11 And it hath come to pass, in that day, The Lord addeth a second time his power, To get the remnant of His people that is left, From Asshur, and from Egypt, And from Pathros, and from Cush, And from Elam, and from Shinar, And from Hamath, and from isles of the sea,
That day -- even unto thee it doth come in, From Asshur and the cities of the fortress, And from the fortress even unto the river, And from sea to sea, and mount to mount.
Sons of Shem `are' Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.
And I have set among them a sign, And have sent out of them those escaping unto the nations, (Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, drawing bow, Tubal and Javan, the isles that are far off,) Who have not heard My fame, nor seen Mine honour, And they have declared Mine honour among nations.
He doth not become weak nor bruised, Till he setteth judgment in the earth, And for his law isles wait with hope.
And it hath come to pass, in that day, The remnant of Israel, And the escaped of the house of Jacob, Do not add any more to lean on its smiter, And have leant on Jehovah, The Holy One of Israel, in truth.
and it cometh to pass, in their journeying from the east, that they find a valley in the land of Shinar, and dwell there;
Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus?
And all the kings of Zimri, And all the kings of Elam, And all the kings of Media,
The word that hath been unto Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who are dwelling in the land of Egypt -- who are dwelling in Migdol, and in Tahpanhes, and in Noph, and in the land of Pathros -- saying,
For many days remain do the sons of Israel without a king, and there is no prince, and there is no sacrifice, and there is no standing pillar, and there is no ephod and teraphim. Afterwards turned back have the sons of Israel, and sought Jehovah their God, and David their king, and have hastened unto Jehovah, and unto His goodness, in the latter end of the days.
and gathered have been the sons of Judah and the sons of Israel together, and they have appointed to themselves one head, and have gone up from the land, for great `is' the day of Jezreel.
For lo, in those days, and in that time, When I turn back `to' the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, Then I have gathered all the nations, And caused them to go down unto the valley of Jehoshaphat, And I have been judged with them there, Concerning My people and Mine inheritance -- Israel, Whom they scattered among nations, And My land they have apportioned. And for My people they do cast a lot, And they give the young man for an harlot, And the young woman have sold for wine, That they may drink. And also, what `are' ye to Me, O Tyre and Zidon, And all circuits of Philistia? Recompence are ye rendering unto Me? And if ye are giving recompence to Me, Swiftly, hastily, I turn back your recompence on your head. In that My silver and My gold ye took, And My desirable things that are good, Ye have brought in to your temples. And sons of Judah, and sons of Jerusalem, Ye have sold to the sons of Javan, To put them far off from their border. Lo, I am stirring them up out of the place Whither ye have sold them, And I have turned back your recompence on your head, And have sold your sons and your daughters Into the hand of the sons of Judah, And they have sold them to Shabeans, Unto a nation far off, for Jehovah hath spoken. Proclaim ye this among nations, Sanctify a war, stir up the mighty ones, Come nigh, come up, let all the men of war. Beat your ploughshares to swords, And your pruning-hooks to javelins, Let the weak say, `I `am' mighty.' Haste, and come in, all ye nations round, And be gathered together, Thither cause to come down, O Jehovah, Thy mighty ones. Wake and come up let the nations unto the valley of Jehoshaphat, For there I sit to judge all the nations around. Send ye forth a sickle, For ripened hath harvest, Come in, come down, for filled hath been the press, Overflowed hath wine-presses, For great `is' their wickedness. Multitudes, multitudes `are' in the valley of decision, For near `is' the day of Jehovah in the valley of decision. Sun and moon have been black, And stars have gathered up their shining. And Jehovah from Zion doth roar, And from Jerusalem giveth forth His voice, And shaken have the heavens and earth, And Jehovah `is' a refuge to his people, And a stronghold to sons of Israel. And ye have known that I `am' Jehovah your God, Dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain, And Jerusalem hath been holy, And strangers do not pass over into it again. And it hath come to pass, in that day, Drop down do the mountains juice, And the hills do flow `with' milk, And all streams of Judah do go `with' water, And a fountain from the house of Jehovah goeth forth, And hath watered the valley of Shittim. Egypt a desolation becometh, And Edom a desolation, a wilderness, becometh, For violence `to' sons of Judah, Whose innocent blood they shed in their land. And Judah to the age doth dwell, And Jerusalem to generation and generation. And I have declared their blood innocent, `That' I did not declare innocent, And Jehovah is dwelling in Zion!
