15 Whereas thou has been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
15 Whereas H8478 thou hast been forsaken H5800 and hated, H8130 so that no man went through H5674 thee, I will make H7760 thee an eternal H5769 excellency, H1347 a joy H4885 of many H1755 generations. H1755
15 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man passed through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
15 Instead of thy being forsaken and hated, And none passing through, I have made thee for an excellency age-during, A joy of generation and generation.
15 Instead of thy being forsaken and hated, so that no one went through [thee], I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy from generation to generation.
15 Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, so that no man passed through you, I will make you an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
15 And though you were turned away from, and hated, and had no helper, I will make you a pride for ever, a joy from generation to generation.
For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.
For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after.
So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men; And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.
Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers. And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city. Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.
And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.
And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. Thy children shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee. Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth. For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away. The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell. Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been? Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.
For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer. For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee. O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires. And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones. And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children. In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.
The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.
How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary! She weepeth sore in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: among all her lovers she hath none to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they are become her enemies.
But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.
And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, We give thee thanks, O LORD God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Isaiah 60
Commentary on Isaiah 60 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 60
Isa 60:1-22. Israel's Glory after Her Affliction.
An ode of congratulation to Zion on her restoration at the Lord's second advent to her true position as the mother church from which the Gospel is to be diffused to the whole Gentile world; the first promulgation of the Gospel among the Gentiles, beginning at Jerusalem [Lu 24:47], is an earnest of this. The language is too glorious to apply to anything that as yet has happened.
1. Arise—from the dust in which thou hast been sitting as a mourning female captive (Isa 3:26; 52:1, 2).
shine—or, "be enlightened; for thy light cometh"; impart to others the spiritual light now given thee (Isa 60:3). The Margin and Gesenius translate, "Be enlightened"; be resplendent with posterity; imperative for the future indicative, "Thou shalt be enlightened" (Isa 58:8, 10; Eph 5:8, 14).
glory of the Lord—not merely the Shekinah, or cloud of glory, such as rested above the ark in the old dispensation, but the glory of the Lord in person (Jer 3:16, 17).
is risen—as the sun (Mal 4:2; Lu 1:78, Margin).
2. darkness … earth—the rest of the earth: in contrast with "light … upon thee" (Isa 60:1). The earth will be afterwards enlightened through Israel (Isa 9:2).
be seen—conspicuously: so the Hebrew.
3. (Isa 2:3; 11:10; 43:6; 49:22; 66:12).
kings—(Isa 49:7, 23; 52:15).
thy rising—rather, "thy sun-rising," that is, "to the brightness that riseth upon thee."
4. Lift up … eyes—Jerusalem is addressed as a female with eyes cast down from grief.
all they … they—The Gentile peoples come together to bring back the dispersed Hebrews, restore their city, and worship Jehovah with offerings.
nursed at thy side—rather "carried at thy side." It is the custom in the East to carry the children astride on the hip, with the arms around the body (Isa 66:12).
5. see—(Isa 60:4), namely, the bringing back of thy sons.
flow together—rather, "overflow with joy" [Lowth]; or, from a different Hebrew root, "be bright with joy" [Gesenius] (Job 3:4).
fear—rather, beat with the agitation of solemn joy at the marvellous sight [Horsley] (Jer 33:9).
be enlarged—swell with delight. Grief, on the contrary, contracts the heart.
abundance of … sea—the wealth of the lands beyond the sea, as in Solomon's time, the type of the coming reign of the Prince of peace.
converted—rather, "be turned," instead of being turned to purposes of sin and idolatry.
forces—rather, "riches."
6. camels—laden with merchandise; the camel is "the ship of the desert" (compare Isa 30:6).
cover thee—so many of them shall there be.
dromedaries—They have one hunch on the back, whereas the camel has two: distinguished for swiftness (Jer 2:23).
Midian—east of the Elanitic branch of the Red Sea, and stretching northward along Mount Seir. Associated with the Ishmaelites in traffic (Ge 37:25, 28).
Ephah—part of Midian, east of the Dead Sea. It abounded in camels (Jud 6:5).
Sheba—in Arabia-Felix, famed for frankincense and gold (Ps 72:15; Jer 6:20), which they traded in (Isa 45:14; Job 6:19; Eze 27:22).
7. Kedar—(Isa 21:16; So 1:5), in the south of Arabia-Deserta, or north of Arabia-Petræa; they traded in flocks (Eze 27:21).
Nebaioth—son of Ishmael, as was Kedar. Father of the Nabatheans in Arabia-Petræa.
minister—by coming up as an acceptable sacrifice.
come up with acceptance—that is, acceptably. The rams offering themselves voluntarily (Ps 68:30; Ro 12:1; 1Pe 2:5), without waiting for any other priest, answer to believers strong in faith and lamb-like meekness; and in the white fleece-like robe of sanctity [Vitringa].
house of my glory—the temple (Eze 41:1-26; Hag 2:7, 9; Mal 3:1).
