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THE 

PROPHECIES    OF    ISAIAH 

VOL.  II. 


By  the  same  Author. 


An  EXPOSITION  of  the  PROPHECIES  and 
LAMENTATIONS  of  JEREMIAH.  Forming 
new  volumes  in  THE  PULPIT  COMMENTARY. 

[7n  preparation. 


LONDON  :  KEGAN  PAUL,  TRENCH,  &  CO. 


Cows  (a  TV") 


THE 


PROPHECIES    OF    ISAIAH 

A    NEW    TRANSLATION 
WITH   COMMENTARY  AND    APPENDICES 

BY    THE 
6" 

REV.  T/K^HEYNE,  M.A. 

RECTOR  OF   TENDRING,    ESSEX,    AND   MEMBER   OF   THE  OLD   TESTAMENT   REVISION   COMPANY 
LATE  FELLOW   AND   LECTURER  OF   BALLIOL  COLLEGE,   OXFORD 


IN   TWO   VOLUMES 
VOL.  II. 

SECOND    EDITION 
REVISED     AND     CORRECTED 


LONDON 
KEGAN    PAUL,  TRENCH,  £  CO.,  i  PATERNOSTER  SQUARE 

1882 


(The  rights  of  translation  and  of  reproduction  are  reserved} 


PREFACE 

(REPRINTED  IN  PART,  WITH  ADDITIONS). 

THE  present  volume  supplies  in  a  manner  the  key  to 
its  predecessor,  and  the  author  would  fain  bespeak  for 
the  series  of  essays  which  it  contains  a  specially  patient 
and  candid  perusal.  They  relate  to  subjects  as  well 
theological  as  critical ;  it  is  impossible  to  keep  exegesis 
and  criticism  entirely  apart  from  theology.  There 
are  points  in  the  study  of  Old  Testament  history  and 
literature  at  which  the  theological  or  anti-theological 
bias  of  the  critic  materially  affects  his  results.  The 
fault  of  English  students  generally  has  been  that  they 
allow  too  much  play  to  this  bias,  and  of  orthodox 
students  in  particular  that  they  unduly  restrict  the  field 
of  philological  inquiry.  It  is  a  fault,  no  doubt,  which 
can  be  explained  and  excused  from  the  history  of 
English  theology,  but  it  is  one  which  urgently  needs 
rectifying,  and  the  present  work  is  a  conscientious 
endeavour  to  promote  this  object. 

It  is  with  some  reluctance  that  the  author  has  ex- 
pressed himself  so  fully  in  one  of  the  following  essays 
on  his  own  theological  bias  (a  bias  which  has  been 
rigorously  confined  within  the  narrowest  possible  area), 
but  it  seemed  expedient  to  meet  any  possible  suspicion 


VI  PREFACE. 

by  a  frank  preliminary  explanation.     On  the  critical 
bearings  of  his  exegetical  results  he  has  also  afforded 
such    information  as  was   consistent   with   the   limits 
originally  marked  out.     He  would  gladly  have  had  no 
limits  to  regard,  gladly  have  communicated  his  present 
solution  (which  is  not  of  yesterday)  of  the  complicated 
critical  problem  ;  but  he  has  been  held  back,  as  has  been 
explained  elsewhere,  by  a  wish  to  promote  disinterested 
exegesis  (the  only  safe  basis  of  criticism),  and  by  a 
conviction   that  the  problem  of  Isaiah   can   only   be 
definitely  solved  in  connection  with  those  of  the  pro- 
phetic literature  as  a  whole.     He  hopes,  nevertheless, 
that  in  more  than  one  of  the  essays  he  has  made  some 
real,  however  small,   contributions  to  that  new  theory 
which  must,  when  thoroughly  matured,  take  the  place 
of  both  the  prevalent  views  of  the  origin  of  Isaiah,  and 
which,  being  just  to  all  the  facts  revealed  by  an  honest 
exegesis,  cannot  be  inconsistent  with  a  scientific  ortho- 
dox theology.     A  single  eye  is  what  the  author  most 
desires  for  himself  and  his   readers  ;    it  is  the  talis- 
man which  opens  that  enchanted  chamber,  over  which 
are  written  the  words,  '  Be  not  too  bolde '  ( *  Faerie 
Queene,'  iii.  12). 

OXFORD:  November  7 •,  1880. 


A  few  supplementary  words  may  be  added  with 
reference  to  this  new  edition.  The  principal  changes  in 
the  second  volume  will  be  found  at  the  close  of  the  first 
essay,  and  in  the  *  Critical  Notes*  and  *  Last  Words/ 
Though  chiefly  concerned  with  points  of  detail,  the 
genuine  student  is  not  likely  to  despise  them,  consider- 


PREFACE.  Vll 

ing  the  varied  interest  of  the  questions  raised  by  the 
prophetic  writings,  and  the  scanty  material  which  we 
have  for  answering  them.  The  change  referred  to 
in  Essay  I.  consists  in  the  addition  of  a  reply  to 
Mr.  Robertson  Smith's  objections,  in  the  '  Prophets  of 
Israel/  to  the  view  adopted  in  this  work  of  an  invasion 
of  the  kingdom  of  Judah  by  Sargon.  A  desire  has 
also  been  expressed  for  the  addition  of  two  new  essays, 
one  to  contain  the  author's  own  provisional  explanation 
(provisional,  because,  as  Goethe  says,  *  every  solution 
of  a  problem  involves  a  new  problem ' )  of  the  origin 
of  the  Book  of  Isaiah,  and  the  other  on  the  relation  of 
the  ideas  of  the  Assyrian  and  Babylonian  eras.  To 
have  yielded  to  this  tempting  request  would,  however, 
have  defeated  one  of  the  author's  main  objects — viz., 
to  promote  the  disinterested  study  of  the  exegetical 
data  of  criticism.  The  order  of  research  ought  surely 
to  be,  first  the  study  of  exegesis,  then  the  comprehen- 
sive investigation  of  critical  problems,  and  lastly  the 
history  both  of  the  literature  and  of  the  outer  and  inner 
development  of  the  people  of  Israel.  All  that  can  be 
said  is,  that  the  wishes  of  some  readers  have  been  partly 
gratified  by  the  article  *  Isaiah '  in  the  eighth  edition 
of  the  '  Encyclopaedia  Britannica,'  to  which  those  who 
have  honestly  worked  at  the  exegesis  of  Isaiah  (but 
only  those)  may  be  safely  referred. 

With  regard  to  his  treatment  of  the  Hebrew  text, 
the  author  is  sensible  that  he  has  sometimes  erred  on 
the  side  of  conservatism  ;  he  has  occasionally  defended 
readings  which  he  now  fears  may  be  corrupt.  Some 
instances  of  this  are  pointed  out  in  the  Addenda  and 
Corrigenda  in  the  present  volume,  which  the  author 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

trusts  will  not  be  overlooked.  His  principle,  however, 
still  seems  to  him  sound — viz.,  to  follow  the  received 
text  as  long  as  it  can  be  plausibly  defended  (thus 
Selwyn's  well-known  correction  of  ix.  2  is  not  adopted, 
though  highly  plausible,  whereas  Seeker's  and  Kroch- 
mal's  of  viii.  12  is). 

To  be  complete,  and  omit  no  accessible  fact  or 
reference  of  importance  for  a  book  like  Isaiah,  is  per- 
haps too  high  a  goal.  It  has  receded  somewhat  from 
the  author,  now  that  he  is  absent  (not  to  use,  to-day, 
the  more  natural  and  sincere  word  '  exiled ' )  from  his 
old  university.  Still  there  is  only  one  notable  omis- 
sion of  which  he  is  conscious  (and  one  both  excusable 
in  itself  and  only  connected  with  a  very  small  part  of 
Isaiah),  viz.  with  regard  to  Dr.  Bickell's  recent  attempt 
to  arrange  the  poetical  passages  of  the  Old  Testament 
metrically.  Hereafter  he  hopes  to  be  able  to  take  up 
a  distinct  attitude  towards  Dr.  Bickell's  most  ingenious 
and  instructive  work.  Another  remarkable  though 
mainly  popular  work,  Dr.  Kuenen's  '  Hibbert  Lec- 
tures,' came  to  hand  too  late  to  be  referred  to,  except 
in  a  foot-note  at  the  end  of  Essay  XI.  His  too  posi- 
tive rejection  of  the  new  results  as  to  Cyrus  does  not, 
however,  seem  to  require  a  lengthened  examination. 
M.  de  Harlez,  a  critic  worthy  to  be  heard  on  such  a 
point,  also  maintains  an  attitude  of  opposition.;  but 
his  reply  to  Mr.  Sayce  in  Le  Musdon  (Louvain,  1882, 
PP-  557-57°))  well-written  as  it  is,  fails  to  upset  the 
essential  part  of  Mr.  Sayce's  argument,  which  has 
commended  itself  to  some  of  the  most  competent 
judges. 

In  conclusion,  the  author  would  express  the  hope 


PREFACE.  IX 

that  this  new  edition  of  his  work  may  promote  the  sym- 
pathetic study  of  the  Scriptures,  not  only  as  a  record 
of  revelation,  but  as  a  monument  of  Oriental  anti- 
quity. The  Old  Testament  under  the  latter  aspect  is  a 
fragment  of  the  literature  of  a  small  nation  wedged  in 
between  peoples  far  superior  to  it  in  age  and  civiliza- 
tion, and  can  only  be  fruitfully  studied  in  close  relation 
to  the  sifted  results  of  Assyriology  and  Egyptology. 
M.  Maspero  complains  that  '  les  hebrai'sants  rejettent 
systematiquement  1'aide  que  pourrait  leur  offrir  1'anti- 
quite  6gyptienne  et  assyrienne ; n  the  author  is  content 
to  have  laboured  in  earnest  to  roll  away  this  reproach, 
especially  with  regard  to  illustrations  from  Assyriology. 
An  accomplished  Egyptological  student  has  kindly 
contributed  to  this  volume  an  excursus  on  the  '  Seraph 
in  Egypt '  (see  '  Last  Words/  on  Chapter  VI.),  which 
is  well  worthy  of  consideration.  To  the  writer  of  this, 
the  Rev.  H.  G.  Tomkins,  and  also,  for  useful  criticisms 
and  suggestions,  to  Dr.  H.  L.  Strack,  of  Berlin,  the 
warm  thanks  of  the  author  are  due. 


1  From  a  letter  printed  in  '  Biblical  Proper  Names,'  &c.,  by  Rev.  H.  G.  Tomkins, 
author  of  Studies  on  the  Times  of  Abraham.     (London,  1882. ) 


TENDRING,  October  29,  1882. 


ADDENDA   AND   CORRIGENDA. 


The  reader  is  earnestly  requested  to  make  the  shorter  and  more  necessary  of  these 
corrections  with  his  pencil. 


VOL.  I. 

Page  22,  1.  9,  10.     Read  (in  accordance  with  crit.   note,  ii.  134),    '  Happy  is  the 

righteous  !     Well ! ' 

,,  30.  After  v.  10  place  v.  17,  rendering  'And  lambs  shall  feed  upon  their  wilder- 
ness, and  their  ruined  places  kids  shall  devour.'  In  the  arrangement  of 
the  verses  I  now  follow  Ewald,  and  in  the  correction  of  the  text  an 
anonymous  writer  in  the  Journal  of  Sacred  Literature,  new  series, 
vol.  iv.,  pp.  328-343.  The  codex  primarius  appears  to  have  had 

SrVDroSn — a  combination   of  two   readings    (comp.    crit.   note  on 
:i.  i) ;  a  scribe  corrected  (as  he  thought)   DTPD  mto  DTlD-    The 

two  other  emendations  need  no  defence. 
,,     32.     Omit  v.  17  (see  above). 

,,     32,  col.  i,  1.  ii.    For  '  complimentary '  read  'complementary.1 
,,32,       ,,      1.28.     For  '  rend.'  read  'read.' 

.,     53-     Insert  as  note  a  on  '  take  for  me '  (v.  2),  '  so  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Targ.' 
,,     60,  col.  2, 1.  19.     To  the  passages  cited,  add  xliii.  22  (see  note). 
,,     76.     Omit  opening  words  of  v.  3,  which  seem  to  have  arisen  out  of  the  closing 

words  of  v.  2  written  twice  over.     Suggested  by  Dr.  Bickell  (Carmina 

Vet.  Test,  metrice,  p.  201). 

,,    76,  col.  2,  1.  6  from  foot.     For  '  Avestor '  read  '  Avesta.' 
,,     86.     Insert  as  note  c  on  '  the  castles  thereof  '  (v.  22),  'so  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Vulg., 

Lowth,  Houbigant,  De  Rossi  ;  text  has  'their widows.' 
, ,     97.     (Note  on  '  the  temple,'  v.  2).     Add,  'Lieut.  Conder  has  discovered  large 

groups  of  dolmens  and  menhirs  on  the  east  of  the  Jordan  and  of  the 

Dead  Sea,  with  one  of  which  (at  Mushibiyeh)  he  identifies  Bamoth- 

Baal  (Palestine  Fund  Statement,  April  1882).' 
,,     112,  note.     Add,   '  and  Brugsch's  translation  in  his  Gesckichte  Aegyptens,  pp. 

682-707. ' 

,,     113,1.11.     For  'twelve'  read  'twenty.' 

,,     113,  note  !.     Add  '  comp.  Records  of  the  Past,  i.  61  (Annals  of  Assurbanipal).' 
,,     121,  col.  i,  1.  3.     For  '  Tertanu  '  read  '  Turtanu '  (as  rightly  printed  in  ed.  i).    A 
possible  meaning  of  the  title  is    '  son  of  might  ; '   see 
Friedr.  Delitzsch,  Assyrische  Stndien,  i.  129. 
,,     124, 1.  9.     For  709  read  710. 
,,     124.     Note  i  should  close  with  the  first  sentence. 
,,     129,1.2.    For1  drawn  sword  'read  'whetted  sword.'   ( Following  Gratz,  Psalmen, 

i.  124.) 
,,     133,  col.  2  note  on  'the  old  pool.'     Omit  the  words,  '  or  more  probably,'  &c. 


134,  col. 
176,  col.  2 

176,  COl.  2 

178,  col.  i 

178,   COl.   2 

205,  col.  i 


1.  5.     Omit 

5.  After  'opened'  add  'by  an  introductory  religious  ceremony.' 

17 1 

17  \  For  '  Sennacherib '  read  '  Sargon. ' 

2  ) 

6.  For  '  Rab-sairis  '  read  '  Rab-saris.'     Obs.,  no  Assyrian  title  at 

all  resembling  this  has  yet  been  discovered,  and  I  now 
think  '  saris  '  may  have  been  substituted  by  the  Hebrew 
scribe  for  an  obliterated  word,  which  was  really,  like 
1  shakeh,'  Hebraised  from  Assyrian. 


xii  ADDENDA    AND    CORRIGENDA. 

Page  210.     Insert,  as  note  ft  on  '  when  he  heard  it,  he  sent '  (v.  9),  '  Sept.  and  2  Kings 

xix.  9,  read  '  he  sent  messengers  again  '  (a  better  reading). 
, ,     230,  1.  15.     For  '  751 '  read  '  731.' 
„     234,  col.  i,  1.  3.     After  '  Sargon  '  add  '  or  Esar-haddon. 

266.     Insert,  as  note  *  on  the  second  'blind'  (v.  19),  '  Deaf,  Symmachus,  i  MS. 

Kennicott,  i  De  Rossi  (primd  manu),  Lowth,  Gratz.' 
,,     283.     Insert,  as  note  on  'the  produce  of  (v.,  19),  '  Before,  Gratz  '(reading 

Psalmen,  i.  122.' 

».     3°3-     Insert,  as  note  on  'in  their  perfection'  (v.  9),  'Suddenly,  Sept.,  followed 
by  Pesh.,  Lowth,  Gratz  (an  easy  emendation).' 

VOL.  II. 

,,     17,  col.  i,  1.  3  from  foot.     For  '  Ixvi.  3'  read  '  Ixvi.  13.' 

,,     18,  note  k.     After  '  Babylonian  MS.'  insert  'primd  manu.' 

,,    38,1.2.     For  'Zion  'read  'his  people.'    The  same  error  occurs  in  two  of  De 

Rossi's  MSS. 

,,     38.     Insert,  as  note  on  'Jerusalem'  (end  of  v.  9),'  Israel,  Lowth,  adducing  two 
MSS.    A  probable  correction.    Ibn  Jannah,  according  to  Gratz,  points 
out  that  proper  names  of  kindred  meaning  are  sometimes  confounded 
by  the  scribes  (comp.  my  own  clerical  error  above). 
,,     40,  col.  i.  1.  n,  12.     For  '  v.  ii  b '  read  '  liii.  11  b.' 

,,     46,  col.  i,  1.  7.     Insert  'A  still  closer  parallel  is   Job  xx.  3,  a  reproof  of  my 

shame  =  a  reproof  putting  me  to  shame  (Dr.  H.  L.  Strack).' 

,,     71.     Insert,  as  note  on  'renewal  of  thy  strength'  (v.  10),  '  Refreshing  sufficient 

for  thee,  Lagarde,  Klostermann,  Gratz  (emendation).' 
,,     loo,  note  a.     Add  'marching  on,  Vulg.,  Lowth,   Gratz  (an  easy  and  probable 

emendation).' 

,,     121,  col.  2,  1.  15.     For  'remains'  read  '  researches.' 
,,     137,  1.  9.     After  'like  virgo,'  add  '  (comp.  Gen.  xxiv.  55,  where  it  is  the  Sept. 

rendering  of  ly^n)-' 

,,     138,  note  on  x.  4.     It  should  be  mentioned,  however,  that  Usir  (Osiris)  has  been 
found  in  one  Phoenician,  and  in  one  Cyprio-Phcenician 

E roper  name  (see  Corpus  Inscr.  Semit.  i.  68,  inscr.  46). 
i  the  same  note  I  have  accidentally  omitted  the  most 
conspicuous  instance  of  Hebraized  Egyptian  names,  viz. , 
Mos'eh  (Moses)  from  mesu  'child'  or  'son,'  which  was 
often  used  as  a  name  in  Egypt  under  the  Middle  Empire. 

,,  145,  1.  ii.  Add  'Another  word  illustrated  by  Assy  r.  sakin  'to  place'  is  J"I13DDD 
'store-cities'  (Ex.  i.  n,  &c.),  usually  but  inaccurately  connected 
with  Aram.  D35  ' to  collect.' 

,,     154.     Compare  crit.  note  on  Ii.  6  with  Last  Words,  p.  298  (top). 
,,     158,  1.  13.     It  should  have  been  noted  that  pl^y  does  occur  once,  viz.,  in 

Jer.  xxii.  3. 

,,     160,  1.  8.     The  note  belongs  to  Ixi.  i,  not  lix.  18.     The  solution  proposed  by 

Dr.  Neubauer,  reminds  us  of  a  very  probable  explanation  of  the 

famous  Se'vTepojrpwTCf)  in  Luke  vi.  i,    as  a  combination  of  two 

readings  Seurepw  and  n-pwrw. 

,,     161,  1.  26.     After  'Vulgate'  insert  'and  Septuagint,  but  not  St.  Jerome's  own 

Latin  translation.' 

,,     189,  note  i.     For  '  fourth'  read  '  fifth." 

,,     224,  1.  9  from  foot.     To  the  list  of  passages  add  Ixiii.  ii,  Ixiv.  3  b. 
,,     224, 1.  6  from  foot.     After  '  chap,  ii.'  add  '  verses  10  and  ii  of  chap,  iii.' 
,,     224,  1.  4  from  foot.     For  'They'  read  '  The  first  and  last  of  these. ' 


TABLE    OF   APPENDICES,    ESSAYS,   £c. 


VOL.  I. 

ON  ' JEHOVAH  SABAOTH  ' 

ON  THE  SERAPHIM  AND  THE  CHERUBIM 

ON  XLIV.   28,  XLV.  4 


PAGES 

11-13 

40-42 
286-287 


VOL.  II. 

ON  THE  LAND  OF  SINIM 20-23 

CRITICAL  NOTES 133-162 

ESSAYS  : 

I.  The  Occasional  Prophecies  of  Isaiah  in  the  Light 

of  History 165-174 

II.   The  Arrangement  of  the  Prophecies      .         .         .  174-179 

III.  The  Christian  Element  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah     .     .  179-198 

IV.  The  Royal  Messiah  in  Genesis      ....  198-203 
V.  The  Servant  of  Jehovah 204-210 

VI.  The  Present  State  of  the  Critical  Controversy         .  210-220 

VII.  Correction  of  the  Hebrew  Text         .         ...  221-226 

VIII.  The  Critical  Study  of  Parallel  Passages  .         .         .  226-244 

IX.  Job  and  the  Second  Part  of  Isaiah  :  a  Parallel  .     .  244-253 

X.  Isaiah  and  his  Commentators        ....  253-274 

XI.  II.  Isaiah  and  the  Inscriptions  .                           .     .  274-280 

Last  Words  on  Isaiah 281-301 

(See  also  Addenda      .                          .                          .     .  xi,  xii) 


ISAIAH. 


CHAPTER    XLVIII. 

Contents. — A  recapitulation  of  the  heads  of  the  preceding  discourses, 
from  chap.  xl.  onwards,  closing  with  a  summons  to  flee  from  Babylon, 
and  a  solemn  declaration  excluding  the  ungodly  from  a  share  in  the 
promises. 

1  Hear  ye  this,  O  house  of  Jacob,  who  are  called  by  the 
name  of  Israel,  and  have  come  forth  from  the  waters  of  Judah  ; 
who  swear  by  the  name  of  Jehovah,  and  celebrate  the  God  of 
Israel  (not  in  truth  and  not  in  righteousness) ;  2  for  they  call 

at  the  close  of  the  verse,  not  in 
truth  and  not  in  righteousness. 

'  Truth,'  literally  '  continuance,'  i.e., 
unwavering  fidelity  (so  in  xxxviii.  3). 
*  Righteousness,'  i.e.  the  strict  per- 
formance of  their  part  in  the  na- 
tional covenant  with  Jehovah,  espe- 
cially of  the  moral  duties  which 
this  involved.1  (The  root -meaning 
is  'to  be  stiff,  tight.')  The  two 
qualities,  '  truth  '  and  *  righteous- 
ness,' are  combined,  as  in  Zech. 
viii.  8,  i  Kings  iii.  6. 

2  For  they  call  themselves  .  .  .  ] 
There  is  a  change  of  construction, 
but  the  tone  and  the  tendency  re- 
main the  same.  In  v.  i  the  pro- 
phet seems  to  be  full  of  praise,  but 
the  closing  words  make  it  but  too 
manifest  that  the  eulogy  is  ironical. 
So  here.  *  Who  are  called  by  the 
name  of  Israel '  corresponds  to  '  for 
they  call  themselves  of  the  holy 
city,'  and  '  not  in  truth  and  not  in 
righteousness '  is  parallel  to  *  Jeho- 
vah Sabdoth  is  his  name.'  In  v.  i 
it  is  mainly  formalism,  in  V.  2  a 


1  o  house  of  Jacob  .  .  .  ]   The 

prophet,  in  the  name  of  Jehovah 
(see  V.  3),  first  addresses  the  Jews 
by  their  natural  and  as  it  were  secu- 
lar designation  'the  house  of  Jacob,' 
and  then  subjoins  their  spiritual  or 
covenant-name  of  Israel.  But  as 
both  these  titles  would  strictly 
speaking  include  the  ten  tribes, 
and  the  prophet  is  specially  ad- 
dressing the  Judaean  exiles  at 
Babylon,  he  adds,  and  have  come 
forth  from  the  waters  of  Judah 
(comp.  Ps.  Ixviii.  27,  *  ye  that  are  of 
the  fountain  of  Israel,'  and  the 

analogous  figure  in  Isa.  li.  i). 

Who  swear  by  the  name  .  .  .  ] 
One  of  the  outward  marks  of  an 
Israelite  (Deut.  vi.  13,  x.  20).-  Both 
this  and  the  next  feature  in  the 
description  are  elsewhere  charac- 
teristics of  true  believers  (see  xlv. 
23,  xliv.  5).  Here  the  prophet  in- 
troduces them  ironically.  In  the 
case  of  the  majority  of  Israelites, 
they  are  disconnected  from  a  living 
faith.  Hence  the  qualifying  words 


1  Neither  here,   nor  anywhere  in  II.  Isaiah,    does  $dakah    ever  mean   merely, 
'  truth '  ;  nor  can  this  meaning  be  proved  for  fedek. 

VOL.  II.  B 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  XLVIII. 


themselves  of  the  holy  city,  and  on  the  God  of  Israel  they  lean 
—Jehovah  Sabdoth  is  his  name — 3  The  former  things  long-  ago 
I  announced  ;  from  my  mouth  they  went  forth,  and  I  declared 
them  ;  suddenly  I  wrought,  and  they  came  to  pass.  4  Be- 
cause I  knew  that  thou  wast  hard,  and  an  iron  band  thy 


narrow  'particularism' or  national- 
ism, which  is  censured.  Formalism 
is  reprehended  by  pointing  to  the 
moral  requirements  of  the  religion 
of  Jehovah ;  nationalism  by  ad- 
ducing that  most  comprehensive  of 
the  Divine  titles,  Jehovah  Sabdoth 
(comp.  vi.  3).  In  paraphrasing  v.  2, 
we  may,  without  injuring  the  sense, 
return  to  the  construction  of  -z/.  i. 
It  is  equivalent  to  saying,  '  who  ex- 
press the  strongest  regard  for  the 
city  of  the  sanctuary,  and  attach 
the  highest  value  to  their  hereditary 
religious  privileges,  not  considering 
whom  they  have  for  a  God,  namely, 
Jehovah  Sabdoth,  who  is  thrice 
holy  (vi.  3),  and  who  *  is  exalted  in 
(or,  through)  judgment,  and  shew- 
eth  himself  holy  through  righteous- 
ness '  v.  1 6).  [The  '  for'  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  verse  has  been  very 
variously  explained.  Some  (e.g. 
Calv.,  Kay)  regard  it  as  explanatory 
of  the  preceding  clause,  '  not  in 
truth'  &c. ;  as  if  the  prophet  would 
say, '  for  they  take  a  pride  in  the  so- 
called  holy  city,  but  where  is  their 
holiness  ?  '  'According  to  others 
(Alexander,  Birks),  it  introduces 
Jehovah's  self-justification  for  still 
continuing  to  plead  with  his  people : 
— '  however  much  individuals  have 
fallen  away,  the  national  privileges 
are  still  unrevoked  by  God.'  Others 
again  (Vitr.,  Ew.,  Del.)  take  'for' 
in  the  sense  of  in  fact,  immo,  firo- 
fecto,  which  kl  so  often  has  in  He- 
brew.]  The  holy  city]  So  lii. 

i  ;  comp.  Ixiv.  9.  This  title  of  Jeru- 
salem only  occurs  elsewhere  in  the 
later  books;  see  Neh.  xi.  i,  18, 
Dan.  ix.  24,  Matt.  iv.  5,  xxvii.  53. 

They  lean]  Comp.  x.  20,  '  but 

shall  rely  (lit.  stay  themselves)  upon 
Jehovah,  the  Holy  One  of  Israel, 
in  truth: 

3  The  former  taints  .  .  .  ]    The 


appeal  to  prophecy  is  repeated  for 
the  seventh  time. — To  understand 
this  and  the  two  next  verses,  we 
must  take  them  in  connection  with 
w.  6,  7  ;  there  is  an  evident  con- 
trast intended.  *  The  former  things ' 
(see  on  xli.  22)  were  predicted  to 
Israel  in  order  to  prevent  him  from 
committing  fresh  sin  through  as- 
cribing Jehovah's  wonders  to  false 
gods  ;  it  is  an  additional  character- 
istic that  they  were  foretold  *  long 
since.'  With  regard  to  the  'new 
things,'  it  is  stated  that  they  have 
only  been  announced  on  the  very 
eve  of  their  accomplishment,  for  if 
they  had  been  predicted  centuries 
before,  Israel  would  have  forgotten 
the  source  of  his  knowledge,  and 
would  have  said,  '  It  is  a  trite  story, 
I  know  it  already'  (viz.  through 
another  than  the  true  channel — 
either  his  idol-god,  or  his  natural 
powers  of  calculating  the  future). 

— Suddenly]  In  both  parts  of 
Isaiah  the  unexpectedness  of  the 
events,  in  which  prophecy  finds  its 
fulfilment,  is  emphatically  referred 
to  (comp.  xxix.  5,  xlvii.  9).  Men  hear 
the  prophecy,  but  it  takes  no  hold 
of  them  ;  they  do  not  practically 
believe  in  it.  Still  the  prophecy 
has  produced  this  negative  result, 
that  no  one  can  ascribe  the  event 
predicted  to  any  other  agency  but 
the  true  God. 

4  Hard]  i.e.,  hard  of  heart,  slow 
of  understanding  (comp.  'obdurate,' 
xlvi.  12).  It  is,  in  fact,  a  prophetic 
doctrine  that  all  actual  rebellion 
against  Jehovah  is  preceded  by  a 
loss  of  spiritual  sensibility.  Thus 
we  read  that  '  the  heart  of  Pharaoh 
grew  stiff,  and  he  did  not  hearken 
unto  them '  (Ex.  vii.  13) ;  that,  before 
all  hope  of  Israel's  conversion  is 
given  up,  Jehovah  must  '  make  the 
heart  of  this  people  fat '  (Isa.  vi.  10) ; 


CHAP.  XLVIIL] 


ISAIAH. 


neck,  and  thy  forehead  brass, 5  therefore  I  announced  it  to  thee 
long  since,  before  it  came  to  pass  I  showed  it  thee  ;  lest  thou 
shouldest  say,  Mine  idol  hath  wrought  them,  and  my  graven 
image,  and  my  molten  image,  hath  commanded  them.  6  Thou 
hast  heard  it ;  see  it  as  a  whole  ;  (and  as  for  you — should  ye 
not  announce  it  ?)  I  declare  to  thee  new  things  from  this  time, 
even  hidden  things,  which  thou  knewest  not.  7  They  have 
been  created  now  and  not  heretofore,  and  before  to-day  thou 
heardest  them  not,  lest  thou  shouldest  say,  Behold,  I  knew 


and  that  in  Ezekiel's  time  '  all  the 
house  of  Israel  (were)  stiff  in  the 
forehead,  and  hard  of  heart '  (Ezek. 
iii.  7).  The  '  heart,'  as  usual  in  the 
Old  Testament,  is  here  the  organ 
of  the  understanding  and  of  the  con- 
science.  Thy  forehead  brass] 

i.e.,  thou  wast  defiant  and  unap- 
proachable ;  comp.  Ezek.  iii.  8,  9. 
A  similar  figure  in  a  good  sense, 
1.  7- 

5  Therefore  X  announced  it  to 
thee]     Jehovah  speaks  as  a  loving 
father  to  his  rebellious  child.     He 
takes  the  obstinacy  of  Israel  very 
calmly  ;  it  is  a  reason,  not  for  cast- 
ing him  off,  but  for  showing  more 
kindness.     He  will  at  least  prevent 
him  from  committing  fresh  sin  by 
ascribing  Jehovah's  mighty  deeds 
to     false     gods. Hath      com- 
manded them]  i.e.,  '  called  them 
into  being ;'  comp.  Ps.  xxxiii.  9. 

6  See    it  as   a  whole]     Behold 
the  prediction  fully  accomplished. 
H impel  makes  the  accusative  here 
refer  to  the  past  history  of  Israel 
as  witnessing  to  a  God  who  fulfils 
His   predictions.1      This  is   surely 
inadmissible.     'Thou  hast  heard  it 
&c.'  can  only  mean  '  See  as  a  whole 
that   which  thou  hast  heard,'  and 
the   preceding    verse    shows    that 
what   the    Jews   had   'heard'  was 
not  their  past  history,  but  predic- 
tions relative  to  the  achievements 

of  Cyrus. And  as  for  you  .  .  .  ] 

This    is    evidently    addressed,    not 
to  the   nation   in  general,    but    to 
the  individuals  actually  around  the 
prophet.      It   is  thoroughly  in   the 


style  of  Isaiah,  and  of  the  old 
prophets  in  general,  who  really 
uttered  their  prophecies  before  com- 
mitting them  to  writing.  On  the 
whole,  II.  Isaiah  is  both  in  form  and 
in  style  intensely  literary  ;  it  is  the 
more  remarkable  that  the  writer 
should  involuntarily  fall  into  ora- 
torical turns  of  expression. — 
Should  ye  not  announce  it  f] 
Ought  ye  not  to  make  known  such 
a  striking  proof  of  the  unique 
divinity  of  Jehovah?— Hitzig,  taking 
the  word  '  announce '  in  the  sense 
of  'predict,'  which  it  has  in  v.  5 
and  xli.  22,  23,  explains,  '  Will  ye 
not  predict  something  yourselves  ? ' 
But  the  context  seems  rather  to 
require  an  appeal  to  the  conscience 

of  the  idolaters. New  things] 

See  on  xlii.  9. 

7  They  have  been  created] 
now]  i.e.,  they  are  now  for  the 
first  time  brought  (or  beginning  to 
be  brought)  into  actual  existence — 
hitherto  they  have  only  had  an 
ideal  life,  '  hid  in  God '  (Eph.  iii.  9), 
in  the  Divine  counsels  (comp. 
on  xxii.  n).  According  to  Naeg., 
however,  (who  does  not  mention 
that  he  is  but  following  Kimchi), 
the  word  '  created  '  is  equivalent  to 
'  prophesied,'  since  a  word  of  pro- 
phecy is  in  a  sense  creative  (see  on 
ix.  8),  and  converts  the  Divine 
counsel  from  a  \6yos  evdidfaros  into 
a  \oyos  npocfiopiKos.  This  is  an 
unsuccessful  attempt  to  preclude 
the  inference  which  has  been 
drawn  from  this  passage  in  favour 
of  a  Babylonian  origin  of  II.  Isaiah. 


1   Theologische  Qnartalschrift  (Rom.  Cath.),  Tiibirgen,  1878,  pp.  306-7, 

B  2 


ISATAH. 


[CHAP.  XLVIII. 


them.  *  Neither  hast  thou  heard  them,  neither  hast  thou 
known  them,  neither  did  thine  ear  open  heretofore  ;  for  I 
knew  that  thou  wast  indeed  treacherous,  and  wast  called 
Rebellious  from  the  womb  ?  9  For  my  name's  sake  I  defer 
mine  anger,  and  for  my  praise  I  am  temperate  towards  thee, 
net  to  cut  thee  off.  10  Behold,  I  have  refined  thee,  but  a  not 
as  silver  a ;  I  have  b  tested  thee  in  the  furnace  of  affliction. 

•  Not  for  silver,  Ew.  ;  not  obtained  any  silver,  Ges. 

b  So  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Henderson,  Del.,  Naeg.  (mentioned  also  by 
A.E.  and  Kimchi).— Chosen,  Vulg.,  the  Rabbis,  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Stier,  Weir.  (Rashi 
renders  the  clause,  'I  chose  for  thee  the  furnace  of  affliction,'  but  against  the 
parallelism. ) 


Dr.  Rutgers,  with  the  same  object, 
attempts  to  show  that  there  was 
nothing  in  the  successes  of  Cyrus 
to  justify  such  language  in  a  pro- 
phet living  at  the  close  of  the 
Exile.  He  refers  to  the  (rather 
dubious)  oracles  which  are  said 
(e.g.,  by  Dino,  Fragm.  7,  and  by 
Herodotus,  i.  53)  to  have  an- 
nounced the  victories  of  Cyrus. 
Dr.  Land  replies,  that  it  required  an 
unusual  intensity  of  faith  to  predict 
in  such  positive  terms  what  we  can 
now,  perhaps,  ci  posteriori  see  to 
be  very  natural.  Was  it  not  rather 
to  be  apprehended  that  the  Jews 
would  simply  exchange  a  Chaldean 

oppressor  for  a  Persian  ? l lest 

thou  shouldest  say  .  .  .  ]  See 
note  on  '  The  former  things  '  (v.  3). 
8  Neither  did  thine  ear  open] 
A  synonym  for  '  didst  thou  hear ' 
(i.e.,  with  the  natural,  not  the 
spiritual  organ) ;  comp.  xlii.  19 
(where,  however,  the  verb  is  differ- 
ent).  Por  X  knew  .  .  .  ]  Here 

the  same  reason  is  given  for  the 
postponement  of  the  prediction  of 
the  'new  things'  which  has  been 
urged  for  the  early  date  of  the 
announcement  of  'the  former 
things '  (v.  4).  There  is  no  incon- 
sistency, however.  It  is  the  '  new- 
ness,' the  unheard-of  grandeur,  of 
the  second  cycle  of  predicted  events, 
which  causes  the  difference  in 
Jehovah's  procedure.  Israel  was 
equally  '  hard '  at  both  periods  of 
prophecy,  but  his  guilt  would  have 


been  greatly  increased  by  denying 
the  Divine  origin  of  these  won- 

drously  'new'  facts. That  thou 

wast  indeed  treacherous]  It  is 
difficult  to  realise  the  closeness 
of  the  relation  felt  by  primitive 
races  to  exist  between  them  and 
their  gods.  This,  however,  is  the 
basis  on  which  the  Biblical  doc- 
trines of  the  relation  between  Je- 
hovah and  Israel,  and  between  God 
and  the  Church,  are  established. 
See  Mic.  iv.  5,  and  comp.  Hos.  v.  7, 
vi.  7,  Jer.  iii.  7,  10,  Mai.  ii.  n. — 
Rebellious]  The  allusion  is  pri- 
marily to  the  provocations  of  the 
Israelites  in  the  wilderness  (comp. 

Ps.  cvi.  7-33). rrom  the  womb] 

The  accents  link  this  with  '  Rebel- 
lious '  (in  this  case  render  '  art 
called ') ;  it  gives  a  better  sense, 
however,  to  connect  it  with  the 
verb. 

9  But   some   objector   may   ask, 
Why  has  not  Jehovah  taken  sum- 
mary vengeance  on   such   an  im- 
pious   race? For    my    name's 

sake,  &c.  gives  the  answer.     Be- 
cause it  would  have  compromised 
Jehovah  in  the  eyes  of  the  heathen, 
who  are,  in  His  own  good  time,  to 
become    subjects    of    the    Divine 
King.      Comp.  Ezek.  xx.  9,  xxxvi. 
21-23. 

10  X  have  refined  thee,  but  not 
as  silver]     The  precise   meaning 
is  obscure.     We  may,  however,  at 
once    dismiss    the   explanation   of 
Ewald  ('  my  refining  did  not  result 


1  Rutgers,    DC   echtheid,    enz., 
Jesaias  '  Theologisch  Tijdschrift,  18 


I.  64-68  ;   Land,    '  Prof.   Rutgers  en  de    tweecle 
p.  202. 


CHAP.  XLVIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


11  For  mine  own  sake,  for  mine  own  sake  will  I  do  it ;  for 
how  should  it  be  desecrated  ?  and  my  glory  I  will  not  give 
unto  another. 

12  Hearken  unto  me,  O  Jacob ;  and  Israel,  my  called  one  ; 
I  am  He,  I  am  the  first,  I  also  am  the  last.  13  It  was  my 
hand  also  that  laid  the  foundation  of  the  earth,  and  my  right 
hand  that  spread  out  the  heavens  ;  if  I  call  unto  them,  they 
stand  up  together.  14  Assemble  yourselves,  all  of  you,  and 
hear ;  who  among  c  them  announced  these  things  ?  He 
whom  Jehovah  hath  loved  shall  perform  his  pleasure  on 

c  You,  not  a  few  Hebr.  MSS.,  Pesh. 


in  the  production  of  pure  metal'), 
which  is  here  *  purposeless '  (Del.). 
(It  is  not  the  so-called  Beth  pretii, 
but  the  Beth  essenti<z,  which  we  have 
here.  For  the  latter,  besides  xl.  10, 
comp.  Ezek.  xx.  41,  'as  a  sweet 
savour  I  will  accept  you  gladly.') 
But  what  does  'not  as  silver'  mean? 
Not  merely  'in  a  higher  sense  than 
the  refining  of  silver'  (Hitz.,  Del.), 
comp.  xxix.  9 ;  but  rather  '  not  with 
such  uncompromising  severity  as 
silver,'  (so  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Hengst.). 
To  have  tried  Israel  'as  silver,' 
which,  as  a  psalmist  says,  is  '  puri- 
fied seven  times '  (Ps.  xii.  6),  would 
have  been  to  'cut  off'  the  nation 
entirely  (comp.  v.  9) ;  Jehovah, 
therefore,  mindful  of  his  covenant, 
'reined  in'  or  'restrained'  the 
anger  due  to  its  iniquity. — The 
beauty  of  the  passage,  thus  ex- 
plained, shines  out  the  more  by 
comparison  with  the  application  of 
the  same  figure  in  other  prophecies  ; 
see  i.  25,  Ezek.  xxii.  18-22,  Mai. 
iii.  3 ;  Zech.  xiii.  9  is  more  nearly 
in  harmony  with  it. Xn  the  fur- 
nace of  affliction]  An  allusion  to 
the  '  iron  furnace '  of  the  Egyptian 
bondage,  Deut.  iv.  20.  The  pro- 
phets regard  Egypt  as  the  type  of 
all  subsequent  oppressors. 

11  For  how  should  it  be  dese- 
crated?] Understand  '  my  glory,' 
by  a  '  proleptic  ellipsis ' ;  comp. 
J  udg.  v.  20,  '  They  fought  from 
heaven  —  the  stars  from  their 
courses  fought  against  Sisera.' 
So  Ges.,  and  formerly,  Del.  (in  his 


comment  on  Hab.  i.  5).  Or,  though 
this  is  less  obvious,  supply  my  name 
from  v.  9  (with  Sept.,  Vitr.,  Hitz., 
Del.,  Naeg.).  The  verb  will  suit 
equally  well  with  'name'  (comp. 
xxiii.  9),  and  'glory'  (comp.  Lev. 
xviii.  21,  xix.  12,  Ezek.  xx.  9,  xxxvi. 

22). Unto  another]     i.e.,  to  an 

idol-god.     So  xlii.  8. 

12-15  A  still  more  complete  and 
more  condensed  summary  of  the 
chief  contents  of  chaps,  xl.-xlvii. 
The  summons  to  attend  to  the  new 
and  grand  revelation  (comp.  xliv.  i, 
xlvi.  3).  'I  am  He,'  (comp.  xliii. 
10,  13,  25,  xli.  4,  xlvi.  4).  'The 
First  and  the  Last '  (xli.  4,  xliv.  6). 
The  Creator  (comp.  xl.  12,  22,  26, 
28,  xlii.  5,  xliv.  24,  xlv.  12,  18.  De- 
bate on  prophecy  (comp.  xli.  i,  22- 
28,  xliii.  9-12,  xliv.  7,  8).  Mission 
of  Cyrus  (xli.  2,  25,  xliv.  28,  xlv. 
1-7,  13,  xlvi.  11). 

14  Assemble  yourselves]  Ad- 
dressed to  the  idolatrous  nations 

(xliii.  9). He    whom   Jehovah 

hath  loved]  Cyrus  inherits  the 
honour  conferred  on  the  child 
Solomon  (comp.  the  Hebrew  of 
2  Sam.  xii.  24,  Del.).  There  is,  it 
is  true,  no  verbal  parallel  for  such 
a  phrase  in  the  preceding  dis- 
courses, but  the  personal  regard  of 
Jehovah  for  Cyrus  has  been  clearly 
enough  expressed  (see  xlv.  4). — 
His  arm]  The  subject  is  uncertain. 
Is  it  Jehovah?  is  it  Cyrus?  Dr. 
Weir  remarks,  with  perfect  accu- 
racy, that  it  is  elsewhere  God's  arm 
which  the  prophet  refers  to.  But 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  XLVI] 


Babylon,  and  d  his  arm  (shall  be)d  on  Chaldaea.      15  1,  even 
have  spoken  ;  I  have  also  called  him  ;    I  have  brought  him, 
and  his  way  shall  be  prosperous. 

16  Draw  near  unto  me,  hear  ye  this  ;  (from  the  beginning 
I  have  not  spoken  in  secret,  from  the  time  that  it  came  into 
being,  there  have  I  been  :  and  now  the  Lord  Jehovah  hath 

d  His  arm,  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Naeg. 


surely  he  has  not  thereby  debarred 
himself  from  speaking  of  the  '  arm  ' 
of  a  human  agent  !  ('Arm  '  =  power; 
comp.  Job  xxxv.  9,  'they  cry  out  by 
reason  of  the  arm  of  the  mighty.') 
The  form  of  the  phrase  is  no  doubt 
peculiar.  We  should  have  expected 
something  like  '  and  the  lighting 
down  of  his  arm  shall  be  on 
Chaldaea'  (comp.  xxx.  30);  whereas 
all  that  the  text  gives  us  is  'and 
his  arm  Chaldasa.'  In  spite  of  v.  g 
(see  Hebr.),  it  does  not  seem  very 
natural  to  make  the  preposition  in 
the  preceding  clause  operate  pro- 
spectively,  and  yet,  as  the  text 
stands,  there  is  no  alternative.  The 
rendering  adopted  above  seems 
on  the  whole  the  best.  Alt.  rend. 
may  indeed  be  supported  by  Ex. 
xiv.  31  ('the  great  hand  which 
Jehovah  did  ')  but  '  his  arm  '  is  not  a 
satisfactory  parallel  to  'his  pleasure' 
—  it  corresponds  better  (supplying 
'shall  be')  to  'shall  perform,  &c.' 

6  Here  the  recapitulation  of  the 
previous  discourses  is  interrupted. 
The  prophet,  in  the  name  of  Jeho- 
vah, is  about  to  put  forth  his  good 
tidings  in  a  more  striking  form  than 
he  has  yet  given  them.  But  first 
he  must  prepare  the  minds  of  his 
readers  by  a  pathetic  appeal  to  their 
consciences.  -  Draw  near  unto 
me]  Jehovah  is  still  the  speaker, 
but  he  addresses,  no  longer  the 
heathen  (as  in  v.  14),  but  the  Is- 
raelites, especially  those  who  are 
'far  from  righteousness'  (xlvi.  12). 
The  main  point  of  his  address  is  in 
W.  1  8,  19.  From  the  beginning] 
The  passage  thus  introduced  is 
open  to  various  interpretations. 
The  most  probable  seems  to  me  to 
be  this—  that  from  the  beginning  of 
1  /.  C.  A. 


the  world  (comp.  xl.  21,  xli.  4)  Je- 
hovah has  '  raised  up  a  succession 
of  prophets,  each  bearing  his  own 
unambiguous  message;  "and  now," 
as  the  prophetic  writer  subjoins, 
Jehovah  has  crowned  his  previous 
work  with  this  grandest  of  revela- 
tions.' l  Compare  Calvin's  note, 
'  Testatur  Deum  ilium  qui  ab  initio 
loquutus  est,  per  ipsum  loqui.  Itaque 
sic  habendam  esse  fidem  iis  quae 
nunc  Deus  per  ipsum  loquitur,  ac 
si  palam  adesset.' — The  phrase 
'from  the  beginning'  may,  how- 
ever, also  be  taken  as  meaning 
'from  the  beginning  of  that  his- 
torical period  to  which  the  fall  of 
Babylon  belongs.'  Jehovah  cer- 
tainly claims,  according  to  the 
prophet,  to  have  foretold  the  future 
from  primeval  times,  but  he  also 
insists  repeatedly  on  the  early  date 
of  his  predictions  respecting  Cyrus. 