And I have turned back `to' the captivity of My people Israel, And they have built desolate cities, and inhabited, And have planted vineyards, and drunk their wine, And made gardens, and eaten their fruit. And I have planted them on their own ground, And they are not plucked up any more from off their own ground, That I have given to them, said Jehovah thy God!
Rule Thou Thy people with Thy rod, The flock of Thine inheritance, Dwelling alone `in' a forest in the midst of Carmel, They enjoy Bashan and Gilead as in days of old. According to the days of thy coming forth out of the land of Egypt, I do shew it wonderful things.
Fearful `is' Jehovah against them, For He made bare all gods of the land, And bow themselves to Him, each from his place, Do all islanders of the nations.
And he saith unto me, `To build to it a house in the land of Shinar.' And it hath been prepared and hath been placed there on its base.
I hist for them, and I gather them, For I have redeemed them, And they have multiplied as they did multiply. And I sow them among peoples, And in far-off places they remember Me, And they have lived with their sons, And they have turned back. And I have brought them back from the land of Egypt, And from Asshur I do gather them, And unto the land of Gilead and Lebanon I do bring them in, And there is not found for them `space'. And He hath passed over through the sea, And hath pressed and smitten billows in the sea, And dried up have been all depths of a flood, And brought down hath been the excellency of Asshur, And the rod of Egypt doth turn aside. And I have made them mighty in Jehovah, And in His name they walk up and down, An affirmation of Jehovah!
The burden of a word of Jehovah on Israel. An affirmation of Jehovah, Stretching out heaven, and founding earth, And forming the spirit of man in his midst. Lo, I am making Jerusalem a cup of reeling To all the peoples round about, And also against Judah it is, In the siege against Jerusalem. And it hath come to pass, in that day, I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone to all the peoples, All loading it are completely pressed down, And gathered against it have been all nations of the earth. In that day -- an affirmation of Jehovah, I do smite every horse with astonishment, And its rider with madness, And on the house of Judah I open My eyes, And every horse of the peoples I smite with blindness. And leaders of Judah have said in their heart, `Strength to me `are' the inhabitants of Jerusalem, In Jehovah of Hosts their God.' In that day I make the leaders of Judah As a hearth of fire among trees, And as a torch of fire in a sheaf, And they have consumed -- on the right and on the left -- all the peoples round about, And Jerusalem hath inhabited again her place in Jerusalem. And saved hath Jehovah the tents of Judah first, So that become not great against Judah Doth the beauty of the house of David, And the beauty of the inhabitant of Jerusalem. In that day cover over doth Jehovah the inhabitant of Jerusalem, And the stumbling among them hath been in that day as David, And the house of David as God -- As a messenger of Jehovah -- before them. And it hath come to pass, in that day, I seek to destroy all the nations Who are coming in against Jerusalem, And I have poured on the house of David, And on the inhabitant of Jerusalem, A spirit of grace and supplications, And they have looked unto Me whom they pierced, And they have mourned over it, Like a mourning over the only one, And they have been in bitterness for it, Like a bitterness over the first-born. In that day, great is the mourning of Jerusalem, As the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon, And mourned hath the land -- every family apart, The family of the house of David apart, And their women apart; The family of the house of Nathan apart, And their women apart; The family of the house of Levi apart, And their women apart; The family of Shimei apart, And their women apart, All the families that are left, Every family apart, and their women apart!
and so all Israel shall be saved, according as it hath been written, `There shall come forth out of Sion he who is delivering, and he shall turn away impiety from Jacob,
and whenever they may turn unto the Lord, the vail is taken away.
Therefore, lo, days are coming, An affirmation of Jehovah, And they do not say any more, Jehovah liveth who brought up The sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt, But -- Jehovah liveth, who brought up, And who brought in, the seed of the house of Israel, From the land of the north, And from all the lands whither I drove them, And they have dwelt on their own ground!
