Commentary on the Holy Bible

That join themselves to tlie Lord] Wio shall enter into the Christian covenant by baptism and faith in Christ, as the Jews and proselytes did by circumcision.

To serve him] To live according to the Gospel, and ever do that which is right in the sight of the Lord.

To love tlie name of the Lord] The name of Jesus. (he Christ, the Saviour of sinners, the Anointed of God, and the Giver of the Holy Spirit to his followers.

6 Also the sons of the stranger, Numa; Pompiiii, that join themselves to the Lord, R- Roman., i. to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;

7 Even them will I s bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: ^ their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for ' mine house shall be called a house of prayer ^ for all people.

8 The Lord God ^ which gathereth the out casts of Israel saith, ™ Yet will I gather others to him, ° beside those that are gathered unto

9 " All ye beasts of the field, come to devour. yea, all ye beasts in the forest.

To be his servants] To worship no other God but Jehovah, and to trust in none for salvation but his

That heepeth the Sabbath] That observes it as a type of the rest that remains for the people of God.

And talcelh hold of my covenant] Tl'ljaD liberithi, " of my covenant sacrifice;" as without this he can do nothing good; and without it nothing can be accepta ble to the infinite majesty of the Most High.

Verse 7. Shall be accepted] A word is here lost out of the text: it is supplied from the Scptuagint, vn' yihyu, sgovrai, " they shall be." — Houbiganl.

Verse 9. All ye beasts of the f eld] Here manifestly begins a new section. The prophet in the foregoing chapters, having comforted the faithful Jews with many great promises of God's favour to be extended to them, in the restoration of their ruined state, and in the enlargement of his Church by the admission of the Gentiles; here on a sudden makes a transition to the more disagreeable part of the prospect, and to a sharp reproof of the wicked and unbelievers; and especially of the negligent and faithless governors and teachers, of the idolaters and hypocrites, who would still draw down his judgments upon the nation. Pro-

1 1 Yea, they are ^ greedy ' dogs which " can " never have enough, and they are shepherds

bably having in view the destruction of their city and poUty by the Chaldeans, and perhaps by the Romans. The same subject is continued in the next chapter; in which the charge of corruption and apostasy becomes more general against the whole Jewish Church. Some expositors have made great difficulties in the 9th verse of this chapter, where there seems to be none. It is perfectly well explained by Jeremiah, chap. xii. 7, 9, where, having introduced God declaring his purpose of punishing his people, by giving them up as a prey to their enemies the Chaldeans, a charge to these his agents is given in words very nearly the same with those of Isaiah in this place: —

" I have forsaken my house; I have deserted my

All ye beasts in the forest — " All ye beasts of the forest."] Instead of li'^S haiyaar, three MSS. have ■J" yarn; without the preposition; whieli seems to be right, and is confirmed by all the ancient Versions.

Verse 10. His watc/imen are blind] Kimchi observes, "The flock is intrusted to the care of these watchmen. The wild beasts come; these dogs bark not; and the wild beasts devour the flock. Thus they do not profit the flock. Yea, they injure it; for the owner trusts in them, that they will watch and be faithful; but they are not. These are the false teachers and careless shepherds."

for his gain, irom his quarter. Numa; Pompllii, 12 Come ye, say they, I wiU ^- ^°°'^"- ^- fetch wine; and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; "" and to-morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant.

Septuagint. This seems to be the best authority for the meaning of this word, which occurs only in this place: but it is to be observed, that eleven MSS. of Kennicott''s and De Rossi's, and four editions, have D" in chaztm, seers, or those who see; and so the Vulgate seems to have read, videntes vana, " seeing vain things."

Loving to slumber.] QM^ lanum: but sis of Kennicotfs and seven of De Rossi's MSS. read DU^ lanus, to jiy, " to change their residence:" but what connexion such reading can have with the sense of the passage, I cannot discern. What is taken for D samech here is, I have no doubt, a narrow formed final D 7nem, which has been mistaken for the above. Many instances occur in my own MSS., where the final D mem is similar to the samech; and yet no such change was intended by the scribe.

Verse 1 1. Greedy dogs] Insatiably feeding themselves with the fat, and clothing themselves with the wool, while the flock is scattered, ravaged, and starved! O what an abundance of these dumb and greedy dogs are there found hanging on and prowling about the flock of Christ! How can any careless, avaricious, hireling minister read this without agitation and dismay ^

Verse 12. I will fetch wine — "Let us provide \vine"] For nnpX ekchah, first person singular, an ancient MS. has nnpJ nilichah, first person plural; and another ancient MS. has ps ak upon a rasure. So the Syriac, Chaldee, and Vulgate render it. The spirit of this epicurean sentiment is this: Let us in dulge ourselves in the present time to the utmost, and instead of any gloomy forebodings of the future, let us expect nothing but increasing hilarity for every day we shall live. Thus they,

" Counting on long years of pleasure here. Are quite unfurnished for the world to come."

After mentioning the removal of righteous persons as an awful symptom of the approach of Divine judgments, 1, 2, the prophet goes on to charge the nation in general with idolatry, and with courting the unprofitable alliance of idolatrous kings, 3-12. In opposition to such vain confidence, the prophet enjoins trust in God, with whom the penitent and humble are sure to find acceptance, and from whom they should obtain temporal and spiritual deliverances, 13-19. Awful condition of the wicked and finally impenitent, 20, 21,

Numsc Pompiiii, and ' merciiul " men are taken K. Roman., 4. ^^^y^ c j^o^g considering that the righteous is taken away "^ from the evil to come.

2 He shall " enter into peace: they shall rest ' in their beds, each one walking s in his uprightness.

3 But draw near hither, •" ye sons of the

I shall give Bishop LoivtlCs translation of the two first verses, and give the substance of his criticisms with additional evidence.

A^er. 1. The righteous man perisheth, and no one considereth; And pious men are taken awa)', and no one

understandeth, That the righteous man is taken away because of the evil. 2. He shall go in peace: he shall rest in his bed; Even the perfect man: he that walketh in the straight path.

Verse 1. The righteous perisheth — 12N pnSD hatstsadik alad. There is an emphasis here which seems intended to point out a particular person. See below. Perisheth — As the root ^:}>' ahad signifies the straying of cattle, their passing away from one pasture to another, I feel inclined to follow the grammatical meaning of the word " perish," pereo. So the Vulgate, Justus pcriit, from per, by or through, and eo, to go. In his death the righteous man may be said to have passed through life, and to have passed by men, i. e., gone or passed before them into the eternal world. A similar mode of speech is used by our Saxon ancestors to express death: sepofon j-ire, he went out of sight; and jepop, he went away; and j.-o;iSj:ojien, to fare forth, to die.

There are very few places in Isaiah where Jesus Christ is not intended; and I am inclined to think that He is intended here, th.^t Just One; and perhaps Stephen had this place in view, when he thus charged the Jew.s, " Ye denied tov ayiov x«i Stxaiov, that Holy and Just One," Acts iii. 14. That his death was not laid to heart by the wicked Jewish people, needs no proof

Merciful men] If the_/Jr.?< refers to Christ, this may ivell refer to the apostles, and to others of the primiilit Christians, who were taken away, some by death and martyrdom, and others by a providential escape from the city that they knew was devoted to destruc-

The evil to come.] That destruction which was to come upon this disobedient people by the Romans.

Verse 2. He shall enter into peace — " He shall go in peace"] DlSiy N12" yal/o shalom; the expression is elliptical, such as the prophet frequently uses. The

Against wliom do ye sport Numa; Pompiiii, yourselves? against whom make R- Koman., 4. ye a wide mouth, a?id draw out the tongue '> are ye not children of transgression, a ' seed of falseliood,

5 Enflaming yourselves "^ with idols ' under every green tree, "> slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks?

same sense is expressed at large and in full terms. Gen. XV. 15: uha2 yni^X '7N NDn nnxi vcaltah tibbo al abolheycha beshalorn, " and thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace."

They shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness — " He shall rest in his bed; even the perfect man"] This obscure sentence is reduced to a perfect!)' good sense, and easy construction by an ingenious remark of Dr. Durell. He reads Si' XWY on lIIDtyD yanuach al mishcabo tarn, " the perfect man shall rest in^his bed." Two MSS. (one of them ancient) have XV\y yanuach, singular; and so the Vulgate renders it, rcquiescat, " he shall rest." The verb was probably altered to make it plural, and so consistent with what follows, after the mistake had been made in the following words, by uniting 13Dt;'"3 mishcabo and DH tarn, into one word. See Merrick''s Annotations on the Psalms, Addenda; where the reader will find that J. S. Moerlius, by the same sort of correction, and by rescuing the adjective DFI tarn, which had been swallowed up in another word in the same manner, has restored to a clear sense a passage before absolutely unintelligible: —

" For no distresses happen to them: Perfect and firm is their strength." Psa. Ixxiii. 4.

To follow on my application of this to our Lord: — He, the Just One, shall enter into peace — the peaceable, prosperous possession of the glorious mediatorial kingdom. They shall rest upon their beds — the hand of vvTong and oppression can reach these persecuted followers of Christ no more. (But see below.) The perfect man walking in his uprightness. This may be considered as a general declaration. The scp;irated spirit, though disunited from its body, walking in conscious existence in the paradise of God, reaping the fruit o{ righteousness. The word which we render their beds, L3ni3I!B''D mishkebotham, the learned bishop supposes to be two words; and to be compounded of IDDiyO mishkabo, his bed, and CD,1 tam. the upright or perfect man. This is the reading bmli of the Syriac and Vulgate, and it is favoured by the Cha/dec; and oiymp. XVII. 1. the Stream is thy portion; they, NumffiPompiiii, they are thy lot: even to them R. Roman., 4. ]^gg|. ^jj^^j poured a drink-offcring, thou hast offered a meat-offering. Should I receive comfort in these?

7 n Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set ° thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice.