1  have  not  spoken  in  secret] 

'  My  revelations  have  not  been 
obscure  and  ambiguous  like  the 

heathen   oracles.' From     the 

time  that  it  came  into  being 
.  .  .  ]  The  subject  of  the  verb  is 
doubtful.  Most  expositors  think  it 
to  be  Jehovah's  purpose  respecting 
Cyrus.  In  this  case,  the  Divine 
speaker  declares  that  not  only  had 
He  foretold  the  Persian  victories 
(comp.  xli.  26),  but  from  the  time 
that  these  announcements  'came 
into  being'  (i.e.,  began  to  be 
fulfilled),  '  there  (was)  He,'  as  the 
director  and  controller  of  events. 
But  is  this  view  quite  consistent  with 
the  latter  half  of  the  verse,  which  so 
distinctly  refers  to  prophecy?  Is 
it  not  more  natural,  with  Ewald,  to 
take  the  words  'there  (was)  He'  as 
referring  to  the  succession  of  pro- 

P-  i75- 


tAP.  XLVIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


sent  me  and  e  his  Spirit e :)  17  thus  saith  Jehovah,  thy  Goel, 
the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  I  am  Jehovah  thy  God,  he  who 
teacheth  thee  to  profit,  who  leadeth  thee  by  the  way  thou 

c  His  Word,  Targ. 


phetic  messengers,  and  as  the  sub- 
ject of  the  verb  '  came  into  being ' 
to  understand  '  the  earth '  (from  v. 
1 3)?  '  From  the  beginning '  will  then 
mean  '  from  the  beginning  of  the 
world.'  It  may  be  noticed  in  this  con- 
nection that  the  word-group  '  there 
I  (have  been) '  occurs  again  in  the 
description  of  the  work  of  Wisdom 
at  the  creation  (Prov.  viii.  27).  (For 
the  ellipsis  of  '  the  earth,'  comp. 
viii.  21,  Ps.  Ixviii.  15  in  the  Hebr.) 
— And.  now  the  Ziorl  Jehovah 
hath]  Here  a  fresh  speaker  is 
evidently  introduced,  though  his 
speech  only  extends  to  the  end  of 
the  verse.  But  who  ?  According  to 
Delitzsch,  it  is  the  servant  of  Jeho- 
vah, who  has  already  been  declared 
to  be  divinely  '  sent,'  and  to  be  in- 
vested with  the  Divine  Spirit.  This 
is  possible,  but  not,  in  my  opinion, 
probable.  A  concise  and  incidental 
utterance  of  this  kind  seems  hardly 
consistent  with  the  dignity  of  this 
great  personage,  while  an  occa- 
sional brief  reference  to  himself 
is  characteristic  of  the  prophetic 
writer  (comp.  xl.  6,  xliv.  26,  Ivii.  21). 
So  Targ.,  which  interpolates  '  the 
prophet  saith.'  There  is  a  partly 
similar  transition,  pointed  out  by 
Del.,  from  Jehovah  as  a  speaker  to 
the  prophet  in  Ixii.  6. — It  is  difficult 
to  see  how  Hitzig,  Knobel,  and 
Naegelsbach  can  assign  the  whole 
verse  to  one  person,  and  that  per- 
son the  prophet  (in  spite  of  xlv.  19). 
If  the  latter  had  only  been  sent 
'  now,'  how  could  he  have  '  spoken 

from  the  beginning '  ? And  his 

Spirit]  It  has  been  much  debated 
whether  these  words  are  the  subject 
(with  'the  Lord  Jehovah')  or  the 
object  of  the  verb,  i.e.,  whether  the 
Spirit  is  the  sender  or  the  sent. 
The  Targ.  (most  probably),  Sept. 
(see  Dr.  Kay's  note),  and  Vulg.,  fol- 
lowed by  the  English  and  German 
versions  and  by  Naeg.,  take  the 


former  view ;  Calvin.  Vitr.,  Del. 
and  indeed  most  moderns,  the 
latter.  Grammatically,  both  ren- 
derings are  equally  admissible 
(comp.  Origen,  Works,  ed.  Lom- 
matzsch,  iii.  244),  though  the  for- 
mer is  somewhat  more  obvious. 
But  as  there  is  no  analogy  in  the 
O.  T.  for  the  Spirit's  being  the  sen- 
der of  a  prophet  (in  i  Kings  xxii. 
21,  22,  *  The  Spirit '  of  prophecy  is 
himself  sent),  and  as  the  Spirit  is, 
elsewhere  in  II.  Isaiah,  distinctly 
subordinated  to  Jehovah  (see  xliv.  3, 
Ixi.  i ,  Ixiii.  i o,  1 1 )  it  seems  tome  safer 
to  take  the  words  *  and  his  Spirit ' 
= '  with  his  Spirit '  (for  the  idiom, 
see  crit.  note  on  vii.  i).  Possibly 
this  particular  construction  may 
have  been  chosen  here  to  indicate 
the  personality  of  the  Spirit,  for  I 
cannot  but  think,  with  Kleinert 
(who,  however,  makes  '  his  Spirit ' 
the  subject),  that  we  have  both  here 
and  in  Gen.  i.  2  an  early  trace  of 
what  is  known  as  the  Christian 
doctrine  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  If  a 
parallel  for  the  claim  here  put  for- 
ward by  the  prophet  be  required, 
comp.  Hos.  ix.  8,  'the  man  of  the 
Spirit '  =  av6pa>7Tos  6  TrvFup-aTofyopos. 
Sept.  (The  whole  subject  of  the 
O.  T.  doctrine  of  the  Spirit  is 
well  treated  by  Dr.  Paul  Kleinert, 
in  Jahrbiicher  fur  deutsche  Theo- 
logie,  1867,  pp.  3-59.) 

i7-i9  A  tender  complaint  that 
Israel  has  not  taken  the  straight 
road  to  peace  and  righteousness, 
but  has  obliged  Jehovah  to  '  lead 
them  round '(Ex.  xiii.  18),  as  it 
were,  by  the  rough  road  of  chas- 
tisement.  Who  teacheth  thee 

to  profit]  Deep  down  in  human 
nature  lies  the  idea  of  a  covenant 
between  the  worshipper  and  his 
god.  In  return  for  external  service, 
the  god  gives  help  and  protection. 
The  prophets,  with  a  generous 
freedom,  retain  so  much  of  this 


8 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP,  xi.vni. 


'shouldest  go.  18  O  that  thou  fhadst  hearkened'  unto  my 
commandments  !  then  would  thy  peace  g  have  been  g  as  the 
river,  and  thy  righteousness  as  the  waves  of  the  sea ;  19  and 
thy  seed  would  have  been  as  the  sand,  and  the  offspring  of 
thy  body  as  the  h entrails  thereof;  his  name  would  not  be 

f  Didst  hearken,  Hitz.,  Knob.,  Stier,  Del. 

*  Be,  Hitz.,  Knob.,  Stier,  Del.  (the  letters  leave  the  point  of  time  uncertain). 
h  So  Rashi,  A.E.,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Naeg.,  Weir.— All  the  old  versions  agree  substan- 
tially in  rendering  '  grains  (of  sand)1  ;  so  Vitr.,  Ew.,  Del. 


primitive  theory  as  matches  with 
the  truths  revealed  to  them.  Je- 
hovah's protection  is  still  condi- 
tional, but  the  conditions  extend  to 
the  inner  as  well  as  the  outer  man. 
His  terms  are  therefore  more  severe 
than  those  of  the  idol-gods,  but  the 
result  justifies  their  acceptance. 
For  the  idol-gods  are,  as  Jeremiah 
puts  it  (ii.  n),  'the  not-profitable,' 
and  similar  statements  occur  in 
II.  Isaiah  (xliv.  9, 10,  comp.  xlv.  19). 
Jehovah,  on  the  other  hand,  teaches 
only  what  is  '  profitable '  (i.e.,  in  a 
moral  sense,  comp.  Mic.  vi.  8),  and 
leads  in  the  right  way  (Ps.  xxiii.  3). 
— O  that  thou  hadst  hearkened 
.  .  .  ]  This  is  the  literal  render- 
ing. Some  critics,  however,  are  of 
opinion  that  it  does  not  suit  the 
context,  that  it  leads  rather  away 
from,  than  up  to,  the  enlivening 
promise  which  underlies  the  con- 
cluding injunction.  The  same  con- 
struction, they  remind  us,  occurs  in 
Ixiv.  i,  where  all  critics  are  agreed 
that  the  sense  is  a  wish  for  the 
future,  and  not  for  the  past,  and 
that  the  perfect  merely  expresses 
the  impatient  eagerness  of  the  wish. 
But,  as  Naeg.  remarks,  the  two 
passages  are  not  entirely  parallel. 
The  one  refers  to  an  action,  the 
other  to  a  state,  A  form  of  expres- 
sion suitable  enough  in  the  one 
case  would  lead  to  ambiguity  or 
worse  in  the  other.  It  is  safer  to 
render  as  above,  and  the  meaning, 
though  more  subtle,  is  not  inappro- 
priate.— There  is  a  similar  and  an 
equally  touching  apostrophe  in  Ps, 
Ixxxi.  13-16,  where,  however,  the 
construction  is  different,  and  we 
must  certainly  render,  not  as  Auth. 
Vers.  and  (at  least  as  regards  w. 


13,  14)  Vulg.,  *  had  hearkened,'  'had 
walked,' '  should  have  subdued,' 
&c.,  but  '  would  hearken,'  '  would 

walk,'  '  would  subdue,'  &c. The 

river]     i.e.,    the     Euphrates     (so 

Targ.). Thy      righteousness] 

*  Righteousness '  here,  as  so  often 
in  II.  Isaiah,  means,  not  rectitude, 
but  prosperity,  not  however  pros- 
perity per  se,  but  as  the  manifesta- 
tion of  Jehovah's  righteousness  or 
fidelity  to  His  promises. 

19  As  the  sand]  Thus  the 
ancient  promises  to  Abraham  and 
to  Jacob  (Gen.  xxii.  17,  xxxii.  12), 
and  indeed  those  recent  ones  to 
Israel  himself  (xliv.  3,  4),  would 
have  been  realised,  as  it  were, 

naturally.  As     the     entrails 

thereof]  i.e.,  the  fishes,  which 
have  their  name  in  Hebr.  from 
swarming  (comp.  Gen.  i.  20).  The 
subject  in  Hebr.  is  not  always  the 
noun  last  mentioned ;  it  must  in 
this  case  be  supplied  from  the  pre- 
ceding line.  The  word  for '  entrails ' 
is  the  feminine  form  of  that  ren- 
dered 'body';  masculine  and  femi- 
nine forms  standing  together  as  in 
iii.  i. — This  rend,  seems  to  me  now 
safer  than  that  of  Ew.  or  of  Del. 

(The  phrase  is  Spenserian.) Bis 

name  would  not  be  cut  off]  Not 
only  would  these  blessings  have 
been  attained,  but  Israel's  name  as 
a  people  would  be  secured  against 
extinction  for  all  time. — But  is  not 
this  explanation  against  the  spirit 
of  Old  Testament  prophecy,  which 
assumes,  like  St.  Paul,  that  the 
xapio-fiara  of  God  are  irrevocable  ? 
Are  we  not  therefore  driven  to 
Ewald's  way  of  rendering  the  pas- 
sage ?  No ;  for  no  people  can  be 
secured  in  existence  beyond  that 


CHAP.  XLVIII. 


ISAIAH. 


cut  off,  nor  destroyed  from  before  me.  20  Go  ye  out  from 
Babylon,  flee  ye  from  Chaldaea  ;  with  a  ringing  cry  announce 
ye  this  and  show  it  ;  cause  it  to  go  forth  even  to  the  end  of 
the  earth  ;  say  ye,  Jehovah  hath  redeemed  his  servant  Jacob. 
21  And  they  thirsted  not  in  the  deserts  through  which  he  led 
them  :  water  from  the  rock  he  caused  to  flow  down  unto 
them  ;  he  clave  the  rock,  and  water  gushed  out.  22  There  is 
no  peace,  saith  Jehovah,  to  the  ungodly. 


Day  of  Jehovah  which  marks  off 
one  '  age '  (olam  or  aid>z/)  from 
another.  It  is  only  a  moral  bond 
of  union  which  can  so  attach  Israel 
to  Jehovah  that  his  existence  be- 
comes absolutely  illimitable.  For 
'  the  coming  age  '  (to  adopt  the  late 
Jewish  phrase)  a  special  promise  is 
required  (see  Ixvi.  22).  *  Before  me,' 
i.e.,  under  my  care  and  protection. 
— See  crit.  note. 

20  The  prophet,  '  becoming  in 
the  Spirit'  (Rev.  i.  10),  sees  the  de- 
struction of  Babylon  in  the  act  of 

accomplishment. Flee  ye  .  .  .] 

'  Escape  for  thy  life '  (Gen.  xix.  17). 
At  a  later  period,  the  prophetic  in- 
junction took  a  different  form  : — 
'  ye  shall  not  proceed  in  flight ' 

(Hi.   12). With  a  rinsing  cry] 

The  accents  connect  these  words 
with  '  announce,  tell.'  Vitringa,  in- 
deed, thinks  this  produces  an  im- 
probable phrase — '  announce  with 
the  voice  of  song.'  'Butrmnah  is  not 
properly  *  song,'  and  if  the  message 
were  to  reach  '  the  end  of  the  earth,' 
a  'ringing  cry'  would  indeed  be 
necessary.  The  contents  of  the 
message  are  the  redemption  and 

return  of  Israel. Jehovah  hath 

redeemed]  Not  the  prophetic 
perfect  (as  in  xliii.  i,  xliv.  22),  but 
the  historical.  The  Israelites  have 
now  escaped  from  the  fallen  city, 
and  not  only  so,  but  received  *  the 


earnest  of  their  inheritance.'  These 
great  mercies  they  are  to  proclaim 
far  and  wide  (comp.  xii.  4).  In 
fact,  as  we  know  from  xlv.  22,  '  all 
the  ends  of  the  earth '  are  vitally 
interested  in  the  salvation  of  Israel. 
21  And  they  thirsted  not  .  .  .] 
Literalists  will  remark  (as  David 
Kimchi  long  ago,  with  nai've  as- 
tonishment, remarked)  that  no 
miracle  of  bringing  water  out  of 
the  rock  is  mentioned  in  the  Book 
of  Ezra.  But  the  picture  is  of 
course  symbolical.  Similar  figures 
occur  in  xli.  17-19,  xliii.  19,  20, 
xliv.  3,  4,  but  here  the  emphasis 
is  laid  more  on  the  refreshment 
vouchsafed  during  the  homeward 
journey,  than  on  the  blessedness 
reserved  for  the  true  Israel  after 
their  resettlement.  The  prophet 
aims  at  showing  that  the  restora- 
tion from  Babylon  was  as  great  a 
Divine  interposition  as  the  deliver- 
ance from  Egypt  (comp.  Ex.  xvii. 
6,  Num.  xx.  n). — The  last  words 
of  the  verse  remind  us  of  Ps. 
Ixxviii.  20,  cv.  41  (see  Hebr.). 

23  There  is  no  peace  .  .  .  ] 
'Peace'  (comp.  v.  18)  sums  up  all 
the  promised  blessings  ;  from  these 
the  '  ungodly,'  those  who  do  not 
belong  to  the  spiritual  Israel,  are 
self-excluded.  The  same  words 
occur,  in  the  manner  of  a  refrain, 
in  Ivii.  21. 


IO  ISAIAH.  [CHAP.  XLIX. 


CHAPTER   XLIX. 

WE  now  enter  upon  a  new  section  of  the  prophecy.  This  is  ad- 
mitted even  by  those  who,  denying  the  unity,  deny  also  the  division 
of  II.  Isaiah  into  three  symmetrical  books.  In  it,  we  hear  no  more 
of  the  antithesis  between  Israel  and  heathenism,  no  more  of  Babylon, 
no  more  even  of  Cyrus.  Israel  himself,  in  all  his  contradictory 
characteristics,  becomes  the  engrossing  subject  of  the  prophet's  medi- 
tations. His  restoration,  still  future,  but  indubitable,  is  celebrated  in 
Chap.  Ix.  by  an  ode  somewhat  similar  to  that  on  the  fall  of  Babylon 
in  the  preceding  part.  But  the  nearer  the  great  event  arrives,  and 
the  more  the  prophet  realises  the  ideal  Israel  of  the  future,  the  more 
he  is  depressed  by  the  low  spiritual  condition  of  the  actual  Israel. 
Strange  to  say,  this  combination  of  apparently  inconsistent  data — the 
splendour  of  the  future  and  the  misery  of  the  present — supplies  the 
material  for  a  specimen  of  dramatic  description  surpassing  anything 
in  the  rest  of  the  Old  Testament. 

The  scene  with  which  the  section  opens  is  a  singularly  striking 
one.  The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  wearied,  as  it  seems,  with  the  infatuated 
opposition  of  the  majority  of  the  Israelites,  turns  to  the  '  countries ' 
and  '  peoples  afar  off,'  and  unfolds  at  length,  although  not  as  yet 
in  all  its  fulness,  his  origin  and  his  high  mission. 

It  is  true  that  here,  as  in  the  case  of  the  parallel  prophecy  xlii. 
1-7,  many  critics  deny  that  '  the  Servant '  is  the  speaker,  and  assign 
the  soliloquy  either  to  the  prophet  or  to  the  spiritual  Israel.  Of  these 
two  theories  the  former  is  the  more  plausible,  as  it  does  fuller  justice 
to  the  individualising  features  of  the  description.  It  is  also  confirmed 
by  Jer.  i.  5,  where  it  is  said  of  Jeremiah,  that  before  he  came  out  of 
the  womb  he  was  *  known,'  '  consecrated,'  and  '  ordained '  of  Jehovah. 
The  drawback,  however,  to  this  comparison  is  that  Jeremiah  does  not, 
like  the  speaker  in  xlix.  i,  presume  to  state  this  of  himself;  it  is  *  the 
word  of  Jehovah'  which  'came  to  him.'  Besides,  the  greater  part 
of  what  the  speaker  says  is  so  grand  and  so  self-assertive  that  no 
prophet,  least  of  all  such  a  reticent  prophet  as  the  author,  can  be 
imagined  as  uttering  it.  The  latter  theory  has  but  one  point  in  its 
favour — the  second  line  of  v.  3,  and  this  no  doubt  is  at  first  sight 
conclusive.  It  is  opposed  however  by  w.  5,  6,  which  unmistakeably 
refer  to  the  spiritual  Israel,  and  expressly  distinguish  it  from  the 
Servant  of  Jehovah.  The  only  other  theory  worth  mentioning  is  that 
which  regards  the  speaker  as  that  human  yet  superhuman  personage 
to  whom  the  latter  appellation  belongs.  All  the  conflicting  data  at 
once  fall  into  their  proper  places  when  we  accept  this  explanation. 
Our  only  reasonable  doubt  will  be  connected  with  the  surprising 


CHAP.  XLIX.]  ISAIAH.  I  I 

statement  in  v.  2,  '  Thou  art  my  servant,  (thou  art)  Israel  with  whom 
I  will  beautify  myself.'  How  can  this  be?  How  can  the  speaker  be 
destined  to  bring  Israel  back  to  Jehovah,  &c.,  and  at  the  same  time 
himself  be  Israel? 

One  of  the  earliest  as  well  as  latest  solutions  is  that  the  speaker 
is  called  Israel  as  being  the  noblest  and  truest  representative  of  the 
people  of  Israel.  So  Ibn  Ezra,  though  the  speaker,  according  to 
him,  is  not  the  prophet  but  the  Servant ;  so  too  Delitzsch,  who  con- 
siders the  personal  Servant  to  be  as  it  were  the  apex  of  a  pyramid, 
of  which  Israel  in  its  entirety  forms  the  basis,  and  the  ideal  or 
spiritual  Israel  the  centre.  So  too  Vitringa,  Naegelsbach,  and  Birks, 
who  explain  v.  $b  as  an  allusion  to  Gen.  xxxii.  29,  and  as  meaning, 
in  the  words  of  the  first-named  writer,  '  Tu  es  Israel,  inter  omnes  veros 
Israelitas  unus  et  solus,  qui  in  te  vere  exhibiturus  es  characteres 
omnes  patris  tui  Jacobi,  qui  cum  Deo  ipso  luctatus  vicit  .  .  .  hac 
ipsa  de  caussa  meritus  appellari  Israel.'  This  is  conceivable,  but  there 
is  no  other  evidence  that  the  first  Israel  was  regarded  as  typical  of  the 
Messiah,  like  Adam  and  David.  May  not  the  true  explanation  be 
much  simpler?  To  me  it  appears  not  impossible  that  the  occurrence 
of  '  Israel '  in  this  passage  is  an  inconsistency.  The  prophet  seems 
to  be  passing  gradually  from  a  lower  to  a  higher  conception  of  his 
*  great  argument.'  Originally  the  Servant  of  Jehovah  was  the  people 
of  Israel — sometimes  the  natural,  sometimes  the  spiritual  Israel. 
Now,  indeed,  he  has  transcended  all  that  is  as  yet  in  existence  in  the 
sphere  of  phenomena,  but  allows  a  vestige  to  remain  of  his  earlier 
conception.  Strictly  speaking,  therefore,  the  title  Israel  is  inappro- 
priate in  this  soliloquy.  It  is  interesting,  however,  as  supplying  a 
link  between  two  conceptions  of  the  mysterious  'Servant.'1 

Contents. — The  Servant's  declaration  concerning  his  intercourse  with 
Jehovah,  his  functions,  and  his  experience  (w.  1-13) ;  Zion  comforted 
in  her  despondency  (w.  14-26). 

1  Hearken,  ye  countries,  unto  me,  and  listen,  ye  far-off 
peoples  :  Jehovah  hath  called  me  from  the  womb,  from  my 
mother's  lap  hath  he  made  mention  of  my  name  ;  2  and  he 

1  Hearken,  ye  countries,  unto  womb]  i.e.,  I  was  predestinated  to 

me     .    .    .    ]     This    is    no    mere  my  missionary  office.     Comp.  Jer. 

rhetorical  phrase,     The  'countries'  i.  5,  Gal.  i.  15,  and  note  at  end  of 

and  the  *  nations  '   fell  within  the  chap.  xlii. 

scope  of  the  Servant's  original  com-  3  He   made   my   mouth  .  .  .  ] 

mission  (xlii.  1,4,6). From  tne  i.e.,  he  endowed  my  word  with  his 

1  It  is  enough  to  chronicle  the  suggestion  of  Gesenius,  in  his  note  on  v.  3,  that  the 
word  '  Israel'  may  be  an  interpolation  (like  '  Israel '  and  'Jacob  '  in  the  Sept.  of  xlii. 
i).  In  the  notes  to  his  translation  of  Isaiah  (2nd  ed.  1829)  he  retracted  this  view. 


12 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  XLI: 


made  my  mouth  as  a  sharp  sword,  in  the  shadow  of  his  han< 
he  hid  me  ;  and  he  made  me  a  polished  shaft,  in  his  quivt 
he  covered  me :  3  and  he  said  unto  me,  Thou  art  my  servant 
(even)  Israel,  with  whom   I  will   beautify   myself.      4  But 
had  said,  I   have  laboured  in  vain,  for  nought   and    for 
breath  have  I   spent  my  strength  ;    but  surely  my  right  i< 


own  omnipotence,  so  that  it  puts 
down  all  opposition,  just  as  his 
word.  So  in  li.  16,  'the  word  of 
the  LORD,  which  is  put  into  the 
mouth  of  the  Servant,  is  so  living 
and  powerful,  so  borne  by  omnipo- 
tence, that  thereby  the  heavens  are 
planted,  and  the  foundations  of  the 
earth  are  laid.'  So  too  in  xi.  4 
(see  note)  it  is  said  of  the  Messianic 
king  that  '  he  shall  smite  the  tyrant 
with  the  sceptre  of  his  mouth.' 
Comp.  also  Heb.  iv.  12,  Eph.  vi. 
17,  and  the  passages  in  Revelation 
(i.  1 6,  xix.  15)  based  upon  this 
imaginative  description  of  the  Ser- 
vant.  He  Hid  me]  The  incisive 

preaching  of  the  Servant  was  dis- 
pleasing to  the  natural  man,  who 
therefore  sought  to  parry  the  sword 
of  the  Spirit  by  the  arm  of  flesh. 
Hence  not  only  the  'mouth,'  but 
the  entire  person  of  the  preacher 

needed  the  Divine  protection. 

And  lie  made  me  a  polished 
shaft]  The  whole  soul  of  the  pro- 
phet is  absorbed  in  his  message ; 
he  is  all  mouth — a  'mouth  of  God' 
(Ex.  iv.  1 6,  comp.  vii.  i).  'Po- 
lished,' so  as  to  penetrate  easily; 
comp.  Jer.  li.  n. 

3  And  he  said  .  .  .  ]  '  And '  is 
explanatory.  Jehovah  tells  His 
Servant  why  He  watches  over  him 
with  such  solicitude.  It  is  because 
he  is  His  precious  instrument,  and 
because  in  and  through  him  He 
designs  to  manifest  His  glory.  The 
Servant  will  become  the  head  of  a 
regenerated  and  expanded  Israel, 
which  Jehovah  will  hold  forth  to 
the  universe  as  His  fairest  prize 
(Ixii.  3). — The  phrase  at  the  end  of 
the  verse  is  repeated  from  xliv.  23. 

4  But  /  had  said  .  .  .  ]  'My 
thoughts  were  very  different — ever 
ready  to  sink  into  dejection  and 


despair.  And  if  I  struggle  against 
this,  the  utmost  I  can  reach  and 
rise  to  is  to  cast  myself  upon  God's 
judgment,  and  to  leave  all  in  His 
hands.'  So  Dr.  Weir.  But  this  is 
far  from  doing  justice  to  the  firm 
faith  of  the  closing  words.  The 
Servant  of  Jehovah  may  indeed 
give  way  to  dejection,  but  only  for 
a  moment.  His  cry  of  pain  and 
astonishment  does  but  show  that 
he  is  a  man — a  historical  person, 
and  is  as  consistent  with  a  deeply- 
rooted  faith  as  the  'Eli,  Eli'  of 
Ps.  xxii.  i,  Matt,  xxvii.  46.  Directly 
after  relieving  his  feelings  by  the 
cry,  '  I  have  laboured  in  vain,'  he 
gives  the  lie,  with  a  'but  surely,' 
to  all  delusive  appearances,  and 
with  the  bold  declaration,  '  my  re- 
compence  is  with  my  God,'  appeals 
to  the  impending  interposition  of 
the  Divine  Judge  (comp.  xl.  10). — 
The  scene  of  this  seemingly  result- 
less  labour  is  evidently  Israel,  not 
the  heathen  world  (see  v.  6).  In  a 
subsequent  chapter  we  find  Zion 
giving  utterance  to  a  complaint 
corresponding  to  the  exclamation 

of  the  Servant  (see  on  li.  14). 

TULy  right]  The  expression  reminds 
us  of  xl.  27,  where  Israel  com- 
plains, '  My  right  has  been  let  slip 
by  my  God.'  There,  however,  the 
'  right '  is  clearly  that  of  an  op- 
pressed nation  as  against  its  op- 
pressors ;  here  it  is  the  '  right '  of 
an  envoy  from  the  King  of  Israel 
to  be  received  with  heartfelt  sub- 
mission. The  work  of  the  Servant 
is  described  under  the  same  figure 
of  a  judicial  pleading  in  1.  8 — 
J«y  recompence]  What  this  re- 
compence  is,  will  appear  in  liii. 
10-12.  (The  mention  of  a  '  recom- 
pence '  of  itself  shows  that  '  ser- 
vant '  in  the  phrase  '  the  Servant 


CHAP.  XLIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


with  Jehovah,  and  my  recompence  with  my  God.  5And 
now  Jehovah  hath  said,  he  who  formed  me  from  the  womb  to 
be  a  servant  unto  him,  that  I  might  bring  back  Jacob  unto 
him,  and  that  Israel  might  a  unto  him  a  be  gathered,  (for  I 
am  honoured  in  the  eyes  of  Jehovah,  and  my  God  is  become 
my  strength,)  6  he  hath  said,  It  is  too  light  a  thing  that  thou 
art  unto  me  a  servant,  to  raise  up  the  tribes  of  Jacob, 
and  to  restore  the  preserved  of  Israel ;  so  I  appoint  thee  the 
light  of  the  nations,  b  to  be  my  salvation b  unto  the  end  of 
the  earth. 

7  Thus  saith  Jehovah,  the  Goel  of  Israel,  and  his  Holy 

a  So  Heb.  marg.  some  MSS.,  Aquila,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Lowth,  Vitr.,  Ges.,  Ew.,Del., 
Naeg.,  Weir. — Not,  Heb.  text,  Vulg.,  Calv.,  Henderson,  Hitz.,  Hengst.,  Alexander, 
Kay.  (The  following  verb  is  variously  rendered  ;  see  crit.  note. ) 

b  So  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Vitr.,  Hengstenberg,  Del.,  Naeg.,  Weir. — That  my  salvation 
maybe,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Ew.  (Weir is  uncertain). 


(literally  slave)  of  Jehovah'  has  a 
special  meaning  of  its  own.  A 
slave  can  have  no  recompence. 

5  And  now  Jehovah  hath 
said  .  .  .  ]  'And'  is  again  ex- 
planatory. Jehovah  rewards  the 
Servant's  recent  exercise  of  faith 
by  a  fresh  revelation.  But  before 
announcing  it,  the  Servant  joyfully 
repeats  the  facts  which  have  ever 
lain  deep  down  in  his  conscious- 
ness, though  obscured  for  a  mo- 
ment by  despondency,  viz.  that  he 
is  Jehovah's  predestined  instrument 
for  the  restoration  of  the  Chosen 
People.  '  To  bring  back '  (i.e., 
that  I  may  bring  back)  at  any  rate 
includes  a  spiritual  reference.  See 
on  xlii.  7,  and  comp.  the  use  of  '  to 
return'  in  I.  Isaiah  (i.  27,  vi.  10,  x. 
20-22,  xxx.  15). — Alt.  rend,  entirely 
spoils  the  symmetry  of  the  verse 
(analogous  cases  in  ix.  2,  Ixiii.  9). 

— For  I  am  honoured  .  .  .  ] 
Lit.  *  and,  &c.' ;  the  '  and '  is  ex- 
planatory of  the  circumstance  that 
a  new  Divine  revelation  has  been 
accorded  to  the  Servant.  He  now 
feels  that  he  is  honoured  (the  im- 
perfect tense  may  be  chosen  as 
being  the  tense  of  emotion)  in  the 
eyes  of  God  if  not  in  those  of  men, 
and  consequently  his  despondency 
gives  place  to  a  sense  of  an  in- 
dwelling Divine  strength. 


6  Comp.  xlii.  6.     It  is  too  lig-ht 

a  thing-  .  .  .  ]  Even  the  restora- 
tion of  Israel  is  a  'light  thing'  by 
comparison  with  the  exalted  privi- 
lege of  bringing  all  mankind  to  the 

knowledge   of   the  true   God. 

The  tribes  of  Jacob  (i.e.,  Israel)] 
The  prophet  retains  the  old- 
fashioned  phrase,  precisely  as  the 
New  Testament  writers  (Matt,  xix, 
28,  Rev.  vii.  4).  The  parallel  clause 
has  simply  the  preserved  of 
Israel,  i.e.,  those  who  in  I.  Isaiah 
(e.g.,  x.  20)  are  called  the  '  remnant,' 
with  reference  to  the  great  judg- 
ment upon  Israel. To  be  my 

salvation]  i.e.,  the  bearer  of  my 
salvation  (as  the  Messiah  is  called 
'peace,'  i.e.,  'the  author  of  peace,' 
Mic.  v.  5).— Alt.  rend,  is  equally 
possible  grammatically,  and  har- 
monizes better  with  the  theory  that 
the  people  of  Israel  is  the  speaker. 
But  the  parallelism  favours  the  first 
rendering. 

7-9  A  further  revelation  of  Jeho- 
vah, rewarding  the  revived  faith  of 
his  Servant.  It  is  a  kind  of  pre- 
lude of  chap.  liii.  Nowhere  else, 
except  in  that  famous  chapter,  are 
the  humiliation  and  subsequent 
glorification  of  this  great  personage 
so  emphatically  dwelt  upon. 

7  The  Ooel  of  Israel]     (See  on 
xli.  14.)     Israel  and  the  greatest  of 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  XLIX. 


One,  unto  him  who  is  cdcspiscd  dof  souls,d  abhorred  of  e  the 
people,6  a  servant  of  rulers  :    kings  shall  see  and  rise  up  ; 

«  Despicable,  Calv.,  Del. 

d  (a)  Of  persons,  Targ.  (virtually),  Auth.  Vers.,  Ges.,  Hengstenberg,  Knobel. 
In  the  soul,  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Ew.,  Naeg.,  Weir,  (y)  As  to  (his)  soul,  Hitz.,  Del.  (see 
note). 

e  Peoples,  Sept.,  Saadya,  A. E.,  Kimchi,  Luzzatto  (as  if  a  collective). 


Israel's  saplings  (liii.  2)  are  indis- 
solubly  united.  Is  the  'Servant' 
reduced  to  low  estate  ?  So,  too,  is 
Israel.  Is  the  '  Servant' appointed 
for  a  glorious  issue  ?  Those  who 
are  mystically  joined  to  him  shall 

share  his  prosperity. His  Holy 

One]  *  Holiness'  is  closely  related 
to  the  idea  of  strength,  comp.  xxix. 

19. Who  is  despised  of  souls] 

i.e.,  whom  men  heartily  despise. 
The  obscurity  of  this  expression  is 
chiefly  owing  to  the  circumstance 
that  the  Hebr.  has,  not  '  souls,'  but 
*  soul '  (nefesh}.  '  Despised  of  soul ' 
(if  we  interpret  nefesh  as  a  singular) 
may  be  explained  in  two  •  ways  (see 
)3  and  y  in  noted),  of  which  the  first 
seems  to  me  the  more  plausible — 
comp.  the  phrase  *  desire  of  soul '  = 
'deep desire'  (xxvi.  8), and  'my ene- 
mies in  soul '  = '  my  deadly  enemies ' 
(as  A.  V.  Ps.  xvii.  9).  The  soul  is 
in  Biblical  language  the  seat  of  the 
deepest  feelings  and  affections  (the 
Gemiith\  of  pleasure  and  pain, 
desire  and  disgust,  love  and  hate, 
admiration  and  contempt  ;  con- 
tempt, in  particular,  is  again  con- 
nected with  the  soul  in  Ezek.  xxxvi. 
5,  '  with  the  joy  of  a  full  heart,  with 
despite  of  the  soul.'  On  the  other 
hand,  the  rend,  of  those  who  take 
nefesh  collectively  is  recommended 
by  its  accordance  with  the  parallel 
members  of  the  verse  ('....  people 
.  .  ,  rulers'),  and  by  the  parallel 
passage  in  Ps.  xxii.  (a  psalm  so 
strikingly  germane  to  this  para- 
graph and  to  Isa.  liii.)»  in  which 
the  pious  sufferer  is  called  a  re- 
proach of  men  and  despised  of 
people'  (v.  6) ;  while  the  rend. '  per- 
sons '  is  justified  by  the  common 
phrase  '  every  soul '  for  '  every  per- 
son,' and  by  Gen.  xii.  5,  xiv.  21, 
Ezek.  xxvii.  13  (where  the  singular 
is  used,  as  here,  collectively).  Still, 


though  the  parallelism  imperative 
demands  a  collective  reference, 
'  soul '  in  the  sense  of  '  person  ' 
seems  to  me  to  belong  specially  to 
phases  and  formulae  (see  instances 
in  Lexicon),  and  to  be  altogether 
too  mean  a  word  for  those  who  are 
in  the  position  of  tyrants.  I  there- 
fore agree  grammatically  with  Ge- 
senius,  and  exegetically  with  Ewald. 
—The  rend,  of  Hitz.  and  Del. 
means  'whose  life  is  deemed  of 
little  or  no  value' — the  opposite 
of  Ps.  Ixxii.  14  b.  (Obs.  The 
commentators  grouped  together 
above  do  not  always  agree  in  their 
exegesis.  Thus  Knobel,  while 
rendering  as  Gesenius,  gives  an  ex- 
position akin  to  my  own,  '  despised 
of  men,  who  despise  him  in  the 
soul,  i.e.,  heartily.'  Vitringa,  too, 
though  he  translates  as  Ewald, 
explains  substantially  as  I  have 
done,  'Contempto  fastiditoque  a 
cujusque  desiderio  ;  quern  nemo 
concupiscit ;  quo  nemo  delectatur  ; 
qui  cuique  fastidio  est.'  Calvin, 
however,  with  the  same  version  as 
Vitr.  and  Ew.,  gives  a  very  different 
interpretation,'  Hoc  autem  miseriam 
populi  auget,'  he  says  (taking  the 
promise  to  be  addressed  to  the 
people),  'quod  "in  anima"  apud 
seipsum  contemptibilem  esse  dicit.') 

The  people]     Hebr.  goy    (no 

article).  The  term  is  here  used  in 
its  widest  and  primary  meaning, 
'  a  collection  of  people,'  viz.  all 
those  with  whom  the  Servant  has 
to  do-,  not  merely  Jews,  and  not 
merely  Gentiles,  but  all  mankind. 
Comp.  the  use  of  the  synonym 
(dm)  in  xl.  7,  xlii.  5,  Ps.  xviii.  28 
(26),  xxii.  7  (6),  and  perhaps  Ixii.  9 
(8) ;  also  the  phrase  '  righteous 
people  '  (goy  $addiq],  Gen.  xx.  4. — 
The  rendering  '  peoples '  may  be 
supported  by  Job  xvii.  6,  where 


CHAP.  XLIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


princes — they  shall  bow  down  ;  because  of  Jehovah,  in  that 
he  is  faithful,  and  of  the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  in  that  he  chose 
thee.  8  Thus  saith  Jehovah,  In  the  season  of  favour  do  I 
answer  thee,  and  in  the  day  of  salvation  I  help  thee  ;  and  I 
fkeep  thee  and  appoint  thee  for  a  covenant  of  the  people,  to 
raise  up  the  land,  to  assign  the  desolate  heritages,  9  saying  to 
the  bondsmen,  Go  forth,  and  to  those  who  are  in  darkness, 
Show  yourselves.  They  shall  pasture  g  on  the  ways,  and  on 


f  Form,  Ew.,  Del. 

Job,  the  typical  righteous  man, 
complains  that  he  is  become  'a 
byword  of  peoples '  (plural,  not  col- 
lective). The  sense  is  of  course 
the  same,  but  the  rend,  adopted  is 

simpler. Of  rulers]  Or,  para- 

phrastically,  '  of  despots '  (comp. 
xiv.  5),  for  the  context  shows  that 
stern,  irresponsible  heathen  lords 
are  here  intended.  Obs.  the  skilful 
transition.  He  whom  Jehovah  has 
honoured  with  the  title  of  '  Servant ' 
and  the  authority  of  a  vicegerent 
becomes  the  slave  of  Jehovah's 
enemies.  Yet  these  very  kings 
shall  have  to  do  obeisance  to  him 
whom  they  once  '  heartily  despised ' 

(comp.  -v.  23,  Ps.  Ixxii.  n). 

Because  of  Jehovah  .  .  .  ]  These 
acts  of  reverence  and  homage  are 
ultimately  offered  to  Jehovah.  It 
is  Jehovah's  promise  and  Jehovah's 
election  which  have  been  verified 
by  his  servant's  glorification. 

8  Thus  saith  Jehovah  .  .  .  ] 
The  prophecy  takes  up  the  thread 
which  has  been  dropped  in  v.  7. 
The  new  revelation  refers  to  the 
mediatorial  position  of  the  Servant 
and  his  spiritual  activity.  In  the 
fulness  of  time,  when  the  '  season ' 
has  arrived  for  proving  to  the  world 
the  truth  of  the  declaration  in  xlii. 
i  (instead  of  'favour'  we  might 
render  *  good  pleasure  '),  the  Ser- 
vant of  Jehovah  shall  himself  be 
'  helped,'  or  '  saved,'  and,  like  the 
sufferer  in  Ps.  xxii.  (w.  23-27),  be- 
come the  source  of  help  and  salva- 
tion to  others. 1  answer  thee] 

The  tense  is  the  prophetic  perfect. 

— And  I  ...  the  people]     Re- 


st In  all,  Sept.,  Ew. 

peated  verbally  from  xlii.  6  (see 
notes).  The  person  addressed  is 
obviously  the  same,  and  is  distinct, 
in  some  sense,  from  the  people  of 
Israel — distinct  even  from  the  *  spi- 
ritual Israel '  which  is  to  take  the 
place  of  the  unpurified  race  of  the 

past. To   raise    up   the  land] 

Comp.    v.    19    'thy   broken-down 

(or,  ruined)  land.' To    assig-n] 

viz.  to  the  families  to  which  the 
respective  possessions  belonged. 
Clearly  this  function  belongs  to  a 
historical  person,  such  as  Joshua 
was  in  the  past,  and  Zerubbabel  was 
destined  to  be  in  the  future.  Here, 
as  elsewhere,  in  his  picture  of  the 
'  Messianic '  future,  the  prophet 
combines  events  which  the  reality 
of  history  spreads  over  long 
stretches  of  time. 

9  Obs.  it  is  not  the  word  of  Cyrus 
(as  in  xliv.  28),  but  that  of  Jehovah 
through  his  servant,  which  is  the 

efficient  cause  of  deliverance. 

To  the  bondsmen]  The  '  bonds- 
men '  are  the  Jews,  or,  more  pro- 
perly, the  Israelites  (from  whichever 
section  of  the  nation).  Contrast 
xlii.  7  (see  note).  This  portion  of 
the  prophecy  (vv.  7-12)  belongs 
specially  to  Israel :  notice  the  sig- 
nificant omission  in  v.  8  of  the 
words  '  a  light  of  the  nations ' 

(found  in  xlii.  6). Shall  pasture 

on  the  ways]  Here  follows  a 
digression  suggested  by  the  men- 
tion of  deliverance.  (Obs.  the  de- 
liverance is  taken  for  granted  ;  the 
Divine  word  '  Go  forth  '  has  a  self- 
fulfilling  power).  The  digression 
describes  not  merely  the  comfort 


i6 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  XLIX. 


all  bare  hills  there  is  pasture  for  them  :  10they  shall  not 
hunger  nor  thirst,  the  h  mirage  and  the  sun  shall  not  smite 
them,  for  he  that  hath  compassion  upon  them  shall  lead  them, 
and  unto  springs  of  water  shall  he  guide  them.  u  And  I  will 
make  all  my  mountains  a  road,  and  my  highways  shall  be 
exalted.  12  Behold,  these  come  from  afar  ;  and  behold,  these 
from  the  north  and  from  the  *  south,  and  these  from  the  land 
of  Sinim.  13  Ring  out,  O  heavens,  and  exult,  O  earth,  and 

h  Glowing  heat,  Lowth,  Ges.  (with  the  ancients).— But  see  xxxv.  7. 
1  West,  Hebr.  text. 


of  the  return -journey  (though  this 
is  not  excluded),  but  also  the  bliss- 
ful condition  of  the  restored  exiles 
(comp.  on  xl.  11).  The  latter  are 
compared  to  a  well-tended  flock, 
which  has  no  temptation  to  roam, 
as  it  finds  pasture  'on  the  ways' 
(i.e.,  whichever  way  the  sheep  turn), 
and  even  on  'bare  hills'  (comp. 
xli.  1 8,  Jer.  xii.  12) ;  in  fact,  no 
4  bare  hills  '  are  left. 

10  The  literal  journey  homeward, 
and  the  metaphorical  journey  of  life, 
shall  both  be  made  easy  to  them. 
The   misery  of  intense  heat,  and 
the  phenomenon  of  the   deluding 
mirage  (see  on  xxxv.  7)  which  so 
often  accompanies  it,  will  be  equally 
unknown    in    '  the     coming    age.3 
Neither  the  mirage,  nor  the  sun, 
shall  smite  them.     Comp.  the  pa- 
rallel passage,  Ps.  cxxi.  6  (where, 
however,  the  zeugmatic  use  of  the 
verb     is     not     absolutely     neces- 
sary). 

11-12  The  prophet  is  always  ho- 
vering between  the  near  and  the 
distant  future.  But  as  these  two 
verses  clearly  show,  his  conception 
even  of  the  near  future  is  modified 
by  his  vision  of  what  is  really  far 
off.  He  is  thinking  here  of  the  re- 
turn of  the  exiles,  but  the  language 
which  he  uses  is  by  no  means  ex- 
hausted by  the  return  of  the  Jews 
from  Babylon,  though  this  event 
was  all  that  a  Jew  of  ordinary  fore- 
sight living  at  the  close  of  the  Exile 
could  anticipate. 

11  Itty  mountains]     Not  merely 
the  mountains  of  Canaan   (as  xiv. 
25),  but  those  of  the  whole  earth ; 


it  is  an  assertion  of  Jehovah's  uni- 
versal lordship. Itty  highways] 

See  on  xl.  4. 

la  The  return  of  the  exiles. 
Comp.  xliii.  5,  6  (with  note),  where 
however,  the  quarters  are  given  in 
a  different  order.  Jerusalem  seems 
to  be  here  regarded  as  the  centre 
of  the  world  (as  Ezek.  v.  5). — 
Come  from  far]  The  vagueness 
of  this  term,  '  from  far,'  suggests 
that  the  writer  did  not  origin- 
ally intend  a  catalogue  of  the  four 
quarters  of  the  world.  Taken  in 
connection,  however,  with  what  fol- 
low, the  '  far '  region  should  be  the 
west,  which  is  favoured  also  by 

2/.  la. From  the  south]     This 

rendering  seems  to  be  required  by 
the  context : — '  from  the  north  and 
from  the  west '  would  be  an  unna- 
tural combination.  And  yet  'the 
sea,'  which  the  Hebr.  has  instead 
of  '  the  south,'  in  definitions  of 
place  commonly  means  '  the  west.' 
The  same  difficulty  occurs  in  Ps. 
cvii.  3,  where  '  the  redeemed '  are 
said  to  be  gathered  '  from  the  east, 
and  from  the  west,  from  the  north, 
and  from  the  sea ' : — here  '  the  sea ' 
clearly  cannot  mean  '  the  west,'  be- 
cause that  quarter  has  been  already 
mentioned.  Del.  (on  Ps.  I.e.}  thinks 
'  the  sea '  means  the  Mediterranean 
about  Egypt,  i.e.,  the  south-west, 
but  against  the  parallelism  ;  Hitzig 
prefers  the  Erythrean,  but  against 
usage.  For  a  justification  of  the 
rendering  'south,'  see  crit.  note. 

Sinim]     See  appendix  to  this 

chapter. 

13  Ring    out,    O    heavens]       In 


CHAP.  XLIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


burst  out,  O  mountains,  into  a  ringing  sound,  for  Jehovah 
doth  comfort  his  people,  and  yearneth  upon  his  afflicted 
ones. 

14  And  Zion  said,  Jehovah  hath  forsaken  me,  and  the  Lord 
hath  forgotten  me  !  15  Can  a  woman  forget  her  suckling,  so 
as  not  to  yearn  upon  the  son  of  her  womb  ?  Should  even 
these  forget,  yet  will  I  not  forget  thee  !  1G  Behold,  I  have 
portrayed  thee  upon  the  palms  of  the  hands  ;  thy  walls  are 

ecstatic  transport,  the  prophet  calls 
upon  heaven  and  earth  to  sympa- 
thise. His  language  reminds  us  of 
the  poetry  of  art,  but  it  is  really  the 
soberest  truth  (see  on  xliv.  23). 
Too  soon,  alas  !  he  is  recalled  from 
anticipations  of  the  future  to  the 
miseries  of  the  present  (or,  more 
correctly,  perhaps  from  the  distant 
to  the  near  future).  Zion  and  the 
Servant  stand  over  against  each 
other,  without  having  been  able  to 
form  an  intimate  relation.  Hence, 


the  complaint  of  the  Servant,  '  I 
have  laboured  in  vain'  (xlix.  4), 
finds  a  responsive  echo  in  the  words 
of  the  personified  Zion  (v.  14). — 
Jehovah  hath  forsaken  me]  This 
is  not  an  expression  of  absolute 
unbelief;  it  is  the  pain  of  seem- 
ingly unreturned  affection  which 
borrows  the  language  of  scepticism 
(comp.  xl.  27).  The  highest  act  of 
faith  is  to  see  God  with  the  heart 
when  all  outward  tokens  of  His 
presence  are  removed.  There  are 
times  when  even  the  noblest  of 
mankind  are  unequal  to  such  an 
effort ;  even  the  '  Servant  of  Jeho- 
vah' gave  way  to  dejection  for  a 
moment  (see  on  xlix.  4) 

15  Can  a  woman  .  .  .  ]  Jehovah 
meets  this  wounded  heart,  not  with 
harsh  censure,  not  even  with  a 
gentle  remonstrance  (comp.  xl.  28), 
but  with  an  assurance  of  uninter- 
rupted affection.  His  loving-kind- 
ness surpasses  that  of  a  father 
(comp.  on  Ixiii.  16) ;  it  is  even  more 
tender  than  that  of  a  mother  for 

her   suckling   (comp.    Ixvi.   3). 

Should  even  these  forget]     For 
Lady  Macbeth  can  say  — 

VOL.  II. 


I  would,  while  it  was  smiling  in  my  face, 
Have  plucked  my  nipple  from  his  bone- 
less gums, 
And  dashed  the  brains  out. 

(Macbeth,  Act  I.  Sc.  7.) 

