaning, citare , in just vocare , litem intendere , cannot be sustained, we must adopt this explanation, “no one gives public evidence with justice” (lxx οὐδεὶς λαλεῖ δίκαια ). צדק is firm adherence to the rule of right and truth; אמוּנה a conscientious reliance which awakens trust; משׁפּט (in a reciprocal sense, as in Isaiah 43:26; Isaiah 66:16) signifies the commencement and pursuit of a law-suit with any one. The abstract infinitives which follow in Isaiah 59:4 express the general characteristics of the social life of that time, after the manner of the historical infinitive in Latin (cf., Isaiah 21:5; Ges. §131, 4, b ). Men trust in tōhū , that which is perfectly destitute of truth, and speak שׁוא , what is morally corrupt and worthless. The double figure און והוליד עמל הרו is taken from Job 15:35 (cf., Psalms 7:15). הרו (compare the poel in Isaiah 59:13) is only another form for הרה (Ges. §131, 4, b ); and הוליד (the western or Palestinian reading here), or הולד (the oriental or Babylonian reading), is the usual form of the inf. abs. hiph. (Ges. §53, Anm. 2). What they carry about with them and set in operation is compared in Isaiah 59:5 to basilisks' eggs ( צפעוני , serpens regulus , as in Isaiah 11:8) and spiders' webs ( עכּבישׁ , as in Job 8:14, from עכּב , possibly in the sense of squatter, sitter still, with the substantive ending ı̄sh ). They hatch basilisks' eggs ( בּקּע like בּקע , Isaiah 34:15, a perfect, denoting that which has hitherto always taken place and therefore is a customary thing); and they spin spiders' webs ( ארג possibly related to ἀράχ-νη ;
(Note: Neither καῖρος nor ἀράχνη has hitherto been traced to an Indian root in any admissible way. Benfey deduces the former from the root dhvir (to twist); but this root has to perform an immense number of services. M. Müller deduces the latter from rak ; but this means to make, not to spin.)
the future denoting that which goes on occurring). The point of comparison in the first figure is the injurious nature of all they do, whether men rely upon it, in which case “he that eateth of their eggs dieth,” or whether they are bold or imprudent enough to try and frustrate their plans and performances, when that (the egg) which is crushed or trodden upon splits into an adder, i.e., sends out an adder, which snaps at the heel of the disturber of its rest. זוּר as in Job 39:15, here the part. pass. fem. like סוּרה (Isaiah 49:21), with a - instead of ā - like לנה , the original ă of the feminine ( zūrăth ) having returned from its lengthening into ā to the weaker lengthening into ĕ . The point of comparison in the second figure is the worthlessness and deceptive character of their works. What they spin and make does not serve for a covering to any man ( יתכּסּוּ with the most general subject: Ges. §137, 3), but has simply the appearance of usefulness; their works are מעשׂי־און (with m etheg , not m unach , under the Mem ), evil works, and their acts are all directed to the injury of their neighbour, in his right and his possession.
This evil doing of theirs rises even to hatred, the very opposite of that love which is well-pleasing to God. “Their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of wickedness; wasting and destruction are in their paths.” Paul has interwoven this passage into his description of the universal corruption of morals, in Romans 3:15-17. The comparison of life to a road, and of a man's conduct to walking, is very common in proverbial sayings. The prophet has here taken from them both his simile and his expressions. We may see from Isaiah 59:7 , that during the captivity the true believers were persecuted even to death by their countrymen, who had forgotten God. The verbs ירוּצוּ and וימהרוּ (the proper reading, with m etheg , not m unach , under the מ ) depict the pleasure taken in wickedness, when the conscience is thoroughly lulled to sleep.