8 Behind the doors also and the posts hast

one of De Rossi's MS. has IIDB'S rnisMaho, his led, without the word DD tarn, which has been added by a later hand. Bishop Lowth, as we have seen, adopts this separation of the word; and for inir yanuchu, they shall rest, reads niJ' yanuach, he shall rest, wliich is supported by two of Dr. Kennicotfs MSS., and by the Vulgate, Septuagint, and Arabic. The word CDH ta?n, taken from ani^DBO mishkehotham, should begin the latter clause of the verse; and then the interpolated words, each one, which our translators supplied, may be very well spared. The verse may be then read and paraphrased thus; — He shall enter into peace: he shall rest upon liis bed; The perfect man walking in his uprightness. The bed must signify the grave; the walking in uprightness after death, the conscious existence of the happy spirit, and its eternal progression in happiness and perfection: in3J nechocho, straight before him; proceeding into the unlimited extent of eternal glory, increasing in happiness, and increasing in perfection. My old MS. Bible translates very nervously: —

■Cliat gecbe in l)i;S tigt retolinge. It has been often remarked that, previously to the execution of God's judgments upon a wicked place, he has removed good men from it, that they might not suffer with the wicked. When great and good men are removed by death, or otherwise, from any place, the remaining inhabitants have much cause to tremble.

Verse 6. Among the smooth stones of the stream — " Among the smooth stones of the valley"'] The Jews were extremely addicted to the practice of many superstitious and idolatrous rites, which the prophet here inveighs against with great vehemence. Of the worship of rude stones consecrated, there are many testimonials of the ancients. They were called Eairu- Xoi and BaiTuXia- probably from the stone which Jacob erected at Beth-el, pouring oil upon the top of it. This practice was very common in different ages and places. Arnobius, lib. i., gives an account of his own to another than me, and art gone ivuma; PompiUi, up; thou hast enlarged thy bed, ^- '^°""'" ■ *■ and f made thee a covenant with them; i thou lovedst their bed ■■ where thou sawest it.

9 And ^ thou ' wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell.

practice in this respect before he became a Christian: Si quando conspexeram lubricatum lapidem, et ex olivi unguine sordidatum; tanquam inesset vis prsesens, adulabar, affabar, et beneficia poscebam nihil sentientc de trunco. — " When I have met with a smooth stone, smeared with oil, supposing a spiritual power to be con nected with it, I worshipped it, paid my addresses to it, and requested blessings," &c. Clemens Alex., Strom, lib. vii., speaks of a worshipper of every smooth stone in a proverbial way, to denote one given up to superstition. And accordingly Theophrastus has marked this as one strong feature in the character of the superstitious man: Kai twj XiTnpujv Xifcjv tuv ev Taij TP10601J -gapiuv, ex <rrig Xvjxu^ou sXaiou xa-ra^Eiv, xa.i em yovara. «£(Suv xui t(poSx\jvrigas avoiXkaTrti^ai. " Passing by the anointed stones in the streets, he takes out his phial of oil, and pours it on them; and having fallen on his knees, and made his adorations, he departs." Kimchi says: " When they found a beautiful polished stone in a brook or river, they paid Divine adoratiijn to it." This idolatry is still prevalent among the Hindoos. The stone which is the object of their adoration is called satgram. They are found about eighty miles from the source of the river Sown, in the viceroyalty of Bahar, on the coast of Bengal. Ayeen Akberv vol. ii. p. 29.

Verse 8. Behind the doors also and the post.i hast thou set V-p thy remembrance — " Behind the door, and the door-posts, hast thou set up thy memorial"] That is, the image of their tutelary gods, or something dedicated to them; in direct opposition to the law of God, which commanded them to wTite upon the door-posts of their house, and upon their gates, the words of God's law; Deut. vi. 9; xi. 20. If they chose for 'hem such a situation as more private, it was in defiance of a particular curse denounced in the law against the man who should make a graven or a molten image, and put it in a secret place; Deut. xxvii. 15. An ancient MS., with another, has ">ns* achar, without the conjunction 1 vati, and.

Verse 9. And thou iventest to the king with ointment — " And thou hast visited the king with a present of oil"] That is, the king of Assj-ria, or Egypt, llosea, chap. xii. 1, reproaches the Israelites for the sainQ practice: —

10 Thou art wearied

Numse Pompiiii, thou not, 1 here IS no hope: "■ '^°"""- •*■ thou hast found the Mife of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved.

1 1 And ^ of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, tliat thou hast hed, and hast not remembered me, nor laid it to thy heart? ^have not I held my peace even of old, and thou fearest me not?

12 I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee.

13 When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity shall take them: but he that putteth

It is well known, that in all parts of the east, whoever visits a great person must carry him a present. " It is counted uncivU," says Maundrell, p. 26, "to visit in this country without an offering in hand. All great men expect it as a tribute due to their character and authority; and look upon themselves as affronted, and indeed defrauded, when the compliment is omitted." Hence "^W shur, to visit a person, is equivalent to making him a present; and miK'n teshurah signifies a present made on such occasions; as our translators have rightly rendered it, 1 Sam. is. 7; on which Jarchi says, Menachem exponit mityn teshurah, quod significat oblationem sive manus, ut aliquis aspiciat faciem regis, aut alicujus magnatis. " Menachem expounds niliyn teshurah of an offering or gift which is presented in order to be admitted into the presence of the king or some great man."

Verse 10. Yet saidst thou not. There is no hope — " Thou hast said, There is hope"] In one of the M.SS. at Koningsberg, collated by Lilienthal, the words vh r\'\'^i< lo amarla, are left in the text unpointed, as suspected; and in the margin the corrector has written "TiNm vattomari. Now if we compare Jer. ii. 25 and xviii. 12, we shall find that the subject is in both places quite the same with this of Isaiah; and the sentiment expressed, that of a desperate resolution to continue at all hazards in their idolatrous practices; the very thing that in all reason we might expect here. Probably, therefore, the latter is the true reading in this place. — L.

Verse 11. Nor laid it to thy heart — " Nor revolved it in thy mind"] Eight MSS., {four ancient,) and the tioo oldest editions, with another, add the conjunction 1 vau, nSi velo: which is confirmed by all the ancient Versions.

Even of old — " And vpinked"] For aSli'31 umeolam, which makes no good sense or construction in this place, tieenly-three MSS. {seven ancient) and three editions have oS>'T, (to he thus pointed CdSi'T maliin;) Ilapopu, Septuagint; quasi non videns, " as if not seeing," Vulgate. See Psa. x. 1. The truth of this reading, so confirmed, admits of no doubt. In one

14 And shall say, J' Cast ye ^ "°'"""' *' up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumbling block out of the way of my

15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, ^ whose name is Holy; ^ I dwell in the high and holy place, *> with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, ■= to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

16 '*For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should

of my own MSS. the 1 vau has been written, but afterwards struck out. Is it not because I was silent, and winheS?

Verse 13. Let thy companies deliver thee — "Let thine associates deliver thee"] Thirty-nine MSS. {ten ancient) of Dr. Kennicott's, and two of my own, and the two oldest editions have lITi"' yatstsiluchu, plural.

Verse 14. And shall say — -" Then will 1 say"] 10X1 vaomer, to be pointed as the first person future. They are the words of God, as it is plain from the conclusion of the verse; my people, "OJ' ammi.

Verse 15. For thus saith the high and lofty One — " For thus saith Jehovah, the high and the lofty"] A MS. adds nin' Yehovah, after "lOX amar, and edition Prag. 1518. So the Septuagint Alex, and Arabic. An ancient MS. adds ri' Yah.

With him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit] Twelve MSS. have nx eth, without the conjunction 1 vau. Pro nxi veeth, forte legendum nsiNl veerah: confer Psa. cxiii. 5, et cxxxviii. 6. — Secker. "We should perhaps read nxtXl veerah, instead of PNI veeth See Psa. cxiii. 5, and cxxxviii. 6."

learned have taken a great deal of pains to little purpose on the latter part of this verse, which they suppose to be very obscure. After all their labours upon it, I think the best and easiest explication of it is given in the two following elegant passages of the Psalms, which I presume are exactly parallel to it, and very clearly express the same sentiment. " But he in his tender mercy will forgive their sin,

And will not destroy them;

Yea, oftentimes will he turn away his wrath.

And will not rouse up his indignation:

For he remembereth that tliey are but flesh,

A breath that passeth, and returneth not."

fail before me, and the souls « which I have made.

17 For the iniquity of 'his covetousness was I ■WTOth, and smote him: » I liid me, and was wroth, *> and he went on ' frowardly in the way of his heart.

18 1 have seen his ways, and '' will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to ^ his momners.

Peace, peace " to him that is far oiymp. xvii i oif, and to him that is near, saith Numa; Pompilii the Lord; and I will heal him. ^- ^°""'°- *■

20 ° But the wicked are hke the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.

21 p There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

" He will not always contend, Neither will he for ever hold his wrath: As a father yearneth towards his children, So is Jehovah tenderly compassionate towards them

that fear him: For he knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are but dust."

Psa. ciii. 0, 13, 14. In the former of these two passages the second line seems to be defective both in measure and sense. I suppose the word DfllX otham, them, is lost at the end; which seems to be acknowledged by the Chaldee and Vulgate, who render as if they had read rcniy S^l Dmx velo yaschith otham. — L.

For the spirit'] nil ruach, the animal life. And the souls] JllOiyJ neshamoth, the immortal spirits. The Targum understands this of the resurrection. / will restore the souls of the dead, i. e., to their bodies.

Verse 17. For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth — " Because of his iniquity for a short time was I WTOth"] For 1>'S3 bitso, I read i'S3 belsa, a little while, from J'i'3 batsa, he cut off; as the Septuagint read and render it, (Bpa-^ij ti, " a certain short space." Propter iniquitatem avaritia; ejus, " because of the iniquity of his avarice," the rendering of the Vulgate, which our translators and I believe all others follow, is surely quite beside the purpose.

Verse 19. I create the fruit of the lips] " The sacrifice of prai.se," saith St. Paul, Heb. xiii. 15, "is the fruit of the lips." God creates this fruit of the lips, by giving new subject and cause of thanksgiving by his mercies conferred on those among his people, who acknowledge and bewail their transgressions, and return to him. The great subject of thanksgiving is peace — reconciliation and pardon, offered to them that are nigh, and to them that are afar off; not only to the Jew, but also to the Gentile, as St. Paul more than once applies those terms, Eph. ii. 13, 17. See also Acts ii. 39.