16  I  have  portrayed  thee]  Sept. 
efaypdprjcrd  <rf.  It  is  of  course 
implied  that  the  portraiture  is  in- 
delible, like  the  sacred  marks  of 
devotees  (see  on  xliv.  5).  With 
touching  condescension,  Jehovah 
inverts  the  usual  order.  A  wor- 
shipper needs  a  consecrating  mark 
to  remind  him  at  all  times  of  his 
relation  to  his  God.  Zion's  God, 
though  not  in  need  of  such  a  re- 
minder, has  condescended,  as  it 
were,  to  'grave  Jerusalem  on  the 

palms  of  his  hands.' Dr.  Weir 

compares   Ex.   xiii.  9,  16. Thy 

walls]  This  might  mean  'thy 
ruined  walls,'  but  as  it  is  the  ideal 
Jerusalem  (see  on  xl.  9)  which  is 
addressed,  it  seems  better  to  take 
the  walls  to  be  those  'great  and 
high'  walls,  which  exist  ideally  in 
the  heavenly  Jerusalem. — No  better 
commentary  on  this  verse  can  be 
given  than  a  passage  from  the 
Apocalypse  of  Baruch,  cap.  iv. 
Baruch  complains  of  the  ruin  which 
has  befallen  God's  city.  The  Lord 
replies,  '  Anne  putas,  quod  ista  sit 
urbs  de  qua  dixi  :  super  volas  ma- 
nuum  descripsi  te  ?  Non  ista  asdi- 
ficatio  nunc  aedificata  in  medio 
vestrum,  ilia  est  quae  revelabitur 
apud  me,  quae  hie  praeparata  ftiit  ex 
quo  cogitavi  ut  facerem  paradisum, 
et  ostendi  earn  Adamo  priusquam 
peccaret,  cum  vero  abjecit  manda- 
tum,  sublata  est  ab  eo,  ut  etiam 
paradisus  .  .  .  Et  nunc  ecce  custo- 


i8 


ISAIAH. 


CHAP.  XLIX.] 


continually  before  me.  17Thy  ksons  make  haste  ;  those  who 
laid  thee  in  ruins,  and  those  who  wasted  thce,  begin  to  de- 
part out  of  thee.  18  Lift  up  thine  eyes  round  about,  and  see  ; 
they  are  all  gathered  together,  and  are  come  that  they  may 
be  thine.  As  I  live,  (it  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah,)  thou  shalt 
surely  clothe  thee  with  them  all,  as  with  ornaments,  and  bind 
them  upon  thee  like  a  bride.  19  For  thy  ruined  and  desolate 
places,  and  thy  broken-down  land — yea,  thou  wilt  now  be  too 
narrow  for  the  inhabitants,  and  those  who  swallowed  thee  up 
will  be  far  away.  '20  The  children  of  thy  bereavement  shall 
yet  say  in  thy  ears,  The  place  is  too  narrow  for  me  ;  make 
room  for  me  that  I  may  dwell.  21  And  thou  shalt  say  in  thy 
heart,  Who  hath  l  borne  me  these,  seeing  I  was  bereaved 
and  unfruitful,  an  exile  and  removed  ?  and  these,  who  hath 

k  Builders,  Sept.,  Targ.,  Vulg.,  Saadya,  ancient  Babylonian  MS.,  Lowth,  La- 
garde. — Ew. ,  combining  both  readings  (bandyik  and  bondyik],  has,  Soon  shall  thy 
children  become  (?)  thy  builders.  (There  may  at  least  be  a  play  upon  words. ) 

1  Begotten,  Ges.,  Ew.,  Stier  (taking  the  question  as  referring  to  the  father). 


dita  est  apud  me,  sicut  est  para- 
disus.'  (Fritzsche,  Libri  apocryphi 
Vet.  Test.,  p.  655.)  See  also  4  Ezra 
x.  50,  &c. 

17  Thy  sons  make  haste  .  .  .  ] 
The    ideal    Jerusalem    is    to    be 
brought  into  the  region  of  pheno- 
mena, not  by  descent  from  heaven 
(as  in  Rev.  xxi.),  but  by  the  labours 
of  her   'children.'     First,  Zion   is 
told,   in    the   verbal    form   appro- 
priated to  the  objective  statement 
of  facts,  that  her  children  (comp.  Ix. 
4),  *  haste '  (or  '  have  made  haste ') 
i.e.,  run  swiftly  to  her  side ;  then, 
in    the    emotional    or    descriptive 
tense,  that  her  destroyers  'go  forth' 
(or  '  begin  to  go  forth ')  from  her — 
as  if  they  had  been  all  those  years 
engaged  on  the  task,  never  able  to 
sate    their    fury.     The  alternative 
reading,  '  thy  builders,'  produces  a 
good  antithesis,   and    agrees   well 
with  v.  19,  but  not  with  w.  20,  21. 

18  iift    up    thine    eyes]     The 
first  half  of  the  verse  recurs  in  Ix.  4. 

Thou  shalt  clothe  thee  .  .  .] 

The    new    inhabitants    are    com- 
pared   to    ornaments    on   a  dress 
(comp.    Zech.    ix.   16),  and   to  the 
state-girdle  worn  by  a  bride  over 


her  robe  (Jer.  ii.  32,  where  A.V. 
has  wrongly  'attire'). 

19  The  prophet  seems  to  observe 
gestures  of  incredulity.  In  reply, 
he  is  far  from  underrating  the  in- 
trinsic improbability  of  the  change 
(note  the  triple  reference  to  the  low 
estate  of  Zion),  and  yet  he  em- 
phatically maintains  its  certainty. 
The  change  is  to  be  a  Divine 
wonder.  The  desolate  land  of 
Canaan  shall  have  such  fertility 
restored  to  it  as  to  support  a  teem- 
ing population. Will  be  far 

away]  The  tense  is  the  perfect 
of  prophetic  certitude. 

ao  The  children  of  thy  be- 
reavement] i.e.,  those  born  while 
Zion  thought  herself  bereft  of  all 
her  children.  For  the  figure, 
comp.  xlvii.  8.— The  new  inhabit- 
ants shall  be  heard  to  say,  not  to 
Jerusalem,  as  Naeg.  strangely,  but 
the  one  to  the  other,  The  place  is 
too  narrow  for  me.  It  is  the 
complaint  of  an  overpopulated 

country. make  room]  Lit., 

'move  further  off;'  the  same 
idiom  as  in  Gen.  xix.  9. 

21  Who  hath  borne  me  these  r] 
Supposing  that  the  new  children 


CHAP.  XLIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


brought  them  up  ?     Behold,  I  was  left  alone  ;    these,  where 
have  they  been  ? 

22  Thus  saith  the  Lord  Jehovah,  Behold,  I  will  lift  up 
mine  hand  towards  the  nations,  and  set  up  my  banner  towards 
the  peoples,  and  they  shall  bring  thy  sons  in  the  bosom,  and 
thy  daughters  shall  be  carried  on  the  shoulder.  23  And  kings 
shall  become  thy  foster-fathers,  and  their  queens  thy  nursing- 
mothers  ;  with  their  face  to  the  earth  shall  they  bow  down 
unto  thee,  and  the  dust  of  thy  feet  shall  they  lick  ;  and  thou 
shalt  know  that  I  am  Jehovah,  those  that  hope  in  whom  shall 
not  be  ashamed.  24  Can  the  prey  be  taken  from  the  mighty 
one,  or  the  m  captives  of  the  terrible  one  m  escape  ?  25  For 

m  So  read  by  Pesh.,  Vulg.,  Lowth,  Ew.,  Knob.,  Weir. — Hebr.  text  is  variously 
rendered.  Captives  of  the  righteous  one,  Vitr. ,  Kay;  or,  of  him  who  has  the  right 
(of  possession),  Stier. — Captive  band  of  righteous  ones,  Hitz.,  Del. — Righteous  cap- 
tives, Naeg. — Booty  (?)  taken  from  the  righteous  one,  Ges. 


are  applying  to  be  adopted  by  her, 
Zion  inquires  who  is  their  real 
mother  (so  Hitz.,  Del.,  Naeg.).  Alt. 
rend,  is  in  itself  improbable,  and 
is  against  the  Hebrew  usage  (see 

Gen.    xvi.    i). An     exile     and 

removed]  Here  the  prophet  falls 
out  of  the  figure.  But  he  returns 
to  it  directly :  'I  was  left  alone,'  i.e., 
I  was  the  sole  survivor.  The  as- 
tonishment of  Zion  is  caused  by 
the  vast  multiplication  of  the  com- 
paratively few  who  had  gone  into 
exile. 

22  The  explanation  of  the  mystery. 
At    Jehovah's    bidding,    but    with 
hearty  compliance  on  the  part  of 
the  Gentiles,  the  exiled  Jews  shall 
be  restored  to  their  homes.    There 
is  evidently  an  allusion  to  xi.  1 1,  12. 

— In  the  bosom]  The  figure  is 
suggested  by  v.  21,  for  it  was  the 
part  of  the  foster-father  to  carry  the 
child  in  the  bosom  (sinus]  of  his 
garment,  Num.  xi.  12  (where  the 
word  for  'bosom,'  however,  is  -dif- 
ferent). 

23  Thy  foster-fathers]    '  Comp. 
Num.  xi.  12,  Esth.  ii.  7,  but  espe- 
cially 2  Kings  x.  i,  where  we  read 
of  those  who  brought  up  the  seventy 
sons  of  Ahab,  which   is  explained 
at  v.  6  by  the  statement  that  the 
king's    sons   were   with    the   great 
men  of  the  city  who  brought  them 


up.  So  in  this  passage  Zion  is 
described  as  a  sovereign  with  a 
numerous  progeny,  giving  out  her 
children  to  such  foster-fathers,  and 

to    nurses.'     Dr.    Weir. Their 

queens]  So  saroth  should  be 
rendered,  as  will  be  clear  from 
comparing  i  Kings  xi.  3  with  Cant, 
vi.  8.  Sarrat  =*  queen '  in  Assy- 
rian (and  Sarah,  the  proper  name, 
in  Hebrew).  By  '  queens '  the  pro- 
phet means  principal  wives. — 
Shall  they  bow  down]  It  is  the 
worship  due  to  God  and  to  the 
Church  in  which  God  dwells  ; 
comp.  xlv.  14,  Rev.  iii.  9  b. — 
Lick  the  dust]  i.e.,  lie  down  in 
the  dust  (see  Ps.  Ixxii.  9,  and  espe- 
cially Mic.  vii.  17),  as  a  token  of 
submission. 

24  But   incredulous    hearers   put 
the   question,    Can   the  tyrant   be 

made   to   disgorge  his    prey  ? 

The  captives  of  the  terrible  one] 
'  Our  present  reading  gives  no  good 
sense.  Vitr.  explains  t^addiq  by 
"saevus  ferox,"  but  it  is  never  found 
in  this  sense.  Ges.  and  others 
prefer  [see  above],  but  besides  that 
sttbhi  cannot  well  be  rendered 
"  booty,"  the  mention  of  the  right- 
eousness of  Israel  is  altogether 
foreign  to  the  scope  of  the  passage 
....  However  unwilling  to  alter 
the  present  text  without  manu- 


C  2 


20 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  XLIX. 


thus  saith  Jehovah  :  Even  the  captives  of  the  mighty  one 
shall  be  taken,  and  the  captives  of  the  terrible  one  shall  escape, 
for  with  him  that  contendeth  with  thee  /will  contend,  and  thy 
children  /  will  save.  26  And  I  will  cause  those  that  oppress 
thee  to  eat  their  own  flesh,. and  with  their  own  blood,  as  with 
new  wine,  shall  they  be  drunken  ;  and  all  flesh  shall  know 
that  I  Jehovah  am  thy  saviour,  and  that  thy  Goel  is  the  Hero 
of  Jacob. 


script  authority,  I  must  agree  with 
those  who  read  lari$  instead  of 
qaddlq.  There  can  be  no  doubt  it 
was  a  very  old  reading.  It  is,  be- 
sides, greatly  favoured  by  the  next 
verse'  (Dr.  Weir).  The  correction 
is  also  palaeographically  a  natural 
one.  Dr.  Kay  (see  above)  takes 


shall  be  rescued. /  will  con- 
tend] The  pronoun  is  very  em- 
phatic. What  hope  could  Zion 
have  against  the  gibbor,  the  ldrtf, 
but  in  God'?  (Dr.  Weir). 

26  To  eat  their  own  flesh] 
Comp.  'they  shall  eat  every  one 
the  flesh  of  his  own  arm3  (ix.  20), 


the  '  righteous  one '  to  be  Jehovah,      a  figure  for  disunion  to  the  point 

I,—,  -»-t~i  j-v*-t4-    7ir\*^)f    /-*o  r-kf  f\v  tiro  c  f\f     -mnftiol      In/^ctil  if  w ^nv»**     TT^wi 


whose  instrument  Zion's  captor  was. 

25  This  almost  incredible  thing 

shall    indeed    take   place;    Israel 


of  mutual  hostility. The  Hero 

of  Jacob]     See  on  i.  24,  where  the 
same  rare  word  (abhlr)  occurs. 


Appendix  on  '  The  Land  of  Sinim  '  (Chap.  xlix.  v.  14). 

From  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  the  scattered  Israelites  gather  to 
their  home.  Among  the  centres  of  their  dispersion  is  mentioned 
'  the  land  of  Sinim  (or,  of  the  Sinim).'  Who  or  what  is  Sinim  ?  Re- 
ferring for  the  views  of  the  older  commentators  to  a  famous  article 
by  Gesenius,1  and  to  the  dictionaries  of  the  Bible,  I  will  simply  state 
what  seems  to  me  the  present  state  of  the  controversy. 

It  is  probable,  though  not  certain  (considering  the  vagueness  of 
the  phrase  '  from  afar '  in  the  first  line),  that  the  prophet  intends  to 
describe  the  Israelites  as  flocking  from  the  four  quarters  of  the  earth. 
If  so,  the  Sinim  (for  Sinim  is  obviously  the  name  of  a  people)  will 
represent  the  remote  east  or  west,  from  the  point  of  view  of  Babylonia. 
Hence  we  may  at  once  dismiss  the  only  people  called  Sinim  else- 
where in  the  Old  Testament,  viz.  the  Phoenician  Sinites  of  Gen.  x. 
17,  for  these  (though  westward  of  Babylonia)  were  too  near  at  hand, 
as  well  as  too  unimportant  a  tribe,  to  be  mentioned  in  this  connec- 
tion. The  only  claimants  remaining  (for  the  Pelusiotes  were  not  a 
nation,  and  are  nowhere  called  Sinim)  are  the  Chinese,  who,  though 
rejected  with  scorn  by  Vitringa,  have,  since  the  elaborate  discussion 
by  Gesenius,  received  the  general  adhesion  of  commentators.  It 
must,  however,  be  candidly  admitted  that  the  reasoning  of  Gesenius 
falls  short  of  demonstration.  His  most  plausible  argument  is  based 
on  the  Chinese  name  Thsin,  originally  belonging  to  a  powerful  family 

1    Thesaurus  lingit.  Plebr.  et  Chald.   Vet.  Test.  ed.  II.,  torn.  ii.  (1840),  s.  v.  Sinim. 


CHAP.  XLIX.]  ISAIAH.  2 1 

which,  from  246-206  B.C.,  united  the  various  petty  states  of  China 
under  their  sway,  and  then  (as  is  supposed)  further  applied  by  foreign 
nations  to  the  country  which  this  family  governed.  This,  however, 
as  well  as  the  inference  which  has  been  drawn  from  the  similar  names 
of  other  much  more  ancient  local  dynasties,  and  from  the  Chinas  of 
the  Sanskrit  Laws  of  Manu  and  the  Mahabharata,  is  now  known  to 
be  valueless  (Strauss;  Richthofen).  Still  the  case  of  the  Chinese 
is  not  desperate.  It  is  historically  certain  from  the  Chinese  records 
that  there  were  foreign  merchants  in  China  as  early  as  the  loth  cent. 
B.C.,  and  Chinese  merchants  in  foreign  lands  as  early  as  the  i2th, 
and  it  is  probable  that  direct  commercial  relations  existed  between 
China  and  India,  and  consequently  at  any  rate  direct  relations  be- 
tween China  and  Phoenicia,  which  will  account  for  the  presence  of 
porcelain-ware  with  Chinese  characters  upon  it  in  the  Egyptian 
Thebes.1 

This  is  substantially  the  contention  of  Victor  von  Strauss-Torney.2 
Another  eminent  scholar,  indeed,  (Freiherr  von  Richthofen,)  takes 
a  somewhat  different  view.  The  theory  of  an  early  intercourse  be- 
tween the  Chinese  and  the  peoples  of  Western  Asia  does  not  com- 
mend itself  to  him  as  probable.  If  there  was  any  such  intercourse, 
he  says,  it  must  have  been  by  sea,  and  not  by  land,  for  the  vast  high- 
land of  Tibet,  with  its  wild  nomadic  population,  put  an  effectual 
bar  to  all  access  from  the  west.3  A  statement  like  this  from  such  a 
competent  authority  puts  an  end  to  the  hypothesis  of  Movers,4  that 
Chinese  silk  was  imported  to  Babylon  by  land  through  Phoenician 
merchants.  And  yet  is  it  not  conceivable  that  roving  Phoenician 
merchants  may  have  reached  China  in  their  coasting  voyages  ?  That 
the  Assyrians,  at  any  rate,  arrived  in  China  by  sea  as  far  back  as 
2353  B.C.,  there  is  positive  traditional  evidence,  if  M.  Pauthier's 
report  may  be  trusted.  In  that  year,  he  says,  according  to  Chinese 
traditions,  an  envoy  arrived  from  a  far  country  bearing  a  wondrous 
gift.  It  was  nothing  less  than  '  a  divine  tortoise  a  thousand  years 
old,  on  the  back  of  which  was  an  inscription  in  strange  characters 
like  tadpoles,  comprising  the  history  of  the  world  from  its  origin.'  A 
second  embassy  is  said  to  have  arrived  in  1 1 10  B.C.,  and  the  historians 
affirm  that  it  took  the  envoys  a  whole  year  to  return  to  their  own 
country  from  Siam  by  the  sea-coast.  This,  with  the  fact  that  they 
are  called  'the  people  of  the  long  trailing  robes'  (a  description 
quite  unsuitable  to  the  costumes  of  the  tropical  countries  south  of 

1  Wilkinson,  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians,  ist  series  (Lond. 
1837),  lii.  106-109. 

a  Excursus  on  'The  Land  of  Sinim/  in  Delitzsch's  Jesaia,  2Aufl.,  S.  712-715 
(3  Aufl.,  S.  688-692). 

3  Col.  H.  Yule's  review  of  von  Richthofen's  China,  in  Academy,  xiii.  339. 

4  Movers,  Die  Phonizicr,  ii.  3,  p.  255. 


22  ISAIAH.  [CHAP.  XL1X. 

China),  and  above  all  the  tadpole-characters  (which  at  once  suggests 
cuneiform  writing),  leads  M.  Pauthier  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  nation 
to  which  the  envoy  belonged  was  the  Assyrian,  or  the  Babylonian.1 
It  is  worth  noticing  that  the  king  of  Assyria  in  mo  would  be  the 
warlike  and  enterprising  Tiglath-Pileser  I. 

As  for  the  name  Sinim,  it  has  been  plausibly  accounted  for  by 
the  frequent  use  of  sjln  (nearly =f/fo>z),  literally  '  man,'  to  describe 
persons  according  to  their  qualities,  occupation,  country,  or  locality. 
Hearing  the  Chinese  so  often  call  themselves  sjin,  it  was  natural  for 
foreigners  to  call  them  by  this  name.  The  form  Sinim  is  accounted 
for  by  the  absence  of  the  soft  g  in  Hebrew.  With  reference  to 
Gesenius's  opinion  that  the  name  Siv,  tchin>  &c.,  spread  over  the 
East  from  India,  it  has  been  pointed  out  to  me  2  that,  according  to 
Remusat,  the  Chinese  first  entered  India,  not  by  a  direct  route,  but 
from  the  north-west,  and  were  therefore  actually  known  at  any  rate 
to  the  peoples  dwelling  on  that  side  of  India  before  they  were  known 
to  the  Hindus  themselves. 

In  conclusion,  I  may  remark  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  assume 
that  Jewish  exiles  actually  lived  in  China  when  the  prophet  wrote  ; 
enough  that  he  knew  of  (or,  as  the  case  may  be,  foresaw)  the  exist- 
ence of  a  numerous  and  extensive  Diaspora.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
however,  Jewish  immigrants  from  Persia  do  appear  to  have  entered 
China  before  the  Christian  era.  This  is  generally  recognised  as  one 
result  of  the  intercourse  with  the  [unfortunate  Jews  at  Kai-fung-foo.3 
Of  the  antiquity  of  this  settlement  there  can  be  no  doubt,  and  the 
inscribed  marble  tablets  which  were  till  lately  accessible  to  all  comers 
place  the  immigration  at  least  as  far  back  as  the  third  century  B.C. 
The  synagogue  with  its  tablets  has  disappeared,  and  the  'orphan 
colony '  is  in  danger  of  passing  away.  Fortunately  for  us,  we  can 
appeal  both  to  Roman  Catholic  and  to  Protestant  testimony.  The 
early  Jesuit  missionaries  were  the  first  discoverers  of  these  Chinese 
Jews,  and  one  of  them,  Father  Gozani,  took  a  copy  of  the  inscrip- 
tions in  the  synagogue,  which  he  sent  to  Rome.  The  very  interesting 
memoire  of  the  Jesuits  omits  to  give  any  direct  account  of  the  inscrip- 
tions ;  it  contains,  however,  the  following  statement  :— 

Ces  Juifs  disent  qu'ils  entrerent  en  Chine  sous  la  dynastie  des  Han 
pendant  le  regne  de  Han-ming  Ti,  et  qu'ils  venaient  de  Si-yu,  c'est-k-dire? 
du  pays  de  1'Occident.  II  parait  par  tout  ce  qu'on  a  pu  tirer  d'eux  que 

1  Pauthier,  Relations  politiques  de  la  Chine  avec  les  puissances  occidentales  (Paris, 
i859).  PP-  5~8'  *  am  indebted  for  this  reference,  which  I  have  of  course  verified,  to 
the  Rev.  R.  A.  Armstrong,  of  Nottingham.  M.  Pauthier's  authority  as  a  critic  has,  I 
am  aware,  been  challenged.  His  interpretation  of  the  Chinese  traditions  seems  to  me 
very  plausible,  but  is  not  absolutely  essential  to  my  argument. 

'2  Mr.  Armstrong  will  permit  me  again  to  mention  his  name. 

5  Kai-fung-foo  is  the  capital  of  Honan,  the  most  central  province  of  the  Chinese 
Empire, 


CHAP.  L.]  ISAIAH.  23 

ce  pays  de  1'Occident  est  la  Perse,  et  qu'ils  vinrent  par  le  Corassan  et 
Samarcande.  Us  ont  encore  dans  leur  langue  plusieurs  mots  persans, 
et  ils  ont  conserve  pendant  longtemps  de  grands  rapports  avec  cet  etat. 
Us  croient  etre  les  seuls  que  se  soient  etablis  dans  ce  vaste  continent.1 

Mr.  Finn's  statement  is  in  complete  accordance  with  the  Jesuit 
report  of  the  tradition  of  the  date  of  the  settlement.  He  says,  *  Ac- 
cording to  the  inscribed  marble  tablets  upon  the  walls,  there  may 
have  been  several  immigrations  of  this  people  into  China  at  different 
epochs  : — (i)  In  the  Chow  dynasty,  between  A.C.  1122  andA.c.  249  ; 
(2)  In  the  Han  dynasty,  between  A.C.  205  and  A.D.  220  ;  (3)  In  the 
LXV.  cycle  (A.D.  1163),  when  they  brought  a  tribute  of  cotton  cloth 
to  the  emperor.  There  was  also  their  own  oral  statement  to  the 
Jesuit  missionaries,  referring  their  arrival  [i.e.,  that  of  the  ancestors 
of  the  then  existing  families]  to  a  period  shortly  after  the  Roman 
dispersion  from  Jerusalem.' 2 

See  further  Lassen,  Indische  Alterthumskunde,  ii.  1029;  L. 
Geiger,  Ursprung  der  Sprache,  p.  456  ;  Egli,  Zeitschrift  fur  wissen- 
schaftliche  Theologie,  vi.  400,  &c.  (mainly  a  criticism  upon  Gesenius) ; 
and  a  paper  by  *  E.  B.'  (dated  from  Pekin),  in  Ausland,  1873,  p.  267, 
£c.  (this  I  only  know  through  the  third  edition,  lately  published,  of 
Delitzsch's  Jesaia  ;  it  comes  to  the  purely  negative  result  that  the 
name  Tschina  is  not  at  all  Chinese).  It  may  be  noticed  here,  that 
our  form  China  comes  to  us  from  the  Malays,  as  the  wise  and  ad- 
venturous Marco  Polo  already  knew  (The  Book  of  Ser  Marco  Polo 
ed.  Yule,  Book  iii.  chap.  4). 


CHAPTER   L. 

Contents. — Israel  has  been  self-rejected;  Jehovah  on  his  part,  is  willing 
and  able  to  redeem,  though  no  human  champion  answers  to  his  call  (w. 
1-3).  Then  the  scene  changes.  The  Servant  describes  his  intimate  re- 
lation to  Jehovah,  his  gift  of  eloquence,  his  persecutions,  and  the  stead- 
fast faith  with  which  he  undergoes  them  (vv.  4-9).  The  chapter  closes 
with  a  solemn  contrast  and  warning  (vv.  10,  11). 

1  Thus    saith   Jehovah,   Where   is   your   mother's    bill   of 
divorce  with  which  I  put  her  away  ?  or  which  of  my  creditors 

i-s  Vitringa   and    Ewald    regard  highly  plausible,  for  v.  I  certainly 

these  verses  as  an  integral  part  of  looks    like  a  second  reply  on  the 

the  discourse  containing  chap.  xlix.  part  of  Jehovah  to  the  complaint 

As  long  as  we  confine  our  view  to  of  Zion  in  xlix.   14.     On  the  other 

v.    i,  this  theory  of  theirs  seems  hand,   it   should    be   observed   (i) 

1  '  Memoire  sur  les  Juifs  Etablis  en  Chine,'  in  Lettres  tdifiantes  et  curieuses,  tcrites 
des  missions  ttrangeres,  torn.  xxiv.     (Toulouse,  1811),  pp.  50,  51. 

2  Finn,  The  Orphan  Colony  of  Jews  in  China  (Lond.  1872),  pp.  6,  7. 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP. 


is  it  to  whom  I  sold  you  ?  Behold,  for  your  iniquities  were 
ye  sold,  and  for  your  rebellions  was  your  mother  put  away. 
2  Wherefore,  now  that  I  am  come,  is  there  no  man  ?  now  that 
I  have  called,  is  there  none  that  answereth  ?  Is  my  hand  too 
short  to  deliver  ?  or  have  I  no  power  to  rescue  ?  Behold,  by 


that  chap,  xlix  falls  into  two  equal 
parts,  and  that  the  conclusion  of 
the  second  of  these  is,  from  its 
solemnity,  perfectly  adequate  as  a 
close  to  the  entire  prophecy,  and 
(2)  that  vv.  2  and  3  are  very  dif- 
ferent in  tone  and  purport  from 
all  that  precedes.  Is  it  not  the 
more  probable  view  that  v.  I  con- 
tains a  thought  suggested  by  xlix. 
14,  subsequently  to  the  final  redac- 
tion of  the  prophecy?  Not  being 
able  to  work  it  into  chap,  xlix.,  the 
prophet  seems  to  have  allowed 
himself  to  give  it  a  new  develop- 
ment (in  W.  2,  3)  which  would 
have  been  unsuitable  to  the 
original  prophecy. — Obs.  the  Di- 
vine speaker  here  addresses  the 
children  of  Zion  ;  in  xlix.  14-26,  he 
confined  himself  to  Zion  the  mo- 
ther.  Where  is  your  mother's 

bill  of  divorce  .  .  .  ]  In  Jere- 
miah (iii.  8)  it  is  said  of  the  'back- 
sliding' kingdom  of  Samaria  that 
Jehovah  'put  her  away,  and  gave 
her  a  bill  of  divorce,'  though  a  hope 
is  still  held  out  of  her  ultimate  re- 
storation. Judah,  however,  may  be 
still  more  easily  restored  to  her 
full  privileges,  for — 'where  is  her 
bill  of  divorce  ? '  There  is  none  ; 
Jehovah  in  his  mercy  omitted  this 
formality ;  consequently  her  dis- 
missal has  not  the  legal  value  of  a 
divorce.  Obs.  marriage  is  here  a 
figure  of  the  mystic  relation  be- 
tween the  Deity  and  his  worship- 
pers (see  Hos.  ii.  and  my  notes  on 

i.  21,  xliv.   II). Which   of  my 

creditors  .  .  .  ]  Another  figure 
condescendingly  borrowed  from  the 
experience  of  human  life.  From 
2  Kings  iv.  i,  Neh.  v.  5,  it  appears 
that  Hebrew  parents,  when  hope- 
lessly in  debt,  were  accustomed 
to  sell  their  children  to  their  cre- 
ditors. Such  an  unqualified  sur- 
render of  a  man's  flesh  and  blood  is 


not  expressly  sanctioned  in  the 
Law  (not  even  in  Ex.  xxi.  7),  but 
it  was  a  custom  too  strong  to  be 
eradicated.  Jehovah  admits  pro 
forma  that  he  may  have  creditors, 
but  denies  that,  in  pursuance  of 
this  old  custom,  he  has  sold  the 
Jews  to  any  of  them  : — conse- 
quently there  is  none  but  a  moral 
bar  to  their  restoration  to  his  favour. 
Comp.  Iii.  3,  '  Ye  were  sold  for 
nought,  and  ye  shall  not  be  re- 
deemed with  money. For  your 

iniquities  were  ye  sold  .  .  .  ] 
Israel,  then,  (represented  by  Judah,) 
has  really  been  '  sold,'  has  really 
been  '  put  away.'  But  this  is  not 
by  Jehovah's  will ;  the  cause  lies  in 
Israel  himself.  It  was  a  necessary 
punishment  for  Israel's  sins,  but 
only  a  temporary  one,  thanks  to 
the  '  unfailing  loving-kindnesses  of 
David'  (Iv.  3). 

2  Most  commentators  take  the 
first  part  of  this  verse  as  mention- 
ing some  of  the  sins  which  had 
led  to  Israel's  temporary  rejection. 
But  it  rather  expresses  Jehovah's 
painful  surprise  that  he  is  not 
seconded  by  any  human  cham- 
pion.  Now  that  I  am  come] 

viz.  with  a  call  to  repentance  and 
an  offer  of  deliverance.  In  what 
way,  it  may  be  asked,  can  Jehovah 
be  said  to  have  come?  The  Tar- 
gum  gives  an  answer,  which  has 
been  largely  adopted,  by  inserting 
the  explanatory  words  '  in  the 
prophets.'  This  view  is  not  in  it- 
self inadmissible  (comp.  Ixv.  i,  2, 
Jer.  xi.  7),  but  is  very  unsuitable  to 
the  context.  For  the  same  person 
who  has  '  come,'  '  and  who  has 
'  called,'  goes  on  to  declare  that  he 
can  dry  up  the  sea  and  clothe  the 
heavens  in  mourning  : — surely  then 
he  can  be  none  other  than  Jehovah 
in  all  the  plenitude  of  his  per- 
sonality. Obs.  it  is  Jehovah  im- 


CHAP.  L.] 


ISAIAH. 


25 


my  rebuke  I  can  dry  up  the  sea,  I  can  make  the  rivers  a 
wilderness,  their  fish  stinking  for  lack  of  water  and  dying  for 
thirst  ;  3 1  can  clothe  the  heavens  in  mourning,  and  make 
sackcloth  their  covering. 

4  The  Lord  Jehovah  hath  given  me  the  tongue  of  dis- 
ciples, that  I  may  know  how  to  a  sustain  (?)  the  weary  by  a 
word  :  he  wakeneth  morning  by  morning,  wakeneth  to  me  an 

8  So  Aquila,  Vulg.,  Ges.,  Del.,  Naeg.,  Weir. — Moisten  (?),  i.e.,  bedew,  refresh, 
Ew.,  Knob. 

mediately  who  '  comes,'  not  as  re- 
presented by  his  Servant  (Del., 
Naeg.).  The  passage  is  precisely 
parallel  to  lix.  16  (comp.  Ixiii.  3,  5), 
where  Jehovah  is  represented  as 
wondering  that  there  was  no  one 
morally  qualified  to  be  the  national 
champion,  and  as  throwing  himself 
unassisted  into  the  breach  on  be- 
half of  his  people.  The  rendering 
'  I  have  come '  is  preferable  to  '  I 
came,'  because  the  interposition  of 
Jehovah  is  still  future,  or  at  any  rate 

incomplete. Behold]  The  usual 

word  for  introducing  the  descrip- 
tion of  a  Divine  judgment. By 

my  rebuke]  '  Rebuke '  is  the 
term  for  the  opposite  of  the  crea- 
tive word.  Instead  of  calling  into 
existence,  it  sends  into  non-exist- 
ence, or  at  least  confines  within 
bounds  (see  xvii.  13,  li.  20,  Ixvi.  15, 
Nah.  i.  4,  Ps.  ix.  5,  xviii.  1 5,  civ.  7, 
cvi.  9.  Matt.  viii.  26,  Luke  iv.  39). 
—  I  can  dry  up  the  sea]  $ome, 
e.g.,  Calv.,  Kay  (rendering  in  the 
present  tense,  '  I  dry  up '),  see  in 
this  and  in  the  next  verse  a  direct 
reference  to  miracles  like  the  di- 
viding of  the  Red  Sea  and  the 
Jordan,  the  changing  of  the  Nile- 
water  into  blood,  and  the  darken- 
ing of  the  heavens  (Ex.  x.  21).  As, 
however,  we  find  similar  phrases 
elsewhere  in  descriptions  of  Divine 
interpositions  (see  Ps.  xviii.  15, 
Nah.  i.  4,  Hab.  iii.  8,  u,  Isa.  xiii. 
10),  it  is  allowable  to  interpret 
these  two  verses  symbolically.  A 
secondary  reference  to  the  ancient 
miracles  may  of  course  reasonably 
be  admitted,  God's  wonders  in  the 
past  being  regarded  by  the  pro- 
phets as  typical  (see  x.  26,  xi.  16, 


xliii.      1 6,     17). The   rivers    a 

wilderness]  Imitated  in  Ps. 
cvii.  33. 

3  Sackcloth    their    covering1] 

Comp.  Rev.  vi.  12,  '  the  sun  became 
black  as  sackcloth  of  hair'  (the 
dress  of  mourners,  Joel  i.  8,  &c.). 

4  A  fresh  prophecy,  chiefly  in 
the  form  of  a  soliloquy.     Its  con- 
tents  remind  us  of  xlii.   1-4,  xlix. 
1-9  (see  especially  xlix.  2,  7),  except 
that  there  is  no  reference  here  to 
the  evangelisation  of  the  heathen. 
If  the  subject  of  those  two    pro- 
phecies is  the  Servant  of  Jehovah, 
it  follows  of  necessity  that  the  same 
personage  is  the  speaker  here.     It 
would  be  strange  indeed  to  suppose 
that  the  prophet   is   the  speaker, 
'  blown  in  as  it  were  by  a  snow- 
storm' (Hengstenberg).     The  sec- 
tion would   then  stand  quite  soli- 
tary, without  connection  either  with 
the  preceding  or  the  following  dis- 
courses.     (Ewald,  however,  thinks 
that    Israel   is   the    speaker;    Sei- 
necke,    the    pious    kernel    of    the 
nation ;  Gesenius,  Hitzig,  Knobel, 
the     prophet.) The    lord    Je- 
hovah]    Notice  the   solemnity  of 
the  introduction  ;  the  same  double 
name  (Adonai  YahveJi)  occurs  three 
times    afterwards    (vv.    5,    7,    9). 

The  tongue  of  disciples]  i.e. 

a  facility  like  that  of  well-trained 
scholars  (see  viii.  16,  liv.  13),  full  of 
their  morning  lesson,  or,  as  Luther 
(ap.  Naeg.)  puts  it,  '  lingua  discipu- 
lata,  quas  nihil  loquitur,  nisi  quod  a 
Deo  didicit.'     From  the  occurrence 
of  the  plural  ('  disciples  ')  Seinecke 
draws  an  argument  in  favour  of  his 
view    mentioned   above ;    he  com- 
pares Job  xix.  11,  'He  accounteth 


26 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  L. 


ear  to  hearken  as  disciples,  5  The  Lord  Jehovah  hath  opened 
to  me  an  ear,  and  I  have  not  been  defiant ;  I  have  not  turned 
back.  6  My  back  I  have  given  to  smiters,  and  my  cheeks  to 
those  who  plucked  out  the  hair ;  my  face  I  have  not  hiddei 


me  as  His  enemies'  (Job,  according 
to  Seinecke,  being  also  a  collective 
personification).  It  seems  to  me  a 
sufficient  reply  that  the  picture 
which  the  prophet  here  gives  us  is 
that  of  a  class  of  disciples,  all  with 
*  wakened  ears,'  and  swift  to  re- 
produce their  master's  instruction, 
while  in  Job  the  hostility  of  God 
appears  to  the  sufferer  in  his  illu- 
sion great  enough  to  be  expended 
on  a  whole  company  of  His  ene- 
mies.  The  weary]  A  com- 
parison of  Ivii.  15  shows  that  here, 
as  in  Matt.  xi.  28,  it  is  an  inward  and 
spiritual  as  well  as  outward  and  phy- 
sical weariness  which  is  intended. 

He    wakeneth    morning    by 

morning-]  The  Servant  does  not 
receive  revelations  like  ordinary 
prophets  in  ecstatic  moments,  in 
dreams  and  visions  of  the  night, 
but  in  his  waking  hours,  and  not 
only  so,  but  every  morning — the 
spirit  of  prophecy  abides  constantly 
upon  him  (Del.,*Naeg.).  Themes- 
sage  is  the  same — peace  and  resto- 
ration, but  it  needs  daily  varying 
to  meet  daily  needs.  It  is  hardly 
necessary  to  point  out  the  exquisite 
felicity  of  phrase  in  this  verse. 
There  are  indeed  similar  expres- 
sions elsewhere  (see  i  Sam.  ix.  15, 
xx.  2,  Job  xxxiii.  16),  but  not  equally 

poetical. An    ear]       It    is     of 

course  the  inner  ear  which  is  meant, 
as  in  xlviii.  8. 

5  Hath  opened  to  me  an  ear] 
The  supposed  reference  to  Ex.  xxi. 
5,  6,  Deut.  xv.  16,  17,  has  been  de- 
servedly set  aside  by  recent  com- 
mentators. It  is  obviously  a  par- 
ticular command  which  is  referred 
to.  The  piercing  of  a  slave's  ears 
made  all  commands  binding  for  the 
rest  of  his  life  ;  '  defiance  '  was  ex- 
cluded ;  moral  conflict  was  out  of 
the  question.  Besides,  the  mean- 
ing of  the  phrase  '  to  open  the  ear ' 
is  determined  by  v.  4  (comp.  xlviii. 


8,  xlii.  1 8,  19).  The  Servant  was 
not  a  mechanical  organ  of  revela- 
tion, but  had  a  spiritual  sympathy 
with  it,  even  when  it  told  of  suffer- 
ing for  himself. /  have  n< 

been  defiant]  I,  weak  and  suscep- 
tible to  pain  and  reproach  as  I  am, 
have  not  stiffened  my  back  in  op- 
position to  duty.  (The  root-mean- 
ing is  stringere.}  The  declaration 
thus  ascribed  to  the  Servant  is  deci- 
sive against  the  '  collective '  theory. 
It  was  the  offence  of  Jonah,  a  type 
or  symbol  of  Israel,  that  he  pursued 
the  very  opposite  line  of  conduct 
to  that  which  is  here  described. 
Few  even  in  the  class  of  prophets 
could  take  up  the  words  of  the 
Servant.  Jeremiah  indeed  does 
utter  a  like  statement,  but,  both  in 
his  sufferings  and  in  his  deportment, 
Jeremiah  was  a  striking  type  of  the 
Servant  of  Jehovah.  '  As  for  me,' 
he  says, '  I  have  not  withdrawn  from 
following  lovingly  after  thee'  (Jer. 
xvii.  6).  So,  too,  the  Servant  can 
declare,  '  /  have  not  been  defiant, 
I  have  not  turned  back.'  In  both 
cases,  the  words  are  only  appro- 
priate in  the  mouth  of  an  individual. 
6  My  back  I  have  given  .  .  .  ] 
He  has  patiently,  willingly  endured 
humiliation  and  scorn.  So  the  type 
Jeremiah,  '  I  have  been  in  derision 
continually,  everyone  mocking  me  ' 
(Jer.  xx.  7).  So  the  pious  sufferer, 
also  (to  say  the  least)  a  type,  in 
Ps.  xxii.  7,  '  All  they  that  see  me 
laugh  to  scorn.'  So  the  typical 
righteous  man  in  the  Book  of  Job 
(xxx.  10),  '  They  abhor  me,  they 
flee  far  from  me,  and  withhold 

not  spittle    from   my  face.' To 

those  who  plucked  out  the  hair] 
Comp.  Neh.  xiii.  25,  'And  I  cursed 
them.  .  .  .  and  plucked  the  hair 
off  them.'  Of  all  such  expressions 
in  this  section,  as  even  Vitringa 
candidly  admits,  the  primary  sense 
not  only  may  be,  but  must  be,  figu- 


CHAP.  L.] 


ISAIAH. 


from  confusion  and  spitting.  7  But  the  Lord  Jehovah  will 
help  me  ;  therefore  am  I  not  confounded  ;  therefore  have  I 
made  my  face  as  flint,  and  I  know  that  I  shall  not  be  ashamed. 
8  Near  is  he  that  justifieth  me  ;  who  will  contend  with  me  ? 
let  us  stand  forth  together.  Who  is  mine  adversary  ?  let  him 
come  near  unto  me.  9  Behold,  the  Lord  Jehovah  will  help 
me  ;  who  is  he  that  can  condemn  me  ?  behold,  they  shall 
all  fall  to  pieces  like  a  garment ;  the  moth  shall  eat  them. 
10  Who  is  there  among  you  that  feareth  Jehovah,  that  hear- 
keneth  to  the  voice  of  his  servant  ?  He  that  walketh  in  dark- 
ness, and  hath  no  light,  let  him  trust  in  the  Name  of  Jehovah, 
and  rely  upon  his  God.  u  Behold,  all  ye  that  kindle  a  fire 


rative,  since  there  is  no  one  in  the 
religious  history  of  Israel  to  whom 
they  can  be  literally  applied. 

7  '  Against  the  crowd  of  mockers 
he  places   Adonai   Jehovah '    (Dr. 

Weir). As    flint]      The    same 

figure  is  applied  in  a  bad   sense, 
Jer.  v.  3,  Zech.  vii.  12;  in  a  good, 

Ezek.    iii.    9. 1    shall    not    be 

ashamed]    i.e.,    not    disappointed 
(see  on  liv.  4). 

8  He  that  justifieth  me]    'To 
justify  '  in  the  O.  T.  almost  always 
(see  on  liii.  1 1)  means  to  pronounce 
a  man  righteous,  or  to  prove  him  so 
in  act : — Job  xxvii.  5  is  not  funda- 
mentally an  exception.  The  Servant 
of  Jehovah  speaks  of  the  final  stage 
of  his  career  in  figurative  language 
as   a  trial,   in   which    God   is   the 
judge.      This  is  a  fresh   point   in 
which    he     resembles    Job.       But 
whereas  Job,  the  type  of  a  righte- 
ous man,  shrinks  in  terror  from  the 
issue,  the  Servant,  human  and  yet 
superhuman  in  nature,  has  no  doubt 
as  to  a  favourable  result. 

10' n  A  short  speech,  addressed 
first  to  those  who  fear  and  obey 
Jehovah,  and  then  to  those  who 
resist  his  will.  It  is  not  quite  clear 
what  is  the  meaning  of  the  words 
his  servant.  In  xliv.  26,  they  are 
a  designation  of  the  prophetic 
writer  himself,  and  they  may  per- 
haps be  so  here.  This  view,  it  is 
true,  isolates  vv.  10,  11  from  the 
rest  of  the  chapter,  but  there  is 
nothing  in  these  verses  directly 


referring  to  the  preceding  para- 
graph. There  are  some  very 
abrupt  transitions  in  the  prophecy 
before  us,  and  this  may  be  one  of 
them.  Otherwise  we  may  under- 
stand '  his  servant '  to  mean  the 
servant  of  Jehovah  specially  so 
called.  I  incline  to  the  former 
theory.  The  speech  of  the  Servant 
in  vv.  4-9  is  I  think,  a  pure  soli- 
loquy, and  belongs  not  to  the 
present  but  to  the  future — it  is 
given  here  by  anticipation  ;  vv.  10, 
1 1,  on  the  other  hand,  are  addressed 
to  the  Jews  living  in  Babylon  at 
the  close  of  the  Exile.  V.  10  is 
spoken  by  the  prophet  (so  Ibn  Ezra), 
who,  however,  soon  loses  himself 
(see  v.  11)  in  his  Divine  master. 

The  Name  of  Jehovah]     No 

mere  synonym  for  « the  Divine  cha- 
racter,3 but  a  symbolic  expression 
for  a  special  aspect,  not  to  say 
*  Person,'  of  the  Godhead ;  see  on 
xxx.  27. 

11  All  ye  that  kindle  a  fire] 
The  meaning  of  this  figure  is  un- 
certain. I  follow  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Knob., 
Del.,  Naeg.  in  taking  the  *  fire '  to 
represent  either  the  rage  of  unre- 
strained passion  (comp.  ix.  18),  or 
the  destruction  which  the  enemies 
of  Jehovah  prepare  for  his  servants. 
Others  (as  Vitr.,  Lowth,  Ges.)  re- 
gard it  as  a  figurative  expression 
for  rebellion  against  the  oppressors 
of  the  Jews.  Others  again  (as  Calv., 
Hahn,  Birks,  Weir)  suppose  it  to 
be  a  domestic  fire  (xlvii.  14)  which 


28 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LI. 


and  b  gird  yourself  with b  c  brands  ;  get  you  into  the  flame 
of  your  fire,  and  into  the  brands  that  ye  have  kindled.  From 
mine  hand  this  befalleth  you  ;  in  torture  shall  ye  lie  down. 

b  Set  a  light  to,  Pesh.,  Seeker,  Hitz.,  Ew.  (one  letter  different.) 
c  Sparks,  Kirachi,  Calv.,  Hengst.,  Hahn,  Weir. 


is  meant,  and  take  this  to  be  a 
figure  for  all  merely  human  com- 
forts and  supports,  corresponding  to 
the  figure  of  darkness  for  distress 
and  perplexity  in  v.  10.  The  last- 
mentioned  view  has  but  a  precarious 
existence,  as  it  depends  on  the 
dubious  rendering  '  sparks  '  ;  the 
second  strikes  me  as  too  narrow 
for  the  wide  symbolism  of  pro- 
phecy. The  first  produces  a  striking 
and  natural  antithesis  (comp.  xlii. 

1 6,  17). Gird  yourselves  .   .  .  ] 

The  '  firebrands '  (if  we  care  to 
press  this  detail)  may  be  the  calum- 
nies and  anathemas  hurled  at  the 
servants  of  Jehovah  (comp.  James 


iii.  6).  '  Gird '  =  arm  (see  on  xlv.  5). 
So  *  facibus  pubes  accingitur,'  Virg. 
— Get  you  into  the  flame]  The 
destruction  they  have  prepared  for 
others  shall  overtake  themselves. 

From   mine    hand]     Jehovah 

is    evidently    the    speaker. In 

torture  shall  ye  lie  down]  Not 
merely  *  ye  shall  die  in  pain '  (as 
Ibn  Ezra,  comp.  i  Kings  ii.  10, 
'  David  lay  down  with  his  fathers '), 
but  '  after  death  ye  shall  lie  on  a 
couch  of  torture.'  Vitringa  well 
compares  Luke  xvi.  24,  '  I  am  tor- 
mented in  this  flame ' ;  see  further 
on  Ixvi.  24. 


CHAPTER  LI. 

Contents. — Instruction  for  the  spiritual  Israel  (w.  1-8) ;  appeal  to  the 
self-revealing  might  of  Jehovah  (w.  9-11);  Divine  expostulation  with 
Israel  for  his  unbelief  (w.  12-15);  address  of  Jehovah  to  the  Servant 
(v.  1 6) ;  encouragement  for  down-trodden  Jerusalem,  mingled  with  a 
pathetic  picture  of  her  troubles  (w.  17-23). 

1  Hearken  unto  me,  ye  that  pursue  righteousness,  that 
seek  Jehovah  ;  look  unto  the  rock  whence  ye  have  been 
hewn,  and  to  the  hole  of  the  pit  whence  ye  have  been  dug. 
2  Look  unto  Abraham  your  father,  and  unto  Sarah  that  bare 
you,  for  by  himself  I  called  him,  and  I  blessed  him,  and  in- 


1  Hearken  unto  me  .  .  .  ]  The 

prophet  is  drawing  nearer  and 
nearer  to  the  great  central  revela- 
tion (chap,  liii.),  and  summons  to  his 
side  the  spiritual  Israel,  for  whom 
alone,  as  he  has  expressly  said  (see 
xlviii.  22),  the  future  blessedness  is 

reserved. Righteousness]       It 

is  of  course  '  righteousness  '  in  the 
objective  sense  of  which  he  speaks 
— a  way  of  life  in  accordance  with 
the  Divine  commands,  i.e.,  '  righte- 
ous dealing '  (Rodwell). look 

unto  the  rock  .  .  .  ]  Unlikely  as 


the  fulfilment  of  such  'exceeding 
great  and  precious  promises '  may 
seem,  it  is  not  more  unlikely  than 
the  original  wonder  of  a  great 
nation  being  descended  '  from  one 
man,  and  him  as  good  as  dead' 
(Heb.  xi.  12).  The  figure  of  the 
'rock,'  thus  explained,  is  natural 
enough,  without  supposing  a  sur- 
vival '  of  a  myth  like  that  of 
Pyrrha. 

