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![There were two Aroers: an old Amoritish city allotted to the tribe of Reuben, viz., “Aroer on the
Arnon” (Deu_2:36; Deu_3:12, etc.); and an old Ammonitish one, allotted to the tribe of Gad,
viz., “Aroer before Rabbah” (Rabbath, Ammon, Jos_13:25). The ruins of the former are Arair,
on the lofty northern bank of the Mugib; but the situation of the latter has not yet been
determined with certainty (see Comm. on Jos_13:25). The “cities of Aroer” are these two Aroers,
and the rest of the cities similar to it on the east of the Jordan; just as “the Orions” in Isa_13:10
are Orion and other similar stars. We meet here again with a significant play upon the sound in
the expression ‛are ‛Aro‛er (cities of Aroer): the name of Aroer was ominous, and what its name
indicated would happen to the cities in its circuit. ר ֵע ְר ִע means “to lay bare,” to pull down
(Jer_51:58); and ר ָע ְר ַ,ע ריִי ִר ַע signifies a stark-naked condition, a state of desolation and solitude.
After Isa_17:1 has threatened Damascus in particular, and Isa_17:2 has done the same to Israel,
Isa_17:3 comprehends them both. Ephraim loses the fortified cities which once served it as
defences, and Damascus loses its rank as a kingdom. Those that are left of Aram, who do not fall
in the war, become like the proud citizens of the kingdom of Israel, i.e., they are carried away
into captivity. All this was fulfilled under Tiglath-pileser. The accentuation connects ם ָרፍ רፎ ְשׁ (the
remnant of Aram) with the first half of the verse; but the meaning remains the same, as the
subject to יוּ ְהִי is in any case the Aramaeans.
7. BI, “The oracle concerning Damascus and Israel
The curse pronounced upon it [Damascene-Syria] falls also upon the kingdom of Israel, because
it has allied itself with the heathen Damascus against their brethren in the south and the Davidic
kingdom.
From the reign of Hezekiah we are here carried back to the reign of Ahaz, and indeed back far
beyond the death year of Ahaz (Isa_14:28) to the boundary line of the reigns of Jotham and
Ahaz, soon after the conclusion of the league which aimed at Judah’s destruction, by which
revenge was taken for the similar league of Asa with Benhadad against Israel (1Ki_15:9). When
Isaiah incorporated this oracle in his collection, its threats against the kingdoms of Damascus
and Israel had long been fulfilled. Assyria had punished both of them, and Assyria had also been
punished, as the fourth strophe (verses 12-14) of the oracle sets forth. The oracle, therefore,
stands here on account of its universal contents, which are instructive for all time. (F. Delitzsch.)
The fall of Damascus
When cities do not pray they go down. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The loss of faculty as a judgment
It is possible for a man to moralise about the fate of a city, and forget that the principle of the
text is aimed at all life. Life poorly handled means loss of life; faculty fallen into desuetude
means faculty fallen into death. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The cities of Aroer](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-3-320.jpg)
![every kind of wickedness but because they forget God? Where the knowledge of God exists, there
reverence dwells; where forgetfulness of God is found, there contempt of him also prevails. Yet this
relates properly to faith, as if he had said, “ chastisements so severe shall have tamed the Israelites, they
will then perceive that there is no help for them but in God.” For this reason he immediately adds the
expression, To his Maker. It was indeed a proof of abominable indolence that they did not rely on God
alone, who had bestowed on them so many precious gifts. The Prophet therefore says, that when they
had been subdued by distresses and afflictions, they would afterwards return to a sound mind, so as to
begin to hope in him who had bound them to himself by so many acts of kindness. And indeed he calls
God their Maker, not as having created the whole human race, but in the same sense in which he
likewise calls him The Holy One of Israel. Although therefore all men were created after the image of
God, (Gen_1:27), yet Israel was peculiarly his workmanship, because he was his heritage, and his holy
and chosen people (Exo_19:6). This repetition, in accordance with the ordinary custom of the Hebrew
language, is employed to denote the same thing. He therefore calls God Holy, not only as viewed in
himself, but from the effect produced, because he has sanctified or separated to himself the children of
Abraham. Hence it follows, that the creation which he speaks of must be understood to relate to spiritual
reformation, in reference to which he is especially called the Maker of Israel (Isa_45:11; Hos_8:14).
8
They will not look to the altars,
the work of their hands,
and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles[a]
and the incense altars their fingers have made.
1.BARNES, “And he shall not look to the altars - That is, the altars of the gods which
the Syrians worshipped, and the altars of the false gods which had been erected in the land of
Israel or Samaria by its wicked kings, and particularly by Ahaz. Ahaz fancied an altar which he
saw at Damascus when on a visit to Tiglath-pileser, and ordered Urijah the priest to construct
one like it in Samaria, on which he subsequently offered sacrifice 2Ki_16:10-13. It is well known,
also, that the kings of Israel and Judah often reared altars to false gods in the high places and
the groves of the land (see 2Ki_21:3-5). The Ephraimites were particularly guilty in this respect
Hos_8:11 : ‘Because Ephraim hath made many altars to sin, altars shall be unto him to sin.’
Which his fingers have made - Perhaps indicating that the idols which they worshipped
had been constructed with special art and skill (see Isa_2:8).](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-26-320.jpg)
![being forsaken of their inhabitants, when the Romans besieged Jerusalem, and made the land
desolate; which calamity came upon them, for their neglect and forgetfulness of Jesus the
Saviour.
4. HENRY, “Here the prophet returns to foretel the woeful desolations that should be made in
the land of Israel by the army of the Assyrians. 1. That the cities should be deserted. Even the
strong cities, which should have protected the country, shall not be able to protect themselves:
They shall be as a forsaken bough and an uppermost branch of an old tree, which has gone to
decay, is forsaken of its leaves, and appears on the top of the tree, bare, and dry, and dead; so
shall their strong cities look when the inhabitants have deserted them and the victorious army of
the enemy pillaged and defaced them, Isa_17:9. They shall be as the cities (so it may be
supplied) which the Canaanites left, the old inhabitants of the land, because of the children of
Israel, when God brought them in with a high hand, to take possession of that good land, cities
which they built not. As the Canaanites then fled before Israel, so Israel should now flee before
the Assyrians. And herein the word of God was fulfilled, that, if they committed the same
abominations, the land should spue them out, as it spued out the nations that were before them
(Lev_18:28), and that as, while they had God on their side, one of them chased a thousand, so,
when they had made him their enemy, a thousand of them should flee at the rebuke of one; so
that in the cities should be desolation, according to the threatenings in the law, Lev_26:31;
Deu_28:51.
5. JAMISON, “forsaken bough — rather “the leavings of woods,” what the axeman leaves
when he cuts down the grove (compare Isa_17:6).
which they left because of — rather, “which (the enemies) shall leave for the children of
Israel”; literally, “shall leave (in departing) from before the face of the children of Israel”
[Maurer]. But a few cities out of many shall be left to Israel, by the purpose of God, executed by
the Assyrian.
6. K&D, “Third turn: “In that day will his fortified cities be like the ruins of the forest and of
the mountain top, which they cleared before the sons of Israel: and there arises a waste place.
For thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, and hast not thought of the Rock of thy
stronghold, therefore thou plantedst charming plantations, and didst set them with strange
vines. In the day that thou plantedst, thou didst make a fence; and with the morning dawn
thou madest thy sowing to blossom: a harvest heap in the day of deep wounds and deadly
sorrow of heart.” The statement in Isa_17:3, “The fortress of Ephraim is abolished,” is repeated
in Isa_17:9 in a more descriptive manner. The fate of the strongly fortified cities of Ephraim
would be the same as that of the old Canaanitish castles, which were still to be discerned in their
antiquated remains, either in the depths of forests or high up on the mountains. The word ‛azuba
h, which the early translators quite misunderstood, signifies, both here and in Isa_6:12, desolate](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-33-320.jpg)
![should be at great pains and expense in cultivating their land, yet the enemy would come in and
make it desolate.
2. CLARKE, “Strange slips “Shoots from a foreign soil” - The pleasant plants, and
shoots from a foreign soil, are allegorical expressions for strange and idolatrous worship; vicious
and abominable practices connected with it; reliance on human aid, and on alliances entered
into with the neighboring nations, especially Egypt; to all which the Israelites were greatly
addicted, and in their expectations from which they should be grievously disappointed.
3. GILL, “Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation,.... Who had been the
author of salvation to them many a time, in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in various instances
since; and yet they had forgot his works of mercy and goodness, and had left his worship, and
gone after idols; and this was the cause of their cities being forsaken, and becoming a desolation:
and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength; or strong Rock, who had supplied
and supported them, protected and defended them:
therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants; or "plants of pleasant fruit" (s), or "plants of
Naamanim"; and so Aben Ezra takes it to be the proper name of a plant in the Arabic language,
and which he says is a plant that grows very quick; perhaps he means "Anemone", which is so
called in that language (t), and is near to it in sound; though rather, not any particular plant is
meant, but all sorts of pleasant plants, flowers, and fruit trees, with which the land of Israel
abounded:
and shall set it with strange slips; with foreign ones, such as are brought from other
countries, and are scarce and dear, and highly valued; and by "plants" and "slips" may be meant
false and foreign doctrines, inculcating idolatry and superstition, which are pleasing to the flesh
(u).
4. HENRY, “That the country should be laid waste, Isa_17:10, Isa_17:11. Observe here, (1.) The
sin that had provoked God to bring so great a destruction upon that pleasant land. It was for the
iniquity of those that dwelt therein. “It is because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation
and all the great salvations he has wrought for thee, hast forgotten thy dependence upon him
and obligations to him, and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength, not only who is
himself a strong rock, but who has been thy strength many a time, or thou wouldst have been
sunk and broken long since.” Note, The God of our salvation is the rock of our strength; and our
forgetfulness and unmindfulness of him are at the bottom of all sin. Therefore have we
perverted our way, because we have forgotten the Lord our God, and so we undo ourselves.
(2.) The destruction itself, aggravated by the great care they took to improve their land and to
make it yet more pleasant. [1.] Look upon it at the time of the seedness, and it was all like a
garden and a vineyard; that pleasant land was replenished with pleasant plants, the choicest of
its own growth; nay, so nice and curious were the inhabitants that, not content with them, they
sent to all the neighbouring countries for strange slips, the more valuable for being strange,
uncommon, far-fetched, and dear-bought, though perhaps they had of their own not inferior to](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-37-320.jpg)
![them. This was an instance of their pride and vanity, and (that ruining error) their affection to
be like the nations. Wheat, and honey, and oil were their staple commodities (Eze_27:17); but,
not content with these, they must have flowers and greens with strange names imported from
other nations, and a great deal of care and pains must be taken by hot-beds to make these plants
to grow; the soil must be forced, and they must be covered with glasses to shelter them, and
early in the morning the gardeners must be up to make the seed to flourish, that it may excel
those of their neighbours. The ornaments of nature are not to be altogether slighted, but it is a
folly to be over-fond of them, and to bestow more time, and cost, and pains about them than
they deserve, as many do. But here this instance seems to be put in general for their great
industry in cultivating their ground, and their expectations from it accordingly; they doubt not
but their plants will grow and flourish. But, [2.] Look upon the same ground at the time of
harvest, and it is all like a wilderness, a dismal melancholy place, even to the spectators, much
more to the owners; for the harvest shall be a heap, all in confusion, in the day of grief and of
desperate sorrow. The harvest used to be a time of joy, of singing and shouting (Isa_16:10); but
this harvest the hungry eat up (Job_5:5), which makes it a day of grief, and the more because
the plants were pleasant and costly (Isa_17:10) and their expectations proportionably raised.
The harvest had sometimes been a day of grief, if the crop was thin and the weather
unseasonable; and yet in that case there was hope that the next would be better. But this shall be
desperate sorrow, for they shall see not only this year's products carried off, but the property of
the ground altered and their conquerors lords of it. The margin reads it, The harvest shall be
removed (into the enemy's country or camp, Deu_28:33) in the day of inheritance (when thou
thoughtest to inherit it), and there shall be deadly sorrow. This is a good reason why we should
not lay up our treasure in those things which we may so quickly be despoiled of, but in that good
part which shall never be taken away from us.
5. JAMISON, “forgotten ... God of ... salvation ... rock — (Deu_32:15, Deu_32:18).
plants — rather, “nursery grounds,” “pleasure-grounds” [Maurer].
set in — rather, “set them,” the pleasure-grounds.
strange slips — cuttings of plants from far, and therefore valuable.
6. BI, “Forgetfulness of God punished
I. THE MAGNITUDE OF THE SIN HERE SPOKEN OF. Forgetfulness of God.
1. What is this forgetfulness of God? It has been defined as “such a habitual inattention to
His existence and character, as leads the individual under its influence to a mode of
thinking, feeling, and acting, which would be consistent only on the supposition that there
were no God, or that God is a very different Being from what the Scriptures represent Him to
be.”
2. It is a startling sin. Everything around us is designed and fitted to remind us of God. The
Bible unfolds the moral character of God. Sharp dispensations of providence remind us of
His existence. Preachers enforce His claims. Each returning Sabbath, with its closed
shutters, the sound of the church going bell, and the voice of praise from the lips of the
pious, says, Worship God. But many would rather think about anything, or nothing, than
about God.](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-38-320.jpg)
![carefully fenced, i.e. apparently they were established as a state religion. "And the very next morning he
had brought into blossom what he had sown. The foreign layer had shot up like a hot-house plant, i.e. the
alliance had speedily grown into a hearty agreement, and had already produced one blossom at any rate,
viz. the plan of a joint attack upon Judah. But this plantation, so flattering and promising for Israel, and
which had succeeded so rapidly, and to all appearance so happily, was a harvest heap for the day of
judgment." The closing words of this strophe are impressive: "The day of grief and desperate sorrow;" or,
"The day of deep wounds and deadly sorrow of heat." Let us fix on these words. Let us forget Ephraim for
the moment, and think of the individual, think of ourselves. The words hint at remorse, which has been
called "the echo of a lost virtue." It will come upon all of us in so far as, remembering many things not to
be neglected, self-interest, duty to family, Church, country, we have yet forgotten the one thing needful—
have not brought all our life's concerns into that unity which reference to the Supreme Will imparts. Life
should be direct and simple; a simple piety can only render it so. There may be mindfulness about many
things, distracting us from the central interest. How can it avail us to have remembered to be prudent, to
have regarded public opinion, to have taken care to be with the majority, to swim with the stream, and in
the end we find that this has been a turning of the back on God, and so an illusion, a misconception of
life? For if God be remembered, nothing important will be forgotten; if he be forgotten, nothing is truly
seen—attention is beguiled by fantasy, and life becomes the pursuit of a dream.—J.
5. JAMISON, “In the day ... thy plant — rather, “In the day of thy planting” [Horsley].
shalt ... make ... grow — Maurer translates, “Thou didst fence it,” namely, the pleasure-
ground. The parallel clause, “Make ... flourish,” favors English Version. As soon as thou plantest,
it grows.
in the morning — that is, immediately after; so in Psa_90:14, the Hebrew, “in the
morning,” is translated “early.”
but ... shall be a heap — rather, “but (promising as was the prospect) the harvest is gone”
[Horsley].
in ... day of grief — rather, “in the day of (expected) possession” [Maurer]. “In the day of
inundation” [Horsley].
of desperate sorrow — rather, “And the sorrow shall be desperate or irremediable.” In
English Version “heap” and “sorrow” may be taken together by hendiadys. “The heap of the
harvest shall be desperate sorrow” [Rosenmuller].
6. PULPIT, “The sin and doom of ungodliness.
We learn—
I. THAT GOD IS WRONGED AND GRIEVED BY OUR NEGLECT OF HIMSELF AS WELL AS BY OUR](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-48-320.jpg)
![Before the morning, they are gone!
This is the portion of those who loot us,
the lot of those who plunder us.
1.BARNES, “At evening-tide trouble - In the time of evening - that is, in the night.
Before the morning he is not - That is, he is destroyed. This is strikingly descriptive of the
destruction of the army of Sennacherib on that fatal night when the angel of the Lord killed
185,000 men (see the note at Isa_37:36).
This is the portion of them that spoil us - Of those who would plunder us. This is a
“general” declaration in regard to the enemies of the Jewish people. This is the lot, the end, the
destiny of all who attempt to destroy them. That is, the people of God shall be safe whoever rises
up against them; and whatever may be the number, or the power of their foes, they shall be
overthrown.
2. CLARKE, “He is not “He is no more” - For איננו einennu ten MSS. of Dr. Kennicott’s,
(three ancient), ten of De Rossi’s, and two editions, and the Septuagint, Syriac, Chaldee, Vulgate,
and Arabic, have ואיננו veeinenno. This particle, authenticated by so many good vouchers,
restores the sentence to its true poetical form, implying a repetition of some part of the parallel
line preceding, thus: -
“At the season of evening, behold terror!
Before the morning, and [behold] he is no more!”
That spoil us - For שוסינו shoseynu, them that spoil us, fifteen MSS., one edition, and the
Syriac have שוסנו shosenu, him that spoileth us. And for לבזזינו lebozezeynu, them that rob us, six
MSS. and the Syriac have לבוזזנו lebozzeno, him that robbeth us: and these readings make the
place answer better to Sennacherib, according to Lowth’s conjecture. Though God may permit
the wicked to prevail for a time against his people, yet in the end those shall be overthrown, and
the glory of the Lord shall shine brightly on them that fear him; for the earth shall be subdued,
and the universe filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen!
3. GILL, “And behold at eveningtide trouble,.... Or terror (a) and consternation; which
some understand of that which was in the Assyrian army, when the Angel of the Lord destroyed
it, taking "evening for night", for it was in the night that that was done; so Jarchi interprets it of
Shedim, a sort of spirits or demons, that came against the enemy, and troubled and frightened
them: but it is best to take it in the more common sense, of the trouble that Hezekiah and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem were in, on the evening or night before their deliverance; the whole](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/isaiah17commentary-150303115337-conversion-gate01/85/Isaiah-17-commentary-58-320.jpg)
Uploaded byGLENN PEASE
Isaiah 17 commentary
This document provides commentary on Isaiah 17 from multiple scholars. It discusses the prophecy against Damascus, which foretells its destruction. Damascus and its ally Samaria (Israel) will be overcome by the Assyrians. The cities of Aroer in the land east of the Jordan will be forsaken. Both Damascus and Israel will lose their independence and power and be reduced to ruins. This prophecy was fulfilled when Tiglath-Pileser conquered Damascus and other Assyrian kings conquered Israel and parts of Aram.