Their whole nature is broken up into discord. “The way of peace they know not, and there is no right in their roads: they make their paths crooked: every one who treads upon them knows no peace.” With דּר ך , the way upon which a man goes, the prophet uses interchangeably (here and in Isaiah 59:7) מסלּה , a high-road thrown up with an embankment; מעגּל (with the plural in ı̂m and ôth ), a carriage-road; and נתיבה , a footpath formed by the constant passing to and fro of travellers. Peaceable conduct, springing form a love of peace, and aiming at producing peace, is altogether strange to them; no such thing is to be met with in their path as the recognition of practice of right: they make their paths for themselves ( להם , dat. ethicus ) , i.e., most diligently, twisting about; and whoever treads upon them ( bâh , neuter, as in Isaiah 27:4), forfeits all enjoyment of either inward or outward peace. Shâlōm is repeated significantly, in Isaiah's peculiar style, at the end of the verse. The first strophe of the prophecy closes here: it was from no want of power or willingness on the part of God, that He had not come to the help of His people; the fault lay in their own sins.
In the second strophe the prophet includes himself when speaking of the people. They now mourn over that state of exhaustion into which they have been brought through the perpetual straining and disappointment of expectation, and confess those sins on account of which the righteousness and salvation of Jehovah have been withheld. The prophet is speaking communicatively here; for even the better portion of the nation was involved in the guilt and consequences of the corruption which prevailed among the exiles, inasmuch as a nation forms an organized whole, and the delay of redemption really affected them. “Therefore right remains far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold darkness; for brightness - we walk in thick darkness. We grope along the wall like the blind, and like eyeless men we grope: we stumble in the light of noon-day as in the darkness, and among the living like the dead. We roar all like bears, and moan deeply like doves: we hope for right, and it cometh not; for salvation - it remaineth far off from us.” At the end of this group of verses, again, the thought with which it sets out is palindromically repeated. The perfect רחקה denotes a state of things reaching from the past into the present; the future תשּׂיגנוּ a state of things continuing unchangeable in the present. By m ishpât we understand a solution of existing inequalities or incongruities through the judicial interposition of God; by ts e dâqâh the manifestation of justice, which bestows upon Israel grace as its right in accordance with the plan of salvation after the long continuance of punishment, and pours out merited punishment upon the instruments employed in punishing Israel. The prophet's standpoint, whether a real or an ideal one, is the last decade of the captivity. At that time, about the period of the Lydian war, when Cyrus was making one prosperous stroke after another, and yet waited so long before he turned his arms against Babylon, it may easily be supposed that hope and despondency alternated incessantly in the minds of the exiles. The dark future, which the prophet penetrated in the light of the Spirit, was indeed broken up by rays of hope, but it did not amount to light, i.e., to a perfect lighting up ( n e gōhōth , an intensified plural of n e gōhâh , like n e khōchōth in Isaiah 26:10, pl. of n e khōchâh in Isaiah 59:14); on the contrary, darkness was still the prevailing state, and in the deep thick darkness ( ' ăphēlōth ) the exiles pined away, without the promised release being effected for them by the oppressor of the nations. “We grope,” they here complain, “like blind men by a wall, in which there is no opening, and like eyeless men we grope.” גּשּׁשׁ (only used here) is a synonym of the older משּׁשׁ (Deuteronomy 28:29); נגשׁשׁה (with the elision of the reduplication, which it is hardly possible to render audible, and which comes up again in the pausal נגשּׁשׁה ) has the âh of force, here of the impulse to self-preservation, which leads them to grope for an outlet in this ἀπορία ; and עינים אין is not quite synonymous with עורים , for there is such a thing as blindness with apparently sound eyes (cf., Isaiah 43:8); and there is also a real absence of eyes, on account of either a natural malformation, or the actual loss of the eyes through either external injury or disease.