2  By  himself]  Lit.,  '  (as)  one.' 
There  are  two  remarkable  verbal 
parallels  in  Ezek.  xxxiii.  24  and 


CHAP.  LI.] 


ISAIAH, 


creased  him.  3  For  Jehovah  doth  comfort  Zion,  doth  comfort 
all  her  ruined  places,  and  maketh  her  wilderness  as  Eden, 
and  her  desert  as  the  garden  of  Jehovah  ;  joy  and  gladness 
shall  be  found  therein,  thanksgiving  and  the  sound  of  music. 
4  Listen  unto  me,  a  my  people,*  and  bmy  nation,b  give  ear 
unto  me ;  for  instruction  shall  go  forth  from  me,  and  my  law 
will  I  fix  for  the  light  of  the  peoples.  5  Near  is  my  righteous- 
ness ;  gone  forth  is  my  salvation  ;  and  mine  arms  shall  judge 
the  peoples  ;  for  me  the  countries  shall  wait,  and  upon  mine 

a  Ye  peoples,  very  few  MSS. ,  Pesh. ,  Lowth,  Ges. 

*  Ye  nations,  few  Hebr.  MSS..  Pesh.,  Lowth,  Ges.     (Sept.  has,  Ye  kings.) 


Mai.  ii.  15.  The  latter  indeed 
seems  to  me  only  a  verbal  one, 
but  the  former  suggests  one  pos- 
sible object  of  the  prophet  in 
adopting  this  form  of  words.  It 
runs  thus,  '  Son  of  man,  they  that 
inhabit  those  ruined  places  on  the 
soil  of  Israel  say,  Abraham  was  one, 
and  he  became  possessor  of  the 
land  :  but  we  are  many,  the  land 
hath  been  given  to  us  for  a  posses- 
sion ' ;  i.e.,  '  if  Abraham  received 
the  promise  of  Canaan,  when  he 
was  but  one,  and  when  there  were 
great  nations  already  in  possession, 
how  much  more  shall  we,  who  are 
many,  and  who  are  living  on  the 
land  of  our  forefathers,  retain  a 
permanent  and  growing  hold  upon 
it ! '  No,  the  prophet  replies  ;  the 
true  lesson  of  the  solitariness  of 
Abraham  is  different.  The  few 
genuine  believers,  who  seek  to  do 
the  will  of  God,  are  the  represen- 
tatives of  Abraham,  and  the  fresh 
starting-point  for  the  promise. — 
I  blessed  him,  and  increased 
him]  The  two  principal  features 
of  the  promises  to  Abraham  (Gen. 
xii.  2,  3,  xxii.  17  &c.). 

3  Doth  comfort]  Lit.,  '  hath 
comforted.'  The  perfect  expresses 
the  self-fulfilling  power  of  the  Di- 
vine word. -As  Eden  ...  as 

the  garden  of  Jehovah]  The 
occurrence  of  these  phrases  is 
worth  noticing,  as  it  supplies  a 
subsidiary  argument  in  contro- 
versies as  to  the  date  of  certain 
books.  '  The  garden  of  Jehovah  ' 


occurs  only  here  and  in  Gen.  xiii. 
10  ;  'the  garden  of  Elohim '  (an- 
other synonym  for  'the  garden  of 
Eden')  in  Ezek.  xxviii.  13,  xxxi. 
8,  9.  The  garden  of  Eden  itself  is 
mentioned  Gen.  ii.  15,  iii.  23,  24, 
Ezek.  xxxvi.  35,  Joel  ii.  3;  'the 
trees  of  Eden,'  Ezek.  xxxi.  9,  16,  18. 

4  Listen   unto    me  .  .  .  ]     Not 
'listen  unto  the  instruction  which 
proceeds  from  me ' ;  this  would  be 
opposed  to  77.  7  a.      The  prophet 
mentions  a  second   attraction   for 
Jehovah's  true  people.     It  is  'too 
light  a  thing'  (xlix.  6)  that  Zion's 
wilderness   shall    be  transformed ; 
Jehovah,  enthroned  anew  in  Israel, 
shall  send  forth  his  light  and  his 
truth    among  the    distant   nations 
(comp.    ii.    2).      In    xlii.    1-4   this 
function  is  ascribed  to  the  personal 
Servant,  in  and  by  whom  Jehovah 
works. 

5  Itty  righteousness]     There  is 
no  occasion  to  paraphrase  this  into 
'my  grace'  (Hitz.),  or  'my  salva- 
tion '(Ges.)     Both  expressions  say 
too    little.      Jehovah's    'righteous- 
ness'   means    his    consistent    ad- 
herence  to    his    revealed    line    of 
action,  which  involves  deliverance 
to  faithful    or   at    least    repentant 
Israel,  and  destruction  to  those  who 
thwart  his  all-wise  purposes.    '  Mine 
arms  shall  judge  the  peoples'  ex- 
presses, or   at   least   includes,   the 
darker  side  of  Jehovah's  righteous- 
ness.  Shall  wait]     Not  '  wait ' 

as  Knobel ;  as  if  the  judgment  was 
simply  to  fall  upon    Babylon,  and 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i.i. 


arm  shall  they  trust.  °  Lift  up  your  eyes  to  the  heavens,  and 
look  upon  the  earth  beneath  ;  for  the  heavens  shall  vanish  like 
smoke,  and  the  earth  shall  fall  to  pieces  like  a  garment,  and 
the  dwellers  therein  shall  die  c  like  gnats c ;  but  my  salvation 
shall  be  for  ever,  and  my  righteousness  shall  not  be  annulled. 
7  Hearken  unto  me,  ye  who  know  righteousness,  the  people 
in  whose  heart  is  my  instruction  ;  fear  ye  not  frail  man's  re- 
proach, and  at  their  revilings  be  ye  not  dismayed.  8  For  as 
a  garment  shall  the  moth  eat  them,  and  as  wool  shall  the 
worm  eat  them  ;  but  my  righteousness  shall  be  for  ever,  and 
my  salvation  to  successive  generations. 

9  Awake,  awake,  put  on  strength,  O  Arm  of  Jehovah  ; 
awake,  as  in  the  days  of  antiquity,  the  generations  of  old. 
Art  thou  not  it  that  hewed  Rahab  in  pieces,  that  pierced 

«  So  De  Dieu,  Vitr.,  Lowth,   Ges.,   Hitz.,   Ew.,  Weir.— Even  so,  Versions  and 
Rabbis,  Kay,  Naeg. — Thus  (with  a  gesture  of  contempt),  Del. 


the  oppressed  nations  were  already 
longing  for  its  coming.  The  pro- 
phet has  forgotten  Cyrus  and 
Babylon,  and  is  absorbed  by  the 

thought  of  the  Messianic  age. 

Aline  arm]  i.e.,  my  help,  my  pro- 
tection (comp.  xxxiii.  2). 

6  The  heavens  .  .  .  like  a  gar- 
ment] The  same  figure  as  in  Ps. 
cii.  26.  Elsewhere  the  order  of  the 
world  is  described  as  everlasting 
(Gen.  viii.  21,  22,  ix.  9-11,  xlix.  26, 

Ps.  cxlviii.  6). Xiike  gnats]     A 

simile  which  appears  ignoble  to  us, 
but  did  not  so  appear  to  the  more 
simple-minded  Semites.  So,  in  the 
first  of  the  Babylonian  'Izdubar' 
legends  (in  the  Assyrian  version). 
We  hear  of  the  gods  of  Uruk 
(Erech),  during  a  siege  of  that  city, 
being  overpowered  with  fear,  and 
turning  themselves  into  flies  ( Trans. 
Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  iv.  268);  and  the 
Koran  declares  (Sura  xiii.  24), 
'  Verily  God  is  not  ashamed  to  set 
forth  as  well  the  instance  of  a  gnat 
as  of  any  nobler  object.'  Del.'s  ren- 
dering (comp.,  besides  the  passages 
quoted  by  him,  Am.  iv.  12,  Jer.  v. 
13)  is  unnatural  in  so  highly- 
wrought  and  poetical  a  passage. 
Besides,  as  De  Dieu  long  ago 
pointed  not,  we  desiderate  a  third 


simile  to  correspond  to  the  smoke 
and  the  garment.  Del.'s  philo- 
logical difficulty  is  obviated  by  Dr. 
Weir  (see  crit.  note). 

9  A  fresh  turn  in  the  discourse. 

Awake,  awake]     Who  utters 

this  splendid  apostrophe  ! — Most 
commentators  reply,  Zion,  or  the 
prophet  in  Zion's  name.  There 
are  two  objections  to  this :  (i) 
Wherever  Zion  or  the  Church  is 
represented  as  uttering  a  cry,  it  is 
in  the  tone  of  complaint  (see  xlix. 
14,  Ixiii.  n,  &c.,  Ixiv.  i),  whereas 
this  exclamation  is  in  the  language 
of  the  boldest  faith  ;  and  (2)  in  v.  17, 
Jerusalem  (which  is  here  synony- 
mous with  Zion,  see  Hi.  i)  is  re- 
presented as  asleep.  Two  better 
theories  are  open  to  us.  Looking  at 
v.  9  alone,  and  comparing  it  with 
Hi.  i,  it  seems  natural  to  regard  it, 
with  Ges.,  as  an  exhortation  of  Je- 
hovah to  himself  (comp.  Judg.  v.  12, 
'  Awake,  awake,  Deborah'),  or,  if  we 
object  to  a  rhetorical  formula  in  so 
solemn  a  passage,  as  a  fragment  of 
a  deliberation  within  the  plurality 
of  the  Godhead  (comp.  Gen.  i.  26, 
xi.  7).  The  latter  is  the  form  given 
to  the  theory  by  Prof.  Birks,  who 
supposes  God  the  Son  to  be  plead- 
ing with  God  the  Father  for  the 


CHAP.  LI.] 


ISAIAH- 


through  the  dragon  ?  10  Art  thou  not  it  that  dried  up  the 
sea,  the  waters  of  the  great  flood,  that  made  the  depths  of  the 
sea  a  way  for  the  released  to  pass  over?  lldAnd  the  freed 
ones  of  Jehovah  shall  return  and  come  to  Zion  with  a  ringing 
sound,  and  everlasting  joy  shall  be  upon  their  head  ;  they 
shall  overtake  gladness  and  joy,  sorrow  and  sighing  shall  flee 


away. 


d  Omitted  by  Ew.     (See  below. ) 


renewal  of  His  mighty  works.  This, 
however,  is  not  only  expressed  in 
too  theological  a  way,  but  is  con- 
trary to  the  analogy  of  Scripture  ; 
it  is  God  the  Son  (if  I  may  follow 
Prof.  Birks  on  theological  ground), 
and  not  God  the  Father,  who  cor- 
responds to  the  Arm  (as  also  to  the 
Name  and  to  the  Face)  of  Jehovah, 
but  a  glance  at  vv.  9  <$,  10,  suggests 
another  theory  in  preference.  The 
solemn  appeal  which  we  there  find 
to  God's  wonders  of  old  time  is 
certainly  more  appropriate  to  one 
who  is  not  a  Divine  being ;  in  Ixiii. 
1 1  a  very  similar  form  of  words  is 
put  into  the  mouth  of  the  people. 
Vitringa  assigns  the  apostrophe  to 
a  chorus  of  doctors  (prophets  ?)  and 
saints,  '  ccetui  doctorum  sive  choro 
sanctorum  illustrium,  ardentium 
zelo  divinas  gloriae  et  salutis  ec- 
clesiae.'  I  should  almost  prefer 
regarding  it  as  a  specimen  of  the 
intercession  of  the  angels  called, 
in  Ixii.  6,  Jehovah's  'remem- 
brancers.' The  interest  of  the  celes- 
tial beings  in  the  fortunes  of  Zion 
has  been  already  repeatedly  mani- 
fested (see  on  xl.  3). o  Arm 

of  Jehovah]     See  on  xl.    10. 

That  hewed  Rabat)  in  pieces 
.  .  .  ]  Comp.  Ps.  Ixxxix.  10,  '  Thou 
hast  broken  Rahab  in  pieces  as  one 
that  is  slain  ;  thou  hast  scattered 
thine  enemies  with  thy  strong  arm.' 
In  both  these  passages,  the  exigeti- 
cal  tradition  from  the  Targum  on- 
wards has  taken  Rahab  (with  which 
the  '  dragon '  of  the  parallel  line  is 


clearly  synonymous)  as  a  symbolic 
expression  for  Egypt.  It  has  been 
pointed  out  (in  note  on  xxvii.  i) 
that  the  phrase  has  a  substratum 
in  mythology.  The  great  enemy  of 
Jehovah  on  earth  was  described  in 
expressions  coined  originally  for  the 
constantly  recurring  '  war  in  heaven ' 
between  the  powers  of  light  and 
darkness.  In  confirmation  of  this, 
see  chap.  xv.  of  the  Egyptian  Book 
of  the  Dead  (Birch's  transl.  in  Bun- 
sen's  Egypt,  vol.  vi.),  where  the  sun- 
god  Ra  is  addressed  thus  : 

'  Hail !  thou  who  hast  cut  in  pieces  the 
Scorner  and  strangled  the  Apophis  '  (i.e., 
the  evil  serpent). 

This  suggests  the  possibility  that 
in  the  passage  before  us  the  prophet 
alludes  not  only  to  the  fate  of  the 
earthly  but  to  that  of  the  heavenly 
Rahab  (see  on  xxvii.  i).  The  strife 
between  light  and  darkness,  sun- 
shine and  storm,  is  always  recom- 
mencing ;  in  mythic  language  the 
sky-dragon,  though  killed,  returns 
to  life.1  The  Hebrew  is  not  opposed 
to  such  a  reference  ;  it  may  equally 
well  be  rendered  'that  heweth,' 
'that  pierceth'  (comp.  on  xliii.  16). 
The  next  verse,  however,  shows 
that  if  there  was  this  reference,  it 
lay  quite  in  the  background  of  the 
prophet's  mind.2 

11  And  the  freed  ones  .  .  .  ] 
The  verse  occurs  with  one  very 
slight  variation  in  xxxv.  10.  Here 
it  is  clearly  not  original.  Either  it 
is  a  quotation  by  the  author,  or  an 
interpolation  from  the  margin.  It 


1  Tylor,  Primitive  Culture,  i.  299. 

2  Steinthal,  in  his  essay  on  Samson,  remarks,  '  It  is  clear  how  the  prophet's  con- 
sciousness passed  imperceptibly  from  the  myth  into  the  legend,  or,  if  you  prefer  to  call 
it  so'  [and  doubtless  the  prophet  at  least  would  have  preferred  this],  '  history.'     (Mar- 
tineau's  translation,  appended  to  Goldziher's  Mythology  among  the  Hebrews,  p.  42".) 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP. 


12 1,  even  I,  am  your  comforter :  who  art  thou  that  thou 
fearest  frail  man  that  dieth,  and  the  son  of  the  earth-born  who 
is  given  up  as  grass  ;  13  and  hast  forgotten  Jehovah  thy  maker, 
who  stretched  out  the  heavens,  and  laid  the  foundations  of 
the  earth,  and  hast  been  trembling  continually  all  the  day  for 
the  fury  of  the  oppressor,  according  as  he  hath  taken  aim  to 
destroy  ?  and  where  is  the  fury  of  the  oppressor  ?  14  He  that 
was  bent  down  is  quickly  released  ;  he  shall  not  die  unto  the 
pit,  neither  shall  his  bread  fail,  15  seeing  that  I  Jehovah  am 
thy  God,  who  stirreth  up  the  sea,  so  thaf  its  waves  roar,  whose 


seems  to  have  been  suggested  by 
the  closing  word  of  v.  10  in  the 
Hebrew,  '  the  released.'  Such  sug- 
gestions were  more  congenial  to  a 
copyist  than  to  a  prophet. 

12  I,  even  X,  am  your  comforter] 
This  is  not,  I  venture  to  think,  the 
answer  of  Jehovah  to  the  appeal  in 
V.  9,  but  a  fresh  starting  point  in 
the  prophecy.    The  fault  which  the 
Divine  speaker  reprehends  is  unbe- 
lief, whereas  vv.  9,  10  shine  by  the 
brightness    of    their    faith. — '  Your 
comforter '  alludes  to  v.  3.    Jehovah 
first  of  all  addresses  Israel  in  the 
plural,  as  an   aggregate   of  indivi- 
duals (2  plur.  masc.),  then    in  the 
singular  as  a  living  organism  (the 
fern,  gender   in  v.  12  b  personifies 
Zion   as   a  matron,   the    masc.   in 
i).  13  indicates  Israel  as  Jehovah's 

son). Who  art  thou  .  . .  ]  'Why 

wilt  thou  pay  more  respect  to  the 
futile  menaces  of  man  than  to  the 
promises   of  thy  God  ? '     Jehovah 
chides  this  unbelief  as  disobedience, 
but    with    what     tenderness    'das 
freundlichste   Schelten  der  Liebe,' 

Stier)  ! Given  up]  viz.,  into  the 

hand  of  the  mower,  Death. 

13  Tny  maker]     With  reference 
to  the  nation,  comp.  xliii.  I. Ac- 
cording   as  he  hath  taken   aim 
.  .  .  ]   The  Jews  are  always  on  the 
tenter-hooks  of  expectation.    When 
the  '  aiming '   seems   to   fail,  their 
spirits  rise  ;    when  it  promises  to 
succeed,  they  fall ;  instead  of  which 
they  ought  simply  to  'rest  in  Jeho- 
vah.'  Where  is  the  fury  .   .   .  ] 

Anticipating  the  sudden  destruction 


of  Babylon.  Hence  in  the  next 
verse  we  have  the  perfect  of  pro- 
phetic certitude.  It  seems  strange 
to  read  of  the  '  fury '  of  the  Baby- 
lonians ;  see,  however,  on  xlvii.  6. 

14  He  that  was  bent  down]  i.e., 
by  the  weight  of  his  fetters,  or  by 
confinement  in  the  stocks  (Jer.  xx. 
2,  xxix.  26).  Comp.  on  xlii.  22. — 
Unto  the  pit]  i.e.,  so  as  to  be  cast 
into  the  pit  or  grave. 

15  Who  stirreth  up  ...  is  Jeho- 
vah Sabaoth)  The  same  description 
is  found  in  Jer.  xxxi.  35. — Taking 
the  opening  words  in  connection 
with  v.  9  and  with  Job  xxvi.  12,  13 
(see  on  Isa.  xxvii.  i),  it  is  tempting 
to  suppose  a  primary  reference  to 
the  upper  ocean,  the  *  waters  above 
the  expanse,'  which  were  the  scene 
of  the  contest  between  Jehovah  and 
the  leviathan  (or,  sky-dragon).  But 
the  mention  of  the  '  roaring '  of  the 
sea  (which  does  not  occur  in  Job  I.e.) 
favours  the  ordinary  view  that  it 
is  the  lower  earthly  ocean.  Comp. 
Nah.  i.  4,  where  this,  among  other 
signs  of  the  theophany,  is  given, 
that  '  he  rebuketh  the  sea  .  .  .  and 
drieth  up  all  the  rivers.'  The  figure 
in  Ivii.  20  points  in  the  same  direc- 
tion. The  meaning  will  therefore 
be  that  He  who  raiseth  storms, 
alike  in  the  world  of  nature  and  of 
history,  is  able  to  still  them,  and 
that  His  friends  have  no  cause  to 
fear.  The  name  '  Jehovah  Sabaoth ' 
enforces  the  same  lesson.  Israel's 
God  has  at  his  command  all  the 
forces,  the  potencies,  the  '  hosts,'  of 
heaven  and  earth. 


CHAP.  LI.] 


ISATAIT. 


33 


name  is  Jehovah  Sabaoth. — 16  And  I  put  my  words  in  thy 
mouth,  and  in  the  shadow  of  my  hand  I  covered  thee,  to  plant 
the  heavens  and  lay  the  foundations  of  the  earth,  and  to  say 
unto  Zion,  Thou  art  my  people. 

17  Wake  thee  up,  wake  thee  up,  arise,  O  Jerusalem,  who 
hast  drunk  at  the  hand  of  Jehovah  the  cup  of  his  fury  ;  the 
goblet-cup  of  reeling  hast  thou  drunken  and  wrung  out. 
18  There  was  no  guide  for  her  of  all  the  sons  that  she  had 
borne,  and  none  taking  hold  of  her  hand  of  all  the  sons  that 
she  had  brought  up.  19  Two  are  the  things  which  befell  thee  : 
who  is  there  to  condole  with  thee  ?  desolation  and  destruc- 


tion, famine  and  the  sword  :  e 

•  So  Bottcher  (virtually),  Lagarde  (see 
shall  I  comfort  thee?     Hebr.  text  (?). 

16  And  I  put  my  words  .   .  .  ] 

It  is  difficult  to  make  out  the  con- 
nection here.  The  preceding  verses 
are  addressed  to  Zion  or  Israel,  but 
this  verse  can  hardly  be  so,  on  ac- 
count of  the  closing  words.  Look 
at  the  passage  by  itself,  however, 
and  all  the  difficulty  vanishes.  *  I 
put  my  words  in  thy  mouth '  is  pre- 
cisely parallel  to  the  speech  of  the 
Servant,  '  he  made  my  mouth  as 
a  sharp  sword '  (viz.  by  giving  me 
his  own  self-realising  words),  and 
the  next  clause,  '  in  the  shadow  of 
my  rjand  I  covered  thee,'  is  even 
verbally  almost  identical  with  the 
Servant's  declaration,  '  in  the  sha- 
dow of  his  hand  he  hid  me '  (xlix. 
2).  The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  then, 
must  be  the  person  addressed.  The 
sudden  change  of  object  is  no 
doubt  surprising,  and  has  to  be  ac- 
counted for.  My  conjecture  is  that 
the  verse  originally  stood  in  some 
other  context,  and  that  the  para- 
graph closed — very  suitably,  as  it 

seems   to   me — with  v.   15. To 

plant  the  heavens]  i.e.,  either 
'  that  I  may  plant,'  &c.  (so  Jerome, 
Ew.,  Del.),  or  'that  thou  mayest 
plant'  (Calv.,  Vitr.,  Hengst.,  Naeg.). 
The  analogy  of  xlix.  Zb  favours  the 
second  alternative,  which  is  also 
more  suitable  both  to  the  preceding 
and  to  the  following  statement,  '  I 
put  my  words  into  thy  mouth  .  .  . 
to  say  unto  Zion,  &c.'  The 
'  heavens '  and  the  '  earth '  are  the 
VOL.  II. 


who  is  there  to  comfort  thee  e? 

crit.  note). — In  what  guise  (or,  character) 

new  ones  spoken  of  in  Ixv.  17,  Ixvi. 
22;  certainly  not  'the  Israelitish 
state'  (as  Ges.,  following  Ibn  Ezra). 
The  production  of,  this  new  world 
depends  on  the  words  of  Jehovah 
committed  to  the  Servant  (comp. 
Jer.  i.  9,  10). — For  the  use  of  the 
verb  '  to  plant,'  comp.  Dan.  xi.  45. 
The  figure  is  that  of  a  tent  with  its 
stakes  set  firmly  in  the  ground 
(comp.  xl.  22). 

17  Wake  thee  up,  wake  thee  up 
.  .  .  ]     The  prophet,  or  the  chorus 
of  prophets    (comp.    on   xl.    i),  or 
of  angelic  '  remembrancers,'  salutes 
Jerusalem  with  a  cheering  cry.     In 
form  it  is  parallel  to  the  invocation 
in  v.  9.     With  delicate  thoughtful- 
ness,  the  consolation  is  prefixed  to 
the   piteous    description    of   Jeru- 
salem's calamity  ('  Wake  thee  .  .  . 
hast  drunken  .  .  .  hast  drained'). 

— The  goblet-cup  .  .  .  wrung: 
out]  The  combination  'goblet- 
cup  '  is  not  a  pleonasm  ;  it  vividly 
represents  the  fulness  of  the  mea- 
sure of  Jerusalem's  punishment 
(comp.  xl.  2).  'Reeling'  means  the 
horror  and  bewilderment  caused  by 
a  great  catastrophe  (comp.  Ps.  Ix.  3, 
Zech.  xii.  2).  Note  the  cadence 
of  the  two  closing  words  in  the 
Hebrew.  The  whole  passage  finds 
a  parallel  in  Ezek.  xxiii.  32-34,  comp. 
Ps.  Ixxv.  8  (9). 

18  Notice  the  elegiac  rhythm  in 
the  Hebrew. 

19  Two    are    the    tbinsrs       .    ,  ] 


34 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LI i. 


20  Thy  sons  are  in  a  swoon  ;  they  lie  at  the  corners  of  all  the 
streets,  like  an  antelope  in  a  net,  full  as  they  are  of  the  fury 
of  Jehovah,  the  rebuke  of  thy  God.  21  Therefore  hear  now 
this,  thou  afflicted  one,  and  drunken,  but  not  with  wine, 
22  Thus  saith  thy  Lord  Jehovah,  and  thy  God  who  is  the  ad- 
vocate of  his  people,  Behold,  I  take  out  of  thy  hand  the  cup 
of  reeling  ;  the  goblet-cup  of  my  fury,  thou  shalt  not  drink  it 
again  ;  23  and  I  put  it  into  the  hand  of  those  who  tormented 
thee,  who  said  to  thy  soul,  Bow  down,  that  we  may  pass  over  ; 
and  thou  madest  thy  back  as  the  ground,  and  as  the  street 
for  those  that  passed  over. 


i.e.,  two  kinds  of  evils  (comp.  xlvii. 
9),  viz.,  desolation  for  the  land,  and 
death  for  the  people.  These  are 
expanded  into  four,  to  express  their 
depth  of  meaning  (' and' =  with— 
the  Vav  of  association,  see  crit.  note 
on  vii.  T.)  Or,  we  may  explain  with 
Stier,'desolation  without,  and  break- 
ing (so  literally)  within — hunger 
within,  and  the  sword  without' 
(comp.  Ezek.  vii.  1 5).  The  elegiac 
passage  which  follows  should  be 
compared  with  Lam.  ii.  11-13,  19, 
21  (see  also  Jer.  xv.  5).  Jerusalem  is 
represented  as  a  mother,  its  inhabi- 
tants as  sons  :  comp.  xlix.  17,  1.  I. 

20  Kike  an  antelope  In  a  net] 
A  noble  though  a  tragic  figure, 
Israel,  the  mountain-people,  is 
likened  to  a  gazelle,  which  all  its 
swiftness  and  grace  has  not  saved 


from  the  hunter's  snare. The 

fury  of  Jehovah]  What  hope, 
when  'Jehovah  thy  God'  is  'furious' 
against  thee?  Comp.  Rev.  vi.  16 
'the  wrath  of  the  Lamb1  (Dr.  Weir). 

21  Therefore]  Here,  as  often 
elsewhere  (e.g.,  x.  24,  xxvii.  9,  xxx. 
1 8)  the  transition  from  threatening 
to  promise  is  marked  by  'therefore.' 
Jehovah  cannot  bear  to  see  his 
people  suffer  any  longer  than  is 
necessary;  'therefore'  he  will  inter- 
pose to  help  them.  Drunken,  tout 
not  with  wine]  So  xxix.  9.  See 
crit.  note. 

23  Who  said  to  thy  soul  .  .  .  ] 
A  figurative  application  of  a  real 
custom  (Josh.  x.  24).  There  is  a 
similar  but  still  stronger  image  in 
Ps.  cxxix.  3,  '  ploughed  upon  my 
back.' 


CHAPTER   LIT. 

Contents. — Jerusalem  can  and  must  be  redeemed  (w.  1-6) ;  a  dramatic 
picture  of  the  redemption  itself  (w.  7-12). 

(The  chapter  should  have  been  ended  at  v.  12). 

1  Awake,  awake,  put  on  thy  strength,  O    Zion  !  put   on 
thy  robes  of  adornment,  O  Jerusalem,  holy  city  !  for  no  more 


1  Awake,     awake]         Another 


bracing  summons  from  the  Divine 


and  thy  robes. Thy  strength] 

Strength  returns  to  Zion  when  the 
representatives  (see  on  li.  17).    The      Arm  of  Jehovah  is  mighty  within 

first  was   merely,    Stand   up ;   the      her  (see  li.  9). Thy  robes  of 

second    is,    Put    on    thy   strength       adornment]    i.e.,  those  which  be- 


CHAP.  LII. 


ISAIAH. 


35 


shall  there  come  into  thee  the  uncircumcised  and  the  unclean. 
2  Shake  thyself  from  the  dust ;  arise  and  sit  down,  O  Jerusalem  : 
a  loose  thyself  from  the  bonds  of  thy  neck,a  O  captive  daughter 
of  Zion  !  3  For  thus  saith  Jehovah,  For  nought  were  ye  sold} 
and  not  for  money  shall  ye  be  redeemed.  4  For  thus  saith 
the  Lord,  Jehovah,  To  Egypt  my  people  went  down  at  the 
first  to  sojourn  there,  and  Assyria  oppressed  him  without 

a  So  Hebr.  marg.  and  most  critics. — The  bonds  of  thy  neck  are  unloosed,  Hebr. 
text,  Targ. ,  Kay,  Naeg.    (This  form  of  the  text  would  have  to  be  put  in  a  parenthesis. ) 


long  to  the  holy,  priestly  city.  Dr. 
Kay  aptly  quotes  the  description  of 

Aaron's  robes,  Ex.  xxviii.  2, No 

more  shall  there  come  into  thee 

.  .  .  ]  '  Then  shall  Jerusalem  be 
holiness,  and  no  strangers  shall 
pass  through  her  any  more '  (Joel 
iii.  1 7).  '  Strangers '  here  = '  enemies,' 
those  who  do  not  acknowledge  Je- 
hovah for  their  king.  The  throng- 
ing of  foreigners  announced  in  chap. 
Ix.  is  of  quite  a  different  kind. — 
Comp.  xxxv.  8,  Rev.  xxi.  27. 

~  Shake  thyself  ...  sit  down] 
A  striking  contrast  to  Babylon, 
xlvii.  i. 

3  It  might  seem  as  if  Jehovah 
willed  the  perpetual  captivity  of 
his  people.  Not  so.  They  may 
complain  that  they  have  been  '  sold.' 
Jehovah  accepts  the  word,  but  so 
qualifies  it  as  to  give  it  quite  a  new 

meaning. For  nought   (gratis, 

Vulg.)  were  ye  sold]   Jehovah  has 
received  no  equivalent  for  his  pro- 
perty.    It  is  therefore  not  a  sale, 
but  only  a  temporary  transfer.    Je- 
hovah has  accepted  no  other  nation 
as  his  treasure,  his  peculium  (Ex. 
xix.  3),  his   Servant,  his  agent  in 
his  world-wide  purposes  of  grace. 
Your    successive    captivities    have 
been  a  lamentable  interruption  in 
the  progress  of  his  work.     But  at 
least  they  do  not  prevent  him  from 
receiving    you    back    to    your    old 
place.     He  took   nothing   for  you 
from  your  so-called  '  buyers,'  and  of 
his  own  free  will  he  can  renew  your 
covenant.     Thus  the  passage  is  a 
further  development  of  1.  i.     The 
verbally  parallel  passage  Ps.  xliv. 
12  has   quite  a  different  meaning 
(see  Del.  ad  loc.}. 


4  To   Egypt  my  people  .  .  .  ] 

This  verse  seems  to  give,  though 
only  allusively,  a  historical  explana- 
tion of  the  general  statement  in  ?/. 
3.     Israel  went  down  to  Egypt  'to 
sojourn   there'   by   invitation,   but 
the  sacred  right  of  hospitality  was 
basely   violated    (we   must    supply 
this   from   the  second   half-verse). 
Assyria  oppressed  him]    Al- 
luding not  merely  to  the  payment  of 
tribute  (Hitz.),  but  to  the  captivities 
of  Israel,  and  the  desolating  inva- 
sions (comp.  chap.  i.  xxxvii.  30)  of 
Judah  by  Sargon  and  Sennacherib. 
This  seems  the  natural  meaning  ; 
the  expressions  used  in  v.  5  make 
it  plain  that  a  new  captivity  is  there 
intended.     Vitr.,    however,    thinks 
'Assyria'  includes  Babylonia  and 
the  Syro-Macedonian  kingdom,  re- 
ferring for  the  former  to  2  Kings 
xxiii.  29,  and  for  the  latter  to  Zech. 
x.  1 1  (?).    The  literal  interpretation 
of 'Assyria,'  he  says,  renders  it  im- 
possible to  explain  the  next  verse, 
and  destroys  the  coherence  of  the 
paragraph  with  the  following  con- 
text (see,  however,  on  next  verse). 
Dr.    Weir,    too,    is    of   the    same 
opinion,  so  far  as  Babylonia  is  con- 
cerned, on  the  ground  that  'history 
mentions  no  deliverance  from  As- 
syria, which  can  be  at  all  compared 
with  the  deliverance  from  Egypt.' 
This    statement,    however,    comes 
into  direct  collision  with  the  pro- 
phecy in  x.  26  ;  and  even  were  it 
not  so,  the  question  is  of  oppres- 
sions rather  than   of  deliverances. 
Besides,  it  is  contrary  to  the  custom 
of  this  prophecy  to  use  the  name 
'Assyria'    in    the    comprehensive 
way   supposed   by    Dr.    Weir. — 
D  2 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  I. If. 


cause.  ''  And  now  what  have  I  (to  do)  here  ?  is  the  oracle  of 
Jehovah  ;  for  my  people  have  been  taken  away  for  nought  ; 
those  who  rule  over  him  howl  (the  oracle  of  Jehovah)  ;  and 
continually,  all  the  day  my  name  is  reviled.  f)  Therefore  my 
people  shall  know  my  name  :  therefore  (he  shall  know)  in 
that  day  b  that  I  am  he  that  speaketh,  *  Here  am  I. '  b 

b  For  I,  the  same  that  promised,  am  here,  Ges. 

"Without  cause]  Lit., 'for  nothing.'      description.     God  must 
This  might  mean  '  without  paying 
a  price'  (Knob.,   Naeg.),  but   the 
connection  would  be  obscured. 

5  And  now  .  .  .  ]  The  third 
great  captivity  was  the  Babylonian. 
Jehovah  is  represented,  in  anthro- 
pomorphic language,  as  enquiring 
what  it  was  fitting  for  him,  as  the 
God  of  Israel,  to  do  at  Babylon  ; 
here  implies  that  he  had  come 
down  to  see  (as  Gen.  xviii.  21,  Ex. 
iii.  8,  Isa.  xxxi.  4).  The  reply  to 
his  enquiry  is  involved  in  Iii.  8,  12, 
'Jehovah  returneth,'  'Jehovah  goeth 
before  you.' — It  is  only  fair  to 
mention  some  divergent  expositions 
of  this  important  passage.  '  What 
have  I  to  do  here?'  might  mean 
*  What  sufficient  cause  is  there  for 
my  remaining  inactive  in  heaven  ? ' 
So  Hitzig,  whom  it  is  not  fair  to 
answer  with  a  charge  of  pagan- 
izing (so  Del.)  in  the  face  of  Gen. 
xviii.  21,  &c.  It  might  also  be 
taken  in  the  same  sense  as  v.  3. 
The  Babylonians  had  paid  no  price 
to  Jehovah  for  his  people  ;  of  what 
is  he  the  possessor  'here,'  i.e.,  in 
Jerusalem,  except  a  heap  of  stones 
and  prowling  wild  beasts  ?  So  Nae- 
gelsbach.  The  same  view  of  the 
meaning  of  '  here '  is  advocated  by 
H  impel,  who  writes  to  this  effect.1 
'The  words,  What  have  I  here? 
cannot  possibly  refer  to  the  Baby- 
lonian Exile.  God  could  not  be 
said  to  be  present  with  the  Jews  in 
the  Exile  ;  the  misery  of  their  con- 
dition lay  precisely  in  their  sense 
of  the  Divine  alienation.  They 
refer  rather  to  Jerusalem,  which 
indeed  forms  the  centre  of  the 

1  Theologische  Quartahchrift,  1878,  p.  309.  Dr.  Himpel  is  a  member  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Theological  faculty  at  Tubingen. 

-  Though  the  idiom  '  what  have  I,'  '  what  hast  thou,1  is  elsewhere  a  formula  of  dis- 
approval (Gesenius  on  x\ii.  i).  See  especially  xxii.  16. 


retuni  to 
Jerusalem,  otherwise  his  gracious 
purposes  would  be  frustrated,  but 
in  its  present  state  He  cannot  do 
so  ;  therefore  Jerusalem  must  rise 
from  its  humiliation.'  -  True,  these 
words  cannot  refer  to  the  Exile,  but 
they  can  refer,  as  remarked  above, 
to  a  (symbolic)  descent  of  Jehovah 
to  judgment.  Still  the  question 
might  possibly  bear  Naeg.'s  in- 
terpretation, if  the  continuation  of 
the  sentence  were,  '  for  Zion  is  de- 
spoiled of  her  children';  but  as  the 
words  stand,  Jehovah  must,  I  think, 
be  supposed  to  be  in  the  place 
whither  (or,  where)  his  people  had 
been  'taken  away,'  i.e.,  in  Baby- 
lonia.  Taken  away]  viz.,  as  a 

booty  (so  constantly)  ;  or  it  may 
mean  'destroyed'  (see  on  liii.  8). 

— For  nought]  i.e.,  undeservedly. 
The  same  word  as  in  v.  3,  but  in  a 
different  sense. Howl]  i.e.,  tri- 
umph brutally  (it  is  the  oppressors 
who  are  spoken  of — see  Del.'s  note). 

6  Therefore]  i.e.,  because  my 
people  is  oppressed,  and  because  my 

name  is  reviled. Shall  know 

my  name]  i.e.,  shall  know  by  ex- 
perience the  meaning  of  my  name 
Jehovah  (comp.  on  xlii.  8).  '  The 
allusion  to  the  Egyptian  deliverance 
is  still  kept  up.  Then  God  revealed 
Himself  most  gloriously  as  Jehovah 
(Ex.  iii.  15,  &c.)  ;  now  He  will 

again  do  so'  (Dr. Weir). He  tfcat 

speaketh,  Here  am  l]  i.e.,  He 
who  answereth  their  cry  by  coming 
in  person  to  help  them.  Dr.  Weir 
compares  Iviii.  9,  '  Then  .  .  .  thou 
shalt  cry,  and  he  shall  say,  Here  I 
am.' 


CHAP.  LII.] 


ISAIAH. 


37 


7  How  comely  upon  the  mountains  are  the  feet  of  the 
bringer  of  tidings,  the  proclaimer  of  peace,  the  bringer  of  good 
tidings,  the  proclaimer  of  salvation,  who  saith  unto  Zion,  Thy 
God  hath  become  king  !  8  Hark,  thy  watchers  !  they  lift  up 
the  voice  ;  they  ring  out  a  cry  together  ;  for  they  behold  eye 
to  eye  c  the  return  of  Jehovah  to  Zion.c  9  Burst  out  into 

c  So  Targ.  ('bringeth  back  his  Shekinah  to  Zion '),  Kimchi,  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Luzzatto, 
Kay,  Naeg. — How  Jehovah  bringeth  back  Zion,  Vulg.,  Pesh.,  Vitr.,  Ges.,  Stier,  Del., 
Weir. 


7  The  prophet  here  passes  into 
an  ecstasy.  What  he  sees  with  the 
inner  eye,  he  expresses  pictorially. 
He  has  told  us  already  of  the  ideal 
Zion  ascending  a  high  mountain, 
and  acting  as  herald  of  the  Divine 
deliverer.  Now  he  varies  the 
picture.  It  is  Zion  to  whom  the 
herald  is  seen  to  come — bounding 
over  the  mountains  '  like  a  roe  or 
a  young  hart,'  Cant.  ii.  8,  comp. 
2  Sam.  xviii.  24-27  Hebr.  'The 
feet  already  give  a  greeting  of 
peace,  before  the  mouth  utters  it ' 
(Stier).  The  prophet's  fondness  for 
the  mountains  reminds  us  of  Eze- 
kiel's  (see  Ezek.  vi.  i  and  parallel 
passages). — How  comely  .  .  .  are 
the  feet  of  the  messenger  means 
'  how  welcome  is  his  arrival ' 
(Lowth),  or  better  still,  'his  rapid 
approach'  (Dr.  Weir).  Nahum, 
announcing  the  fall  of  Nineveh, 
has  the  same  image  in  nearly  the 
same  words,  '  Behold  upon  the 
mountains  the  feet  of  the  bringer 
of  tidings,  the  proclaimer  of  peace,' 
i.  15  (ii.  i  Hebr.).  The  one  pas- 
sage, or  the  other,  is  clearly  an 
imitation.  Comp.  also  Rom.  x.  15, 
where  the  passage  of  Isaiah  is 
applied  dogmatically,  and  Eph.  vi. 
15,  where  it  is  alluded  to  with  true 

poetic  feeling. Who  saith  unto 

Zion  .  .  .  ]  His  tidings  are  that 
Zion's  God  has  resumed  the  crown 
which  he  had  laid  aside  (see  on 
xxiv.  23). 

8  Bark,  thy  watchers  !]  Be- 
cause the  prophets  are  sometimes 
called  'watchmen'  (Ivi.  10),  Jer.  vi. 
17,  Ezek.  iii.  17,  xxxiii.  7),  it  has 
been  supposed  by  Ges.,  Ew.,  Hitz., 
Knob.,  Del.  that  the  prophets,  i.e., 
those  of  the  Exile  (see  on  xl.  i),  are 


here  referred  to.  But(i)  this  greatly 
'  mars  the  unity  and  beauty  of  the 
scene  presented3  (Alexander),  and 
(2)  the  prophets  in  question  were 
(as  few  but  Seinecke  will  doubt) 
in  Babylonia,  and  not  in  Palestine 
(Naeg.).  The  '  watchers  '  are  ideal, 
supersensible  beings,  like  those 
whose  voice  has  been  already  re- 
peatedly heard  (see  on  xl.  3),  and 
wiil  shortly  be  again  in  Iii.  ii,  12  ; 
they  are  also  referred  to  in  Ixii.  6,  7 
as  Jehovah's  '  remembrancers.'  So 
too  the  Zion  who  is  addressed  is  not 
the  ruined  and  deserted  Jerusalem, 
but  belongs  to  the  ideal,  super- 
sensible world  ;  it  is  the  Zion  whose 
walls  are  '  continually  before'  Je- 
hovah (xlix.  1 6,  comp.  on  xl.  9). 
Faith  has  brought  down  the  new 

Jerusalem  to  earth Ring-  out  a 

cry  tog-ether]  i.e.,  lift  up  a  '  long- 
toned  cry,'  like  an  Arab  watchman 

of  our  day  (Thomson). Eye  to 

eye]  If  Jehovah  can  be  said  to 
have  'eyes'  (e.g.  Zech.  iv.  10,  Prov. 
v.  21,  xv.  3),  why  not  the  heavenly 
host  ?  These  friendly  '  watchers  ' 
note  every  advance  of  the  kingdom 
of  God  (comp.  Luke  xv.  10)  ;  they 
see  it  all  '  eye  to  eye,'  as  a  man 
looks  into  the  eye  of  his  friend — so 
near  are  the  two  worlds  of  sight  and 
of  faith.  Comp.  Num.  xiv.  14,  Ex. 
xxxiii.  ii. The  return  of  Je- 
hovah to  Zion]  This  rend,  is  most 
favoured  by  the  context,  which 
speaks  of  the  return  of  the  exiles 
(vv.  ii,  12),  and  not  of  Zion  (see 
v.  i).  Jehovah  is  the  leader  of  the 
exile-band  (v.  12) ;  without  Him, 
what  profit  would  there  be  in  a 
change  of  abode  ?  It  is  the  spiritual 
banishment  of  which  II.  Isaiah  so 
pathetically  complains.  Comp.  Ixiii. 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LII. 


a  ringing  cry  together,  ye  ruined  places  of  Jerusalem  ;  for 
Jehovah  hath  comforted  Zion,  he  hath  redeemed  Jerusalem. 
10  Jehovah  hath  bared  his  holy  arm  in  the  eyes  of  all  the 
nations ;  and  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  have  seen  the  salva- 
tion of  our  God.  u  Away  !  away  !  go  ye  out  thence,  touch 
not  an  unclean  thing  ;  go  ye  out  of  the  midst  of  her  ;  purify 
yourselves,  ye  d  armour-bearers  of  Jehovah  !  12  For  not  in 
trembling  haste  shall  ye  go  out,  and  not  in  flight  shall  ye 
proceed  ;  for  there  proceedeth  before  you  Jehovah,  and  your 
rear-guard  is  the  God  of  Israel. 

d  So  A.  E.,  Kimchi,  Luzzatto,  Bunsen. — Most,  That  bear  the  vessels  of. 


17,  '  Return,  for  thy  servants'  sake.' 
Alt.  rend,  is  perfectly  possible  gram- 
matically (comp.  Ps.  Ixxxv.  5  Hebr.), 
but,  with  an  eye  to  the  context, 
seems  to  me  only  admissible  if 
'bringeth  back  Zion'  be  taken  as 
shortened  from  *  bringeth  back  the 
prosperity  of  Zion '  (see  crit.  note). 

9  Burst  out  .  .  .  ]     The  Hebr. 
has  two  imperatives,  '  a  combina- 
tion which  occurs  elsewhere  only 
in  Ps.  xcviii.  4 '  (Alexander).    Coin- 
cidences with  Ps.  xcviii.  (see  w. 
2,  3)  are  also  found  in  the  second 
half  of  v.   10 ;    the  author  of  that 
psalm  must  indeed  have  known  II. 
Isaiah  « by  heart.' 

10  Zlath  bared  his   holy   arm] 
viz.,  for  action  (comp.  Ezek.  iv.  7, 
Ps.    Ixxiv.    n);    alluding    to    the 
sleeveless  Eastern  dress. 

11  Away  !  away  I  .  .  .  ]  Almost 
the  same  language  recurs  in  Lam. 
iv.    15,  but   the  parallel  is  purely 

verbal Thence]  Because  in  this 

section  (w.  7- 12)  the  prophet  places 

himself  in  spirit  at  Jerusalem 

Purify  yourselves  .  .  .  ]    With  a 
view  to  the  re-establishment  of  the 
religion  of  Jehovah,  the  returning 
exiles  must  become  legally  'pure' 
(comp.  Ps.  ex.  3,  if  the  text  there 
be   correct),  for    which — see   next 
verse — they  will  have  ample  time. 


By  a  striking  poetic  figure  they  are 
called  armour-bearers  of  Jehovah 

— this  is  the  meaning  which  the  He- 
brew phrase  constantly  has.  A '  man 
of  war 3  (and  Jehovah  is  represented 
as  such  in  v.  12)  could  not  support 
his  dignity  without  an  armour- 
bearer,  and  a  king,  upon  solemn 
occasions,  appears  to  have  had  a 
troop  of  armour-bearers  (i  Kings 
xiv.  28).  Much  more  must  Jehovah 
unto  whom,  as  a  Psalmist  tells  us, 
the  shields  of  the  whole  earth 
belong  (Ps.  xlvii.  10),  have  a  multi- 
tude of  armour-bearers.  So  else- 
where (Ixvi.  15,  note)  He  is  said 
to  have  (many)  chariots.  Still,  alt. 
rend,  is  perfectly  tenable  ;  '  vessels 
of  Jehovah  '  may  exceptionably  be 
used  for  '  vessels  of  the  house  of 
Jehovah'  (Ezra  i.  7).  The  'bear- 
ers '  will  then  be  the  Levites. 

12  The  Exodus  from  Babylon 
was  to  resemble  the  first  Exodus 
only  in  its  nobler  circumstances. 
Jehovah  was  again  to  be  the  guide 
and  protector  of  his  people  (Ex. 
xii.  51,  xiii.  21,  22),  but  that  trem- 
bling: haste  (Ex.  xii.  n)  in  which 
the  first  Israelites  departed  was 
to  be  exchanged  for  a  solemn 
deliberateness.  The  prophet  thus 
modifies  the  earlier  injunction, 
*  Flee  ye  from  Chaldaea'  (xlviii.  20). 


CHAPTERS   LII.   i3-LIII. 

