1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5 O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.
6 Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.
7 Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots:
8 Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made:
9 And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not.
10 Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
13 And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
14 And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up,
15 And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall,
16 And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.
17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
18 And the idols he shall utterly abolish.
19 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
20 In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21 To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
22 Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of ?
1 The word H1697 that Isaiah H3470 the son H1121 of Amoz H531 saw H2372 concerning Judah H3063 and Jerusalem. H3389
2 And it shall come to pass in the last H319 days, H3117 that the mountain H2022 of the LORD'S H3068 house H1004 shall be established H3559 in the top H7218 of the mountains, H2022 and shall be exalted H5375 above the hills; H1389 and all nations H1471 shall flow H5102 unto it.
3 And many H7227 people H5971 shall go H1980 and say, H559 Come H3212 ye, and let us go up H5927 to the mountain H2022 of the LORD, H3068 to the house H1004 of the God H430 of Jacob; H3290 and he will teach H3384 us of his ways, H1870 and we will walk H3212 in his paths: H734 for out of Zion H6726 shall go forth H3318 the law, H8451 and the word H1697 of the LORD H3068 from Jerusalem. H3389
4 And he shall judge H8199 among the nations, H1471 and shall rebuke H3198 many H7227 people: H5971 and they shall beat H3807 their swords H2719 into plowshares, H855 and their spears H2595 into pruninghooks: H4211 nation H1471 shall not lift up H5375 sword H2719 against nation, H1471 neither shall they learn H3925 war H4421 any more.
5 O house H1004 of Jacob, H3290 come H3212 ye, and let us walk H3212 in the light H216 of the LORD. H3068
6 Therefore thou hast forsaken H5203 thy people H5971 the house H1004 of Jacob, H3290 because they be replenished H4390 from the east, H6924 and are soothsayers H6049 like the Philistines, H6430 and they please H5606 themselves in the children H3206 of strangers. H5237
7 Their land H776 also is full H4390 of silver H3701 and gold, H2091 neither is there any end H7097 of their treasures; H214 their land H776 is also full H4390 of horses, H5483 neither is there any end H7097 of their chariots: H4818
8 Their land H776 also is full H4390 of idols; H457 they worship H7812 the work H4639 of their own hands, H3027 that which their own fingers H676 have made: H6213
9 And the mean man H120 boweth down, H7817 and the great man H376 humbleth H8213 himself: therefore forgive H5375 them not.
10 Enter H935 into the rock, H6697 and hide H2934 thee in the dust, H6083 for H6440 fear H6343 of the LORD, H3068 and for the glory H1926 of his majesty. H1347
11 The lofty H1365 looks H5869 of man H120 shall be humbled, H8213 and the haughtiness H7312 of men H582 shall be bowed down, H7817 and the LORD H3068 alone shall be exalted H7682 in that day. H3117
12 For the day H3117 of the LORD H3068 of hosts H6635 shall be upon every one that is proud H1343 and lofty, H7311 and upon every one that is lifted up; H5375 and he shall be brought low: H8213
13 And upon all the cedars H730 of Lebanon, H3844 that are high H7311 and lifted up, H5375 and upon all the oaks H437 of Bashan, H1316
14 And upon all the high H7311 mountains, H2022 and upon all the hills H1389 that are lifted up, H5375
15 And upon every high H1364 tower, H4026 and upon every fenced H1219 wall, H2346
16 And upon all the ships H591 of Tarshish, H8659 and upon all pleasant H2532 pictures. H7914
17 And the loftiness H1365 of man H120 shall be bowed down, H7817 and the haughtiness H7312 of men H582 shall be made low: H8213 and the LORD H3068 alone shall be exalted H7682 in that day. H3117
18 And the idols H457 he shall utterly H3632 abolish. H2498
19 And they shall go H935 into the holes H4631 of the rocks, H6697 and into the caves H4247 of the earth, H6083 for H6440 fear H6343 of the LORD, H3068 and for the glory H1926 of his majesty, H1347 when he ariseth H6965 to shake terribly H6206 the earth. H776
20 In that day H3117 a man H120 shall cast H7993 his idols H457 of silver, H3701 and his idols H457 of gold, H2091 which they made each one for himself H6213 to worship, H7812 to the moles H2661 H6512 and to the bats; H5847
21 To go H935 into the clefts H5366 of the rocks, H6697 and into the tops H5585 of the ragged rocks, H5553 for H6440 fear H6343 of the LORD, H3068 and for the glory H1926 of his majesty, H1347 when he ariseth H6965 to shake terribly H6206 the earth. H776
22 Cease H2308 ye from man, H120 whose breath H5397 is in his nostrils: H639 for wherein is he to be accounted of? H2803
1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 And it shall come to pass in the latter days, that the mountain of Jehovah's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many peoples shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of Jehovah from Jerusalem.