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Isaiah 17 commentary
- 1. ISAIAH 17 COMMENTARY EDITEDBY GLENN PEASE A Prophecy Against Damascus 17 A prophecy against Damascus: “See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins. 1.BARNES, “The burden of Damascus - The oracle indicating calamity or destruction to Damascus (see the note at Isa_13:1). “Damascus is taken away.” That is, it shall be destroyed. It was represented to the prophet in vision as destroyed (see the note at Isa_1:1). And it shall be a ruinous heap - See Isa_35:2. This took place under the kings of Assyria, and particularly under Tiglath-pileser. This was in the fourth year of Ahaz 2Ki_16:9. 2. CLARKE, “The burden of Damascus - Which is, according to the common version, The cities of Aroer are forsaken. It has already been observed by the learned prelate that the prophecy, as it relates to Damascus, was executed in the beginning of the reign of Ahaz, probably about the third year. If we credit Midrash, the Damascenes were the most extensive and flagrant of all idolaters. “There were in Damascus three hundred and sixty-five streets, in each of these was an idol, and each idol had his peculiar day of worship; so that the whole were worshipped in the course of the year.” This, or any thing like this, was a sufficient reason for this city’s destruction. A ruinous heap - For מעי mei, “a ruinous heap,” the Septuagint reads לעי lei, “for a ruin,” the Vulgate כעי kei, “as a ruin.” I follow the former. 3. GILL, “The burden of Damascus,.... A heavy and grievous prophecy, concerning the destruction of it; the Arabic version is, "the prophecy of Isaiah concerning Damascus;'' and the Targum is,
- 2. "the burden ofthe cup of cursing to give Damascus to drink.'' Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city; a kingdom, as the Targum; it was the head of one, but now its walls were demolished, its houses pulled down, and its inhabitants carried captive; this was done by Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria, 2Ki_16:9 it had been a very ancient city, see Gen_15:2 and the head of the kingdom of Syria, Isa_7:8, and though it underwent this calamity, it was rebuilt again, and was a city of great fame, when destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, Jer_49:24 after which it was raised up again, and was in being in the apostle's time, and still is, Act_9:22, 2Co_11:32. and it shall be a ruinous heap; or a heap of stones, as the Targum and Kimchi interpret it. A "behold" is prefixed to the whole, as being very wonderful and remarkable, unthought of, and unexpected. 4. HENRY, “We have here the burden of Damascus; the Chaldee paraphrase reads it, The burden of the cup of the curse to drink to Damascus in; and, the ten tribes being in alliance, they must expect to pledge Damascus in this cup of trembling that is to go round. 1. Damascus itself, the head city of Syria, must be destroyed; the houses, it is likely, will be burnt, as least the walls, and gates, and fortifications demolished, and the inhabitants carried away captive, so that for the present it is taken away from being a city, and is reduced not only to a village, but to a ruinous heap, Isa_17:1. Such desolating work as this does sin make with cities. 5. JAMISON, “Isa_17:1-11. Prophecy concerning Damascus and its ally Samaria, that is, Syria and Israel, which had leagued together (seventh and eighth chapters). Already, Tiglath-pileser had carried away the people of Damascus to Kir, in the fourth year of Ahaz (2Ki_16:9); but now in Hezekiah’s reign a further overthrow is foretold (Jer_49:23; Zec_9:1). Also, Shalmaneser carried away Israel from Samaria to Assyria (2Ki_17:6; 2Ki_18:10, 2Ki_18:11) in the sixth year of Hezekiah of Judah (the ninth year of Hoshea of Israel). This prophecy was, doubtless, given previously in the first years of Hezekiah when the foreign nations came into nearer collision with Judah, owing to the threatening aspect of Assyria. Damascus — put before Israel (Ephraim, Isa_17:3), which is chiefly referred to in what follows, because it was the prevailing power in the league; with it Ephraim either stood or fell (Isa_7:1-25). 6. K&D, “The first turn: “Behold, Damascus must (be taken) away out of the number of the cities, and will be a heap of fallen ruins. The cities of Aroer are forsaken, they are given up to flocks, they lie there without any one scaring them away. And the fortress of Ephraim is abolished, and the kingdom of Damascus; and it happens to those that are left of Aram as to the glory of the sons of Israel, saith Jehovah of hosts.” “Behold,” etc.: hinneh followed by a participle indicates here, as it does everywhere else, something very near at hand. Damascus is removed יר ִע ֵמ (= יר ִע יוֹת ְה ִ,מ cf., 1Ki_15:13), i.e., out of the sphere of existence as a city. It becomes י ִע ְ,מ a heap of ruins. The word is used intentionally instead of י ִ,ע to sound as much as possible like יר ִע ֵ:מ a mutilated city, so to speak. It is just the same with Israel, which has made itself an appendage of Damascus. The “cities of Aroer” (gen. appos. Ges. §114, 3) represent the land to the east of the Jordan: there the judgment upon Israel (executed by Tiglath-pileser) first began.
- 3. There were twoAroers: an old Amoritish city allotted to the tribe of Reuben, viz., “Aroer on the Arnon” (Deu_2:36; Deu_3:12, etc.); and an old Ammonitish one, allotted to the tribe of Gad, viz., “Aroer before Rabbah” (Rabbath, Ammon, Jos_13:25). The ruins of the former are Arair, on the lofty northern bank of the Mugib; but the situation of the latter has not yet been determined with certainty (see Comm. on Jos_13:25). The “cities of Aroer” are these two Aroers, and the rest of the cities similar to it on the east of the Jordan; just as “the Orions” in Isa_13:10 are Orion and other similar stars. We meet here again with a significant play upon the sound in the expression ‛are ‛Aro‛er (cities of Aroer): the name of Aroer was ominous, and what its name indicated would happen to the cities in its circuit. ר ֵע ְר ִע means “to lay bare,” to pull down (Jer_51:58); and ר ָע ְר ַ,ע ריִי ִר ַע signifies a stark-naked condition, a state of desolation and solitude. After Isa_17:1 has threatened Damascus in particular, and Isa_17:2 has done the same to Israel, Isa_17:3 comprehends them both. Ephraim loses the fortified cities which once served it as defences, and Damascus loses its rank as a kingdom. Those that are left of Aram, who do not fall in the war, become like the proud citizens of the kingdom of Israel, i.e., they are carried away into captivity. All this was fulfilled under Tiglath-pileser. The accentuation connects ם ָרፍ רፎ ְשׁ (the remnant of Aram) with the first half of the verse; but the meaning remains the same, as the subject to יוּ ְהִי is in any case the Aramaeans. 7. BI, “The oracle concerning Damascus and Israel The curse pronounced upon it [Damascene-Syria] falls also upon the kingdom of Israel, because it has allied itself with the heathen Damascus against their brethren in the south and the Davidic kingdom. From the reign of Hezekiah we are here carried back to the reign of Ahaz, and indeed back far beyond the death year of Ahaz (Isa_14:28) to the boundary line of the reigns of Jotham and Ahaz, soon after the conclusion of the league which aimed at Judah’s destruction, by which revenge was taken for the similar league of Asa with Benhadad against Israel (1Ki_15:9). When Isaiah incorporated this oracle in his collection, its threats against the kingdoms of Damascus and Israel had long been fulfilled. Assyria had punished both of them, and Assyria had also been punished, as the fourth strophe (verses 12-14) of the oracle sets forth. The oracle, therefore, stands here on account of its universal contents, which are instructive for all time. (F. Delitzsch.) The fall of Damascus When cities do not pray they go down. (J. Parker, D. D.) The loss of faculty as a judgment It is possible for a man to moralise about the fate of a city, and forget that the principle of the text is aimed at all life. Life poorly handled means loss of life; faculty fallen into desuetude means faculty fallen into death. (J. Parker, D. D.) The cities of Aroer
- 4. The cities ofAroer represent the land to the east of the Jordan, in which the judgment on Israel, executed by Tiglath-Pileser, began. There were, in fact, two Aroers; an old Amorite Aroer, which fell to the tribe of Reuben, situated on the Amon (Deu_2:36; Deu_3:12, and elsewhere); and an old Ammonite Aroer, which fell to the tribe of Gad—Aroer before Rabba (Rabbath Ammon, Jos_13:25). The site of the ruins of the former is Arair, on the high northern bank of the Mugib; the situation of the latter has not yet been ascertained with certainty. The “cities of Aroer” are these two Aroers along with the cities on the east of Jordan like them, just as the “Orions” in Isa_13:10, are Orion and stars like it. (F. Delitzsch, D. D.) 8. PULPIT, “THE BURDEN OF DAMASCUS. The eye of the prophet travels northwards from Moab, and, passing over Ammon as an enemy of small account, rests once more upon Damascus, already threatened in Isa_7:1-9, and probably already partially punished. Damascus is seen once more in alliance with Ephraim (Isa_7:3), and the two are joined with a new power, Aroer (Isa_7:2), which possesses several "cities." Woe is denounced on all the three powers: desolation on Damascus and Aroer; on Damascus and Ephraim, the complete loss of the last shadow of independence. The Assyrian inscriptions point out, as the probable date of the prophecy, the commencement of Sargun's reign—about B.C. 722 or 721. Isa_17:1 Damascus is taken away from being a city. According to Vitringa, Damascus has been destroyed oftener than any other town; but it has a wonderful power of rising again from its ashes. Probably a destruction by Sargon is here intended. 9. PULPIT, “The mission of Syria. Discernment of this mission, so far as it bears upon Israel, and carries religious lessons for all the generations, depends on our understanding the history of the times. Two nations, distant from each other, contended for the country which lay between them. Egypt and Assyria both wanted to be universal world-powers. Had the kingdom of David been kept together, it might have effectively resisted both; but when separated under Jeroboam, and encouraged to cherish rival interests, the southern portion naturally inclined to ally with Egypt, and the northern as naturally allied with Syria to resist the encroachments of Assyria. To the view of a prophet of the southern kingdom, Syria was the ringleader of a confederacy against Judah, and so against Jehovah and the Jehovah-worship. And to such a Jehovah-prophet, Syria was the agent in tempting the northern kingdom of Israel to forsake even its show of allegiance to Jehovah, and throw in its interest altogether with idolatrous nations. That is the point on which we now dwell. God carries on his work of grace by means of temptations as well as by means of trials; our testings of faith, virtue, and obedience are just as truly within the overrulings of God as are our afflictions and our cares. This is taught us in the prologue to the Book of Job, where Satan, the
- 5. tempter, is representedas appearing among the "sons of God," and receiving Divine commissions. Syria may stand for the associations and circumstances which tested the allegiance of Israel to Jehovah; and so for the relationships and conditions of our life, which bring out and prove what really is in our hearts towards the God of our fathers. It is true that God tempts no man in the sense of maliciously enticing him to do evil. It is also true that God tempts every man in the sense of placing him in circumstances under which, while he may fail and fall, he may be confirmed and established in goodness. This view is strikingly supported by a passage in Deu_13:2, Deu_13:3. The prophet who uses his gift to persuade men to forsake the Lord God is to be rejected, for by such a prophet "the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul." All such tempters, whether they be individuals, classes, or nations, come at last under Divine judgments, as Syria did. Syria tempted Israel- I. BY THE ATTRACTIONS OF ITS WEALTH. Damascus was one of the wealthiest of ancient cities, and situated so as to be an important center of trade. The attraction it proved to Israel may be illustrated by its influence on the luxurious and aesthetical king, Ahaz. Associations of wealthy companions are often serious enticements to youths. The entree of wealthy society makes many a family live beyond its means. The swiftly growing wealth of some business men excites others to grasp at wealth by questionable means. II. BY THE ATTRACTIONS OF ITS IDOLATRY. Wealth enabled the expressions and forms of Syrian idolatry to take refined and artistic shapes. These tended to hide the abominations which attend on all idolatrous systems. So, it may be shown in relation to modern times, infidelity offers itself in the garb of advanced knowledge, and immorality appears in the guise of exciting pleasure. Syrian idolatry would have presented but feeble temptation if it had looked as repulsive as it really was. And still we are so often "drawn away and enticed," because Satan can appear to us as an angel of light. Illustrate by the well-known picture "The Pursuit of Pleasure." If Pleasure were not such a lovely siren form, surely the foolish host would not thus vainly pursue her. The practical skill of life is shown in the detection of what a thing is, no matter in what form it may appear. III. BY THE ATTRACTIONS OF ITS ALLIANCE. Which seemed to offer security for Israel from the foe which was becoming so dangerously strong. But it was soon proved that Syria was unable to protect itself. Its position exposed it. Its wealth attracted the invader. It was but an arm of flesh, and was powerless when the evil day came. It took Israel away from allegiance to Jehovah and trust in him, and brought on that kingdom, the curse of him who trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm. As a general application, observe that untried character and untested piety are of little worth. No man can hope to receive the crown of life, save as he is tempted, tried, and proved. That crown belongs only to those who "stand in the evil day."—R.T.
- 6. 10. CALVIN, “1.Theburden of Damascus. Here he prophesies against the kingdom of Syria, and mentions the chief city in which the seat of the kingdom lay. It was proper that this calamity, like others which came before it, should be described, that the righteous might confidently believe that God would one day assist them, and would not always permit them to be oppressed by the wicked without end. The king of Syria had formed an alliance with Israel against Judah, as we saw formerly in the seventh chapter; and as the Jews were not able to contend with him, and were deprived of other aids, they might also entertain doubts about God’ assistance, as if he had utterly abandoned them. To free them, therefore, from these doubts, he threatens the destruction of that kingdom, from which they would readily conclude that God fought in defense of his people. It is uncertain at what time Isaiah uttered this prophecy, for, as I have already remarked, he does not follow the order of time in threatening against each nation the punishment which it deserved. But, as far as I am able to conjecture, he foretold those events at the time when those two kings, that is, the kings of Israel and Syria, invaded Judea, and entered into a league to destroy it and the whole Church, (Isa_7:1;) for, by joining together the Israelites and the Syrians, he summons them to a mutual judgment, in order to show that the only advantage which they had derived from the wicked and disgraceful conspiracy was, to be involved in the same destruction. In this manner Isaiah intended to comfort godly persons who were of the tribe of Judah; for he has his eye chiefly on them, that they may not be discouraged, and not on the Syrians, or even the Israelites, whose destruction he foretells. Behold, Damascus is taken away. The demonstrative particle, Behold, seals the certainty of the prophecy. When he expressly mentions Damascus, it does not follow from this that the other parts of the kingdom are exempted, but it was customary with the prophets to take a part for the whole, so as to include under the destruction of the metropolis the fate of the whole nation; for what must ordinary towns expect when the citadel of the kingdom has been stormed? Yet there is another reason why the Prophets pronounce heavier threatenings on the chief and royal cities, and especially direct their discourse against them. It is, because a polluted flood of crimes overflows from them into the whole country. 2 The cities of Aroer will be deserted
- 7. and left toflocks, which will lie down, with no one to make them afraid. 1.BARNES, “The cities of Aroer - By “Aroer” here seems to be meant a tract or region of country pertaining to Damascus, in which were situated several cities. Grotius supposes that it was a tract of country in Syria which is called by Ptolemy “Aueira” - Αᆕειρα Aueira. Vitringa supposes that one part of Damascus is meant by this, as Damascus was divided by the river in the same manner that Babylon was. There were several cities of the name of “Aroer.” One was on the river Arnon in the land of Moab Deu_2:36; Deu_3:12; Jos_12:3. Burckhardt found this city under the name of Aroer. There was another city of this name further north, over against Rabbath-Ammon Jos_13:25. There was a third city of this name in the tribe of Judah 1Sa_30:28. Of the city of Araayr which Burckhardt visited, nothing is now remarkable but its entire desolation. Gesenius supposes (“Commentary in loc.”) that the phrase ‘the cities of Aroer’ means the cities round about Aroer, and that were connected with it, similar to the phrase ‘daughters of a city.’ This city he supposes was near the river Arnon, within the limits of Moab, and that the prediction here was fufilled by Tiglath-pileser, when he carried away the inhabitants of Galilee, Gilead, and other places mentioned in 2Ki_15:29. There can be no doubt that it was under the jurisdiction of Damascus. Are forsaken - Are desolate, and the inhabitants have fled. They shall be for flocks ... - (See the note at Isa_5:17.) 2. CLARKE, “The cities of Aroer are forsaken “The cities are deserted for ever” - What has Aroer on the river Arnon to do with Damascus? and if there be another Aroer on the northern border of the tribe of Gad, as Reland seems to think there might be, this is not much more to the purpose. Besides, the cities of Aroer, if Aroer itself is a city, makes no good sense. The Septuagint, for ערער aroer, read עדיעד adey ad, εις τον αιωνα, for ever, or for a long duration. The Chaldee takes the word for a verb from ערה arah, translating it חרבו cherebu, devastabuntur, “they shall be wasted.” The Syriac read עדועיר adoeir. So that the reading is very doubtful. I follow the Septuagint as making the plainest sense. 3. GILL, “The cities of Aroer are forsaken,.... The inhabitants of them being slain, or carried captive, or obliged to flee. Aroer was a city by the river Arnon, on the borders of Moab and Ammon, Deu_2:36, Deu_3:12, it was originally in the hands of the Amorites, and sometimes in the hands of the Moabites and Ammonites: it was given by Moses to the Reubenites and, Gadites, from whom it was taken by the Syrians, and in whose possession it seems to have been at this time; see 2Ki_10:33 though Jarchi thinks it was now in the hands of Pekah king of Israel, and said to be forsaken, because the Reubenites and Gadites were now carried captive. Jerom (m) says it was seen in his time, upon the top of the mountain. Here it seems to designs a country of this name, in which were many cities. Grotius thinks it was a tract
- 8. of land inSyria, the same with the Aveira of Ptolemy (n). Vitringa is of opinion that Damascus itself is meant, which was a double city, like that divided by the river Chrysorrhoas, as this was by Arnon. They shall be for flocks which shall lie down; instead of houses, there should be sheepcotes and shepherds' tents, and instead of men, sheep; and where streets were, grass would grow, and flocks feed and lie down; which is expressive of the utter desolation of these cities, or this tract of ground: and none shall make them afraid; the flocks of sheep, timorous creatures, easily frightened; but so great should be the depopulation now, there would be no man upon the spot, or any pass by, to give them any disturbance. 4. HENRY, “The country towns are abandoned by their inhabitants, frightened or forced away by the invaders: The cities of Aroer (a province of Syria so called) are forsaken (Isa_17:2); the conquered dare not dwell in them, and the conquerors have no occasion for them, nor did they seize them for want, but wantonness; so that the places which should be for men to live in are for flocks to lie down in, which they may do, and none will disturb nor dislodge them. Stately houses are converted into sheep-cotes. It is strange that great conquerors should pride themselves in being common enemies to mankind. But, how unrighteous soever they are, God is righteous in causing those cities to spue out their inhabitants, who by their wickedness had made themselves vile; it is better that flocks should lie down there than that they should harbour such as are in open rebellion against God and virtue. 5. JAMISON, “ 6. PULPIT, “The cities of Aroer are forsaken. That the Aroer of this passage cannot be either that on the Arnon, or that facing Rabbath-Ammon (Jos_13:25), has long been perceived and recognized. It is evidently a city of the same name lying much further towards the north. Arid it is a city of far greater importance, having "cities" dependent on it. Now, Sargon's annals tell us of a "Gal'gar," a name well expressing the Hebrew òøòø , which was united in a league with Damascus, Samaria, Arpad, and Simyra, in the second year of Sargon, and was the scene of a great battle and a great destruction. Sargon besieged it, took it, and reduced it to ashes ('Records of the Past,' l. s.c.). There is every reason to recognize the "Aroer" of this verse in the "Gargar" of Sargon's inscriptions. They shall be for flocks (comp. Isa_5:17; Isa_7:25). It marked the very extreme of desolation, that cattle should be pastured on the sites of cities. None shall make them afraid; i.e. "there shall be no inhabitants to make any objection." 7.CALVIN, “2.The cities of Aroer are forsaken. It is not probable that Aroer here denotes the city which is mentioned elsewhere, (Num_32:34;) but it is rather the name of a country. He draws the picture of a country which has been ruined; for he shews that those places in which cities had been built will be
- 9. devoted to pasture,and that no habitation will be left there but huts and shepherds’ tents; for if any inhabitants remained, the shepherds would drive their flocks to some other place. 3 The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim, and royal power from Damascus; the remnant of Aram will be like the glory of the Israelites,” declares the LORD Almighty. 1.BARNES, “The fortress - The strong place of defense; the fortified place. Shall cease - Shall come to an end; shall cease to be, for so the word שׁבת shabath is often used, Gen_8:22; Isa_24:8; Lam_5:15. From Ephraim - The name given to the kingdom of Israel, or to the ten tribes, because Ephraim was the largest of the ten, and was a leading tribe in their councils (see the note at Isa_7:2). Ephraim, or the kingdom of Samaria, is mentioned here in connection with Damascus or Syria, because they were confederated together, and would be involved in the same overthrow. And the remnant of Syria - That which is left of the kingdom of Syria after the capital Damascus shall be destroyed. They shall be as the glory of the children of Israel - That is, as the defenses, or the strongly fortified towns and fastnesses of the kingdom of Israel shall pass away or be destroyed, so shall it be with the kingdom of Damascus. As they are allied with each other, they shall fare alike. The Chaldee reads this, ‘And the dominion shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus.’ 2. CLARKE, “The remnant of Syria “The pride of Syria” - For שאר shear, “remnant,” Houbigant reads שאת seeth, “pride,” answering, as the sentence seems evidently to require, to כבוד cabod, “the glory of Israel.” The conjecture is so very probable that I venture to follow it. As the glory - בכבוד bichbod, “In the glory,” is the reading of eight MSS., and ten editions. 3. GILL, “The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim,.... The ten tribes, now in confederacy with the Syrians, whose metropolis or fortress was Samaria, which seems to be
- 10. intended here; andshould be destroyed, at least taken out of the hands of the Israelites, and they be carried captive by Shalmaneser king of Assyria, 2Ki_17:6 and this may be understood, not of that particular city and fortress only, but of all their strongholds, the singular being, put for the plural. The Targum is, "the government shall cease from Ephraim"; they shall have no more a king over them, nor have they to this day: and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria; Damascus was the head city of Syria, where the kings of Syria had their palace; but now that and the rest of Syria should no more be a kingdom of itself, but should be subject unto others, as it has been ever since: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the Lord of hosts; that is, the Syrians, who were in alliance with Israel, should share the same fate; should be carried captive as they were; should have their metropolis and other cities, and their whole kingdom, taken from them, and be stripped of their grandeur and wealth, and have no more glory than they had; which was none at all; or at least very small, as the next verse shows Isa_17:4. 4. HENRY, “The strongholds of Israel, the kingdom of the ten tribes, will be brought to ruin: The fortress shall cease from Ephraim (Isa_17:3), that in Samaria, and all the rest. They had joined with Syria in invading Judah very unnaturally; and now those that had been partakers in sin should be made partakers in ruin, and justly. When the fortress shall cease from Ephraim, by which Israel will be weakened, the kingdom will cease from Damascus, by which Syria will be ruined. The Syrians were the ring-leaders in that confederacy against Judah, and therefore they are punished first and sorest; and, because they boasted of their alliance with Israel, now that Israel is weakened they are upbraided with those boasts: “The remnant of Syria shall be as the glory of the children of Israel; those few that remain of the Syrians shall be in as mean and despicable a condition as the children of Israel are, and the glory of Israel shall be no relief or reputation to them.” Sinful confederacies will be no strength, no stay, to the confederates, when God's judgments come upon them. See here what the glory of Jacob is when God contends with him, and what little reason Syria will have to be proud of resembling the glory of Jacob. 5. JAMISON, “fortress ... cease — The strongholds shall be pulled down (Samaria especially: Hos_10:14; Mic_1:6; Hab_1:10). remnant of Syria — all that was left after the overthrow by Tiglath-pileser (2Ki_16:9). as the glory of ... Israel — They shall meet with the same fate as Israel, their ally. 6. PULPIT, “The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim. Sargon did not destroy Samaria on the occasion of his first capture. But he says that he "reduced it to a heap of ruins" on the occasion of its second capture ('Records of the Past,' l.s.c.). And the kingdom from Damascus. We do not hear of any King
- 11. of Damascus afterRezin, who was slain by Tiglath-Pileser about B.C. 732. Damascus, however, reasserted her independence in B.C. 721, and probably set up a king at the same time. In B.C. 720 she was reduced and destroyed. Nothing more is heard of her until B.C. 694—the eleventh year of Sennacherib—when her "governor" is Assyrian Eponym, and she must therefore have been absorbed into the Assyrian empire. The remnant of Syria. This phrase shows that the great blow which struck down Syria—Tiglath-Pileser's capture of Damascus and slaughter of Rezin—was a thing of the past. Syria was already but "a remnant." Now she was to cease to exist altogether.They shall be as the glory of the children of Israel. Ironical. The irony is made apparent by the next verse. 7.CALVIN, “3.The fortress shall cease. (4) He points out the reason why the Lord determines to cut off the kingdom of Syria. Amos (Amo_1:3) enumerates additional reasons, but the most important was that which the Prophet mentions, namely, that they had drawn the kingdom of Israel to their side for the purpose of making war against the Jews. The Israelites were undoubtedly allured, by the blandishments of the Syrians, to form an alliance with them against their brethren. It was a pretext exceedingly fitted to impose upon them, that the Syrians would aid them against all their enemies; and hence also the Israelites placed confidence in the forces and power of the Syrians to such an extent, that they reckoned themselves able to oppose any adversary. All Israel is here, as in many other passages, denoted by the name Ephraim, which was the chief tribe of that people. Now, “ assistance and kingdom” are said to “” from any place, when its strength is broken and its rank is thrown down. And the remnant of Syria. That is, both of these nations, the Syrians and the Israelites, shall be brought to nothing; and, for the purpose of giving additional weight to the prophecy, he states that it is God who declares it; for he immediately adds these words, saith Jehovah of hosts Now, when the Lord punished so severely those two kingdoms, he unquestionably promoted in this way the benefit of his Church, delivering it by the destruction of its enemies. And, indeed, in destroying both nations, he employed as his agents the Assyrians, to whom even the Jews had applied; and although in this respect they had heinously sinned, yet their offense did not hinder the Lord from promoting the benefit of his Church, or from delivering it by bringing its enemies into conflict with each other. Hence we perceive how great is the care which God exercises over us, since he does not spare even the greatest kingdoms in order to preserve us. We ought also to observe, that though all the wicked enter into a league, and join hands to destroy us, yet the Lord will easily rescue us from their jaws. Besides, we ought to remark that it is advantageous to us to be deprived of earthly aids, on which it is in vain for us to rely in opposition to God; for when we are blinded by our prosperity, we flatter ourselves, and cannot hear the voice of God. It therefore becomes necessary to remove these obstructions, that we may perceive our helplessness, as was the case with the Israelites, who were bereft of their aid after Syria had been destroyed.