WE  have  already  seen  (notes  on  xlii.  1-7,  xlix.  1-9)  that  the  author  of 
II.  Isaiah  in  his  moments  of  highest  inspiration  conceived  of  the  Servant 


CHAP.  LII.  13— LIII.]  ISAIAH.  39 

of  Jehovah  as  an  individual,  and  that  he  ascribes  to  Him  a  nature  which 
is  (to  judge  from  His  acts)  at  once  human  and  superhuman,  though  he  has, 
of  course,  given  no  hint  of  anything  like  a  theory  to  account  for  this. 
But  no  passage  which  we  have  as  yet  met  with  is  so  strongly  individualis- 
ing l  in  its  account  of  the  Servant  as  the  famous  chapter  on  which  we  are 
about  to  enter.  So  deep  is  the  impression  which  it  produced  on  Ewald 
that  he  felt  compelled  to  assign  it  in  its  original  form  to  an  age  of  perse- 
cution (he  thought  of  the  reign  of  Manasseh),  and  to  suppose  that  it 
described  the  martyrdom 2  of  one  of  the  leading  champions  of  true  or 
theistic  religion  (comp.  on  Ivii.  i).  The  hypothesis  possesses  a  high  degree 
of  plausibility  ;  it  is  recommended,  not  only  by  the  peculiarity  of  the  con- 
tents, but  by  the  singular  linguistic  phenomena.  The  style  of  II.  Isaiah  is 
in  general  full  and  flowing  ;  the  style  of  this  chapter  is  *  hard,  obscure,  and 
awkward'  (Delitzsch),  and  reminds  us  in  this  respect  of  another  famous  dis- 
puted passage,  Ivi.  9-lvii.  1 1  a,  (which  indeed  Ewald  ascribes  to  the  same 
author).  It  is  not  within  my  present  scope  to  discuss  critical  questions  of 
this  sort  ;  the  ordinary  view  which  accepts  the  continuity  of  the  com- 
position is  not  to  be  too  hastily  rejected  (comp.  introduction  to  Ivi.  9,  &c.). 
The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  according  to  Bleek,  is  here  described  in  essen- 
tially the  same  terms  both  with  regard  to  his  past  and  to  his  future,  as  in 
xlii.  1-7,  xlix.  1-9.  At  any  rate,  it  seems  highly  probable  that  chap.  liii. 
existed  in  some  form  or  other  in  the  time  of  the  author  of  the  Book  of 
Job,  who  apparently  alludes  to  it  (see  below  on  v.  9). 

The  importance  of  this  chapter  justifies  a  somewhat  fuller  commentary 
than  usual.  The  ideas  are  well  fitted  to  arrest  the  attention,  especially 
that  of  Vicarious  Atonement,  which  some  have  laboured  hard  to  expel 
from  the  prophecy,  but  which  still  forces  itself  on  the  unbiassed  reader  : 
of  this  I  shall  have  to  speak  in  a  subsequent  essay.  The  style  is  obscure, 
but  is  sometimes  relieved  by  an  exquisite  elegiac  cadence,  faintly  per- 
ceptible even  in  the  poorest  translation.  To  elegance  my  own  version 
makes  no  pretence  ;  only  to  fidelity.  One  word  as  to  the  tenses.  We 
ought  clearly  to  carry  either  the  perfect  or  the  future  (the  latter  would 
express  the  ideality,  the  prophetic  imaginativeness,  of  the  point  of  view) 
throughout  w.  2-10  a.  The  inconsistent  future  of  the  Auth.  Vers.  in  v.  2 
comes  from  the  Vulgate  (though  in  •v.'ib  this  version  has  the  perfect). 
The  Septuagint  mostly  has  aorists  (presents  twice  in  v.  4,  twice-  in  v.  7, 
once  in  v.  10).  Both  Sept.  and  Vulg.  strangely  give  the  future  in  v.  9. 

The  New  Lectionary  has  familiarised  many  English  readers  with  the 
fact  that  Hi.  13-15  belongs  together  with  chap.  liii.  The  traditional 
arrangement  is  a  '  divulsio '  (as  Calvin  well  calls  it),  which  leads  the  un- 
tutored reader  astray.  It  separates  the  theme  from  its  commentary,  and 

1  I  agree  with  Oehler  (see  my  crit.  notes  on  liii.  8,  9)  that  '  the  supposed  traces  of  a 
collective  meaning  disappear  when  they  are  correctly  interpreted,'  (Old  Testament 
Theology,  ii.  426). 

2  Saadya  thought  of  Jeremiah,  'and  this  interpretation  is  attractive,"  remarks  Ibn 
Ezra,   whose  development  of  the  comparison  is  worth  reading  (see  Neubauer  and 
Driver,  The  Fifty-third  Chapter  of  Isaiah,  &c. ,  pp.  43-44).     Grotius  (note  on  liii.  i) 
remarks,    '  Hae  notoe  in  leremiam  quidem  congruunt  prius,  sed  potius  sublimiusque, 
saepe  et  magis  *ara  A«'£u-,  in  Christum.'     Bunsen  unreservedly  adopts  the  same  hypo- 
thesis in  his  Bibelwerk.     But  of  what  martyr,  be  he  a  Jeremiah  or  an  Ignatius,  could 
it  be  said  that  he  was  'a  guilt -offering  '  (liii.  10)  ? 


4O  ISAIAII.  [CHAP.  LII. 

•ibnvr  all  prevents  the  student  from  getting  the  right  point  of  view  from 
which  to  examine  the  sequel  (see  below  on  vv.  13-16). 

Of  monographs  on  this  chapter,  six  have  a  claim  to  be  mentioned  : — 

C  In.  I). iv.  Ant.  Martini,  Commcnttitio  philologico-critica  in  locum 
JcsiriiF)  Hi.  i3-liii.  12  ;  Rostochiae,  1791. 

Franz  Delitzsch,  'Die  Stellung  der  Weissagung  Jes.  lii.  i3-liii.' 
u.s.w.  in  Zeitschr.  fiir  litth.  Theologie,  1850,  pp.  29-42  (an  able  defence, 
since  retracted,  of  the  view  that  the  subject  of  the  chapter  is  the  spiritual 
Israel). 

Friedrich  Bleek,  '  Auslegung  des  Abschnittes  Jes.  lii.  13  ff.,'  in  Theo- 
li'gist'Jic  .S tudien  und  Kritiken,  1 86 1 ,  pp.  171-218. 

Paul  Kleinert,  *  Ueber  das  Subject  der  Weissagung  Jes.  lii.  12-liii.  12,' 
ni  Theol.  Stud.  u.  Krit.,  1862,  pp.  699-752. 

William  Urwick,  The  Servant  of  Jehovah.  A  Commentary,  Gram- 
matical and  Critical,  upon  Isaiah  lii.  \-$-liii.  12.  Edinburgh,  1877. 

The  Fifty -third  Chapter  of  Isaiah  according  to  the  Jewish  Interpreters. 
Vol.  I.  Text.  By  Ad.  Neubauer.  Vol.  II.  Translations.  By  Ad. 
Neubauer  and  S.  R.  Driver.  With  an  Introduction  to  the  Translations, 
by  E.  B.  Pusey,  Regius  Prof,  of  Hebrew.  Oxford,  1877. 

w.  13-1  5.  Jehovah  delivers  a  short  but  comprehensive  oracle  on  the 
wonderful  course  of  his  Servant.  The  predominant  idea  is  that  of  his  com- 
plete success  in  his  mission,  arising  from  that  '  calm,  deep  wisdom  '  which 
willingly  accepted  the  vast  but  inevitable  sufferings  which  lay  on  his  road 
to  glory.  A  prospect  is  held  out  at  the  close  of  the  admission  of  the 
Gentiles  to  a  share  in  his  mediatorial  gains. 

13  Behold,  my  servant  shall  a  deal    wisely  a  ;  he  shall  be 
high  and  exalted,  and    lofty   exceedingly.     14  According  as 

*  Prosper,  Targ.,  Lowth,  Vitr.,  Ges.,  Hitz. 

13  Shall  deal  wisely]  We  might       ends. He  shall  be  high  .  .   .  ] 

add 'and  prosperously,' for  this  idea  Notice  the  accumulation  of  kin- 
is  connoted ;  in  Josh.  i.  8,  Jer.  x.  dred  verbs.  No  single  expression 
21,  it  even  predominates  over  the  seemed  strong  enough,  for  Jehovah 
original  idea  of  wisdom.  Ewald,  had  decreed  to  'super-exalt'  him 
not  amiss,  '  wird  geschick  haben.'  (Phil.  ii.  9).  This  suggests  another 
The  rend.  '  shall  prosper '  is,  how-  parallel  with  the  Messiah,  of  whom 
ever,  a  mistake  ;  the  Divine  wis-  Jehovah  says,  '  I  also  will  make 
dom  of  the  Servant  is  the  source  him  Firstborn,  supreme  above  the 
of  his  world-conquering  faith,  and  kings  of  the  earth'  (Ps.  Ixxxix.  27, 
the  secret  of  his  success  (comp.  v.  Weir).  The  first  and  second  verbs 
1 1  b,  and  note  the  connection  be-  occur  in  combination  again  in  ii. 
tween  xlii.  i  b  and  4).  The  same  12,  13,  vi.  i,  Ivii.  15;  the  second  and 
verb  is  applied  to  the  '  righteous  third  in  Ivii.  7  (all  passages  relating 
Branch  '  (i.e.,  probably,  the  Mes-  to  God  or  to  worship), 
siah)  in  Jer.  xxiii.  5.  We  cannot,  14' 15  The  exaltation  of  the  Ser- 
however,  infer  from  this  the  identity  vant  is  proportionate  to  his  humilia- 

of  the   two  personages.     The   de-      tion. Were     appalled]        The 

scription    *  he    shall    deal    wisely '  word  expresses  a  stupefied  surprise, 

belongs   to   any   who   are    endued  as  of   one  who  beholds  a  strange 

with  the  Divine  Spirit  for  practical  reverse  of  fortune  (i   Kings  ix.  8, 


CHAP.  LII.] 


ISAIAH. 


many  were  appalled  at  thee,  (so  disfigured  was  his  visage  from 
that  of  a  man,  and  his  form  from  that  of  the  sons  of  men,) 
1;' b  so  shall  he  •)(•  many  nations b  ;  kings  shall  shut  their 
mouths  because  of  him  ;  for  that  which  had  not  been  told 

b  So  shall  many  nations  marvel  (exult,  Ges.  ;  start  up,  Ew.)  at  him,  Sept. — Aquila 
and  Theodotion,  Vulg.,  A.  E.,  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Hengst.,  Kay,  Pusey,  Weir,  render  the 
doubtful  verb,  'sprinkle';  Pesh.,  'purify';  Symmachus,  '  fling  away ';  Targ.,  Saadya, 
Rashi,  'scatter;'  Hitz.,  Del.,  Naeg.,  '  make  to  start  up.' 


Lev.  xxvi.  32).  Here,  however,  as 
the  following  parenthesis  shows, 
the  comparison  of  the  spectators  is 
not  between  what  the  Servant  was 
and  what  he  is,  but  between  the 
ordinary  aspect  of  a  man  and  the 
degraded  appearance  of  the  Ser- 
vant. Who  the  spectotors  are,  will 
be  seen  from  liii.  1-4. So  dis- 
figured .  .  .  ]  The  phrase  is  a 
compound  one.  '  To  such  u  degree 
was  his  appearance  disfigured  ;  it 
was  in  fact  removed  thereby  from 
being  that  of  a  man,  and  his  form 
from  being  that  of  the  sons  of  men.' 
The  parenthesis  contains  a  remark 
of  the  prophet's  ;  hence  the  change 
of  person  (comp.  xlii.  20),  which 
continues  naturally,  though  illogi- 
cally,  in  the  next  verse.  For 
striking  parallels  see  1.  6,  Ps.  xxii. 
6  <?,  Job  ii.  12  (Job  being  a  type  of 
the  righteous  sufferer). 

15  So  shall  lie  ^  many  na- 
tions] A  most  difficult  passage. 
The  received  text  has  *  So  shall  he 
sprinkle,  £c.,'  which,  with  due  regard 
to  Hebrew  usage,  can  only  have  the 
meaning  which  is  thus  expressed 
by  a  Rabbi :  '  (So  shall  he)  expel 
and  scatter  them  from  his  land, 
like  a  man  sprinkling  water,  with- 
out one  drop  touching  another.' 
But  a  reference  to  the  dispossessing 
of  the  Gentiles  by  the  Israelites 
(comp.  perhaps  liv.  3)  is  not  at  all 
in  harmony  with  the  context.  I 
see  no  resource  left  but  to  alter  the 
text,  which  is  at  any  rate  sounder 
policy  than  to  impose  unphilo- 
logical  meanings  on  the  traditional 


reading.  Two  courses  are  open 
to  us  :  to  supply  words  which  may 
have  fallen  out,  or  to  emend  the  un- 
translatable verb.  If  after  '  sprinkle ' 
and  before  'many  nations'  we  might 
insert  the  words  'pure  water  upon,' 
or  'his  blood  upon'  (alluding  to 
the  sprinkling  of  the  blood  of  the 
sin-offering — see  on  liii.  10),  we 
should  obtain  a  really  fine  sense, 
viz.,  either  that  the  Servant  of  Je- 
hovah by  a  sacerdotal  act  of  puri  - 
fication  (Pesh.  even  renders  the 
text  'he  shall  purify')  should  re- 
move the  distinction  between  the 
true  Israel  and  the  Gentiles  (cornp. 
Ezek.  xxxvi.  25),  or  else  that  he 
should,  by  the  offering  of  himself, 
make  atonement  for  the  sins  of 
*  many  nations.'  (Compare  Jerome, 
below.2)  The  context,  however,  is 
decidedly  against  this  view  of  the 
sense ;  for  it  contains  nothing  to 
suggest  that  the  Servant  is  invested 
with  sacerdotal  functions.  If  the 
text  must  be  altered,  it  is  more 
natural  to  suppose  that  the  verb 
between  'so'  and  'many  nations' 
became  partly  obliterated,  and  was 
then  (as  such  half-effaced  words 
often  were)  misread  and  miscopied. 
It  seems  clear  to  me  that  we  re- 
quire a  word  (such  as  yatter)  ex- 
pressing the  shock  of  joyful  surprise 
with  which  the  nations  shall  greet 
the  turn  in  the  Servant's  fortunes, 
as  an  antithesis  to  the  shock  of 
horror  in  v.  14.  (See  further  crit. 

note.) Kings  shall  shut  their 

mouths  .  .  .  ]  in  reverential 
acknowledgment  of  his  superior 


1  R.  Y'sha'yah  ben  Mali,  translated  in  The  Fifty-third  Chapter  of  Isaiah  according 
to  the  Jewish  Interpreters,  by  Neubauer  and  Driver,  vol.  ii.  p.  75.    Similarly  R.  Yoseph 
Qara  (p.  41),  the  older  Nizzakhon  (p.  90),  and  R.  Mosheh  Kohen  (p.  105). 

2  Je:ome:    '  ipse  asperget  gentes  multas,  mundans  eas  sanguine  suo,  et  in  bap- 
tismal e  Dei  consecrans  servituti.' 


ISAIAH, 


[CHAP.  LIU. 


them  shall  they  see,  and  that  which  they  had  not  heard  shall 
they  perceive. 

dignity   (see   Job    xxix.    9,   xl.   4).      .  .  .  ]   i.e.,   events  such  as  it  had 

Parallel  passage,  xlix.  7. That      never  entered  the  heart  of  man  to 

which  had  not  been  told  them      conceive,  much  less  to  talk  about. 


(CHAPTER   LIII.) 

Vv.  i  -3.  The  expansion  of  the  preceding  sketch  begins.  '  The  com- 
mentary upon  "  they  were  appalled  "  is  given  in  v.  i  :  a  large  portion  of 
the  Jews  do  not  believe  in  the  salvation  which  has  appeared.  The  en- 
largement of  "so  disfigured"  &c.,  is  given  in  w.  2,  3.  The  cause  of  the 
unbelief  is,  that  the  glory  of  the  Servant  of  God  is  concealed  behind 
humiliation,  misery,  and  shame'  (Hengstenberg).  The  paragraph  has 
this  peculiarity  that  in  each  verse  one  word  of  the  first  half  is  repeated 
in  the  second  'who' — 'and  not' — 'despised'). 

1  Who  believed  c  that  which  we  heard c  ?  and  the  Arm  of 

c  Our  preaching,  Luther,  Del. — Our  prophecy,  Ew. — Most,  Our  tidings  ;  or,  Our 
message. 


1  Who  believed]  Before  com- 
pleting his  portrait-sketch  of  the 
Servant,  the  prophet  expresses  his 
painful  sense  of  the  incredulity 
with  which  his  revelation  will  be 
received.  He  does  not,  however, 
say,  '  Quis  credet  auditui  nostro?' 
as  Calvin  represents  him,  but 
'Quis  credidit?'  He  takes  his 
stand  among  the  Israelites  of  a 
later  age  (not  among  the  Gen- 
tiles, as  Rosenmiiller,  following 
the  Rabbis),  and  hears  their  peni- 
tent musings  on  the  national  rejec- 
tion of  the  prophecies  respecting 
the  Servant,  all  of  which  were  in 
course  of  coming  true.  The  Gen- 
tiles believed  as  soon  as  they  had 
heard  (Hi.  15):  Israel  had  heard 
the  voice  of  prophecy,  but  'who 
believed  ? '  Hitzig,  indeed,  objects 
that  on  this  view  of  the  passage  we 
should  expect,  not  'Who  believed,' 
but  '  Which  of  us  believed,'  but  the 
reference  is  clear  enough  from  the 
pronoun  in  '  that  which  we  heard.' 
He  would  explain  the  clause,  'Who, 
whether  Jew  or  Gentile,  believed 
that  which  we,  the  prophets,  heard 


(and  announced)  from  God?'  No- 
thing, however,  has  been  said  about 
the  prophets  in  the  context,  and 
this  explanation  compels  us  to 
ascribe  a  different  meaning  to  the 
pronoun  '  we '  in  successive  verses. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  view  adopted 
suits  the  context,  and  is  favoured 
by  the  analogy  of  xlii.  24,  Ixiv.  5, 
both  passages  embodying  the  con- 
fessions of  the  people.  The  '  we,' 
as  I  understand  it,  is  dramatic. — 
The  confession,  involves,  of  course, 
an  unconscious  exaggeration  (comp. 
Ps.  xiv.  3,  quoted  by  Hengst.).  St. 
Paul  well  interprets,  '  Not  all  hear- 
kened to  the  good  tidings'  (Rom. 
x.  1 6),  '•mitissima  interpretatio, 
menti  prophetce  conformis*  (Vitr.). 
— That  which  we  heard]  Lit., 
'our  hearsay,'  or  'our  tidings.' 
The  noun  is  occasionally  used 
technically  for  a  prophetic  reve- 
lation (xxviii.  9,  19,  Ob.  v.  i,  Jer. 
xlix.  14) ;  we  might  therefore  render 
'our  revelation,'  i.e.,  either,  'the  re- 
velation communicated  to  us  by  the 
prophet,'  or  'the  revelation  respect- 
ing us,  the  Israelites'  (comp.  xxiii.  5, 


CHAP.  LIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


43 


Jehovah,  unto  whom  did  it  become  manifest  ?  2  For  he  grew 
up  d  before  us  d  as  a  sapling,  and  as  a  root  out  of  a  parched 
ground  ;  he  had  no  form  nor  majesty,  e  and  if  we  looked  at 
him,  there  was e  no  sightliness  that  we  should  delight  in  him. 


11  So  Ew.— Before  him,  Hebr.  text. 
e  That  we  should   look   at   him,    and  .  . 
Hitz.,  Ew. 


.  .  Symmachus,    I  owth,   Vitr.,    Ges. 


2  Sam.  iv.  4).  In  either  case  the 
speakers  refer  to  the  prophecies 
relating  to  the  Servant.  [The  other 
possible  explanation,  'that  which 
we,  the  prophets  heard,'  has  been 
rejected  above.  It  has  been  adopted, 
indeed,  by  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Ges.,  Stier, 
Urwick,  but  not  by  Hengst.,  Ew., 
Del.,  Naeg.]. The  Arm  of  Je- 
hovah] For  a  commentary,  see  Hi. 

10  (and  comp.  note  on  xl.  10). 

Unto  whom]  Lit.,  'over  whom.' 
The  'Arm'  must  be  'made  bare' 
in  heaven  (comp.  xxxiv.  5),  and  only 
a  few  have  eyes  to  see  such  supra- 
mundane  sights,  when  nothing  on 
earth  seems  to  suggest  them. 

2  The   explanation    of   this   un- 
belief.  For  he  grew  up  .  .  .  ] 

Lit.,  And  .  .  .  ('and'  is  here,  as 
often,  explanatory).  The  tense  is 
the  perfect  of  prophetic  certitude ; 
all  has  been  finished  'before  the 
foundation  of  the  world'  in  the 
Divine  counsels.  The  metaphors 
of  v.  2  are  often  explained  of  the 
pious  kernel  of  the  Jewish  nation, 
called  '  the  poor '  and  '  the  needy ' 
in  the  Book  of  Psalms  (e.g.,  xxxvii. 
14),  and  it  is  clear  enough  from  II. 
Isaiah  (whatever  be  its  date),  that 
the  faithful  were  reduced  to  great 
straits  among  their  unbelieving 
neighbours.  Still  the  prophecy  as  a 
whole  is  far  from  favourable  to  this 
view — it  refers  not  to  the  type  (the 
pious  kernel  of  the  nation),  but  to 
the  antitype  (the  personal  Servant)". 
Before  us]  '  We  had  the  evi- 
dence of  our  senses  to  justify  our 
contempt  of  his  person.'  The  tra- 
ditional reading  does  not  at  all  suit 
the  context.  In  vv.  2,  3  we  have 
a  picture  of  the  unfavourable  im- 
pression made  by  the  appearance 
of  the  Servant  upon  his  contempo- 
raries. The  suggestion  of  a  con- 
trast between  Jehovah's  constant 


good  pleasure  in  His  representative 
and  the  people's  misapprehension 
of  him  produces  a  strangely  incon- 
sistent feature  in  the  picture,  and 
the  more  so  if  we  understand  '  be- 
fore him'  in  the  sense  which  the 
phrase  usually  has  elsewhere  (see 
Gen.  xvii.  18,  Hos.  vi.  2,  Jer.  xxx. 
20),  viz.,  'under  the  fostering  and 
prospering  care  of  Jehovah.'  In 
fact,  we  have  only  to  paraphrase 
the  sentence  to  see  how  impossible 
it  is— '  he  grew  up  in  contempt  un- 
der the  fostering  care  of  Jehovah.' 
Feeling  this  more  or  less  distinctly, 
Lowth,  Henderson,  Alexander,  and 
Hahn  explain  'him '  in  the  received 
reading,  of  the  Jewish  people  col- 
lectively. This,  however,  is  ex- 
tremely harsh. As  a  sapling:] 

For  the  implied  figure,  comp.  Ps. 
Ixxx.  8,  14,  1 6,  'Thou  didst  bring 
a  vine  out  of  Egypt  .  .  .  Behold 
and  visit  this  vine  ...  It  is  burned 
with  fire,  it  is  cut  down.'  But  from 
the  root  or  stock  of  this  outraged 
vine  (the  people),  a  slender,  unat- 
tractive plant  grew  up. A  root] 

i.e.,  a  sprout  from  the  root,  as  xi.  10. 
Those  who  understand  the  Servant 
to  be  the  Jewish  nation  compare 
xxvii.  6, '  Hereafter  Jacob  shall  take 
root ;  Israel  shall  blossom  and 
bud.'  The  same  metaphor  is  used 
of  the  Messiah  in  chap,  xi.,  but  we 
must  not  be  too  hasty  in  our  de- 
ductions from  this  coincidence. 

Wo  form  nor  majesty]  None  of 
that  winning  grace  or  imposing 
majesty  which  we  should  have  ex- 
pected in  a  representative  of  Jeho- 
vah. The  context  implies  that  the 
Servant  made  claims  which  his 

contemporaries  rejected. And  if 

we  looked  at  him]  '  If  we  vouch- 
safed him  a  glance,  our  eye  found 
nothing  to  tempt  us  to  cultivate  his 
society.'  For  the  rend.  '  looked  at 


44 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LIU. 


3  Despised,  and  f  deserted  of  men/  a  man  of  pains  and  familiar 
with  sickness!  and  «  as  one  from  whom  there  is  a  hiding  of 
the  face  *  !  despised,  and  we  regarded  him  not  !  4  But  surely 

f  Ceasing  to  be  of  men,  Symmachus,  Vulg.   A.  E     Kay   Naeg 

*  As  one  that  hid  his  face  from  us,  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Rashi,  Lowth,'  Hengst. 

13,  where  Jerusalem  exclaims,  '  Con- 
sider and  see  if  there  be  pain  like 
my  pain').  Our  translators  were 
probably  influenced  by  Jewish  ob- 
jections to  the  received  Christian 
application,  such  as  those  of  Abar- 
banel  (see  Neubauer  and  Driver, 
op.  tit.,  pp.  159,  1  60).  'Sickness,' 
no  doubt,  includes  '  sorrow,'  but  it 
means  something  more,  viz.,  the 
punishment  of  sin,  just  as  outward 
as  well  as  inward  sufferings  are  im- 
plied in  Ps.  xxxviii.  3-7.  -  Fami- 


him,' Dr.  Weir  well  compares  Prov. 
xxiii.  31.  (Against  alt.  rend.,  con- 
sider (i)  the  word-play  in  the  Hebr. 
in  n  if  eh  ft  and  mar1  eh,  as  if  'when 
we  sighted  him,  there  was  no 
sightliness,'  and  (2)  the  apt  remark 
of  Hengstenberg,  «  How  could  they 
have  such  views  of  the  condition  of 
the  Servant  of  God,  if  they  over- 
looked him?') 

3  A  series  of  short  clauses  in  the 
style  of  exclamations.     Despised] 

See    on    xlix.    7. Deserted    of 

men]  More  literally,  'one  from 
whom  men  held  themselves  aloof. 
The  Book  of  Job  (a  fund  of  paral- 
lels for  II.  Isaiah)  supplies  us  with 
the  best  justification  of  this  render- 
ing. Job,  who  partly  represents  the 
same  conception  as  the  Servant, 
mentions  this  as  the  crown  of  his 
troubles,  <  My  intimates  hold  them- 
selves aloof  (Job  xix.  14;  the 
verbal  root  is  the  same).  See  crit. 
note. — Obs.  Job's  troubles  are  given 
as  those  of  a  historical  person ;  the 
presumption  is  that  the  similar  suf- 
ferings of  the  Servant  are  described 

with  the  same  intention. A  man 

of  pains]  i.e.,  a  man  of  many  pains 
(comp.  'a  man  of  reproofs,'  i.e., 
'one  often  reproved,'  Prov.  xxix.  i). 
Auth.  Vers.  has,  '  a  man  of  sorrows 
and  acquainted  with  grief,'  for 
which  comp.  Ex.  iii.  7  <  For  I 
know  their  sorrows'  (lit.  pains), 
Eccles.  vi.  2  'this  is  vanity  and 
a  sore  grief,'  lit.  sickness).  But 
it  seems  better  here  to  keep  the 
literal  rendering,  on  account  of  the 
next  verse  (and  so,  too,  in  Lam.  i. 


.         . 

liar  with  sickness]  Here,  again, 
the  Book  of  Job  and  a  psalm  of 
cognate  purport  supply  our  best 
commentary  :  *  Lover  and  friend 
hast  thou  put  far  from  me  ;  mine 
acquaintance—  (they  are)  darkness,' 
Ps.  Ixxxviii.  1  8  :  comp.  Job  xvii.  14. 
-  As  one  from  whom  there  is 
a  hiding  of  the  face]  Men  avoided 
him  with  as  much  disgust  as  if  he 
had  a  disease  like  the  leprosy. 
Comp.  Job's  complaint,  'They 
abhor  me,  they  flee  far  from  me,' 
Job  xxx.  10  (see  also  xix.  13-19); 
and  the  lamentation  of  the  Jewish 
exiles,  '  Men  cried  unto  them,  Go 
aside  !  unclean  !  go  aside  !  go 
aside!'  (Lam.  iv.  15);  also  the 
parallel  from  Wisdom,  in  Last 
Words  (on  Hi.  13,  &c.)  Against 
alt.  rend.,  besides  the  philological 
objection  urged  by  Del.,  consider 
that  it  directly  contradicts  a  pas- 
sage in  the  parallel  description  of 
the  Servant's  sufferings  (1.  6  b}.  - 
Despised]  A  pathetic  repetition  in 
the  manner  of  Isaiah  (Delitzsch, 
Isaiah,  ii.  134).  Comp.  v.  7. 


vv.  4-6.  '  The  second  subdivision  furnishes  us  with  the  key  to  the 
sufferings  of  the  Servant  of  God  described  previously,  by  pointing  to  their 
vicarious  character'  (Hengstenberg).  Note  the  significant  emphasis  on 
the  pronouns  'he'  and  'we,'  and  the  elegiac  rhythm  in  the  Hebrew. 

4  But  surely]    Hebr,  >dten  ;  at       (see   xlix.    4). our    sicknesses 

once   affirmative    and   adversative      be  bore]     (The  meaning  of 'sick- 


CHAP.  LIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


45 


our  sicknesses  he  bore,  and  as  for  our  pains,  he  carried  them, 
and  we  regarded  him  as  stricken,  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted. 
5  But  he  was  pierced  because  of  our  rebellions,  crushed  be- 


nesses '  has  been  explained  above, 
on  '  a  man  of  pains.')  The  mean- 
ing is,  first  of  all,  that  the  conse- 
quences of  the  sins  of  his  people 
fell  upon  him  the  innocent  (comp. 
Lam.  v.  7,  *  Our  fathers  have  sinned, 
and  are  not ;  and  we  have  borne 
(sabhal]  their  iniquities  ')  ;  but  next 
and  chiefly,  that  he  bore  his  unde- 
served sufferings  as  a  sacrifice  on 
behalf  of  his  people  (see  v.  5  b  '  the 
punishment  which  was  for  our  wel- 
fare'; V.  10  <£,  'if  he  were  to  lay 
down  his  soul  as  an  offering  for 
guilt';  v.  12^,  'and  for  the  rebel- 
lious made  intercession ')  The  pro- 
-noun  '  he '  is  expressed  not  merely 
to  point  the  contrast  between  the 
Servant's  deserts  and  his  fate,  but 
to  draw  attention  to  his  person,  as 
in  the  cases  of  Jehovah  (xli.  4)  and 
'Branch'  (Zech.  vi.  13). — This  is 
the  first  of  twelve  distinct  assertions 
in  this  one  chapter  of  the  vicarious 
character  of  the  sufferings  of  the 
Servant.  The  verb  (nasa)  may  also 
be  rendered  'he  took  away'  (as 
Mic.  ii.  2),  and  Del.  thinks  this 
meaning  is  included  here,  but  the 
parallel  verb  (sabhafy  which  is 
quite  unambiguous,  is  against  this 
view.  That  the  primary  meaning 
is  'he  took  up,  bore,'  Del.  himself 
admits,  the  verb  nasd  (but  not  the 
verb  sabhal]  being  a  technical  term 
in  the  Law  for  bearing  the  penalty 
of  sin.  There  is  apparently  an  allu- 
sion to  this  passage  in  John  i.  29, 
where  6  alpav  should  probably  be 
rendered  'that  taketh  up  (and 
expiateth)  the  sin  of  the  world.'1 
— Stricken,  smitten  of  God] 
The  phrases  evidently  allude  to  the 
disease  of  leprosy,  which  was  called 
pre-eminently  a '  stroke'  (Auth.Vers. 
'plague,'  e.g.,  Lev.  xiii.  3,  9,  20), 
and  regarded  as  a  punishment  for 
grievous  sin  (Num.  xii.  9, 10,  2  Kings 
xv.  5).  An  Arabic  phrase  for  a 
leper  is  mukatal-ullah  '  antagonist 


of  Allah.'  (See  Wetzstein's  note 
in  Delitzsch's  Job^  E.  T.,  i.  347.) 
Here  we  are  again  reminded  of 
the  typical  sufferer  Job  ;  only  the 
account  of  Job's  leprosy  is  meant 
to  be  taken  literally,  whereas  here 
leprosy  is  a  figure  for  the  sufferings 
entailed  by  sin.  In  Ps.  li.  7,  leprosy 

is  a  type  of  sin  itself. Of  God] 

belongs  logically  to  all  three  par- 
ticiples. 

5  But  he  .  .  .  ]  In  emphatic 
contrast  to  '  and  we '  in  i>.  4,  which 
again  is  the  antithesis  to  'he'  in 
'  he  bare': — a  regular  chain  of  con- 


trasts.  Pierced   .   .   .   crushed] 

Both  words  are  passive  participles, 
and  imply  that  the  sufferings  volun- 
tarily undergone  by  the  Servant 
ended  in  death.  Literal  wounds 
are  not  necessarily  referred  to. 
The  same  verbs  are  used  by 
psalmists  in  quite  a  general  sense  : 
Ps.  Ixix.  27  (26),  xciv.  5,  comp.  also 
Isa.  i.  5.  The  meaning  of  the 
statement,  '  He  was  pierced  .  .  . 
for  our  transgressions,'  is  perfectly 
clear  if  the  Servant  is  a  person  who 
devoted  his  life  'for  the  many.'  If, 
however,  he  be  only  a  personifica- 
tion of  the  pious  kernel  of  the 
people  of  Israel,  we  must  make  the 
rather  far-fetched  supposition  that 
the  violent  deaths  of  some  in- 
dividuals were  imputed,  as  it  were, 
to  the  whole  of  the  believing  com- 
munity, and  that  they  operated 
towards  the  conversion  of  the  rest 
of  the  nation.  Whilst,  if  'the 
Servant'  be  interpreted  to  mean 
the  whole  of  the  people  of  Israel, 
no  rational  explanation  of  this  pas- 
sage seems  possible  (see  Don  Isaac 
Abarbanel's  comment  in  Neubauer 

and  Driver,  op.  tit.,  p.  177). The 

punishment]  Alt.  rend,  is  de- 
cidedly to  be  rejected,  for  though 
Hebrew  cannot  distinguish  clearly 
between  rtp-eopia  and  KoXao-is  (Arist. 
Rhet.,  i.  10),  the  notion  of  punish- 


1  I  am  glad  to  notice  that  Bishop  Lightfoot  has  given  his  high  authority  to  this 
view  (On  Revision,  &c.,  pp.    141-2). 


46 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LIII. 


cause  of  our  iniquities;  the  h punishment  of  our  peace  was 
upon  him,  and  through  his  stripes  we  have  been  healed. 
6  All  we  like  a  flock  did  go  astray,  we  turned  every  one  to 
his  own  way  ;  and  Jehovah  made  to  light  upon  him  the 
iniquity  of  us  all. 

h  So  Vitr..  Hitz.,  Havernick,  Del.,  Naeg.  (note). — Most,   chastisement  ;  Vulg., 
disciplina. 

ment  is  the  primary  one  in  this  word 
(mfisar) ;  in  its  synonym  (tokd- 

khath]  it  is  only  secondary. Of 

our  peace]  i.e.,  which  led  to  our 
'  peace '  (or  welfare)  ;  comp.  '  the 
reproof  of  life,'  i.e.,  tending  to  life 

(Prov.  xv.  31,  Del.). We  have 

been  healed]  Jerome  :  '  suo  vul- 
nere  vulnera  nostra  curavit.'  Vit- 
ringa  :  '  venustissimum  o£u/Moopoi/.' 

6  All  we  .  .  .  ]  Consequently 
'  the  Servant '  can  hardly  be  a  mere 
personification  either  of  the  whole 
people  of  Israel,  or  of  its  pious 
kernel,  or  even  of  the  body  of  pro- 
phets.  Did  go  astray]  The 

figure  is  used  by  Exekiel  of  the 
Babylonian  Exile  (chap,  xxxiv.), 
but  here  (as  in  Ps.  cxix.  176)  it  is 
the  wilderness  of  sin  into  which 

the  whole  nation  has  'strayed.' 

Made  to  ligrht  upon   him  .   .  .  ] 


Symmachus  :  Karavrrja-ai  e 
As  the  avenger  of  blood  pursues 
the  murderer,  so  punishment  by 
an  inner  necessity  overtakes  the 
sinner  (Ps.  xl.  12,  Num.  xxxii.  23, 
comp.  Deut.  xxvii.  15);  and  inas- 
much as  the  Servant,  by  Jehovah's 
will,  has  made  himself  the  sub- 
stitute of  the  Jewish  nation,  it  fol- 
lows that  the  punishment  of  the 
latter  must  fall  upon  him.  We 
have  no  right,  with  Mr.  Urwick  (p. 
191),  to  find  a  reference  to  the  im- 
position of  hands  on  the  Sin-offer- 
ing.   The  iniquity]  Observe 

the  singular;  it  is  the  collective 
iniquity  of  the  people.  We  might 
also  render  the  *  punishment,'  since 
the  Hebr.  idvon  includes  both  sin 
and  punishment  (see  Lam.  iv.  6, 
Zech.  xiv.  19). 


vv.  7-9.  The  cruel  treatment  of  the  Servant,  and  his  patient  endurance 
of  it,  form  the  contrast  of  this  paragraph.  Meantime  his  persecutors  'know 
not  what  they  do.'  Comp.  the  striking  parallel  in  1.  5-9,  which  is  like  a 
prelude  of  our  prophecy. — Obs.,  v.  7  and  v.  9  each  close  with  the  words 
*  and  not  ...  in  his  mouth ' ;  it  is  a  mark  of  artistic  composition. 

7  He  was  treated  rigorously,  but  he  let  himself  be  humbled, 
and  opened  not  his  mouth  ;  as  the  sheep  that  is  led  to  the 


7  Treated  rigorously]  Treated 
as  slave-drivers  (Ex.  iii.  7,  Job  iii. 
1 8),  or  petulant  upstarts  (iii.  12), 
or  hypocritical  religionists  (Iviii.  3), 
treat  those  who  have  the  misfor- 
tune to  be  under  them. let 

himself  be  humbled]  i.e.,  suffered 

willingly;    see  crit.   note. And 

opened  not  his  mouth]  So  in 
two  psalms  of  cognate  purport  it  is 
said  of  one  who,  like  the  Servant, 
sums  up  and  yet  transcends  the 
finest  qualities  of  Israel's  charac- 


ter, '(I  was)  as  a  dumb  man  that 
openeth  not  his  mouth '  (Ps.  xxxviii. 
14),  '  I  opened  not  my  mouth,  be- 
cause thou  didst  it'  (Ps.  xxxix.  9). 

As   the   sheep]     '  But    I    was 

like  a  tame  lamb  (agnus  mansuelus, 
Vulg.)  that  is  led  to  the  slaughter.' 
So  Jeremiah  speaks  of  himself  (xi. 
19),  though  he  adds  (which  mili- 
tates against  Saadya's  and  Bunsen's 
view  that  he  is  the  subject  of  Isa. 
liii.),  '  and  I  knew  not  that  they  had 
devised  devices  against  me.'  There 


CHAP.  LIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


47 


slaughter,  and  as  an  ewe  that  before  her  shearers  is  dumb  ; 
and  opened  not  his  mouth.  8  *  Through  oppression  and 
through  a  judgment  he  was  taken  away,  and  k  as  for  his  gene- 
ration who  considered  that k  *  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of 

1  Out  of,  Vitr.,  Ges.  (in  his  note,  but  not  his  translation),  Ew.,  Hengst.,  Del. 
Naeg. 

k  So  substantially  Ges.,  Ew. ,  Del. — Who  considereth  his  life- time,  Calv. ,  Vitr., 
Kay,  Weir;  or,  his  dwelling,  Knob. — Who  can  think  out  his  generation,  Hengst., 
Seinecke,  Riehm,  Naeg. 


is  nothing  to  indicate  an  allusion 
to  the  paschal  lamb  (a  premature 
introduction  of  the  typical  point 
of  view). — Delitzsch  remarks  that 
'everything  that  is  said  of  the  Lamb 
of  God  in  the  New  Testament  has 
its  origin  in  this  prophecy.'— 
And  opened  not  .  .  .  ]  Repeti- 
tion, as  in  v.  3. 

8  A  continuation  of  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  Servant's  sufferings.  He 
drank  his  cup  to  the  dregs.  No 
ignominy  was  spared.  The  forms 
of  justice  were  indeed  observed, 
but  the  judgment  or  sentence  was 
really  an  act  of  oppression. — 
Through  oppression  and  through 
a  Judgment]  i.e.,  through  a  judg- 
ment accompanied  with  oppression, 
through  an  oppressive  judgment 
(the  Vav  is  that  of  association). 
So  Job  iv.  1 6  'stillness  and  a  voice' 
=  a  still  voice,  Jer.  xxix.  1 1  'a  future 
and  a  hope '  =  a  hopeful  future. — 
'  Through '  (as  in  77.  5),  not  '  out  of,' 
which  fails  to  emphasize  the  suffer- 
ings sufficiently.  '  Oppression,'  lit., 
'  restraint ' — the  shutting  up  of  the 
forces  of  life.  The  same  Hebr. 
word  occurs  again  in  Ps.  cvii.  39, 
'  And  they  were  diminished  and 
bowed  down  through  the  oppres- 
sion of  calamity  and  (through) 
misery.'  'Judgment'  =  sentence,  as 
in  'judgment  of  death,'  Deut.  xxi. 

22. He  was  taken  away]  i.e., 

by  a  violent  death ;  parallel  to 
'  cut  off'  in  the  second  half-verse. 
Comp.  '  If  the  sword  come,  and 
take  him  away'  (Ezek.  xxxiii.  4). 
Or,  'taken  away'  might  mean 
'released'  (Jerome,  Rashi,  A.  E., 
Kimchi,  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Stier,  Hengst., 
Ges.  (Commentary,  but  not  The- 
saurus). But  in  many  of  these 


cases  the  rendering  seems  dictated 
by  a  preconceived  notion  respect- 
ing 'the  Servant.' And  as  for 

his  generation  .  .  .  ]  A  difficult 
passage.  First,  with  regard  to  the 
concluding  words,  To  whom  does 
the  pronoun  in  '  my  people '  refer  ? 
The  same  pronoun  occurs  thrice 
again  in  this  prophecy,  viz.,  lii.  13, 
liii.  II,  12.  In  these  verses  the 
speaker  is  clearly  Jehovah.  They 
contain  respectively  the  promise 
which  strengthens  the  Servant  for 
his  trying  mission  (lii.  13),  and  the 
promise  which  rewards  its  success- 
ful accomplishment  (liii.  n,  12). 
The  intermediate  portion  is  the 
soliloquy  either  of  the  people,  or  of 
some  individual  Israelite,  whether 
the  prophet  or  another.  Which  of 
these  is  the  speaker  in  v.  8  ?  Ac- 
cording to  some  (e.g.,  Knob,  and 
Naeg.)  the  prophet ;  according  to 
Del.,  any  one  of  the  contemporaries 
of  the  Servant.  The  latter  view 
seems  preferable.  The  absolute- 
ness of  the  self-condemnation  of 
the  Israelites  is  confirmed  by  the 
statement  that  not  one  of  the 
Servant's  generation  '  meditated ' 
on  the  truth  that  that  Divine  envoy's 
thread  of  life  was  cut  short,  and 
that  the  'stroke'  of  God  came  upon 
him,  for  the  sins  of  '  my  people ' 
(i.e.,  of  the  people  to  which  the 
supposed  speaker  belongs).  The 
same  frivolous  inconsiderateness  is 
pointed  to  in  a  subsequent  chapter 
(Ivii.  i  b,  see  note)  as  marking  the 
height  which  the  national  depravity 
had  reached.  In  each  case,  it  is 
noticed  with  surprise  that,  in  look- 
ing back  upon  the  career  of  the 
early  deceased  righteous,  men  did 
not  perceive  the  lesson  of  these 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i. in. 


the  living,  for  the  rebellion  of  my  people  '  he  was  stricken  ? M 
<J  And  one  appointed  his  grave  with  the  ungodly,  and  with  the 

i  They  were  stricken,  (virtually)  Tar£.,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Knob.— (And)  for  the  stroke 
due  unto  them,  E\v.,  Kleinert. — To  whom  a  stroke  was  due,  Martini,  Hengst. 


premature  removals.  The  lesson, 
it  is  true,  is  different ;  here  it  is 
this— that  such  a  visitation  (the 
awfulness  of  which  the  Servant's 
contemporaries  do  not  underrate, 
as  they  call  it  'a  stroke'  from 
Jehovah's  hand)  cannot  have  been 
caused  by  the  sins  of  the  Servant 
himself,  but  must  have  had  a 
mystic  reference  to  the  wickedness 
of  the  people.  It  is  one  result  of 
the  general  inconsiderateness  that, 
as  the  next  verse  tells  us,  the  grave 
of  this  benefactor  of  Israel  was 
assigned  among  the  most  profligate 
of  men.  (For  the  rend. '  generation,' 
compare,  with  Del.,  Jer.  ii.  31,  'O 
(men  of)  this  generation  !  observe 
ye  the  word  of  Jehovah.')  The 
latest  explanation — 'Who  can  think 
out  and  declare  the  nature  and  sort 
of  his  posterity  ? '—is  supported 
(Naeg.)  by  Ps.  xxii.  30  (31),  'A 
seed  (  =  posterity)  shall  serve  him, 
it  shall  be  recounted  of  the  Lord 
to  the  (next)  generation,'  also  by 
a  similar  passage  in  Ps.  Ixxi.  18, 
and  by  Lev.  xxiii.  21,  'throughout 
your  (successive)  generations.'  Obs. 
however,  that  in  the  Psalm-passages 
there  is  no  pronoun  prefixed  to 
'generation,'  and  in  Leviticus  the 
word  is  in  the  plural.  See  further 

crit.    note. For    the    rebellion 

of  my  people]  The  people,  then, 
is  distinct  from  the  suffering  Ser- 
vant. The  only  way  to  avoid  this 
inference  is  to  read  'peoples'  for 
'  my  people'  (comp.  on  xlix.  i),  with 
Luzzatto,  and  render  'for  the  re- 
bellion of  the  peoples  (to  whom  the 
stroke  was  due).'  Four  places,  it  is 
true,  are  mentioned  in  the  Massora 
in  which  the  proposed  substitution  is 
possible,  but  this  passage  is  not  one 

of  them. He  was  stricken]   Of 

the  alternative  renderings,  that  of 
Ges.  is  grammatically  the  easiest, 
but  it  is  against  the  context.  It 
may  be  said,  indeed,  that  the  pro- 
phet forgets  himself  for  once,  and 


writes  as  if  the  Servant  were  merely 
an  aggregate  of  individuals,  but  this 
is  not  very  plausible.  Throughout 
this  chapter  the  individuality  of  the 
sufferer  is  rigidly  adhered  to  ;  is  it 
likely  that  there  should  be  one  ex- 
ception to  the  rule?  (See  crit.  note.) 
9  And  one  appointed  his  grave 
.  .  .  ]  i.e.,  '  and  his  grave  was  ap- 
pointed' (see  Del.'s  note).  Even 
'after  his  death'  (for  these  words 
qualify  both  members  of  the  first 
half-verse)  the  people  pursued  its 
benefactor  with  insults  (comp.  Jer. 
xxvi.  23).  He  was  buried,  not  with 
his  family,  but  with  the  open  de- 
niers  of  God,  and  with  the  rich. 
Why  'with  the  rich'?  Dr.  Weir 
points  out  in  reply,  that  the  verse 
consists  of  four  clauses,  of  which 
the  first  and  third  correspond,  and 
the  second  and  fourth.  It  might 
be  read  thus,  'And  they  assigned 
him  his  grave  with  the  wicked  | 
though  he  had  done  no  violence 
|  And  with  the  rich  in  his  death  | 
though  there  was  no  guile  in  his 
mouth.  ||'  He  concludes,  therefore, 
that  by  '  the  rich '  we  are  to  under- 
stand 'those  who  acquired  wealth 
by  guile  and  other  unlawful  means,' 
and  reminds  us  that  '  the  poor '  and 
'the  humble'  not  unfrequently  in 
the  Psalms  stand  for  'the  righteous' 
and  'the  upright.' — This,  in  fact, 
seems  to  have  become  the  tradi- 
tional interpretation  of  the  verse, 
it  being  assumed  that,  according 
to  the  experience  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament writers,  riches  and  wicked- 
ness, poverty  and  piety,  most  com- 
monly went  together.  But  the  in- 
terpretation is  not,  perhaps,  quite 
satisfactory.  The  use  of '  the  poor ' 
synonymously  with  '  the  righteous ' 
is  no  doubt  established  by  passages 
like  Ps.  xiv.  5,  6,  cxl.  12,  13.  But  no 
such  passages  can,  I  think,  be  ad- 
duced to  prove  the  synonymousness 
of  riches  and  wickedness.  In  Job 
xxvii.  13-19,  the  description  of  the 


CHAP.  LIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


49 


111  rich  n  after  his  death,"  although  he  had  done  no  injustice,  and 
there  was  no  deceit  in  his  mouth.    10But  it  pleased  Jehovah  to 

m  Oppressor,  Ew.  (a  slight  emendation),  Rodwell. 

n  His  grave-mound  (lit.,  'his  mounds'),  3  Hebr.  MSS.,  Zwingli,  Lowth,  Martini, 
Ges.  (both  in  Thesaurus  and  in  Transl.  of  Isaiah),  Ew.,  Bottcher,  Rodwell.  (A.  E. 
also  mentions  the  rendering,  which  only  involves  an  alteration  of  a  vowel-point). 


wicked  man  (as  such)  which  is  clearly 
misplaced  in  our  present  text)  has 
a  special  reference  to  Job's  case ; 
and  the  parallelism  of  '  the  noble ' 
and  '  the  wicked'  in  Job  xxi.  28  has 
no  doubt  a  similar  ground.  The 
difficulty  may,  it  is  true,  be  re- 
moved by  supposing  that  'the  rich' 
here  referred  to  are  the  Baby- 
lonians among  whom  the  personi- 
fied people  of  Israel  dwelt  during 
the  Exile.  '  By  the  rich,'  says 
Yefeth  ben  'Ali  the  Karaite,  'are 
meant  the  powerful  men  among 
the  Gentiles  who  are  rich,  while 
Israel  in  exile  is  spoken  of  as  poor 
and  needy'  (Neubauer  and  Driver, 
op.  tit.,  p.  27).  But,  on  the  hypo- 
thesis adopted  above,  this  account 
of  the  Servant  has  reference  to  his 
treatment  by  his  own  people,  and 
not  by  the  Gentiles,  who,  indeed, 
as  lii.  15  shows,  were  ignorant  of 
him  until  his  exaltation.  I  see  no 
alternative,  but  either  (with  Ewald) 
to  suppose  a  corruption  in  the  text, 
or  to  conclude  that  the  prophet  had 
been  led  to  form  a  more  ascetic 
view  of  life  (if  the  phrase  may  be 
used)  than  the  other  Old  Testa- 
ment writers,  a  view  reminding  us 
of  one  or  two  passages  which  have 
as  peculiar  a  note  in  the  sayings 
of  Christ  ;  see  Luke  vi.  24,  Matt. 
xix.  23.  (Knobel  thinks  there  is 
an  implied  contrast  between  the 

w.  10-12.  The  Divine  purpose  in  permitting  these  sufferings  of  the  in- 
nocent Servant,  and  the  Divine  decree  concerning  his  recompence. — The 
three  verses  of  this  paragraph  are  very  skilfully  connected.  First,  each  of 
them  has  the  word  '  his  soul '  in  the  first  half-verse.  Next,  w.  10  and  1 1 
have  each  of  them  the  word  '  he  shall  see '  immediately  after  '  his  soul.' 
Finally,  both  v.  n  and  v.  12  enforce  the  limitation  implied  in  'the  many.' 
There  is  a  further  connection  both  in  contents  and  in  phraseology  between 
this  and  the  second  paragraph,  which  the  student  can  work  out  for 
himself. 