4 And he will judge between the nations, and will decide concerning many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5 O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of Jehovah.
6 For thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they are filled `with customs' from the east, and `are' soothsayers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners.
7 And their land is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land also is full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots.
8 Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.
9 And the mean man is bowed down, and the great man is brought low: therefore forgive them not.
10 Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be brought low, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For there shall be a day of Jehovah of hosts upon all that is proud and haughty, and upon all that is lifted up; and it shall be brought low;
13 and upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
14 and upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up,
15 and upon every lofty tower, and upon every fortified wall,
16 and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant imagery.
17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
18 And the idols shall utterly pass away.
19 And men shall go into the caves of the rocks, and into the holes of the earth, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake mightily the earth.
20 In that day men shall cast away their idols of silver, and their idols of gold, which have been made for them to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21 to go into the caverns of the rocks, and into the clefts of the ragged rocks, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake mightily the earth.
22 Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for wherein is he to be accounted of?
1 The thing that Isaiah son of Amoz hath seen concerning Judah and Jerusalem:
2 And it hath come to pass, In the latter end of the days, Established is the mount of Jehovah's house, Above the top of the mounts, And it hath been lifted up above the heights, And flowed unto it have all the nations.
3 And gone have many peoples and said, `Come, and we go up unto the mount of Jehovah, Unto the house of the God of Jacob, And He doth teach us of His ways, And we walk in His paths, For from Zion goeth forth a law, And a word of Jehovah from Jerusalem.
4 And He hath judged between the nations, And hath given a decision to many peoples, And they have beat their swords to ploughshares, And their spears to pruning-hooks, Nation doth not lift up sword unto nation, Nor do they learn any more -- war.
5 O house of Jacob, come, And we walk in the light of Jehovah.'
6 For Thou hast left Thy people, the house of Jacob. For they have been filled from the east, And `are' sorcerers like the Philistines, And with the children of strangers strike hands.
7 And its land is full of silver and gold, And there is no end to its treasures, And its land is full of horses, And there is no end to its chariots,
8 And its land is full of idols, To the work of its hands it boweth itself, To that which its fingers have made,
9 And the low boweth down, and the high is humbled, And Thou acceptest them not.
10 Enter into a rock, and be hidden in dust, Because of the fear of Jehovah, And because of the honour of His excellency.
11 The haughty eyes of man have been humbled, And bowed down hath been the loftiness of men, And set on high hath Jehovah alone been in that day.
12 For a day `is' to Jehovah of Hosts, For every proud and high one, And for every lifted up and low one,
13 And for all cedars of Lebanon, The high and the exalted ones, And for all oaks of Bashan,
14 And for all the high mountains, And for all the exalted heights,
15 And for every high tower, And for every fenced wall,
16 And for all ships of Tarshish, And for all desirable pictures.
17 And bowed down hath been the haughtiness of man, And humbled the loftiness of men, And set on high hath Jehovah alone been in that day.
18 And the idols -- they completely pass away.
19 And `men' have entered into caverns of rocks, And into caves of dust, Because of the fear of Jehovah, And because of the honour of His excellency, In His rising to terrify the earth.
20 In that day doth man cast his idols of silver, And his idols of gold, That they have made for him to worship, To moles, and to bats,
21 To enter into cavities of the rocks, And into clefts of the high places, Because of the fear of Jehovah, And because of the honour of His excellency, In His rising to terrify the earth.
22 Cease for you from man, Whose breath `is' in his nostrils, For -- in what is he esteemed?
1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 And it shall come to pass in the end of days, [that] the mountain of Jehovah's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many peoples shall go and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and Jehovah's word from Jerusalem.
4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall reprove many peoples; and they shall forge their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-knives: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5 House of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of Jehovah.
