My Notes on Isaiah 4:2-6

This is used as one of the Old Testament Readings for Holy Saturday in the Extraordinary Form of the Rite. It was previously posted.

4:2 In that day, Yahweh’s branch will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the beauty and glory of the survivors of Israel.

In that day: A reference to the day [time] of redemption after the day [time] of punishment (Isa 2:11). God’s punishment is meant to bring people to repentance (Isa 1:26-27). The Kingdom of Judah and its capitol, Jerusalem, had already suffered greatly (Isa 1:2-31), but a remnant had survived (Isa 1:9). As a consequence of God’s punishment the people were told: Your land is desolate, your cities are burnt with fire: your country strangers devour before your face, and it shall be desolate as when wasted by enemies. And the daughter of Sion shall be left as a covert in a vineyard, and as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, and as a city that is laid waste (Isa 1:7-8).

They were also told: “For you shall be as an oak tree whose leaves fade, and as a garden that has no water” (Isa 1:30). The people in other words will be like barren trees, and the land desolate, without life or growth. In contrast, the time of redemption is described as Yahweh’s branch will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the beauty and glory of the survivors of Israel (Isa 4:2).

4:3 It will happen, that he who is left in Zion, and he who remains in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even everyone who is written among the living in Jerusalem…

This is an obvious reference to those who survive the judgment through repentance, by the grace of God (see Isa 1:18-20). They have had their names written into the book of life (see Mal 3:13-4:3; 3:13-21 in NAB). Note that Malachi says the wicked mock penance and will become like trees without root or branch (Mal 4:1; or, 3:19 in the NAB)

4:4 when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from its midst, by the spirit of justice, and by the spirit of burning.

In Isa 1:15-16, God, through the prophet, told the people that their hands were full of blood and they needed to wash themselves clean. If they did so, they would eat the good things of the land (Isa 1:19). To motivate them to this repentance God decreed: “And I will turn my hand upon you, thoroughly purge away your dross, and take away all your tin” (Isa 1:25). God’s punishment is meant to be medicinal and cleansing.

4:5 Yahweh will create over the whole habitation of Mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy.
4:6 There will be a pavilion for a shade in the daytime from the heat, and for a refuge and for a shelter from storm and from rain.

Verse 5 is an allusion to Ex 13:21-22. God will be present and protective of his people. Verse 6 calls to mind the common practice of ancient Israel. People lived in cities and villages and had to travel to their farmland in order to work it. At harvest time they would build huts in the fields to house themselves. This was done for several reasons, 1) it cut down on travel time and thus allowed more work time for the actual harvest; 2) they could protect what they had harvested from thieves; 3) if the weather turned bad they could quickly find protection. This verse calls to mind the description of Jerusalem in chapter Isa 1:8, where it had been described as a hut in a desolate field which had been “harvested,” as it were, by her enemies. In spite of the dire straits in which the city found itself, it had been protected, even though it had been unable to protect itself or the land surrounding it. Yet its near fall was meant to serve as a warning, moving the people to repent and embrace righteousness. Sinners have no business presuming God’s protection.

My Notes on Isaiah 1:16-19

For more notes on the early chapters of Isaiah go here. These were posted rather hastily and I have always wanted to edit/rewrite them but haven’t found the time.

Vs 16-17. Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; take away your evil deeds from before my eyes; stop doing evil, learn how to do good,strive after justice, remove oppression, protect the fatherless, plead the widows cause.

Notice the reference to God’s eyes, it links with the reference in vs 15. This is one reason why, in vs 15, I think “your hands are full of blood” does not refer to sacrifice but, rather, to shed human blood. God has changed his focus from sins against himself, to sins against others. What the people are told to correct here was a special concern of God’s. Recall the words of our Blessed Lord about the greatest commandment: You shall love the Lord, your God, with your entire heart, your entire soul, and your entire mind. This is the first and the greatest of the commandments. The second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as if he were your very self. All of the law, and all of the prophets depend on these two commands. (Mt 22:34-40; quoting Deutt 6:5 and Lev 19:18)

For more about widows, orphans, and the oppressed see Ex 22:21-24; Mal 3:4-5; Amos 4:1-5. Note the close connection to sacrifice and justice in the last two passages.

Vs 18. Come, let us see who is right, says the Lord: Though your sins are scarlet, they shall become as white as snow; Though they be crimson red, they shall become as wool.

The reference to the color of the peoples sins (red, crimson, scarlet) provides a link with vs 15 (hands full of blood).

In the post on 1:2-9 we saw that God was engaging in a covenant lawsuit (a rib) with his people. Here he sets down why he is right in the matter of the covenant. In spite of the peoples sins against it he is willing to remain faithful and offers them the possibility of coming back covenant relations with him. The question is, will the people remain scarlet, or become clean.

Vs 19-20. (19) If you are willing and hear me, (i.e. obey) then once again you shall eat the good things of the land. (20) If, however, you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten up by the sword. It is the mouth of the Lord that has spoken.

Notice the word play: “you shall EAT the good things of the land,” or, “you shall be EATEN up by the sword.” Like several other verses in this first chapter, these words allude to the covenant theology of Deuteronomy.