10  It    pleased    Jehovah  .  .  .  ] 

This  was  the  thought  with  which 
VOL.  II.  '  E 


rich  Babylonians  and  the  poor 
Jewish  exiles ;  Ibn  Ezra  had  pre- 
ceded him  in  this  suggestion.  This 
implies  the  theory  that  the  Servant 
=  the  pious  kernel  of  the  Jewish 
people,  which  cannot  hold  in  face 
of  v.  6 ;  besides,  were  the  Jewish 
exiles  literally  poor?  Gesenius 
points  out  that  there  is  an  assonance 
in  rashcf,  ungodly,  and  '•ashir,  rich. 
This  does  not  explain  the  difficulty, 
but  is  at  any  rate  against  Ewald's 

emendation.) After  his  death] 

lit.,  '  in  his  deaths.'  Comp.,  with 
Hengst.,  Lev.  xi.  31,  i  Kings  xiii. 
31.  The  plural  'deaths'  is  com- 
monly supposed  to  be  intensive  =  a 
violent  death,  or  to  express  the 
state  of  death,  as  '  lives '  for  '  the 
state  of  life.'  This,  however,  is,  to 
say  the  least,  doubtful.  On  the 
reading,  see  crit.  note. Al- 
though he  had  done  no  injustice] 
So  Job  xvi.  17,  'Although  there  is 
no  injustice  in  my  hands ' ;  Job 
vi.  30  (comp.  xxvii.  4),  'Is  there 
iniquity  in  my  tongue  ? '  It  is  of 
some  slight  importance  for  ascer- 
taining the  date  of  Isa.  liii.  that  Job 
xvi.  17  contains  (probably)  an  allu- 
sion to  this  passage,  and  conse- 
quently that  it  was  written  later  : — 
at  any  rate  the  words  in  Isa.  liii.  9 
flow  more  easily  and  naturally  than 
in  Job  xvi.  17. 


the   second  paragraph  closed.     It 
was  no  mere  accident,  but  the  de 


ISAIAH. 


LI-HAP.  LIU. 


crush  him — °he  dealt  grievously0:  pif  he  were  to  lay  down 
his  soul p  as  an  offering  for  guilt,  he  would  see  a  seed,  he 

0  So  Bleek,  Hofmann. — Most,  He  made  (him)  sick  ;  or,  To  make  (him)  sick. 

P  So  Vulg.,  Ew.  (changing  one  letter). — Thou  (O  Jehovah  !)  wert,  &c.,  Auth.  Vers., 
De  Dieu,  Hitz.  (substantially),  Hofmann,  Naeg.,  Weir. — Most,  His  soul  were  to  make 
an  offering  for  guilt.  (The  verb  in  received  text  may  be  either  2  masc.  or  3  fern.) 


liberate  will  of  God  that  the  Servant 
should  suffer  innocently.  (Comp. 
Ps.  xxii.  1 5  £,  '  Thou  placest  me  in 
the  dust  of  death.')  The  deepest 
wisdom  underlay  this  apparent  con- 
tradiction. *  If  he  were  thus  to 
suffer  for  the  guilty,  he  would  be- 
come the  author  of  a  new  and 
better  race.'  V.  10  is  not  a  con- 
tinuation of  the  soliloquy  of  the 
people,  but  a  reflection  of  the  pro- 
phet's. See  Last  Words,  at  end  of 

this    vol. If    he    were    to   lay 

down  bis  soul  .  .  .  ]  (The  phrase 
parallel  to  nOevat  TTJV  ^vxr)v,  John 
x.  n.)  The  passage  cannot  merely 
mean  that  Jehovah  would  spare  the 
people  of  Israel  for  the  sake  of  its 
few  pious  members  (though  this  is 
in  itself  an  unobjectionable  idea  ; 
comp.  Gen.  xviii.  24,  Jer.  v.  i,  Ezek. 
xxii.  30).  The  Servant  is  a  person, 
not  a  personification  of  the  pious 
kernel  of  Israel.  His  sufferings  are 
vicarious  and  voluntary.  Hence  he 
who  offers  the  Servant's  *  soul,'  or 
'life,3  as  a  sacrifice,  must  be  the 
Servant  himself,  and  not  Jehovah, 
as  the  common  reading  (see  note  n) 
implies.  Jehovah  sends  the  Ser- 
vant, and  the  Servant  joyfully  ac- 
cepts the  mission.  He  smites,  and 
the  Servant  bends  willingly  to  the 
blow,  '  pours  out  his  soul  unto 
death,'  ' lays  it  down  as  an  offering 
for  guilt.'  But  why  is  it  added,  '  as 
an  offering  for  guilt '  ?  Dr.  Ritschl, 
in  his  great  work  on  the  doctrine  of 
Justification,1  finds  it  hard  to  say. 
Yet  may  it  not  be  one  object  of  the 
prophet  to  show  that  in  the  death 
of  the  Servant  various  forms  of 
sacrifice  find  their  highest  fulfil- 


ment? 'As  in  verse  5  the  Divine 
Servant  is  represented  as  a  sin- 
offering,  His  death  being  an  expia- 
tion, so  here  He  is  described  as  a 
guilt-offering,  His  death  being  a 
satisfaction! a  Guilt-offerings,  or 
trespass-offerings  (as  Auth.  Vers. 
calls  them),  '  were  enjoined  in  all 
cases  where  the  sins  which  had 
been  committed  allowed  of  restitu- 
tion in  kind  '  3  ;  in  other  words,  in 
infractions  of  the  rights  of  property. 
The  people  of  Israel  was  theoreti- 
cally '  holy,'  i.e.,  dedicated  to  God, 
but  in  fact  was  altogether  unholy. 
It  had  therefore  fallen  under  the 
Divine  displeasure,  and  its  life  was 
legally  forfeited.  But,  in  wrath 
remembering  mercy,  Jehovah  sent 
the  Servant,  who  offered  his  own 
life  as  a  restitution  in  kind,  and  a 
'  satisfaction  '  for  the  broken  cove- 
nant of  holiness.  There  is,  how- 
ever, a  difficulty  in  the  statement 
that  the  servant  became  a  guilt - 
offering,  which  ought  to  be  men- 
tioned. According  to  the  Law,  the 
guilt-offering  was  only  an  atone- 
ment for  the  individual  presenting 
it,  never  for  other  people  (Luzzatto) : 
the  sin-offering,  of  course,  might 
be  offered  for  others  (on  the  Day  of 
Atonement).  This  can  only  be  met 
by  the  hypothesis  that  the  Servant 
is  in  some  mystic  and  yet  real  sense 
identified  with  Israel ;  that  he  em- 
bodies all  that  is  high  and  noble 
in  the  Israelitish  character,  and  yet 
transcends  it.  The  prophet  him- 
self, too,  gives  us  a  plain  hint  that 
his  language  is  symbolic,  and  that 
more  is  meant  than  meets  the  ear. 
For  he  proceeds  to  tell  us  that  the 


1  Die  christliche  Lehre  von  der  Rechtfertigung  und  der  Vcrsohnung,  ii.  64. 

2  Urwick,  The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  p.  151. 

5  Cave,  Scriptural  Doctrine  of  Sacrifice,  p.  478.  (On  the  subject  of  the  'dshdm, 
or  guilt-offering,  see  especially  Kalisch,  Leviticus,  ii.  272-5  ;  Ewald,  Antiquities  of 
Israel,  pp.  55-66;  Riehm,  '  Ueber  das  Schuldopfer, '  in  Theolog.  Studicn  u.  Kritiken, 
1854,  p.  93  &c.  ;  Oehler,  Old  Testament  Theology,  ii.  28-34  ;  Wellhausen,  Geschichte 
Israels,  i.  75-77.  > 


CHAP.   LI II.] 


IS  AT  A 1 1. 


would  prolong  days,  and  the  pleasure  of  Jehovah  would  pros- 
per in  his  hand  ;  u  q  after  the  travail  of  his  soul  he  would  see 

i  On  account  of,  Vitr.,  Del.,  Bleek,  Urvvick  ;  free  from,  Ges.,  Hitz. 


Servant  shall  live  long  and  receive 
a  glorious  reward.  (It  would  be  a 
still  simpler  solution  to  suppose  that 
the  distinction  between  sin-offer- 
ing and  guilt-offering  was  not  very 
clearly  drawn  when  the  prophet 
wrote  ;  but  this  would  require  us 
to  adopt  the  Grafian  hypothesis  as 
to  the  date  of  the  Levitical  legisla- 
tion. It  would  be  unfair  to  import 
the  huge  difficulties  which  beset 
this  question  into  the  comparatively 
simple  subject  of  the  exegesis  of 
Isaiah.  See  further  Last  Words.} 
— He  would  see  a  seed  •  •  •  ] 
It  is  said  in  a  psalm  closely  allied 
to  our  prophecy,  that,  after  the  de- 
liverance of  the  Sufferer,  '  A  seed 
shall  serve  him'  (viz.,  Jehovah), 
Ps.  xxii.  30.  In  this  case,  the 
'seed'  means  the  children  of  the 
converts  from  heathenism  men- 
tioned in  the  preceding  verse  (see 
Hupfeld  ad  loc.}.  Our  prophet  too 
evidently  uses  '  seed '  in  a  spiritual 
sense  of  those  who  are  mystically 
united  to  the  Servant  (or,  more 
prosaically,  his  disciples).1  Obs., 
the  Servant  is  not  merely  to  leave 
a  seed  behind  him,  but  to  '  see  it,' 
which  harmonizes  admirably  with 
the  next  clause. He  would  pro- 
long- days]  i.e.,  he  would  live 
long.  This  again  is  of  course  not 
to  be  taken  quite  literally.  '  Length 
of  days '  is  no  doubt  frequently 
mentioned  as  a  reward  of  piety 
(Deut.  vi.  2,  Ps.  xci.  16,  Prov.  iii.  2), 
but  as  the  Servant  has  already 
passed  through  death  once  without 
injury  to  his  personality,  we  may 
presume  that,  like  the  Messiah  in 
ix.  6  (see  note),  'death  hath  no 

more  dominion  over  him.* The 

pleasure  of  Jehovah  .   .  .  ]    The 
Servant  is  not  to  retire  henceforth 

1  David  Kimchi  alludes  to  this  interpretation  as  current  among  the  Christians  in 
his  time,  but  rejects  it  because  '  his  (Jesus')  disciples  are  nowhere  spoken  of  as  either 
sons  or  seeds'  (Neubauer  and  Driver,  op.  cit.,  p.  55)  ;  Mosheh  Kohen  (ibid.,  p.  123) 
with  at  Uast  an  attempt  at  philology,  on  the  ground  that  '  seed  is  only  used  (in  the  Old 
Testament)  in  its  literal  and  primary  signification."  But,  as  Dr.  Pusey  remarks  (ibid., 
p.  Iviii.),  '  Isaiah  himself  uses  the  word  in  a  bad  sense'  (he  quotes  i.  4,  Ivii.  4). 

E  2 


from  the  scene  of  his  sufferings  ; 
he  has  a  work  to  do  in  and  for  his 
spiritual  posterity  and  for  mankind 
in  general,  and  the  appellation  given 
to  it  supplies  a  good  example,  of  the 
interlacing  of  the  parts  of  this  pro- 
phecy, '  pleasure  in  the  sense  of 
'purpose'  occurring  no  less  than 
eight  times  in  II.  Isaiah. 

11  After  the  travail  of  his 
soul]  It  is  not  easy  to  choose  be- 
tween the  different  meanings  of  the 
preposition.  I  have  rendered  '  after ' 
on  the  analogy  of  Ps.  Ixxiii.  20,  'As 
a  dream,  after  one  hath  awaked,' 
but  the  local  meaning  '  away  from ' 
(Num.  xv.  24),  and  the  causal  '  on 
account  of,'  '  in  consequence  of  (v. 
5),  are  both  grammatically  possible. 
To  adopt  the  last,  however,  seems 
to  involve  an  anticipation  of  the 
'therefore'  in  v.  12.  'The  travail 
of  his  soul '  =  the  pain  which  he  felt 
in  his  inmost  soul,  his  spiritual 

agony. He  would  see  satisfy - 

ingly]  i.e.,  would  enjoy  a  satis- 
fying, refreshing  view  of  the  pro- 
gress of  the  Divine  work  of  salva- 
tion (Del).  So  in  Ps.  xvii.  15  we 
find  '  to  see  God's  face '  and  '  to  be 

satisfied,'  in  parallel  lines. By 

his  knowledge]  There  is  a  doubt 
(which  Calvin  himself  recognises) 
as  to  whether  this  means  '  by  the 
knowledge  of  him'  or  'by  the 
knowledge  which  he  possesses.' 
Vitr.,  Hengst.,  Stier,  Naeg.,  adopt 
the  former;  Ges.,  Ew.,  Hitz.,  Bleek, 
Del.,  Kay,  Birks,  Urwick,  the  latter. 
Of  course,  'knowledge'  (in  the 
deep  Biblical  sense  of  the  word) 
was  necessary  for  the  'justified' 
persons  spoken  of  (comp.  Jer.  xxxi. 
34),  but  it  is  more  obvious,  con- 
sidering the  prophetic  functions 
assigned  to  the  Servant  (comp.  xlii. 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LIII. 


satisfyingly  ;  by  r  his  knowledge  r  would  the  righteous  one, 
my  servant,  make  the  many  righteous,  and  of  their  iniquities 
he  would  take  up  the  load.  12  Therefore  will  I  give  him  s  a 

r  The  knowledge  of  him,  Vitr.,  Hengst.,  Stier,  Naeg. 

•  So  Ew.,  Hitz.,  Del.     As  a  portion  the  many,  Sept.,  Targ.,  Vulg  ,  Vitr.,  Lowth, 
Hengst.,  Bleek,  Kay,  Naeg.,  Weir,  Urwick,  Rodwell. 


I,  xlix.  6,  1.  4),  to  suppose  that 
1  knowledge '  means  his  insight  into 
the  dealings  and  purposes  of  Jeho- 
vah. It  is  clear,  too,  from  other 
passages  (referred  to  by  Del.),  that 
'knowledge,'  in  this  sense  was 
reckoned  as  essential  for  the  national 
regeneration  (see  Mai.  ii.  7,  '  The 
priest's  lips  should  keep  knowledge ;' 
Dan.  xii.  3,  where  faithful  teachers 
are  described  as  '  making  righteous 
(or,  justifying)  the  many'  ;  and  Isa. 
xi.  2,  where  among  the  seven  spirits 
bestowed  on  the  Messiah  we  find 
*  the  spirit .  of  knowledge ').  The 
contents  of  the  Servant's  knowledge 
are,  no  doubt,  the  purpose  of  God 
to  make  the  many  righteous  by 
his  means.  There  are  two  possible 
meanings  of  the  phrase  *  to  make 
righteous,'  the  forensic  one  of  ac- 
quittal (v.  23,  Ex.  xxiii.  7)  and  the 
ethical  one  of  imparting  or  produc- 
ing righteousness.  The  latter  is 
the  less  common  one,  the  only 
other  passage  which  Ges.  quotes 
for  it  being  Dan.  xii.  3.  There, 
however,  the  meaning  is  quite  cer- 
tain, for  the  '  understanding  ones ' 
who  '  make  the  many  righteous '  are 
in  Dan.  xi.  33  said  to  'instruct  the 
many.'  In  the  passage  before  us, 
too,  the  sense  of  '  making  righteous' 
or  'turning  to  righteousness'  (the 
felicitous  rendering  of  Auth.  Vers. 
in  Dan.  xii.  3)  seems  the  only  suit- 
able one,  for  the  Servant  is  not 
himself  a  judge,  but  a  sin-bearer 
and  intercessor  (v.  12).  He  is 
called  'the  righteous  one,'  as  a 
guarantee  of  his  ability  for '  making 

righteous.' The    many]      It    is 

not  absolutely  certain  whether  this 
phrase  (emphatically  repeated  in 
TJ.  12)  points  to  the  Jews  or  to  the 
heathen.  As  the  foregoing  prophecy 
refers  to  the  Jews,  and  as  the  same 
phrase  is  used  of  the  Jews  in  Dan. 
ix.  27,  xi.  33,  39,  xii.  3,  it  is  safer  to 


interpret  it  so  here.  This  will  not 
exclude  the  incorporation  of  more 
or  fewer  of  the  Gentiles  among  the 
true  Israelites  (see  on  xliv.  3-5), 
and  in  fact  an  enlargement  of  the 
limits  of  Israel  seems  required  by 
the  magnificent  language  of  v.  12  a. 
Besides,  was  not  the  Servant  to  be 

*  the  light  of  the  nations '  as  well  as 

*  a  covenant   of  the   people '   (xlii. 
6)  ?  The  phrase  '  the  many '  seems 
intended  to  imply  that  not  the  whole 
of  the  community  is  benefited  by 
the   saving  work   of  the    Servant. 
Comp.  the  use  of  '  many '  in  similar 
contexts  in  Matt.  xx.  28,  xxvi.  28, 
Heb.  ix.  28. And  of  their  ini- 
quities .  .  .  ]     This  cannot  mean 
(for  the  explanation  involves  New 
Testament     presuppositions)    that 
the  Servant  should  continue  to  be 
a  sin-bearer  after  his  sacrifice   ot 
himself.     It  is -rather  an  emphatic 
reassertion  of  the  vicarious  atone- 
ment as  the  foundation  of  his  right- 
eous-making work. 

12  Jehovah  himself  holds  out  the 
victor's  crown  with  the  words — 
Therefore  will  I  give  him  a  por- 
tion among-  the  great]  This  is 
clearly  metaphorical,  and  as  such 
is  not  to  be  pressed  too  far.  For 
who  can  be  '  great '  or  '  powerful ' 
enough  to  share  spoil  with  Jeho- 
vah's Well-beloved  ?  It  is  impos- 
sible to  think  of  the  persons  just 
described  as  '  made  righteous ' 
through  the  Servant,  for  this  '  mak- 
ing righteous,'  together  with  the 
preceding  atonement,  was  the  very 
fight  which  the  Servant  fought  and 
won.  The  idea  is,  no  doubt,  this, 
that,  without  striking  a  blow,  the 
Servant  of  Jehovah  has  reached 
the  same  results  which  others  (e.g., 
Cyrus)  have  reached  by  sword  and 
bow  ;  that,  '  through  his  sacrificial 
death,  the  kingdom  of  God  enters 
into  the  rank  of  world-conquering 


CHAP.  LIV.]  ISAIAH.  53 

portion  among  the  great,8  and  with  the  powerful  shall  he 
divide  spoil,  because  he  poured  out  his  soul  unto  death,  and 
let  himself  be  numbered  with  the  rebellious,  but  he  had  borne 
the  sin  of  many,  and  for  the  rebellious  made  intercession. 

powers  '  (Hengst.).     Thus  the  Ser-  intercession '  (but  as  the  preceding 

vant  of  Jehovah  becomes  at  last  and  synchronising  verb  expresses 

practically  identical  with  the  Mes-  a  single  past  act,  the  rend.  '  made 

sianic  king. — Alt.  rend,  is  opposed  intercession '     seems     preferable)  ; 

by  the  parallel  line  ;  otherwise  it  certainly  not  '  shall  make  interces- 

would  not  be  unacceptable   (comp.  sion '  (Hengst.),  which   is   against 

lii.  1 5,  xlix.  7). Poured  out  his  syntax.    The  participle  of  the  same 

soul]     i.e.,   his    life-blood    (comp.  verb  occurs  in  a  different  context 

Ps.   cxli.    8).     The   prophet   again  in   lix.    16.      Notice  the   emphatic 

emphasises  the  voluntary  nature  of  repetition  of  '  the  rebellious,'  those 

the    Servant's    sufferings.      Made  who  had   merited  death   by  their 

intercession]      Or,  'kept  making  apostacy. 


CHAPTER   LIV. 

A  RECENT  critic  (Wellhausen,  Gesch.  Israels,  i.  417  note)  has  stated  that 
liv.  i-liv.  8  is  'to  some  extent  a  sermon  on  the  text  lii.  I3~liii.  12  ;'  but 
he  obviously  does  so  in  the  interests  of  a  theory — viz.,  that  chap.  liii.  does 
not  refer  to  an  individual.  It  is  more  natural  to  suppose  that  chap.  liii. 
(including  lii.  13-15)  was  inserted  by  an  afterthought,  chap.  liv.  being  the 
natural  sequel  of  xlix.  17-lii.  12  (just  as  xlix.  13  follows  upon  the  pre- 
diction of  the  return  of  the  exiles  in  xlix.  12).  It  cannot  be  shown  that 
any  of  the  characteristic  ideas  of  chap.  liii.  are  clearly  referred  to  in 
chap.  liv.  The  connection  seems  the  closest  with  chap.  xlix.  (see  xlix.  6, 
8,  18-20,  21,  comp.  also  1.  i),  though  there  is  a  phraseological  parallel  in 
lii.  9,  and  the  use  of  the  term  'righteousness'  in  v.  17  accords  with  its  use 
in  xlv.  24,  25,  1.  8,  but  not  at  all  with  the  sense  of  'righteous'  and  'make 
righteous'  in  liii.  n. — The  person  addressed  is,  not  the  ruined  city  of 
Jerusalem,  but  the  ideal  Zion  (see  on  xlix.  14),  who  is  practically  identical 
with  the  ideal  or  spiritual  Israel.  In  v.  17  the  promises  made  to  Zion  are 
expressly  confirmed  to  the  '  servants  of  Jehovah,'  just  as  in  chap.  li.  the 
prophet  addresses  alternately  the  aggregate  of  believers  and  the  trans- 
cendental person  called  Zion. 

1  Ring  out,  O  barren,  thou  that  hast  not  borne  ;  burst  forth 
into  a  ringing  shout,  and  cry  aloud,  thou  that  hast  not  travailed ; 
for  more  are  the  children  of  the  desolate  than  the  children  of 

1  O  barren,  thou  that  hast  not  exiles    (as    xlix.    17).     These    were 

borne]    It  is  like  a  continuation  of  at  once  children  of  Zion  and  not 

xlix.  21. More  are  the  children  children.      They    were    physically 

.  .  .  ]  Parallel  passage,  i  Sam.  ii.  5.  and    to    some    extent    spiritually 

The    'children'    referred    to    are,  Israelites,    but    as    long    as    they 

mainly  at   any  rate,  the   restored  were   on   a  foreign   soil,   and   un- 


54 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i. iv. 


the  married  woman,  saith  Jehovah.  2  Widen  the  place  of  thy 
ti-nt,  and  the  curtains  of  thy  habitation  let  them  stretch  fortl 
—  hinder  it  not  ;  lengthen  thy  cords,  and  thy  tent-pins  mal 
strong.  3  For  on  the  right  and  on  the  left  shalt  thou  breal 
through;  and  thy  seed  shall  atake  possession  ofa  nations, 
and  make  desolate  cities  to  be  inhabited.  4  Fear  not,  for  thou 
needest  not  be  ashamed  :  neither  be  confounded,  for  thou 
needest  not  blush  ;  nay,  thou  shalt  forget  the  shame  of  thy 
maidenhood,  and  the  reproach  of  thy  widowhood  thou  shalt 
remember  no  more.  5  For  thy  husband  is  thy  maker — Je- 
hovah Sabaoth  is  his  name  ;  and  thy  Goel  is  the  Holy  One  of 

a  Dispossess,  Ges.,  Hitz. 

baptized  with  the  Spirit  (xliv.  3), 
their  union  with  the  ideal  Zion 
could  not  be  regarded  as  com- 
plete. After  their  restoration,  the 
spiritual  and  the  literal  Zion  or 

Israel  became   identical. The 

curtains]  i.e.,  the  tent-covering. 
Xieng'then  thy  cords  .  .  .]  The 
same  figure  is  applied  to  the  literal 
Jerusalem,  xxxiii.  20.  The  point 
of  both  passages  is  that  the  '  tent ' 
should  no  longer  be  moved  about, 
but  become  a  permanent  habitation. 
Dr.  Weir  well  compares  Jer.  x.  20, 
*  My  tent  is  destroyed,  and  all 
my  tent-pins  are  plucked  up ;  my 
children  are  gone  away  from  me, 
and  are  not ;  and  there  is  none  to 
spread  out  my  tent  any  more,  or  to 
set  up  my  tent-curtains.' 

3  On  the  right  and  on  the 
left]  Not  merely  =  ' on  the  south 
and  on  the  north '  (Targ.),  but  '  on 
all  hands' ;  comp.  the  parallel  pas- 
sage in  the  promise  to  Jacob,  Gen. 

xxviii.  14. Take  possession  of 

nations]  i.e.,  take  possession  of 
their  land.  There  is  no  occasion, 
with  Knobel,  to  restrict  the  refer- 
ence to  the  heathen  colonists  who 
had  replaced  the  Israelites.  On  the 
other  hand,  I  doubt  whether  it  is 
equivalent  to  *  inherit  the  earth '  (so 
Del.).  Comparing  xlix.  19,  20,  I 
suppose  it  to  mean  that  the  area 
covered  by  the  Jewish  race  shall 
be  much  larger  than  of  yore,  and 
that  the  former  lords  of  the  soil  (or 
their  survivors,  see  next  note)  shall 


(of  their  own  free-will — see  Ixi.  4) 
descend  to  the  rank  of  subjects. 

Desolate  cities]  Primarily 

those  of  Palestine,  comp.  xlix.  8, 
Iviii.  12,  Ixi.  4,  but  possibly  includ- 
ing cities  outside  Palestine,  which 
had  suffered  from  the  Babylonian 
invasions  (comp.  x.  7,  Hab.  i.  17), 
and  been  converted  into  'heaps' 
(xiv.  21,  corrected  text). 

4  Needest  not]  Or,  ' oughtest 
not.'  It  is  the  potential  imperfect 

in  the  Hebrew. Be  ashamed] 

viz.,  of  thy  faith  in  thy  God  ;  comp. 

xlv.  1 6,  17. Thy  maidenhood] 

i.e.,  the  time  before  the  Sinaitic  co- 
venant, by  which  Israel  became  the 
'  bride '  of  Jehovah,  Jer.  ii.  2.  The 
shame  of  this  period  will  be  the 
Egyptian  bondage;  the  reproach 
in  the  next  line,  the  Babylonian 
captivity. 

6  Thy  maker]  The  Hebr.  has 
the  plural  form,  'thy  makers,'  on 
the  analogy  of  Elohim  for  the  one 
God  (similarly  in  x.  15  ;  comp.  Job 

xxxv.  10,  Ps.  cxlix.  2). Thy 

Goel]  i.e.,  the  vindicator  of  thy 
family-rights  (see  on  xli.  14).  Zion 
being  of  the  family  of  Jehovah 
(comp.  Eph.  ii.  19),  her  nearest 
kinsman  (viz.,  her  husband)  must 

interpose  for  her  rescue. The 

Holy  One  of  Israel]  Comp.  on 
xlix.  7.  God  of  the  whole  earth 
.  ..  .  ]  i  Jehovah  Saba"oth,'  accord- 
ing to  our  prophet,  means  not  only 
the  God  of  the  heavenly  hosts,  but 
the  God  whose  glory  fills  all  crea- 


CHAP.  L1V.] 


ISAIAH. 


55 


be  grammatically  easier,  if 
ise  were  the  perfect  (which 


Israel,  God  of  the  whole  earth  is  he  called.  6  For  as  an  out- 
cast and  downcast  woman  Jehovah  hath  recalled  thee,  and  a 
wife  of  youth — b  can  she  be  rejected  b  ?  saith  thy  God.  7  For 
a  little  moment  did  I  cast  thee  out,  but  with  great  compassion 
will  I  gather  thee  ;  8  in  a  gush  of  wrath  I  hid  my  face  a  mo- 
ment from  thee,  but  with  everlasting  loving-kindness  will  I 
have  compassion  upon  thee,  saith  thy  Goel,  Jehovah.  9  c  For 
a  Noah's  flood c  is  this  unto  me  ;  whereas  I  sware  that  Noah's 
flood  should  no  more  pass  over  the  earth,  so  I  swear  that  I 
will  not  be  wroth  with  thee,  nor  rebuke  thee.  10  For  though 
the  mountains  should  remove,  and  the  hills  should  totter,  my 

b  So  Kimchi,  Ew.,  Luzzatto. — When  she  is  (or,  has  been)  rejected,  Targ.,  Vitr., 
Ges.,  Del.,  &c. 

c  As  in  the  days  of  Noah,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Vulg.,  some  Hebr.  MSS.,  Lowth. 

tion,  including  the  earth  (comp. 
appendix  to  chap.  i.).  Hence  the 
name  is  a  warrant  for  the  restora- 
tion of  Zion,  Jehovah  Sabdoth's 
bride. 

<;  For  as  an  outcast  and  down- 
cast woman  .  .  .  ]  (There  is  a 
characteristic  assonance  in  the 
Hebrew.)  Zion  is  not  only  Jeho- 
vah's bride  (Jer.  iii.  14),  but  in  one 
sense  '  a  wife  of  youth  ; '  see  Jer. 
ii.  2.  Even  many  an  earthly  hus- 
band (how  much  more,  then,  Je- 
hovah !)  cannot  bear  to  see  the 
misery  of  his  divorced  wife,  and 
therefore,  at  length  recalls  her ; 
'and  when  his  wife  is  one  who 
has  been  wooed  and  won  in  youth 
(comp.  Mai.  ii.  14),  how  impossible 
is  it  for  her  to  be  absolutely  dis- 
missed ? '  The  second  line  is  hard, 
but  such  appears  to  be  its  meaning. 
So  interpreted,  it  involves  a  break 
in  the  parallelism,  but  only  form- 
ally, not  logically.  (It  is  equiva- 
lent to  '  cannot  be  rejected,'  and  is 
therefore  parallel  to  '  hath  recalled 
thee').  There  is  a  very  similar 
way  of  expressing  incredulity  with 
regard  to  the  absolute  rejection  of 
Israel  in  Lam.  v.  22,  'Except 
[which  is  impossible]  thou  hast 
indeed  rejected  us,  and  art  wroth 
against  us  very  exceedingly  ! '  For 
the  idea  of  such  declarations,  see 
note  on  Iv.  2  (end).  Alt.  rend. 


would 

the  tense 

indeed,  the  Targum  substitutes). 

7  For    a    little    moment]     The 
same  phrase  in  xxvi.  20,  comp.  Ps. 

xxx.  5,  and  Isa.  Ixi.  2  (note). 

Gather  thee]   i.e.,  the  persons  of 
thy  'storm-tost'  members  (v.  ii). 

8  In  a  gush  of  wrath]   It  was  a 
'gush,'  not  a  flood,  for  this  takes 
time  to  rise  and  fall ;  a  momentary 
'gush,'  in  contrast  to  the  sea-like 
(Ps.  xxxvi.   6)  righteousness  j   one 
side  of  which  is  God's  '  everlasting 
loving-kindness'    for    his    people. 
The  assonance  in  the  Heb.  phrase 
is  here  inimitable. 

9  Por]     Justifying    the    promise 
just  given.     Yes,  it  is  indeed  true, 
for  the  '  calamity '  which  is  '  over- 
past '  is  in  one  sense  a  flood  to  its 
Divine   author, — a   Noah's    flood, 
inasmuch   as  He  has   sworn   that 
neither  the  type  nor  the  antitype 
shall    be    repeated.  —  Critics   have 
been   unnecessarily  perplexed  be- 
cause neither  the  Elohistic  nor  the 
Jehovistic  portion  of  the  narrative 
of  the  Flood   mentions  an  oath.1 
But,  as  Del.  on  Ps.  Ixxxix.  31-38 
well  points  out,  there  is  no  oath 
recorded  in  2  Sam.  vii.  12-16,  yet 
no  one  doubts  that  the  oath  men- 
tioned in  v.  35  means  the  promises 
therein     contained.       I     conclude 
therefore   that   the   prophet   refers 


1  See  Gen.  viii.  21,  22  (Jehovistic),  and  ix.  n  (Elohislic). 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LIV. 


loving-kindness  from  thee  shall  not  remove,  neither  shall  my 
covenant  of  peace'totter,  saith  he  that  hath  compassion  upon 
thee,  Jehovah. 

11  Thou  afflicted,  storm-tost,  comfortless  one !  behold,  I 
will  set  thy  stones  in  antimony,  and  will  found  thee  with 
sapphires  ;  12and  I  will  make  thy  battlements  rubies,  and  thy 
gates  to  be  carbuncles,  and  all  thy  border  to  be  precious 
stones  ;  13and  all  thy  children  shall  be  disciples  of  Jehovah, 
and  great  shall  be  the  peace  of  thy  children.  14  Through 
righteousness  shalt  thou  be  established  ;  be  far  from  doppres- 

d  Anxiety,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Del. 
either  to  Gen.  viii.  21,  or  to  ix.  11,          n  Thy  stones  in  antimony]    A 

dark  cement  would  set  off  the  bril- 
liant stones  mentioned  directly 
afterwards.  Antimony  (Hebr.  ^7/£) 
was  the  black  mineral  powder  with 
which  the  Jewish  women  painted 
the  edges  of  the  eyelids.  See  2 
Kings  ix.  30,  Jer.  iv.  30,  I  Chron. 
xxix.  2  (Q.  P.  /?.),  and  comp.  Qeren- 


and  not  to  a  lost  portion  of  the 
Jehovistic  record,  as  Kayser  con- 
jectures.1 

10  Though  the  mountains  .  .  .] 

Mountains  are  elsewhere  the  em- 
blem of  the  unchangeable,  Ps.  xxxvi. 
6,  Ixv.  6.  Job,  however,  knows  of 
the  uncommon  phenomenon  of  a 

mountain  falling  and  crumbling  happuk  (i.e.,  'horn  of  eye-paint'), 
away  (Job  xiv.  18),  and  our  prophet  Job  xlii.  14..  There  is  •&  puyaku  or 
has  already  applied  a  similar  con-  puka  mentioned  in  Assyrian  and 
tradiction  of  ordinary  experience  Egyptian  inscriptions  as  a  product 
to  glorify  the  immutable  love  of 
God  (xlix.  15).  Stier  thinks  there 


is  an  allusion  to  the  final  destruc- 
tion of  the  earth  (li.  6) ;  but  is 
not  the  image  more  forcible  as 
explained  above  ?  The  striking 
parallels,  Ps.  xlvi.  3,  Jer.  xxxi.  36, 
37  (quoted  by  Dr.  Weir),  point  in 
the  same  direction. My  cove- 
nant of  peace]  '  Peace '  is  a  very 
comprehensive  expression  (see  on 
liii.  5),  though,  when  in  conjunction 
with  '  covenant,'  its  primary  mean- 
ing seems  to  be  'friendship' ;  comp. 
Ps.  xli.  9,  '  the  man  of  my  peace ' 
(Auth.  Vers.  'mine  own  familiar 
friend ').  The  phrase  '  my  covenant 
of  peace'  occurs  again  in  Num.  xxv. 
12  (comp.  Mai.  ii.  5),  Ezek.  xxxiv. 
25,  xxxvii.  26. Saith  .  .  .  Je- 
hovah] A  fourth  emphatic  asser- 
tion of  the  Divine  origin  of  the 
revelation. 


of  the  land  of  Canaan.  M.  Chabas, 
it  is  true,  says  it  meant,  in  the 
Egyptian  text,  articles  of  furniture 
made  of  carved  wood  2  ;  but  there 
is  no  doubt,  I  believe,  of  its  mean- 
ing antimony  in  Assyrian.3 

12  Border]  i.e.,  either  'domain' 
(Del.),    or    'outer    wall'  '(Knob.). 
The  latter  seems  more  probable, 
as  we  have  had   the  battlements 
and  the  gates  mentioned. 

13  The  spiritual  glory  of  which 
these     costly    buildings     are    the 

symbol. Disciples  of  Jehovah] 

i.e.,  prophets   in  the  wider  sense 
(comp.  1.  4).     The  same  idea  as  in 
Num.  xi.  29,  Joel  ii.  28,  29. 

14  Jerusalem  will    then    be   im- 
pregnable. —  —  Througrh      right- 
eousness] i.e.,  through  fidelity  to 
thy  covenant  with  thy  God  ;  comp. 
i.    27. Shalt   thou    be    estab- 
lished]   A  return  to  the  figure  of 


n' 12  The  glory  of  the  new  Jeru-      building,  comp.  Prov.  xxiv.  3,  Num. 

salem.     Comp.  Tobit  xiii.   16,   17,      xxi.    27   (Weir). Be    far]     i.e., 

Rev.  xxi.  1 8-2 1.  either  'be  far  even  in  thy  thoughts, 

1  Kayser,  Das  vorexilische  Bicch  derUrgeschichte  Israels  (Strassburg,  1874),  p.  168. 

2  Chabas,  Etudes  sur  I' antiqujt^  historique,  p.  274. 

3  Sayce,  Records  of  the  Past,  v.  42  ;  Oppert,  Expedition  on  Mtsopotamie,  ii.  349. 


CHAP.  LIV.] 


ISAIAH. 


57 


sion,  for  thou  neededst  not  fear,  and  from  e  destruction,  for  it 
shall  not  come  nigh  thee.  15  Behold,  should  (any)  f  stir  up 
strife/  (it  is)  not  of  me,  whosoever  e  stirreth  up  strife  g  against 
thee,  shall  hfall  because  ofh  thee.  16  Behold,  it  is  I  that 
created  the  smith,  who  bloweth  upon  the  fire  of  coals,  and 
produceth  a  weapon  *  for  its  work ' ;  and  I  that  created  the 
waster  to  destroy.  17  No  weapon  that  is  formed  against  thee 
shall  prosper,  and  every  tongue  that  shall  rise  against  -thee 
for  the  judgment  shalt  thou  show  to  be  guilty. .  This  is  the 
inheritance  of  the  servants  of  Jehovah,  and  their  righteousness 
given  by  me  ;  the  oracle  of  Jehovah. 

«  So  virtually,  Knobel.— Terror,  Ges.,  Ew.,  Del.,  &c. 

f  So  Ew.,  Kay  (as  an  alt.  rend.). — Gather  together,  A.  E.,  Kimchi,  Vitr.,  Ges., 
Del.,  Naeg. 

e  Gathereth  together,  A.  E.,  &c. 

*  So  Knob.,  Del.,  Naeg.— Fall  away  unto  thee,  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Ew. 

1  As  his  work,  Ew.,  Weir. — According  to  his  work  (or,  craft),  Vitr.,  Ges.,  Hitz., 
Del.,  Naeg. 


comp.  xlvi.  12  'ye  who  are  far 
from  (the  thought  of  Jehovah's) 
righteousness ' ;  or  = '  thou  shalt  be 
far,'  the  imperative  for  the  future 

(see  on  xxxiii.  20). Oppression] 

This  is  the  sense  of  the  word 
tos/iegt  everywhere  else,  and  also 
as  I  believe,  of  the  feminine  form 
<•  asttqah  (xxxvii.  14,  see  note),  gene- 
rally quoted  for  the  sense  of 
'  anxiety.'  It  also  suits  the  parallel 

line    best. Destruction]     The 

well-known  sense  of  n€khittah  in 
Proverbs  (e.g.,  x.  14) ;  see  also 
Jer.  xvii.  17.  The  ordinary  rend, 
'terror'  does  not  agree  well  with 
'  come  to  thee.' 

15  Should  (any)  stir   up  strife 
.  .  .  ]     '  Should  any  one  presume 
to  molest   God's   people,  he  shall 
be  like  a  blind  traveller,  who  falls 
headlong  over   an   obstacle.'     See 
crit.  note. 

16  The  secret  of  Israel's  invinci- 
bility ;  all  things  are  the  creatures 
of  Jehovah,  and  dependent  upon 

him. That  created  the  smith] 

Similarly  Sirach  says  (xxxviii.  i)  of 
the    physician,    'The    Lord    hath 

created    him.' For    its    work] 

viz.,    destruction.      This    rend,    is 
grammatically    as    good    as    any 
other,  and  suits   the  parallel   line 

best  (comp.  '  to  destroy '). The 

waster]  i.e.,  each  of  the  great  con- 


quering kings,  of  Assyria,  Baby- 
lonia, Persia,  &c.  In  the  same 
spirit  of  unreserved  faith,  Job  says 
(xii.  16),  'He  that  erreth  and  he 
that  causeth  to  err  are  Jehovah's.' 

17  Every  tongue  .  .  .  shalt 
thou  show  to  be  guilty]  War 
is  here  viewed  as  a  'judgment  of 
God ' ;  comp.  xli.  1 1  b.  I  doubt  if 
i  Sam.  xiv.  47  is  parallel ;  we 
should  probably  read,  '  he  was  de- 
livered' (i.e.,  was  victorious),  with 
Sept.,  Ewald,  &c.  (see  Q.  P.  #.). 

— This  is  the  inheritance  .  .  .] 
'  This,'  viz.,  all  the  blessings  which 
have  been  assured  to  Zion.  The 
form  of  this  second  half'  of  the 
verse  is  evidently  designed  to  close 

the  prophecy. The  servants  of 

Jehovah]  The  members  of  the 
spiritual  Israel  have  now  been  fully 
baptized  into  the  Spirit  of  their 
Head.  Each  of  them  is  now  an 
Israel  in  miniature,  and  can  claim 
the  promise-laden  title  of  '  Servant 
of  Jehovah.'  (See  above,  opening 
remarks.) Their  righteous- 
ness] i.e.,  primarily,  as  the  context 
shows,  their  justification  in  the  eyes 
of  the  world,  their  success  (comp. 
xlv.  24,  25,  1.  8,  Iviii.  8,  Ixii.  i,  2), 
though  it  is  also  implied  that  this 
outward  success  is  due  to  Jehovah's 
'  righteousness.' 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAI-.  i.\ 


CHAPTER   LV. 

Contents. — An    affectionate    invitation    to    the    Messianic   blessing 
(w.  1-5);  an  exhortation  to  put  aside  all  inward  obstacles  to  their  enjoy- 
ment (vv.  6,  7)  ;  and  a  renewed  confident  assurance  of  the  indescribabl 
glory  and  felicity  which  awaits  the  true  Israel  (w.  8-13). 

1  Ah  !  every  one  that  thirsteth — come  ye  to  the  waters  ;  and 
he  that  hath  no  money  !  come  ye,  buy  and  eat,  yea,  come,  buy 
wine  and  milk  for  that  which  is  not  money  and  for  that  which 
is  not  a  price.  2  Why  will  ye  spend  money  for  that  which  is 
not  bread,  and  your  earnings  for  that  which  cannot  satisfy  ? 
Hearken,  hearken  unto  me,  and  eat  ye  that  which  is  good, 
and  let  your  soul  delight  itself  in  fatness.  3  Incline  your  ear, 


1  Ah !  every  one  that  thirsteth 

.  .  .  ]  A  cry  of  pity  (see  on  xvii. 
12)  wrung  from  Jehovah  by  the 
indifference  of  his  people  to  the 
promised  blessings.  Dry  as  they 
are,  they  are  indisposed  to  come  to 
the  only  source  from  which  their 
thirst  can  be  quenched.  In  this 
respect  they  differ  from  the  *  thirsty 
one '  of  xliv.  3,  who  opposes  no  in- 
ward bar  to  the  relief  of  his  neces- 
sity. The  prophet's  invitation  is 
addressed  to  all  who  are  conscious 

of  their  need. Buy  wine    and 

milk]  '  Wine  and  milk '  are  not  to 
be  understood  merely  in  a  material 
sense,  as  representatives  of  tem- 
poral blessings  (Ges.,  Hitz.,  Knob.); 
this  is  altogether  against  the  con- 
text, as  the  following  notes  will 
show.  At  present  it  may  be  enough 
to  point  out  the  very  peculiar  word 
for  '  buy '  (shabhar),  which,  alike 
by  etymology  and  by  usage,  can  in 
strict  propriety  only  be  used  of 
*  corn.'  Its  use  here  shows  that 
the  food  referred  to  can  be  called 
equally  well  'bread'  and  'wine  and 
milk,'  i.e.,  that  it  belongs  to  the 
supernatural  order  of  things. — It 
was  this  passage  which  led  to  the 
custom  of  the  Latin  churches  (but 
not  the  African)  of  giving  wine  and 
milk  to  the  newly  baptized  (Jerome, 
ad  loc.}.  See  note  on  xxv.  6,  and 
comp.  Jer.  xxi.  12,  Ps.  xxxvi.  8, 
John  vii.  37-39,  i  Pet.  ii.  2,  Rev.  xxi. 


6,  xxii.  17. For  that  which  is 

not  money  .  .  .]  To  guard  against 
a  literalism  similar  to  that  of  the 
disciples  in  Matt.  xvi.  7.  Jehovah 
being  not  merely  (as  some  of  the 
Jews  probably  supposed)  a  mag- 
nified man,  his  blessings  can  only 
be  obtained  for  '  that  which  is  not 
(i.e.,  which  is  different  in  kind  from) 
money.'  Comp.  xxxi.  8,  where  Je- 
hovah is  called  'one  who  is  not 
(i.e.,  who  is  specifically  different 
from)  a  man.'  This  'not-money' 
is,  as  v.  3  instructs  us,  the  hearing 
of  the  inner  ear. 

2  Not    bread]     i.e.,    even    less 
satisfying     than     bread.      Among 
other  oxymora,  comp.  Deut.  xxxii. 
21,  where  Auth.  Vers.  rightly  has, 
'  that  which  is  not  God  .  .  .  those 
which  are  not  a  people,'  i.e.,  which 
is  (are)  conspicuously  unworthy  of 

the  name. Eat  ye]  i.e.,  ye  shall 

eat. Delight  itself]    i.e.,  luxu- 
riate ;  comp.  Ixvi.  u,  Ps.  xxxvii.  4, 
1 1  (same  word),  and  see  on  Ivii.  4. 

3  And   1  will    make   an   ever- 
lasting- covenant  with  you]    The 
new  'covenant'  between  Jehovah 
and   Israel   is  referred  to  no  less 
than  seven  times  in  II.  Isaiah :  no- 
where, expressly  at   least,   in   the 
rest  of  the  book,  and  nowhere  in 
the   works   of  Isaiah's    contempo- 
raries, Amos  and  Hosea.   The  idea 
of  the  original  covenant,  broken  by 
Israel,  and  renewed  by  Jehovah,  is 


CHAP.  LV.] 


ISAIAH. 