- 12. (4) “Le secoursvenant d’ cessara;” — “ assistance coming from Ephraim shall cease.” FT262 “Sera diminué;” — “ be made thin.” — Eng. Ver. FT263 “‘ the leaving of the ploughed field, or on the topmost bough.’ I adopt with pleasure the interpretation of this disputed passage proposed in the excellent Lexicon of Parkhurst, v. חרש as being most natural, and in strict conformity with the Jewish law, Lev_19:9; Deu_24:19; which commanded ‘ leaving of the ploughman, and of the branches of the vine and olive,’ to be given up to the use of the poor in harvest. Avarice would be apt to make these leavings very scanty.” — Bishop Stock. FT264 Whom they left. — Eng. Ver. FT265 Woe to the multitude. — Eng. Ver. FT266 “Mais il me semble plustost qu’ se prend ici pour Helas.” — “ I rather think that here it stands for Alas!” FT267 “Toutes les fois donc que nous voyous les merchans avoir la bride sur le col pour nous ruiner.” “ then we see the wicked have the bridle on their neck to ruin us.” FT268 “ like the gossamer before the whirlwind.” — Lowth. “ like thistle-down before the storm.” — Stock. 4 “In that day the glory of Jacob will fade; the fat of his body will waste away. 1.BARNES, “The glory of Jacob - “Jacob” is used here to denote the kingdom of Israel, or Samaria. The word ‘glory’ here denotes dignity, power; that on which they relied, and of which they boasted. Shall be made thin - Shall be diminished, as a body wastes away by disease, and becomes feeble. The prophet sets forth the calamities of Ephraim by two figures; the first is that of a
- 13. “body” that becomesemaciated by sickness, the other that of the harvest when all the fruits are gathered except a few in the upper branches Isa_17:5-6. And the fatness his flesh shall wax lean - He shall become feeble, as a man does by wasting sickness. Chaldee, ‘The riches of his glory shall be removed.’ 2. CLARKE, “In that day - That is, says Kimchi, the time when the ten tribes of Israel, which were the glory of Jacob, should be carried into captivity. 3. GILL, “And in that day it shall come to pass,.... It being much about the same time that both kingdoms were destroyed by the Assyrians: that the glory of Jacob shall be made thin; the same with Ephraim and Israel, the ten tribes, whose glory lay in the superior number of their tribes to Judah; in the multitude of their cities, and the inhabitants of them; but now would be thinned, by the vast numbers that should be carried captive: and the fatness of his flesh shall wax lean: like a man in a consumption, that is become a mere skeleton, and reduced to skin and bones: the meaning is, that all their wealth and riches should be taken away; so the Targum, "and the riches of his glory shall be carried away.'' 4. HENRY, “It is wasted like a man in a consumption, Isa_17:4. The glory of Jacob was their numbers, that they were as the sand of the sea for multitude; but this glory shall be made thin, when many are cut off, and few left. Then the fatness of their flesh, which was their pride and security, shall was lean, and the body of the people shall become a perfect skeleton, nothing but skin and bones. Israel died of a lingering disease; the kingdom of the ten tribes wasted gradually; God was to them as a moth, Hos_5:12. Such is all the glory of this world: it soon withers, and is made thin; but thee is a far more exceeding and external weight of glory designed for the spiritual seed of Jacob, which is not subject to any such decay - fatness of God's house, which will not wax lean 5. JAMISON, “glory of Jacob — the kingdom of Ephraim and all that they rely on (Hos_12:2; Mic_1:5). fatness ... lean — (See on Isa_10:16). 6. K&D, “Second turn: “And it comes to pass in that day, the glory of Jacob wastes away, and the fat of his flesh grows thin. And it will be as when a reaper grasps the stalks of wheat, and his arm mows off the ears; and it will be as with one who gathers together ears in the valley of Rephaim. Yet a gleaning remains from it, as at the olive-beating: two, three berries
- 14. high up atthe top; four, five in its, the fruit tree's, branches, saith Jehovah the God of Israel. At that day will man look up to his Creator, and his eyes will look to the Holy One of Israel. And he will not look to the altars, the work of his hands; and what his fingers have made he will not regard, neither the Astartes nor the sun-gods.” This second turn does not speak of Damascus, but simply of Israel, and in fact of all Israel, the range of vision widening out from Israel in the more restricted sense, so as to embrace the whole. It will all disappear, with the exception of a small remnant; but the latter will return. Thus “a remnant will return,” the law of Israel's history, which is here shown first of all in its threatening aspect, and then in its more promising one. The reputation and prosperity to which the two kingdoms were raised by Jeroboam II and Uzziah would pass away. Israel was ripe for judgment, like a field of corn for the harvest; and it would be as when a reaper grasps the stalks that have shot up, and cuts off the ears. יר ִצ ָק is not used elliptically for יר ִצ ָק ישׁ ִא (Gesenius), nor is it a definition of time (Luzzatto), nor an accusative of the object (Knobel), but a noun formed like ִבָניא , יל ִל ָ,פ יץ ִר ָ,פ and used in the sense of reaper (kotzer in other cases). (Note: Instead of katzar (to cut off, or shorten), they now say karatz in the whole of the land to the east of the Jordan, which gives the idea of sawing off - a much more suitable one where the Syrian sickle is used.) The figure suggested here is more fully expanded in John 4 and Rev 14. Hardly a single one will escape the judgment: just as in the broad plain of Rephaim, which slopes off to the south-west of Jerusalem as far as Bethlehem, where it is covered with rich fields of wheat, the collectors of ears leave only one or two ears lying scattered here and there. Nevertheless a gleaning of Israel (“in it,” viz., in Jacob, Isa_17:4; Isa_10:22) will be left, just as when the branches of the olive tree, which have been already cleared with the hand, are still further shaken with a stick, there still remain a few olives upon the highest branch (two, three; cf., 2Ki_9:32), or concealed under the foliage of the branches. “Its, the fruit tree's, branches:” this is an elegant expression, as, for example, in Pro_14:13; the carrying over of the ה to the second word is very natural in both passages (see Ges. §121, b). This small remnant will turn with stedfast gaze to the living God, as is becoming in man as such (ha'adam), and not regard the idols as worthy of any look at all, at least of any reverential look. As hammanim are here images of the sun-god חמן ,בעל which is well known from the Phoenician monuments, (Note: See Levy, Phönizisches Wörterbuch (1864), p. 19; and Otto Strauss on Nahum, p. xxii. ss.) 'asherim (for which we find, though more rarely, 'asheroth) apparently signifies images of the moon-goddess. And the combination of “Baal, Asherah, and all the host of heaven” in 2Ki_23:4, as well as the surname “queen of heaven” in Jer_7:18; Jer_44:18-19, appears to require this (Knobel). But the latest researches have proved that 'Asherah is rather the Semitic Aphrodite, and therefore the planet Venus, which was called the “little luck” (es-sa‛d el-as'gar) (Note: See Krehl, Religion der vorislamischen Araber (1863), p. 11.) by the Arabs, in distinction from Musteri (Jupiter), (Note: This was the tutelar deity of Damascus; see Comm. on Job, Appendix.) or “the great luck.” And with this the name 'Asherah the “lucky” (i.e., the source of luck or prosperity) and the similar surname given to the Assyrian Istar agree;
- 15. (Note: “Ishtar,” saysRawlinson in his Five Great Monarchies of the Ancient Eastern World, - a work which challenges criticism through its dazzling results - ”Ishtar is the goddess who rejoices mankind, and her most common epithet is Amra, 'the fortunate' or 'the happy.' But otherwise her epithets are vague and general, insomuch that she is often scarcely distinguishable from Beltis (the wife of Bel-Nimrod).” Vid., vol. i. p. 175 (1862).) for 'Asherah is the very same goddess as 'Ashtoreth, whose name is thoroughly Arian, and apparently signifies the star (Ved. stir = star; Zend. stare; Neo-Pers. sitare, used chiefly for the morning star), although Rawlinson (without being able to suggest any more acceptable interpretation) speaks of this view as “not worthy of much attention.” (Note: The planet Venus, according to a Midrash relating to Gen_6:1-2, is 'Istehar transferred to the sky; and this is the same as Zuhare (see Geiger, Was hat Muhammed, etc. 1833, pp. 107-109).) Thus Asherim is used to signify the bosquets (shrubberies) or trees dedicated to the Semitic Aphrodite (Deu_16:21; compare the verbs used to signify their removal, ,גדע ,כרת ;)נתשׁ but here it probably refers to her statues or images (Note: The plural Ashtaroth, Hathors, which occurs upon Assyrian and Egyptian monuments, has a different meaning.) (2Ki_21:7; compare the miphletzeth in 1Ki_15:13, which is used to denote an obscene exhibition). For these images of the sun-god and of the goddess of the morning star, the remnant of Israel, that has been purified by the smelting furnace of judgment, has no longer any eye. Its looks are exclusively directed to the one true God of man. The promise, which here begins to dawn at the close of the second turn, is hidden again in the third, though only to break forth again in the fourth with double or triple intensity. 7. PULPIT, “A DENUNCIATION OF WOE ON ISRAEL, COMBINED WITH THE PROMISE OF A REMNANT. Israel, having united herself with Syria to resist the Assyrians, will incur a similar fate. Her glory will decay, her population dwindle and almost disappear. Still there will be a few left, who, under the circumstances, will turn to God (Isa_17:7). But it will be too late for anything like a national recovery; the laud will remain "a desolation" on account of the past sins of its inhabitants (Isa_17:9-11). Isa_17:4 The glory of Jacob shall be made thin. There is reason to believe that the deportation of the Israelites was gradual. Sargon, on taking Samaria for the first time, in B.C. 722, carried off no more than 27, 290 of the inhabitants. Over the remainder he appointed governors, and required them to pay the same taxation as before. About B.C. 715 he placed a number of Arabs in Samaria, probably deporting natives to make
- 16. room for them.The continuant of a remnant of Israelites in the land down to B.C. 625 is indicated by 2Ch_34:9. The fatness of his flesh shall wax lean (comp. Isa_10:16). Depopulation is primarily intended; but there is, perhaps, also a more general reference to depression, wasting, and misery. 8. CALVIN, “4.The glory of Jacob shall be diminished. (5) Although he had undertaken to speak of Syria and Damascus, he takes occasion to join Israel with the Syrians, because they were bound by a mutual league, and were united in the same cause. The Syrians, indeed, whom Isaiah chiefly addresses, were like a torch to inflame the Israelites, as we have already said. But the Israelites themselves were equally in fault, and therefore they were justly drawn, by what might be called a mutual bond, to endure the same punishment. It is not easy to say whether under the name Jacob he speaks of the whole elect people, so as to include also the tribe of Judah. But it is probable that he refers only to the ten tribes, who laid claim to the name of the nation, and that it is in mockery that he describes them as glorious, because, being puffed up with their power and multitude and allies, they despised the Jews their brethren. And the fatness of his flesh shall wax lean. When he next threatens them with leanness, his object is to reprove their indolence, as the Prophets frequently reprove them for their fatness (Jer_5:28.) On account of their prosperity and of the fertility of the country, they became proud, as horses that are fat and excessively pampered grow restive. Hence also they are elsewhere called “ cows” (Amo_4:1). But however fierce and stubborn they might be, God threatens that he will take away their fatness with which they were puffed up. 5 It will be as when reapers harvest the standing grain, gathering the grain in their arms— as when someone gleans heads of grain in the Valley of Rephaim.
- 17. 1.BARNES, “And itshall be ... - This is the other figure by which the prophet sets forth the calamities that were coming upon Ephraim - an image designed to denote the fact that the inhabitants and wealth of the land would be collected and removed, as the farmer gathers his harvest, and leaves only that which is inaccessible in the upper boughs of the tree, or the gleanings in the field. As when the harvest-man gathereth the corn - The wheat, the barley, etc.; for so the word “corn” - now applied by us almost exclusively to maizes means in the Scriptures. The sense in this passage is plain. As the farmer cuts down and collects his grain and removes it from the harvest field, so the enemies of Ephraim would come and remove the people and their wealth to a distant land. This received a complete fulfillment when the ten tribes were removed by the Assyrians to a distant land. This was done by Tiglath-pileser 2Ki_15:29, and by Shalmaneser 2Ki_17:6. And reapeth the ears with his arm - As he collects the standing grain with one arm so that he can cut it with the sickle in the other hand. The word rendered ‘reapeth’ (קצר qatsar) means here “to collect together” as a reaper does the standing grain in his arm. The word rendered ‘ears’ (שׁבלים shı balı ym) means here rather the spires or stalks of standing grain. In the valley of Rephaim - The valley of Rephaim is mentioned in 2Sa_5:18, 2Sa_5:22; 2Sa_23:13; 1Ch_11:15; 1Ch_14:9. The name means ‘the Giants;’ but why it was given to it is now unknown. In passing from Bethlehem to Jerusalem, it lies on the left, and descends gradually to the southwest, until it contracts in that direction into a deeper and narrower valley, called wady el-Werd, which unites further on with wady Ahmed, and finds its way to the Mediterranean. The plain extends nearly to Jerusalem, and is terminated by a slight rocky ridge forming the brow of the valley of Hinnom (see Josephus, “Ant.” vii. 4. 1; viii. 12. 4; also Robinson’s “Bib. Researches,” vol. i. pp. 323, 324). It seem to have been distinguished for its fertility, and is used here to denote a fertile region in general. 2. CLARKE, “As when the harvestman gathereth “As when one gathereth” - That is, the king of Assyria shall sweep away the whole body of the people, as the reaper strippeth off the whole crop of corn; and the remnant shall be no more in proportion than the scattered ears left to the gleaner. The valley of Rephaim near Jerusalem was celebrated for its plentiful harvest; it is here used poetically for any fruitful country. One MS., and one ancient edition, has באסף beesoph, “In gathering,” instead of כאסף keesoph, “AS the gathering.” 3. GILL, “And it shall be as when the harvestman gathereth the corn,.... The "standing" corn, as in the Hebrew text: "and reapeth the ears with his arm"; or "his arm reaps the ears" (o); that is, with one hand he gathers the standing corn into his fist, and then reaps it with his other arm; and just so it should be with the people of Israel: they were like a field of standing corn, for number, beauty, and glory; the Assyrian was like a harvestman, who laid hold upon them, and cut them down, as thick and as numerous as they were, just as a harvestman cuts down the corn, and with as much ease and quick dispatch; they being no more able to stand before him than a field of corn before the reaper! this was done both by Tilgathpilneser, 2Ki_15:29 and by Shalmaneser, 2Ki_17:6 kings of Assyria:
- 18. and it shallbe as he that gathereth ears in the valley of Rephaim; the Targum renders it, "the valley of giants.'' and so it is translated, Jos_15:8 mention is made of it in 2Sa_5:18 it was a valley not far from Jerusalem, as Josephus (p) says; who also calls it the valley of the giants: it is thought to have been a very fruitful place, where the ears of corn were very large and heavy, and so great care was taken in gathering and gleaning that none be lost: wherefore, as the former simile signifies the carrying off the people of Israel in great numbers by the above kings, this may signify, as some have thought, either the picking up of those that fled without, or the gleaning of them in after times by Esarhaddon, Ezr_4:2. 4. HENRY, “. It is all gathered and carried away by the Assyrian army, as the corn is carried out of the field by the husbandmen, Isa_17:5. The corn is the glory of the fields (Psa_65:13); but, when it is reaped and gone, where is the glory? The people had by their sins made themselves ripe for ruin, and their glory was as quickly, as easily, as justly, and as irresistibly, cut down and taken away, as the corn is out of the field by the husbandman. God's judgments are compared to the thrusting in of the sickle when the harvest is ripe, Rev_14:15. And the victorious army, like the careful husbandmen in the valley of Rephaim, where the corn was extraordinary, would not, if they could help it, leave an ear behind, would lose nothing that they could lay their hands on. 5. JAMISON, “harvestman, etc. — The inhabitants and wealth of Israel shall be swept away, and but few left behind just as the husbandman gathers the corn and the fruit, and leaves only a few gleaning ears and grapes (2Ki_18:9-11). with his arm — He collects the standing grain with one arm, so that he can cut it with the sickle in the other hand. Rephaim — a fertile plain at the southwest of Jerusalem toward Beth-lehem and the country of the Philistines (2Sa_5:18-22). 6. PULPIT, “As when the harvestman gathereth the corn. Death is the "harvestman" here, and gathers the Israelites by shocks, or sheaves, into his garner. A great depopulation appears in 2Ki_17:25, where we learn that lions so multiplied in the land as to become a terror to the few inhabitants. Reapeth the ears. Mr. Cheyne well remarks that the "ears" only were reaped, the stalk being cut close under the ear. This was the practice also in Egypt. In the valley of Rephaim. The valley of Rephaim was the scene of David's double victory over the Philistines, related in 2Sa_5:17-25. It is disputed whether it lay north or south of Jerusalem; but the connection with Bethlehem (2Sa_23:13-17) and with the cave of Adullam seem decisive in favor of a southern position. A "valley," however ('emek), suitable for the cultivation of corn, in this direction, has yet to be discovered.