In the lamentation which follows, “we stumble in the light of noon-day ( צהרים , m eridies = m esidies , the culminating point at which the eastern light is separated from the western) as if it were darkness, and בּאשׁמנּים , as if we were dead men,” we may infer from the parallelism that since בּאשׁמנּים must express some antithesis to כּמּתים , it cannot mean either in c aliginosis (Jer., Luther, etc.), or “in the graves” (Targ., D. Kimchi, etc.), or “in desolate places” (J. Kimchi). Moreover, there is no such word in Hebrew as אשׁם , to be dark, although the lexicographers give a Syriac word אוּתמנא , thick darkness (possibly related to Arab. ‛atamat , which does not mean the dark night, but late in the night); and the verb shâmēn , to be fat, is never applied to “fat, i.e., thick darkness,” as Knobel assumes, whilst the form of the word with נ c. dagesh precludes the meaning a solitary place or desert (from אשׁם = שׁמם ). The form in question points rather to the verbal stem שׁמן , which yields a fitting antithesis to כמתים , whether we explain it as meaning “in luxuriant fields,” or “among the fat ones, i.e., those who glory in their abundant health.” We prefer the latter, since the word m ishmannı̄m (Daniel 11:24; cf., Genesis 27:28) had already been coined to express the other idea; and as a rule, words formed with א prosth. point rather to an attributive than to a substantive idea. אשׁמן is a more emphatic form of שׁמן (Judges 3:29);
(Note: The name of the Phoenician god of health and prosperity, viz., Esmoun, which Alois Müller (Esmun, ein Beitrag zur Mythologie des orient . Alterthums. 1864) traces to חשׁמן (Psalms 68:32) from אשׁם = חשׁם , “the splendid one ( illustris ),” probably means “the healthy one, or one of full health” (after the form אשׁחוּר , אשׁמוּרה ), which agrees somewhat better with the account of Photios: ̓́Εσμουνον ὑπὸ Φοινίκων ὠνομασμένον ἐπὶ τῇ θέρμη τῆς ζωῆς .)
and אשׁמנּים indicates indirectly the very same thing which is directly expressed by משׁמנּים in Isaiah 10:16. Such explanations as “ in opimis rebus ” (Stier, etc.), or “in fatness of body, i.e., fulness of life” (Böttcher), are neither so suitable to the form of the word, nor do they answer to the circumstances referred to here, where all the people in exile are speaking. The true meaning therefore is, “we stumble (reel about) among fat ones, or those who lead a merry life,” as if we were dead. “And what,” as Doederlein observes, “can be imagined more gloomy and sad, than to be wandering about like shades, while others are fat and flourishing?” The growling and moaning in Isaiah 59:11 are expressions of impatience and pain produced by longing. The people now fall into a state of impatience, and roar like bears ( hâmâh like fremere ), as when, for example, a bear scents a flock, and prowls about it ( vespertinus circumgemit ursus ovile : Hor. Ep . xvi. 51); and now again they give themselves up to melancholy, and moan in a low and mournful tone like the doves, quarum blanditias verbaque murmur habet (Ovid). הגה , like murmurare , expresses less depth of tone or raucitas than המה . All their looking for righteousness and salvation turns out again and again to be nothing but self-deception, when the time for their coming seems close at hand.
