In spite of the fact that the revelation of the glory of the Lord
brings to light, as nothing else does, the sinfulness and frailty of
man, there is also brought "good tidings," and this it is which
furnishes the "comfort" for "My people." Zion and Jerusalem are
represented as lifting up the voice and saying to the cities of Judah
"Behold your God!"
About the sixth hour on the day of the crucifixion Pilate brought
forth Jesus, and said to the crowd in Jerusalem, "Behold your King!"
(John 19: 14). This provoked the violent cry, "Away with Him, crucify
Him." In our Scripture the prophet sees the same wonderful Person, but
coming in the splendour of Deity with "strong hand." This will be good
tidings indeed, after the painful display of sin and utter weakness on
the part of men.
It is the Lord Jehovah who is coming with might; but it is "His Arm"
who will rule for Him. As we go through these later chapters of Isaiah
we shall find the Lord Jesus presented as the Arm of Jehovah some ten
or twelve times. In this character He is seen as the One who executes
in power all the will and purpose of Jehovah. He is also presented as
the "Servant," who is to carry out the yet more wonderful work of
sin-bearing and suffering. In the passages that speak of Him as the
Servant we see predictions that view Him in His first advent in grace:
in those that present Him as the "Arm" our thoughts are carried on to
His second advent in glory.
It is so here in verse 10. The Arm is going to rule for
Jehovah rather than suffer for Him. He will dispense reward and
recompence to others in the day of His glory; and at the same time He
will be a tender Shepherd to those who are His flock, gathering even
the lambs to His bosom. In other words, while ruling in power at His
second advent, He will display to His own; all the grace which shone
forth in Him at His first advent. As we look abroad in the earth today,
we see how badly needed is the ruling power of a strong hand, and men
desire to grasp that power so as to rule in their own interests. The
Arm of Jehovah will rule "for Him," and what a day that will be when
the will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven!
The verses that follow present to us the greatness and glory of the
Creator-God in the most exalted language. So great is He that the
mighty oceans lie in the hollow of His hand like a few drops of water;
the expanse of the heavens, illimitable to us, is but the span of His
hand; the dust of the earth as well as the mountains and hills are but
small things, weighed in His scales. As to understanding, the Spirit of
the Lord is far above taking any counsel from man.
We live in a day when nations are rising up and asserting
themselves, and arming to the hilt, in order to enforce their will.
What are they in the presence of God? They are like a small drop which
may hang on a finger-tip, when taken out of a bucket of water; or like
the small dust left on the scales when the substance weighed therein
has been removed-so insignificant that no one pays attention to it. The
nations that look so imposing and threatening to us, are counted by Him
as "less than nothing, and vanity." It is good for us to measure them
by God's standards and not by our own.
God then is great beyond all our thoughts, as verse 18 indicates,
and in the presence of His glory how foolish and contemptible, as
verses 19 and 20 say, are the makers of graven images that have not
even the power of motion. And further, how feeble and insignificant are
men, who appear but as grasshoppers, and their princes and judges but
as nothing and vanity, and as stubble in the face of a whirlwind. We
may also lift up our eyes and behold the mighty creation outside our
little earth; all numbered and named by Him, and upheld by Him too, so
that not one fails. He who created them has no equal and cannot be
likened to any other. We do well to ponder this magnificent passage,
for this God of ineffable power and majesty has been made known to us
in Christ as our Father.
The closing verses of the chapter, while not revealing Him as
Father, do make known His care and support for those who trust in Him.
Where all human power fails He gives strength to those who express
their trust by waiting upon Him. As they wait their strength is
renewed, and granted as it is needed. Some may need the strength that
elevates, others the strength that runs the errands appointed of God,
and others again that which enables for the steady and continuous walk
through life for the pleasure of God. As we wait on God each shall
receive the needed strength. The greatness of our God, as well as His
goodness is the guarantee of it.
In view of this disclosure of the glory of God a call goes out to all mankind as chapter 41
opens-for the word "people" in verse 1 should really be in the plural
"peoples." God will reason with them as to His governmental ways in the
earth. Verse 2 mentions a king, coming from the east of Palestine, who
should be a conqueror, ruling over kings. It seems that this is a
prophecy as regards the day in which Isaiah wrote, and was fulfilled in
Cyrus, who is named in the verse that opens Isaiah 45. God raises up
whom He pleases to carry out His designs in the earth. In contrast with
this men in their folly and blindness manufacture their idols, as
stated in verses 6 and 7. This controversy with Israel as to their
persistent turning to idols continues till we reach the end of Isaiah
48.