- 19. 7.CALVIN, “5.And itshall be as when the harvest-man gathereth the corn. He shews by a comparison how great will be the desolation. “ the reapers,” he says, “ the corn in armfuls, so this multitude, though large and extended, will be mowed down by the enemies.” Now that he may not leave a remainder, he adds that at the conclusion of the harvest the ears will be gleaned, as if he had said, that when the multitude shall have been destroyed and the country laid bare like a field which has been reaped, even the shaken and scattered ears will not be left. Besides, he employs the metaphor of a harvest because the people, trusting to their great number, dreaded nothing; but as the reapers are not terrified by the large quantity of the corn, so he declares that their vast number will not prevent God from utterly destroying them. This may also refer to the Assyrians, but the meaning will be the same, for they were God’ servants in executing this vengeance. We need not spend much time in explaining the word gather, for it means nothing else than that the slaughter will resemble a harvest, the conclusion of which has been followed by the gleaning of the ears. When the ten tribes had been carried away, the Assyrians, having learned that they were meditating a revolution, destroyed them also (2Kg_17:4). He especially mentions the valley of Rephaim, because its fertility was well known to the Israelites. 6 Yet some gleanings will remain, as when an olive tree is beaten, leaving two or three olives on the topmost branches, four or five on the fruitful boughs,” declares the LORD, the God of Israel. 1.BARNES, “Yet gleaning-grapes ... - They shall not all be removed, or destroyed. A “few” shall be left, as a man who is gathering grapes or olives will leave a few that are inaccessible on the topmost boughs, or the furthest branches. Those would be usually the poorest, and so it may be implied that those left in Israel would be among the poorer inhabitants of the land. Two or three - A very few - such as would be left in gathering grapes, or in endeavoring to shake olives from a tree. Four or five - A very few that would remain on the furthest branches, and that could not be shaken off or reached.
- 20. 2. PULPIT, “Yetgleaning grapes shall be left in it; rather, yet gleanings shall be left in it. There is no mention of grapes, and it is clear that the "gleaning" intended is that of an olive-ground. As the shaking of an olive tree; rather, as at the beating of an olive tree. The olive crop was obtained, not by shaking, but by beating the trees (Deu_24:20). The owner was forbidden to "go over the boughs again," in order that a portion of the crop might be left for the stranger, the widow, and the fatherless to glean. In the top of the uppermost bough. Where the sticks of the beaters had not reached. Four or five in the outmost fruitful branches; rather, four or fire apiece on its fruitful branches, This is the average that would be left, after beating, on a good-sized branch. 3. GILL, “Yet gleaning grapes shall be left in it,.... In Ephraim or Jacob; that is, in the ten tribes, a few of them should escape, a remnant should be saved; comparable, for the smallness of their number, to grapes that are gleaned after the vintage is got in: though Kimchi interprets it of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who were but few, in comparison of the ten tribes, who were many; and Jarchi explains it of Hezekiah and his company, in the midst of Jerusalem, who were but few; and observes, that some of their Rabbins understood it of the few men that were left of the multitude of Sennacherib's army, when it was destroyed; but the first sense is best: and the same thing is signified by another simile, as the shaking of an olive tree; with the hand, when the fruit is ripe; or, "as the striking" (q) of it with a staff; to beat off the berries, when there are left two or three berries at the top of the uppermost bough: the word "amir" is only used here, and in Isa_17:9 and signifies, as Kimchi says, the upper bough or branch; and so Aben Ezra interprets it, the highest part of the olive; and observes, that it so signifies in the language of Kedar, or the Arabic language; in which it is used for a king, a prince, an emperor, one that has the command and government of others (r); and hence the word "amiral" or "admiral" comes: now two or three olive berries, being in the uppermost bough, are left, because they cannot be reached by the hand of the gatherer, nor by the staff of the striker. Kimchi applies this to Jerusalem, which was the highest part of the land of Israel; and what was in it the hand of the king of Assyria could not reach: four or five in the outmost fruitful branches thereof; which escape the gatherer, shaker, or striker, for the same reason. These similes are very aptly made use of, since the people of Israel are frequently compared to grapes, and vines, and olives, Isa_5:1, Jer_11:16, saith the Lord God of Israel; this is added to confirm what is said, and to express the certainty of it; and shows that the Israelites are meant, to whom the Lord was a covenant God. The Targum applies the metaphors thus, "so shall the righteous be left alone in the world among the kingdoms, saith the Lord God of Israel.'' (q) כנקףוית "ut strictura oleae", Cocceius. (r) "imperator; princeps, dux qui allis quomodo cumque praest imperatque", Golius, col. 158. Castel. col. 150. though the verb in the Hebrew
- 21. language is usedin the sense of elevation or lifting up, and seems to be derived from hence. So Schindler, col. 96. אמיר "ramus, summitas rami----inde verbum", האמיר "eminere aut prominere fecit, rami aut frondis instar exaltavit, extulit, evexit", Deut. xxvi. 17, 18. Psal. xciv. 4. 4. HENRY, “Mercy is here reserved, in a parenthesis, in the midst of judgment, for a remnant that should escape the common ruin of the kingdom of the ten tribes. Though the Assyrians took all the care they could that none should slip out of their net, yet the meek of the earth were hidden in the day of the Lord's anger, and had their lives given them for a prey and made comfortable to them by their retirement to the land of Judah, where they had the liberty of God's courts. 1. They shall be but a small remnant, a very few, who shall be marked for preservation (Isa_17:6): Gleaning grapes shall be left in it. The body of the people were carried into captivity, but here and there one was left behind, perhaps one of two in a bed when the other was taken, Luk_17:34. The most desolating judgments in this world are short of the last judgment, which shall be universal and which none shall escape. In times of the greatest calamity some are kept safe, as in times of the greatest degeneracy some are kept pure. But the fewness of those that escape supposes the captivity of the far greatest part; those that are left are but like the poor remains of an olive tree when it has been carefully shaken by the owner; if there be two or three berries in the top of the uppermost bough (out of the reach of those that shook it), that is all. Such is the remnant according to the election of grace, very few in comparison with the multitudes that walk on in the broad way. 5. JAMISON, “in it — that is, in the land of Israel. two or three ... in the top — A few poor inhabitants shall be left in Israel, like the two or three olive berries left on the topmost boughs, which it is not worth while taking the trouble to try to reach. 6. BI, “Autumn: the diminutions of life The prophet is here predicting a season of national calamity. He represents the condition of the people under the figure of an autumnal scene. Armed hosts from the north have invaded the country like a sharp wind. The substance of its inhabitants has been carried away before their rapacity, “as when the harvest man gathereth the corn, and reapeth the ears with his arm.” With this difference, however, that it has been destroyed by the violence of strangers, instead of being garnered for the use of those who had tilled the soil; and the sickle is the sword. The population is thinned, like the trees in the waning part of the year. Only that the wrath of man, unlike the severity of nature, has no benevolent purpose in it. The comforts and blessings of life are shaken down as faded leaves. Only it is without any sign from experience, that they shall be replaced by a new spring. A desolated prospect rises before his sight. “Two or three berries in the top of the uppermost bough; four or five in the outmost fruitful branches thereof.” The Word of the Lord was a “burden” in those days, and he felt its weight upon his own heart as he held it over the heads of his people. He comforted himself at least with the thought that the visitation itself, if not his warning, would bring them to a more faithful mind (Isa_17:7-8). There lies in the text, apart from its historical reference, this general truth,—that circumstances of decline and destitution are suited to wean the heart from its vanities. In the day of adversity men “consider.” And when time and fortune have made the enjoyments of the world fewer, and thrown a longer shadow and a paler tint upon those that remain, the soul naturally remembers its truer and more enduring portions.
- 22. 1. With somethe change relates to their worldly goods and the general prosperity of their affairs. 2. A second class of diminutions concerns the bodily ease and health. 3. The third instance of diminutions to which our attention is called, is found in the encroachments of age. 4. One more instance of destitution is when companions and friends drop off like the foliage of summer, and we are more and more frequently bereft. (N. L.Frothingham.) 7. PULPIT, “The Lord's remnant. Figuratively here is called to mind the fact that God's dealings are never wholly destructive; they never utterly desolate; there is always a mitigation, always a spared remnant. The figure used, of the few olive berries left for the gleaner, is a very striking one, if the customs of the olive-growing countries is understood. In Thomson's 'Land and the Book' there is a full description. "Early in autumn the berries begin to drop off of themselves, or are shaken off by the wind. They are allowed to remain under the trees for some time, guarded by the watchman of the town's very familiar Bible character. Presently public proclamations are made that the owners may gather the fruit. And in November comes the general and final summons. No olives are now safe unless the owner looks after 8. CALVIN, “6.Yet gleaning grapes shall be left in it. This metaphor has a different meaning from the former; for as if the name of the nation were to be entirely blotted out, he had expressly foretold that nothing would be left after the slaughter. He now adds a consolation, and thus abates the severity of the destruction; for he declares that, although the enemies had resolved to consume and destroy everything, still some remnant would be left. In like manner the gleaning of grapes is never made so completely as not to allow some grapes or even clusters to remain, which were concealed under the leaves, and the olive tree is never so thoroughly shaken as not to leave at least some olives on the tops of the trees. Consequently, to whatever extent the enemies may rage, and even the vengeance of God may be kindled, still he foretells that the Judge, notwithstanding his severity, will reserve for himself a small number, and will not allow the attacks of enemies to fall upon his own elect. Hence it follows, that amidst the heaviest vengeance there will still be room for mercy. The present discourse relates to the posterity of Abraham; and though they had revolted from God so as to deserve to be cast off, yet the goodness of God rose above their wickedness. They had indeed rendered themselves unworthy of such goodness, but the covenant of God must remain firm and impregnable, and a proof of that firmness must be given by him in some remnant, though the nation entirely set it aside as far as lay in their power. This ought to be carefully observed, so that when we perceive no traces of the Church, and
- 23. when the godlyappear to be destroyed, still we may not think that the Church has perished; for the promise of the Lord stands, that it will continue for ever (Gen_17:7). Some remnant, therefore, will always remain, though frequently it is not visible to our eyes. 7 In that day people will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. 1.BARNES, “At that day shall a man look to his Maker - Instead of confiding in their strongly fortified places and armies, they shall look for aid and protection to the God that made them, and who alone can help them. National afflictions and judgments often have the effect to turn the eyes of even a wicked and rebellious people to God. They feel their danger; they are convinced of their guilt; they see that no one but God can protect them; and for a time they are willing, even by humiliation and fasting, to seek the divine protection. His eyes shall have respect ... - He shall look up to, or regard. The Holy One of Israel - The God of Israel; the true God. As the Syrians were allied with the kingdom of Samaria or Ephraim, they were, of course, acquainted with the true God, and in some sense acknowledged him. In these times of impending calamity, they would be led to seek him, and implore his aid and protection. There is no reason to believe, however, that they would turn permanently to him, or become his true worshippers. 2. PULPIT, “At that day shall a man look to his Maker. We have evidence of this revulsion of feeling on the part of Israel in the statement of Chronicles that, in the reign of Josiah, offerings of money were made for the temple service by men of "Manasseh and Ephraim, and of all the remnant of Israel," which the Levites collected and brought to Jerusalem (2Ch_34:9). 3. GILL, “At that day shall a man look to his Maker,.... The one only living and true God, who has made him, and not he himself, nor any other creature; that is, such as are left, as before described, the remnant, according to the election of grace; these shall look to God for help and assistance, for supply, support, and protection; and to Christ particularly, who is the Maker of all things, without whom was not any thing made that is made, for all spiritual blessings; for righteousness and strength, for peace and pardon, for food, and all comfortable supplies of grace, for life and salvation; who is set up to be looked unto for these things; to whom men are directed and encouraged to look for them, both by himself, and by his ministers, and to whom
- 24. saints in allages have looked and have not been disappointed; and to this sense the following words incline: and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel; who in this prophecy is said to be the Redeemer, Isa_43:14 he is the Holy One that sprung from literal Israel; and is the sanctifier of mystical Israel; to which agrees the Targum, "and his eyes shall hope for the Word of the Holy One of Israel:'' the Word by whom all things were made in the beginning, and who was made flesh and dwelt among men. 4. HENRY, “They shall be a sanctified remnant, Isa_17:7, Isa_17:8. These few that are preserved are such as, in the prospect of the judgment approaching, had repented of their sins and reformed their lives, and therefore were snatched thus as brands out of the burning, or such as having escaped, and becoming refugees in strange countries, were awakened, partly by a sense of the distinguishing mercy of their deliverance, and partly by the distresses they were still in, to return to God. (1.) They shall look up to their Creator, shall enquire, Where is God my Maker, who giveth songs in the night, in such a night of affliction as this? Job_35:10, Job_35:11. They shall acknowledge his hand in all the events concerning them, merciful and afflictive, and shall submit to his hand. They shall give him the glory due to his name, and be suitably affected with his providences. They shall expect relief and succour from him and depend upon him to help them. Their eyes shall have respect to him, as the eyes of a servant to the hand of his master, Psa_123:2. Observe, It is our duty at all times to have respect to God, to have our eyes ever towards him, both as our Maker (the author of our being and the God of nature) and as the Holy One of Israel, a God in covenant with us and the God of grace; particularly, when we are in affliction, our eyes must be towards the Lord, to pluck our feet out of the net (Psa_25:15); to bring us to this is the design of his providence as he is our Maker and the work of his grace as he is the Holy One of Israel. (2.) They shall look off from their idols, the creatures of their own fancy, shall no longer worship them, and seek to them, and expect relief from them. For God will be alone regarded, or he does not look upon himself as at all regarded. He that looks to his Maker must not look to the altars, the work of his hands, but disown them and cast them off, must not retain the least respect for that which his fingers have made, but break it to pieces, though it be his own workmanship - the groves and the images; the word signifies images made in honour of the sun and by which he was worshipped, the most ancient and most plausible idolatry, Deu_4:19; Job_31:26. We have reason to account those happy afflictions which part between us and our sins, and by sensible convictions of the vanity of the world, that great idol, cool our affections to it and lower our expectations from it. 5. JAMISON, “look to his Maker — instead of trusting in their fortresses - (Isa_17:3; Mic_7:7). 6. BI, “Sanctified affliction
- 25. We are ledto consider the designs of God in the afflictions of His people. I. TO RECALL THEIR WANDERING HEARTS TO HIMSELF. “A man will look to his Maker— 1. With a suppliant eye, to find in Him sources of consolation and a rock of defence such as the world cannot furnish (Psa_123:1-2; Jh 2:1). 2. With a penitent eye (Luk_22:62; Zec_12:10). 3. With a confiding and believing eye (chap. 8:17). 4. With a rejoicing eye (Rom_5:11; Hab_3:18). II. TO RAISE THEIR ESTIMATE OF THE HOLINESS OF THE DIVINE CHARACTER AND THE RECTITUDE OF THE DIVINE DISPENSATIONS. “Shall have respect unto the Holy One of Israel.” III. TO SEPARATE THEM FROM ALL SINFUL AND IDOLATROUS DEPENDENCES. “He shall not look,” etc. IV. TO ENDEAR THE MERCY THAT MINGLES WITH THE TRIALS. This appears— 1. In the moderate degree in which God’s people are corrected, compared with the final and exterminating judgments which fall upon the wicked. Damascus was to be utterly destroyed (Isa_17:1), but a remnant was to be left to Israel (Isa_17:5). God’s people always see that He has afflicted them less than they deserve (Lam_3:22). 2. In the alleviations of their trials. 3. In the triumphant issue of the whole. (S. Thodey.) 7.CALVIN, “7.At that day shall a man look to his Maker. He now shews the fruit of this chastisement, and this is the second consolation with which the godly ought to fortify themselves amidst their afflictions. Although they perceive nothing but the wrath of God, yet they ought to reflect that the Lord, who never forgets himself, will continually preserve his Church, and not only so, but that the chastisements will be advantageous to them. After having spoken, therefore, about the continual existence of the Church, he next adds, that men will look to God This is the most desirable of all, for when men betake themselves to God, the world, which was formerly disordered, is restored to its proper order; but when we have been estranged from him, no one repents of his own accord, and therefore there is no other way in which we can be brought back than to be driven by the scourge of chastisements. We are thus reminded that we ought not to be so impatient in enduring chastisements, which cure us of the fearfully dangerous disease of apostasy. To look to God means nothing else than that, when we have turned away, we return to a state of favor with him, betake ourselves and are converted to him. For how comes it that men abandon themselves to
- 26. every kind ofwickedness but because they forget God? Where the knowledge of God exists, there reverence dwells; where forgetfulness of God is found, there contempt of him also prevails. Yet this relates properly to faith, as if he had said, “ chastisements so severe shall have tamed the Israelites, they will then perceive that there is no help for them but in God.” For this reason he immediately adds the expression, To his Maker. It was indeed a proof of abominable indolence that they did not rely on God alone, who had bestowed on them so many precious gifts. The Prophet therefore says, that when they had been subdued by distresses and afflictions, they would afterwards return to a sound mind, so as to begin to hope in him who had bound them to himself by so many acts of kindness. And indeed he calls God their Maker, not as having created the whole human race, but in the same sense in which he likewise calls him The Holy One of Israel. Although therefore all men were created after the image of God, (Gen_1:27), yet Israel was peculiarly his workmanship, because he was his heritage, and his holy and chosen people (Exo_19:6). This repetition, in accordance with the ordinary custom of the Hebrew language, is employed to denote the same thing. He therefore calls God Holy, not only as viewed in himself, but from the effect produced, because he has sanctified or separated to himself the children of Abraham. Hence it follows, that the creation which he speaks of must be understood to relate to spiritual reformation, in reference to which he is especially called the Maker of Israel (Isa_45:11; Hos_8:14). 8 They will not look to the altars, the work of their hands, and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles[a] and the incense altars their fingers have made. 1.BARNES, “And he shall not look to the altars - That is, the altars of the gods which the Syrians worshipped, and the altars of the false gods which had been erected in the land of Israel or Samaria by its wicked kings, and particularly by Ahaz. Ahaz fancied an altar which he saw at Damascus when on a visit to Tiglath-pileser, and ordered Urijah the priest to construct one like it in Samaria, on which he subsequently offered sacrifice 2Ki_16:10-13. It is well known, also, that the kings of Israel and Judah often reared altars to false gods in the high places and the groves of the land (see 2Ki_21:3-5). The Ephraimites were particularly guilty in this respect Hos_8:11 : ‘Because Ephraim hath made many altars to sin, altars shall be unto him to sin.’ Which his fingers have made - Perhaps indicating that the idols which they worshipped had been constructed with special art and skill (see Isa_2:8).
- 27. Either the groves- The altars of idols were usually erected in groves, and idols were worshipped there before temples were raised (see Exo_34:13; Deu_7:5; Deu_12:3; Jdg_3:7; 1Ki_14:23; 1Ki_18:19; 2Ch_33:3; compare the notes at Isa_1:29). Or the images - Margin, ‘Sun images’ (חמנים chamanı ym). This word is used to denote idols in general in Lev_26:30; 2Ch_24:4. But it is supposed to denote properly images erected to the sun, and to be derived from חמה chamah, “the sun.” Thus the word is used in Job_30:28; Isa_24:23; Isa_30:26; Son_6:10. The word, according to Gesenius, is of Persian origin (Commentary in loc.) The sun was undoubtedly worshipped by the ancient idolaters, and altars or images would be erected to it (see the notes at Job_31:26). 2. CLARKE, “The altars, the work of his hands “The altars dedicated to the work of his hands” - The construction of the words, and the meaning of the sentence, in this place are not obvious; all the ancient Versions, and most of the modern, have mistaken it. The word מעשה maaseh, “the work,” stands in regimine with מזבחות mizbechoth, “altars,” not in opposition to it; it means the, altars of the work of their hand; that is of the idols, which are the work of their hands. Thus Kimchi has explained it, and Le Clerc has followed him. 3. GILL, “And he shall not took to the altars, the work of his hands,.... That is, to altars erected to the worship of idols, which are both the works of men's hands, so as to serve at them, and sacrifice upon them. Kimchi observes, that the latter clause is not to be understood as belonging to the former, but as distinct from it, and signifies idols which men have made; otherwise all altars, even the altars of God, were the works of men, which yet it was right to look unto, and offer sacrifice upon; but idol altars, and idols themselves, are here meant: and a good man will not look unto his good works as altars to atone for sin; he knows that nothing that a creature can do can expiate sin; that his best works are such as are due to God, and therefore can never atone for past crimes; that Jesus Christ is only the altar, sacrifice, and priest, to whom he looks for, and from whom he receives the atonement: neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves or the images; both might be said to be made by the fingers of men, the former being planted, and, the latter carved and fashioned by them; whether by groves are meant clusters of trees, where idols and altars were placed, or medals struck with such a representation on them, and also whatever images are here designed: the word signifies sun images, images made to represent the sun, or for the honour and worship of it. Aben Ezra says they were images made according to the likeness of chariots for the sun. The Targum renders it "temples", such as were dedicated to the sun; though some understand by it sunny places, where their idols were set and sunburnt, as distinct from shady groves. Good men will not took to their own works, what their fingers have wrought, as groves to shelter them from divine wrath and vengeance, or as idols to bow down to, trust in, and depend upon for salvation; but reject them, and look to Christ only. 4. PULPIT, “And he shall not look to the altars. The altars at Dan and Bethel (1Ki_12:28-33) may be intended, or the Israelites may have had other idolatrous altars besides these (2Ki_17:11; Hos_8:11).