Therefore, keep the commands of the Lord, your God, keeping to his ways and fearing him. For the Lord, your God, is leading you into a fine country, into a land filled with streams, and springs, and fountains of water…a land rich in wheat and barley, vines and figs, with pomegranates, olive trees and honey, a land where you will EAT bread to you are full…But when you have EATEN and been filled, you must bless the Lord, your God, who gave you this good land…lest, having EATEN your fill, you become proud of heart and forget the Lord, your God…(for) if you forget the Lord, your God,…I warn you, on that day you shall perish, for not listening to the voice of the Lord, your God. (see Dt 6:6-20)

But Jacob ATE his fill and grew fat and frisky; he grew fat, thick, and engorged. They turned from the God who made them…they provoked him with strange gods…”Since they have provoked me with a strange god, I will provoke them with a strange (foreign)people. For my wrath is a kindled fire that shall burn to the depth of the nether world…I will give them woe upon woe…I will send them HUNGER by famine, great fever, and pestilence…the SWORD shall bring them sorrow…To the heavens I raise my hand and take my oath: as certainly as I live, I will sharpen my gleaming SWORD and lay my hands upon my quiver. On my foes I will deliver my vengence, I will pay back those who hate me. My arrows will be drunk with blood, and my SWORD SHALL EAT up flesh. (see Dt 32)

My Notes on Isaiah 1:10, 16-20

To view my notes on all of Isaiah chapter 1 go here.

Vs. 10. Hear the word of Yahweh, you who rule Sodom. Listen to the instruction of our God you Gomorrah-people.

Having begun the oracle by calling heaven and earth to attention as witnesses (vs 2), the prophet now calls on the sinful rulers and people to attend to God’s teaching. Notice the link between vss 9 and 10 (Sodom, Gomorrah). This shows that vss 10-17 are to be taken as relating to vss 2-9. Having separated themselves from God (2-9) they still seek him in worship (10-17), but God does not desire their sacrifices (vss 11-15) when offered devoid of moral uprightness (vss 16-20).

“Hear…” (Heb shama; shaw-mah) This may be intended not only as a call to attention but also as a reminder of the shema, the traditional morning prayer of devout Jews which opens with the word “hear”.It is a prayer that insists on complete fidelity and reliance on God. “HEAR, OR ISRAEL, THE LORD IS OUR GOD, THE LORD ALONE! FOR THIS REASON, YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD, YOUR GOD, WITH YOUR ENTIRE HEART, WITH YOUR ENTIRE SOUL, AND WITH ALL OF YOUR STRENGTH. (Dt 6:5) In order to worship God properly one must be right with him. See the story of righteous Abraham and his role in the Sodom and Gomorrah event (Gen 18:16-19:29)

(16) Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; take away your evil deeds from before my eyes; stop doing evil,
(17) learn how to do good,strive after justice, remove oppression, protect the fatherless, plead the widows cause.

Notice the reference to God’s eyes, it links with the reference in vs 15. This is one reason why, in vs 15, I think “your hands are full of blood” does not refer to sacrifice. God has changed his focus from sins against himself, to sins against others. What the people are told to correct here was a special concern of God’s. Recall the words of our Blessed Lord about the greatest commandment: You shall love the Lord, your God, with your entire heart, your entire soul, and your entire mind. This is the first and the greatest of the commandments. The second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as if he were your very self. All of the law, and all of the prophets depend on these two commands. (Mt 22:34-40; quoting Deut 6:5 and Lev 19:18)

For more about widows, orphans, and the oppressed see Ex 22:21-24; Mal 3:4-5; Amos 4:1-5. Note the close connection to sacrifice and justice in the last two passages.

Vs 18. Come, let us see who is right, says the Lord: Though your sins are scarlet, they shall become as white as snow; Though they be crimson red, they shall become as wool.

The reference to the color of the peoples sins (red, crimson, scarlet) provides a link with vs 15 (hands full of blood).

In previous posts on 1:1-10 we saw that God was engaging in a covenant lawsuit  with his people (called a rib, pronounced, reeb). Here he sets down why he is right in the matter of the covenant. In spite of the peoples sins against it he is willing to remain faithful and offers them the possibility of coming back covenant relations with him. The question is, will the people remain scarlet, or become clean.

(19) If you are willing and hear me, (i.e. obey) then once again you shall eat the good things of the land.
(20) If, however, you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten up by the sword. It is the mouth of the Lord that has spoken.

Notice the word play: “you shall EAT the good things of the land,” or, “you shall be EATEN up by the sword.” Like several other verses in this first chapter, these words allude to the covenant theology of Deuteronomy.

Therefore, keep the commands of the Lord, your God, keeping to his ways and fearing him. For the Lord, your God, is leading you into a fine country, into a land filled with streams, and springs, and fountains of water…a land rich in wheat and barley, vines and figs, with pomegranates, olive trees and honey, a land where you will EAT bread to you are full…But when you have EATEN and been filled, you must bless the Lord, your God, who gave you this good land…lest, having EATEN your fill, you become proud of heart and forget the Lord, your God…(for) if you forget the Lord, your God,…I warn you, on that day you shall perish, for not listening to the voice of the Lord, your God. (see Dt 6:6-20)

But Jacob ATE his fill and grew fat and frisky; he grew fat, thick, and engorged. They turned from the God who made them…they provoked him with strange gods…”Since they have provoked me with a strange god, I will provoke them with a strange (foreign)people. For my wrath is a kindled fire that shall burn to the depth of the nether world…I will give them woe upon woe…I will send them HUNGER by famine, great fever, and pestilence…the SWORD shall bring them sorrow…To the heavens I raise my hand and take my oath: as certainly as I live, I will sharpen my gleaming SWORD and lay my hands upon my quiver. On my foes I will deliver my vengence, I will pay back those who hate me. My arrows will be drunk with blood, and my SWORD SHALL EAT up flesh. (see Dt 32)

My Notes on Isaiah 55:6-11 with a special note on the relation of verses 10-11 with the other OT readings used this week

Isaiah 55:6-11 is the first reading for Tuesday of the First Week in Lent in the Extraordinary Form of the Rite. Verses 10-11 are the first reading of the same day in the Ordinary Form of the Rite. In the OF the word of God is a common theme of the first readings this week which is why I’ve appended some very brief notes on those readings at the end of the post.