Peace to him that is far off — " That is, to the penitent; and to him that is near, i. e., the righteous." — Kimchi.

Verse 21. There is no peace, saith my God] For "ms Elohai, twenty-two MSS. {Jive ancient) of Kennicott's, thirty of De Rossi's, and one ancient of my own, read niiT Yehovah; the Vulgate, Scptuagint Alex., and Arabic, and three MSS. have both. This verse has reference to the nineteenth. The perseveringly wicked and impenitent are excluded from all share in that peace above mentioned, that reconcilement and pardon which is promised to the penitent only. The forty-eighth chapter ends with the same declaration, to express the exclusion of the unbelievers and impenitent from the benefit of the foregoing promises. — L.

This elegant chapter contains a severe reproof of the Jews on account of their vices, particularly their hypo crisy in practising and relying on outward ceremonies, such as fasting and bodily humiliation, without true repentance, 1-5. It then lays down a clear and comprehensive summary of the duties they owed to their fellow creatures, 6, 7. Large promises of happiness and prosperity are likeicise annexed to the performance of these duties in a variety of the most beautiful and striking images, 8-12. Great temporal and spiritual blessedness of those who keep holy the Sabbath day, 13, 14.

NOTES ON CHAP. LVIII. Verse 1. Cry aloud, spare not] Never was a louder crv against the hypocrisv, nor a more cutting reproof

2 Yet thev seek me daily, and Numse PompiUi,

of the wickedness, of a people professing a national established religion, having all the forms of godliness without a particle of its power. This chapter has been

A-M;cir. 3292. delight to koow my waj's, as a Oh-mp. xvii. 1. nation that did righteousness, and Nunia; Pompiiii, forsook not the ordinance of their ^- ^°"""- •*• God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.

3 '' Wliercfore have we fasted, say they, and thou secst not? wherefore have we '^ afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your "^ labours *■.

4 f Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: s ye shall not fast as ye do this da}% to make yoiu- voice to be heard on high.

5 Is it '^ such a fast that I have chosen? ' a '' day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and ' to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt

often appointed to be read on political fast days for the success of wars carried on for — God inows what purposes, and orio^inating in — God /inou'S what motives. Politically speaking, was ever any tiling more injudicious?

Verse 3. Have toe affiicted our soul — "Have we afflicted our souls"] Twenty-seven MS.S. {six ancient) of Dr. Kennicott's, Ihirty-six of De Rossi's, and two of my own, and the old edition of 1488 have the noun in the plural number, lJ"iyi!3 naphshcynu, our souls; and so the Sepluagint, Chaldee, and Vulgate. This reading is undoubtedly genuine.

In the da>i of your fast ye find pleasure^ Fast days are generally called holidays, and holidays are days of idleness and pleasure. In numberless cases the fast is turned into a. feast.

And exact all your labours.^ Some disregard the most sacred fast, and will oblige their servant to work all day long; others use fast days for the purpose of settling their accounts, posting up their books, and drawing out their bills to be ready to collect their debts. These are sneaking hypocrites; the others are daringly irreligious.

Verse 4. Ye fast for strife and delate^ How often is this the case! A whole nation are called to fast to implore God's blessing on wars carried on for the purposes of wrath and ambition.

To smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day — "To smite with the fist the poor. Wherefore fast ye unto me in this manner"] I follow the version of the Sepluagint, which gives a much better sense than the present reading of the Hebrew. Instead of nS i'lyi res/ia lo, they seem to have read in their copy 'S HD Si" W\ rash al mah Hi. The four first letters are the same, but othennse divided in

have chosen? to loose the bands "' ^°'"°"' *■ of wickedness, "to undo "the heavy burdens, and " to let the p oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

7 Is it not ito deal thy bread to the hungn,'-, and that thou bring the poor that are "■ cast out to thy house? ^ when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from ' thine own flesh?

8 "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; " the glory of the Lord " shall be thy rereward.

9 Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say,

regard to the words; the four last are lost, and N aleph.added in their place, in order to make some sort of sense with h l'tit-\. The version of the Sepluagint is,

Verse 6. Let the oppressed go free] How can any nation pretend to fast or worship God at all, or dare to profess that they believe in the existence of such a Being, while they carry on the slave trade, and traffic in the souls, blood, and bodies, of men! O ye most flagitious of knaves, and worst of hypocrites, cast off at once the mask of religion; and deepen not your endless perdition bj^ professing the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, while ye continue in this traflic!

Verse 7. Deal thy bread to the hungry] But this thou canst not do, if thou eat it thyself. When a man fasts, suppose he do it through a religious motive, he should give the food of that day, from which lie abstains, to the poor and hungry, who, in the course of providence, are called to sustain many involuntary fasts, besides suffering general privations. Wo to him who saves a day's victuals by his religious fast! He should either give them or their value in money to the poor..See ver. 6.

That thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house — " To bring the wandering poor into thy house"] irruj^ouj; airsyovg, Sepluagint; egcnos vagosque, Vulgate; and pSaSa'S metaltelin, Chaldee. They read, instead of D"ino merudim, □"TUn hanudim. "I'D mer is upon a rasure in the Bodleian MS. The same MS. reads T\r\"Z bayethah, in domum, " into the house." — L.

Verse 8. And thine health shall spring forth speedily

3292. Here I am. If thou take away oiymp.'xvii. i. from the midst of thee the yoke, NumajPo°iI!^lii, the putting forth of the finger, R. Roman, 4. ^jj^ x speaking vanity;

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and sati.sfy the afflicted soul; then shall tliy light rise in obscurity, and tiiy darkness be as the noon day:

1 1 And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in ^ drouglit, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters ^ fail not.

12 And they that shall be of thee " shall build the old waste places: tliou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and

Verse 10. -4?!^ if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry — " If thou bring forth thy bread to the hungry "] " To draw out thy soul to the hungry," as our translators rightly enough express the present Hebrew text, is an obscure phrase, and without example in any other place. But instead of 1B'i)J naphshecha, thy soul, eight MSS. (three ancient) of Kennicotfs and three of De Rossi's read "]on^ lachmccha, thy bread; and so the Sy/'iac renders it. The Septuagint express both words, tov apTov £x ttjj ■^'^yyii iov, " thy bread from thy soul." I cannot help thinking, however, that this reading is a gloss, and should not be adopted. To draw out the soul in relieving the poor, is to do it, not of constraint or necessity, but cheerfully, and is both nervous and elegant. His soul pities and his hand gives.

Verse 11. And male fat thy hones — "And he shall renew thy strength"] Chaldaeus forte legit ^rmsi' '1''7n' yachaliph otsmathecha; confer cap. xl. 29, 31, et xli. 1. — Secker. " The Chaldee perhaps read "jnoxj' TSn' yacAaliph otsmathecha." The Chaldee has "n' 'isui no'?!' "n3 veguphach yechaiyey bechaiyey alma, " and he will vivify thy body in life eternal." The rest of the ancients seem not to know what to make of y'hw yachalifs; and the rendering of the Vulgate, which seems to be the only proper one, ossa tua liberabit, " he will deliver thy bones," makes no sense. I follow this excellent emendation; to favour which it is still farther to be observed that tliree MSS., instead of ynOSi' atsmotheycha, have inoi'^' otsmathecha, singular.— L.

Verse 12. The restorer nf paths to dwell in — " The restorer of paths to be frequented by inhabitants."] To this purpose it is rendered by the Syriac, Symmachus, and Thcodotion.

13 If '' thou tiu-n away thy foot from the sahhath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words;

14 "= Then shalt tiiou delight tiiyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ^ ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: " for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

Verse 13. If thou turn aivay thy foot from the Sabbath] The meaning of this seems to be, that they should be careful not to take their pleasure on the Sabbath day, by paying visits, and taking country jaunts; not going, as Kimchi interprets it, more than a Sabbath day's journey, which was only two thousand cubits beyond the city's suburbs. How vilely is this rule transgressed by the inhabitants of this land! They seem to think that the Sabbath was made only for their recreation!

From doing thy pleasure] The Septuagmt, Syriac, and Chaldee, for P.^W]} asoth, manifestly express Plti'j'^ measoth. So likewise a MS. has it, but with the omission of the words "|'7J"1 nntj' shabbath rnglecha. — L.

The holy of the Lord — " And the holy feast of Jehovah"] Twenty-eight MSS. (seven ancient) add the conjunction 1 tmu, tynpSl velikedosh; and so the Syriac, Chaldee, and Vulgate. One of my own has the same reading.

Nor speaking thine own words — " From speaking vain words."] It is necessary to add some epithet to make out the sense; the Septuagint say, angry words; the Chaldee, words of violence. If any such epithet is lost here, the safest way is to supply it by the prophet's own expression, ver. 9, JIK ^3^1 redabar aven, vain words; that is, profane, impious, injurious, &c.

" The additional epithet seems unnecessary; the Vulgate and Syriac have it not; and the sense is good without it; two ways, first by taking ^^2'i^ vedabar for a noun, and ^2^ dabur for the participle pahul, and rendering,—

' From pursuing thy pleasure, and the thing resolved on.' Or, secondlv, by supposing the force of the preposition a mem to have been continued from the verb NISOD m/mmetso to the verb ■^a^l vedabber immediately following; and rendering, — -

' From executing thy pleasure, and from speaking words concerning it.' But the first seems the easier rendering." — Dr. Jubb.

Verse 14. Then shall thou delight thyself] If all fasts and reUgious observances be carried on in the spirit and manner recommended above, God's blessing wiU attend every ordinance. But m public fasts, prescribed not in the Book of God, but by the rulers of nations in general (very unfit persons) care should be uken that the cause is good,

France has lately fasted and prayed that they might be able to subjugate Spain, restore and establish the horrible inciuisition, and utterly destroy aU the liberties of the people I Is this such a fast as God hath chosen 1— A. D. 1823.

2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and yoiur sins •> have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

3 For " your hands are deiiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.

4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth lor truth: they trust in vanity, and speak hes; d they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.

6 s Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity,' and the act of violence is in tlieir hands.

7 ^ Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and ' de struction are in their paths.