- 28. Josiah, about B.C.631, broke down altars throughout all the land of Israel, in the cities of Manasseh and Ephraim and Simeon (?), even unto Naphtali (2Ch_34:5-7). Apparently he had the consent of the inhabitants to this demolition. Either the groves, or the images, Asherah, the word here and elsewhere commonly translated "grove" in the Authorized Version, is now generally admitted to have designated an artificial construction of wood or metal, which was used in the idolatrous worship of the Phoenicians and the Israelites, probably as the emblem of some deity. The Assyrian "sacred tree" was most likely an emblem of the same kind, and may give an idea of the sort of object worshipped under the name of Asherah. The Israelites, in the time of their prosperity, had set up "groves" of this character "on every high hill, and under every green tree" (2Ki_17:10). Many of them were still standing when Josiah made his iconoclastic raid into the Israelite country (2Ch_34:5-7), and were broken down by him at the same time as the altars. The "images" of this place are the same as those coupled with the Israelite "groves" in 2Ch_34:7, namely "sun-images," emblems of Baal, probably pillars or conical stones, such as are known to have held a place in the religious worship of Phoenicia. 5. JAMISON, “groves — A symbolical tree is often found in Assyrian inscriptions, representing the hosts of heaven (“Saba”), answering to Ashteroth or Astarte, the queen of heaven, as Baal or Bel is the king. Hence the expression, “image of the grove,” is explained (2Ki_21:7). images — literally, “images to the sun,” that is, to Baal, who answers to the sun, as Astarte to the hosts of heaven (2Ki_23:5; Job_31:26). 6. PULPIT, “The prophet on heathen worship. Having described in brief the true religion as a "looking up to God" as Maker and Redeemer of Israel, the prophet with equal expressiveness characterizes the heathen worship around. I. IT IS REVERENCE FOR THE OBJECT OF HUMAN ART. Contemptuous is the reference to "the work of his hands," and "that which his fingers have made"—altars and images. When the spiritual nerve of religion is weakened, the affections fix upon the symbols, forms, and accessories of religion. The soul that has lost its God must have some visible substitute, as a pet, a plaything, an idol. When the meaning of sacrifice is deeply realized and felt, any bare table will suffice for altar. But as the idea and feeling become extinct, all the more will men seek to supply the void by some beauty in the object. The shrine becomes more splendid as devotion becomes more cold. Perhaps the prophet is thinking of the case of King Ahaz. He went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria, and there saw an altar' which so pleased him, that he sent the pattern of it to Urijah the priest, who built one to correspond. And this was a
- 29. king who "sacrificedand burned incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree" (2Ki_16:1-20.). And Manasseh, rejecting the good example of Hezekiah his father, set up altars to Baal, and made a grove, and plunged deeply into all manner of superstition (2Ki_21:1-26.). The Prophet Hosea pointedly speaks of the tendency in the people generally: "Because Ephraim has made many altars to sin, altars shall be unto him to sin" (Hos_8:2). The connection of this with luxury is pointed out by our prophet in Isa_2:7, Isa_2:8. But what strikes him especially with astonishment is the addiction to "art for art's sake." This has been a cant and, to some extent, a creed in our time. When carried out, it must mean the valuation of human genius and talent regardlessly of the subjects on which, and the ends for which, it is employed. No matter how seusualizing or otherwise debasing to feeling the painter's or the sculptor's theme, the cleverness with which he treats form and color, light and shade, is only worth attending to. These doctrines may be carried into the church, which may become a place for mere imaginative and sensuous enjoyment; and people may find they cannot "look up to God" in a building whose lines are incorrectly drawn, or where the latest fashion of ecclesiastical foppery is not kept up. By-and-by it will be discovered that the house of God has been turned into a theatre, containing, it is true, an altar, but, like the altar in the great theatre at Athens, serving for little more than a station of performers. Spiritual worship is extinct with us if we cannot lift up eye, and heart, and hand, and voice to the Eternal with equal joy, if need demand, in the barn as in the cathedral. But how wide-reaching the principle of idolatry! The delight in genius, the admiration for it, may enter into religious feeling as one of its richest elements; it may, on the other hand, be separated from religious feeling altogether, and be the principle of an idolatry. II. IT IS IMPURE AND CRUEL. There is an allusion to the worship of Baal and Ashtoreth, and what we know of these deities indicates beings conceived by those worshippers as dark, wrathful, malignant, and lustful. Baal, often named in the plural Baalim, is closely related to, if not identical with, Moloch (see Jer_7:31;Jer_19:5; Jer_32:35), whose terrible wrath was supposed to be manifested in the torrid heat of summer, and who exacted human sacrifices. In great dangers kings sacrificed to this Bel-Moloch their only sons (2Ki_3:27); and this is sternly denounced in Le Isa_20:3. It would seem that Israelites in their declension confounded the nature of this heathen god with that of Jehovah (Jdg_11:34; Num_25:4). Read the eloquent protest of Mic_6:7, and see how clearly in that animated passage the contrast is made between the merciful and holy religion of Jehovah and the cursed ritual of Baal or of Moloch. "To do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with God,"—these are the requirements of true religion. By the side of Baal was Ashtoreth in Canaan (Jdg_10:6) and in Syria. The Greeks called her Astarte. At Babylon she was known as Mylitta or Beltis, consort of Bel; and Herodotus describes the darkly superstitious and impure character of her worship, which involved the profanation of women. The religion of Israel knows no goddess; the people itself, when true to their faith, felt themselves to be as a people, the bride of Jehovah, and unfaithfulness to him is a crime analogous to unfaithfulness to the nuptial tie. "Israel my people, I their God," is the symbolic word of the covenant between spirit and Spirit, which religion ever is,
- 30. in its truthand purity. There are lessons for us in all this. There are ever tendencies at work to degrade and defile the holy ideas of our religion. Sometimes it is wealth, sometimes it is ignorance, sometimes greed and other passions. Men would subdue the spirit of Christianity to their own liking, and bow down, if not to the work of their fingers, to the impure idols of an unchastened fancy. The preacher, the true prophet, must, on the other hand, be ever upholding the purity of doctrine, and exhibit those grand requirements to which the conscience must, however reluctantly, respond. And he must lay it to heart that the purer religion can never be the most fashionable. If the people turn aside to groves and altars more suited to their taste, at least let him make it his one concern to "save himself and them that hear him."—J. 7.CALVIN, “8.And he shall not look to the altars. This contrast shews more clearly that the looking which he spoke of in the former verse relates strictly to hope and confidence, for he says that every kind of sinful confidence will vanish away when men have learned to hope in God; and indeed in no other manner can any one obtain clear views of God than by driving far from him all superstitions. We are thus taught that obstacles of this kind ought to be removed if we wish to approach to God. It is vain to think of making a union between God and idols, as the Papists do, and as the Jews formerly did; for that vice is not peculiar to our age, but has prevailed in all ages. Every obstruction ought therefore to be removed, that we may look to God with such earnestness as to have just and clear views of him, and to put our trust in him. The work of his hands. It is for the purpose of exciting abhorrence that he calls the false gods the work of their hands, that the Israelites, being ashamed of their folly, may shake off and drive away from them such a disgraceful reproach. On this vice, however, he dwells the more largely, because they were more chargeable with it than with any other, and because none can be more abominable in the sight of God. There were innumerable superstitions among them, and in places without number they had set up both idols and altars, so that Isaiah had good reason for reproving and expostulating with them at great length on account of these crimes. It might be objected that the altar at Jerusalem was also built by men, and therefore they ought to forsake it in order to approach to God. (Exo_27:1). I reply, that altar was widely different from others, for although it consisted of stone and mortar, silver and gold, and was made like others by the agency of men, yet we ought not to look at the materials or the workmanship, but at God himself who was the maker, for by his command it was built. We ought therefore to consider the essential form, so to speak, which it received from the word of God; other matters ought not to be taken into view, since God alone is the architect. (Exo_20:24;Deu_27:5). Other altars, though they bore some resemblance to it, should be abhorred, because they had not the authority of the word. Such is the estimate which we ought to form of every kind
- 31. of false worship,whatever appearance of sanctity it may assume; for God cannot approve of anything that is not supported by his word. 9 In that day their strong cities, which they left because of the Israelites, will be like places abandoned to thickets and undergrowth. And all will be desolation. 1.BARNES, “His strong cities - The cities of the united kingdoms of Damascus and Samaria. Be as a forsaken bough - There has been much difficulty in the interpretation of this passage. Lowth says, ‘No one has ever been able to make any tolerable sense of these words;’ and proposes himself the translation, In that day shall his strongly fenced cities become Like the desertion of the Hivites and the Amorites; Following in this the translation of the Septuagint, but doing violence to the Hebrew text. Rosenmuller translates it, ‘As the remnant of a grove when the thicket is cut down, and when few trees are left.’ The word rendered ‘bough’ (חרשׁ choresh) means, properly, a thicket, or thick foliage, a wood that is entangled or intricate 1Sa_23:15-16, 1Sa_23:18; 2Ch_27:4; and probably this is the idea here. The phrase may be rendered, ‘as the leavings or residue of a grove, copse, or entangled wood;’ and the idea is, that as a “few” trees might be left when the axeman cuts down the grove, so a few inferior and smaller towns should be left in the desolation that would come upon Damascus. And an uppermost branch - Isa_17:6. As a few berries are left in the topmost branch of the olive, or the vine, so shall I a few cities or people be left in the general desolation. Which they left - Which “are” left, or which the invaders would leave. Because of the children of Israel - literally, ‘from the face,’ that is, before the children of Israel. Lowth supposes that it refers to the Amorites, who left their land before the Israelites, or gave up their land for them. Vitringa renders it, ‘On account of the children of Israel;’ and supposes that it means that a few cities were spared by the purpose of God in the invasion by Tiglath-pileser, to be a residence of the Israelites that should remain; or that, for some reason which is not known, the Assyrians chose to spare a few towns, and not wholly to destroy the country. The “general” idea is plain, that a few towns would be left, and that it would be “before” the children of Israel, or in their presence, or in order that they might continue to dwell in them. Jerome interprets the whole as referring to the time when the land of Judea was forsaken on the invasion of the Romans. And there shall be desolation - The land shall be desolated, except the few cities and towns that shall be left, like the gleaning of the olive tree.
- 32. 2. CLARKE, “Asa forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch “the Hivites and the Amorites” - החרשוהאמיר hachoresh vehaamir. No one has ever yet been able to make any tolerable sense of these words. The translation of the Septuagint has happily preserved what seems to be the true reading of the text, as it stood in the copies of their time; though the words are now transposed, either in the text or in their Version; οᅷ Αµαρምαιοι και οᅷ Ευαιοι, “the Amorites and the Hivites.” It is remarkable that many commentators, who never thought of admitting the reading of the Septuagint, understand the passage as referring to that very event which their Version expresses; so that it is plain that nothing can be more suitable to the context. “My father,” says Bishop Lowth, “saw the necessity of admitting this variation at a time when it was not usual to make so free with the Hebrew text.” Mr. Parkhurst is not satisfied with the prelate’s adoption of the reading of the Septuagint, “the Hivites and the Amorites.” He thinks the difficult words should be thus rendered; he takes the whole verse: “And his fortified cities shall be like the leaving, or what is left כעזובת caazubath, of or in a ploughed field, החרש hachoresh, or on a branch which they leave coram, before, the children of Israel.” Which he considers a plain reference to the Mosaic laws relative to the not gleaning of their ploughed fields, vineyards, and oliveyards, but leaving עזב ozeb, somewhat of the fruits, for the poor of the land; Lev_9:9, Lev_9:10; Deu_24:19-21, in the Hebrew. I fear that the text is taken by storm on both interpretations. One MS. has כלערי col arey, “all the cities;” and instead of החלש hachalash, “of the branch,” six MSS. have החדש hachodesh, “of the month.” But this is probably a mistake. 3. GILL, “In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch,.... Meaning the strong cities of Ephraim or Jacob, the ten tribes, which should be forsaken of their inhabitants; having fled from before the enemy, or being slain or carried captive; like a bough of a tree, that is forsaken stripped of its leaves, and an uppermost branch of a tree that is dead and dry, and has nothing on it: which they left; or "as they left", or "were left": because of the children of Israel; "from the face of" them; or for fear of them; that is, the same cities which the Canaanites left; and as they left them, or were left by them, for fear of the Israelites; the same, and in the same manner, shall they be left by the Israelites, for fear of the Assyrians; and so the Septuagint version reads the words, "in that day thy cities shall be forsaken, in like manner as the Amorites and Hivites left them, from the face of the children of Israel;'' and this sense is given by Aben Ezra and Kimchi: though some interpret it of some places being spared and left for the remnant to dwell in; but what follows in this verse, and in the next Isa_17:10, shows the contrary sense: and there shall be desolation; over all those cities, and in all the land; though Aben Ezra particularly applies it to Samaria, the royal city. Jerom interprets the whole of the cities of Judea
- 33. being forsaken oftheir inhabitants, when the Romans besieged Jerusalem, and made the land desolate; which calamity came upon them, for their neglect and forgetfulness of Jesus the Saviour. 4. HENRY, “Here the prophet returns to foretel the woeful desolations that should be made in the land of Israel by the army of the Assyrians. 1. That the cities should be deserted. Even the strong cities, which should have protected the country, shall not be able to protect themselves: They shall be as a forsaken bough and an uppermost branch of an old tree, which has gone to decay, is forsaken of its leaves, and appears on the top of the tree, bare, and dry, and dead; so shall their strong cities look when the inhabitants have deserted them and the victorious army of the enemy pillaged and defaced them, Isa_17:9. They shall be as the cities (so it may be supplied) which the Canaanites left, the old inhabitants of the land, because of the children of Israel, when God brought them in with a high hand, to take possession of that good land, cities which they built not. As the Canaanites then fled before Israel, so Israel should now flee before the Assyrians. And herein the word of God was fulfilled, that, if they committed the same abominations, the land should spue them out, as it spued out the nations that were before them (Lev_18:28), and that as, while they had God on their side, one of them chased a thousand, so, when they had made him their enemy, a thousand of them should flee at the rebuke of one; so that in the cities should be desolation, according to the threatenings in the law, Lev_26:31; Deu_28:51. 5. JAMISON, “forsaken bough — rather “the leavings of woods,” what the axeman leaves when he cuts down the grove (compare Isa_17:6). which they left because of — rather, “which (the enemies) shall leave for the children of Israel”; literally, “shall leave (in departing) from before the face of the children of Israel” [Maurer]. But a few cities out of many shall be left to Israel, by the purpose of God, executed by the Assyrian. 6. K&D, “Third turn: “In that day will his fortified cities be like the ruins of the forest and of the mountain top, which they cleared before the sons of Israel: and there arises a waste place. For thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, and hast not thought of the Rock of thy stronghold, therefore thou plantedst charming plantations, and didst set them with strange vines. In the day that thou plantedst, thou didst make a fence; and with the morning dawn thou madest thy sowing to blossom: a harvest heap in the day of deep wounds and deadly sorrow of heart.” The statement in Isa_17:3, “The fortress of Ephraim is abolished,” is repeated in Isa_17:9 in a more descriptive manner. The fate of the strongly fortified cities of Ephraim would be the same as that of the old Canaanitish castles, which were still to be discerned in their antiquated remains, either in the depths of forests or high up on the mountains. The word ‛azuba h, which the early translators quite misunderstood, signifies, both here and in Isa_6:12, desolate
- 34. places that havegone to ruin. They also misunderstood יר ִמፎ ָהְו שׁ ֶּרהס ַ.ה The Septuagint renders it, by a bold conjecture, οᅷ Αµοሜምηαሏοι καᆳ οᆳ Εᆒαሏοι; but this is at once proved to be false by the inversion of the names of the two peoples, which was very properly thought to be necessary. יר ִמፎ ָה undoubtedly signifies the top of a tree, which is quite unsuitable here. But as even this meaning points back to ר ַמፎ, extollere, efferre (see at Psa_94:4), it may also mean the mountain- top. The name ha'emori (the Amorites: those who dwell high up in the mountains) proves the possibility of this; and the prophet had this name in his mind, and was guided by it in his choice of a word. The subject of בוְּז ָע is self-evident. And the reason why only the ruins in forests and on mountains are mentioned is, that other places, which were situated on the different lines of traffic, merely changed their inhabitants when the land was taken by Israel. The reason why the fate of Ephraim's fortified castles was the same as that of the Amoritish castles, which were then lying in ruins, was that Ephraim, as stated in Isa_17:10, had turned away from its true rocky stronghold, namely from Jehovah. It was a consequence of this estrangement from God, that Ephraim planted יםִנ ָמ ֲעַנ י ֵע ְטִ,נ plantations of the nature of pleasant things, or pleasant plantations (compare on Psa_78:49, and Ewald, §287, ab), i.e., cultivated all kinds of sensual accompaniments to its worship, in accordance with its heathen propensities; and sowed, or rather (as zemorah is the layer of a vine) “set,” this garden-ground, to which the suffix ennu refers, with strange grapes, by forming an alliance with a zar (a stranger), namely the king of Damascus. On the very day of the planting, Ephraim fenced it carefully (this is the meaning of the pilpel, sigseg from שׂוּג = ,סוּג not “to raise,” as no such verb as שׂוּג = הָג ָ,שׂ אָג ְ,ס can be shown to exist), that is to say, he ensured the perpetuity of these sensuous modes of worship as a state religion, with all the shrewdness of a Jeroboam (see Amo_7:13). And the very next morning he had brought into blossom what he had sown: the foreign layer had shot up like a hot-house plant, i.e., the alliance had speedily grown into a hearty agreement, and had already produced one blossom at any rate, viz., the plan of a joint attack upon Judah. But this plantation, which was so flattering and promising for Israel, and which had succeeded so rapidly, and to all appearance so happily, was a harvest heap for the day of the judgment. Nearly all modern expositors have taken ned as the third person (after the form meth, Ges. §72, Anm. 1), and render it “the harvest flees;” but the third person of נוּד would be דָ,נ like the participle in Gen_4:12; whereas the meaning cumulus (a heap), which it has elsewhere as a substantive, is quite appropriate, and the statement of the prophet resembles that of the apostle in Rom_2:5. The day of the judgment is called “the day of ה ָל ְחַ”נ (or, according to another reading, ָלה ֲחַ,)נ not, however, as equivalent to nachal, a stream (Luzzatto, in giorno di fiumana), as in Psa_124:4 (the tone upon the last syllable proves this), nor in the sense of “in the day of possession,” as Rosenmüller and others suppose, since this necessarily gives to דֵנ the former objectionable and (by the side of יר ִצ ָ)ק improbable verbal sense; but as the feminine of nachleh, written briefly for maccah nachlah (Jer_14:17), i.e., inasmuch as it inflicts grievous and mortal wounds. Ephraim's plantation is a harvest heap for that day (compare katzir, the harvest of punishment, in Hos_6:11 and Jer_51:33); and the hope set upon this plantation is changed into נוּשׁፎ ֵאב ְⅴ, a desperate and incurable heartfelt sorrow (Jer_30:15). The organic connection between Isa_17:12-14, which follow, and the oracle concerning Damascus and Israel, has also been either entirely misunderstood, or not thoroughly appreciated. The connection is the following: As the prophet