6 For thou hast cast off thy people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled [with what comes] from the east, and use auguries like the Philistines, and ally themselves with the children of foreigners.
7 And their land is full of silver and gold, and there is no end of their treasures: their land also is full of horses, and there is no end of their chariots.
8 And their land is full of idols; they bow themselves down to the work of their own hands, to that which their fingers have made.
9 And the mean man shall be bowed down, and the great man shall be brought low: and do not thou forgive them!
10 Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty eyes of man shall be brought low, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For there shall be a day of Jehovah of hosts upon everything proud and lofty, and upon everything lifted up, and it shall be brought low;
13 and upon all the cedars of Lebanon, high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan;
14 and upon all the lofty mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up;
15 and upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall;
16 and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant works of art.
17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day:
18 and the idols shall utterly pass away.
19 And they shall go into the caves of the rocks, and into the holes of the earth, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty, when he shall arise to terrify the earth.
20 In that day men shall cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which they made [each] for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21 to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the fissures of the cliffs, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of his majesty, when he shall arise to terrify the earth.
22 Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for what account is to be made of him?
1 This is what Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 It shall happen in the latter days, that the mountain of Yahweh's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be raised above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it.
3 Many peoples shall go and say, "Come, let's go up to the mountain of Yahweh, To the house of the God of Jacob; And he will teach us of his ways, And we will walk in his paths. For out of Zion the law shall go forth, And the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem.
4 He will judge between the nations, And will decide concerning many peoples; And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning-hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war any more.
5 House of Jacob, come, and let us walk in the light of Yahweh.
6 For you have forsaken your people, the house of Jacob, Because they are filled from the east, With those who practice divination like the Philistines, And they clasp hands with the children of foreigners.
7 Their land is full of silver and gold, Neither is there any end of their treasures. Their land also is full of horses, Neither is there any end of their chariots.
8 Their land also is full of idols. They worship the work of their own hands, That which their own fingers have made.
9 Man is brought low, And mankind is humbled; Therefore don't forgive them.
10 Enter into the rock, And hide in the dust, From before the terror of Yahweh, And from the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man will be brought low, The haughtiness of men will be bowed down, And Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day.
12 For there will be a day of Yahweh of Hosts for all that is proud and haughty, And for all that is lifted up; And it shall be brought low:
13 For all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, For all the oaks of Bashan,
14 For all the high mountains, For all the hills that are lifted up,
15 For every lofty tower, For every fortified wall,
16 For all the ships of Tarshish, And for all pleasant imagery.
17 The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, And the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; And Yahweh alone shall be exalted in that day.
18 The idols shall utterly pass away.
19 Men shall go into the caves of the rocks, And into the holes of the earth, From before the terror of Yahweh, And from the glory of his majesty, When he arises to shake the earth mightily.
20 In that day, men shall cast away their idols of silver, And their idols of gold, Which have been made for themselves to worship, To the moles and to the bats;
21 To go into the caverns of the rocks, And into the clefts of the ragged rocks, From before the terror of Yahweh, And from the glory of his majesty, When he arises to shake the earth mightily.
22 Stop trusting in man, whose breath is in his nostrils; For of what account is he?
1 The word which Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw about Judah and Jerusalem.
2 And it will come about in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord will be placed on the top of the mountains, and be lifted up over the hills; and all nations will come to it.
3 And the peoples will say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob: and he will give us knowledge of his ways, and we will be guided by his word; for out of Zion the law will go out, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 And he will be the judge between the nations, and the peoples will be ruled by his decisions: and their swords will be turned into plough-blades, and their spears into vine-knives: no longer will the nations be turning their swords against one another, and the knowledge of war will be gone for ever.
5 O family of Jacob, come, and let us go in the light of the Lord.
6 For you, O Lord, have given up your people, the family of Jacob, because they are full of the evil ways of the east, and make use of secret arts like the Philistines, and are friends with the children of strange countries.
7 And their land is full of silver and gold, and there is no end to their stores; their land is full of horses, and there is no end to their carriages.
8 Their land is full of images; they give worship to the work of their hands, even to that which their fingers have made.
9 And the poor man's head is bent, and the great man goes down on his face: for this cause there will be no forgiveness for their sin.