The foregoing elegant chapter contained a severe reproof of the Jews, in particular for their hypocrisy in pretending to make themselves accepted with God by fa.stincf and outward humiliation without true repentance" while they still continued to oppress the poor, and indulge their own passions and vices; with great promises however of God's favour on condition of their reformation. This chapter contamsf a more general reproof of their wickedness, bloodshed, violence, falsehood, injustice. At ver. 9 they are introduced as making, themselves, an ample confession of their sms, and deploring their wretched state in consequence of them. On this act of humiliation a promise is given that God, in his mercy and zeal for his people, wii rescue them from this miserable condition; that the Redeemer will come like a mighty hero to deliver them; he will destroy his enemies, convert both Jews and Gentiles to himself, and give them a new covenant, and a law which shall never be abolished.

As this chapter is remarkable for the beauty, strength, and variety of the images with which it abounds; so is it pecidiarly distinguished by the elecrance of the composition, and the exact construction of the sentences. From the first verse to the two last it falls regularly into stanzas of fonr lines, (see

Prelim. Dissert, p. x.xi.,) which I have endeavoured to express as nearly as possible in the form of the original. — L.

NOTES ON CHAP. LIX. Verse 2. His face] For D'J3 panim, faces, I read panaiv, his face. So the Syriac, Septuagint, Alexandrian, Arabic, and Vulgate. 'Jil panai, MS. Forte legendum ':3 panai, nam a mem, sequitur, et loquitur Deus; confer cap. Iviii. 14. "We should perhaps read "J3 panai; for 0 mc7n follows, and God is the speaker." — Secker. I rather think that the speech of God was closed with the last chapter, and that this chapter is delivered in the person of the prophet. — L.

Verse 3. Your tongue — " And your tongue"] An ancient MS., and the Septuagint and Vulgate, add the conjunction.

Averse 4. They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.] There is a curious propriety in this mode of expression; a thought or purpose is compared to conception; a word or act, which is the consequence of it, to the birth of a child. From the third to the fifteenth verse inclusive may be considered a true statement of the then moral state of the Jewish people; and that they were, in the most proper sense of

8 Tlie way of peace they know not; and there is no ''judgment in their goings: ' they have made

9 Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: ™ we wait for light, but beiiold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.

10 "We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noon day as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.

1 1 We roar all like bears, and ° mom-n sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, hut it is far off from us.

1 2 For our transgi-cssions are multiplied before lliec, and our sins testify against us: for our traasgres.sions are with us; and as fen" our iniquities, we know them:

13 In transgressing and lying \^"J{^f^2' against the Lord, and departing oiymp. xvii. i.

away irom our (jod, speaking Numa PompOii, oppression and revolt, conceiving Roman., 4. and uttering p from the heart words of falsehood.

14 And judgment is tmuied away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.

1 5 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departetli from evil 1 maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and "'it displeased him that there ivas no judgment.

16 ^ And he saw that there was no man, and ' wondered that there xuas no intercessor: " therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.

17 ■' For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of ven-

the word, guilty of the iniquities with which they are charged.

Verse 8. Whosoever goelh therein shall not know peace — " ^^^loever goetli in them knoweth not peace"] For n3 hah, singular, read 03 bam, plural, with the Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, and Chaldee. The n he is upon a rasure in one MS. Or, for DrrnDTIJ nethibotheyhem, plural, we must read DDDTIJ nelhibalham, singular, as it is in an ancient MS., to preserve the grammatical concord. — L.

A''erse 10. We stumble at noon day as in the night — " We stumble at mid-day, as in the twilight"] I adopt here an emendation of Houbigant, njJiyj nishgegah, instead of the second, ntytyjJ negasheshah, the repetition of which has a poverty and inelegance extremely unworthy of the prophet, and unlike his manner. The mistake is of long standing, being prior to all the ancient versions. It was a very easy and obvious mistake, and I have little doubt of our liaving recovered the true reading in this ingenious correction.

Verse 11. But it is far off from us — "And it is far distant from us."] The conjunction 1 vau must necessarily be prefixed to the verb, as t!ie Syriac, Chaldee, and Vulgate found it in their copies; npmi verachakah, " and far off."

Verse 14. Justice stamleth afar off] riDTK tsedaiah, ighteousness, put here, says Kimchi, for aims to the poor. This casts some light on Matt. vi. 1: " Take heed that you do not your alms," sXsrjjjiotfuv/iv. But the best copies have iJixaioa'Dviiv, righteousness; the former having been inserted in the text at first merely as tlic explanation of the genuine and original word.

saw it -"] This third line of the stanza appears

manifestly to me to be imperfect by the loss of a

phrase. The reader will perhaps more perfectly con-

ceive my idea of the matter if I endeavour to supply the supposed defect. I imagine it might have stood originally in this manner: —

to veyachar Ychocah

mishpat ein ki beeyinaiv veyera " And Jehovah saw it, and he was wTOth;

And it displeased him, that there was no judgment." We have had already many examples of mistakes of omission; this, if it be such, is very ancient, bemg prior to all the versions. — L.

Verse 16. And u-ondered that there was no intercessor] This and the following verses some of the most eminent rabbins understand as spoken of the Messiah. Kimchi says that Rabbi Joshua ben Levi proposes this objection: " It is written, ' Behold, he will come in the clouds of heaven as the sou of man,' Dan. vii. 13; and elsewhere it is vaitten, ' He cometh lowly, and riding upon an ass,' Zech. ix. 9. How can these texts be reconciled 1 Thus: If the Jews have merit, he will come unto them in the clouds of heaven; but if they be destitute of merit, he will come unto them riding upon an ass." Now out of their own mouth they may be condemned. They were truly destitute of all merit when Jesus Christ came into Jerusalem riding upon an ass, according to the letter of tlie above prophecy; and they neither acknowledged nor received him. And that they were destitute of merit their destruction by the Romans, which shortly followed their rejection of him, suiBciently proves.

Verse 17. For clothing — " For his clothing"] niy:2'?n tilbosheth. " I cannot but think that this word, r>B';:'?ri tilbosheth, is an interpolation. 1. It is in no

19 y So shall they fear the name of the

one ancient version. 2. It is redundant in the sense, as it is before expressed in ^^12 bigdey. 3. It makes the hemistich just so much longer than it ought to be, if it is compared with the others adjoining. 4. It makes a form of construction in this clause less elegant than that in the others. 5. It might probably be in some margin a various reading for '"IJD bigdeij, and thence taken into the text. This is more probable, as its form is such as it would be if it were in regimine, as it must be before Qpj nakaniy — Dr. Jubb. Two sorts of armour are mentioned: a breast-plate and a helmet, to bring righteousness and salvation to those who fear him; and the garments of vengeance and the cloak of zeal for the destruction of all those who finally oppose him, and reject his Gospel.

Verse 18. According to their deeds, accordingly he ivill repay — " He is mighty to recompense; he that is mighty to recompense will requite"] The former

part of this verse, as it stands at present in the Hebrew text, seems to me to be very imperfect, and absolutely unintelligible. The learned Vitringa has taken a great deal of pains upon it after Cocceius, who he says is the only one of all the interpreters, ancient or modern, who has at all understood it, and has opened the way for him. He thinks that both of them together have clearly made out the sense; I do not expect that any third person will ever be of that opinion. He says, Videtur sententia ad verbum sonare: quasi propter facta [adversariorum] quasi propter rependet; excandescentiara, &c., et sic reddidit Pagninus. " According to the height of their demerits, he will repay them to the height: fury to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies," &c. — Watcrland. This he converts, by a process which will not much edify my reader, into Secundum summe merita, secundum sublime (merita) rependet; which is his translation. They that hold the present Hebrew text to be absolutely infallible must make their way through it as they can; but they ought surely to give us somewhat that has at least the appearance of sense. However, I hope the case here is not quite desperate; the Chalden leads us very fairly to the correction of the text, which is both corrupted and defective. The paraphrase runs thus; aStl" nSoJ Nin «'SaJ nD jnarcy gumlaiya hu gimla ycshallem, " The Lord of retribution, he will render recompense." He manifestly read Si'H baal instead of S>0 keal. N'Soj 'TD marey gumlaiya is ni7"3J 7;'3 baal gemuloth; as xnnno "lo marey meriruiha is ^N 7>3 baal aph. Prov. xxii. 24. And so in the Chaldce paraphrase on Isa. xxx^^ 4: ■'iJn' Nin '" N^'70J "ID marey gamlaiya yeya hu yithgeley, " The Lord of retribution, Jehovah himself, shidl be revealed;" words very near to those of the

tiie enemy shall come in ^ like Numas Poiiip;.ii, a flood, tiie Spirit of the Lord "' ^°'"""- *■ shall " lift up a standard against him.

20 And *> the Redeemer shall come 1o Zion, and unto them that turn from Irans-

prophet in this place. The second '^J'D kcal, which the Chaldce has omitted, must be read h)}2 baal likewise. With this only addition to the Chaldce, which the Hebrew text justifies, we are supplied with the fo'- lowing clear reading of the passage: —

hu gemuloth baal

aha' niVoj hy^

yeshallem gemuloth baal The Lord of retributions, he The Lord of retributions, shall repay.

The 2 caph in h]!3 keal twice seems to have been at first 3 beth, in MS. This verse in the Septuagint very imperfect. In the first part of it they give us no assistance: the latter part is wholly omitted in the printed cgpies; but it is thus supplied by MSS. Pachom. and i. D. n: Toiff uirsvovrioij outou" afiuvav Toig =X''f"^ auTou' Tttij vjiifoif avoSojj.a, ao'oriffsi. — L.

Verse 19. When the enemy shall come in like a flood] This all the rabbins refer to the coming of the Messiah. If ye see a generation which endures much tribulation, then (say they) expect him, according to what is written: " When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him."

Kimchi says, he that was the standard-bearer always began the battle by first smiting at the enemy. Here then the Spirit of the Lord is the standardbearer, and strikes the first blow. They who go against sin and Satan with the Holy Spirit at their head, are sure to win the day.

The Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him — " Which a strong wind driveth along."] Quam spiritus Domini cogit, " Which the Spirit of the Lord drives on." — Vulg. nODU nosesah, pihel a Dlj nus fugit. Kimchi says his father thus explained this word: HDDU nosesah interpretatur in significatione fugffi, et ait, spiritus Domini fiigabit hostem; — nani secundum eum nODU nosesah est ex conjugatione quadrata, ejusque radix est D13 nus: " nosesah he interpreted in the signification o( flight, — The Spirit of the Lord shall put the enemy to fight; for according to him the root of the word is OIJ nus, he put to flight.'''' The object of this action I explain otherwise. The conjunction 1 vazi, prefixed to nil ruach, seems necessary to the sense; it is added by the corrector in one of the Koningsberg MSS., collated by Lilienthal. It is added also in one of my own.

Verse 20. Unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob — "And shall turn away iniquity from Jacob"] So the Septuagint and St. Paul, Rom. xi. 26, reading

2 1 ■= As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord; My Spirit that is upon thee, and my words which

the I have put in thy mouth, shall not ^'-^^q'I^^ ^j?' depart out of thy mouth, nor out of oij-mp. xvii. i the mouth of thy seed, nor out of Numa; Pompiiu, the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith R- Roman., 4 the Lord, from henceforth and for ever.

instead of ''^lih leshahey and 3py3 beyaacob, 3"Syni veheshib and Dpi'"0 meyaacob. The Syriac likewise reads TWTV veheshib; and the Chaldee, to the same sense, a'tynSl ulehashib. Our translators have expressed the sense of the present reading of the Hebrew text: " And unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob."

Verse 21. This is my covenant with them — " This is the covenant which I make with them"] For oniN otham, them, twenty-four MSS., (four ancient,) and nine editions have njns ittam, loith them.

My Spirit that is tipon thee] This seems to be an address to the Messiah; Kimchi says it is to the prophet, informing him that the spirit of prophecy should be given to all Israelites in the days of the Messiah, as it was then given to him, i. e., to the prophet.

And my tvords which I have put in thy mouth] Whatsoever Jesus spoke was the ivord and mind of God himself; and must, as such, be implicitly received.

Nor out of the mouth of thy seed^ The same doctrines which Jesus preached, all his faithful ministers preach; and his seed — genuine Christians, who are all born of God, believe; and they shall continue, and the doctrines remain in the seed's seed through all generations— for ever and ever. This is God's covenant. ordered in all things and sure.

The glorious prospect displayed in this chapter seems to have elevated the prophet even above his usual majesty. The subject is the very flourishing condition of the Church of Jesus Christ at that period of the Gospel dispensation when both Jews and Gentiles shall become one fold under one Shepherd. The imagery employed is of the most consolatory and magnificent description. This blessed state of the world shall follow a time of gross darkness, 1, 2. The universal diffusion of vital godliness beautifully set forth by a great variety of images, 3—14. The everlasting duration and spotless purity of this kingdom of Christ, 1 5-2 1. A time appointed in the counsels of Jehovah for the commencement of this happy period; and when this time arrives, the particulars of the prophecy shall have a speedy accomplishment, 22.

Numsi Pompiiii, the LoRD IS riscn upon thee. "• ^°'"''"- ^- 2 For, behold, the darluiess

3292- y\ RISE, - shine; " for thy light is come, and •= the glory of

^ Or, he enlightened; for tliy light cometh.

The subject of this chapter is the great increase and flourishing state of the Church of God by the conversion and accession of the heathen nations to it, which is set forth in such ample and exalted terms, as plainly show that the full completion of this prophecy is reserved for future times. This subject is displayed in the most splendid colours under a great variety of images highly poetical, designed to give a general idea of the glories of that perfect state of the Church of God which we are taught to expect in the latter times; when the fulness of the Gentiles shall come in, and the Jews shall be converted and gathered from their dispersions, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ.

Of the use in prophecy of general or common poetical images, in setting forth the greatness and importance of a future event universally, without descendint^ to particulars, or too minutely explaining cu-cumstances, I have already pretty largely treated in the twentieth prelection on the Hebrew poetry; and have more than once observed in tliese notes that such images are not always to be applied particularly to persons and things,

shall cover the earth, and gross •^^'^ "'■ ^jSS. darkness the people: but the Olymp. xvii. i. Lord shall arise upon thee, and Numa: Pompiiii, his glory shall be seen upon thee. ^ ^°""'"- *■

and were never intended to be minutely explained. I shall add here the opinion of a very learned and judicious person upon this subject: " It is, I think, a mark of right understanding in the language of prophecy, and in the design of prophecy too, to keep to what appears the design and meaning of the prophecy in general, and what the whole of it laid together points out to us; and not to suffer a warm imagination to mislead us from the real intention of the spirit of prophecy, by following uncertain applications of the parts of it." Lowman on the Revelation, note on chap. xix.

21. — L. To this testimony I must add my own. This is one of the most glorious chapters in the whole of the Old Testament. The splendour, glory, and excellence of the Church of Christ are here pointed out in language which the Spirit of God alone is capable of using. But ti'hen shall this state of blessedness take place % Lord, thou only knowest.

NOTE.? ON CHAP. LX. Verse 1. Arise] Call upon God through Christ, for his salvation; and.

6 1 he nuutitiide 01 camels Shall Numa; Pompilii, cover thee, the ch-omedaries of Mi- ^ "°""'"' *■ about, and see: all they gather themselves! dian and '' Ephah; all they firom ' Sheba shall together, ''they come to thee: thy sons shall come: they shall bring ""gold and incense; and come from far, and thy daughters shall be they sliall show forth the praises of the Lord.

3 And the ^ Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

7 All the flocks of " Kedar shall be gathered

5 Then thou shall see, and flow together, together imto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarg- minister unto thee: they shall come up with ed; because ^ the '' abundance of the sea ' acceptance on mine altar, and ° I will glorify shall be converted unto thee, the ' forces i the house of my glory.

Shine] 'IIX OTt, lie illuminated; for till thou arise ' do: but upon the whole I think that njNlfjn ^i• Si' and call upon God, thou wilt never receive true light. I al tsad tinnasenah is the true reading, which the Chd-

For thy light is come] 111S N3 'D ki ba (yrech,for ' dee favours; and I have accordingly followed it. See thy light cmneth. The Rlessiah is at the door; who. while he is a light to lighten the Gentiles, will be the glory — the effulgence, of his people Israel.

A'erse 2. Darkness sliall cover the earth] This is the state of the Gentile people.

chap. Ixvi. 12. — L. This mode of carrying children is as common in India as carrying them in the arms is in Europe.

fear"] For 'Nin tirai, thou shall see, as ours and much the nreater number of the translators, ancient

been in some sort already fulfilled. The Gentiles and modern, render it, forty MSS. (ten ancient) of have received the light of the Gospel from the land of Kennicoll''s,/3.n(i. twenty-eight of De Rossi's, with one

Judea, and the Gentile kings have embraced that Gospel; so that many nations of the earth are full of the doctrine of Christ.

ancient of my own, and the old edition of 1488, have

'NTn tirai, thou shall fear: the true readuig, con- I firmed by the perfect parallelism of the sentences: the

A'erse 4. Shall be nursed at thy side — " Shall be heart ruffled and dilated in the second line answering carried at the side."] For nWNH teamanah, shall he, to the fear and joy expressed in the first. The Pro- nuTsed, the Septuaginl and Chaldee read nJNtyjn tinnasenah, shall be carried. A MS. has DJNB'jn ^riD S^ al calheph tinnasenah, " shall be carried on the shoulder;" instead of nj"3Xj"l IV Si' al tsad teamanah, " shall be nursed on the side." Another M.S. has both ^jlD calheph and Ti tsad. Another MS. has it thus: njosn: nj.^tyjjl tinnasenah: teamanah, with a line drawn over the first word. Sir John Chardin says that it is the general custom in the east to carijf their children astride upon the hip with the arm round their body. His MS. note on this place is as follows: — Coutume en Orient de porter les enfans sur le coste a califourchon sur la hanche: cette facon est generaJe aux Indes; les enfans se tiennent comme cela, et la personne qui les porte les embrasse et serre par le corps; parceque sont (ni) emmaillottes, ni en robes qui les embrassent. " In the east it is the custom to carry the children on the haunch, with the legs astride. This is the general custom in India. The cluldren support themselves in this way, and the arm of the nurse goes round the body and presses the child close to the side; and this they can ea.sily do, as the children are not swathed, nor encumbered with clothes." Non brachiis occidentalium more, sed humeris, divaricatis tibiis, impositos circuinferunt. " They carry them about, not in their arms after the manner of the western nations, but on their shoulders; the children being placed astride." Cotovic. Iter. Syr. cap. xiv. This last quotation seems to favour the reading '\I\2 Sj>

phet Jeremiah, chap, xxxiii. 9, has the same natural and elegant sentiment; — " And this city shall become to me a name of joy; A praise and an honom- for all the nations of the

earth; Which shall hear all the good that I do unto them; And they shall fear, and they shall tremble, at all

the goodness And at all the prosperity that I procure unto tier."

His tibi me rebns quaedam divina voluptas Percipit atque horror. Lucret. iii. 28.

Verse 6. The /n-aiscs of the Lord — " And the praise of Jehovah."] Thirty-three MSS. and three editions have nSnni nthehillalh, in the singular number; and so read the ancient versions, and one of my own MSS. Verse 7. The rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto

thee] Vitringa on the place understands their ministering, and ascending or going up on the altar, as oflfering themselves voluntarily: ipsi se, non expectato sacerdote alio, gloria; et sanctificationi divini nominis

ultro ac libentcr oblaturi. " They, waiting for no al calheph, on the shoulder, as the Septuaginl likewise I priest, go and freely offer themselves to the glory and

R. Roman., 4. g p gm-ely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, i to bring thy sons from far, ' their silver and their gold with them, ^ unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, ' because he hath glorified thee.

] 0 And " the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, " and their kings shall minister unto thee: for ■" in my wrath I smote thee, ' but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.

11 Therefore thy gates y shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the ^ forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.

12 *For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

1 3 '' The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make ■= the place of my feet glorious.