And it cometh to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goyim,
`And -- they have confessed their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, in their trespass which they have trespassed against Me, and also, that they have walked with Me, in opposition, also I walk to them in opposition, and have brought them into the land of their enemies -- or then their uncircumcised heart is humbled, and then they accept the punishment of their iniquity, -- then I have remembered My covenant `with' Jacob, and also My covenant `with' Isaac, and also My covenant `with' Abraham I remember, and the land I remember.
and Jehovah hath scattered you among the peoples, and ye have been left few in number among the nations, whither Jehovah leadeth you, and ye have served there gods, work of man's hands, wood and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. `And -- ye have sought from thence Jehovah thy God, and hast found, when thou seekest Him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, in distress `being' to thee, and all these things have found thee, in the latter end of the days, and thou hast turned back unto Jehovah thy God, and hast hearkened to His voice; for a merciful God `is' Jehovah thy God; He doth not fail thee, nor destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers, which He hath sworn to them.
then hath Jehovah thy God turned back `to' thy captivity, and pitied thee, yea, He hath turned back and gathered thee out of all the peoples whither Jehovah thy God hath scattered thee. `If thine outcast is in the extremity of the heavens, thence doth Jehovah thy God gather thee, and thence He doth take thee; and Jehovah thy God hath brought thee in unto the land which thy fathers have possessed, and thou hast inherited it, and He hath done thee good, and multiplied thee above thy fathers. `And Jehovah thy God hath circumcised thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, for the sake of thy life;
The Lord said: `From Bashan I bring back, I bring back from the depths of the sea.
In that day is a highway out of Egypt to Asshur, And come in have the Assyrians to Egypt, And the Egyptians into Asshur, And the Egyptians have served with the Assyrians. In that day is Israel third, After Egypt, and after Asshur, A blessing in the heart of the earth.
And it hath come to pass, in that day, Beat out doth Jehovah from the branch of the river, Unto the stream of Egypt, And ye are gathered one by one, O sons of Israel. And it hath come to pass, in that day, It is blown with a great trumpet, And come in have those perishing in the land of Asshur, And those cast out in the land of Egypt, And have bowed themselves to Jehovah, In the holy mount -- in Jerusalem!
They ascribe to Jehovah honour, And His praise in the isles they declare.
Thus said Jehovah, `The labour of Egypt, And the merchandise of Cush, And of the Sebaim -- men of measure, Unto thee pass over, and thine they are, After thee they go, in fetters they pass over, And unto thee they bow themselves, Unto thee they pray: Only in thee `is' God, And there is none else, no `other' God.
Arise, be bright, for come hath thy light, And the honour of Jehovah hath risen on thee. For, lo, the darkness doth cover the earth, And thick darkness the peoples, And on thee rise doth Jehovah, And His honour on thee is seen. And come have nations to thy light, And kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up round about thine eyes and see, All of them have been gathered, they have come to thee, Thy sons from afar do come, And thy daughters on the side are supported. Then thou seest, and hast become bright, And thine heart hath been afraid and enlarged, For turn unto thee doth the multitude of the sea, The forces of nations do come to thee. A company of camels covereth thee, Dromedaries of Midian and Ephah, All of them from Sheba do come, Gold and frankincense they bear, And of the praises of Jehovah they proclaim the tidings. All the flock of Kedar are gathered to thee, The rams of Nebaioth do serve thee, They ascend for acceptance Mine altar, And the house of My beauty I beautify. Who `are' these -- as a thick cloud they fly, And as doves unto their windows? Surely for Me isles do wait, And ships of Tarshish first, To bring thy sons from afar, Their silver and their gold with them, To the name of Jehovah thy God, And to the Holy One of Israel, Because He hath beautified thee. And sons of a stranger have built thy walls, And their kings do serve thee, For in My wrath I have smitten thee, And in My good pleasure I have pitied thee. And opened have thy gates continually, By day and by night they are not shut, To bring unto thee the force of nations, Even their kings are led. For the nation and the kingdom that do not serve thee perish, Yea, the nations are utterly wasted. The honour of Lebanon unto thee doth come, Fir, pine, and box together, To beautify the place of My sanctuary, And the place of My feet I make honourable. And come unto thee, bowing down, Have sons of those afflicting thee, And bowed themselves to the soles of thy feet Have all despising thee, And they have cried to thee: `City of Jehovah, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.' 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. And thou hast sucked the milk of nations, Yea, the breast of kings thou suckest, And thou hast known that I, Jehovah, Thy Saviour, and Thy Redeemer, `Am' the Mighty One of Jacob. Instead of the brass I bring in gold, And instead of the iron I bring in silver, And instead of the wood brass, And instead of the stone iron, And I have made thy inspection peace, And thy exactors righteousness. Violence is not heard any more in thy land, Spoiling and destruction in thy borders, And thou hast called `Salvation' thy walls, And thy gates, `Praise.' To thee no more is the sun for a light by day, And for brightness the moon giveth not light to thee, And Jehovah hath become to thee A light age-during, and thy God thy beauty. Thy sun goeth no more in, And thy moon is not removed, For Jehovah becometh to thee a light age-during. And the days of thy mourning have been completed. And thy people `are' all of them righteous, To the age they possess the earth, A branch of My planting, A work of My hands, to be beautified. The little one doth become a chief, And the small one a mighty nation, I, Jehovah, in its own time do hasten it!