10 Go into a hole in the rock, covering yourselves with dust, in fear of the Lord, before the glory of his power.
11 The high looks of man will be put to shame, and the pride of men will be made low, and only the Lord will be lifted up in that day.
12 For the day of the Lord of armies is coming on all the pride of men, and on all who are high and lifted up;
13 And on all the high trees of Lebanon, and on all the strong trees of Bashan;
14 And on all the high mountains, and on all the hills which are lifted up;
15 And on every high tower, and on every strong wall;
16 And on all the ships of Tarshish, and on all the fair boats.
17 And the high looks of man will be put to shame, and the pride of men will be made low: and only the Lord will be lifted up in that day.
18 And the images will never be seen again.
19 And men will go into cracks of the rocks, and into holes of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out of his place, shaking the earth with his strength.
20 In that day men will put their images of silver and of gold, which they made for worship, in the keeping of the beasts of the dark places;
21 To take cover in the cracks of the rocks, and in the holes of the hills, for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out of his place, shaking the earth with his strength.
22 Have no more to do with man, whose life is only a breath, for he is of no value.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Isaiah 2
Commentary on Isaiah 2 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
The limits of this address are very obvious. The end of Isaiah 4:1-6 connects itself with the beginning of chapter 2, so as to form a circle. After various alternations of admonition, reproach, and threatening, the prophet reaches at last the object of the promise with which he started. Chapter 5, on the other hand, commences afresh with a parable. It forms an independent address, although it is included, along with the previous chapters, under the heading in Isaiah 2:1 : “The word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw over Judah and Jerusalem.” Chapters 2-5 may have existed under this heading before the whole collection arose. It was then adopted in this form into the general collection, so as to mark the transition from the prologue to the body of the book. The prophet describes what he here says concerning Judah and Jerusalem as “the word which he saw.” When men speak to one another, the words are not seen, but heard. But when God spoke to the prophet, it was in a supersensuous way, and the prophet saw it. The mind indeed has no more eyes than ears; but a mind qualified to perceive what is supersensuous is altogether eye.
The manner in which Isaiah commences this second address is altogether unparalleled. There is no other example of a prophecy beginning with והיה . And it is very easy to discover the reason why. The praet. consecutivum v'hâyâh derives the force of a future from the context alone; whereas the fut. consecutivum vay'hi (with which historical books and sections very generally commence) is shown to be an aorist by its simple form. Moreover, the Vav in the fut. consecut. has almost entirely lost its copulative character; in the praet. consec. , on the other hand, it retains it with all the greater force. The prophet therefore commences with “and”; and it is from what follows, not from what goes before, that we learn that hayah is used in a future sense. But this is not the only strange thing. It is also an unparalleled occurrence, for a prophetic address, which runs as this does through all the different phases of the prophetic discourses generally (viz., exhortation, reproof, threatening, and promise), to commence with a promise. We are in a condition, however, to explain the cause of this remarkable phenomenon with certainty, and not merely to resort to conjecture. Isaiah 2:2-4 do not contain Isaiah's own words, but the words of another prophet taken out of their connection. We find them again in Micah 4:1-4; and whether Isaiah took them from Micah, or whether both Isaiah and Micah took them from some common source, in either case they were not originally Isaiah's.