Isaiah 55:1-13 closes out the second part of the book, chapters 40-55, in doing so it connects with its beginning (Isa 40:1-11). The theme of forgiveness is found in Isa 40:2 and Isa 55:6-7 (part of today’s reading); the theme of return from exile is found in Isa 40:4 and Isa 55:12-13; nature’s role in the return is the theme in Isa 40:4 and Isa 55:12; and, God’s word is lasting and effective is the them of Isa 40:8 and Isa 55:10-11 (part of today’s reading).

Isa 55:6  Seek ye the Lord, while he may be found: call upon him, while he is near.
Isa 55:7  Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unjust man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God: for he is bountiful to forgive.

Seek ye the Lord. As the context here makes clear, the seeking in question is an act of repentance, the wicked must forsake his way, and the unjust man his thoughts. This seeking must be done while he may be found. Man cannot presume upon God’s mercy. He is patient regarding sinners but not complacent (2 Peter 3:9-10; John 7:33-34; John 8:21). The covenant curses had come upon the people for their infidelities (see Deut 28:15-68), but these were intended to be medicinal, leading to repentance and the re-establishment of a right relationship with God (Deut 30:1-10).

Thoughts in verse 7, 8, and 9 means something more than mere reflections, rather, the meaning is a plan, purpose, or design.

Isa 55:8  For my thoughts are not your thoughts: nor your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
Isa 55:9  For as the heavens are exalted above the earth, so are my ways exalted above your ways, and my thoughts above your thoughts.

My thoughts are not your thoughts…my thoughts (are exalted) above your thoughts. Gives the reason for the call to the unjust man to forsake his thoughts (verse 7). Similarly, the contrast between your ways and my ways indicates why the wicked man is called upon to forsake his ways.

Isa 55:10  And as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and return no more thither, but soak the earth, and water it, and make it to spring, and give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
Isa 55:11  So shall my word be, which shall go forth from my mouth: it shall not return to me void, but it shall do whatsoever I please, and shall prosper in the things for which I sent it.

God’s word is effective, and what he has promised by his word will be brought to fruition. The comfort will come (Isa 40:1); the exile will end and the people will return to their land (Isa 43:1-28; Isa 48:1-22); Babylon and its gods will come to naught (Isa 46:1-13; Isa 47:1-15).

Isaiah 55:10-11 In Relation to the Other Old Testament Readings Used in the Ordinary Form of the Rite This Week:

Monday: Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18. Because God’s word doesn’t just announce or request something but can bring it about we can embrace the call to “be holy, for I, the LORD, you God, am holy.”

Tuesday: Isaiah 55:10-11. The subject of this post.

Wednesday: Jonah 3:1-10. The word of God preached to the Ninevites brings them to repentance.

Thursday: The Book of Esther C. 12, 14-16, 23-25. The word of God which Esther read in the books of her forefathers gives her confidence that God will help her.

Friday: Ezekiel 18:21-28. The wicked man, by turning from his sins to the statutes of God will live.

Saturday: Deuteronomy 26:16-19. The keeping of God’s word is intimately bound up with enjoying his promises.

My Notes on Isaiah 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25

Isa 43:18  Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.

The former things are the Exodus events, some of which were spoken of in the previous verses: Thus saith the LORD, which maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters; Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power; they shall lie down together, they shall not rise: they are extinct, they are quenched as tow (verses 16-17, see Ex 14:21; Ex 15:4). These words concerning the Exodus are in the present, indicating that they have lasting value, but the people are bidden not to remember them. This is not intended to downplay their significance, rather, it is the people’s mournful remembrance of them that is what troubles the prophet. What God has done in the past he can still do, as verse 19 (see below) and verse 20 indicates: The beast of the field shall glorify me, the dragons and the ostriches: because I have given waters in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, to my chosen (Isa 43:20. See also Ex 17:1-7; Num 20:2-13).

Isa 43:19  Behold I do new things, and now they shall spring forth, verily you shall know them: I will make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

Behold I do new things, and now they shall spring forth.  God is always acting, this is the sense of “behold I do new things.” He will act on behalf of the people, “and now they shall spring forth, verily you shall know them: I will make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert“. Besides the passages mentioned above, e.g., Ex 17:1-7; Num 20:2-13, see the following passages from Isaiah (Isa 35:6-10; Isa 40:3-4; Isa 41:18-19).

Isa 43:21  This people have I formed for myself, they shall shew forth my praise.

This people I have formed for myself. His people have been specially chosen, created for a purpose (see Isa 43:1-7), and should not give themselves to idols (Isa 40:12-28). Because they are so special to himhe punishes them (see Amos 3:2; Heb 12:5-11), and also redeems them (Isa 43:14-15).

Isa 43:22  But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob, neither hast thou laboured about me, O Israel.

Mere formalism in the cult without any interior dispositions is what brought trouble upon them to begin with (Isa 1:10-16. See also Amos 5:21-27; Micah 6:6-8).

Isa 43:24b  But thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thy iniquities.

Thou has made me to serve with thy sins. Their hollow worship, performed in the midst of their sins, effectively treat God as if he is a slave at their beck and call.

Isa 43:25  I am, I am he that blot out thy iniquities for my own sake, and I will not remember thy sins.