By these have the isles of the nations been parted in their lands, each by his tongue, by their families, in their nations. And sons of Ham `are' Cush, and Mitzraim, and Phut, and Canaan. And sons of Cush `are' Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtechah; and sons of Raamah `are' Sheba and Dedan.
And it hath come to pass, in that day, An affirmation of Jehovah of Hosts, I break his yoke from off thy neck, And thy bands I draw away, And lay no more service on him do strangers. And they have served Jehovah their God, And David their king whom I raise up to them. And thou, be not afraid, My servant Jacob, An affirmation of Jehovah, Nor be affrighted, O Israel, For, lo, I am saving thee from afar, And thy seed from the land of their captivity, And Jacob hath turned back and rested, And is quiet, and there is none troubling. For with thee `am' I, An affirmation of Jehovah -- to save thee, For I make an end of all the nations Whither I have scattered thee, Only, of thee I do not make an end, And I have chastised thee in judgment, And do not entirely acquit thee.
If these statutes depart from before Me, An affirmation of Jehovah, Even the seed of Israel doth cease From being a nation before Me all the days. Thus said Jehovah: If the heavens above be measured, And the foundations of earth below searched, Even I kick against all the seed of Israel, For all that they have done, An affirmation of Jehovah. Lo, days `are coming', an affirmation of Jehovah, And the city hath been built to Jehovah, From the tower of Hananeel to the gate of the corner. And gone out again hath the measuring line Over-against it, unto the height of Gareb, And it hath compassed to Goah. And all the valley of the carcases and of the ashes, And all the fields unto the brook Kidron, Unto the corner of the horse-gate eastward, `Are' holy to Jehovah, it is not plucked up, Nor is it thrown down any more to the age!
`Hast thou not considered what this people have spoken, saying: The two families on which Jehovah fixed, He doth reject them, And my people they despise -- So that they are no more a people before them! Thus said Jehovah: If My covenant `is' not daily and nightly, The statutes of heaven and earth I have not appointed -- Also the seed of Jacob, and David My servant, I reject, Against taking from his seed rulers For the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, For I turn back `to' their captivity, and have pitied them.'
it `is' ours, the land hath been given for an inheritance; therefore say: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Because I put them afar off among nations, And because I scattered them through lands, I also am to them for a little sanctuary, In lands whither they have gone in. Therefore say: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: And I have assembled you from the peoples, And I have gathered you from the lands, Into which ye have been scattered, And I have given to you the ground of Israel. And they have gone in thither. And turned aside all its detestable things, And all its abominations -- out of it. And I have given to them one heart, And a new spirit I do give in your midst, And I have turned the heart of stone out of their flesh, And I have given to them a heart of flesh. So that in My statutes they walk, And My judgments they keep, and have done them, And they have been to me for a people, And I am to them for God.
Of oaks of Bashan they made thine oars, Thy bench they have made of ivory, A branch of Ashurim from isles of Chittim.
And have raised up over them one shepherd, And he hath fed them -- my servant David, He doth feed them, and he is their shepherd, And I, Jehovah, I am their God, And My servant David prince in their midst, I, Jehovah, have spoken. And I have made for them a covenant of peace, And caused evil beasts to cease out of the land, And they have dwelt in a wilderness confidently, And they have slept in forests. And I have given them, and the suburbs of my hill, a blessing, And caused the shower to come down in its season, Showers of blessing they are. And given hath the tree of the field its fruit, And the land doth give her increase, And they have been on their land confident, And they have known that I `am' Jehovah, In My breaking the bands of their yoke, And I have delivered them from the hand of those laying service on them. And they are no more a prey to nations, And the beast of the earth devoureth them not, And they have dwelt confidently, And there is none troubling.