14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee'; and all they

sanctification of the sacred name." This gives a very elegant and poetical turn to the image. It was a general notion that prevailed with sacrificers among the heathen, that the victim's being brought without reluctance to the altar was a good omen; and the contrary a bad one. Sabinos petit aliquanto tristior; quod sacrificanti hostia aufugerat. Sueton. Titus, cap. X. Accessit dirum omen, profugus altaribus taurus. " It was an omen of dreadful portent when the victim fled away from the altar." Tacit. Hist, iii. 56. — L.

A''erse 8. And as the doves to their loindows — " And like doves upon the wingl"] Instead of Ss et, to, forty-two MSS. of Kennicott's, and one of mine, have hy al, upon. For QrrnaiN amUoteyhem, their ivindoios, read an'mns ehrotheyhcm, their vnngs, transposing a letter. — Houtiigant. The Septuagint render it (fuv vEotftfoij, " with their young;" they read On'mSN ephrocheyhem, nearer to the latter than to the present reading. — L.

themselves down at the soles of Oiymp. xvii. i. thy feet; and they shall call thee, Numaj Pompilii, The city of the Lord, » the Zion ^^- ^°"'""- *■ of the Holy One of Israel.

15 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, 1 will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

16 Tliou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, ^ and shalt suck tlie breast of kings • and thou shalt know that? I the Lord a?n thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

17 For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy oiEcers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.

18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy bor ders; but thou shalt call ''thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.

19 The ' sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall bv? unto thee an everlasting light, and '' thy God thy glory.

20 ' Thy sun shall no more go down; neither

Verse 13. And I loill make the place of my feci glorious — " And that I may glorify the place whereon I rest my feet"] The temple of Jerusalem was called the house of God, and the place of his rest or residence. The visible symbolical appearance of God called by the Jews the shechinah, was in the most holy place, between the w ings of the cherubim, above the ark. This is considered as the tlirone of God, presiding as King over the Jewish state; and as a footstool is a necessary appendage to a throne, (see note on chap. Iii. 2,) the ark is considered as the footstool of God, and is so called, Psa. xcix. 5; I Chron. xxviii. 2.

Verse 19. Neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee — '• Nor by night shall the brightness

of the moon enlighten thee"] This line, as it stands in the present text, seems to be defective. The Septuagint and Chaldce both express the night, which is almost necessary to answer to day in the preceding line, as well as to perfect the sense here. 1 therefore think that we ought, upon the authority of the Scp-

shall iliy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. 21™ Thy people also shall be all righteous: " they shall inherit the land for ever, ° the

tuagint and Chaldee, to read either nV?! velailah, and by night, instead of njjSl ulenogah, and for brightness; or rb'h:i n:jSl ulenogah ballailah, adding the word n^'S^ ballailah, by night. — L.

Verse 22. / the Lord will hasten it in his time] There is a time set for the fulfilment of this prophecy:

that time must come before it begins to take place; but when it does begin, the whole wiU be performed in a short space. It is not, therefore, the time determined for the event tliat shall be hastened, but all the circumstances of the event; all the parts of the prediction shall be speedily completed. JE rlje Hot&e in ljp;S tnme;Sobetinlji;Scl)al boun tlips!. — Old MS. Bible. And because it is the Lord, therefore it ^vill be done: for although it be difficult, he is almighty.

The subject of the preceding chapter is continued in this; and to give it the greater solemnity, the Messiah is introduced describing his character and office, and confirming the large promises made before, 1-9. In consequence of this the Jewish Church is introduced, praising 'God fur the honour done her by 'her restoration to favour, and by the accession of the Gentiles, which is beautifully described by allusions to the rich pontifical dress of the high priest; a happy similitude to express the ornaments of a restored nation and of a renewed mind, 10. Certainty of the prophecy illustrated by a figure drawn from the vegetable kingdom, 11.

meek; he hath sent me "^ to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim ''liberty to the

Verse 1. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me — " The Spirit of Jehovah is upon me"'] The Septuagint, Vulgate, and St. Luke, (chap. iv. 18,) and a MS., and two old editions omit the word -Jix Adonai, the Lord; which was probably added to the text through the superstition of the Jews, to prevent the oronunciation of the word mn' Yehovah following. See KennicoU on the state of the printed Hebrew text, Tol. i., p. 510.

In most of Isaiah's prophecies there is a primary and seoendary sense, or a remote subject illustrated by one that is near. The deliverance of the Jews from their captivity in Babylon is constantly used to shadow forth the salvation of men by Jesus Christ. Even the prophet himself is a Ivjiical person, and is sometimes intended to represent the great Saviour. It is evident from Luke iv. 18 that this is a prophecy of our blessed Lord and his preaching; and yet it is as evident that

year of the Lord, and f the day of vengeance of our God; s to comfort all that mourn;

it primarily refers to Isaiah preaching the glad tidings of deliverance to the Jews.

The opening of the prison — " Perfect liberty"] nip np3 pekach koach. Ten MSS. of Kennico'tt's, several of Dc Rossi's, and one of my own, with the Complutensian, have mpHpi) pekachkoach in one word; and so the Sepluaginl and Vulgate appear to have taken it: not merely opening of prisons, but every kind of liberty — complete redemption.

The proclaiming of perfect liberty to the bound, and the year of acceptance with Jehovah, is a manifest allusion to the proclaiming of the year of jubilee by sound of trumpet..See Lev. xxv. 9, &c. This was a year of general release of debts and obliga tions, of bondmen and bondwomen, of lands and posses.sions which had been sold from the families and tribes to whidi they belonged. Our Saviour, by applyhig this text to himself, (Lulce iv. 18, 19,) a text so manifestly relating to the institution above

Nu";Po"™r.iii. them beauty for ashes, the oil R. Roman., 4. ^f JQy for mouming, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, ' the planting of the Lord, i- that he might be glorified.

4 And they shall 'build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.

sons of the alien shall he your Numae PompUii, ploughmen and your vinedressers. \ °°"^"'

6 " But ye shall be named the Priests of the the j Lord: men shall call you the Ministers of

our God: ° ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast your-

7 p For your shame ye shall have double; and /or confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in then: land they shall

Verse 3. To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion

"To impart gladness to the mourners of Zion"]

A word necessary to the sense is certainly lost in this

shall build," add po mimmecha, they that spring /rom thee. Four MSS. have it so, (tvTO of them ancient,) and one of mine has it in the margin, and it is con firmed by chap. Iviii. 12, where the sentence is the very same, this word being here added. Kimchi makes place, of which the ancient Versions have preserved [the same remark: "the word pa munmec/ia is omit - ■ ■.., '[ted here; but is found in chap. Iviii. 12."

The desolations of many generations}

i traces. Houbigant, by conjecture, inserts the word 'AWl' sason, gladness, taken from the line next but one below, where it stands opposed to 42N ebel, sorroio or mourning, as the word lost here was to "h^^ aheley, mourners: I foUow him. — L.

Beauty for ashes — " A beautiful crown instead of

ashes"] In times of mourning the Jews put on sackcloth, or coarse and sordid raiment, and spread dust and ashes on their heads; on the contrary, splendid clothing and ointment poured on the head were the signs of joy. " Feign thyself to be a mourner," says Joab to the woman of Tekoah, "and put on now mourning apparel, and anoint not thyself with oil," 2 Sam. xiv. 2. These customs are at large expressed in the Book of Judith: " She pulled off the sackcloth which she had on, and put off the garments of her widowhood, and washed her body all over with water and anointed herself with precious ointment, and braided the hair of her head, and put on a tire [mitre, marg.] upon it; and put on her garments of gladness;" chap. X. 3. — L,

It seems that these words cannot refer to the Jews in the Babylonish captivity, for they were not there many generations; but it may refer to their dispersions and state of ruin since the advent of our Lord; and consequently this may be a promise of the restoration of the Jewish people.

Verse 5. Strangers shall^'eed yovr flocks'] Gentiles shaU first preach to you the salvation of Christ, and feed with Divine knowledge the Jewish congregations.

shame"] The tran,slation of this verse, which is very confused, and probably corrupted in the Hebrew, is taken from the Syriac Version; except that the latter has not expressed the word nJtyo mishneh, double, in the first place. Five MSS. add the conjunction 1 vau to nnoty simchath. The Syriac reads 1J1,-| taronnu, and IK'Tn tirashu, in the second person, "ye shall rejoice, ye shall inherit.".Vnd for DhS lahem, to than.

13S nnn -iN3 peer tachath ephar, glory for ashes; two MSS., (one of them ancient,) three of Dc Ros a paronomasia which the prophet often uses: a chaplet, and the Syriac, read Doh lachem, to you, in the second crown, or other ornament of the head (for so the Viil- person likewise.

gate renders the word here and in the 10th verse; in I The Version of the Septuagint is imperfect in this which last place the Septiiogint agree in the same ^ place; the first half of the verse is entirely omitted in

rendering,) instead of dust and ashes, which before covered it; and the costl}- ointments used on occasions of festivity, instead of the ensigns of sorrow. — L.

Trees of righteousness — " Trees approved"] Heb. oaks of righteousness or truth; that is, such as by their flouri.shing condition should show that they were indeeed " the scion of God's planting, and the work of his hands;" under which images, in the preceding chapter, ver. 2 1, the true servants of God, in a highly improved state of the Church, were represented; that is, says Vitringa on that place, " commendable for the strength of their faith, their durability, and firmness."

all the printed copies. It is supplied by MSS. Pachom. and 1. D. 11. in the following manner: —

"Instead of your shame ye shall have double, And instead of your confusion theh- portion shall

rejoice; Therefore, they shall possess their land a second time." In which the two MSS. agree, except that 1. D. n. has

9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, ' that they are the seed ivhick the Lord hath blessed.

10 "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my

MarchaL, in the margin, has pretty nearly the same supplement as from Theodotion. — L.

Verse 8. I hate robbery, for burnl-offering — " ^Vho hate rapine and iniquity"] The Syriac, and Chaldee prefix the conjunction 1 «'««, instead of the preposition 3 both, to n'^lV olah, which they render iniquity or oppression; and so the Septuagint, aSixiag. The difference lies in the punctuation; nSl>'3 beolah, in a hirnt-offering, n'?!;?^ beavclah, in iniquity. The letters are the same in both words. Five of De Rossi's MSS. confirm this reading.