- 35. sets before himselfthe manner in which the sin of Ephraim is punished by Asshur, as the latter sweeps over the Holy Land, the promise which already began to dawn in the second turn bursts completely through: the world-power is the instrument of punishment in the hands of Jehovah, but not for ever. 7. PULPIT, “In that day. While a remnant of the Israelites shall repent and turn to God, throwing in their lot with Judah, as it would seem the country generally shall feel the weight of God's chastening hand, on account of Israel's former sins and offences. As a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch; rather, as the forsaken tract of woodland and mountain-crest (Kay). The reference is to the condition of the land when it passed out of the possession of the Canaanitish nations. It was then forsaken and desolate. So shall it be once more, when Israel is expelled for the same sins (see 2Ki_17:7, 2Ki_17:8). Which they left because of the children of Israel; rather, which men forsook before the children of Israel; i.e. from which the Canaanites fled as the children of Israel advanced and took possession. The writer ignores the long and fierce struggle which the Canaanites made, and looks only to the result—retirement from a desolated country. 8. CALVIN, “9.In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough. He follows out what he had begun to say about driving out the inhabitants of the country; and as the Israelites, trusting to their fortified cities and to their bulwarks, thought that they were in safety, he threatens that they will be of no more use than if enemies were marching through desert places. The view entertained by some, that חורש (chōĕ) and עזובת (ăzūă) (6) are proper names of towns, is a forced interpretation. I understand them rather to denote unpleasant and disagreeable places, or that the walls and ditches will contribute no more to their defense than if the Israelites dwelt amidst thickets and bushes. As they left. (7) Here the particle ,אשר (asher,) I have no doubt, denotes comparison; and therefore I have rendered it in like manner as, which makes the statement of the Prophet to be, in connection with what had been already said, that the people would tremble and flee and be scattered, in the same manner as God had formerly driven out the ancient inhabitants. Those who think that ,אשר (asher,) is a relative are constrained to supply something, and to break up the thread of the discourse. But it simply brings to their remembrance an ancient example, that the Israelites may perceive how vain and deceitful is every kind of defense that is opposed to the arm of God. It is a severe reproach; for the Israelites did not consider that the Lord gave to them that land, as it were, by hereditary right, in order that they might worship him, and that he drove out their enemies to put them in possession of it. And now, by their ingratitude, they rendered themselves unworthy of so great a benefit; and, consequently, when they had been deprived of it, there was good reason why they should feel distresses which were the reverse of their former
- 36. blessings. This passage willbe made more plain by the writings of Moses, whom the prophets follow; for in the promises he employs this mode of expression, “ of you shall chase a thousand,” (Lev_26:8; Jos_23:10), and in the threatenings, on the other hand, he says, “ shall chase a thousand of you.” (Deu_32:30.) Accordingly, as he struck such terror into the Canaanites, that at the sight of the Israelites they immediately fled, so he punished the ingratitude of the people in such a manner that they had no power to resist. Thus the Lord gave a display of his power in two ways, both in driving out the Canaanites and in punishing his people. The Prophet, therefore, by mentioning that ancient kindness, reproaches the people with ingratitude, forgetfulness, and treachery, that they may acknowledge that they are justly punished, and may perceive that it proceeds from the Lord, that they are thus chased by the enemies to whom they were formerly a terror. 10 You have forgotten God your Savior; you have not remembered the Rock, your fortress. Therefore, though you set out the finest plants and plant imported vines, 1.BARNES, “Because thou ... - Because the kingdom of Israel or Samaria had done it. The God of thy salvation - The God in whom alone was salvation; or who alone could protect thee (compare Mic_7:7; Hos_2:15). The rock of thy strength - God. A rock of strength is a strongly fortified place; or a rock which an enemy could not successfully assail. High rocks were selected as a place of refuge from an invading foe (see the notes at Isa_1:10, Isa_1:21). In allusion to this, God is often called “a Rock,” and a strong tower Deu_32:4, Deu_32:15, Deu_32:18, Deu_32:30-31, Deu_32:37; 1Sa_2:2; 2Sa_22:2-3, 2Sa_22:32; Psa_18:31, Psa_18:46; Psa_19:14; Psa_28:1; Psa_30:1-2. Shalt thou plant pleasant plants - Plants that are suited to produce pleasure or delight; that is, you shall cultivate your fields, and set them out with choice vines and plants in hope of a future harvest, but you shall be disappointed. And shall set it with strange slips - The word ‘slips’ means the “cuttings” of the vine that are set in the ground to grow; or the shoot or sucker that is taken off and “set out,” or put in the earth to take root and grow, as is often done by farmers and gardeners. The word ‘strange’ here means “foreign,” those which are procured from a distance, and which are, therefore, esteemed valuable; plants selected with care. This does not mean, as Lowth supposes, strange and idolatrous worship, and the vicious practices connected with it; but it means that, though they
- 37. should be atgreat pains and expense in cultivating their land, yet the enemy would come in and make it desolate. 2. CLARKE, “Strange slips “Shoots from a foreign soil” - The pleasant plants, and shoots from a foreign soil, are allegorical expressions for strange and idolatrous worship; vicious and abominable practices connected with it; reliance on human aid, and on alliances entered into with the neighboring nations, especially Egypt; to all which the Israelites were greatly addicted, and in their expectations from which they should be grievously disappointed. 3. GILL, “Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation,.... Who had been the author of salvation to them many a time, in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in various instances since; and yet they had forgot his works of mercy and goodness, and had left his worship, and gone after idols; and this was the cause of their cities being forsaken, and becoming a desolation: and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength; or strong Rock, who had supplied and supported them, protected and defended them: therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants; or "plants of pleasant fruit" (s), or "plants of Naamanim"; and so Aben Ezra takes it to be the proper name of a plant in the Arabic language, and which he says is a plant that grows very quick; perhaps he means "Anemone", which is so called in that language (t), and is near to it in sound; though rather, not any particular plant is meant, but all sorts of pleasant plants, flowers, and fruit trees, with which the land of Israel abounded: and shall set it with strange slips; with foreign ones, such as are brought from other countries, and are scarce and dear, and highly valued; and by "plants" and "slips" may be meant false and foreign doctrines, inculcating idolatry and superstition, which are pleasing to the flesh (u). 4. HENRY, “That the country should be laid waste, Isa_17:10, Isa_17:11. Observe here, (1.) The sin that had provoked God to bring so great a destruction upon that pleasant land. It was for the iniquity of those that dwelt therein. “It is because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation and all the great salvations he has wrought for thee, hast forgotten thy dependence upon him and obligations to him, and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength, not only who is himself a strong rock, but who has been thy strength many a time, or thou wouldst have been sunk and broken long since.” Note, The God of our salvation is the rock of our strength; and our forgetfulness and unmindfulness of him are at the bottom of all sin. Therefore have we perverted our way, because we have forgotten the Lord our God, and so we undo ourselves. (2.) The destruction itself, aggravated by the great care they took to improve their land and to make it yet more pleasant. [1.] Look upon it at the time of the seedness, and it was all like a garden and a vineyard; that pleasant land was replenished with pleasant plants, the choicest of its own growth; nay, so nice and curious were the inhabitants that, not content with them, they sent to all the neighbouring countries for strange slips, the more valuable for being strange, uncommon, far-fetched, and dear-bought, though perhaps they had of their own not inferior to
- 38. them. This wasan instance of their pride and vanity, and (that ruining error) their affection to be like the nations. Wheat, and honey, and oil were their staple commodities (Eze_27:17); but, not content with these, they must have flowers and greens with strange names imported from other nations, and a great deal of care and pains must be taken by hot-beds to make these plants to grow; the soil must be forced, and they must be covered with glasses to shelter them, and early in the morning the gardeners must be up to make the seed to flourish, that it may excel those of their neighbours. The ornaments of nature are not to be altogether slighted, but it is a folly to be over-fond of them, and to bestow more time, and cost, and pains about them than they deserve, as many do. But here this instance seems to be put in general for their great industry in cultivating their ground, and their expectations from it accordingly; they doubt not but their plants will grow and flourish. But, [2.] Look upon the same ground at the time of harvest, and it is all like a wilderness, a dismal melancholy place, even to the spectators, much more to the owners; for the harvest shall be a heap, all in confusion, in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow. The harvest used to be a time of joy, of singing and shouting (Isa_16:10); but this harvest the hungry eat up (Job_5:5), which makes it a day of grief, and the more because the plants were pleasant and costly (Isa_17:10) and their expectations proportionably raised. The harvest had sometimes been a day of grief, if the crop was thin and the weather unseasonable; and yet in that case there was hope that the next would be better. But this shall be desperate sorrow, for they shall see not only this year's products carried off, but the property of the ground altered and their conquerors lords of it. The margin reads it, The harvest shall be removed (into the enemy's country or camp, Deu_28:33) in the day of inheritance (when thou thoughtest to inherit it), and there shall be deadly sorrow. This is a good reason why we should not lay up our treasure in those things which we may so quickly be despoiled of, but in that good part which shall never be taken away from us. 5. JAMISON, “forgotten ... God of ... salvation ... rock — (Deu_32:15, Deu_32:18). plants — rather, “nursery grounds,” “pleasure-grounds” [Maurer]. set in — rather, “set them,” the pleasure-grounds. strange slips — cuttings of plants from far, and therefore valuable. 6. BI, “Forgetfulness of God punished I. THE MAGNITUDE OF THE SIN HERE SPOKEN OF. Forgetfulness of God. 1. What is this forgetfulness of God? It has been defined as “such a habitual inattention to His existence and character, as leads the individual under its influence to a mode of thinking, feeling, and acting, which would be consistent only on the supposition that there were no God, or that God is a very different Being from what the Scriptures represent Him to be.” 2. It is a startling sin. Everything around us is designed and fitted to remind us of God. The Bible unfolds the moral character of God. Sharp dispensations of providence remind us of His existence. Preachers enforce His claims. Each returning Sabbath, with its closed shutters, the sound of the church going bell, and the voice of praise from the lips of the pious, says, Worship God. But many would rather think about anything, or nothing, than about God.
- 39. 3. It isa fearfully prevalent sin. 4. It is an ungrateful sin (Isa_1:2-3). 5. It is a highly punishable sin. Many people imagine that none are sinners but those who openly sin. But what of the moral man, who does his duty towards his fellow men, but who forgets God? II. THE RESULTS OF THIS FORGETFULNESS OF GOD. 1. Dwarfed powers. Men cannot, if they wish, be totally inactive. If activity be not devoted to God, it will be devoted to the world, to “planting pleasant plants.” 2. Secular knowledge is a pleasant plant. 3. Wealth is a pleasant plant. 4. Ambition is a pleasant plant. 5. Amusement is a pleasant plant. 6. Hence observe the ultimate result of this conduct. “The harvest shall be a heap,” etc. Sooner or later men reap what they sow. Sin and suffering are bound together by an unbreakable chain. “The gods are just,” says Shakespeare, “and of our pleasant vices make instruments to scourge us.” Gal_6:7-8.) Men break God’s physical laws, and they suffer in their bodies and circumstances. They violate His moral laws, and personal debasement ensues. George Eliot says, “That is the bitterest of all—to wear the yoke of our own wrong- doing.” (H. Woodcock.) Evils of forgetting God I. FORGETFULNESS OF GOD IS AN EVIL WHICH TOO GENERALLY PREVAILS AMONG MEN. The text does not so much charge with positive wickedness (though it is implied) as forgetfulness of God, which supposes folly, because He is the God of salvation, and the Rock of strength. Consider these relations— 1. The God of thy salvation. (1) He is infinitely able to save His creatures, whether the salvation required be temporal, spiritual, or eternal. (2) He is always willing to save them. How inexcusable is maul How criminal to forget, to be unmindful of Him! 2. The Rock of thy strength. Here we may build, and the fabric will never be shaken. Here we may shelter, as in the cleft of a rock, and no evil shall prevail against us. For so helpless and weak a creature as man to have such a refuge, such a support, and to be unmindful of it, how great is his folly! But when may we be said to forget, and to be unmindful of God? When we live without thinking of Him—without praying to Him—without seeking His glory—without surrendering our souls, bodies, and all our cares into His hands. II. THE ATTENTION THUS DRAWN FROM GOD AND HIS SERVICE IS TRANSFERRED TO WORLDLY AND SENSUAL PLEASURES. The soul of man in this case strives to supply its want of happiness from the world: “therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants.” Infinitely varied are the objects of the attention or culture of men, but they all proceed from the above principle, or rather have the same end in view. Some seek their pleasure in learning, others in the arts, riches, honours, employments, amusements. But they are “strange slips,” not natural, not designed to
- 40. answer the intendedpurpose. The sons of men are determined to prove what the world can do for them. “In the day THE CONSEQUENCES OF SUCH CONDUCT. “The harvest shall be a heap,” etc. (J. Walker, D. D.) Prosperity in the seeming only These occasional sun gleams may foretoken the thunderstorm. God can mock, God can lead the bullock to the knife by the way of a fat pasture. There is, therefore, a promise here, but the promise is limited. You shall have mushroom growths, you shall see wonderful things within the span of a single day; but what shall the harvest be? The meaning is, we may be infatuated by appearances, by immediate successes, by flowers and strange slips growing up within the compass of one little day. (J. Parker, D. D.) God’s righteousness in His dealings with men Happily, this is only one aspect of the Divine government; we are entitled to reverse this text, and say, Because thou hast remembered the God of thy salvation, and hast been mindful of the Rock of thy strength, therefore shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses burst out with new wine. Thou hast not withheld from God the gladness and the service of thine heart, and He will not withhold from thee the music and the rapture and the abundance of harvest.. The way of the Lord is equal. (J. Parker, D. D.) Pleasant plants and strange slips They made for themselves all kinds of sensuous cults in conformity with their heathen inclination. (F. Delitzsch.) The temporary success of an evil alliance The foreign slip has shot up like a hothouse plant, i.e., the alliance has rapidly become a happy agreement, and has also already shot forth a blossom, which is the common plan directed against Judah. (F. Delitzsch.) Lives of disappointment The world is full of people who are engaged in planting their slips. Fortunes, luxurious homes, great reputations—such are some of the slips; but what disappointment succeeds—“desperate sorrow.” The egg turns cue to be rottenness; the fair landscape a Sahara, from which the mirage is gone; the beautiful globe of changing colour, only a drop of dirty soap and water. We remember the story of Faust, who sold himself to Satan, but the day of bitter reaping came. We remember the cry of Byron over his wasted years; of Laurence Oliphant, the bright versatile son of Piccadilly, who in his varied career had tasted life in many of its brightest aspects; of Solomon, whose Ecclesiastes is one long record of slip planting. Nothing less than God, our Maker, can suffice the souls which He has made. Apart from Him life may at first promise well, but the end, inevitably, will be desperate sorrow. (P. B. Meyer, B. A.)
- 41. The harvest shallbe a heap The harvest of sorrow A harvest field is a suggestive place. I. TO EVERY LIFE THERE IS A HARVEST, EITHER OF JOY OR OF SORROW. Life on earth is introductory and probationary. It is but the seed time for eternity. All our actions, words, thoughts, have a bearing upon the future. God is our moral Governor, as well as our loving Father. We are, therefore, accountable to Him for the disposal of every moment of our existence. Belonging to a depraved and fallen race, we are necessarily sinners; but this has been provided for. To every life there is a harvest. When? Sometimes in this world. Both the righteous and the wicked reap on earth to a certain degree that which they have sown. But still it is most strictly true that the great and final harvest commences when life on earth terminates and life in eternity begins. This great fact invests life with unspeakable grandeur. Every day and hour we are preparing for the realities of eternity. This should moderate our expectations concerning the present life. That which is probationary is necessarily incomplete. We should, therefore, expect trials and disappointments. II. THE HARVEST OF SORROW MAY, IN EVERY CASE, BE TRACED TO ONE GREAT CAUSE—forgetfulness of God. The ruin of the Ten Tribes is traced to this (Isa_17:10-11). Jeremiah brings the same charge against them Jer_2:12-13). Hosea also says (Hos_8:14), “For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples.” At first, it seems impossible that they could ever have done this. Had they not the history of the great and eventful past? Did they not know they were depending on Him for everything they enjoyed? Surely, those who had such a God should never have forgotten Him. The fact stated in the text is one of deep significance. It shows us the desperate wickedness of the human heart. The Israelites were so estranged from Jehovah that they acted as though He did not exist. It is so in every such case. Forgetfulness of God always leads to this terrible result. No one can be unmindful of Him with impunity. Forgetfulness of God produces in the heart such feelings and induces men to follow such a line of conduct, that their lives must be a failure. It is, however, worthy of notice, that these persons are as anxious to be happy during life, and at its end, as any of their fellows. They do not resign themselves to despair. On the contrary, they fancy that all is well. Their hearts beat high with hope. True, they have not the help and protection which the Lord’s people enjoy, but they do all they can to supply its place. The people of Israel did all they could to make their position a strong one. They made an alliance with Syria, and thought, with her help, they would be able to overcome their foes. So men in the present day, who forget God, avail themselves of the dictates of worldly prudence. In the day they make their plant to grow, and in the evening they make their seed to flourish. Here we have an affecting description of the anxiety and feverish effort of the men that know not God. We may plant pleasant plants, we may set strange slips, but they will not compensate us for the absence of the plants of righteousness. He who forgets the God of his salvation, and is unmindful of the Rock of his strength, must be without His favour, and at last must reap a harvest of grief and desperate sorrow. III. THE HARVEST OF SORROW INVOLVES THE SOUL IN UTTER AND IRREMEDIABLE RUIN. It is no slight matter—it is the loss of all things or the failure of every effort—the disappointment of every hope, the destruction of every joy, the development and perpetuation of every sorrow. The language of the prophet is very striking. The common idea of harvest is that of a joyous nature. But here we have an idea of the very opposite character. The harvest is a heap. There is no golden grain worthy of being housed in everlasting habitations. The soul sees with amazement that all her efforts have been fruitless, and cries, “Is this all; has my life on earth produced nothing more than this?” And the answer is, “Nothing more; and that which it has produced is only fit for the burning.” (H. B.Ingram.)
- 42. God’s love inthe deprivations of life There is only one way of getting at some men. Once we could have appealed to their higher nature; once they were subject to the pleasure and the eloquence of reason; once they had a conscience tender, sensitive, responsive; now they are spiritually dead, no conscience, no reason, no unselfishness; the whole nature has gone down in volume and in quality into a terrible emaciation: what shall be done? Smite their harvest! then like beasts they will miss their food. God does not delight in this; it is the poorest violence, it is the feeblest department of His providence; but He knows that it is the only providence some men can understand. (J. Parker, D. D.) Reclamation by punishment God got you back to the Church through inflammation, through fever, through paralysis, through pain, through loss, through desolation; you came back over the graveyard. No matter, said God; when He got you into His house again He said, This My son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. It is in the reclamation, not in the punishment, that God takes pleasure. (J. Parker, D. D.) 7. PULPIT, “Because thou hast forgotten; rather, because thou didst forget. The late repentance of a "remnant" which "looked to their Maker" (Isa_17:7) could not cancel the long catalogue of former sins (2Ki_17:8-17), foremost among which was their rejection of God, or, at any rate, their complete forgetfulness of his claims upon them.The Rock of thy strength. God is first called "a Rock" in Deu_32:4, Deu_32:15, Deu_32:18, Deu_32:30, Deu_32:31. The image is caught up by the psalmists (2Sa_22:2, 2Sa_22:32, 2Sa_22:47; 2Sa_23:3; Psa_16:1, Psa_16:2, 31, 46; Psa_19:14; Psa_28:1, etc.), and from them passes to Isaiah (see, besides the present passage, Isa_26:4; Isa_30:29; and Isa_44:8). Among the later prophets only Habakkuk uses it (Hab_1:12). Israel, instead of looking to this "Rock," had looked to their rock-fortresses (verse 9). Therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants; rather, dost thou plant, or hast thou planted. Forgetfulness of Jehovah has led to the adoption of a voluptuous religion— one of debased foreign rites. There is possibly, as Mr. Cheyne thinks, a special reference to the cult of Adonis. Shall set it; rather, settest it, or hast set it. "It" must refer to "field" or "garden" understood. The later Israelite religion has been a sort of pleasant garden, planted with exotic slips from various quarters— Phoenicia, Syria, Moab, etc. It has been thought permissible to introduce into it any new cult that took the fancy. Hence the multiplication of altars complained of by Hosea (Hos_8:11; Hos_10:1; Hos_12:11).