59 


and  come  unto  me  ;  hear,  and  your  soul  shall  revive  :  and  I 
will  make  an  everlasting  covenant  with  you,  the  loving-kind- 


specially  characteristic  of  Jere- 
miah. In  the  pre-Jeremian  period, 
it  seems  as  if  the  phrase  '  covenant 
of  Jehovah'  had  been  avoided  by 
the  great  author-prophets  on  ac- 
count of  its  associations  with 
heathenism,  for  the  Canaanites 
used  the  phrase  largely  (comp. 
'  Baal-b'rith,'  Judg.  viii.  33,  ix.  4  ; 
'  El-b'rith,'  Judg.  ix.  46).  The  oc- 
currence of  the  phrase  in  Isa.  xl.- 
Ixvi.  is  certainly  difficult  to  explain 
on  the  assumption  that  Isaiah  was 
the  author  of  these  chapters.  Can 
we  venture  to  suppose  that  Isaiah 
foresaw  that  a  time  would  come 
when  the  phrase  'the  covenant  of 
Jehovah'  would  lose  its  original 
mythic  flavour  ?  It  would  seem  a 
rather  forced  hypothesis.  —  '  An 
everlasting  covenant '  occurs  again 
in  Ixi.  8,  and  in  a  different  sense  in 
xxiv.  5  ;  also  in  Jer.  xxxii.  40,  1.  5, 
Ezek.  xvi.  60.  It  is  of  course  the 
'new  covenant'  of  Jer.  xxxi.  31-33 
that  is  intended,  that  '  covenant ' 
which  Jehovah  promised  to  'put 
in  Israel's  inward  parts,'  and  to 

'  write  it   in  their  hearts.' The 

loving-kindnesses  of  David]  Not 
'the  mercies  of  David'  (Auth. 
Yers.),  for  David,  representing  the 
Davidic  race,  is  not  a  'stranger 
and  foreigner,'  but  a  member  of 
Jehovah's  household,  his  own  'son' 
(2  Sam.  vii.  14,  Ps.  ii.  7,  Ixxix.  26). 
'Of  David'  means  'promised  to 
David  ; '  '  the  loving-kindnesses  of 
Jehovah'  is  the  more  natural 
phrase,  comp.  Ixiii.  7,  Ps.  Ixxxix. 
49,  cvii.  43,  Lam.  iii.  22  ('the  loving- 
kindnesses  of  David'  occurs  else- 
where only  in  2  Chron.  vi.  42).  It 
is  not  necessary  to  suppose  a 
zeugma,  though  a  Pauline  speech 
in  the  Acts  (xiii.  24),  in  quoting  the 
passage,  inserts  the  words — not 
found  in  Sept. — 8o>cra>  vp.lv  (TO.  6'crta 
Aaveld  ra  TTWTCI)  ;  the  '  covenant ' 
consists  in  the  '  loving-kindnesses.' 
— Of  David]  In  what  sense  can 
Jehovah's  '  loving-kindnesses  '  be 
said  to  belong  to  David?  Three 


answers  may  be  given  :  (i)  The 
most  obvious  explanation  (Ewald, 
Delitzsch)  is,  to  understand  by 
'David'  the  founder  of  the  Da- 
vidic family.  The  only  difficulty 
is  that  the  statements  of  the  fol- 
lowing verse  are  incongruous  with 
the  character  of  the  historical 
David.  (2)  Not  a  few  interpreters, 
both  ancient  and  modern  (among 
the  latter  are  Rosenmiilier,  Stier, 
G.  F.  Oehler,  and  Dr.  Kay)  in- 
terpret the  phrase  of  the  Messianic 
king,  who  is  mentioned  in  Jer.  xxx. 
9,  Ezek.  xxxiv.  24,  25  (Hos.  iii.  5  ?) 
under  the  name  of  David.  This, 
however,  seems  to  be  contradicted 
(a)  by  the  parallel  passage,  Ps. 
Ixxxix.  49  (which  clearly  refers  to 
the  'oath'  to  the  historical  David  in 
2  Sam.  vii.),  and  (ff)  by  the  perfect 
tenses  in  v.  4,  which  (considering 
that  futures  follow  in  v.  5)  ought 
not  to  be  interpreted  as  '  prophetic 
perfects.'  (3)  According  to  Heng- 
stenberg  (Christology,  iii.  346), 
David  here  means  the  family  of 
David,  '  who,  in  Ps.  xviii.,  and  in 
a  series  of  other  psalms,  speaks 
in  the  name  of  his  whole  family.' 
Hengstenberg  thus  admits  that  the 
historical  covenant  with  David  is 
primarily  referred  to,  but,  as  the 
covenant  extended  to  David's  seed, 
he  maintains  that  it  only  attained 
complete  fulfilment  in  the  Messiah. 
Our  choice  lies,  I  think,  between 
this  and  the  first  theory.  Only,  it ' 
we  adopt  the  view  that  David 
means  the  founder  of  the  Davidic 
family,  we  must  assume  that  it  is 
not  of  the  historical  David  that  the 
prophet  is  thinking,  so  much  as  of 
an  idealized  David  radiant  with  the 
reflected  light  and  spirituality  of 
the  Messianic  age.  This  assump- 
tion (which,  considering  the  phe- 
nomena of  the  Book  of  Psalms,  we 
have  a  perfect  right  to  make)  seems 
to  be  required  by  the  statements 
made  respecting  'David'  in  the 
next  verse.  The  attempt  of  Del. 
to  apply  them  literally  to  the  David 


6o 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LV. 


nesses  of  David — the  unfailing  ones.  4  Behold,  for  a  witness 
to  the  peoples  I  appointed  him,  a  ruler  and  commander  of 
the  peoples.  5  Behold,  people  that  thou  knowest  not  shalt 
thou  call,  and  people  that  have  not  known  thee  shall  run 
unto  thee,  because  of  Jehovah  thy  God,  and  for  the  Holy  One 
of  Israel,  inasmuch  as  he  hath  glorified  thee. 

6  Seek  ye  Jehovah,  while  he  may  be  found  ;  call  ye  upon 


of  history  is  most  unsatisfactory. 
On  the  whole,  however,  I  prefer 
Hengstenberg's  view.  There  seems 
to  me  to  be  an  evident  allusion  to 
2  Sam.  vii.  12-16,  where  the  pro- 
mises apply  equally  to  David  and 
to  his  posterity  (v.  13,  which  inter- 
rupts the  context,  is  probably  a 
later  insertion).  The  same  point 
of  view  is  still  more  clearly  adopted 
in  Ps.  Ixxxix.,  of  which  Koster  (ap. 
Stier,  p.  548)  says,  '  Fere  com- 
mentarii  instar  est  ad  locum  nos- 
trum— similitude  tanta  est,  ut  pro- 
phetam  nostrum  psalmi  hujus 

auctorem  esse  conjicere  liceat.' 

The  unfailing  ones]  See  Ps. 
Ixxxix.  28,  '  My  loving-kindness 
will  I  keep  for  him  for  ever,  and 
my  covenant  shall  be  unfailing 
(or,  faithful)  with  him ; '  and  v.  33, 
'  Nevertheless  my  loving-kindness 
will  I  not  annul  (and  take)  from 
him ;  neither  will  I  be  untrue  to  my 
faithfulness;'  and  comp.  in  the 
Hebr.  2  Sam.  vii.  16.  And  why 
thus  faithful,  thus  unfailing?  i. 
Because  Jehovah's  word  cannot 
be  broken  (v.  n),  and  2.  because, 
whereas  vengeance  for  sin  ends  at 
the  fourth  generation,  the  recom- 
pence  of  piety  extends  to  a  man's 
latest  posterity  (Ex.  xx.  5,  6). 

4  For  a  witness  to  the  peoples 
I  appointed  him]  '  I  appointed 
him '  is  a  historical  perfect ;  we 
have  no  right  (note  the  difference 
of  tense)  to  regard  w.  4,  5,  as  'a 
looking  forward  to  the  enlarge- 
ment and  completion  of  the  Church 
through  [the]  Christ3  (Stier).  Of 
course,  it  was  not  in  any  high  de- 
gree true  of  David  that  he  was 
'a  witness  to  the  peoples,'  i.e.,  a 


preacher  of  the  true  religion.  That 
was  the  proper  work,  first  of  the 
personal  Servant  of  Jehovah,  and 
then  through  him  (liii.  11)  of  Je- 
hovah's national  Servant,  the  re- 
generate Israel  (xliii.  10).  But 
David,  and  far  more  Hezekiah  and 
Josiah,  at  any  rate  made  a  begin- 
ning, even  though  at  the  best  it 
was  a  '  day  of  small  things.'  And 
the  peculiarity  of  II.  Isaiah  is  that 
the  promises,  so  imperfectly  realised 
hitherto,  are  transferred  from  the 
Messianic  king  to  what  we  may 
call  the  Messianic  people,  not  in- 
deed to  the  people  working  in  its 
own  strength,  but  in  conjunction 
with  and  in  dependence  on  a  per- 
sonal representative  of  Jehovah, 
who  unites  in  himself  the  leading 
characteristics  of  king,  high  priest, 
and  prophet.1 — There  seems  to  be 
an  allusion  to  our  passage  in  Rev. 
i.  5  (comp.  iii.  14),  'from  Jesus 
Christ  the  faithful  wi  tness ';  Hengst. 
compares  John  xviii.  37,  where, 
precisely  as  here,  'witnessing'  is 
mentioned  as  the  principal  function 

of  Israel's  King. A  ruler]  Lit., 

'a  leader'  (nagid^  the  same  word 
as  in  2  Sam.  vi.  21,  Dan.  ix.  25). 

5  People  that  thou  knowest 
not  .  .  .  ]  Almost  the  same  words 
are  put  into  the  mouth  of  a  per- 
sonage who  embodies  a  very  simi- 
lar conception  to  the  Servant  of 
Jehovah,  in  Ps.  xviii.  43  (45  Hebr.). 

— Because  of  Jehovah  .  .  .  ] 
Repeated  almost  word  for  word  in 
Ix.  9. 

5  The  prophet  returns  to  the 
more  neutral-tinted  present,  and 
urges  his  people  to  make  sure  that 
they  are  of  the  true  Israel. 


1  Comp.   Riehm,  Messianic  Prophecy  (Lond.   1876),   pp.  130,  131,  who  however 
rashly  denies  the  personal  character  of  the  Servant  in  the  most  important  passages. 


CHAP.  LV.] 


ISAIAH. 


61 


him,  while  he  is  near.  7  Let  the  ungodly  forsake  his  way,  and 
the  man  of  iniquity  his  thoughts  ;  and  let  him  return  unto 
Jehovah,  and  he  will  have  compassion  upon  him  ;  and  to 
our  God,  for  he  will  abundantly  pardon.  8  For  my  thoughts 
are  not  your  thoughts,  neither  are  your  ways  my  ways,  is 
Jehovah's  oracle.  9  For  (as)  the  heavens  are  higher  than 
the  earth,  so  are  my  ways  higher  than  your  ways,  and  my 
thoughts  than  your  thoughts.  10  For  as  the  rain  cometh 
down,  and  the  snow  from  heaven,  and  thither  returneth  not, 
except  it  hath  watered  the  earth,  and  made  it  bring  forth  and 
sprout,  and  given  seed  to  the  sower,  and  bread  to  the  eater  ; 
11  so  shall  my  word  be  that  goeth  forth  out  of  my  mouth  ;  it 
shall  not  return  unto  me  empty,  except  it  hath  accomplished 
that  which  I  please,  and  made  to  prosper  the  thing  for  which 
I  sent  it.  12  For  with  joy  shall  ye  go  forth,  and  with  peace 
shall  ye  be  led,  the  mountains  and  the  hills  shall  burst  out 
before  you  into  a  ringing  sound,  and  all  the  trees  of  the  field 
shall  clap  the  hand.  13  Instead  of  the  thorn-bush  shall  come 
While  he  may  be  found]  Comp.  Obs.  rain  and  snow  are  treated  as 
6.  For  the  '  day  of 


Ps.    xxxn. 

Jehovah'  will  be  a  bitter  one  for 
those  who  are  outwardly  or  in- 
wardly his  foes  (Ixv.  6,  7). Call 

ye  upon  him]  First  for  pardon, 
and  then  for  a  share  in  the  pro- 
mises ;  comp.  Jer.  xxix.  12-14. 

7  His  way]  The  '  way '  and  the 
*  thoughts,'  or  purposes,  of  the  un- 
godly, mean  the  polytheism  and 
immorality  which  marked  a  large 
section  of  the  Jewish  exiles.  Such 
'  ways '  and  '  thoughts '  tend  only  to 
destruction,  but  those  of  Jehovah 
(as  vv.  8,  9  suggest)  to  a  blessed- 
ness passing  the  finite  understand- 
ing (comp.  Ps.  xxxvi.  5,  6).  '  For  I 
know  the  thoughts  which  I  have  to- 
wards you,  saith  Jehovah,  thoughts 
of  peace,  and  not  of  evil,  to  give 
you  a  future  and  a  hope'  (Jer.  xxix. 
ii). 

10  But  can  such  a  high  ideal  as 
Jehovah's  be  realised  ?  Surely.  For 
God's  purposes  whether  for  inani- 
mate nature  or  for  man  fulfil  them- 
selves. The  new  figure  is  suggested 
by  '  the  heavens '  in  ru.  9. Thi- 
ther returneth  not]  i.e.,  as  vapour 
(Gen.  ii.  6,  Job  xxxvi.  27  Del.). 


God's  angels  (similarly  Ps.  cxlviii. 
8,  civ.  4),  and  so  Jehovah's  '  word ' 
in  v.  ii  (see  on  ix.  8). 

11  It  shall  not  .  .  .  ]  A  mixture 
of  two  statements — 'it  shall  not 
return  empty,'  and  'it  shall  not 
return  till  it  has  done  its  work.' 

12. 13  For]  is  explanatory  (  =  'in 

fact '). Shall  ye  go  forth  .  .  .  ] 

The  passage  is  generally  taken  as 
a  description  of  the  Exodus  from 
Babylon.  But  there  is  no  reason 
for  so  limiting  the  meaning,  and  the 
analogy  of  chap,  xxxv.,  xl.  ii,  and 
xli.  1 8,  points  in  another  direction. 
It  is  the  glorious  condition  of  Israel 
after  the  Return  which  is  here  de- 
scribed (see  on  chap,  xxxv.)  The 
change  is  compared  to  the  transi- 
tion from  the  wilderness  (i.e.,  the 
misery  of  the  Exile)  with  its  mo- 
notonous dwarf-shrubs  to  a  park  of 
beautiful  trees  (comp.  xli.  18,  19), 
in  the  midst  of  which  Israel  is  to 
walk  '  in  solemn  troops  and  sweet 
societies '  (as  in  xxxv.  9).  Who 
the  leaders  are  to  be,  is  not  stated. 
Perhaps  the  priests,  or  perhaps  Je- 
hovah's angels  (Ps.  xci.  n). 

13  This     sympathy     of     nature 


62 


ISAIAH. 


[<   IIAI'.    LVI. 


up  the  fir-tree,  and  instead  of  the  nettle  shall  come  up  the 
myrtle-tree  ;  and  it  shall  be  unto  Jehovah  for  a  monument, 
for  an  everlasting  sign  which  shall  not  be  cut  off. 

(comp.  xxxv.    i,  2.   xliv.  23)  is  no  Bigrn  :     all    poetical    figures,    like 

mere  poetical  figure,  for  the  prophet  Virgil's  '  Ipsi  laetitia  voces  ad  sidera 

continues,   And  it  shall  be  unto  jactant    Intonsi    montes,'   are  pre- 

Jehovah  .  .   .   for  an  everlasting:  sentiments  of  the  Messianic  reality. 


CHAPTER  LVI. 

Vv.  1-8.  These  eight  verses  form  a  prophecy  in  themselves,  directed 
against  the  Jewish  pride  of  race.  They  are  primarily  addressed  to  cer- 
tain foreign  converts  and  (probably)  Israelitish  eunuchs,  who  are  warmly 
commended  for  their  observance  of  the  Sabbath,  and  promised  an 
appropriate  reward.  The  prophecy  stands  out  by  its  practical  tone  ;  as 
a  rule,  II.  Isaiah  confines  itself  to  correcting  the  general  tone  and  spirit  of 
the  Jews.  The  writer  of  this  section  presupposes  the  circumstances  of  a 
period  long  subsequent  to  the  age  of  Hezekiah.  The  Sabbath  was  not 
indeed  (as  some  have  supposed)  a  late  adoption  from  Babylonia,  but  it 
certainly  did  become  much  more  strictly  observed  in  the  Babylonian  and 
Persian  periods — comp.  Jer.  xvii.  19-27  (with  Grafs  note),  Ezek.  xx. 
11-21,  xxii.  8,  26,  Neh.  xiii.  15-22,  and  contrast  the  narrative  in  2  Kings 
xi.  1-16,  with  that  in  I  Mace.  ii.  32-38.  This  growing  strictness  evidently 
marks  a  fresh  stage  in  the  religious  history  of  the  Israelites.  As  the 
sense  of  the  value  of  prayer  increased,  it  was  natural  that  the  Sabbath 
should  rise  in  the  estimation  of  the  pious,  and  that  the  highest  title  they 
could  give  to  the  temple  should  be  '  the  house  of  prayer.'  The  latter 
phrase  is  unique,  and  reminds  us  of  the  later  proseuchai,  which  existed 
wherever  Jews  were  to  be  found  in  the  Roman  empire. 

1  Thus  saith  Jehovah,  keep  the  law,  and  practise  righteous- 
ness ;  for  my  salvation  is  near  to  come,  and  my  righteousness 


1  Keep  the  law]  '  The  law,'  i.e., 
the  objective  rule  of  life,  the  law  of 
Jehovah  (as  in  xlii.  I  b}.  The  other 
possible  rendering,  'justice,'  seems 
unsuitable  here,  as  the  moral  duties 
specified  in  v.  2  have  a  much  wider 
range  than  mere  'justice,'  and  in 
fact  cover  both  the  tables  of  the 
Decalogue.  The  verb,  too,  with 
which  the  noun  is  here  joined 
(shimru  mishpaf)  is  usually  fol- 
lowed, as  Dr.  Weir  remarks,  by 
'  statutes,'  '  testimony,'  '  covenant,' 
&c. Righteousness]  i.e.,  objec- 
tively, whatever  God  commands. 


Itty  salvation  .  .  .  my  right- 
eousness] Comp.  li.  5.  '  This  pas- 
sage makes  it  quite  evident  that 
"righteousness"  in  connection  with 
"  salvation  "  still  retains  its  proper 
force  of  righteousness.  God's  sal- 
vation is  righteous,  not  indiscrimi- 
nate. And  the  grounds  on  which 
he  distinguishes  His  people  from 
His  enemies  are  not  external,  but 
internal.  It  is  the  Israel  within 
Israel,  the  spiritual  circumcision, 
the  "  holy  seed,"  that  He  acknow- 
ledges, vindicates,  rescues,  glorifies 
..."  There  is  no  peace  to  the 


CHAP.  LVI.j 


ISAIAH. 


to  become  manifest.  2  Happy  the  mortal  who  practises  this, 
and  the  son  of  man  who  taketh  hold  thereon  ;  who  keepeth 
the  Sabbath  so  as  not  to  pollute  it,  and  keepeth  his  hand, 
that  it  do  no  evil  !  3  And  let  not  the  foreigner,  who  hath 
joined  himself  to  Jehovah,  speak,  saying,  Surely  Jehovah  will 
separate  me  from  his  people  ;  and  let  not  the  eunuch  say, 

law  would  be  so  altered  as  to  ex- 
clude many  who  were  formerly  ad- 
missible into  the  community.  With 
the  glories  of  the  Messianic  age  in 
prospect,  it  must  have  been  miser- 
able indeed  for  these  earnest  con- 
verts to  feel  themselves  in  danger 
of  exclusion. And  let  not  tha 


ungodly." '  (Dr.  Weir.)  See  also 
note  on  xli.  2.  Sept.  here  has  TO 
tXfos-  fiov. To  become  mani- 
fest] God's  gifts  are  'reserved 
in  heaven '  till  at  the  fit  moment 
the  veil  of  partition  is  rent  in  twain. 

The   same  verb   as   in  liii.   i. 

This  .  .  .  thereon]  i.e.,  '  the  law,' 
and  'righteousness,'  a  further  ex- 
planation of  which  follows. The 

Sabbath]  The  Sabbath  is  the  re- 
presentative of  the  duties  of  'the 
first  table'  (as  in  Ezek.  xx.  11-21). 
Contrary  to  etymology  (see  Del.'s 
note),  and  contrary  to  popular  usage 
(who  does  not  remember  Heine's 
Prinzes  sin  Sabbath?},  the  prophet 
treats  '  Sabbath '  as  if  it  were  of 

the  masc.  gender. Keepeth  his 

hand  .  .  .  ]  A  negative  description, 
suggested  by  the  parallelism  of  the 
Sabbath-observance.  It  reminds 
us  of  xxxiii.  1 5,  only  that  there  a 
positive  description  precedes,  which 
has  here  to  be  supplied  mentally. 

3  The  prophet  now  devotes  him- 
self to  remove  a  misunderstanding. 
He  insists  that  the  Beatitude  of  the 
preceding  verse  is  universally  appli- 
cable to  those  who  keep  God's  com- 
mandments.  And  let  not  the 

foreig-ner  .  .  .  ]  The  anxiety  of 
these  proselytes  seems  rather  un- 
reasonable, if  we  remember  only 
the  moderation  of  the  law  in  Deut. 
xxiii.  4-7.  It  becomes  less  so,  if 
we  take  into  consideration  the  se- 
vere spirit  of  the  restored  exiles 
(comp.  Neh.  xiii.),  which  doubtless 
began  to  show  itself  during  the 
Captivity.  The  foreigners  seem 
to  have  apprehended  (such  is  the 
point  of  view  at  which  the  prophet 
places  himself)  that  in  consequence 
of  this  severity  the  Deuteronomic 


eunuch  say  .  .  .  ]  The  complaint 
of  the  eunuch  is  different  from  that 
of  the  proselyte  ;  it  is  that  he  is  '  a 
dry  tree,'  i.e.,  that  he  is  without  that 
hope  of  a  quasi-immortality  in  off- 
spring, which  had,  it  would  seem, 
not  yet  given  way  to  the  brighter 
hope  of  personal  continuance. 
Apparently  he  takes  his  exclusion 
from  the  religious  community  as  a 
matter  of  course  ;  the  law  in  Deut. 
xxiii.  2  was  clear,  and  there  seemed 
no  probability  of  its  being  miti- 
gated. But  an  answer  is  vouchsafed 
to  his  silent  as  well  as  to  his  spoken 
complaint.  (I  infer  from  the  omis- 
sion of  the  clause,  found  in  v.  3, 
respecting  voluntary  adhesion  to 
Jehovah  that  the  prophet  alludes 
to  Israelitish  eunuchs,  made  such 
against  their  will  by  heathen  tyrants 
— '  eunuchs  were  generally  foreign- 
ers,3 l  as  Dr.  Weir  remarks.)  The 
case  of  the  eunuchs  is  dealt  with 
first.  The  decision  is  :  i.  that  they 
shall  be  admitted  to  religious  com- 
munion, and  2.  that,  as  a  compen- 
sation for  their  childlessness,  they 
shall  receive  an  extraordinary 
trophy  and  monument  in  the 
temple  itself.  What  sort  of  dis- 
tinction is  intended  by  this  ?  Some 
(e.g.,  Knobel)  suppose  that  it  is  a 
material  record.  We  might  think 
either  of  a  memorial  column,  or  of 
a  tablet  such  as  in  very  ancient 
synagogues  commemorated  the 


1  Comp.    xxxix.   7,   Jer.   xxxviii.   7,   Acts  viii.   27  (Dr.  Weir  thinks  the  Ethiopian 
eunuch  in  the  last  passage  may  have  been  a  Jew  ;  comp.  Acts  xi.  20). 


64 


ISATAII. 


[CHAP.  L\ 


Behold,  I  am  a  dry  tree.  4  For  thus  saith  Jehovah  of  tl 
eunuchs  who  keep  my  Sabbaths,  and  choose  the  things  whicl 
please  me,  and  take  hold  on  my  covenant, — 5I  give  unl 
them  in  my  house  and  within  my  walls  a  trophy  and  a  mom 
ment  better  than  sons  and  daughters,  I  will  give  to  each 
everlasting  monument,  which  shall  not  be  cut  off.  6  And 
for  the  foreigners  that  have  joined  themselves  unto  Jehoval 
to  minister  unto  him,  and  to  love  the  name  of  Jehovah, 
coming  his  servants,  every  one  that  keepeth  the  Sabbath 
as  not  to  pollute  it,  and  taketh  hold  on  my  covenant :  7 1  will 
bring  them  to  my  holy  mountain,  and  make  them  joyful  in 
my  house  of  prayer  ;  their  burnt-offerings  and  their  sacrifices 
shall  be  acceptable  upon  mine  altar  ;  for  my  house  shall  be 

minister  unto  him]  Hitz.  and 
Knobel  think  servile  ministrations 
are  referred  to,  such  as  were  per- 
formed by  the  Nethinim  slaves 
(comp.  Ezra  ii.  43).  Usage,  how- 
ever, confines  the  verb  to  honour- 
able functions,  especially  those  of 
the  priests  and  Levites ;  comp. 
Ixi.  6.  Dr.  Weir  appositely  refers 
to  Ixvi.  21,  where  the  addition  of 
some  of  the  Gentiles  to  the  number 

of  the  priests  is  spoken  of. His 

servants]  A  lower  term  than 
'ministers,'  but  joyfully  accepted 
by  the  proselytes  out  of  '  love '  to 
the  '  name  of  Jehovah.' 

7  Make  them  joyful]     A  hint 
perhaps  of  the  feast  described  in 

xxv.  6. In  my  house  of  prayer] 

Sacrifices  continue,  but  prayer  takes 
the  precedence  of  them  as  the  dis- 
tinctive   purpose    of   the    temple. 
Parallel  passage,  I   Kings  viii.  29, 
comp.  43,  60. 

8  The  oracle  of  the  Lord,  Je- 
hovah]     It    is    not     common    to 
place   such   a  phrase   at  the    be- 
ginning of  a  sentence ;  see,  how- 
ever, i.  24,  Ps.  ex.    i,  Zech  xii.   I, 
where  this  or  an  almost  identical 
expression  is  used  as  an  introduc- 
tion.    The  combination  '  the  Lord 
(Hebr.  Adonai)  Jehovah '  prepares 
us  to  expect  some  great  and  new 
revelation.     The  addition  of  Gen- 
tile members  to  the  community  of 


munificence  of  individuals.1  But 
there  is  a  swing  about  the  passage 
which  rather  commends  the  view 
that  the  memorial  is  a  spiritual  one 
(as  in  Rev.  iii.  12).  The  prophet's 
real  meaning  is  probably  closely 
analogous  to  that  of  another  evan- 
gelical passage  (Matt.  xxvi.  13), 
'  Wheresoever  this  gospel  shall  be 
preached  in  the  whole  world,  there 
shall  also  this,  that  this  woman  hath 
done,  be  told  for  a  memorial  of  her.' 

4  Take  hold  on  my  covenant] 
Whether  circumcision  or  Sabbath- 
observance  is  the  outward  sign  of 
this  'taking  hold,'  cannot  be  ab- 
solutely determined.  Here,  as  in 
Ezek.  xx.  12,  the  Sabbath  seems  to 
have  stepped  into  the  place  of  cir- 
cumcision ;  yet  in  Hi.  i  Ezek. 
xliv.  9,  circumcision  is  again  re- 
ferred to  with  honour. An  ever- 
lasting- monument  .  .  .  ]  Closely 
parallel  to  xlv.  1 3  b. 

6  And  as  for  the  foreigners] 
The  proselytes  too  shall  not  be  left 
outside  in  heathendom  ;  the  joy  of 
the  Shekinah  shall  be  theirs.  Comp. 
i  Kings  viii.  41-43,  where  Solomon 
prays  that  God  would  '  do  accord- 
ing to  all  that  the  stranger  calleth 
to  thee  for,'  and  Ps.  cxxxv.  19,  20 
(where,  after  the  house  of  Israel,  of 
Aaron,  and  of  Levi,  '  those  that  fear 
Jehovah' — i.e.,  the  proselytes — are 
called  upon  to  bless  him). To 


See  Low's  Beitrdge  zur  jiidischen  Alterthumskunde  (Leipz.  1870,  71,  i.  28). 


CHAP.  LVI.  9— LVII.]  ISAIAH.  65 

called  a  house  of  prayer  for  all  the  peoples.  8  The  oracle  of 
the  Lord,  Jehovah,  who  gathereth  the  outcasts  of  Israel  :  Yet 
more  will  I  gather  unto  him,  besides  his  own  gathered  ones. 

the  true  Israel  is,  however,  though  the  preceding  verses  are  the  first  - 

a  great,  not  by  any  means  a  new  fruits — 'other  sheep  which  are  not  of 

announcement  (see  xliv.  5.,  Iv.   5).  this  flock'  (John  x.  16).     Del.  com- 

This,  along  with  other  peculiarities,  pares  Ps.  xlvii.  9  (10),  which,  if  the 

has  to  be  taken  into  consideration  text-reading    be   correct,    is    even 

in  the  discussion  of  the  unity  of  strikingly  parallel.     The  reading  of 

chaps,  xl.-lxvi. Who  grathereth  Sept.  and  Pesh.  ('  with  the  people '), 

the  outcasts  of  Israel]  The  phra-  however,  strikes  me  as  intrinsically 

seology  reminds  us  of  xi.  12.  Comp.  more  probable;    in  this   case   the 

also  xlix.  5,  6. Yet  more  will  X  passage  should  be  compared  with 

gather  .  .  .  ]    Those  who  are  to  be  Isa.  xix.  24. Unto  him]  viz.,  unto 

gathered  are  evidently  Gentiles,  of  Israel, 
whom  the  proselytes  mentioned  in 


CHAPTER  LVI.   9— LVII. 

A  SUDDEN  change  in  the  style  warns  us  that  we  are  about  to  enter  on  a 
new  prophecy,  complete  in  itself,  and  with  no  connection  (at  any  rate  in 
the  mind  of  the  original  writer  of  Ivi.  9  &c.)  with  the  preceding  dis- 
course. Hengstenberg,1  indeed,  has  tried  to  evolve  a  connection  ('  gather- 
ing ' — see  Ivi.  8 — must,  he  remarks,  be  preceded  by  '  scattering '),  but  few 
writers  will  regard  his  attempt  as  satisfactory.  *  It  is  absolutely  in- 
credible,' in  the  opinion  of  Bleek,  '  that  the  prophet,  after  the  promises 
that  no  evil  of  any  kind  should  again  hurt  the  people  (ch.  Iv.),  that  the 
time  of  salvation  was  quite  near,  in  which  even  the  foreigners  among  the 
people  should  partake  (ch.  Ivi.  i),  should  now  suddenly  summon  up 
foreign  nations  to  devour  his  people.' 

The  new  prophecy  falls  into  two  parts.  In  the  first  half  (Ivi.  9~lvii.  2) 
the  writer  chastises  the  neglect  of  duty  for  profane  and  extravagant 
luxury  on  the  part  of  Israel's  spiritual  'shepherds,'  while  no  one  observes 
how  the  righteous  are  one  by  one  gathered  in  from  a  generation  fast 
ripening  for  a  Divine  judgment.  In  the  second  half  (Ivii.  3-21)  he  turns 
to  the  mass  of  the  people,  who  mock  at  the  few  servants  of  Jehovah  in 
their  midst.  He  draws  a  vivid  and  appalling  sketch  of  the  sombre  and 
licentious  idolatry  into  which  they  and  their  fathers,  the pre-Exile  Israel- 
ites, have  fallen  : — on  the  state  of  religion  among  the  exiles  in  Babylon 
he  preserves  a  deep  silence.  At  v.  1 1  a  change  in  the  prophet's  tone  is 
observable.  In  the  name  of  Jehovah,  he  remonstrates  with  his  people, 
and  even  partly  excuses  it.  He  promises  a  Divine  interposition  in  its 
behalf;  and  then  it  will  be  seen  whether  the  idols  can  deliver  in  the 
judgment  which  will  overtake  all  but  true  believers.  The  prophecy  closes 
with  that  honied  rhetoric  of  which  only  Hosea  and  the  writer  of  II.  Isaiah 
possess  the  secret. 

1  Christology  of  the  Old  Testament,  ii.  176. 
VOL.  II.  F 


66 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP,  i  vi. 


According  to  Ewalcl '  and  Bleck  '•'  the  whole  of  this  discourse,  down  to 
Ivii.  ii  a,  is  a  quotation  from  an  older  prophet  of  the  time  of  Manasseh,  or 
soon  after.  The  strikingly  Palestinian  character  of  the  scenery  in  Ivii. 
5,  6,  the  presumed  reference  to  persecution  in  Ivii.  i,and  the  correspond- 
ence of  the  sins  imputed  to  the  people  with  pre-Exile  circumstances,  give 
a  strong  plausibility  to  this  hypothesis.  Even  Luzzatto  :!  (who  ascribes 
all  the  rest  of  the  book  to  Isaiah)  considers  the  author  of  this  section  to 
have  lived  during  the  reign  of  Manasseh— w.  i,  2  he  considers  to  be  a 
funeral  song  in  memory  of  Isaiah,  who,  according  to  the  legend,  was 
sawn  asunder  by  order  of  Manasseh. 

In  my  former  work  (/.  C.A.,  p.  201)  I  attempted  to  diminish  the  force 
of  Ewald's  reasoning,  and  I  may  now  add  (i)  that  it  seems  to  me  rather 
doubtful  (see  below)  whether  Ivii.  i  refers  to  a  violent  death  by  persecu- 
tion, (2)  that  the  persecution  of  Manasseh  is  not  directly  affirmed  in 
the  Old  Testament — it  is  an  inference  from  a  combination  of  passages, 
(3)  that,  even  granting  its  historical  reality,  Manasseh's  is  not  the  only- 
persecution  which  might  be  alluded  to— Gesenius  refers  to  the  narratives 
of  Daniel  and  his  three  friends  (Dan.  iii.  vi.).  But  it  does  not  fall  within 
the  scope  of  this  work  to  decide  questions  relative  to  the  higher  criticism  ; 
and  I  merely  mention  these  conjectures  because  they  embody  impressions 
which  have  been  felt  by  most  students  of  Isaiah,  whatever  be  their 
attitude  towards  the  tradition  of  the  Synagogue.  The  style  of  the  former 
part  of  the  prophecy  by  its  '  harshness  and  lapidary  brevity '  reminds 
Delitzsch  of  that  other  most  peculiar  and  isolated  passage,  Iii.  I3~liii.  It 
is  doubly  remarkable  following  upon  the  facile  oratory  of  chaps  Iv.  Ivi. 
1-8,  and  not  less  surprising  is  the  sudden  change  in  the  latter  part  tc 
rhythmic  simplicity  and  ease. 

9  All  ye  wild  beasts  of  the  field,  come  to  devour ;  all 
wild  beasts  in  the  forest!     10  His  watchmen  are  blind,  they 
are  all  of  them  undiscerning ;    they  are  all  of  them  dumb 


9  All    ye    wild    beasts]     'My 

flock  became  food  for  every  wild 
beast  of  the  field,  because  there 
was  no  shepherd '  (Ezek.  xxxiv.  8, 
comp.  xxxix.  4).  *  Thy  prophets,  O 
Israel,  are  become  like  the  foxes 
in  the  deserts '  (Ezek.  xiii.  4).  A 
closer  verbal  parallel  is  Jer.  xii.  9 
(comp.  v.  7)  :  '  Assemble  ye  all  the 
wild  beasts  of  the  field  ;  bring  them 
hither  to  devour.'  Comp.,  too,  the 
imitation  in  Rev.  xix.  17,  18. — The 
'wild  beasts'  are  evidently  the 
enemy,  and  Israel  is  the  flock. 
The  prophet  adopts  the  strongest 


way  of  expressing  that  Israel,  ut- 
terly bereft  of  his  natural  defenders, 
lies  at  the  mercy  of  the  great  hea- 
then empire  (Assyria  or  Babylo- 
nia). 

10  His  watchmen  are  blind 
.  .  .  ]  i.e.,  the  leaders  of  the  people 
generally,  but  especially  the  pro- 
phets (Ezek.  iii.  17,  comp.  Isa.  xxi. 
ii — different  word),  who  are  com- 
pared to  '  dumb  dogs,'  as  opposed 
to  the  faithful  shepherd's  dogs  (Job 
xxx.  i).  We  must  suppose  that  the 
prophets  referred  to  were  no  better 
than  the  ancient  soothsayers,  who 


1  Die  Propheten,  iii.  102,  103  ;  comp.  Ewald's  account  of  the  persecution  of  Ma- 
nasseh in  History  of  Israel,  iv.  211,  212. 

''  Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament,  ii.  48. 
3  11  prof  eta  Isaia  (Padova,  1867),  p.  573. 


CHAP.  LVII.] 


ISAIAH. 


dogs,  they  cannot  bark,  &  raving,  lying  down,a  loving  to  slum- 
ber. n  But  the  dogs  are  greedy,  they  know  not  how  to  be 
satisfied,  and  these,  b  the  pastors,b  know  not  understanding  ; 
they  all  of  them  turn  their  own  way,  each  after  his  gain,  with- 
out exception.  12  *  Come  ye,  let  me  fetch  wine,  and  let  us 
carouse  with  strong  drink  ;  and  to-morrow  shall  be  as  this 
day,  beyond  all  measure  great.' 

LVII.  l  The  righteous  perisheth,  and  no  man  taketh  it  to 
heart,  and  pious  men  are  gathered,  none  considering  that  cbe- 

a  Seers  that  lie  down,  some  MSS.,  Symmachus,  Vulg.  (?),  Kohut  (another  reading). 

b  Shepherds,  Hebr.  text. 

c  Before,  Del. — Out  of  the  way  of,  Kay. 


gave  oracles  respecting  the  difficul- 
ties of  every-day  life,  but  were  silent 
on  the  great  moral  questions.  Be- 
sides their  *  dumbness,'  three  other 
points  are  mentioned  to  the  dis- 
credit of  the  writer's  fellow-'  watch- 
men':— i,  they  -are  not  'seers' 
'(kkosftm))  but  'ravers'  or  'dream- 
ers' (hozim) — they  depend  on  a 
mere  natural,  and  sometimes  fal- 
lacious, faculty  (Jer.  xxiii.  25-28); 
2,  they  keep  up  the  old  custom,  re- 
jected by  the  higher  prophets  as  an 
abuse,  of  taking  fees,  Num.  xxii.  7, 
i  Sam.  ix.  7,  Neh.  vi.  12,  coinp. 
Mic.  iii.  3,  Ezek.  xiii.  19,  xxii.  25  ; 
and,  3,  they  spend  their  gains  in 
revelry,  comp.  xxviii.  7,  Mic.  ii.  II. 
— Obs.,  no  inference  can  be  safely 
drawn  from  this  passage  as  to  the 
date  of  the  prophecy,  since  prophets 
and  elders  continued  to  exist  during 
the  Exile,  see  Jer.  xxix.,  Ezek.  viii. 
i,  xiv.  i,  xx.  i,  xxxiii.  1-9. 

11  These,     the     pastors]       Or, 
'  these,  pastors  as  they  are.'     Some, 
rendering    '  shepherds,'    think   we 
have   here   a   second   figure ;    but 
this  would  come  in  limpingly  after 
the  highly  developed  simile  of  the 
dogs.     It  is  better  to  render  '  pas- 
tors,' and  regard  it   as  an  official 
title   of  the   rulers   of  the  people 
(comp.    Assyrian    ?  z'z/   '  shepherd,' 

'  prince'). Without  exception] 

On  the  rend.,  see  De  Dieu  on  Ezek. 
xxxiii.     2.     Same    idiom    in    Gen. 
xix.  4. 

12  Come  ye  .  .  .  ]     A  speech  of 
one  of  the  self-indulgent  '  pastors,' 


who  invites  his  fellows  to  a  two 
days'  banquet.  Comp.  v.  11,  12, 
and  especially  xxviii.  i,  3,  7,  which, 
by  the  similarity  of  its  details, 
somewhat  confirms  the  theory  of 
Ewald  and  Bleek. 

1  The  righteous  perisheth]  A 
concise  and  vigorous  expression, 
fitted  to  stimulate  thought.  That 
the  bad  pastors  should  live  long 
and  see  good  days,  while  the 
righteous  (especially  among  the 
pastors  or  prophets)  are  prema- 
turely cut  off,  is  a  contradiction 
peculiarly  great  from  the  Old 
Testament  point  of  view  (comp. 
Eccles.  vii.  1 5).  '  The  righteous,' 
in  the  singular,  indicates  the  few- 
ness and  isolation  of  these  Abdiels. 
'  Perisheth ' — whether  by  natural 
or  by  violent  means,  the  word  does 
not  expressly  state.  '  To  perish  ' 
(Hebr.  ^AbhadK]  properly  means  'to 
lose  oneself,'  in  other  words,  'to 
pass  out  of  sight ' ;  every  one  re- 
members Ps.  cxix.  176,  where  'lost' 
=  Hebr.  ''obhedh?  The  same  vague 
expression  is  used  in  the  parallel 
passage,  Mic.  vii.  2  (comp.  Ps.  xii. 

i). Pious  men]    Lit.,   'men  of 

piety.'  The  Hebr.  word  here  ren- 
dered 'piety'  (khe'sedh]  includes  both 
love  to  God  and  love  to  man  ;  the 
context  must  decide  whether '  piety' 
or  '  mercy '  is  the  better  English 
equivalent.  Here  the  parallel  word 
'  the  righteous '  is  decisive,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  (which  warns  us  against 
a  mechanical  use  of  the  Concord- 
ance) that  in  the  only  other  place 


F  2 


68 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i.vn. 


cause  of c  the  evil  the  righteous  is  gathered.     2  He  entereth 
into  Peace  ;  they  rest  upon  their  beds,  whosoever  hath  walkec 
straight  before  him.     3  But  as  for  you,  approach  hither,  yc 


where  the  precise  Hebrew  phrase 
occurs  (Prov.  xi.  17,  in  the  singular) 
it  means,  not  *  the  pious,'  but  *  the 

merciful.' Are  gathered]  Again 

a  vox  media,  which  includes  the 
notions  of  taking  away  (comp.  xvi. 
10)  and  gathering  in  (as  Jacob 
'  was  gathered  to  his  kinsmen,'  Gen. 
xlix.  33).  It  is  difficult  to  decide 
which  of  these  two  notions  is  pre- 
dominant here.  A  comparison  of 
liii.  8  seems  to  suggest  the  former ; 
it  is  natural  that  the  '  servants  of 
Jehovah'  (liv.  17)  should  suffer  with 
the  Servant,  the  members  with  the 
Head.  There  might  conceivably 
be  an  allusion  to  a  religious  perse- 
cution, such  as  that  of  Manasseh 
(see  introduction,  above).  But  the 
context  seems  to  me  to  favour  the 
notion  of  '  gathering  in.'  How 
could  the  ungodly,  if  the  deaths  of 
the  righteous  were  owing  to  them, 
be  expected  to  'consider'  the 
Divine  purpose  in  permitting  their 
evil  deeds  ?  and  does  not  the  ten- 
der, elegiac  tone  of  v.  -2  suit  a 
natural  better  than  a  violent  death  ? 

None  considering-  that]  The 

form  of  expression  reminds  us  of 
liii.  8.  In  both  passages,  the  rend. 
'  for '  seems  awkward  (see,  however, 

Naeg.). Because  of  the    evil] 

This  premature  removal  of  the 
righteous  seemed  but  an  ill  reward 
for  such  faithful  service  ;  and  yet 
it  was  dictated  by  mercy — as  well 
towards  the  godly  as  towards  the 
wicked.  1 1  delivered  the  former  ( i ) 
from  the  sights  of  horror  which 
'vexed'  and  might  have  polluted 
their  '  righteous  souls,'  comp.  Wisd. 
iv.  14,  Dante,  Purgat.  xiv.  111-113, 
and  (2)  from  sharing  in  the  retribu- 
tive calamities  impending  over  the 
nation  (comp.  Gen.  xv.  15,  2  Kings 
xxii.  20).  It  warned  the  latter  that 
their  wickedness  was  great  to  be  so 
punished  (for  even  a  few  righteous 


men  can  save  a  city,  Gen.  xviii.  23- 
32),  and  that   a  still  more  seve 
punishment  was  at  the  door.  (Tin 
'  evil '  has  a  double  meaning). — Fc 
the  Hebr.  idiom,  comp.  x.  27,  Ji 
xlii.  17,  li.  64.1 

2  The    prophet    continues   in   a 
lyric    strain.      He    entereth    into 
Peace]     The  grave,  or  rather  the 
Underworld,  is  here  styled  Peace, 
as  elsewhere  Stillness  (Ps.  xciv.  17, 
cxv.   17).     Comp.  Job  iii.  17.     We 
might  also  render  '  into  a  state  of 
peace'  (comp.  on  xlv.  16).     There 
is  a  contrast  to  the  awful  troubles 
which   the   survivors   have   to   en- 
counter (Hengst.). Upon  their 

beds]  i.e.,  primarily  their  graves  ; 
comp.    the    Phoenician   inscription 
of  King  Eshmunazar  (ed.  Schlott- 
mann,  i  v.  i  &c.), '  the  lid  of  this  bed ' 
(i.e.,  sarcophagus) ;  the  word  is  the 
same  as  here.     See  also  Job  xvii. 
13  (a  different  word  for  bed),  and 
especially    Ezek.   xxxii.   25.      The 
phraseology  of  the  latter  passage 
implies  a  popular  notion  of  a  dup- 
licate   grave    in   the    Underworld, 
corresponding  to  the  double  quasi- 
consciousness    of   the   dead   body 
and  the  soul  or  shade  (respecting 
this    see    note    on    Ixvi.    24).      It 
may  be  the  'beds'  in  the  Under- 
world to  which  the  prophet  refers, 
and  which  (whatever  the   popular 
belief  was)  he,  at  any  rate,  would 
hardly  make    contingent    on    the 
possession  by  these  righteous  con- 
fessors of  separate  graves.     Such 
an  honour  was  not  always  granted 
to  faithful  prophets  (Jer.  xxvi.  23). 

Straight     before      him]      A 

phrase   quite   in   the   style   of  the 
Book  of  Proverbs  (comp.  Prov.  iv. 
25-27). 

3  Approach  hither]  viz.,  to  hear 

your  sentence. Ye    sons    of  a 

sorceress  .  .  .  ]  i.e.,  having  an  in- 
nate inclination  (comp.  Ps.  li.  5)  to 


1  Comp.  Dr.  Land's  discussion  of   this  clause  in   Theologisch    Tijdschrift,   1867, 
p.  203.     To  support  the  Isaianic  authorship  of  this  chapter  Dr.  Rutgers  had  render* 
'  before  the  calamity  ' ;  against  this,  Dr.  Land  refers  to  the  above-mentioned  passages. 


CHAP.  LVII.] 


ISAIAH. 


69 


sons  of  a  sorceress !  seed  d  of  an  adulterer,  and  thou  who 
(thyself)  committest  whoredom.d  4  Of  whom  do  ye  make 
sport?  Against  whom  do  ye  draw  a  wide  mouth,  do  ye 
make  a  long  tongue  ?  Are  ye  not  children  of  rebellion,  a 
seed  of  falsehood  ?  5  Ye  who  inflame  yourselves  e  by  the 
terebinths,6  under  every  green  tree  ;  who  slay  the  children 
in  the  torrent- valleys  under  the  rents  of  the  crags  !  6  In  the 
smooth  stones  of  the  valley  are  thy  portion  ;  they,  they  are 

d  So  Piscator,  Cocceius,  Stier,  Hahn, — .  .  .  and  of  her  who  committeth  whoredom, 
Vulg.  and  most  moderns. — Of  an  adulteress  and  a  harlot,  Klostermann  (emendation). 
•  With  gods,  Sept.,  Pesh  ,  Targ.,  Vulg.,  Vitr.,  Stier. 


break  the  mystic  marriage-tie  be- 
tween Jehovah  and  his  people. 

Comp.  Ezek.  xvi.  44,  45. And 

tliou  who  (thyself)  .  .  .  ]  The 
construction  is  abruptly  changed, 
with  a  striking  effect.  That  innate 
tendency  of  thine  has  passed  into 
act ;  comp.  Matt.  xii.  39,  xvi.  4, 
'adulterous  generation.'  The  rend, 
of  Vulg.  &c.  is  awkward  ;  Kloster- 
mann's  correction  is  plausible,  but 
unnecessary. 

4  Of  whom  do  ye  make  sport? 
.  .  .  ]  '  Who  are  they  that  ye 
find  a  luxurious  pleasure  in  tor- 
menting? Men  of  whom  "the 
world  is  not  worthy"  !  Judge  if 
ye  are  not  yourselves  fitter  objects 
of  scorn.3  '  Make  sport '  is  an  un- 
exampled rendering  (see  Iv.  2,  Iviii. 
14,  Ixvi.  n),  but  is  required  by  the 
context. 