The people have already indicated by על־כּן in Isaiah 59:9 that this benighted, hopeless state is the consequence of their prevailing sins; they now come back to this, and strike the note of penitence ( viddui ), which is easily recognised by the recurring rhymes ānu and ênu . The prophet makes the confession (as in Jeremiah 14:19-20, cf., Isaiah 3:21.), standing at the head of the people as the leader of their prayer ( ba‛al t e phillâh ): “For our transgressions are many before Thee, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are known to us, and our evil deeds well known: apostasy and denial of Jehovah, and turning back from following our God, oppressive and false speaking, receiving and giving out from the heart words of falsehood.” The people acknowledge the multitude and magnitude of their apostate deeds, which are the object of the omniscience of God, and their sins which bear witness against them ( ענתה the predicate of a neuter plural; Ges. §146, 3). The second כּי resumes the first: “our apostate deeds are with us ( את as in Job 12:3; cf., עם , Job 15:9), i.e., we are conscious of them; and our misdeeds, we know them” ( ידענוּם for ידענון , as in Genesis 41:21, cf., Isaiah 59:8, and with ע , as is always the case with verbs ל ע before נ , and with a suffix; Ewald, §§60). The sins are now enumerated in Isaiah 59:13 in abstract infinitive forms. At the head stands apostasy in thought and deed, which is expressed as a threefold sin. בּה (of Jehovah) belongs to both the “apostasy” (treachery; e.g., Isaiah 1:2) and the “denial” (Jeremiah 5:12). נסוג is an inf. abs. (different from Psalms 80:19). Then follow sins against the neighbour: viz., such speaking as leads to oppression, and consists of sârâh , that which deviates from or is opposed to the law and truth (Deuteronomy 19:16); also the conception ( concipere ) of lying words, and the utterance of them from the heart in which they are conceived (Matthew 15:18; Matthew 12:35). הרו and הגו are the only poel infinitives which occur in the Old Testament, just as שׁושׂתי (Isaiah 10:13) is the only example of a poel perfect of a verb ל ה . The poël is suitable throughout this passage, because the action expressed affects others, and is intended to do them harm. According to Ewald, the poel indicates the object or tendency: it is the conjugation employed to denote seeking, attacking, or laying hold of; e.g., לושׁן , lingua petere , i.e., to calumniate ; עוין , oculo petere , i.e., to envy.
The confession of personal sins is followed by that of the sinful state of society. “And right is forced back, and righteousness stands afar off; for truth has fallen in the market-place, and honesty finds no admission. And truth became missing, and he who avoids evil is outlawed.” In connection with m ishpât and ts e dâqâh here, we have not to think of the manifestation of divine judgment and justice which is prevented from being realized; but the people are here continuing the confession of their own moral depravity. Right has been forced back from the place which it ought to occupy ( hissı̄g is the word applied in the law to the removal of boundaries), and righteousness has to look from afar off at the unjust habits of the people, without being able to interpose. And why are right and righteousness - that united pair so pleasing to God and beneficial to man - thrust out of the nation, and why do they stand without? Because there is no truth or uprightness in the nation. Truth wanders about, and stands no longer in the midst of the nation; but upon the open street, the broad market-place, where justice is administered, and where she ought above all to stand upright and be preserved upright, she has stumbled and fallen down (cf., Isaiah 3:8); and honesty ( n e khōchâh ), which goes straight forward, would gladly enter the limits of the forum, but she cannot: people and judges alike form a barrier which keeps her back. The consequence of this is indicated in Isaiah 59:15 : truth in its manifold practical forms has become a missing thing; and whoever avoids the existing voice is m ishtōlēl ( part. hithpoel , not hithpoal ), one who is obliged to let himself be plundered and stripped (Psalms 76:6), to be made a shōlâl (Micah 1:8), Arab. maslûb , with a passive turn given to the reflective meaning, as in התחפּשׂ , to cause one's self to be spied out = to disguise one's self, and as in the so-called niphal tolerativum (Ewald, §133, b , 2).