8. The prophet, seeing in vision new hosts approaching quickly like a cloud of doves, asks who they are.
9. (see on Isa 42:4).
Tarshish first—The ships of Tartessus (see on Isa 2:16; Isa 23:1, that is, vessels that trade to the most distant regions) will be among the foremost to bring back the scattered Israelites (Isa 66:20).
their silver—The nations among whom the Jews have been scattered shall help them with their money in returning (Isa 60:5-7, 11, 16), as was the case at the return from Babylon (Ezr 1:4; compare Ps 68:30, 31).
unto the name … to the Holy One—rather, because of the name—because of the Holy One (compare Isa 55:5) [Lowth].
10. kings … minister unto thee—(See on Isa 60:7; Isa 49:23).
in my wrath I smote thee—(Isa 54:7, 8; 57:17).
11. (Re 21:25). The gates are ever open to receive new offerings and converts (Isa 26:2; Ac 14:27; Re 3:8). In time of peace the gates of a city are open: so, under the Prince of peace, there shall be no need of barring gates against invaders.
forces—riches.
be brought—as willing captives to the truth; or, if not willingly, be bought by judgments to submit to Israel (Isa 60:12, 14). Gesenius explains it, "may come escorted by a retinue."
12. For—the reason which will lead Gentile kings and people to submit themselves; fear of the God in Israel (Zec 14:17).
13. glory—that is, the trees which adorned Lebanon; emblem of men eminent in natural gifts, devoting all that is in them to the God of Israel (Ho 14:5, 6).
fir … pine … box—rather, "the cypress … ilex … cedar."
place of my sanctuary—Jerusalem (Jer 3:17).
place of my feet—no longer the ark (Jer 3:16), "the footstool" of Jehovah (Ps 99:5; 132:7; 1Ch 28:2); but "the place of His throne, the place of the soles of His feet, where He will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever," in the new temple (Eze 43:7).
14. The sons—Their fathers who "afflicted" Israel having been cut off by divine judgments (Isa 14:1, 2; 49:23).
The Zion of the Holy One—The royal court of the Holy One. Maurer translates, "Zion, the sanctuary (holy place) of Israel" (Isa 57:15; Ps 46:4).
15. forsaken—(Ps 78:60, 61).
no man went through thee—Thy land was so desolate that no traveller, or caravan, passed through thee; true only of Israel, not true of the Church (La 1:4).
excellency—glory, that is, for ever honored.
16. suck—Thou shalt draw to thyself and enjoy all that is valuable of the possessions of the Gentiles, &c. (Isa 49:23; 61:6; 66:11, 12).
know—by the favors bestowed on thee, and through thee on the Gentiles.
17. Poetically, with figurative allusion to the furniture of the temple; all things in that happy age to come shall be changed for the better.
exactors—namely, of tribute.
righteousness—All rulers in restored Jerusalem shall not only be peaceable and righteous, but shall be, as it were, "peace" and "righteousness" itself in their administration.
18. (Isa 2:4). Not only shall thy walls keep thee safe from foes, but "Salvation" shall serve as thy walls, converting thy foes into friends, and so ensuring thee perfect safety (Isa 26:1, 2).
gates—once the scene of "destruction" when victorious foes burst through them (Ne 1:3); henceforth to be not only the scene of praises, but "Praise" itself; the "gates," as the place of public concourse, were the scene of thanksgivings (2Ch 31:2; Ps 9:14; 24:7; 100:4). "Judah," the favored tribe, means "praise."
19. The sun and moon, the brightest objects by day and night, shall be eclipsed by the surpassing glory of God manifesting Himself to thee (Isa 30:26; Zec 2:5; Re 21:23; 22:5).
20. There shall be no national and spiritual obscuration again as formerly (Joe 2:10; Am 8:9).
mourning … ended—(Isa 25:8; Re 21:4).
21. all righteous—(Isa 4:3; 52:1; Re 21:27).
inherit … land—(Isa 49:8; 54:3; 65:9; Ps 37:11, 22; Mt 5:5).
branch of my planting—(Isa 61:3; Ps 92:13; Mt 15:13).
work of my hands—the converted Israelites (Isa 29:23; 45:11).
that I may be glorified—the final end of all God's gracious dealings (Isa 49:3; 61:3).
22. little one—Even one, and that the smallest in number and rank, shall be multiplied a thousandfold in both respects (Mic 5:2; Mt 13:31, 32).
his time—not our time; we might wish to hasten it, but it will come in due time, as in the case of Jesus' first coming (Ga 4:4); so in that of the restoration of Israel and the conversion of the world (Isa 66:8; Hab 2:3; Ac 1:7; Heb 10:37).