The gratuitous nature of God’s salvific activity is rooted in who God is.  If then any be in Christ a new creature, the old things are passed away. Behold all things are made new. But all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Christ and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. For God indeed was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not imputing to them their sins. And he hath placed in us the word of reconciliation. For Christ therefore we are ambassadors, God as it were exhorting by us, for Christ, we beseech you, be reconciled to God (2 Cor 5:17-20)

Pope John Paul II’s Commentary/Meditation on Isaiah 12:1-6

Psalms of Lauds
Canticle of Isaiah 12,1-6
Draw water with joy at the fountain of salvation

1. The hymn just proclaimed appears as a song of joy in the Liturgy of Lauds. It is a concluding seal on the sections of the Book of Isaiah known for their Messianic reading. It includes chapters 6-12, generally known as the “Book of Emmanuel”. In fact, at the centre of those prophetic sayings towers the figure of a sovereign, who while belonging to the historic Davidic dynasty, reveals transfigured features and receives glorious titles:  “Wonderful counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of peace” (Is 9,6).

The concrete figure of the king of Judah that Isaiah promises as son and successor of Achaz, the sovereign of the time, known to be far removed from the Davidic ideals, is the sign of a higher promise:  that of the Messiah-King who will bring to its fullness the name “Emmanuel”, namely, “God-with-us”, becoming the perfect presence of the divine in human history. It is easy to understand, then, how the New Testament and Christianity did intuit in the profile of the king the personal features of Jesus Christ, Son of God become man in solidarity with us.

2. Scholars now think that the hymn which we are dealing with (cf. Is 12,1-6), on account of its literary quality and its general tone, to be a composition written at a time later than that of the prophet Isaiah who lived in the eighth century before Christ. It is almost like a quotation, a text that resembles a psalm, thought out, perhaps, for liturgical use, that has been inserted here as the conclusion for the “Book of Emmanuel”. In fact, it repeats some of the themes:  salvation, trust, joy, divine action, the presence among the people of the “Holy One of Israel”, an expression that indicates both the “holy” transcendence of God, and his loving and active closeness on which the people of Israel can rely.

The singer is a person who has lived a bitter experience, felt to be an act of divine judgment. But now the trial is over, the purification has taken place; in the place of the Lord’s anger there is a smile, his readiness to save and console.

3. The hymn’s two stanzas delineate two moments. In the first (cf. vv.1-3), that begins with the invitation to pray:  “You will say on that day”, the word “salvation” stands out, it is repeated three times and applied to the Lord:  “God indeed is my salvation…. He has become my salvation … the wells of salvation”. Let us recall that the name Isaiah like that of Jesus contains the root of the Hebrew verb ylsa‘, which alludes to bringing about “salvation”. For this reason the one praying has the absolute certainty that divine grace is at the root of his liberation and hope.

It is important to note that he refers implicitly to the great salvific event of the exodus from the slavery of Egypt, as he quotes the words of Moses’ song of deliverance, “the Lord God is my strength and my song” (Ex 15,2).

4. The salvation granted by God, that can make joy and trust flower even on the dark day of the trial, is portrayed by the classic image in the Bible of water:  “You will draw water with joy at the fountain of salvation” (Is 12,3). It reminds us of the scene of the Samaritan woman, when Jesus offers her the possibility of having in herself a “spring of water that will well up to eternal life” (Jn 4,14).

Cyril of Alexandria commented in a marvelous way:  “Jesus calls the life-giving gift of the Spirit living water, the only one through which humanity, even though it was completely abandoned, like the tree trunks on the mountains, and dry, and deprived of every kind of virtue by the deceit of the devil, is restored to the former beauty of its nature…. The Saviour calls the grace of the Holy Spirit water, and if one participates in him, he will have in himself the source of divine teachings, so that he will no longer need the advice of others, and will be able to exhort those who are thirsting for the Word of God. Such were the holy prophets and apostles of God and their successors in the ministry while they were alive on earth. Of them it is written:  “You will draw water with joy at the fountain of salvation” (Commento al Vangelo di Giovanni [Comment on the Gospel of John], II, 4, Roma 1994, pp. 272,275).

Unfortunately, humanity often abandons this fountain that will quench the thirst of the entire being of the person, as the Prophet Jeremiah points out with sadness:  “They have abandoned me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns, that can not hold water” (Jer 2,13). Even Isaiah, a few pages before, exalted the “waters of Shiloah, that run slowly”, symbol of the Lord present in Zion, and threatened the chastisement of the flooding of the “waters of the river, namely, the Euphrates, great and mighty” (Is 8,6-7), symbol of the military and economic might and of idolatry, waters that then fascinated Judah, that would later submerge her.

5. Another invitation, “On that day you will say” the second stanza begins (cf. Is 12,4-6), that is a continual call to joyful praise in honour of the Lord. The commands to praise are multiplied:  “Praise, invoke, manifest, proclaim, sing, shout, exult”.

At the centre of the praise there is a unique profession of faith in God the Saviour who works in history and is beside his creature, sharing his up’s and down’s:  “The Lord has done great works … great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel” (vv. 5.6). This profession of faith also has a missionary function:  “Among the nations make known his deeds … let this be known throughout all the earth” (vv. 4.5). The salvation that they have obtained must be witnessed to the world, so that all humanity may run to the fountain of peace, joy and freedom.

My Notes on Isaiah 54:1-10

Isa 54:1  Give praise, O thou barren, that bearest not: break forth into song, and make a joyful noise, thou that didst not travail with child: for many are the children of the desolate, more than of her that hath a husband, saith the Lord.

St Paul applies these words to the Jerusalem above: But that Jerusalem which is above is free: which is our mother. For it is written: Rejoice, thou barren, that bearest not: break forth and cry thou that travailest not: for many are the children of the desolate, more than of her that hath a husband (Gal 4:26-27).