The third strophe of the prophecy commences at Isaiah 59:15 or Isaiah 59:16. It begins with threatening, and closes with promises; for the true nature of God is love, and every manifestation of wrath is merely one phase in its development. In consideration of the fact that this corrupt state of things furnishes no prospect of self-improvement, Jehovah has already equipped Himself for judicial interposition. “And Jehovah saw it, and it was displeasing in His eyes, that there was no right. And He saw that there was not a man anywhere, and was astonished that there was nowhere an intercessor: then His arm brought Him help, and His righteousness became His stay. And He put on righteousness as a coat of mail, and the helmet of salvation upon His head; and put on garments of vengeance as armour, and clothed Himself in zeal as in a cloak. According to the deeds, accordingly He will repay: burning wrath to His adversaries, punishment to His foes; the islands He will repay with chastisement.” The prophet's language has now toilsomely worked its way through the underwood of keen reproach, of dark descriptions of character, and of mournful confession which has brought up the apostasy of the great mass in all the blacker colours before his mind, from the fact that the confession proceeds from those who are ready for salvation. And now, having come to the description of the approaching judgment, out of whose furnace the church of the future is to spring, it rises again like a palm-tree that has been violently hurled to the ground, and shakes its head as if restored to itself in the transforming ether of the future. Jehovah saw, and it excited His displeasure (“it was evil in His eyes,” an antiquated phrase from the Pentateuch, e.g., Genesis 38:10) to see that right (which He loves, Isaiah 61:8; Psalms 37:28) had vanished form the life of His nation. He saw that there was no man there, no man possessing either the disposition or the power to stem this corruption ( אישׁ as in Jeremiah 5:1, cf., 1 Samuel 4:9; 1 Kings 2:2, and the old Jewish saying, “Where there is no man, I strive to be a man”). He was astonished (the sight of such total depravity exciting in Him the highest degree of compassion and displeasure) that there was no מפגּיע , i.e., no one to step in between God and the people, and by his intercession to press this disastrous condition of the people upon the attention of God (see Isaiah 53:12); no one to form a wall against the coming ruin, and cover the rent with his body; no one to appease the wrath, like Aaron (Numbers 17:12-13) or Phinehas (Numbers 25:7).
What the fut. consec. affirms from ותּושׁע onwards, is not something to come, but something past, as distinguished form the coming events announced from Isaiah 59:18 onwards. Because the nation was so utterly and deeply corrupt, Jehovah had quipped Himself for judicial interposition. The equipment was already completed; only the taking of vengeance remained to be effected. Jehovah saw no man at His side who was either able or willing to help Him to His right in opposition to the prevailing abominations, or to support His cause. Then His own arm became His help, and His righteousness His support (cf., Isaiah 63:5); so that He did not desist from the judgment to which He felt Himself impelled, until He had procured the fullest satisfaction for the honour of His holiness (Isaiah 5:16). The armour which Jehovah puts on is now described. According to the scriptural view, Jehovah is never unclothed; but the free radiation of His own nature shapes itself into a garment of light. Light is the robe He wears (Psalms 104:2). When the prophet describes this garment of light as changed into a suit of armour, this must be understood in the same sense as when the apostle in Eph speaks of a Christian's panoply. Just as there the separate pieces of armour represent the manifold self-manifestations of the inward spiritual life so here the pieces of Jehovah's armour stand for the manifold self-manifestations of His holy nature, which consists of a mixture of wrath and love. He does not arm Himself from any outward armoury; but the armoury is His infinite wrath and His infinite love, and the might in which He manifests Himself in such and such a way to His creatures is His infinite will. He puts on righteousness as a coat of mail ( שׁרין in half pause, as in 1 Kings 22:34 in full pause, for שׁריון , ō passing into the broader a , as is generally the case in יחפּ ץ , יחבשׁ ; also in Genesis 43:14, שׁכלתי ; Genesis 49:3, עז ; Genesis 49:27, יטרף ), so that His appearance on every side is righteousness; and on His head He sets the helmet of salvation: for the ultimate object for which He goes into the conflict is the redemption of the oppressed, salvation as the fruit of the victory gained b y righteousness. And over the coat of mail He draws on clothes of vengeance as a tabard (lxx περιβόλαιον ), and wraps Himself in zeal as in a war-cloak. The inexorable justice of God is compared to an impenetrable brazen coat of mail; His joyful salvation, to a helmet which glitters from afar; His vengeance, with its manifold inflictions of