In verses 8 and 9 of our chapter Israel is reminded that as the seed
of Abraham, who is honoured as "My friend," they are a chosen people
and called to be the servant of God. How foolish then
this turning to idols! And in the succeeding verses we find the most
assuring words of encouragement and support which, if only received in
faith, would have lifted them far above any reliance on idolatrous
things. They should be upheld and their enemies confounded. The Holy
One of Israel would be their Redeemer, and make them like a threshing
instrument scattering their foes. Moreover He would be as a fountain of
water to them, meeting all their needs.
In the light of this comes the challenge to the idols and their
followers. Let them produce their cause; let them foretell the future
and "declare things for to come." This they could not do, and an
abomination were they and their votaries. A further reference to the
coming conqueror from the north-east is found in verses 25 and 26, and
the chapter closes with words of contempt for the men who supported the
idols and the counsels they gave.
This throws into relief the opening of Isaiah 42, where the prophecy
turns from Israel, as the failing servant of God, to introduce the Lord
Jesus as the true Servant of God. Our attention is to be fixed on Him
for He is the chosen One in whom the delight of God rests. He it is,
who will bring forth judgment for the nations, and not only for Israel.
Here again we find a prophecy which was fulfilled in part at His first
advent, but awaits His second advent for the fulfilment of other
details.
The prophecy is quoted in Matthew 12: 14-21, as showing the
lowliness and forbearance of His coming in grace. The Pharisees were
indeed as unreliable and worthless as a bruised reed, and as
objectionable as smoking flax, yet He neither broke nor quenched them.
He was not an agitator, inflaming the multitude. The powers that were
against Him were calculated to make any servant of God be discouraged
and fail, yet He carried on His service to the end. He brought forth
judgment according to truth by His sacrificial death and resurrection,
though we must wait for the second coming to see the public
establishment of judgment in the earth, so that the most distant isle
shall wait for His law.
Our attention having been called to this true Servant, we have in
verses 5-9, words prophetically addressed to Him. In verse 5 the acts
of God in creation are stressed. Not only are the heavens and the earth
the work of His hands but mankind also. He has given us not only the
breath of our bodies but also the spirit, that is man's distinguishing
feature in contrast to the beasts. Now this mighty Creator has called
His true Servant in righteousness and established Him as a covenant to the people and a light to the nations. In verse 9 Jehovah is presented as declaring new things, so we may discern that the new covenant is predicted here, though not stated with the fulness found in Jeremiah 31.
We may note that Ezekiel 36 predicts the new birth, which
is needed if the blind eyes are to be opened, as in verse 7 of our
chapter, to "see the kingdom of God," (John 3: 3); whilst in Jeremiah
we have predicted the new covenant, under which the kingdom will be established. In Isaiah we have many of the new things predicted, that will mark the kingdom when it is finally established under the rule of Christ.
These new things will move those who enter into them to "Sing unto the Lord a new song;"and
the thought, of how the glory of the Lord will be manifested and His
praise be sung, fills verses 10-12. But the next verses show that what
will bring blessing to His people will mean judgment and destruction to
His foes. While the call will come to many who once were deaf and
blind, that they may hear and see, the folly and judgment of those who
turned to idols will be revealed.
The chapter closes with an appeal to those of Isaiah's day in view
of these things. Israel had been called as God's servant and should
have been a messenger to the nations on His behalf, yet they had been
blind in all essential things. As to privilege they were "perfect," as
to their moral state they were blind. Still, as verse 21 indicates, God
is not thereby defeated. His righteousness will be established and His
law magnified and made honourable-doubtless in connection with His true
Servant. But for the present all was failure on the part of Israel and
consequently they were spoiled and robbed, and the law dishonoured by
their disobedience.
We might have expected therefore that Isaiah 43 would have contained
further warnings and judgments, but it opens rather on a note of grace.
The Apostle Peter wrote to the scattered Jewish believers of his day
how, "the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who
prophesied of the grace that should come unto you," which grace meant
"salvation" (1 Peter 1: 10); and here is a case in point. In the
presence of their evil God falls back upon His original purpose and His
redeeming work. Redemption by power was what the people looked for, and
was mainly the theme here, as the succeeding verses show; but presently
there will come before us the far deeper work of the suffering
Servant-redemption by blood.
The whole chapter is characterized by two things. First, by the
declaration of what God will do in His sovereign mercy for His poor
blind and deaf people, who were set up to be His witnesses to the other
nations. He will bring down their foes, be they Babylon and the
Chaldeans or other peoples, and He will deal with their sins, as
indicated in verse 25. How He will do this in righteousness is not
revealed in this chapter; but the result will be that this people whom
He had formed for Himself will ultimately shew forth His praise, as
stated in verse 21.
But second though all this grace is so strikingly promised, the
existing state of the people in rebellion and sin is not glossed over.
They are again made to face their fallen state. There is the promise of
a re-gathering of their seed from the east and west, from north and
south, but at the moment they had turned from the Lord, as verse 22
says; they did not honour Him with offerings and sacrifices, but
wearied Him with their iniquities. As their first father-Adam-had
sinned, so they had-followed in his footsteps. Because- of this the
curse and reproach lay upon them, imposed by the hand of God.