- 43. 8. CALVIN, “10.Becausethou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation. He shews the reason why the Lord exercises such severity against the Ten Tribes, that they may not complain of being unjustly afflicted or too harshly treated. The sum of what is stated is, that all those evils come to them because they have wickedly despised God. It was excessively base and altogether inexcusable ingratitude, after having received so many favors, to prostitute their hopes to heathen nations and to idols, as if they had never in any respect experienced the love of God. Indeed, no unbelievers, when they are called to account, will vindicate themselves from the charge of offering an insult to God by wandering after creatures. But the argument was applicable, in a special manner, to the people of Israel, to whom God had revealed himself in such a manner that they ought to have left off all the impostures of the world and relied on his grace alone. They are therefore justly accused of ingratitude, for having buried in forgetfulness the object of true faith; and indeed, when God has once allowed us to taste the delight of his goodness, if it gain a place in our hearts, we shall never be drawn away from it to anything else. Hence it follows that they are convicted of ingratitude who, not being satisfied with the true God, are unsteady and driven about in all directions; for in this manner they despise his invaluable grace. Accordingly, the Prophet expressly calls him the God of salvation and the God or Rock of strength צור (tsū) has both significations; for it was a monstrous thing that they were not kept in fidelity to God, who had so often preserved them, and, as it were, with an outstretched hand. When he adds that they had not been mindful,this is an amplification; for he indirectly charges them with base slothfulness in not considering in how many ways they had formerly been made to know the kindness of God. Therefore thou shalt plant. Next follows the punishment, that they might not think that this ingratitude would remain unpunished. That is, because they forsook the fountain of all good, though they labor to obtain food, yet they will be consumed by famine and hunger; for all that shall be obtained with great labor the enemy will either carry away or destroy. This passage is taken from Moses; for it is a curse pronounced amidst other curses. “ fruit of thy land, and all thy labors, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up.” (Deu_28:33). Hence we see what I have often mentioned before, that the prophets borrow many things from Moses, and are the true interpreters of the law. He speaks of choice vines and branches taken from them; because the greatness of the loss aggravates the sorrow. 8. MACLAREN, “THE HARVEST OF A GODLESS LIFE
- 44. The original applicationof these words is to Judah’s alliance with Damascus, which Isaiah was dead against. He saw that it would only precipitate the Assyrian invasion, as in fact it did. Judah had forsaken God, and because they had done so, they had gone to seek for themselves delights- alliance with Damascus. The image of planting a garden of pleasures, and ‘vine slips of a stranger’ refers to sensuous idolatry as well as to the entangling alliance. Then follows a contemptuous description of the rapid growth of this alliance and of the care with which Israel cultivated it. ‘In a day thou makest thy plant to grow’ (or fencest it), and next morning it was in blossom, so sedulously had they nursed and fostered it. Then comes the smiting contrast of what it was all for-’A harvest heap in the day of sickness and incurable pain.’ Now we may take this in a more general way as containing large truths which affect the life of every one of us. I. The Sin of a Godless Life. (a) Notice the Sin charged. It is merely negative-forgettest. There is no charge of positive hostility or of any overt act. This forgetfulness is most natural and easy to be fallen into. The constant pressure of the world. It indicates alienation of heart from God. It is most common among us, far more so than active infidelity, far more so than gross sin, far more so than conscious hostility. (b) The implied Criminality of it. He is the ‘Rock of thy strength’ and the ‘God of thy salvation.’ Rock is the grand Old Testament name of God, expressing in a pregnant metaphor both what He is in Himself and what in relation to those who trust Him. It speaks of stability, elevation, massiveness, and of defence and security. The parallel title sets Him forth as the Giver of salvation; and both names set in clear light the sinful ingratitude of forgetting God, and force home the question: ‘Do ye thus requite the Lord, oh foolish people and unwise?’ (c) The implied Absurdity of it. What a contrast between the safe ‘munitions of rocks’ and the unsheltered security of these Damascene gardens! What fools to leave the heights and come down into the plain! Think of the contrast between the sufficiency of God and the emptiness of the substitutes. Forgetfulness of Him and preference of creatures cannot be put into language which does not convict it of absurdity. II. The Busy Effort and Apparent Success of a Godless Life. (a) If a man loses his hold on God and has not Him to stay himself on, he is driven to painful efforts to make up the loss. God is needed by every soul. If the soul is not satisfied in Him, then there are hungry desires. This is the explanation of the feverish activity of much of our life. (b) Such work is far harder than the work of serving God. It takes a great deal of toil to make that garden grow. The world is a hard taskmaster. God’s service is easy. He sets us in Eden to till and dress it, but when we forget Him, the ground is cursed, and bears thorns and thistles, and sweat drips from our brows. Men take more pains to damn themselves than to save themselves. There is nothing more wearying than the pursuit of pleasure. ‘Pleasant plants’-that is a hopeless kind of gardening. There is nothing more degrading. ‘Ye lust and desire to have,’-what a contrast is in, Ask and have! We might live even as the lilies or the ravens, or with only this difference, that we laboured, but were as uncaring and as peaceful as they. God is given. The world has to be bought. Its terms are ‘Nothing for nothing.’
- 45. (c) Such workhas sometimes quick, present success. ‘In the day.’ It is hard for men to labour towards far-off unseen good. We like to have what will grow up in a night, like Jonah’s gourd. So these present satisfactions in a worldly life appeal to worldly, sensuous natures. And it is hard to set over against these a plant which grows slowly, and only bears fruit in the next world. III. The End of it all. ‘A harvest heap in the day of grief.’ This clearly points on to a solemn ending-the day of judgment. (a) How poor the fruit will he that a God-forgetting man will take out of life! There is but one heap from all the long struggle. He has ‘sowed much and brought home little.’ What shall we take with us out of our busy years as their net result? A very small sack will be large enough to hold the harvest that many of us have reaped. (b) All this God-forgetting life of pleasure-seeking and idolatry is bringing on a terrible, inevitable consummation. ‘Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe.’ No doubt there is often a harvest of grief and desperate sorrow springing, even in this life, from forgetting God. For it is only they who set their hopes on Him that are never disappointed, and only they who have chosen Him for their portion who can always say, ‘I have a goodly heritage.’ But the real harvest is not reaped till death has separated the time of sowing from that of ingathering. The sower shall reap; i.e. every man shall inherit the consequences of his deeds. ‘They that have planted it shall eat it.’ (c) That harvest home will be a day of sadness to some. These are terrible words-’grief and desperate sorrow,’ or ‘pain and incurable sickness.’ We dare not dilate on this. But if we trust in Christ and sow to the Spirit, we shall then ‘rejoice before God as with the joy of harvest,’ and ‘return with joy, bringing our sheaves with us.’ 11 though on the day you set them out, you make them grow, and on the morning when you plant them, you bring them to bud, yet the harvest will be as nothing in the day of disease and incurable pain.
- 46. 1.BARNES, “In theday ... - Thou shalt cultivate it assiduously and constantly. Thou shalt be at special pains that it may be watered and pruned, in order that it may produce abundantly. And in the morning - With early care and attention - denoting the pains that would be bestowed on the young plant. The harvest shall be a heap - The margin reads this, ‘the harvest shall be removed in the day of inheritance, rendering it as if the word נד ned usually meaning a heap, were derived from נוד nud, to shake, move, wander; or, as if it were to be removed. Probably the translation in the text is correct; and the sense is, ‘When from the plant which was so beautiful and valuable, and which you cherished with so much care, you expected to obtain a rich harvest, you had only sorrow and inexpressible disappointment.’ The figure used here is supposed by Rosenmuller to be that of hendiadys (ᅟν διᆭ δυοሏν hen dia duoin)by which the phrases ‘shall be an heap,’ and ‘desperate sorrow,’ are to be taken together, meaning ‘the heap of the harvest shall be inexpressible sorrow.’ In the day of grief - The word rendered ‘grief’ here (נחלה nachalah) means, properly, “inheritance, heirship, possession,” and should have been so rendered here. It means that in the day when they “hoped” to possess the result of their planting, or in the time of the usual harvest, they would obtain only grief and disappointment. And desperate sorrow - The word rendered ‘desperate’ (אנשׁ 'anash), denotes that which is “weak, mortal, incurable” Job_34:6; Jer_17:16; Jer_30:12, Jer_30:15. The sense here is, that there would be grievous disappointment, and that there would be no remedy for it; and the idea of the whole is, that calamities were coming upon the nation which would blast all their hopes, and destroy all their prospects. The prophecy was fulfilled in the invasion by Tiglath-pileser, and the army of the Assyrians. The twelfth verse commences a new prophecy, which has no connection with that which precedes it; and which in itself gives no certain indication of the time when it was uttered, or of the people to which it relates. It is a broken and detached piece, and is evidently the description of some army rushing to conquest, and confident of success, but which was to be overtaken with sudden calamity. The entire description is so applicable to the invasion of the land of Judah by the army of Sennacherib, and his overthrow by the angel of Yahweh, that by the common consent of interpreters it has been regarded as referring to it (see the notes at Isa. 10). But when it was spoken, or why it was placed here, is unknown. It may be added that many commentators, and, among the rest, Gesenius, have supposed that the following chapter is a part of this prophecy. The general sense of the prophecy is, that numerous hostile nations would overrun Palestine, but that Yahweh would destroy them all. 2. PULPIT, “In the day; or, in a day (Kay). Shalt thou make; rather, thou makest. Each new slip that is planted is forced to take root and grow and flourish at once; the next morning it is expected to have formed its seed and reached perfection. So the harvest is hurried on; but when it is reached, the day of visitation has arrived—a day of grief and of desperate sorrow.
- 47. 3. GILL, “Inthe day shall thou make thy plant to grow,.... Not that it is in the power of man to make it grow; but the sense is, that all means and methods should be used to make it grow, no cost nor pains should be spared: and in the morning shall thou make thy seed to flourish; which may denote both diligence in the early care of it, and seeming promising success; and yet all should be in vain, and to no purpose: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief; or "of inheritance"; when it was about to be possessed and enjoyed, according to expectation, it shall be all thrown together in a heap, and be spoiled by the enemy: or, "the harvest" shall be "removed in the day of inheritance" (w); just when the fruit is ripe, and going to be gathered in, the enemy shall come and take it all away; and so, instead of being a time of joy, as harvest usually is, it will be a time of grief and trouble, and of desperate sorrow too, or "deadly"; which will leave them in despair, without hope of subsistence for the present year, or of having another harvest hereafter, the land coming into the hands of their enemies. 4. PULPIT, “Forgetfulness of God and its consequences. I. GOD AS AN OBJECT OF THE SOUL'S ATTENTION. He is the "God of men's salvation." His Name calls up all those ideas of power, of grace, of goodness, necessary to the Deliverer, the Savior. To acknowledge that such a Being exists is not enough; the eye of the spirit must be turned to him, its gaze fixed upon him, its ear bent towards the place of his holy oracle. Micah says in evil times, "I will look unto Jehovah; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me." To think of God in his moral relations to us brings confidence and security to the heart. And hence the expressive image of the Rock on which the fortress stands, as symbolic of him, so frequently employed in Scripture (Deu_32:4, Deu_32:15, Deu_32:18, Deu_32:30, Deu_32:31, Deu_32:37; 1Sa_2:2; 2Sa_22:2, 2Sa_22:3, 2Sa_22:32; Psa_18:31, Psa_18:46; Psa_19:14; Psa_28:1; Psa_30:1, Psa_30:2). How much depends in our intellectual life on attraction—the grasp of objects, the remembrance of what they are, the firm hold of principles and truths I Impressions are made upon us as in wax or in running water, without this tension of the will. And how in various ways does Scripture press upon us the need of attention in religious things! "Earnestly give heed," "Remember," "Be mindful," "Look unto the Lord," etc; are all exhortations implying the need of prayer and habitual direction of the spirit to higher things. There can be no clear memory and no confident expectation where the mind has been lax and listless. II. CONSEQUENCES OF FORGETTING GOD. Ephraim, turning away from its true rocky stronghold in Jehovah, will see its own castles lie in ruin and desolation. The estrangement from God is marked by indulgence in pleasure and idolatry. The people planted pleasant gardens, and sowed them with strange grapes; i.e.formed an alliance with a stranger, the King of Damascus. And these new institutions were
- 48. carefully fenced, i.e.apparently they were established as a state religion. "And the very next morning he had brought into blossom what he had sown. The foreign layer had shot up like a hot-house plant, i.e. the alliance had speedily grown into a hearty agreement, and had already produced one blossom at any rate, viz. the plan of a joint attack upon Judah. But this plantation, so flattering and promising for Israel, and which had succeeded so rapidly, and to all appearance so happily, was a harvest heap for the day of judgment." The closing words of this strophe are impressive: "The day of grief and desperate sorrow;" or, "The day of deep wounds and deadly sorrow of heat." Let us fix on these words. Let us forget Ephraim for the moment, and think of the individual, think of ourselves. The words hint at remorse, which has been called "the echo of a lost virtue." It will come upon all of us in so far as, remembering many things not to be neglected, self-interest, duty to family, Church, country, we have yet forgotten the one thing needful— have not brought all our life's concerns into that unity which reference to the Supreme Will imparts. Life should be direct and simple; a simple piety can only render it so. There may be mindfulness about many things, distracting us from the central interest. How can it avail us to have remembered to be prudent, to have regarded public opinion, to have taken care to be with the majority, to swim with the stream, and in the end we find that this has been a turning of the back on God, and so an illusion, a misconception of life? For if God be remembered, nothing important will be forgotten; if he be forgotten, nothing is truly seen—attention is beguiled by fantasy, and life becomes the pursuit of a dream.—J. 5. JAMISON, “In the day ... thy plant — rather, “In the day of thy planting” [Horsley]. shalt ... make ... grow — Maurer translates, “Thou didst fence it,” namely, the pleasure- ground. The parallel clause, “Make ... flourish,” favors English Version. As soon as thou plantest, it grows. in the morning — that is, immediately after; so in Psa_90:14, the Hebrew, “in the morning,” is translated “early.” but ... shall be a heap — rather, “but (promising as was the prospect) the harvest is gone” [Horsley]. in ... day of grief — rather, “in the day of (expected) possession” [Maurer]. “In the day of inundation” [Horsley]. of desperate sorrow — rather, “And the sorrow shall be desperate or irremediable.” In English Version “heap” and “sorrow” may be taken together by hendiadys. “The heap of the harvest shall be desperate sorrow” [Rosenmuller]. 6. PULPIT, “The sin and doom of ungodliness. We learn— I. THAT GOD IS WRONGED AND GRIEVED BY OUR NEGLECT OF HIMSELF AS WELL AS BY OUR
- 49. DISOBEDIENCE TO HISLAWS. Men sometimes mistakenly suppose that their sin is limited by the number of their transgressions of God's positive enactments. They make a very serious mistake in so judging. Great guilt, indeed, is contracted by the breach of Divine commandment, by setting at defiance the "Thou shalt not" of sacred Scripture. But our obligation strikes deeper far, and, when we flail, our sin includes immeasurably more than this. God deserves, and he desires, and he even demands, that we, his human children, should render to him, himself, all that filial love and fellowship which is due from such beloved and enriched ones to such a gracious and bountiful Father. His charge against us is not merely that we have done numbers of things which he has prohibited; it is that we have lived on through days, weeks, months, years, through whole periods and stages of our life, and have forgotten him, the God of our salvation, have not been mindful of him, the Rock of our strength; it is that we have taken blessings and deliverances from his strong, redeeming hand, and have been content to spend our days in ungodliness, withholding the gratitude, the affection, the submission, the willing and joyous service which a relationship so near as is ours to him, and which benefits so great as are his to us, do emphatically demand. The simple and true answer to the question, "What have we failed to render to our redeeming and our beneficent God?" should cover us with shame and send us to our knees in penitence. II. THAT AN UNGODLY LIFE IS NOT ONLY A PROLONGED INIQUITY, BUT IS ALSO A SUPREME MI STAKE. "Because thou hast forgotten therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants but the harvest shall be a heap," etc. The mistake of ungodliness is seen in that: 1. It leaves out and loses all the real nobility from human life—all that which raises man's nature above the brutes, and connects it with the angelic and Divine. 2. It includes only that which is absolutely insufficient and unsatisfactory. It supplies treasures which the thief can steal, joys which pall and perish, friendships which linger only for a few passing years. It has nothing which fills and satisfies the human soul, made, as that is made, for heavenly wisdom, for holy service, for the worship and the love of God. Its harvest is only a heap of husks, and not the granary of life-sustaining corn. 3. It makes no provision for the time of trial—for "the day of grief and of desperate sorrow," for the day of death, for the day of judgment.—C. 7.CALVIN, “11.In the day. This denotes the incessant labor which is bestowed on plants and seeds. Yet we might understand by it the fruit which is yielded, as if a vine newly planted would immediately produce wine. And this agrees with the next clause, in which the morning is put for the day. This appears to denote sudden maturity, unless perhaps this also be supposed to denote carefulness, because from
- 50. the very earliestdawn they will devote themselves to labor. The words are somewhat ambiguous; for some render them, “ removing of the branch on the day of affliction.” But as נחלח (năăā) means “ inheritance,” here, in my opinion, it literally denotes produce. It is not derived from חלה (chāā) and I do not see how the word “” agrees with it. I grant, indeed, that as vines are mentioned, the word Harvest is employed ( καταχρηστικῶς) differently from its natural meaning. It might also be rendered a Collector; and yet I do not choose to dispute keenly about those two significations, for the meaning will be the same, provided that נחלח (nāăā) be understood to denote “ gathering of the fruits.” In this way the passage will flow easily enough. “ you labor hard in dressing the vines, and though you begin your toil at the earliest dawn, you will gain nothing; for by the mere shaking of the branches the fruit will fall off of its own accord, or your vines will be plundered.” Thus, by a figure of speech in which a part is taken for the whole, the word plant denotes that unwearied toil which husbandmen and vine-dressers are wont to bestow on plants and vines. This is a very severe punishment, and undoubtedly proceeds from the curse of God; for if he who has no possession be driven out and banished from a country, he will not be rendered so uneasy as the man who has well cultivated fields, and particularly if he has bestowed his labor on them for a long time. In this manner the Lord determined to punish the Israelites, because they abused the fertility of the country and grew wanton amidst their abundance. A similar punishment is also threatened against the wicked in general terms, that “ vain do they rise early, and vex themselves with unremitted toil;” for they gain nothing by it. (Psa_127:2). On the other hand, it is declared that they who trust in the Lord will undoubtedly receive the reward of their toil, for the blessing of God will accompany their labors. (Psa_128:2). 12 Woe to the many nations that rage— they rage like the raging sea! Woe to the peoples who roar— they roar like the roaring of great waters!