Jerusalem, or the people of God are, under the image of a woman, bidden to give praise, (“sing” in most modern translations), break forth into song and make a joyful noise. Coupled with these imperatives are descriptions of the “woman” which were in the OT signs of shame and disgrace, a cause for mourning (Gen 30:1; 1 Sam 1:6-11; Luke 1:25). She is described as barren, that barest not, and as one that didst not travail with child. The verse ends with the reason why she is to sing and praise: for many are the children of the desolate, more than of her that hath a husband, saith the Lord.   The term desolate relates to the theme of exile (Isa 49:8, 19), and the phrase more (i.e., more children) than of her that hath a husband is taken by some as an allusion to God’s people before the exile (see Isa 50:1 where the exile is described as the repudiation of a wife and her children). In other words, not only will the desolation of the exile be reversed, but, also, the “motherhood” (fruitfulness) of the pre-exilic people will be far surpassed. Children are a blessing (Gen 1:28; Ps 127:3-5; 128:2-4; etc), and with this image of barrenness brought to an end the prophet is conveying the idea of an abundance of life.

Isa 54:2  Enlarge the place of thy tent, and stretch out the skins of thy tabernacles, spare not: lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes.

Although the people of God had long ago stopped living in tents, the dwelling place of the once barren woman is here described as such. The many children of verse 1 will make it far to small to dwell in, hence the various imperatives: enlarge, stretch out, spare not, lengthen, strengthen. The tent dwelling image calls to the mind of some scholars the era of the patriarchs and the promise of numerous progeny made to them (see Num 24:3-9; Jer 30:18-19)

Isa 54:3  For thou shalt pass on to the right hand, and to the left: and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and shall inhabit the desolate cities.

For thou shalt pass on to the right hand, and to the left. The woman and her children (i.e., the people)  shall spread out.

And thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles. The KJV also uses the term inherit. The RSV reads: and your descendants will possess the nations. Most translations I consulted expressed the idea of possession.   The NAB and NIV speaks of dispossessing the nations. A few others use the term occupy.  In some sense they will gain control over the nations. Lutheran (?) scholar Walter Roehrs thinks this will be accomplished by a conquest of mind and heart, referencing Isa 49:7; Gen 22:17-18; Matt 5:5.

Personally, the image of the tent in the previous verse calls to my mind the tents of Jacob (Num 24:5; Jer 30:18), and the reference to expanding here in verse 3 calls to mind the vision of Jacob’s ladder: And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth: thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and thy seed, all the tribes of the earth shall be blessed (Gen 28:14; Isa 14:1).

Isa 54:4  Fear not, for thou shalt not be confounded, nor blush: for thou shalt not be put to shame, because thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt remember no more the reproach of thy widowhood.

After the positive imperative fear not, there follows a series of negative imperatives: thou shalt not be confounded, nor blush: for thou shalt not be put to shame, because thou shalt not forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt remember no more the reproach of thy widowhood. The reason for these negations are given in the next verse.

Isa 54:5  For he that made thee shall rule over thee, the Lord of hosts is his name: and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, shall be called the God of all the earth.

The woman must not fear (vs 4). Why there are certain things she should not do is explained here: For he that made thee shall rule over thee…and shall be called the God of all the earth.

Isa 54:6  For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and mourning in spirit, and as a wife cast off from her youth, said thy God.

The marital relation between God and his wife (an image of the covenant, Jer 2:2; 3:20) will be reestablished (see similar imagery in Hosea 2; Isa 62:4-5).

Isa 54:7  For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee.
Isa 54:8  In a moment of indignation have I hid my face a little while from thee, but with everlasting kindness have I had mercy on thee, said the Lord thy Redeemer.

For a small moment have I forsaken thee…In a moment of indignation have I hid may face. See Psalm 30:6 (verse 5 in some translations)~ For his anger is but for a moment; His favor is for a life-time: Weeping may tarry for the night, But joy cometh in the morning.

God finds it difficult to repudiate those he loves. The one who said Judge your mother, judge her: because she is not my wife, and I am not her husband, is the same who said I will allure her, and will lead her into the wilderness: and I will speak to her heart…And I will espouse thee to me for ever: and I will espouse thee to me in justice, and judgment, and in mercy, and in commiserations. And I will espouse thee to me in faith: and thou shalt know that I am the Lord (see Hosea 2). For a similar idea using the image of a child see Hosea 11.

With everlasting kindness have I had mercy on thee. Recalls the words of Jeremiah regarding the end of the exile: Yea I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore have I drawn thee, taking pity on thee (Jer 31:3).

Isa 54:9  This thing is to me as in the days of Noe, to whom I swore, that I would no more bring in the waters of Noe upon the earth: so have I sworn not to be angry with thee, and not to rebuke thee.
Isa 54:10  For the mountains shall be moved, and the hills shall tremble; but my mercy shall not depart from thee, and the covenant of my peace shall not be moved: said the Lord that hath mercy on thee.

An obvious reference to the covenant made with Noe (Noah) after the flood (Gen8:22;  9:11-13). The effects of the end of the exile, like those of the blessings upon Noah, will last.

 

My Notes on Isaiah 45:6c-8, 18, 21c-25

Currently this post contains fairly detailed background on the context of today’s reading, notes on the reading have not yet been posted.

Background~The second part of Isaiah, chapters 40-55 is primarily concerned with the release of God’s people from the Babylonian exile (40-48) and the rebuilding of Zion (49-55). These two themes do, to a certain extent overlap the sections, e.g., the release from exile is not solely confined to chapters 40-48 but can be found in 49-55 as well. Likewise, the theme of rebuilding Zion (49-55) can be found in 40-48 as well.