But yet again, Isaiah 44 opens with a word of
mercy. In spite of his crookedness Jacob was God's servant, chosen by
Him, and God is always true to His purpose and able to carry it out. This fact should
bring comfort and strength to every believer today. The history of the
church, like that of Israel, is one of failure and departure from the
Divine call and way, yet the purpose of God for us will stand no less
securely than His purpose for Israel. The failure and sin is not
excused, though in the presence of it the sovereign grace of God is
magnified.
The first eight verses of this chapter breathe out that grace in no
uncertain terms. The sovereignty of God is declared, for He is the
First and He is the Last, and beside Him there is no "God," or, "Rock,"
as the margin reads. Consequently, though He will chastise in His holy
government, He will ultimately bless according to His original purpose.
But at the time when Isaiah wrote there was among the people this
persistent tendency to turn to their idols and false gods. Hence once
more, in verses 9-20 of our chapter, God reasons with the people about
their folly in this matter. The work of smith and carpenter are
described, as a result of which an image is constructed, "according to
the beauty of a man," which can be kept in the house. Then our thoughts
are carried to the work of planting trees, or hewing them down, and
then the absurdity of using some of the wood for warming oneself, or
baking bread and roasting meat, and then out of the remainder
fashioning a "god," before which one falls down and asks for
deliverance!
The folly and absurdity of such doings should have been plain to all
the people, but it was not. How was it that their eyes were closed and
their understanding darkened? The trouble lay in their hearts, which
were deceived. Hence they were unable to consider and discern the lie
in their " right hand." The position today is just the same. Why do so
many take up the erroneous religious cults that abound? The trouble
lies not so much in their intellects as in their hearts. It is true for
them as for Israel of old that, "a deceived heart hath turned him
aside."
Having thus reasoned with the people, once more the prophet
announces the merciful interposition of God, both in its ultimate
display, which is still future, and in its more immediate display in
the raising up of an eastern monarch, who should be favourable to them.
As to the future, they would yet be the servant of God, their
transgressions and sins blotted out. This would be accomplished on the
basis of redemption so that the very heavens as well as the earth will
break into song, and the Lord Himself be glorified.
Then in the closing verses a deliverance that reached them about two
centuries later is predicted, and Cyrus is named long before he was
born The statement that Jerusalem and the temple should be rebuilt
clearly indicated that they should be destroyed, and this would
confound the tokens of the lying diviners, who were always saying
smooth and prosperous things, as other scriptures show. Judgment would
fall, but mercy would in its season be shown, and the man through whom
it would reach them is named.
In the opening verses of Isaiah 45, the prophet speaks to Cyrus on
God's behalf, though as yet he had no existence. He was to be raised up
as anointed for this particular service and his hand would be holden of
God till it was accomplished. The details given in verses 1-3 were
strikingly fulfilled, as we find recorded in the book of Daniel, though
Darius the Mede is the conqueror mentioned there. He was the commander
of the Medo-Persian army, but the rising power of Cyrus the Persian lay
behind him. As we read these verses, we see Belshazzar, and "the joints
of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another"
(Dan. 5: 6). We see the great gates of Babylon open and broken; and
then, as a result of the fall of the great city "the treasures of
darkness, and hidden riches of secret places" are in the hands of
Cyrus. We see here an allusion to the vessels of the house of the Lord,
which Nebuchadnezzar had carried to Babylon, being restored, as
recorded in Ezra 1: 7-11.
Here then is a remarkable prophecy that was literally fulfilled
within two hundred years of its utterance. God called him by his name,
and surnamed him, though Cyrus had not known Him. Yet the words of the
decree of Cyrus, recorded in 2 Chronicles 36: 23; and again in Ezra 1:
2; would make it likely that in some way Isaiah's prophecy was brought
to his notice.
With Israel's penitent idolatry still in mind, Jehovah declares in
the succeeding verses His surpassing greatness. All things are in His
hands. He creates the light and the darkness, the peace and the "evil,"
in the sense off disaster. Man is but a potsherd of the earth-the
broken piece of a pot! Let man recognize his own littleness. Let him
strive with another potsherd like himself if he will, but let him not
strive with the Creator. It is not fitting that a man should strive
with his father or mother, much less with his Maker. Verses 5, 13 and
14 again refer to Cyrus and the way in which God would raise him up. It
would be "in righteousness," for he would carry into effect the will of
God; and to do the will of God is righteousness.
The raising up of Cyrus and the granting to him such wide dominion
was a surprising act, in view of the previous power and magnificence of
Babylon. We need not wonder that it is claimed as a display of the
surpassing power of God, in the presence of which idols are nothing.