And I have taken you out of the nations, And have gathered you out of all the lands, And I have brought you in unto your land, And I have sprinkled over you clean water, And ye have been clean; From all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols, I do cleanse you. And I have given to you a new heart, And a new spirit I give in your midst, And I have turned aside the heart of stone out of your flesh, And I have given to you a heart of flesh. And My Spirit I give in your midst, And I have done this, so that in My statutes ye walk, And My judgments ye keep, and have done them. And ye have dwelt in the land that I have given to your fathers, And ye have been to Me for a people, And I -- I am to you for God.
There hath been upon me a hand of Jehovah, and He taketh me forth in the Spirit of Jehovah, and doth place me in the midst of the valley, and it is full of bones, and He causeth me to pass over by them, all round about, and lo, very many `are' on the face of the valley, and lo, very dry. And He saith unto me, `Son of man, do these bones live?' And I say, `O Lord Jehovah, Thou -- Thou hast known.' And He saith unto me, `Prophesy concerning these bones, and thou hast said unto them: O dry bones, hear a word of Jehovah: Thus said the Lord Jehovah to these bones: Lo, I am bringing into you a spirit, and ye have lived, and I have given on you sinews, and cause flesh to come up upon you, and covered you over with skin, and given in you a spirit, and ye have lived, and ye have known that I `am' Jehovah.' And I have prophesied as I have been commanded, and there is a noise, as I am prophesying, and lo, a rushing, and draw near do the bones, bone unto its bone. And I beheld, and lo, on them `are' sinews, and flesh hath come up, and cover them doth skin over above -- and spirit there is none in them. And He saith unto me: `Prophesy unto the Spirit, prophesy, son of man, and thou hast said unto the Spirit: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: From the four winds come in, O Spirit, and breathe on these slain, and they do live.' And I have prophesied as He commanded me, and the Spirit cometh into them, and they live, and stand on their feet -- a very very great force. And He saith unto me, `Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; lo, they are saying: Dried up have our bones, And perished hath our hope, We have been cut off by ourselves. Therefore, prophesy, and thou hast said unto them, thus said the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I am opening your graves, And have brought you up out of your graves, O My people, And brought you in unto the land of Israel. And ye have known that I `am' Jehovah, In My opening your graves, And in My bringing you up out of your graves, O My people. And I have given My Spirit in you, and ye have lived, And I have caused you to rest on your land, And ye have known that I Jehovah, I have spoken, and I have done `it', An affirmation of Jehovah.' And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying, `And thou, son of man, take to thee one stick, and write on it, For Judah, and for the sons of Israel, his companions; and take another stick, and write on it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and all the house of Israel, his companions, and bring them near one unto another, to thee, for one stick, and they have become one in thy hand. `And when sons of thy people speak unto thee, saying, Dost thou not declare to us what these `are' to thee? Speak unto them, Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I am taking the stick of Joseph, that `is' in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions, and have given them unto him, with the stick of Judah, and have made them become one stick, and they have been one in My hand. And the sticks on which thou writest have been in thy hand before thine eyes, and speak thou unto them: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I am taking the sons of Israel, From among the nations whither they have gone, And have gathered them from round about, And I have brought them in unto their land. And I have made them become one nation in the land, on mountains of Israel, And one king is to them all for king, And they are no more as two nations, Nor are they divided any more into two kingdoms again. Nor are they defiled any more with their idols, And with their abominations, And with any of their transgressions, And I have saved them out of all their dwellings, In which they have sinned, And I have cleansed them, And they have been to Me for a people, And I -- I am to them for God. And My servant David `is' king over them, And one shepherd have they all, And in My judgments they go, And My statutes they keep, and have done them. And they have dwelt on the land that I gave to My servant, to Jacob, In which your fathers have dwelt, And they have dwelt on it, they and their sons, And their son's sons -- unto the age, And David My servant `is' their prince -- to the age. And I have made to them a covenant of peace, A covenant age-during it is with them, And I have placed them, and multiplied them, And placed My sanctuary in their midst -- to the age. And My tabernacle hath been over them, And I have been to them for God, And they have been to Me for a people. And known have the nations that I Jehovah am sanctifying Israel, In My sanctuary being in their midst -- to the age!'