Today’s text is taken from a broader context (Isa 44:24-45:25). God is presented as the creator of all things, the One who can and does bring his word, revealed through men, to fulfillment, thus showing himself the Lord of history. In the process he show the pagan prophets, diviners and wisemen to be liar and fools (44:24-27). As the creator of all and Lord of history who brings his word to fulfillment through men, he is able to choose Cyrus, the pagan king of Persia to do his bidding, bringing about the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Temple (44:28). It is by the power of the creator God that Cyrus will bring down nations, including Babylon (45:1-3); and this for the sake of his own people, the children of Jacob (45:4), and the manifestation of his uniqueness (45:5-6), bringing to naught the Zoroastrian dualism that his people would have been confronted with in Babylon (45:7). The thoughts lead to a joyous cry (45:8).

However, some of God’s people might very well be shocked that their God whom they often termed their shepherd (Gen 49:24; Ps 80:2) would choose a pagan king as their “shepherd” (44:28), as if he were another Moses or Aaron (Ps 77:21), or the coming Messiah (Micah 5:1-3). To object to what God will do is, according to the prophet, to gainsay one’s maker, as silly as if a piece of clay were to object to the artisan, or a fetus object to its parents  (Isa 45:9-10). God is not just the maker of his people Israel, all men and women are his children (45:11. See St Paul’s Areopagus Speech in Acts 17:22-31). As the creator of mankind and of the earth upon which they live, God can raise up and direct the ways of Cyrus the Persian, causing the end of the exile and the rebuilding of Jerusalem through him (45:12-13).

Though Cyrus himself did not know God (45:4-5), he was chosen by God so that all men might come to such knowledge of him as creator and Lord (45:6-7). Isaiah 45:14-25 pick up and develop this. Eventually pagan peoples will come to recognize the significance of God’s saving action and submit to him, becoming ashamed and disgraced by their idols.

My Notes on Isaiah 40:25-31

Background~Earlier in this chapter we read of a voice saying In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Regarding this verse and those which followed it (i.e., 40:3-5) we wrote: “In ancient times processional highways were built for kings and gods (idols) so that they might enter their capital city in splendor, often as a celebration for the victory of the king and his gods over foreign people and their gods. The people of God and the utensils of worship taken from the Jerusalem Temple were, no doubt, led along such a road as they entered Babylon, with their conquerors celebrating their and their god’s victory over them and their God. Of course, they failed to understand that what they deemed the defeat of Israel’s God was, in fact, part of a plan orchestrated by him. The King of Babylon, like the King of Assyria before him, thought that he had conquered just another god, and for this both suffered the consequences (Isa 10:10-11; 14:13-15). Here God is declaring that he will have his own victory procession. On this processional highway “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed” and “all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken”  (verse 5).”

There was, however, a problem that needed to be confronted. Many of the Jewish people who had been taken into exile all those decades ago, along with many who had been born and raised during the exile, had had their faith in God shaken and Isaiah 40:12-31 seeks to rectify this. These final 20 verses of chapter 40 thus prepare for chapters 41-48.

Isaiah 40:12-31 forms the immediate context from which today’s reading is taken (40:25-31). The passage is in the form of a disputation, i.e., a literary form employed to make known or compare two contrasting or opposing views. This biblical genre comes out of the wisdom tradition and is especially prominent in the book of Job (see A PROPHET CONFRONTS HIS PEOPLE by Adrian Graffy).

The passage of the immediate context consists of four parts, each beginning with a question. The questions opening the first three parts are rhetorical and nature, the fourth, for which the other three prepare, is properly disputational.

Outline of Isaiah 40:12-31~

40:12-17. Unlike the pagan gods the true god is immeasurable (“Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand…?”).

40:18-25. No pagan god can compare to him (“To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him?”).

40:26. He is incomprehensible (“Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these?”)

40:27-31. The disputation proper against the people of God (“Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hid from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God?”).

Today’s Reading (Isa 40:25-31)~

25 To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One.

Many see this particular verse as starting the third part of Isaiah 40:12-31 but it does not appear to be a new rhetorical question, rather, it appears to merely repeat the opening question of the second part (see 40:18). For this reason it should be taken as rounding out that section.

The passage which this verse closes out began as follows: 18 To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? 19 The idol! a workman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold, and casts for it silver chains. 20 He who is impoverished chooses for an offering wood that will not rot; he seeks out a skilful craftsman to set up an image that will not move.  By basically repeating the opening question of this section verse 25 not only closes it out but also prepares for what follows:

26 Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing.

The people are bidden to lift up your eyes on high and view the planets (hosts) and consider the greatness of his might and that he is strong in power. His might in power is manifested in the fact that not one of these planets is missing. In contrast to the stability of the planets the idol maker has to take care to use would that will not quickly rot, and ensure that the idol will be crafted in such a way that it will not move, i.e., topple during a victory procession (verse 20).

The question who created these? should be seen as a polemic against the creation of idols mentioned in verse 18-19. Who created the wood, the gold, the silver that the Babylonians used to make things they called their gods?

27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hid from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God”?

As noted above, this question is properly disputational; the other rhetorical questions in the preceding verses prepared for the section now being introduced (40:27-31). The people are accused of claiming that their fate (my way) and their right are being hid from and  disregarded by their God. How can the people claim that the wise God who measured out and planed creation (verses 12-17); who sits above the earth and controls the heavens (verses 18-25); and who has established the planets (verse 26) is out of touch with the predicament in which they find themselves?

28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary, his understanding is unsearchable.

Unlike the gods of the pagans THE God is everlasting; he will not rot like wood (verse 20). He who is the creator of the ends of the earth cannot be created by man. He does not faint or grow weary, rather, he has staying power and thus he brings princes to nought, and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows upon them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble (verses 23-24).

29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.

He who does not grow weary or faint (vs. 28), and who can bring the princely oppressors of his people to nought, causing them to wither (verses 23-24), can certainly give power to the faint of his people. He who by the greatness of his might controls the planets (vs. 26) can certainly give to him who has no might an increase in strength.