Verse 9. Their seed shall be knowti among the Gentiles] Both Jews and Gentiles are to make but onefold under one shepherd, Christ Jesus. But still, notwithstanding this, they may retain their peculiarity and national distinction; so that though they are known to be Christians, yet they shall appear to be converted Jews. After their conversion to Christianity this will necessarily be the case for a long time. Strange nations are not so speedily amalgamated, as to lose their peculiar cast of features, and other national distinctions.

Verse 10. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord] These may be the words of the Jews now converted, and sold shall be joyful in my God; ^^^^- <''^'- 3292. for 'he hath clothed me with the Oiymp. xi'ii. i. garments of salvation, he hath Numffip'o"mpiiii, covered me with the robe of R- Roman.. 4. righteousness, ■" as a bridegi'oom ^ deckelli himself wilh ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself wilii her jewels.

11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causetii the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause ^ righteousness and ^ praise to spring forth before all the nations.

brought into the Church of Christ, and with the Gentiles made fellow heirs of the blessings of the new covenant.

As a bridegroom decketli himself loith ornaments — " As the bridegroom decketh himself with a priestly crown"] An allusion to the magnificent dress of the high priest, when performing his functions; and particularly to the mitre, and crovrn or plate of gold on the front of it, Exod. xxix. 6. The bonnet or mitre of the priests also was made, as Moses expresses it, "for glory and for beauty," E.xod. xxviii. 40. It is difficult tcC give its full force to the prophet's metaphor in another language. The version of Aquila and Symmachus comes nearest to it: wg vu/iipiov isparsuo- (asvou (frsipavu' "as a bridegroom decked with a priestly crown." — L.

Verse 1 1. The Lord God — " The Lord Jehovah"] " 'JTS Adonai, the Lord, makes the line longer than the preceding and following; and the Septuagint, Alexandrian, (and MSS. Pachom. and i. D. ii.,) and Arabic, do not so render it. Hence it seems to be interpolated." — Dr. JuBB. Three MSS. have it not. See on ver. 1 of this chapter. Both words niiT' 'jnx Adonai Yehovah,a.re wanting in one of my MSS.; but are supplied in the margin by a later hand

The prophet opens this chapter with ardent prayers that the happy period of reconciliation just now promised, and here again foretold, may be hastened, 1-5. He then calls upon the faithful, particularly the priests and Levifes, to join him, urging the promises, and even the oath, of Jehovah, as the foundation of their request, 6-9. And, relying on this oath, he goes on to speak of the general restoration promised, as already performing; and calls to the people to march forth, and to the various nations among ivhom they are dispersed to prepare the way for them, as God had caused the order for their return to be universally proclaimed, 10—12.

"pOR Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusa- Num'iEPompilii, Icin's Sake *I will not rest, until ^ ^°'"^°" *■ the righteousness thereof go forth

NOTES ON CHAP. LXII. Verse 1. For Zion's sake ivill I not hold my peace] These are the words of Jehovah declaring his pur-

2 ''And the Gentiles shall see Numa; Pompiiii,

Thou shall be called by a new name] Viz., Chris

3 Thou shall also be '' a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.

4 " Thou shall no more be termed ^ Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed s Desolate: but thou shall be called ^ Hephzibah, and thy land ' Beulah: for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.

a virgin, so shall thy sons marry oiympxvii. i. thee: and '' as the bridegroom re- Numse Pompiiii, joiceth over the bride, so i shall HR""""-^' th_v God rejoice over thee.

6 " I have set watchmen upon thy walls, 0 Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: " ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence,

7 And give him no " rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem p a praise in the

TiAN — or, as in the fourth verse, n3 'SSn chephUi bah, ' my delight is in her" — because she has now received that command, " This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear him."

Verse 4. Thy land Beulah] Hl^yi beulah, married. In the prophets, a desolate land is represented under the notion of a widow; an inhabited land, under that of a married woman, who has both a husband and children.

Verse 5. For as a young man — so] The particles 3f comparison are not at present in the Hebrew Text: but the Sepluagint, Syriac, and Chaldee seem to have read in their copies 3 caph preiixed to the verb, 7J'3"^ O ki heyihal, which seems to have been omit- 'ed by mistake of a transcriber, occasioned by the repetition of the same two letters. And before the verb in the second line a MS. adds p ken, so; which the Septuagint, Syriac, and Chaldee seem also to nave had in their copies. In the third line of this verse the same MS. has in like manner BTuyODI vechimsos, and two MSS. and the Babylonish Talmud t^liyij Vimsos, adding the 3 caph; and in the fourth line, the Babylonish Talmud likewise adds p ken, so, before the verb.

Sir John Chardin, in his note on this place, tells us, "■ that it is the custom in the east for youths, that vrere never man-ied, always to marry virgins; and widowers, however young, to marry widows." — Harmer, Obscrv. ii p. 482.

So.iball thy sons marry thee.] For y:a banayich, thy son.^. Bishop Lotcth reads, restorer or builder, as he does not consider the word as the plural of p ben, a Kon, but the participle benoni of the verb nja hanah, he built. I do not see that we gain much by tliis translation. Thy.mns shall dwell in thee, Vulgate; and so the Septuagint and Chaldee.

not silence] The faithful, and in particular the priests and Levites, are exhorted by the prophet to beseech God \\'ith unremitted importunity (compare Luke xviii. 1, &c.) to hasten the redemption of Sion. The imatre in this place is taken from the temple service; in which there was appointed a constant watch, day and nio-ht, by the Levites: and among them this seems to have belonged particularly to the singers, see 1 Chron. ix.

33. Now the watches in the east, even to this day, are performed by a loud cry from time to time of the watchmen, to mark the time, and that very frequently, and in order to show that they themselves are constantly attentive to their duty. Hence the watchmen are said by the prophet, chap. Iii. 8, to lift up their voice; and here they are commanded, not to keep silence; and the greatest reproach to them is, that they are dumb dogs; they cannot lark; dreamers; sluggards, loving to slumber, chap. Ivi. 10. "The watchmen in the camp of the caravans go their rounds crying one after another, ' God is one, he is merciful:' and often add, ' Take heed to yourselves.' " Tavernier, Voyage de Perse, Liv. i. chap. x. The hundred and thirty-fourth Psalm gives us an example of the temple watch. The whole Psalm is nothing more than the alternate cry of two different divisions of the watch. The first watch addresses the second, reminding them of their duty; the second answers by a solemn blessing. The address and the answer seem both to be a set form, which each division proclaimed, or sung aloud, at stated intervals, to notify the time of the night: —

First Chorus. " Come on now, bless ye Jehovah, all ye servants of Jehovah; Ye that stand in the house of Jehovah in the nights. Lift up your hands towards the sanctuary. And bless ye Jehovah."

"Jehovah bless thee out of Sion; He that made heaven and earth."

"Ye who stand in the place of the icatch, in the house of the sanctuar}' of the Lord; and ye praise through the nights;" — says the Chaldee paraphrase on the second line. And this explains what is here particularly meant by proclaiming, or making remembrance of, the name of Jehovah: the form, which the watch made use of on these occasions, was always a short sentence, expressing some pious sentiment, of which Jehovah was the subject; and it is remarkable, that the custom in the jast in this respect also still continues the verv same; as appears by the example abov« given from Tavernier.

Oiyinp. XVII. 1. right hand, and by the arm of iiis ^^lnli^!Pompilii, Strength, 1 Surely I will no more

thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured:

9 But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord; and they that have brought it together shall drink it ^ in the courts of my holiness.

10 Go through, go through the gates; 'pre-

And this observation leads to the explanation of an)bscure passage in the Prophet Malachi, chap. ii. 12.

"Jehovah will cut off the man that doeth this;

The watchman and the answerer, from the tabernacles of Jacob;

And him that presenteth an offering to Jehovah God of hosts."

njj'l 1J' er veoneh, the master and the scholar, says our translation, after the Vulgate: the son and the grandson, says the Syriac and Chaldee, as little to the purpose: Arias Montanus has given it vigilatilem et respondentem, " the watchman and the answerer;" that is, the Levite and " him that presenteth an offering to Jehovah," that is, the priest. — L. Ye that make men-

tion of the Lord, keep not silence. Is not this clause an address to the ministers of Christ, to continue in supplication for the conversion of the Jewish people? Kimchi seems to think that the watchmen are the interceding angels!

Verse 9. But they that have gathered it shall eat it,

and praise the Lord] This and the following line have reference to the law of IMoses: " Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy wine, or of thy oil; but thou must eat them before the Lord thy God, in the place which the Lord thy God shall choose," Deut. xii. 17, 18. " And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as unctrcumcised: three years it shall be as uncircumcised unto you; it shall not be eaten of. But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy to praise the Lord withal. And in the fifth year ye shall eat the fruit thereof," Lev..fix. 23-25. This clearly explains the force of the expressions, " shall praise Jehovah," and " shall drink it in my sacred courts."

Five MSS., one ancient, have ini'7D!<' yochcluhu, they shall eat it, fully expressed: and so likewise VniPtS'' yishtuhii, they shall drink it, is found in nineteen MSS., three of thein ancient. — L.

gather out the stones; " hit up a NumaiPompiiii, standard for the people. R. Roman., 4.

1 1 Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, ' Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation comcth; behold, his " reward is with him, and iiis ^ work be fore him.

12 And they shall call tliem, The holy peo pie. The redeemed of the Lord: and thou shall be called. Sought out, A city >' not forsaken.

Verse 10. Of the people — " For the people"] Before the word DJ'n haam, the people, two MSS. insert nin' Yehovah; one MS. adds the same word after; and eight MSS., three ancient, instead of Di'n haam, have niiT' Yehovah, and so likewise one edition. But though it makes a good sense either way, I believe it to be an interpolation, as the ancient Versions do not favour it. The Septuagint indeed read 'Di' ammi, my people. — ^L.

Verse 1 1". Unto the end of the world — "pNn Hip '7N el kctseh haarets — Instead of Sn el, to, ny ad, unto, is the reading of two of Kennicoti's MSS.; and one of mine has nspD mikketseh, "from the end of the earth."

