8 And now, O Jehovah, thou `art' our Father, We `are' the clay, and Thou our Framer, And the work of Thy hand -- all of us.
Your perversion! as clay is the potter esteemed? That the work saith of its maker, `He hath not made me?' And the framed thing said of its framer, `He did not understand?'
Wo `to' him who is striving with his Former, (A potsherd with potsherds of the ground!) Doth clay say to its Framer, `What dost thou?' And thy work, `He hath no hands?'
Rise, and thou hast gone down `to' the potter's house, and there I cause thee to hear My words; and I go down `to' the potter's house, and lo, he is doing a work on the stones, and marred is the vessel that he is making, as clay in the hand of the potter, and he hath turned and he maketh it another vessel, as it was right in the eyes of the potter to make. And there is a word of Jehovah to me, saying: As this potter am I not able to do to you? O house of Israel, an affirmation of Jehovah. Lo, as clay in the hand of the potter, So `are' ye in My hand, O house of Israel.
nay, but, O man, who art thou that art answering again to God? shall the thing formed say to Him who did form `it', Why me didst thou make thus? hath not the potter authority over the clay, out of the same lump to make the one vessel to honour, and the one to dishonour? And if God, willing to shew the wrath and to make known His power, did endure, in much long suffering, vessels of wrath fitted for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on vessels of kindness, that He before prepared for glory, whom also He did call -- us -- not only out of Jews, but also out of nations,
For Thou `art' our Father, For Abraham hath not known us, And Israel doth not acknowledge us, Thou, O Jehovah, `art' our Father, Our redeemer from the age, `is' Thy name.
Remember these, O Jacob, and Israel, For My servant thou `art', I formed thee, a servant to Me thou `art', O Israel, thou dost not forget Me.
Know that Jehovah He `is' God, He made us, and we are His, His people -- and the flock of His pasture.
`Yod.' Thy hands made me and establish me, Cause me to understand, and I learn Thy commands.
Thy hands have taken pains about me, And they make me together round about, And Thou swallowest me up! Remember, I pray Thee, That as clay Thou hast made me, And unto dust Thou dost bring me back.
and thou hast said unto Pharaoh, Thus said Jehovah, My son, My first-born `is' Israel,
and if ye `are' of Christ then of Abraham ye are seed, and according to promise -- heirs.
Thus said Jehovah, thy redeemer, And thy framer from the womb: `I `am' Jehovah, doing all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself, Spreading out the earth -- who `is' with Me?
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Isaiah 64
Commentary on Isaiah 64 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 64
Isa 64:1-12. Transition from Complaint to Prayer.
1. rend … heavens—bursting forth to execute vengeance, suddenly descending on Thy people's foe (Ps 18:9; 144:5; Hab 3:5, 6).
flow down—(Jud 5:5; Mic 1:4).
2. Oh, that Thy wrath would consume Thy foes as the fire. Rather, "as the fire burneth the dry brushwood" [Gesenius].
3. When—Supply from Isa 64:2, "As when."
terrible things—(Ps 65:5).
we looked not for—far exceeding the expectation of any of our nation; unparalleled before (Ex 34:10; Ps 68:8).
camest down—on Mount Sinai.
mountains flowed—Repeated from Isa 64:1; they pray God to do the very same things for Israel now as in former ages. Gesenius, instead of "flowed" here, and "flow" in Isa 64:1, translates from a different Hebrew root, "quake … quaked"; but "fire" melts and causes to flow, rather than to quake (Isa 64:2).
4. perceived by the ear—Paul (1Co 2:9) has for this, "nor have entered into the heart of man"; the virtual sense, sanctioned by his inspired authority; men might hear with the outward ear, but they could only by the Spirit "perceive" with the "heart" the spiritual significancy of God's acts, both those in relation to Israel, primarily referred to here, and those relating to the Gospel secondarily, which Paul refers to.
O God … what he … prepared—rather, "nor hath eye seen a god beside thee who doeth such things." They refer to God's past marvellous acts in behalf of Israel as a plea for His now interposing for His people; but the Spirit, as Paul by inspiration shows, contemplated further God's revelation in the Gospel, which abounds in marvellous paradoxes never before heard of by carnal ear, not to be understood by mere human sagacity, and when foretold by the prophets not fully perceived or credited; and even after the manifestation of Christ not to be understood save through the inward teaching of the Holy Ghost. These are partly past and present, and partly future; therefore Paul substitutes "prepared" for "doeth," though his context shows he includes all three. For "waiteth" he has "love Him"; godly waiting on Him must flow from love, and not mere fear.
5. meetest—that is, Thou makest peace, or enterest into covenant with him (see on Isa 47:3).
rejoiceth and worketh—that is, who with joyful willingness worketh [Gesenius] (Ac 10:35; Joh 7:17).
those—Thou meetest "those," in apposition to "him" who represents a class whose characteristics "those that," &c., more fully describes.
remember thee in thy ways—(Isa 26:8).
sinned—literally, "tripped," carrying on the figure in "ways."
in those is continuance—a plea to deprecate the continuance of God's wrath; it is not in Thy wrath that there is continuance (Isa 54:7, 8; Ps 30:5; 103:9), but in Thy ways ("those"), namely, of covenant mercy to Thy people (Mic 7:18-20; Mal 3:6); on the strength of the everlasting continuance of His covenant they infer by faith, "we shall be saved." God "remembered" for them His covenant (Ps 106:45), though they often "remembered not" Him (Ps 78:42). Castellio translates, "we have sinned for long in them ('thy ways'), and could we then be saved?" But they hardly would use such a plea when their very object was to be saved.
6. unclean thing—legally unclean, as a leper. True of Israel, everywhere now cut off by unbelief and by God's judgments from the congregation of the saints.
righteousness—plural, "uncleanness" extended to every particular act of theirs, even to their prayers and praises. True of the best doings of the unregenerate (Php 3:6-8; Tit 1:15; Heb 11:6).
filthy rags—literally, a "menstruous rag" (Le 15:33; 20:18; La 1:17).
fade … leaf—(Ps 90:5, 6).
7. stirreth—rouseth himself from spiritual drowsiness.
take hold—(Isa 27:5).
8. father—(Isa 63:16).
clay … potter—(Isa 29:16; 45:9). Unable to mould themselves aright, they beg the sovereign will of God to mould them unto salvation, even as He made them at the first, and is their "Father."
9. (Ps 74:1, 2).
we are … thy people—(Jer 14:9, 21).
10. holy cities—No city but Jerusalem is called "the holy city" (Isa 48:2; 52:1); the plural, therefore, refers to the upper and the lower parts of the same city Jerusalem [Vitringa]; or all Judea was holy to God, so its cities were deemed "holy" [Maurer]. But the parallelism favors Vitringa. Zion and Jerusalem (the one city) answering to "holy cities."
11. house—the temple.
beautiful—includes the idea of glorious (Mr 13:1; Ac 3:2).
burned—(Ps 74:7; La 2:7; 2Ch 36:19). Its destruction under Nebuchadnezzar prefigured that under Titus.
pleasant things—Hebrew, "objects of desire"; our homes, our city, and all its dear associations.
12. for these things—Wilt Thou, notwithstanding these calamities of Thy people, still refuse Thy aid (Isa 42:14)?