(Note: The historical statement in Jeremiah 26:18, from which we learn that it was in the days of Hezekiah that Micah uttered the threat contained in Micah 3:12 (of which the promise sin Micah 4:1-4 and Isaiah 2:2-4 are the direct antithesis), apparently precludes the idea that Isaiah borrowed from Micah, whilst the opposite is altogether inadmissible, for reasons assigned above. Ewald and Hitzig have therefore come to the conclusion, quite independently of each other, that both Micah and Isaiah repeated the words of a third and earlier prophet, most probably of Joel. And the passage in question has really very much in common with the book of Joel, viz., the idea of the melting down of ploughshares and pruning-hooks (Joel 3:10), the combination of râb (many) and âtsum (strong), of gephen (vine) and te'enah (fig-tree), as compared with Micah 4:4; also the attesting formula, “For Jehovah hath spoken it” ( Chi Jehovah dibber : Joel 3:8), which is not found in Micah, whereas it is very common in Isaiah - a fact which makes the sign itself a very feeble one (cf., 1 Kings 14:11, also Obadiah 1:18). Hitzig, indeed, maintains that it is only by restoring this passage that the prophetic writings of Joel receive their proper rounding off and an appropriate termination; but although swords and spears beaten into ploughshares and pruning-hooks form a good antithesis to ploughshares and pruning-hooks beaten into swords and spears (Joel 3:10), the coming of great and mighty nations to Mount Zion after the previous judgment of extermination would be too unprepared or much too abrupt a phenomenon. On the other hand, we cannot admit the force of the arguments adduced either by E. Meier ( Joel, p. 195) or by Knobel and G. Baur ( Amos , p. 29) against the authorship of Joel, which rest upon a misapprehension of the meaning of Joel's prophecies, which the former regards as too full of storm and battle, the latter as too exclusive and one-sided, for Joel to be the author of the passage in question. At the same time, we would call attention to the fact, that the promises in Micah form the obverse side to the previous threatenings of judgment, so that there is a presumption of their originality; also that the passage contains as many traces of Micah's style (see above at Isaiah 1:3) as we could expect to find in these three verses; and, as we shall show at the conclusion of this cycle of predictions (chapters 1-6), that the historical fact mentioned in Jeremiah 26:18 may be reconciled in the simplest possible manner with the assumption that Isaiah borrowed these words of promise from Micah. (See Caspari, Micha , p. 444ff.))
Nor was it even intended that they should appear to be his. Isaiah has not fused them into the general flow of his own prophecy, as the prophets usually do with the predictions of their predecessors. He does not reproduce them, but, as we may observe from the abrupt commencement, he quote them. It is true, this hardly seems to tally with the heading, which describes what follows as the word of Jehovah which Isaiah saw. But the discrepancy is only an apparent one. It was the spirit of prophecy, which called to Isaiah's remembrance a prophetic saying that had already been uttered, and made it the starting-point of the thoughts which followed in Isaiah's mind. The borrowed promise is not introduced for its own sake, but is simply a self-explaining introduction to the exhortations and threatenings which follow, and through which the prophet works his way to a conclusion of his own, that is closely intertwined with the borrowed commencement.
The subject of the borrowed prophecy is Israel's future glory: “And it cometh to pass at the end of the days, the mountain of the house of Jehovah will be set at the top of the mountains, and exalted over hills; and all nations pour unto it.” The expression “the last days” ( acharith hayyamim , “the end of the days”), which does not occur anywhere else in Isaiah, is always used in an eschatological sense. It never refers to the course of history immediately following the time being, but invariably indicates the furthest point in the history of this life - the point which lies on the outermost limits of the speaker's horizon. This horizon was a very fluctuating one. The history of prophecy is just the history of its gradual extension, and of the filling up of the intermediate space. In Jacob's blessing (Gen 49) the conquest of the land stood in the foreground of the acharith or last days, and the perspective was regulated accordingly. But here in Isaiah the acharith contained no such mixing together of events belonging to the more immediate and the most distant future. It was therefore the last time in its most literal and purest sense, commencing with the beginning of the New Testament aeon, and terminating at its close (compare Hebrews 1:1; 1 Peter 1:20, with 1 Cor 15 and the Revelation). The prophet here predicted that the mountain which bore the temple of Jehovah, and therefore was already in dignity the most exalted of all mountains, would. one day tower in actual height above all the high places of the earth. The basaltic mountains of Bashan, which rose up in bold peaks and columns, might now look down with scorn and contempt upon the small limestone hill which Jehovah had chosen (Psalms 68:16-17); but this was an incongruity which the last times would remove, by making the outward correspond to the inward, the appearance to the reality and the intrinsic worth. That this is the prophet's meaning is confirmed by Ezekiel 40:2, where the temple mountain looks gigantic to the prophet, and also by Zechariah 14:10, where all Jerusalem is described as towering above the country round about, which would one day become a plain. The question how this can possibly take place in time, since it presupposes a complete subversion of the whole of the existing order of the earth's surface, is easily answered. The prophet saw the new Jerusalem of the last days on this side, and the new Jerusalem of the new earth on the other (Revelation 21:10), blended as it were together, and did not distinguish the one from the other. But whilst we thus