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Isaiah 11
Commentary on Isaiah 11 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 11
Isa 11:1-16.
From the local and temporary national deliverance the prophet passes by the law of suggestion in an easy transition to the end of all prophecy—the everlasting deliverance under Messiah's reign, not merely His first coming, but chiefly His second coming. The language and illustrations are still drawn from the temporary national subject, with which he began, but the glories described pertain to Messiah's reign. Hezekiah cannot, as some think, be the subject; for he was already come, whereas the "stem of Jesse" was yet future ("shall come") (compare Mic 4:11, &c.; 5:1, 2; Jer 23:5, 6; 33:15, 16; Ro 15:12).
1. rod—When the proud "boughs" of "Lebanon" (Isa 10:33, 34, the Assyrians) are lopped, and the vast "forests cut down" amidst all this rage, a seemingly humble rod shall come out of Jesse (Messiah), who shall retrieve the injuries done by the Assyrian "rod" to Israel (Isa 10:5, 6, 18, 19).
stem—literally, "the stump" of a tree cut close by the roots: happily expressing the depressed state of the royal house of David, owing to the hostile storm (Isa 10:18, 19), when Messiah should arise from it, to raise it to more than its pristine glory. Lu 2:7 proves this (Isa 53:2; compare Job 14:7, 8; see on Isa 8:6).
Branch—Scion. He is nevertheless also the "root" (Isa 11:10; Re 5:5; 22:16. "Root and offspring" combines both, Zec 3:8; 6:12).
2. Spirit of the Lord—Jehovah. The Spirit by which the prophets spake: for Messiah was to be a Prophet (Isa 61:1; De 18:15, 18). Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are specified, to imply that the perfection of them was to be in Him. Compare "the seven Spirits" (Re 1:4), that is, the Holy Ghost in His perfect fulness: seven being the sacred number. The prophets had only a portion out of the "fulness" in the Son of God (Joh 1:16; 3:34; Col 1:19).
rest—permanently; not merely come upon Him (Nu 11:25, 26).
wisdom—(1Co 1:30; Eph 1:17; Col 2:3).
understanding—coupled with "wisdom," being its fruit. Discernment and discrimination (Mt 22:18; Joh 2:25).
counsel … might—the faculty of forming counsels, and that of executing them (Isa 28:29). Counsellor (Isa 9:6).
knowledge—of the deep things of God (Mt 11:27). The knowledge of Him gives us true knowledge (Eph 1:17).
fear of the Lord—reverential, obedient fear. The first step towards true "knowledge" (Job 28:28; Ps 111:10).
3. make him of quick understanding—literally, "quick-scented in the fear of Jehovah"; endowed with a singular sagacity in discerning the genuine principle of religious fear of God, when it lies dormant in the yet unawakened sinner (Mt 12:20; Ac 10:1-48; 16:14) [Horsley]. But Maurer, "He shall delight in the fear of God." The Hebrew means "to delight in the odors" of anything (Ex 30:38; Am 5:21); "smell," that is, "delight in."
after … sight—according to mere external appearances (Joh 7:24; 8:15; Jas 2:1; 1Sa 16:7). Herein Messiah is represented a just Judge and Ruler (De 1:16, 17).
reprove—"decide," as the parallelism shows.
after … ears—by mere plausible hearsays, but by the true merits of each case (Joh 6:64; Re 2:23).
4. judge—see that impartial justice is done them. "Judge" may mean here "rule," as in Ps 67:4.
reprove—or, "argue"; "decide." But Lowth, "work conviction in."
earth—Compare with Mt 5:5, and Re 11:15.
earth—its ungodly inhabitants, answering to "the wicked" in the parallel, and in antithesis to the "poor" and "meek," namely, in spirit, the humble pious (Mt 5:3). It is at the same time implied that "the earth" will be extraordinarily wicked when He shall come to judge and reign. His reign shall therefore be ushered in with judgments on the apostates (Ps 2:9-12; Lu 18:8; Re 2:27).
rod of … mouth—condemning sentences which proceed from His mouth against the wicked (Re 1:16; 2:16; 19:15, 21).
breath of … lips—his judicial decisions (Isa 30:28; Job 15:30; Re 19:20; 20:9-12). He as the Word of God (Re 19:13-15) comes to strike that blow which shall decide His claim to the kingdom, previously usurped by Satan, and "the beast" to whom Satan delegates his power. It will be a day of judgment to the Gentile dispensation, as the first coming was to the Jews. Compare a type of the "rod" (Nu 17:2-10).