punishment, to the clothes worn above the coat of mail; and His wrathful zeal ( קנאה from קנא ), to be deep red) with the fiery-looking c hlamys . No weapon is mentioned, neither the sword nor bow; for His own arm procures Him help, and this alone. But what will Jehovah do, when He has armed Himself thus with justice and salvation, vengeance and zeal? As Isaiah 59:18 affirms, He will carry out a severe and general retributive judgment. גּמוּל and גּמלה signify accomplishment of (on gâmal , see at Isaiah 3:9) a ῥῆμα μέσον ; גּמלות , which may signify, according to the context, either manifestations of love or manifestations of wrath, and either retribution as looked at from the side of God, or forfeiture as regarded from the side of man, has the latter meaning here, viz., the works of men and the double-sided gemūl , i.e., repayment, and that in the infliction of punishment. כּעל , as if, as on account of, signifies, according to its Semitic use, in the measure ( כּ ) of that which is fitting ( על ); cf., Isaiah 63:7, uti par est propter . It is repeated with emphasis (like לכן in Isaiah 52:6); the second stands without rectum , as the correlate of the first. By the adversaries and enemies, we naturally understand, after what goes before, the rebellious Israelites. The prophet does not mention these, however, but “the islands,” that is to say, the heathen world. He hides the special judgment upon Israel in the general judgment upon the nations. The very same fate falls upon Israel, the salt of the world which has lost its savour, as upon the whole of the ungodly world. The purified church will have its place in the midst of a world out of which the crying injustice has been swept away.
The prophet now proceeds to depict the ישׁוּעה , the symbol of which is the helmet upon Jehovah's head. “And they will fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun: for He will come like a stream dammed up, which a tempest of Jehovah drives away. And a Redeemer comes for Zion, and for those who turn from apostasy in Jacob, saith Jehovah.” Instead of ויראוּ , Knobel would strike out the metheg, and read ויראוּ , “and they will see;” but “seeing the name of Jehovah” (the usual expression is “seeing His glory”) is a phrase that cannot be met with, though it is certainly a passable one; and the relation in which Isaiah 59:19 stands to Isaiah 59:19 does not recommend the alteration, since Isaiah 59:19 attributes that general fear of the name of Jehovah (cf., Deuteronomy 28:58) and of His glory (see the parallel overlooked by Knobel, Psalms 102:16), which follows the manifestation of judgment on the part of Jehovah, to the manner in which this manifestation occurs. Moreover, the true Masoretic reading in this passage is not ויראו (as in Micah 7:17), but וייראו (see Norzi). The two מן in ממּערב (with the indispensable metheg before the c hateph , and a second to ensure clearness of pronunciation)
(Note: See the law in Bär's Metheg-Setzung , §29.)
and וּממּזרח־שׁמשׁ (also with the so-called strong m etheg )
(Note: See idem , §28.)
indicate the terminus a quo . From all quarters of the globe will fear of the name and of the glory of Jehovah become naturalized among the nations of the world. For when God has withdrawn His name and His glory from the world's history, as during the Babylonian captivity (and also at the present time), the return of both is all the more intense and extraordinary; and this is represented here in a figure which recals Isaiah 30:27-28; Isaiah 10:22-23 (cf., Ezekiel 43:2). The accentuation, which gives pashta to כנּהר , does indeed appear to make צר the subject, either in the sense of oppressor or adversary, as in Lamentations 4:12, or in that of oppression, as in Isaiah 25:4; Isaiah 26:16; Isaiah 30:20. The former is quite out of the question, since no such transition to a human instrument of the retributive judgment could well take place after the לצריו חמה in Isaiah 59:18. In support of the latter, it would be possible to quote Isaiah 48:18 and Isaiah 66:12, since צר is the antithesis to shâlōm . But according to such parallels as Isaiah 30:27-28, it is incomparably more natural to take Jehovah (His name, His glory) as the subject. Moreover, בּו , which must in any case refer to כנהר , is opposed to the idea that צר is the subject, to which בו would have the most natural claim to be referred - an explanation indeed which Stier and Hahn have really tried, taking נוססח as in Psalms 60:4, and rendering it “The Spirit of Jehovah holds up a banner against him, viz., the enemy.” If, however, Jehovah is the subject to יבא , צר כנּהר must be taken together (like מכסּים ... כּמּים , Isaiah 11:9; טובה רוּחך , Psalms 143:10; Ges. §111, 2, b ), either in the sense of “a hemming stream,” one causing as it were a state of siege (from tsūr , Isaiah 21:2; Isaiah 29:3), or, better still, according to the adjective use of the noun צר (here with tzakeph , צר from צרר ) in Isaiah 28:20; Job 41:7; 2 Kings 6:1, a closely confined stream, to whose waters the banks form a compressing dam, which it bursts through when agitated by a tempest, carrying everything away with it.