avoid all unwarrantable spiritualizing, it still remains a question what meaning the prophet attached to the word b'rosh ( “at the top” ). Did he mean that Moriah would one day stand upon the top of the mountains that surrounded it (as in Psalms 72:16), or that it would stand at their head (as in 1 Kings 21:9, 1 Kings 21:12; Amos 6:7; Jeremiah 31:7)? The former is Hofmann's view, as given in his Weissagung und Erfüllung , ii. 217: “he did not indeed mean that the mountains would be piled up one upon the other, and the temple mountain upon the top, but that the temple mountain would appear to float upon the summit of the others.” But as the expression “will be set” ( nacon ) does not favour this apparently romantic exaltation, and b'rosh occurs more frequently in the sense of “at the head” than in that of “on the top,” I decide for my own part in favour of the second view, though I agree so far with Hofmann, that it is not merely an exaltation of the temple mountain in the estimation of the nations that is predicted, but a physical and external elevation also. And when thus outwardly exalted, the divinely chosen mountain would become the rendezvous and centre of unity for all nations. They would all “flow unto it” ( nâhar , a denom. verb, from nâhâr , a river, as in Jeremiah 51:44; Jeremiah 31:12). It is the temple of Jehovah which, being thus rendered visible to nations afar off, exerts such magnetic attraction, and with such success. Just as at a former period men had been separated and estranged from one another in the plain of Shinar, and thus different nations had first arisen; so would the nations at a future period assemble together on the mountain of the house of Jehovah, and there, as members of one family, live together in amity again. And as Babel ( confusion , as its name signifies) was the place whence the stream of nations poured into all the world; so would Jerusalem (the city of peace ) become the place into which the stream of nations would empty itself, and where all would be reunited once more. At the present time there was only one people, viz., Israel, which made pilgrimages to Zion on the great festivals, but it would be very different then.
“And peoples in multitude go and say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; let Him instruct us out of His ways, and we will walk in His paths.” This is their signal for starting, and their song by the way (cf., Zechariah 8:21-22). What urges them on is the desire for salvation. Desire for salvation expresses itself in the name they give to the point towards which they are travelling: they call Moriah “the mountain of Jehovah,” and the temple upon it “the house of the God of Jacob.” Through frequent use, Israel had become the popular name for the people of God; but the name they employ is the choicer name Jacob , which is the name of affection in the mouth of Micah, of whose style we are also reminded by the expression “many peoples” ( ammim rabbim ). Desire for salvation expresses itself in the object of their journey; they wish Jehovah to teach them “out of His ways,” - a rich source of instruction with which they desire to be gradually entrusted. The preposition min (out of, or from) is not partitive here, but refers, as in Psalms 94:12, to the source of instruction. The “ways of Jehovah” are the ways which God Himself takes, and by which men are led by Him - the revealed ordinances of His will and action. Desire for salvation also expresses itself in the resolution with which they set out: they not only wish to learn, but are resolved to act according to what they learn. “We will walk in His paths:” the hortative is used here, as it frequently is (e.g., Genesis 27:4, vid., Ges.
“And He will judge between the nations, and deliver justice to many peoples; and they forge their swords into coulters, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation lifts not up the sword against nation, neither do they exercise themselves in war any more.” Since the nations betake themselves in this manner as pupils to the God of revelation and the word of His revelation, He becomes the supreme judge and umpire among them. If any dispute arise, it is no longer settled by the compulsory force of war, but by the word of God, to which all bow with willing submission. With such power as this in the peace-sustaining word of God (Zechariah 9:10), there is no more need for weapons of iron: they are turned into the instruments of peaceful employment, into ittim (probably a synonym for ethim in 1 Samuel 13:21), plough-knives or coulters, which cut the furrows for the ploughshare to turn up and mazmeroth , bills or pruning-hooks, with which vines are pruned to increase their fruit-bearing power. There is also no more need for military practice, for there is no use in exercising one's self in what cannot be applied. It is useless, and men dislike it. There is peace, not an armed peace, but a full, true, God-given and blessed peace. What even a Kant regarded as possible is now realized, and that not by the so-called Christian powers, but by the power of God, who favours the object for which an Elihu Burritt enthusiastically longs, rather than the politics of the Christian powers. It is in war that the power of the beast culminates in the history of the world. This beast will then be destroyed. The true humanity which sin has choked up will gain the mastery, and the world's history will keep Sabbath. And may we not indulge the hope, on the ground of such prophetic words as these, that the history of the world will not terminate without having kept a Sabbath? Shall we correct Isaiah, according to Quenstedt, lest we should become chiliasts? “The humanitarian ideas of Christendom,” says a thoughtful Jewish scholar, “have their roots in the Pentateuch, and more especially in Deuteronomy. But in the prophets, particularly in Isaiah, they reach a height which will probably not be attained and fully realized by the modern world for centuries to come.” Yet they will be realized. What the prophetic words appropriated by Isaiah here affirm, is a moral postulate, the goal of sacred history, the predicted counsel of God.