5. righteousness … girdle—(Re 1:13; 19:11). The antitypical High Priest (Ex 28:4). The girdle secures firmly the rest of the garments (1Pe 1:13). So "truth" gives firm consistency to the whole character (Eph 5:14). In Isa 59:17, "righteousness" is His breastplate.
6. wolf … lamb—Each animal is coupled with that one which is its natural prey. A fit state of things under the "Prince of Peace" (Isa 65:25; Eze 34:25; Ho 2:18). These may be figures for men of corresponding animal-like characters (Eze 22:27; 38:13; Jer 5:6; 13:23; Mt 7:15; Lu 10:3). Still a literal change in the relations of animals to man and each other, restoring the state in Eden, is a more likely interpretation. Compare Ge 2:19, 20, with Ps 8:6-8, which describes the restoration to man, in the person of "the Son of man," of the lost dominion over the animal kingdom of which he had been designed to be the merciful vicegerent under God, for the good of his animal subjects (Ro 8:19-22).
7. feed—namely, "together"; taken from the second clause.
straw—no longer flesh and blood.
8. play—literally, "delight" himself in sport.
cockatrice—a fabulous serpent supposed to be hatched from the egg of a cock. The Hebrew means a kind of adder, more venomous than the asp; Bochart supposes the basilisk to be meant, which was thought to poison even with its breath.
9. my holy mountain—Zion, that is, Jerusalem. The seat of government and of Messiah's throne is put for the whole earth (Jer 3:17).
sea—As the waters find their way into every cavern of its depths, so Christianity shall pervade every recess of the earth (Hab 2:14). As Isa 11:1-5 describe the personal qualities of Messiah, and Isa 11:6-9 the regenerating effects of His coming on creation, so Isa 11:10-16 the results of it in the restoration of His people, the Jews, and the conversion through them of the Gentiles.
10. root—rather, "shoot from the root" (compare Note, see on Isa 11:1; Isa 53:2; Re 5:5; 22:16).
stand—permanently and prominently, as a banner lifted up to be the rallying point of an army or people (Isa 5:26; Joh 12:32).
the people—peoples, answering to "the Gentiles" in the parallel member.
to it … seek—diligently (Job 8:5). They shall give in their allegiance to the Divine King (Isa 2:2; 60:5; Zec 2:11). Horsley translates, "Of Him shall the Gentiles inquire"; namely, in a religious sense, resort as to an oracle for consultation in difficulties" (Zec 14:16). Compare Ro 15:12, which quotes this passage, "In Him shall the Gentiles trust."
rest—resting-place (Isa 60:13; Ps 132:8, 14; Eze 43:7). The sanctuary in the temple of Jerusalem was "the resting-place of the ark and of Jehovah." So the glorious Church which is to be is described under the image of an oracle to which all nations shall resort, and which shall be filled with the visible glory of God.
11. set … hand—take in hand the work. Therefore the coming restoration of the Jews is to be distinct from that after the Babylonish captivity, and yet to resemble it. The first restoration was literal, therefore so shall the second be; the latter, however, it is implied here, shall be much more universal than the former (Isa 43:5-7; 49:12, 17, 18; Eze 37:21; Ho 3:5; Am 9:14, 15; Mic 4:6, 7; Zep 3:19, 20; Zec 10:10; Jer 23:8). As to the "remnant" destined by God to survive the judgments on the nation, compare Jer 46:28.
Pathros—one of the three divisions of Egypt, Upper Egypt.
Cush—either Ethiopia, south of Egypt, now Abyssinia, or the southern parts of Arabia, along the Red Sea.
Elam—Persia, especially the southern part of it now called Susiana.