- 51. 1.BARNES, “Wo tothe multitude ... - The word ‘woe’ (הוי hoy) may be either an interjection simply directing the attention to them, or it may be a word indicating approaching calamity and judgment (see the note at Isa_5:6). Gesenius supposes that it is rather the language of compassion, on account of the evil which they threatened to bring upon the people of God, like 1Ki_13:30, ‘Ah! wo, my brother!’ The multitude of many people - Or, the tumult of many nations - a description of the noise attending an invading army made up of many nations mingled together, such as was that of Sennacherib. Which make a noise ... - This is a beautiful description of a vast army, and of the shouting, the tumult, the din, which attends its march. The same comparison occurs in Jer_6:23; Psa_65:7 (see Eze_43:2; Rev_1:15; Rev_14:2; Rev_19:6). And to the rushing of nations - The rushing of mighty armies to conquest. 2. CLARKE, “Wo to the multitude - The three last verses of this chapter seem to have no relation to the foregoing prophecy, to which they are joined. It is a beautiful piece, standing singly and by itself; for neither has it any connection with what follows: whether it stands in its right place, or not, I cannot say. It is a noble description of the formidable invasion and the sudden overthrow of Sennacherib; which is intimated in the strongest terms and the most expressive images, exactly suitable to the event. Like the rushing of mighty waters! - Five words, three at the end of the twelfth verse, and two at the beginning of the thirteenth, are omitted in eight MSS., with the Syriac; that is, in effect, the repetition contained in the first line of Isa_17:13 in this translation, is not made. After having observed that it is equally easy to account for the omission of these words by a transcriber if they are genuine, or their insertion if they are not genuine, occasioned by his carrying his eye backwards to the word לאמים leammim, or forwards to ישאון yeshaon, I shall leave it to the reader’s judgment to determine whether they are genuine or not. Instead of כהמות cahamoth, “as the roaring,” five MSS. and the Vulgate have כהמון kehamon, “as the multitude.” 3. GILL, “Woe to the multitude of many people,..... Not as lamenting the people of the Jews with Hezekiah, as if they were the words of the prophet bemoaning their condition, saying, "O the multitude", &c. nor intending the Syrians and Israelites joined together against Judah; but the Assyrian army under Sennacherib, which consisted of people of many nations, and was very numerous, who are either threatened or called unto. A new subject is here begun, though a short one. which make a noise like the noise of the seas; in a storm, when they foam and rage, and overflow the banks; this may refer both to the noise made by the march of such a vast army, the rattling of their armour and chariot wheels, and prancing of their horses; and to the hectoring, blustering, and blasphemous speeches of Sennacherib and Rabshakeh: and to the rushing of nations, or "rushing nations",
- 52. that make arushing like the rushing of mighty, waters; which denotes the fury and force with which they come, threatening to bear down all before them, as an inundation of water does. 4. HENRY, “These verses read the doom of those that spoil and rob the people of God. If the Assyrians and Israelites invade and plunder Judah, if the Assyrian army take God's people captive and lay their country waste, let them know that ruin will be their lot and portion. They are here brought in, 1. Triumphing over the people of God. They relied upon their numbers. The Assyrian army was made up out of divers nations: it was the multitude of many people (Isa_17:12), by which weight they hoped to carry the cause. They were very noisy, like the roaring of the seas; they talked big, hectored, and threatened, to frighten God's people from resisting them, and all their allies from sending in to their aid. Sennacherib and Rabshakeh, in their speeches and letters, made a mighty noise to strike a terror upon Hezekiah and his people; the nations that followed them made a rushing like the rushing of many waters, and those mighty ones, that threaten to bear down all before them and carry away every thing that stands in their way. The floods have lifted up their voice, have lifted up their waves; such is the tumult of the people, and the heathen, when they rage, Psa_2:1; Psa_93:3. 2. Triumphed over by the judgments of God. They thought to carry their point by dint of noise; but woe to them (Isa_17:12), for he shall rebuke them, that is, God shall, one whom they little think of, have no regard to, stand in no awe of; he shall give them a check with an invisible hand, and then they shall flee afar off. Sennacherib, and Rabshakeh, and the remains of their forces, shall run away in a fright, and shall be chased by their own terrors, as the chaff of the mountains which stand bleak before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind, like thistle-down (so the margin); they make themselves as chaff before the wind (Psa_35:5) and then the angel of the Lord (as it follows there), the same angel that slew many of them, shall chase the rest. God will make them like a wheel, or rolling thing, and then persecute them with his tempest and make them afraid with his storm, Psa_83:13, Psa_83:15. Note, God can dispirit the enemies of his church when they are most courageous and confident, and dissipate them when they seem most closely consolidated. 5. JAMISON, “Isaiah 17:12-18:7. Sudden destruction of a great army in Judea (namely that of the Assyrian Sennacherib), and announcement of the event to the Ethiopian ambassadors. The connection of this fragment with what precedes is: notwithstanding the calamities coming on Israel, the people of God shall not be utterly destroyed (Isa_6:12, Isa_6:13); the Assyrian spoilers shall perish (Isa_17:13, Isa_17:14). Woe ... multitude — rather, “Hosea (Hark)! a noise of,” etc. The prophet in vision perceives the vast and mixed Assyrian hosts (Hebrew, “many peoples,” see on Isa_5:26): on the hills of Judah (so “mountains,” Isa_17:13): but at the “rebuke” of God, they shall “flee as chaff.” to the rushing ... that make — rather, “the roaring ... roareth” (compare Isa_8:7; Jer_6:23). 6. BI, “A short triumph These verses read the doom of those that spoil and rob the people of God. If the Syrians and Israelites invade and plunder Judah—if the Assyrian army take God’s people
- 53. captive, and laytheir countrywaste,—let them know that ruin will be their portion. They are here brought in— I. TRIUMPHING OVER THE PEOPLE OF GOD. They rely upon their numbers. They are very noisy, like the noise of the seas; they talk big, hector and threaten. II. TRIUMPHED OVER BY THE JUDGMENTS OF GOD. God can dispirit the enemies of His Church, when they are most courageous and confident, and dissipate them when they seem most closely consolidated. This shall be done suddenly (Isa_17:14). (M. Henry.) The punishment of the wicked I. THE STRIKING CONTRASTS WHICH THE DAY OF VISITATION REVEALS RESPECTING THE CONDUCT AND POSITION OF THE WICKED. Verse 12 shows us the vast and varied host in fancied security; we have a magnificent picture of a state of might, pomp, vainglory, self- confidence; but ere we reach the end of Isa_17:13, we see it scattered. We see the same contrast in everyday life; wicked men secure, strong, boastful—the next moment utterly cast down (Psa_73:18-20); or, by the near approach of death, transformed into the subjects of a pitiable despair. II. THE RESISTLESS EXECUTION OF THE SENTENCE OF DOOM. III. THE SWIFTNESS WITH WHICH THE SENTENCE OF DOOM IS EXECUTED (Isa_17:14). It is true that the punishment of the wicked often seems to be delayed (Ecc_8:11); but— 1. Sin and punishment are inseparable. 2. Whenever the punishment comes it is sudden. Such is the blinding and delusive power of cherished sin that its penalty always finds the sinner unprepared to receive it; it is always a surprise and a shock to him. Conclusion— (1) Nations and armies cannot successfully evade the penalties of their sins; how much less can the individual sinner do so! (2) The certainty of the punishment of all unrepented sin should lead us seriously to reflect upon the attitude we are assuming before God. (3) The subject should lead to repentance, but not to despair (Psa_130:7). (W. Manning.) 7. PULPIT, “Woe to the multitude of many people; rather, Ho for the tumult of many peoples! The advance of an army composed of soldiers from many nations is descried. They advance with noise and tumult—a tumult compared with that of "seas that are tumultuous." Under the circumstances of the time, it is reasonable to suppose the Assyrians to be intended (comp. Isa_22:6, Isa_22:7). The rushing sound of the advance is borne in strongly upon the prophet's mind, and made the subject of three consecutive clauses.
- 54. 8. CALVIN, “12.Alas(8) for the multitude! Some render Woe, making it to denote execration. Sometimes, as we have seen elsewhere, it is employed in calling to a person; but on the present occasion I rather think that it betokens sorrow, (9) for he groans on account of the calamity which he foresees will befall Israel, and he does so either out of brotherly affection, or in order that the prophecy may make a more powerful impression on the minds of a sluggish and indolent people. It is certain, that the prophets regarded with greater horror than other men the vengeance of God, of which they were the heralds; and although, in sustaining the character assigned to them, they threatened severely, still they never laid aside human feelings, so as not to have compassion on those who perished. But the chief reason was a consideration of the covenant which God had made with the seed of Abraham; and we see that Paul also had this feeling to such an extent, that he “ to be accursed for his brethren.” (Rom_9:3). When therefore Isaiah brings the fact before his mind, he cannot but be deeply affected with grief; and yet, as I have hinted, it tends to make the fact more certain, when he places it before his eyes as if he actually saw it. The word multitude is here employed, because the army had been collected out of many and various nations, of which the Assyrian monarchy was composed. The metaphors which he adds are intended for no other purpose than to exhibit more forcibly what has been already stated; for he compares them to a sea or a deluge, which overflows a whole country. 13 Although the peoples roar like the roar of surging waters, when he rebukes them they flee far away, driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweed before a gale. 1.BARNES, “God shall rebuke them - The word ‘God’ is not here in the original, but is evidently to be supplied. The word ‘rebuke’ means that he would disarrange their plans, prevent their success, and defeat their purposes. It shows the great power of God, that he can thus by a “rebuke” - a word - arrest mighty nations, and discomfit thom when they are tumultuously hastening onward in the confidence of victory. This discomfiture refers, doubtless, to the overthrow of Sennacherib and his army by the pestilence (2Ki_19:35; see the notes at Isa_37:36).
- 55. And they shallflee far off - The whole army of Sennacherib was not destroyed, but a part with himself returned to Assyria 2Ki_19:36. And shall be chased as the chaff ... - Denoting the case with which God would do it, and the certain and entire discomfiture of the army. The figure is one that is very striking in describing an army that is routed, and that flees in disorder (compare Job_21:18; Psa_1:4; Psa_35:5; Isa_29:5; Hos_13:3). And like a rolling thing - Margin, ‘Thistle-down.’ It means, literally, anything that “rolls” (גלגל galgal, from גלל galal, to roll). It is applied to chaff, stubble, or anything that is driven about by a whirlwind Psa_83:14. 2. PULPIT, “God shall rebuke them; literally, he shall rebuke them—he who alone can do so. There is no need to mention his name. They shall flee far off. The destruction of the great bulk of Sennacherib's army in the night was followed, as soon as morning came, by the hasty flight of the survivors (2Ki_19:36; Isa_37:37). And shall be chased. Herodotus says that the Egyptians pursued the army of Sennacherib and slew vast numbers (2:141). As the chaff of the mountains (comp. Hos_13:3). Threshing-floors were ordinarily placed upon eminences (2Sa_24:18; 2Ch_3:1), where the wind had freer course and consequently greater power. Like a rolling thing; or, like whirling dust (Kay). The word used commonly means "a wheel." 3. GILL, “The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters,.... With great force and noise, and run over the whole land, as the Assyrian army did, until it came to Jerusalem, and there it stopped; see Isa_8:7, but God shall rebuke them; as he did the waters of the Red Sea, Psa_106:9 and as Christ rebuked the winds and sea, and made a calm, Mat_8:26. The word "God" is not in the text, but rightly supplied; for as none but he can rebuke the mighty waters of the sea, so none but he could have destroyed such an army in the manner it was, and wrought such a salvation for his people. The phrase, is expressive both of his wrath and power. And they shall flee afar off; from Jerusalem to Nineveh, reckoned to be six hundred and eighty four miles from thence: or, "he shall flee afar off" (x); that is, Sennacherib, and the few that escaped with him, for, his army was destroyed; see 2Ki_19:36, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind; chaff upon the floor is easily chased away with the fan, and much more easily chaff upon the mountains with the wind; it was usual with the Jews to thresh their corn, and winnow it on hills and mountains, to which the allusion is; see 2Ch_3:1 or "the dust of the mountains", as some (y) render it, which is more exposed to the wind than that in the valleys. Kings and great men of the earth are but as dust with God; and the higher they are, or they exalt themselves, the more they are exposed to the power of his wrath, and as easily cast down as the dust is scattered by the wind: and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind; or "like a wheel" (z), as the word is sometimes rendered; or any round thing, as a round wisp of straw or stubble, which is easily and
- 56. swiftly moved androlled along, especially by a strong wind. Jarchi interprets it of the flower of thorns; that is, the down of the thistle, which, when blown off, rolls up, and, being exceeding light, is carried away at once; see Psa_83:13 all which shows what poor light things the greatest of men are in the hands of God, and with what ease he can chase them from place to place, and out of the world, when it is his pleasure. 4. , “ 5. JAMISON, “shall ... shall — rather, “God rebuketh (Psa_9:5) them, and they flee - are chased”; the event is set before the eyes as actually present, not future. chaff of ... mountains — Threshing floors in the East are in the open air on elevated places, so as to catch the wind which separates the chaff from the wheat (Psa_88:13; Hos_13:3). rolling thing — anything that rolls: stubble. 6. K&D, “Sounds from afar. In the distance the prophet hears a vague tumult, like that of the sea with its roaring, incoming tide. It is the noise of the invading host. Readers will recollect the powerful passage describing the eve of the battle of Waterloo—the dull distant sound repeated until the conviction flashes, "It is—it is—the cannon's opening roar!" So does the prophet listen to the uproar of the advancing Assyrians. I. THE POETIC REPRESENTATION. It is one of sublimity and terror, appealing through the sense of hearing to the imagination, and calling up indefinable alarm and sorrow. He hears in the distance the gathering of a multitude of nations, represented by the imperial name of Asshur. These hosts spread out in long line like the rolling wave, one excited surging mass, threatening to carry everything before it into destruction. Such an image may represent any great movement which seems at any time to threaten the spiritual life of a Church, of a nation. Never was there a time when anxious listeners did not hear such rising sounds in the distance; the statesman trembling for the welfare of institutions, the believer for the stability of faith. Is there just cause for alarm? Let the prophet answer. II. THE PROPHECY OF JUDGMENT. Remarkable is the picture of the sudden change. The power of the Divine Word is instantaneously felt. "It costs God simply a threatening word, and the mass all flies apart, and falls into dust, and whirls about in all directions; like the chaff of threshing-floors in high situations, or like dust whirled up by the storm." In the evening the destruction of the Assyrians begins, and in the morning they are completely destroyed. And the oracle ends with an expression of triumph over this portion and lot of the spoiler and the plunderer.
- 57. LESSONS. 1. The Church,Christianity, religion, civilization, seem in every age to be threatened; yet they are ever safe. Force, numbers, armies, have but the show of strength when confronted with the spiritual world. 2. God is ever in his heaven—cannot and will not desert his place. 3. His judgments and rebukes are the expression of the eternal truth of things, and must prevail.—J. 7.CALVIN, “13.The nations shall rush. Although he appears to follow out that threatening, which he formerly uttered, yet he begins to comfort believers by repeating the same statement, as if we should say, “ who were unmindful of God must be punished for their wicked revolt, and must be, as it were, overwhelmed by a deluge; but the Lord will restrain this savage disposition of the enemies, for, when they have exercised their cruelty, he shall find a method of casting them out and driving them away.” This is a remarkable consolation, by which he intended to support the remnant of the godly. Nor does he speak of the Jews only, as is commonly supposed, for hitherto he has addressed his discourse to the ten tribes, and it is certain that there were still left in Israel some who actually feared God, and who would have despaired if they had not been upheld by some promise. By these metaphors he describes dreadful storms and tempests. When the Holy Spirit intends to bring comfort to the godly, he holds out those objects which are wont to terrify and discourage the minds of men, that we may learn that God will easily allay all tempests, however violent and dreadful. As the winds and seas and storms are at his command, so it is easy for him to restrain enemies and their violence; and therefore immediately afterwards he compares the Assyrians to chaff. As the chaff of the mountains before the wind. Although with regard to the Israelites their attack was terrible, yet he shews that before God they will be like chaff, for without any effort he will scatter all their forces. Hence it follows that we ought not to judge of their resources and strength by our senses. Whenever therefore we see the restraints laid on the wicked withdrawn, (10) that they may rush forward for our destruction, let us indeed consider that, so far as lies in ourselves, we are ruined, but that God can easily frustrate their attacks. גלגל (galgal) means a rolling thing, (11) which is easily driven by the wind. 14 In the evening, sudden terror!
- 58. Before the morning,they are gone! This is the portion of those who loot us, the lot of those who plunder us. 1.BARNES, “At evening-tide trouble - In the time of evening - that is, in the night. Before the morning he is not - That is, he is destroyed. This is strikingly descriptive of the destruction of the army of Sennacherib on that fatal night when the angel of the Lord killed 185,000 men (see the note at Isa_37:36). This is the portion of them that spoil us - Of those who would plunder us. This is a “general” declaration in regard to the enemies of the Jewish people. This is the lot, the end, the destiny of all who attempt to destroy them. That is, the people of God shall be safe whoever rises up against them; and whatever may be the number, or the power of their foes, they shall be overthrown. 2. CLARKE, “He is not “He is no more” - For איננו einennu ten MSS. of Dr. Kennicott’s, (three ancient), ten of De Rossi’s, and two editions, and the Septuagint, Syriac, Chaldee, Vulgate, and Arabic, have ואיננו veeinenno. This particle, authenticated by so many good vouchers, restores the sentence to its true poetical form, implying a repetition of some part of the parallel line preceding, thus: - “At the season of evening, behold terror! Before the morning, and [behold] he is no more!” That spoil us - For שוסינו shoseynu, them that spoil us, fifteen MSS., one edition, and the Syriac have שוסנו shosenu, him that spoileth us. And for לבזזינו lebozezeynu, them that rob us, six MSS. and the Syriac have לבוזזנו lebozzeno, him that robbeth us: and these readings make the place answer better to Sennacherib, according to Lowth’s conjecture. Though God may permit the wicked to prevail for a time against his people, yet in the end those shall be overthrown, and the glory of the Lord shall shine brightly on them that fear him; for the earth shall be subdued, and the universe filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen! 3. GILL, “And behold at eveningtide trouble,.... Or terror (a) and consternation; which some understand of that which was in the Assyrian army, when the Angel of the Lord destroyed it, taking "evening for night", for it was in the night that that was done; so Jarchi interprets it of Shedim, a sort of spirits or demons, that came against the enemy, and troubled and frightened them: but it is best to take it in the more common sense, of the trouble that Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem were in, on the evening or night before their deliverance; the whole
- 59. land of Judearound about them being laid waste, their city besieged by a powerful army, and the enemy blaspheming, blustering, and triumphing: and before the morning he is not; Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, he was not before Jerusalem, he was fled: or "it was not" (b); the Assyrian army was not, it was destroyed by an angel in the night, and in the morning were all dead corpses, 2Ki_19:35 or trouble was not, that was all over, joy came in the morning; see Psa_30:5, this is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us; these are the words of the prophet, and of the people of God, he represents, making observation upon, and use of the above dispensation, though not confining it to that; and their meaning is, that this is not the case of these Assyrians only, but of all the enemies of God's people, who, sooner or later, come to destruction; and which is not by chance, but by the appointment and disposition of God, who allots and portions out ruin unto them, as the just reward of their works; see Job_20:29. 4. HENRY, “This shall be done suddenly (Isa_17:14): At evening-tide they are very troublesome, and threaten trouble to the people of God; but before the morning they are not. At sleeping time they are cast into a deep sleep, Psa_26:5, Psa_26:6. It was in the night that the angel routed the Assyrian army. God can in a moment break the power of his church's enemies, even when it appears most formidable; and this is written for the encouragement of the people of God in all ages, when they find themselves an unequal match for their enemies; for this is the portion of those that spoil us, they shall themselves be spoiled. God will plead his church's cause, and those that meddle do it to their own hurt. 5. JAMISON, “eventide ... before morning — fulfilled to the letter in the destruction “before morning” of the vast host that “at eveningtide” was such a terror (“trouble”) to Judah; on the phrase see Psa_90:6; Psa_30:5. he is not — namely, the enemy. us — the Jews. A general declaration of the doom that awaits the foes of God’s people (Isa_54:17). 6. PULPIT, “The gloomy evening. "Behold at evening-tide trouble." We all love beautiful evenings, whether on land or sea. Then, when the clouds of purple and amber across the horizon constitute a royal chariot for the setting sun, we gaze with admiration and delight on the glorious close of day. I. TROUBLE IS NEVER SO SAD AS IN THE EVENING. At morning or midday we have more of strength to bear it; we can brace our energies to fight the battle or to endure the burden. But in the evening, when heart and strength fail, we look for quiet comfort and considerate friends, and the gentle words of love. Trouble in the evening is a pensive sight. But if it be connected with sin, with personal wrong-doing, how
- 60. bitter a cupit is! Then, when there should be memory of holy deeds and earnest words; then, when we may fairly think of an honorable reputation well earned, and an influence which we may hope, indeed, will be an "after-glow" after we are dead. Yet so it is. Sin has its judgments, which "follow after" even here below. II. TROUBLE IN THE EVENING IS WELL EXPLAINED. The prophet says (Isa_17:13), "God shall-rebuke them." It is all contained in that. Rebuke! That involves in its utterance conscience and memory, else how could we feel rebuke? We feel all that is meant by rebuke more from some than others. It does not always need words. A little spectacle that recalls some past scene, an old letter, the Visiting of half-forgotten places, the swift rush at times of old memories,—these often have rebukes in them. We have neglected so many never-recurring opportunities, we have scattered so many seeds of evil. But when God, the living God, rebukes us, how can we stand? For he knows our most secret thoughts, and in his book all the life is written. III. TROUBLE IN THE EVENING MAY STILL BE THE LAST ANGEL OF GOD'S MERCY HERE. Even then it is evening, and the light lingers. The Savior's power to save is still the same. The city of refuge has its gates open. God's renewing and redeeming grace may yet be ours. Not even then need we despair; for as there is a strain of hope coming for the nation Israel which will occupy us further on in these prophecies, so there is hope in personal life, even in the latter days, if we turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart. The lingering light of evening skill falls on the cross of him who said, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."—W.M.S. 7.CALVIN, “14.And, behold, at evening tide trouble. The meaning is, “ when a storm has been raised in the evening, and soon afterwards allayed, no trace of it is found in the morning, so will cheerful prosperity suddenly arise, contrary to expectation.” The Prophet intended to state two things — first, that the attack of the enemy will be sudden; and secondly, that the ravages which they shall commit will not be of long duration. As the Assyrians rose suddenly against the Israelites, so their fall was sudden. From this passage all the godly ought to draw wonderful consolation, whenever they see that everything is in disorder, and when dreadful changes are at hand; for what is it but a sudden storm which the Lord will allay? Tyrants rush upon us like storms and whirlwinds, but the Lord will easily dispel their rage. Let us therefore patiently wait for his assistance; for though he permit us to be tossed about, yet through the midst of the tempests he will at length conduct us “ the haven.” (Psa_107:30.) And if the Prophet comforted a small remnant, who appeared to be almost none at all, this promise undoubtedly belongs to us also. True, we are almost none, and a wretched church is concealed in a few corners; but if we look at the condition of the kingdom of Israel, how few were the servants of God in it! And these hardly ventured
- 61. to mutter, suchwas the universal hatred of religion and godliness. Although therefore the Lord destroy the multitude of the wicked, yet to the small number of the godly, who may be said to be tossed about in the same ship with them, he will hold out a plank to rescue them from shipwreck, and will guide them safely and comfortably into the harbour. This is the portion. He addresses the believers who were concealed in the kingdom of Israel, and joins them with the Church, although, as is frequently the case with the children of God, the members were scattered in every direction. We see here what will be the end of the wicked who have persecuted us. Though we are exposed to their rage, so that they tear and plunder and trample upon us, and inflict on us every kind of insult, yet they will be like storms which are subdued by their own violence and quickly disappear. We ought to expect that this will be the lot of all the tyrants who at the present day wretchedly harass the Church, and treat cruelly the children of God. Let this consolation be engraved on our minds, that we may know that the same thing will happen to them. Footnotes: a. Isaiah 17:8 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.