Isaiah presents himself to his contemporaries with this older prophecy of the exalted and world-wide calling of the people of Jehovah, holds it up before them as a mirror, and exclaims in Isaiah 2:5, “O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of Jehovah.” This exhortation is formed under the influence of the context, from which Isaiah 2:2-4 are taken, as we may see from Micah 4:5, and also of the quotation itself. The use of the term Jacob instead of Israel is not indeed altogether strange to Isaiah (Isaiah 8:17; Isaiah 10:20-21; Isaiah 29:23), but he prefers the use of Israel (compare Isaiah 1:24 with Genesis 49:24).With the words “O house of Jacob” he now turns to his people, whom so glorious a future awaits, because Jehovah has made it the scene of His manifested presence and grace, and summons it to walk in the light of such a God, to whom all nations will press at the end of the days. The summons, “Come, let us walk,” is the echo of Isaiah 2:3, “Come, let us go;” and as Hitzig observes, “Isaiah endeavours, like Paul in Romans 11:14, to stir up his countrymen to a noble jealousy, by setting before them the example of the heathen.” The “light of Jehovah” ( 'or Jehovah , in which the echo of v'yorenu in Isaiah 2:3 is hardly accidental; cf., Proverbs 6:23) is the knowledge of Jehovah Himself, as furnished by means of positive revelation, His manifested love. It was now high time to walk in the light of Jehovah, i.e., to turn this knowledge into life, and reciprocate this love; and it was especially necessary to exhort Israel to this, now that Jehovah had given up His people, just because in their perverseness they had done the very opposite. This mournful declaration, which the prophet was obliged to make in order to explain his warning cry, he changes into the form of a prayerful sigh.
“For Thou hast rejected Thy people, the house of Jacob; for they are filled with things from the east, and are conjurors like the Philistines; and with the children of foreigners they go hand in hand.” Here again we have “for” ( Chi ) twice in succession; the first giving the reason for the warning cry, the second vindicating the reason assigned. The words are addressed to Jehovah, not to the people. Saad., Gecatilia, and Rashi adopt the rendering, “Thou has given up thy nationality;” and this rendering is supported by J. D. Michaelis, Hitzig, and Luzzatto. But the word means “people,” not “nationality;” and the rendering is inadmissible, and would never have been thought of were it not that there was apparently something strange in so sudden an introduction of an address to God. But in Isaiah 2:9; Isaiah 9:2, and other passages, the prophecy takes the form of a prayer. And nâtash (cast off) with âm (people) for its object recals such passages as Psalms 94:14 and 1 Samuel 12:22. Jehovah had put away His people, i.e., rejected them, and left them to themselves, for the following reasons: (1.) Because they were “full from the east” ( mikkedem : min denotes the source from which a person draws and fills himself, Jeremiah 51:34; Ezekiel 32:6), i.e., full of eastern manners and customs, more especially of idolatrous practices. By “the east” ( kedem ) we are to understand Arabia as far as the peninsula of Sinai, and also the Aramaean lands of the Euphrates. Under Uzziah and Jotham, whose sway extended to Elath, the seaport town of the Elanitic Gulf, the influence of the south-east predominated; but under Ahaz and Hezekiah, on account of their relations to Asshur, Aram, and Babylon, that of the north-east. The conjecture of Gesenius, that we should read mikkesem , i.e., of soothsaying, it a very natural one; but it obliterates without any necessity the name of the region from which Judah's imitative propensities received their impulse and materials. (2.) They were onenim (= meonenim , Micah 5:11, from the poel onen : 2 Kings 21:6), probably “cloud-gatherers” or “storm-raisers,”