Shinar—Babylonian Mesopotamia, the plain between the Euphrates and the Tigris: in it Babel was begun (Ge 10:10). In the Assyrian inscriptions Rawlinson distinguishes three periods: (1) The Chaldean; from 2300 B.C. to 1500, in which falls Chedorlaomer (Ge 14:1-17), called in the cuneiform characters Kudur of Hur, or Ur of the Chaldees, and described as the conqueror of Syria. The seat of the first Chaldean empire was in the south, towards the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates. (2) The Assyrian, down to 625 B.C. (3) The Babylonian, from 625 to 538 B.C., when Babylon was taken by the Persian Cyrus.
islands of … sea—the far western regions beyond the sea [Jerome].
12. In the first restoration Judah alone was restored, with perhaps some few of Israel (the ten tribes): in the future restoration both are expressly specified (Eze 37:16-19; Jer 3:18). To Israel are ascribed the "outcasts" (masculine); to Judah the "dispersed" (feminine), as the former have been longer and more utterly castaways (though not finally) than the latter (Joh 7:52). The masculine and feminine conjoined express the universality of the restoration.
from the four corners of the earth—Hebrew, "wings of the earth."
13. envy … of Ephraim … Judah—which began as early as the time (Jud 8:1; 12:1, &c.). Joshua had sprung from, and resided among the Ephraimites (Nu 13:9; Jos 19:50); the sanctuary was with them for a time (Jos 18:1). The jealousy increased subsequently (2Sa 2:8, &c.; 19:41; 20:2; 3:10); and even before David's time (1Sa 11:8; 15:4), they had appropriated to themselves the national name Israel. It ended in disruption (1Ki 11:26, &c.; 1Ki 12:1-33; compare 2Ki 14:9; Ps 78:56-71).
adversaries of Judah—rather, "the adversaries from Judah"; those of Judah hostile to the Ephraimites [Maurer]. The parallelism "the envy of Ephraim," namely, against Judah, requires this, as also what follows; namely, "Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim" (Eze 37:15, 17, 19).
14. With united forces they shall subdue their foes (Am 9:12).
fly—as a bird of prey (Hab 1:8).
upon the shoulders—This expresses an attack made unexpectedly on one from behind. The image is the more apt, as the Hebrew for "shoulders" in Nu 34:11 is used also of a maritime coast ("side of the sea": Hebrew, "shoulder of the sea," Margin). They shall make a sudden victorious descent upon their borders southwest of Judea.
them of the east—Hebrew, "children of the East," the Arabs, who, always hostile, are not to be reduced under regular government, but are only to be despoiled (Jer 49:28, 29).
lay … hand upon—take possession of (Da 11:42).
Edom—south of Judah, from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea; "Moab"—east of Jordan and the Dead Sea.
Ammon—east of Judea, north of Moab, between the Arnon and Jabbok.
15. There shall be a second exodus, destined to eclipse even the former one from Egypt in its wonders. So the prophecies elsewhere (Ps 68:22; Ex 14:22; Zec 10:11). The same deliverance furnishes the imagery by which the return from Babylon is described (Isa 48:20, 21).
destroy—literally, "devote," or "doom," that is, dry up; for what God dooms, perishes (Ps 106:9 Na 1:4).
tongue—the Bubastic branch of the Nile [Vitringa]; but as the Nile was not the obstruction to the exodus, it is rather the west tongue or Heroöpolite fork of the Red Sea.
with … mighty wind—such as the "strong east wind" (Ex 14:21), by which God made a way for Israel through the Red Sea. The Hebrew for "mighty" means terrible. Maurer translates, "With the terror of His anger"; that is, His terrible anger.
in the seven streams—rather, "shall smite it (divide it by smiting) into seven (many) streams, so as to be easily crossed" [Lowth]. So Cyrus divided the river Gyndes, which retarded his march against Babylon, into three hundred sixty streams, so that even a woman could cross it [Herodotus, 1.189]. "The river" is the Euphrates, the obstruction to Israel's return "from Assyria" (Isa 11:16), a type of all future impediments to the restoration of the Jews.
dry shod—Hebrew, "in shoes." Even in sandals they should be able to pass over the once mighty river without being wet (Re 16:12).
16. highway—a highway clear of obstructions (Isa 19:23; 35:8).
like as … Israel … Egypt—(Isa 51:10, 11; 63:12, 13).