30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

The young, those born in exile, those most effected by the oppression are here exhorted to wait for the LORD. These verse call to my mind an earlier passage from Isaiah concerning the threat posed by Assyria, an instrument God used to punish his people (see Isa 10:5-7). Assyria, as the rod of God’s justice would come quickly: He will raise a signal for a nation afar off, and whistle for it from the ends of the earth; and lo, swiftly, speedily it comes! None is weary, none stumbles, none slumbers or sleeps, not a waistcloth is loose, not a sandal-thong broken; their arrows are sharp, all their bows bent, their horses’ hoofs seem like flint, and their wheels like the whirlwind (5:26-28). Assyria had served as a warning to the kingdom of Judah, but that warning had gone unheeded. Babylon had brought to them the full force of the reality of God’s punishment but now that was being reversed. The speed and efficiency with which God could bring punishment upon his people is matched and surpassed by the speed and efficiency with which he can heal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Father Maas’ Commentary on Isaiah 40:1-11

THE PRECURSOR OF THE MESSIAS.
The Voice in the Desert.
Introduction

1. Connection of the Prophecy with the Prophetic Series of Isaias: The prophecy belongs to the second part of Isaias’ book, which begins with chapter 40 and ends with chapter 56. It may be called ” the Book of Consolation,” since the very opening words give us the key-note of the whole second part. It consists of three divisions, each of which embraces nine cantos. The general subject of the single divisions is indicated in 40:2, according to which chapters 40-48 evolve the idea, “her evil is come to an end;” chapters 49-57 inculcate the thought, “her iniquity is forgiven;” chapters 58-61, finally, describe how “she hath received of the hand of the Lord double for all her sins.” The style of the whole second part is even and majestic, except in 53 and 56:9-57, where the sadness and the anger which the prophet represents affect his style and conform it to his subject-matter.

The present prophecy belongs to the first of the three divisions, forming part of its Introduction; for the whole Introduction to the first division extends throughout the 40th chapter. A careful reading shows that the Introduction consists of two parts, one of which we may call the general introduction, contained in 40:1-11; the other may be named the special introduction, extending from 40:12-31. It is clear from this that the present prophecy
coincides with the general introduction.

2. The Messianic Character of the Prophecy: The liberty promised in the prophet’s prediction is neither solely temporal nor solely spiritual.  The solely Messianic reference of the prophecy is defended by Ephrem, Jerome, Cyril, Eusebius, Thomas, Osorio, Lapide, Maldonatus. Tirinus also denies that the prediction in its literal sense refers to the liberation of the Jews from the Babylonian captivity: still he grants that it alludes to this fact. Mariana, Calmet, Netler, Rohling, Trochon, and Knabenbauer have thought it right to differ with the former authors: for they refer to the literal sense of Isa40:1-11 to the liberation of the Jews from the Babylonian captivity, While they apply it in its typical sense to the Messianic salvation and to St John the Baptist.

It is clear from the preceding and the subsequent chapters that the 40th chapter must literally refer to the Jewish liberation from the Babylonian exile. For such an announcement is naturally expected after chapter 39, and in the subsequent chapters the same event is literally described as coming to pass through the instrumentality of Cyrus. At the same time it cannot be denied that the prediction has also a Messianic application:

a. This is plain from the greatness of the promises in verse 5, “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh together shall see that the mouth of the Lord hath spoken.” 

b. The same truth appears from the New Testament, in which the prediction of Isaias is applied to John the Baptist: “For this is he that was spoken of by Isaias the prophet, saying: A voice of one crying in the desert; prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight his paths” (Matt 3:3). Similar testimonies are found in Mark 1:3-4; Luke 4; John 1:23.

c. We have seen that in its literal sense the prophecy refers to the Jewish deliverance from the Babylonian captivity. Now this event is commonly represented in Sacred Scripture as a type of Messianic salvation (cf. Hos 2:15; Micah 2:12-13; Jer 31:21 f.; Ezek 36:9; 37:11 ff.). Consequently, the prediction is Messianic from the very nature of its object.

d. We might add to these arguments the weight of extrinsic authority, but the names of the writers who regard the passage as Messianic, either in its literal or in its typical sense, have been given above.

e. Rabbinic tradition too regards the prophetic passage as Messianic. The Midrash on Gen 1:21, sect. 100, has it: “If the word of Joseph had such a soothing effect upon the hearts of the tribes, how much greater will be the effect when the Holy One, blessed be he, will come to comfort Jerusalem, as it is said: Be comforted, be comforted, my people. . . .” (Isa 40:1). The Midrash on Leviticus 41 (1, 1, sect. 1) has a Messianic application of Isa 40:5: “Rabbi
Phinehas spoke, in the name of Rabbi Hoshaya, this parable: A king showed himself to the son of his house in his true likeness; for in this world the Shechinah appears to individuals, but in the future the glory of the Lord will
appear, as it is said: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed. . . .” Yalkut on Ex 32:6 applies Isa 40:10 in a Messianic sense: “And on account of the sufferings which Israel suffered will the Holy One, blessed be he, give them a double reward in the days of the Messias, for it is said: Behold, the Lord God will come. . . .”

3. The Tropological Sense of the passage is so well known and so frequently used that we need not delay over its explanation (cf. Lapide, Cyril, Gordon, Sanchez, etc.).

Outline: The whole passage may be divided into five parts:

(1) The prophet describes the redemption in a negative way, verses 1-2;

(2) the first herald describes the redemption positively, verses 3-5;

(3) the second herald shows that no created obstacle can frustrate the promised redemption, verses 6-8;

(4) the third herald supposes God’s presence, verse 9;

(5) the prophet takes up the strain of the third herald, describing the work of redemption more minutely, verse 10-11.