Accordingly, the explanation we adopt is this: Jehovah will come like the stream, a stream hemmed in, which a wind of Jehovah, i.e., (like “the mountains of God,” “cedars of God,” “garden of Jehovah,” Isaiah 51:3, cf., Numbers 24:6) a strong tempestuous wind, sweeps away ( בּו נססה , nōs e sa - b - bô , with the tone drawn back and dagesh forte conj. in the monosyllable, the pilel of nūs with Beth : to hunt into, to press upon and put to flight) - a figure which also indicates that the Spirit of Jehovah is the driving force in this His judicially gracious revelation of Himself. Then, when the name of Jehovah makes itself legible once more as with letters of fire, when His glory comes like a sea of fire within the horizon of the world's history, all the world form west to east, from east to west, will begin to fear Him. But the true object of the love, which bursts forth through this revelation of wrath, is His church, which includes not only those who have retained their faith, but all who have been truly converted to Him. And He comes ( וּבא ) a continuation of יבא ) for Zion a Redeemer, i.e., as a Redeemer (a closer definition of the predicate), and for those who turn away from apostasy ( פשׁע שׁבי , compare Isaiah 1:27, and for the genitive connection Micah 2:8, מלחמה שׁוּבי , those who have turned away form the war). The Vav here does not signify “and indeed,” as in Isaiah 57:18, but “more especially.” He comes as a Redeemer for Zion, i.e., His church which has remained true, including those who turn again to Jehovah from their previous apostasy. In Romans 11:26 the apostle quotes this word of God, which is sealed with “Thus saith Jehovah,” as a proof of the final restoration of all Israel; for יהוה (according to the Apocalypse, ὁ ὤν καὶ ὁ ἦν καὶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος ) is to him the God who moves on through the Old Testament towards the goal of His incarnation, and through the New Testament towards that of His parousia in Christ, which will bring the world's history to a close. But this final close does not take place without its having become apparent at the same time that God “has concluded all in unbelief that He may have compassion upon all” (Romans 11:32).
Jehovah, having thus come as a Redeemer to His people, who have hitherto been lying under the curse, makes an everlasting covenant with them. “And I, this is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah: My Spirit which is upon thee, and my word which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, and out of the mouth of thy seed, and out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever.” In the words, “And I, this is my covenant with them,” we have a renewal of the words of God to Abram in Genesis 17:4, “As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee.” Instead of אתּם we have in the same sense אתם (not אותם , as in Isaiah 54:15); we find this very frequently in Jeremiah. The following prophecy is addressed to Israel, the “servant of Jehovah,” which has been hitherto partially faithful and partially unfaithful, but which has now returned to fidelity, viz., the “remnant of Israel,” which has been rescued through the medium of a general judgment upon the nations, and to which the great body of all who fear God from east to west attach themselves. This church of the new covenant has the Spirit of God over it, for it comes down upon it from above; and the comforting saving words of God are not only the blessed treasure of its heart, but the confession of its mouth which spreads salvation all around. The words intended are those which prove, according to Isaiah 51:16, the seeds of the new heaven and the new earth. The church of the last days, endowed with the Spirit of God, and never again forsaking its calling, carries them as the evangelist of God in her apostolic mouth. The subject of the following prophecy is the new Jerusalem, the glorious centre of this holy church.