Behold, thy salvation cometh — " Lo, thy Saviour cometh"] So all the ancient Versions render the word IJ'ty yishech.

Behold, his reward] See note on chap. xl. 10, 1 1. This reward he carries as it were in his hand. His work is before him — he perfectly knows what is to be done; and is perfectly able to do it. He will do what God should do, and what man cannot do; and men should be irurkers with him. Let no man fear that the promise shall not be fulfilled on account of its difficulty, its greatness, the hinderances in the way, or the unworthiness of the person to whom it is made. It is God's work; he is able to do it, and as willing as he is able.

Verse 12. They shall call them — These characteristics seem to be put in their inverted order. — 1. God will no\. forsake them. 2. They shall be sought out. 3. They shall be redeemed. And, 4. Be in consequence a holy people. 1. V\'hen God calls, it is a proof that he has x\oX forsaken. 2. When he seeks, b is a proof he is waiting to be gracious. 3. When the atonement is exhibited, all things are then ready. 4. And when that is received, holiness of heart and life 1"= then to be kept continually in view, as this is the genuine work of God's Spirit; and without holiness none shall see the Lord.

The prophet, {or rather the Church he represents,) sees the great Deliverer, long promised and expected, making his appearance, after having crushed his enemies, like grapes in the wine-vat. The comparison suo-o-ests a lively idea of the wrath of Omnipotence, which its unhappy objects can no more resist than the grapes can resist the treader. Indeed, there is so much pathos, energy, and sublimity in this remarkable passage, as hardly any thing can be conceived to exceed. The period to which it refers must be the same with that predicted in the nineteenth chapter of the Revelation, some parts of which are expressed in the same terms with this, and plainly enough refer to the very sudden aiid total overthroiu of Antichrist, and of all his adherents and auxiliaries, of which the destruction of Babylon, the capital of Chaldea, and of Bozra, the chief city of the Edomites, was the prototype, 1—6. At the seventh verse commences a perntential confession and supplication of the Jews, as uttered in their present dispersion, 7-19.

The very remarkable passage with which this chapter begins seems to me to be, in a manner, detached from the rest, and to stand singly by itself; having no immediate conne.xion with what goes before, or with what follows, otherwise than as it may pursue the general design, and stand in its proper place in the order of prophecy. It is by many learned interpreters supposed that Judas Maccabeus and his victories make the subject of it. What claim Judas can have to so great an honour will, I think, be very difficult to make out; or how the attributes of the great person introduced can possibly suit him. Could Judas call himself the announcer of righteousness, mighty to save 1 Could he talk of the day of vengeance being in his heart, and the year of his redeemed being come? or that his own arm wrought salvation for him? Besides, what were the great exploits of Judas in regard to the Idumeans? He overcame them in battle, and slew twenty thousand of them. And John Hyrcanus, his brother.Simon's son and successor, who is called in to help out the accomplishment of the prophecy, gave them another defeat some time afterward, and compelled them by force to become proselytes to the Jewish religion, and to submit to circumcision: after which they were incorporated with the Jews, and became one people with them. Are these events adequate to the prophet's lofty prediction? Was it so great an action to win a battle with considerable slaughter of the enemy, or to force a whole nation by dint of the sword into Judaism? or was the conversion of the Idumeans, however effected, and their admission into the Church of God, equivalent to a most grievous judgment and destruction, threatened in the severest terms 1 But here is another very material circumstance to be considered, which, I presume, entu-ely excludes Judas Maccabeus, and even the Idumeans, properly so called. For the Idumea of the prophet's time was quite a different country from that which Judas conquered. For during the Babylonish captivity the Nabatheans had driven the Edomites out of their country; who upon that took possession of the southern parts of Judea, and settled themselves there; that is, in the country of the whole tribe of Simeon, and in half of that of Judali. See Prideaux,

ad. an. 740 and 165. And the metropolis of the Edomites, and of the country thence called Idumea, which Judas took, was Hebron, 1 Mace. v. 65, not Bozrah. I conclude, therefore, that this prophecy has not the least relation to Judas Maccabeus. It may be asked, to whom, and to what event does it relate? I can only answer, that I know of no event in history to which, from its importance and circumstances, it can be applied: unless, perhaps, to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish polity; which in the Gospel is called the coming of Christ and the days of vengeance. Matt, xvi. 28; Luke xxi. 22. But though this prophecy must have its accomplishment, there is no necessity for supposing that it has been already accomplished. There are prophecies, which intimate a great slaughter of the enemies of God and his people, which remain to be fulfilled; these in Ezekiel, chap, xxxviii., and in the Revelation of St. John, chap, xx., are called Gog and Magog. This prophecy of Isaiah may possibly refer to the same or the like event. We need not be at a loss to determine the person who is here introduced, as stained with treading the wine-press, if we consider how St. John in the Revelation has applied this image of the prophet, Rev. xix. 13, 15, 16. Compare chap, xxxiv. — L.

Verse 1. Who is this that cometh from Edom] Probably both Edom and Bozrah are only figurative expressions, to point out the place in which God should discomfit his enemies. Edom signifies red, and Bozrah, a vintage. Kimchi interprets the whole of the destruction of Rome.

/ that speak in righteousness — " I who publish righteousness"] A MS. has IDTDD hammedalber, with the demonstrative article added with greater force and emphasis: The announcer of righteousness. A MS. has npli" isedakah, without 3 be prefixed; and so the Septuagint and Vulgate. And thirty-eight MSS. (seven ancient) of Dr. KennicotCs, and many of De Rossi's, and one of my own, add the conjunction 1 van to 3T rab, and mighty; which the Septuagint, Synac, and Vulgate confirm. — L.

A. M. cir. 32^. thine apparel, and thy garments Oi3rmp. xi'ii. 1. Hke him that treadeth in the

press alone; and of tlie people there ivas none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fiiry; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.

4 For the "^ day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.

5 * And I looked, and ^ there was none to help; and I wondered that thei'e was none to

Verse 2. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel] For ItynSS hkbushecha, twenty-nine MSS. (nine ancient) oi KennieotCs, and thirty of De Rossi's, anil one edition, have ytyi^'jS lilehusheycha in the plural; so the Septuagint and Syriac. And all the ancient Versions read it with D mem, instead of the first 7 lamed. But the true reading is probably ■]B'u'7rD malbushecha in the singular, as in ver. 3. — L.

Verse 3. And of the people there was none with me] I was wholly abandoned by them; but a good meaning is, No man has had any part in making the atonement; it is entirely the work of the Messiah alone. No created being could have any part in a sacrifice that was to be of infinite merit.

And I will stain — " And I have stained"] For 'nSxjN egalti, a verb of very irregular formation, compounded, as they say, of the two forms of the preterite and future, a MS. has inSxJS egalchii, the regular future with a pleonastic pronoun added to it, according to the Hebrew idiom: " And all my raiment, I have stained it." The necessity of the verb's being in the past tense seems to have given occasion to the alteration made in the end of the word. The conversive l van at the beginning of the sentence affects the verb, though not joined to it; of which there are many examples: —

^ anithani remim umikkamey

• And thou wilt hear me (or hear thou me) from among the horns of the unicorns," Psa. xxii. 22. — L.

Instead of ''^J3 TJ al bcgadai, upon my garments, one of my ancient MSS. has njD THsS laarets begadai, to the earth: but this word is partly effaced, and b)! al written in the margin by a later hand.

Verse 5. And my fury — " And mine indignation"] For 'noni varhamathi, nineteen MSS. {three ancient) of KennicotCs, nine of De Rossis, and one of mine, and four editions, have 'iipnsi vetsidkathi, and my righteousness; from chap. lis. 16, which I suppose the transcriber retained in his memory. It is true that the Versions are in favour of the common reading; but that noticed above seems to stand on good authority, and is a reading both pleasing and impressive.

6 And I will tread down the ^ '^°'""' ■ *■ people in mine anger, and ^ make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.

7 I will mention the ' loving-kindnesses of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his loving-kindnesses.

Verse 6. And make them drunk in my fury — " And I crushed them in mine indignation"] For DIJiVNl vaashkerem, and I made them drunken, twenty-seven MSS., {three ancient,) tieelve of De Rossis, and the old edition of 1488, have Dl^cyxi vaashahherem, and I crushed them: and so the Syriac and Chaldee. The Septuagini have omitted this whole line.

Verse 7. I toill mention the loving-kindnesses of the Lord] The prophet connects the preceding mercies of God to the Jews with the present prospect he has of their redemption by the Messiah; thus making a circle in wliich eternal goodness revolves. The remaining part of this chapter, with the whole chapter following, contains a penitential confession and supplication of the Israelites in their present state of dispersion, in which they have so long marvellously subsisted, and still continue to subsist, as a people; cast out of their country; without any proper form of civil polity or religious worship; their temple destroyed, their city desolated and lost to them, and their whole nation scattered oyer the face of the earth, apparently deserted and cast off by the God of their fathers, as no longer his peculiar people.

They begin with acknowledging God's great mercies and favours to their nation, and the ungrateful returns made to them on their part, that by their disobedience they had forfeited the protection of God, and had caused him to become their adversar)'. And now the prophet represents them, induced by the memory of the great things that God had done for them, as addressing their humble supplication for the renewal of his mercies. They beseech him to regard them in consideration of his former loving kindness, they acknowledge him for then Father and Creator, they confess their wickedness and hardness of heart, they entreat liis forgiveness, and deplore their present miserable condition under which they have so long suffered. It seems designed as a formulary of humiliation for the Israelites, in order to their conversion.

The whole passage is in the elegiac form, pathetic and elegant; but it has suffered much in our present copy by the mistakes of transcribers.

9 '' In all their affliction he was afflicted, ' and the angel of his presence saved tliem "in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and ° he bare them, and earned them all the days of old.

10 But they "rebelled, and "vexed his holy Spirit: i therefore he was turned to be their enemy, a7id he fought against them.

11 Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, a?id his people, saying, Where is he that ' brought them up out of the sea with the

12 That led them by the right ^ ^°""'"' *■ hand of Moses, " with his glorious arm, " divid ing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?