Notes:

Isa 40:1  Be comforted, be comforted, my people, saith your God.
Isa 40:2  Speak ye to the heart of Jerusalem, and call to her: for her evil is come to an end, her iniquity is forgiven: she hath received of the hand of the Lord double for all her sins.  

Be comforted contains the burden of the divine commission intrusted to the prophet. This commission is not given once, and then left to the good will of the prophet, but God gives it continuously; hence saith the Lord.  These good tidings are to be spoken to the heart of Jerusalem, i.e., according to the scriptural manner of expression, to the sorrowing Jerusalem. Finally, three reasons are assigned why the sorrowing city should be consoled: 1. Her evil, or rather, her warfare, is come to an end (cf. chapters 61-62); 2. her iniquity is forgiven, or better, her ransom has been paid (cf. ibid); 3. she hath received from the hand of the Lord double for all her sins. This sentence has been taken in a double sense: a. Jerusalem has suffered enough to satisfy the divine justice, so that God’s compassion now regards what his justice was forced to inflict on Jerusalem as superabundant. The turning point from anger to love has come, and the latter will break forth the more intensely the longer it has been pent up (Delitzsch, 2. 134 ff). Some see in the double punishment the double destruction of Jerusalem (Jerome, Eusebius, Maldonado, Estius). b. Other interpreters, however, apply the “double” not to the punishment of Jerusalem, which even God’s justice  could not inflict, but they understand it of double grace which the city is to receive. The exception of Delitzsch, that the tense “she hath received” must be taken of past time, since the parallel tenses “is come to and end” and “is forgiven”are taken of he past, is not sufficient to render this view improbable. For the prophet has seen Jerusalem’s future before him, and he here describes it as he has seen it, not determining whether what he announces is still to come or has taken place already.

Isa 40:3  The voice of one crying in the desert: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the wilderness the paths of our God.
Isa 40:4  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough ways plain.
Isa 40:5  And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh together shall see, that the mouth of the Lord hath spoken.   

The voice of one crying. Whether we follow our English and Latin versions, or render with Sanchez, Maldonado and others as in Matthew 3:3: “The voice of one crying: ‘In the desert prepare…’” in either case the word allude to the oriental custom of preparing the road for an important person who journeys through the country. A herald is sent to inform the people of this duty. The prophet therefore shows that the Lord himself will be the guide of Israel in its return from Babylon, even as he had led the people on the way through the desert when it left the Egyptian captivity.  As to the real nature of the road, cf. 41:18; 43:20; 52:11; 55:12; 57:14; 62:10.  The manner of the road’s preparation is minutely described in the following words, which contain at the same time the end of the work, “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed.” But since in the following chapters a twofold redemption is described, that through Cyrus and that through the Messias, so the preparation here enjoined must be understood as referring to both. It is clear, therefore, that what literally applies to the desert-roads refers also to the preparation of our hearts for the Messianic blessings. The call itself sounds like tiie long-drawn trumpet-blast of a herald (cf. Isa 16:1).

Isa 40:6  The voice of one, saying: Cry. And I said: What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the glory thereof as the flower of the field.
Isa 40:7  The grass is withered, and the flower is fallen, because the spirit of the Lord hath blown upon it. Indeed the people is grass:
Isa 40:8  The grass is withered, and the flower is fallen: but the word of our Lord endureth for ever.  

The voice of one, saying: Cry. According to the LXX and St Jerome, we continue: “And I said;” according to the Hebrew text, the Syriac and the Chaldee versions, the text continues: “And he said.” After the preceding promise of Israel’s exaltation the prophet might doubt as to the possibility of such a change in the nation’s condition. God therefore sends his second herald to announce three points: a. all flesh and all its glory is perishable as the flower of the field; b. all flesh and all its glory shall really perish; c. but the word of the Lord shall stand forever. The outward manifestation of God’s breath seems to be the wind, and in our case the sirocco, at whose blowing in May the spring flora acquires at once an autumn look.

Isa 40:9  Get thee up upon a high mountain, thou that bringest good tidings to Sion: lift up thy voice with strength, thou that bringest good tidings to Jerusalem: lift it up, fear not. Say to the cities of Juda: Behold your God:

Get thee up. It is disputed whether Sion is the third herald, or whether Sion is the one to whom the third herald announces the glad tidings. Sion is considered the herald of glad tidings by a sizable number of authors, while many others agree with the LXX. and the Targumim, rendering the clause: “preacher of salvation to Jerusalem.” According to the former view, Jerusalem
is to ascend a high mountain after God has returned to the city, and announce to Sion’s daughters, i.e., to the surrounding cities, the gladsome news of the divine deliverance. According to the latter interpretation Sion is looked upon as in the greatest grief, and the herald must console Sion with the glad tidings of God’s return to the temple. The herald is expressed by the feminine gender, in order to signify that it applies to all who may come to Jerusalem.

Isa 40:10  Behold the Lord God shall come with strength, and his arm shall rule: Behold his reward is with him and his work is before him.

Behold, the Lord God shall eome with strength. In the following verses the prophet takes up the tidings of the third herald and especially the words “Behold your God.” God will bring his own work to  successful issue; He will reward the deserving and chastise the wicked. The twofold nature of God’s work is described repeatedly in Isaias; cf. 8:21; 9:1; 24:6, 10; 30:23, 27, etc. Finally, Isaias returns to a more detailed description of God’s mercy, representing him as a faithful and loving shepherd who care for every want of his flock.

 

Isa 40:11  He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather together the lambs with his arm, and shall take them up in his bosom, and he himself shall carry them that are with young.