6  Ye  who  inflame  yourselves 
.  .  .  ]  Referring  to  the  orgiastic 
cults  in  the  sacred  groves  of  Pales- 
tinian heathenism  l  (i.  29,  Ezek.  vi. 
13).  We  must  not,  however,  press 
the  details  of  the  description  which 
follows  too  far ;  there  is  an  '  adultery ' 
of  the  heart  (see  on  i.  21). Tere- 
binths] Comp.  Hos.  iv.  13,  '(They 
sacrifice)  under  oaks  and  poplars 
and  terebinths,  because  the  shade 
thereof  is  good.'  For  the  rend, 
see  Notes  and  Criticisms,  p.  38. 

— Under     every     green     tree] 


A  common  formula  in  the  later 
books  (see  i  Kings  xiv.  23,  2  Kings 
xvi.  4,  xvii.  10,  Jer.  ii.  20,  iii.  6,  13, 
Ezek.  vi.  13),  also  once  in  the  dis- 
puted Book  of  Deuteronomy  (xii. 

2). Who    slay    the    children] 

'  Slay '   here  = '  sacrifice,'   as   Ezek. 

xvi.  21  (in  a  similar  context). 

In  the  torrent-valleys]  The 
dry  channels  of  winter-torrents 
(wadys),  especially  that  of  Hinnom, 
were  the  scenes  of  the  child-sacri- 
fices to  the  'devouring'  Fire-god, 
Moloch.2  The  wildness  of  the  land- 
scape perhaps  suited  such  stern 
acts,  and  the  action  of  the  torrents 
produced  an  abundance  of  large 
rounded  stones  (such  as  are  so  often 
in  Ezekiel  contemptuously  called 
gilliillm,  'lumps,'  i.e.  shapeless 
masses)  for  Moloch's  altars. — Con- 
servative critics  have  with'much  rea- 
son pointed  out  that  the  topographi- 
cal references  in  this  verse  suggest 
that  the  prophecy  was  written  in 
Palestine  rather  than  in  Babylonia. 
*  I  need  scarcely  say,'  observes  Dr. 
Payne  Smith,  '  that  as  there  are  no 
torrents,  but  only  canals,  in  the  flat 
alluvial  soil  of  Babylonia,  so  there 
are  no  torrent-beds  there,  but  that 
these  form  a  common  feature  of 
the  landscape  in  Palestine  and  all 
mountainous  countries.' 3  See,  how- 
ever, note  on  xii.  19. 

6  The     smooth     stones]      The 


1  See  Graf  von  Baudissin,  Studien  zur  semitischen  Religionsgeschichte,  Heft  II., 
Abhandlung  2. 

2  On  these  child-sacrifices,  see  Kalisch's  Leviticus,  i.  365-7. 

3  Payne  Smith,   Prophecy  a  Preparation  fot   Christ,  p.  319  ;  comp.  Rutgers,  De 
echtheid,  enz.  p.  90. 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LVII 


thy  lot  ;  even  to  them  hast  thou  poured  out  drink-offerings, 
offered  meal- offerings.     Should  I  quiet  myself  in  spite  of  the 
things  ? 

7  Upon  a  mountain  lofty  and  raised  up  hast  thou  plac< 
thy  bed  :  even  thither  hast  thou  gone  up  to  offer  sacrifice 
8  And  behind  the  door  and  the  post  hast  thou  placed  thr 
memorial,  for  apart  from  me  hast  thou  uncovered,  and  gone 


large  smooth  stones  referred  to 
above  were  the  fetishes  of  the  pri- 
mitive Semitic  races,  and  anointed 
with  oil,  according  to  a  widely- 
spread  custom  (comp.  Ai'$oi  \mapoi 
lapides  uncti,  lubricati).  It  was 
such  a  stone  which  Jacob  took 
for  a  pillow,  and  afterwards  conse- 
crated by  pouring  oil  upon  it  (Gen. 
xxviii.  11,  1 8).  The  early  Semites 
and  reactionary,  idolatrous  Israel- 
ites called  such  stones  Bethels  (/3<u- 
riAoi,  SairvAia,  is  the  Phoenician 
form  of  Bethel  with  a  Greek  termi- 
nation), i.e.,  houses  of  El  (the  early 
Semitic  word  for  God) ;  the  '  Jeho- 
vist'  in  Gen.  /.  c.  implies  that  Jacob 
transferred  the  name  from  the 
stone  to  the  place  where  the  Divine 
being  appeared  to  him.  In  spite 
of  the  efforts  of  the  'Jehovist,'  who 
desired  to  convert  these  ancient 
fetishes  into  memorials  of  patri- 
archal history  (comp.  Gen.  xxxi. 
45-52),  the  old  heathenish  use  of 
them  seems  to  have  continued, 
especially  in  secluded  places  (comp. 
Kuenen's  fact-full  appendix,  Re- 
ligion of  Israel,  i.  39°-395)-. 

Thy  portion]  Here  we  begin  to 
meet  with  the  2nd  pers.  fern.,  Israel 
being  regarded  as  the  bride  of  her 
God,  but  at  the  same  time  as 
having  a  right  of  property  over 
him  (it  is  the  idea  of  the  'covenant' 
under  another  form).  With  deep 
irony,  the  speaker  unfolds  how 
Israel  has  exchanged  her  property 
in  the  Almighty  for  smooth,  po- 
lished blocks  of  stone.  '  Portion,' 
see  Jer.  x.  16,  Ps.  xvi.  5,  Ixxiii. 
26,  cxix.  57,  cxlii.  5  (in  all  these 
passages  the  term  is  used  of  Jeho- 


vah), and  comp.  Deut.  xxix.  26  (25), 
'gods  whom  they  had  not  known, 
and  whom  he  had  not  apportioned 

unto  them.' Hast  thou  poured 

out  .  .  ]  Here  begins  a  survey  of 
Jewish  idolatry  before  the  Exile. 
— Should  X  quiet  myself  .  .  .  ?] 
It  is  an  outbreak  of  Jehovah's 
grieved  love  or  'jealousy.'  Comp. 
Jer.  v.  2  (similar  phrase  in  similar 
context). 

7  The    heights    as   well    as   the 
depths  are  profaned  by  debasing 
rites  :  the  country  is  '  wholly  given 
to  idolatry.'     Beware  of  taking  the 
description  too  literally.     It  is  not 
so  much  the  licentious  character  of 
some  of  the  heathen  rites  which  is 
referred  to,  as  the  debased  moral 
and  spiritual  condition  connected 
with  idolatry. Upon    a   moun- 
tain]    Shrines    were    erected    by 
preference    upon    hills ;    comp.    2 
Kings  xvi.  4,  Hos.  iv.  13,  Jer.  ii. 
20,  Ezek.  vi.  13.     The  extent  of  the 
ancient  hill-religion   may  be  esti- 
mated by  the  number  of  mazdrs 
or   tomb-houses,   which    surmount 
almost   every   conspicuous  hill   in 
Palestine.       They    are    generally 
shaded    by    a    great    tree,    which, 
like  the  mazdr  itself,  is  held  sacred  ; 
'  rags  and  threads  hang  from  its 
branches  as  votive  offerings,  and 
the  name  of  a  saint  or  prophet  is 
often   connected  with   the    spot.' l 

Thy  bed]     Comp.  Jer.   iii.  2, 

Ezek.  xvi.,  xxiii. 

8  And  behind  the  door  ...  thy 
memorial]     The   expressions    are 
dark.     Most  recent  commentators 
(except  Ewald)  take  '  memorial '  to 
be   the    formula    'Jehovah   is   our 


1  Conder,  Quarterly  Statements  of  Palestine  Exploration  Fund,  1875,  p.  39;  Gan- 
neau,  La  Palestine  inconnue  (Paris,  1876),  pp.  49-52. 


CHAP.  LVII.] 


ISAIAH. 


up  ;  thou  hast  enlarged  thy  bed,  and  obtained  a  contract  from 
them  (?)  ;  thou  hast  loved  their  bed  ;  f  thou  hast  beheld  the 
phallus.*  9And  thou  hast  travelled  to  the  king  with  oil,  and 
hast  multiplied  thy  perfumes,  and  hast  sent  thy  messengers 
afar  off,  and  humbled  thyself  even  to  Sheol.  10With  the 
length  of  thy  journey  thou  hast  wearied  thyself ;  yet  thou  hast 
not  said,  It  is  without  result :  thou  didst  get  renewal  of  thy 

f  (Wherever)  thou  hast  beheld  an  (idolatrous)  monument,  Vitr. — Thou  hast  chosen 
a  place,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Kimchi,  Lowth,  Ges. 


God,  Jehovah  is  one,'  which,  ac- 
cording to  Deut.  vi.  9,  xi.  20,  was  to 
be  written  on  the  posts  of  the  house 
and  on  the  gates  ;  comp.  the  use  of 
'memorial'  in  Hos.  xii.  5.  Putting 
this  '  memorial '  behind  the  door  is 
thought  to  have  been  a  sign  of 
contempt.  But  surely  this  is  very 
doubtful :  the  new  position  of  this 
object  would  make  it  all  the  more 
conspicuous  to  the  inmates  of  the 
house.  Besides,  is  it  quite  certain 
that  the  direction  in  Deuteronomy 
was  so  carefully  carried  out,  or  even 
perhaps  intended  to  be  literally 
carried  out?  (I  waive  questions 
of  date.)  It  is  safer  to  return  to 
the  view  of  the  Targum  and  of 
Jerome,  viz.,  that  '  memorial'  =  idol 
(or  rather  idolatrous  symbol — the 
phallus).  So  too  Vitr.,  Lowth, 
Ewald,  Gratz  (comparing  the  Hebr. 

of  Ezek.  xvi.  17. Hast  beheld 

the  phallus]  i.e.,  '  didst  look  at  it 
with  pleasure'  (see  Del.'s  note). 
The  first  alt.  rend,  will  bear  the 
same  meaning  (comp.  '  thy  memo- 
rial '  in  the  first  verse-half). 

9  And  thou  hast  travelled  to 
the  king:]  There  is  the  same  point 
in  dispute  as  in  viii.  21,  xxx.  23, 
viz.,  whether  'king'  designates  the 
heavenly  or  the  earthly  ruler.  Dr. 
Payne  Smith  (Bampton  Lectures 
for  1869,  p.  323)  would  settle  the 
question  by  reading  Fmolek,  'to 
Molech  (or  Moloch),'  but  the 
phrase  'travelling  to  Molech'  has 
no  parallel,  and  a  comparison  of  v. 
1 1,  where  it  is  certainly  the  fear  of 


man  which  is  rebuked,  and  of  Ezek. 
xxiii.  40,  where  we  read  of  a  mes- 
senger being  sent  for  men  from 
afar,  favours  the  view  that  'king' 
here  means  king  of  Assyria.  It  is 
that  coquetting  with  heathen  powers 
which  is  here,  as  so  often  elsewhere, 
denounced.  -  With  oil]  So  Hos. 
xii.  I  (2).  -  Thy  messengers  afar 
off]  Comp.  the  negotiations  with 
Egypt  denounced  by  Isaiah  and 
Hosea,  the  Assyrian  alliance  of 
Ahaz,  and  the  coalition  formed  by 
Azariah  against  Tiglath-Pileser.1 
-  Hast  humbled  thyself  even 
to  Sheol]  'No  servility  was  too 
great  for  thee.'  Sheol  is  here  used 
metaphorically,  as  in  vii.  1  1  b  (see 
note).  A  reference  to  the  infernal 
deities  (Ew.)  seems  less  appro- 
priate. 

10  With  the  length  of  thy  jour- 
ney] i.e.,  not  merely  '  with  the  long 
journey  to  Assyria,'  but  '  with  thy 
ceaseless  quest  for  help  and  protec- 
tion,' including  of  course  embassies 
to  foreign  kings,  but  also  every 
other  specimen  of  untheocratic 
policy.  -  It  is  without  result] 


Lit.,  '  it  is  desperate.'  Sept. 
/Ltat.  The  word  is  the  same  as  in 
Jer.  ii.  25,  xviii.  12,  but  in  a  dif- 
ferent context.  --  Renewal  of  thy 
strength]  Vulg.,  '  vitam  manus 
tuse.'  The  Hebr.  idiom  is  similar 
to  that  in  Gen.  xviii.  10,  14,  'when 
this  season  liveth  (again),'  i.e.,  a 
year  hence.  -  Thou  feltest  not 
weak]  Dathe  (ap.  Stier),  '  non  sen- 
ds morbum  tuum.'  So  Jer.  v.  3, 


1  See  Smith,  Assyrian  Eponym  Cano?i,pp.  117-8,  Schrader,  K.  A.  T.,  pp.  114-120, 
and  especially  the  same  writer's  Keilinschriftcn  und  Geschichtsforschung  (Giessen, 
1878),  pp.  39S-42L 


ISAIAH. 


[(  HAP.  LVII. 


strength,  therefore  thou  feltest  not  weak.  n  And  at  whom  hast 
thou  been  alarmed  so  as  to  fear,  that  thou  hast  played  the 
traitor,  and  me  has  not  remembered,  neither  hast  taken  it  to 
thy  heart  ?  Surely  I  have  been  silent,  and  g  that  for  long,g 
and  therefore  thou  fearest  not  me.  127  will  make  known 
h  my  righteousness,  and  as  for  thy  works — they  cannot  profit 

*  Hiding  myself,  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Lowth  (omitting  one  letter,  and  pointing  differently). 

*  So  Pesh.,  Lowth,  Weir.— Thy,  Hebr.  text. 


'  Thou  hast  smitten  them,  and  they 
did  not  feel  weak.' 

11  And  at  whom  bast  thou  been 
alarmed  .  .  .  ]  The  verse  is  not 
ironical,  as  De  Dieu  and  others 
(misled  by  the  text-reading  of  -z/.  1 2a\ 
but  contains  a  kindly  remonstrance 
(comp.  li.  12,  13).  'Who  is  there 
so  strong  and  so  terrible  as  to  jus- 
tify thee  in  thy  infidelity  towards 
Jehovah?  No  one.  But  is  there 
no  excuse  for  the  behaviour  of  the 
Jews?  There  is,  viz.,  Jehovah's 
long  "silence"  (comp.  xlii.  14),  the 
cessation  of  his  interpositions  in 
behalf  of  his  people.'  This  seems 
to  me  the  easiest  way  to  explain  the 
connection,  which  is  certainly  rather 
loose,  between  the  two  halves  of 
the  verse.  Jehovah  admits,1  in 
other  words,  that  the  calamities  of 
the  Israelites  have  increased  their 
alienation  from  him  (comp.  Ixiii. 
17,  Ixiv.  5).  In  the  next  verse  he 
announces  that  he  will  try  a  new 
argument  with  these  walkers  'by 
sight'  and  not  'by  faith.' — Ewald 
thinks  the  prophet  here  resumes  in 
his  own  language,  dropping  that  of 
the  more  ancient  writer  to  whom 
he  ascribes  Ivi.  9~lvii.  1 1  a.  There 
is  at  any  rate  a  very  noticeable 
change  in  the  prophet's  tone,  which 
all  at  once  becomes  soft  and  en- 
couraging.  Surely  I  have  been 

silent  .  .  .  ]  '  Surely  it  is  because 
I  have  been  silent,  that  thou  ac- 
cordest  me  no  fear.'  Notice  the 
prominent  position  of  'me'  in  the 
Hebrew,  corresponding  to  the  em- 
phatic (because  otherwise  unneces- 
sary) mention  of  the  pronoun  '  I ' 
in  this  and  the  next  verse.  '  Surely,' 


lit., 'have  not  .  .  .' (prefixed  to  whole 
sentence  as  xxviii.  25).  'I  have 
been  silent,'  &c.  ;  comp.  xlii.  14 
(note).  The  participial  clause  in 
the  Hebr.  is  causal. 

13  /  will  make  known  ."..'] 
Jehovah  will  try  a  fresh  argument. 
If  'silence'  has  taught  no  lessons, 
the  speech  of  mingled  mercy  and 
judgment  may  work  more  effectu- 
ally on  the  heart.  Precisely  so,  in 
xlvi.  13,  the  same  Divine  speaker 
says  to  those  who  are  'far  from 
righteousness,'  '  I  bring  near  my 
righteousness.'  (Dr.  Weir  com- 
pares Ps.  xxii.  31,  xcviii.  2). — 
Those  who  retain  the  text-reading 
generally  explain  it  as  a  piece  of 
irony — '  I  will  show  thy  righteous- 
ness in  its  true  colours — as  "  filthy 
rags " '  (Ixiv.  6,  Auth.  Vers.).  I 
doubt  if  this  can  be  shown  to  suit 
the  context ;  in  the  next  chapter, 
which  expressly  deals  with  the 
self-righteous,  it  might  perhaps 
pass,  but  the  persons  addressed 
here  are  not  even  acknowledged 
as  worshippers  of  Jehovah.  Add 
to  this,  that  the  word  rendered 
'will  make  known'  is  constantly 
used  in  II.  Isaiah  of  the  prophetic 
revelation  of  the  deliverance  of 
Israel.  Kashi,  Hitzig,  and  Knobel 
avoid  a  part  of  the  objections  to  the 
text-reading  by  taking  the  words 
literally — '  I  will  show  thee  how  to 
obtain  righteousness,'  Rashi  sup- 
posing internal  righteousness  to  be 
intended,  the  other  two  external 
righteousness,'  i.e.,  deliverance, 
success  in  the  sight  of  men  (comp. 
liv.  17).  But  Rashi's  view  pre- 
supposes a  misinterpretation  of 


1  Per  questo  la  Scrittura  condiscende  \  A  vostra  facilitate,  ecc.  Dante,  Paradise,  iv. 
43^44- 


CHAP.  LVIL] 


ISAIAH. 


73 


thee.  13  When  thou  criest,  let  thy  *  medley  of  gods  *  deliver 
thee !  but  the  whole  of  them  the  wind  shall  carry  off,  a  breath 
shall  take  away,  while  he  that  taketh  refuge  in  me  shall 
inherit  the  land,  and  take  my  holy  mountain  in  possession. 
14  And  one  said,  Cast  up,  cast  up,  prepare  the  way  ;  take 
up  the  stumbling-block  out  of  the  way  of  my  people. 

15  For  thus  saith  the  high  and  exalted  One,  who  dwelleth 
for  ever,  whose  name  is  Holy  One  :  I  dwell  in  the  high  and  holy 

1  Abominations,  Weir  (emendation). 


'thy  works'  in  the  second  verse- 
half,  while  Hitzig's  and  Knobel's 
is  not  quite  suitable  in  this  connec- 
tion, for,  as  v.  13  shows,  there  must 
be  a  great  sifting  of  Israel  before 
Jehovah's  righteousness  can  become 
Israel's.  Even  in  liv.  17  (which 
Hitz.,  Knob,  ought  to  have  com- 
pared), it  is  only  of '  the  servants  of 
Jehovah'  that  the  phrase  'their 
righteousness '  i.e.,  their  '  outward 
justification')  is  used,  and  it  is  im- 
mediately qualified  by  the  addition 

1  (which  is)  of  me.' Thy  works] 

i.e.,  thy  idols  (xli.  29,  comp.  i.  31). 

— They  cannot  profit  thee]  A 
phrase  specially  belonging  to  idols 
(see  on  xliv.  10). 

13  When  thou  criest]  Under 
the  rod  of  chastisement.  The 
speaker  does  not  mean  to  empha- 
size the  terrors  of  the  judgment, 
but,  assuming  its  near  approach, 
shows  that  no  help  but  Jehovah's 
will  be  of  any  avail. Thy  med- 
ley of  grods]  The  idea  is  not  merely 
that  of  number  (comp.  Jer.  ii.  28), 
but  of  variety.  Jehovah  says  ironi- 
cally that  the  Jews  had  set  up 
a  kind  of  Pantheon,  open  to  all 
religions.  Comp.  Mic.  i.  7,  '  she 
heaped  them  (viz.,  the  idols)  together 
out  of  the  hire  of  a  harlot.'  The 
Hebr.  is  peculiar,  but  not  so  pecu- 
liar as  to  necessitate  Dr.  Weir's 
ingenious  correction. Shall  in- 
herit the  land]  viz.,  Judah  (xlix.  8). 
The  familiar  promise  attached 
sometimes  to  fulfilment  of  the  Law 
(Deut.  iv.  i,  comp.  40,  v.  33),  some- 
times to  moral  qualities,  such  as 
humility  (Ps.  xxxvii.  1 1),  righteous- 


ness (Ps.  xxxvii.  29),  and,  as  here, 
trust  in  Jehovah  (Ps.  xxxvii.  9). 
Comp.  Ivi.  7. 

14  And  one  said  .'..']  Another 
of  those  mysterious  voices   which 
fill  the  air  round  about  the  prophet. 
It  conveys  a  summons  to  prepare 
the  way  for  the  people  of  Jehovah 
(comp.  xl.  3,  Ixii.  10),  and  to  remove 
the  *  stumbling-blocks '  which  Jeho- 
vah himself  (Jer.  vi.  21  Weir)  had 
placed    in    Israel's    path.      Comp. 
xxvi.  7. 

15  Here  a  new  paragraph  begins 
— the  concluding  one  of   the    sec- 
tion.    The  ground  of  Israel's  hope 
of  salvation  is  the  combined  high- 
ness and  humbleness  (anavah  Ps. 
xviii.  36)  of  Jehovah  (comp.  Ixvi.  2, 
Ps.  cxxxviii.  6).     As  an  old  Jewish 
writer  says,  '  Wherever  the  Scrip- 
ture bears  witness   to   the   Divine 
mightiness,  it  brings  out   side   by 
side  with  it  the  Divine  humbleness, 
e.g.,   Deut.  x.    17,  comp.    18;  Isa. 
Ivii.  1 5  #,  comp.  1 5  £ ;  Ps.  Ixviii.  4, 
5.' 1      Jehovah   cannot   direct    the 
affairs  of  his  people  from  without  ; 
he  desires  to  be  enthroned  in  their 
hearts.      When    they    turn    away 
from  him,  he  punishes  them  ;  but 
by  gentle,  spiritual  means  he  moves 
them  to  return  to  him  as  penitent 

sinners. Who      dwelleth      for 

ever]    i.e.,    the    eternal,    the    un- 
changeable (like  '  the  First  and  the 

Last,'  xliv.  6). Whose  name  is 

Holy  One]  i.e.  who  reveal  myself 

as  the  Holy  One.  See  on  xl.  25. 

The  high  and  holy  place]  i.e.,  the 

heavenly  temple  (vi.    i). With 

him  also  that  is  crushed  .   .   .   ] 


Megilla,  31  a,  quoted  by  Del.  on  Ps.  xviii. 


74 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LVII. 


place,  with  him  also  that  is  crushed  and  lowly  in  spirit,  to  revive 
the  spirit  of  the  lowly,  and  to  revive  the  heart  of  those  who 
arc  crushed.  16  For  I  will  not  contend  for  ever,  nor  will  I  be 
wrathful  continually,  for  the  spirit  would  faint  before  me, 
and  the  souls  which  /  have  made.  17  For  his  unjust  gain  I 
was  wrathful  and  smote  him  ;  I  hid  my  face,  and  was  wrath- 
ful, because  he  went  on  perversely  in  the  way  of  his  own 


'  With,'  i.e.,  in  close  proximity  to. 
The  prophet  implicitly  contradicts 
the  Epicureans  of  his  day,  who  de- 
nied what  the  psalmist  (above)  calls 
the  *  humbleness  '  of  God,  and  said, 

*  Is    not    God    in    the    height    of 
heaven  ?    how    can   he    perceive  ? ' 
(Job  xxii.   12,   13).     '  Crushed,'  not 
4  contrite '  (Auth.  Vers.  after  Vulg.), 
which    is  a  misleading   rendering. 
'  Crushed  in  spirit '  is  almost  syno- 
nymous with  lowly,  hills  being  the 
emblem  of  pride,  and  level  land  of 
humility ;    it    implies,   in  addition, 
that  the  lowly  state  of  mind    has 
been  produced  by  affliction — in  the 
present  case,  the  affliction  of  Zion  ; 
comp.  Ixi.   i,  2,  Ixv.  14,  Ixvi.  2,  Ps. 
xxxiv.  1 8  (19),  cxlvii.  2,  3. 

16  Jehovah  is  'a  wise  and  faith- 
ful   Creator.' For   X   will    not 

contend  .  .  .  ]       To   *  contend  '  = 
to  send   adversity,   to    punish    (as 
xxvii.  8).     The  idea  of  this  verse  is 
very  characteristic  of  the   tender- 
hearted   author ;   see   xlii.    3,    and 
comp.    Ps.   ciii.   9,   Ixxviii.    38,   39 

(post-Exile  psalms). The  souls 

which  /  have  made]  The  expres- 
sion is  noteworthy,  as  implying  the 
separate  personality  of  man  (comp. 
Zech.  xii.    i,  Jer.  xxxviii.  16)  ;  the 
Old    Testament    writers    are    not 
always  equally  explicit  (see  Ps.  civ. 
29,  Job  xxxiv.  14).     The  choice  of 
the  word  for  '  soul'  (neshamah,  lit., 

*  breath '    is   itself    significant ;    it 
means  the  principle  of  life  breathed 
immediately  by  God  into  the  human 
body  (Gen.  ii.  7),  the  self-conscious 
personal  spirit. 

17  For   his    unjust   grain]     Lit., 

*  for  the  iniquity  of  his  gain.'     Del. 
renders  '  for  the  guilt  of  his  self- 
seeking,'    i.e.,    for    his    desire    for 
worldly  possessions.     I  doubt  if  we 


have  a  right  to  introduce  such  a 
paraphrase  into  the  text ;  the  more 
so,  as  it  is  perhaps  not  strictly  ac- 
curate. The  fact  is,  that  'unjust 
gain '  is  used  by  the  prophets  and 
psalmists,  precisely  in  the  same 
way  as  '  bloodshed,'  as  a  repre- 
sentative of  the  besetting  sins  of 
the  Jews.  Jeremiah,  for  instance, 
says  (vi.  1 3),  *  For  from  the  least 
unto  the  greatest  of  them  every 
one  gaineth  unjust  gain '  :  else- 
where (v.  i)  he  even  denies  that 
there  is  a  single  man  of  probity 
and  justice  left.  Similarly,  Ezekiel 
says  (xxxiii.  31), '  Their  heart  goeth 
after  their  unjust  gain,'  and  the 
typical  righteous  man  in  Ps.  cxix. 
(v.  36)  prays, '  Incline  my  heart  to 
thy  testimonies  and  not  to  unjust 
gain,'  and  the  very  prophecy  before 
us  singles  out  the  passion  for  money 
as  the  chief  sin  of  the  spiritual 
shepherds  of  the  Jews.  It  is  just 
the  same  with  the  sin  of  murder 
(including  doubtless  judicial  mur- 
der), which  is  laid  at  the  door  of 
the  Jews  with  a  really  surprising 
persistency ;  comp.  i.  1 5,  v.  7, 
xxxiii.  15,  lix.  3,  Jer.  ii.  34,  Ezek. 
vii.  23,  Hos.  iv.  2,  Mic.  iii.  10,  vii. 
2,  Prov.  i.  ii.  We  are,  therefore, 
abundantly  justified  in  supposing 
that  where  a  prophet  or  a  psalmist 
seems  to  lay  a  disproportionate  em- 
phasis on  a  single  sin,  such  as  mur- 
der or  unjust  gain,  he  means  to 
include  all  the  other  besetting  sins 
of  the  Jews  under  this  head,  espe- 
cially, of  course,  those  sins  of  vio- 
lence, to  which  the  upper  classes 
(chiefly  addressed  by  the  prophets) 
were  peculiarly  prone.  Only  thus 
can  we  understand  a  passage  like 
the  present,  which  seems  to  ascribe 
the  Exile  to  simple  '  covetousness,' 


CHAP.  LVII.] 


ISAIAH. 


75 


heart.  18  His  ways  have  I  seen,  k  and  I  will  heal  him  ;  and  I 
will  lead  him,  and  give  a  requital  of  comfort  to  him  and  to  his 
mournful  ones.  19  }  He  createth  ]  the  fruit  of  the  lips  ;  '  Peace, 
peace  to  the  far  off  and  to  the  near/  saith  Jehovah,  '  for  I 
will  heal  him.'  20  But  the  wicked  are  like  the  sea  that  is  tost 

k  But,  Ges.,  Naeg. 

1  So  Kay. — I  create,  Rashi,  Kimchi,  Calv.,  Vitr. — I  have  created,  Vulg. — He  who 
createth,  Naeg.  ;  or,  created,  Ew. — Creating,  Sept.,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Del. — I  who  created, 
Targ.  (connected  with  v.  18  ;  so  also  Ges.). 


and  like  Ps.  li.  14,  where  the  typical 
Israelite,  who  makes  no  other  in- 
dividualising reference,  and  else- 
where lays  the  chief  stress  on  his 
sinful  nature,  prays,  '  Deliver  me 
from  (the  guilt  of)  bloodshed  .  .  . 
and  my  tongue  shall  sing  aloud 
of  thy  righteousness.'  I  may  add, 
that  there  is  perhaps  a  special 
reason  here  for  the  selection  of 
'unjust  gain'  as  a  representative 
sin  in  the  Divine  law  of  the  corre- 
spondence of  punishment  to  guilt. 
Land  being  the  object  of  a  high- 
born Jew's  covetousness,  expulsion 
from  his  land  was  to  be  his  punish- 
ment ;  see  v.  8,  9,  Jer.  vi.  12,  13. 

18  His  ways  have  I  seen]     Je- 
hovah has  seen  the  thorny  ways  in 
which  His  people  has  been  wander- 
ing; He  will  heal  his  wounds  (xxx. 
26),  and    guide   him  by  an  easier 
path  (Iviii.  11),  or,  as  Ew.,  '  I  have 
seen  the  amendment  of  his  ways.' 

— A  requital  of  comfort]  As  a 
compensation  for  his  long  suffer- 
ings (comp.  on  xl.  2). And  to 

his  mournful  ones]  ('And'  = 
namely).  So  Ixi.  2,  3  ;  comp.  the 
fuller  phrase  in  Ixvi.  10. 

19  He  createth  .  .  .  ]  It  is  an  ex- 
clamation of  the  prophet  (Kay)  ;  a 
participial  clause,  as  in  xl.  22,  23. 

— The  fruit  of  the  lips]  This 
may  mean  (i)  praise  and  thanks- 
giving (as  Ges.,  Ew.,  Del.,  Kay)  ; 
comp.  Hos.  xiv.  2,  Heb.  xiii.  15.  On 
this  view  of  the  passage,  it  contains 
a  second  argument  (the  first  being 
drawn  from  Jehovah's  mercifulness) 
for  the  '  healing '  or  restoration  of 
Israel,  viz.  that  praise  is  one  of 
God's  '  creations  '  or  appointments, 
and  that  Israel,  having  been 
'formed'  to  'tell  out  His  praise' 


(xliii.  21),  must  not  be  hindered 
from  his  mission.  Or  (2)  with  Je- 
rome, the  Rabbis,  Calv.,  Hitz., 
Henderson,  we  may  take  'the  fruit 
of  the  lips  '  to  refer  to  the  word  of 
Jehovah  which  follows.  In  any 
case  it  is  not  ordinary  speech 
which  is  thus  described,  but  some 
happy  and  happy-making  commu- 
nication, worthy  to  be  called  a 
'fruit'  (as  in  Prov.  x.  31),  comp. 
Mohammed's  saying  of  the  garden 
of  Eden,  '  No  vain  discourse  shall 
they  hear  therein,  but  only  "  peace  " ' 
(Koran,  Sur.  xix.  63).  But  the 
first  way  is  surely  the  preferable 
one.  Hitherto  the  lips  of  faithful 
Israelites  ('his  mournful  ones')  have 
been  sealed  by  sorrow  ;  now  Je- 
hovah, by  his  creative  word,  causes 

them  to  blossom  with  praise. 

Peace,  peace]    i.e.,  perfect  peace 

(as  xxvi.  3). To  the  far  off  and 

to  the  near]  i.e.,  either  '  to  the 
Gentile  and  to  the  Jew'  (Stier, 
Naeg.,  after  Eph.  ii.  17,  comp.  xlii. 
6),  or,  which  suits  the  context 
better,  *  to  him  who  is  far  from  Je- 
rusalem and  to  him  who  is  near  to 
it '  (Kimchi,  Calv.,  Ew.,  Del.),  see 
Dan.  ix.  7,  and  comp.  xliii.  5-7, 
xlix.  12.  No  degree  of  remoteness 
was  to  disqualify  true  Israelites  for 
the  enjoyment  of  the  promise. 

20,21  A  moving  contrast.  The 
ungodly]  those  who  are,  whether 
only  inwardly  or  also  outwardly,  in 
a  state  of  alienation  from  Jehovah, 
shall  never  '  enter  into  peace.'  For 
the  figure,  comp.  Jude  13,  'wild 
waves  of  the  sea,  foaming  out  their 
own  shame.'  This  closing  sentence 
of  the  second  portion  of  prophecy 
agrees  with  xlviii.  22,  except  that 
'my  God'  comp.  vii.  13)  is  substi- 


76  ISAIAH.  [CHAP.  LVIII. 

up,  for  it  cannot  rest,  and  its  waters  toss  up  mire  and  mud. 
21  There  is  no  peace,  saith  m  my  God,  m  to  the  ungodly. 

»  Jehovah,  many  Hebr.  MSS.— God,   Sept.   (Vatican  MS.).  Targ. —Jehovah  my 
God,  a  very  few  Hebr.  MSS.— The  Lord  [Jehovah]  Elohim,  Sept.  (Alex.  MS.),  Vulg. 

tuted  for  'Jehovah,'  as  if  the  speaker  his  office.     Jehovah  is  in  a  special 

would   thus   put   his   seal    to    the  sense  the  God  of  *  his  servants  the 

Divine  oracle.     The  phrase  is  self-  prophets' (Am.  iii.  7). 
assertive ;    the   prophet   magnifies 


CHAPTER  LVIII. 

Contents. — The  Jewish  nation  is  first  rebuked  for  its  formal  religion, 
shown  especially  in  its  unspiritual  mode  of  fasting,  which  deprives  its 
prayers  for  deliverance  of  all  efficacy  (vv.  1-4) ;  then  the  true  mode  of 
fasting  is  held  up  for  imitation  (w.  5-12)  ;  finally,  the  .duty  of  Sabbath- 
observance  is  inculcated,  and  a  promise  of  '  inheriting  the  land '  attached 
to  it.  The  practical  tone  here  adopted  reminds  us  of  Ivi.  1-8  (see  intro- 
ductory remarks). 

1  Call  with  the  throat,  hold  not  back  ;  like  a  trumpet  raise 
thy  voice,  and  declare  unto  my  people  their  rebellion,  and 
unto  the  house  of  Jacob  their  sins.  2  And  (yet)  me  they  con- 
sult daily,  and  to  know  my  ways  they  desire  :  as  a  nation  that 
hath  done  righteousness,  and  hath  not  forsaken  the  law  of 
its  God,  they  ask  of  me  judgments  of  righteousness,  athe 
approach  of  God  they  desire.*  3  Wherefore  have  we  fasted, 

0  So  most  moderns. — In  approaching  to  God  they  delight,  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Targ., 
Vulg.,  Calv.,  Vitr.,  Kay. 

1  Call  with   the  throat]     Not  is  the  usual  word  for  applying  to 
merely    with    the  lips,   i.e.,  softly  an  oracle  or  a  prophet,  and  no  doubt 
(i  Sam.  i.  13),  but  'a  plein  gosier,'  consultations  of  the  prophet  are  in- 
as  Calvin  puts  it.    Comp.  Ps.  cxlix.  eluded  (see  Ezek.  xx.  i),  but  direct 
1 6,  '  High  praises  of  God  in  their  prayer  to  God  is  also  meant  (see  v. 

throat.' Declare  unto  my  peo-  4  and  comp.  Iv.  6). Itty  ways] 

pie  .  .  .  ]   A  reminiscence  of  Mic.  i.e.,  my  dealings  with  my  people. 

iii.    8.      Obs.,   the   priests  are  not  The  law]    Hebr.  mishpat  (see 

mentioned  in  this  homily ;  the  laity  on      xlii.     i). Judgments      of 

alone  are  addressed.  righteousness]  i.e.,  manifestations 

2  And  (yet)  .  .  .  ]     Rebellious  in  act  of  Jehovah's  fidelity  to  his 
and    sinful    as  they  are.      Or  else  covenant-engagements  with  Israel. 

understand,  '  For  they  deem  them-  Comp.  on  lix.  9. The  approach 

selves  to  be  righteous,' and  continue  of  God]  i.e.,  his  approach  to  judg- 

*  and  ( =  consequently)  they  consult  ment.     Alt.  rend,  spoils  the  paral- 
me,'    &c. Me     they    consult]  lelism. 

*  Me '  is  put  emphatically  at  the  be-  3  Wherefore  have  we  fasted] 
ginning  of  the  verse — *  tnet  the  All-  The   reproofs   in  this  part  of  the 
holy  and  the  All-just.'     'Consult'  prophecy  remind  us  of  Zech.  vii.  5, 


CHAP.  LVIII.J 


ISAIAH. 


77 


and  thou  seest  not — humbled  our  soul,  and  thou  takest  no 
notice  ?  Behold,  in  your  fasting  ye  pursue  business,  and  all 
your  b  tasks  ye  exact.b  4  Behold,  it  is  for  strife  and  conten- 
tion ye  fast,  and  to  smite  with  the  fist  of  wickedness  :  ye  do 
not  so  fast  at  this  time  as  to  make  your  voice  to  be  heard  in 
the  height  6  Can  such  be  the  fast  that  I  choose,  the  day 
when  a  man  humbleth  his  soul  ?  Is  it  to  bow  down  one's 
head  like  a  bulrush,  and  to  make  sackcloth  and  ashes  his 
couch  ?  Wilt  thou  call  this  a  fast,  and  a  day  acceptable  to 

b  So  Ges.  (Thesaurus),  Hitz.,  Naeg.,  Weir. — Workmen  ye  drive,  Ges.  (Commen- 
tary), Ew.,  Del. 


6  (comp.  viii.  19),  Joel  ii.  12,  13. 
Fasting,  both  public  and  private, 
appears  to  have  become  more  and 
more  prevalent  in  and  after  the 
Babylonian  period  ;  the  passage  be- 
fore us  may  refer  equally  to  special 
private  fasts  and  to  those  required 
by  the  ecclesiastical  authorities 
(comp.  Matt.  ix.  14,  Luke  xviii.  12). 
The  effect  of  the  prophetic  exhorta- 
tions was  peculiar  (see  on  v.  7) ;  it 
was  not  till  after  the  last  siege  of  Je- 
rusalem that  the  evil  of  formal  fast- 
ing began  to  be  at  all  generally  felt. 
That  great  calamity,  however,  did 
open  the  eyes  of  the  Jewish  people. 
The  short  homily  on  the  fasting 
of  the  heart,  which,  according  to 
Taanith,  ii.  I,  was  pronounced  at 
public  fasts,  is  quite  in  the  spirit  of 
the  prophetic  exhortations  ;  comp. 
also  quotations  from  Talmud  (Ne- 
darim  babli,  p.  10  #,  Kiddushin 
jerush.,  end),  in  Gratz's  Kohelet, 

pp.  33,  34. Humbled  our  soul] 

A  characteristic  phrase  of  the  Le- 
vitical  legislation,  which  almost  (I 
must  not  say  '  entirely,'  for  in  Ps. 
xxxv.  13,  the  two  forms  of  expres- 
sion are  combined)  supplanted  the 
word  '  to  fast ;'  see  Lev.  xvi.  29,  31, 
xxiii.  27,  32,  Num.  xxix.  7,  xxx.  13. 
It  was  evidently  a  well-known 
technical  phrase  when  our  prophet 
wrote,  for  in  v.  5  he  uses  it  as  such, 

simply  deepening  its  meaning. 

Ye  pursue  business]  -(The  rend, 
'business'  seems  absolutely  neces- 
sary here,  as  also  in  Ecclesiastes, 
where  Sept.  renders  rpay/za.  It  is 
doubtful,  however,  in  spite  of  Ges., 


whether  this  meaning  can  be  es- 
tablished elsewhere.)  Unlike  the 
Sabbath,  the  fast-days  (except  the 
great  Day  of  Atonement)  appear 
not  to  have  involved  the  cessation 
of  business.  Hence  the  prophet 
continues,  All  your  tasks  ye  ex- 
act] Ye  are  specially  anxious  at 
such  times  that  the  service  of  God 
should  not  interfere  with  that  of 
mammon.  Ye  *  exact '  the  full  tale 
of  works,  like  slave-drivers  (the 
participle  of  the  verb  has  this 
meaning,  see  Ex.  v.  6,  Job  iii.  18). 
'The  prophet  paints  throughout 
from  the  life,'  observes  Delitzsch 
in  his  first  edition,  '  and  we  cannot 
be  persuaded  by  Stier's  false  zeal 
for  Isaiah's  authorship  to  give  up 
the  opinion  that  we  have  here  a 
figure  drawn  from  the  experience 
of  the  exiles  in  Babylon  ! '  That 
the  prophet  paints  from  the  life  is 
certain,  but  no  more  that  this. 

4  Behold,  it  is  for  strife  .  .  .  ] 
The  only  result  of  this  formal  fast- 
ing is  strife  and  violence. Ye 

do  not  so  fast  .  .  .  ]  This  glaring 
inconsistency  prevents  your  prayers 
for  a  Divine  interposition  (v.  2) 
from  rising  to  the  pure  '  height,' 
where  Jehovah  dwelleth  (Ivii.  15 
Hebr.).  Comp.  Lam.  iii.  44,  '  Thou 
hast  covered  thyself  with  clouds,  so 
that  prayer  may  not  pass  through.' 

When  a  man  humbleth  his 

soul]  viz.,  according  to  the  inten 

tion  of  the   legislator. Iiike    a 

bulrush]  '  With  a  merely  physical 
inclination  of  the  head'  (Kay). — 
Wilt  thou  call]     From  this  point 


ISAIAH. 


[_i: H,\  p.  LVIII. 


Jehovah?  6  Is  not  this  the  fast  that  I  choose  — to  loose  the 
bands  of  wickedness,  to  untie  the  thongs  of  the  yoke,  and  to 
set  them  that  are  crushed  at  liberty,  and  that  ye  burst  in 
sunder  every  yoke  ?  7  Is  it  not  to  break  thy  bread  to  the  hungry, 
and  that  thou  bring  miserable  outcasts  to  their  home  ?  When 
thou  seest  the  naked,  that  thou  cover  him,  and  hide  not  thy- 
self from  thine  own  flesh  ?  8  Then  shall  thy  light  break  forth 
as  the  morning,  thy  new  flesh  shall  quickly  shoot  forth,  and 
thy  righteousness  shall  go  before  thee,  and  the  glory  of  Jeho- 
vah shall  be  thy  rearward.  9  Then  shalt  thou  call,  and  Jehovah 
shall  answer  ;  thou  shalt  cry,  and  he  shall  say,  Here  I  am. 
If  thou  remove  from  the  midst  of  thee  the  yoke,  the  stretching 
out  of  the  finger,  and  speaking  wickedness,  10  and  minister  thy 

the  prophet  addresses  personified      8,  and  especially  Neh.  v.  8. To 

Israel  (see  v.  14). 

6  To  untie  the   thongrs   of  the 
yoke]     Metaphorically,  of  course. 
The  elaborate  and  merciful  legisla- 
tion for  the  protection  of  Hebrew 
slaves  (Ex.  xxi.  2  &c.,  Deut.  xv.  12 
&c.,  Lev.  xxv.  39  &c.)  appears  to 
have  been  long  a  dead  letter  (see 
Jer.  xxxiv.  8-22)— a  warning,  be  it 
observed,  not  to  attach  too  much 
importance   to  the  argumentiim  e 
silentio  with  regard  to  the  date  of 
Hebrew  laws. — As  to  the  Jewish 

yoke,  see  Del.'s  note  on  x.  27. To 

set  them  that  are  crushed  .  .  .]  In 
the  spirit  of  him  who  cherishes  the 
*  crushed  reed'  (xlii.  3,  same  word). 

7  The  same  duties  are  enforced 
by  the  great  Exile-prophet  Ezekiel 
(xviii.  7,   1 6).     These  and   similar 
exhortations    seem    to    have    had 
great     effect     in     the     post-Exile 
period  ;   in  fact,  a  new  formalism 
appears    to    have    arisen     out    of 
them  (Matt.  vi.   1-4).     Comp.  the 
LXX.  rendering  of  i.  27  6,  and  the 
Rabbinic   use    of    '  righteousness ' 
(tfdakah}   for  alms-giving — a  fore- 
announcement  of  which  is  found  as 
early  as  Dan.  iv.  27,  '  redeem  thy 
sins  by  beneficence'  (lit.,  righteous- 
ness,'   see    Q.P.B.}. To    break 

thy  bread]    Alluding  to   the  oval 
cakes   which    formed    the   Jewish 

bread. miserable       outcasts] 

Referring    probably    to    Jews     in 
foreign  slavery  ;  comp.  Joel  iii.  2- 


their  home]    i.e.,  to   their   native 

land    (as    xiv.     17). Hide    not 

thyself ]  =  turn    not    coldly    away 

(Deut.    xxii.     i). Thine    own 

flesh]  not  merely  thine  own  kindred 
(Gen.  xxix.  14,  xxxvii.  27),  but,  more 
broadly,  thine  own  countrymen  ; 
see  the  close  parallel  in  Neh.  v.  5. 
8-14  A  series  of  glorious  pro- 
mises to  the  obedient. Thy 

righteousness]  i.e.,  thy  justifica- 
tion in  the  eyes  of  all  the  world 
(liv.  17) ;  or,  perhaps  more  suitably, 
thy  inward,  personal  righteousness 

(i.  27,  xxxiii.  5, 6). The  grlory  of 

Jehovah  .  .  .  ]  Almost  word  for 
word  as  in  Iii.  12. 

9  Then   shalt  thou   call  •  •   •  ] 
A  contrast  to  the  unacceptable  and 
unanswered    prayers    of   the    past 

(w.  2,  4). The  stretching  out 

of  the  fingrer]  The  middle  finger, 
the  *  infamis  digitus,'  Pers.  ii.  33. 
The  objects  of  contempt  are  not 
mentioned,  but  can  be  easily  sup- 
plied from  the  context.     I  doubt  if 
we  have  a  right  to  compare  Ivii.  4, 
Ixvi.  5  : — there  is  no  mention  in  this 
chapter  of  a  party  entirely  hostile 
to    belief   in    Jehovah. Speak- 
ing- wickedness]  i.e.,  as  the   con- 
text   shows,   plotting  evil    against 
others. 

10  And     minister     thy    suste- 
nance .  .  .  ]  Surely  not  *  thy  dain- 
ties'    (as    Knob.).     The  noun  lite- 
rally means  '  thy  soul,'  i.e.,  that  in 


CHAP.  LVIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


79 


sustenance  to  the  hungry,  and  satisfy  the  humbled  soul ;  then 
shall  thy  light  rise  in  darkness,  and  thy  thick  darkness  be  as 
the  noon,  H  and  Jehovah  shall  lead  thee  continually,  and  satisfy 
thy  soul  in  dry  places,  and  thy  bones  shall  he  make  supple  ; 
and  thou  shalt  be  like  a  well-watered  garden,  and  like  a  foun- 
tain whose  waters  disappoint  not.  l2  And  cthy  children  shall 
build  up c  the  ancient  ruins  ;  thou  shalt  raise  up  the  founda- 
tions of  past  generations,  and  men  shall  call  thee  Repairer  of 
the  breach,  Restorer  of  roads  for  habitation. 

13  If  thou  turn  thy  foot  from  the  Sabbath,  so  as  not  to  do 
thy  business  on  my  holy  day,  and  call  the  Sabbath  a  delight, 
the  holy  thing  of  Jehovah  honourable,  and  honour  it,  so  as 
not  to  do  after  thy  wont,  nor  pursue  thy  business,  nor  speak 

c  So  Weir  (emendation). — Through  thee  shall  be  built  up,  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Ew., 
Bottcher,  (so  too  nonnulli,  mentioned  by  Calvin). — (They  that  shall  spring)  from  thee 
shall  build  up,  Hebr.  text,  according  to  most. 


which  thy  life  consisteth  (Deut. 
xxiv.  6),  not  '  dainties,'  but  bread. 
[This  verse  shows  how  unsafe  is 
the  common  argument  that  such 
and  such  a  Hebrew  word  must 
have  a  particular  meaning,  because 
it  has  this  meaning  somewhere  else 
in  the  same  section.  Here  is  '  soul ' 
used  in  two  senses  close  together.] 
— The  humbled  soul]  '  Hum- 
bled,' not  by  formal  fasting,  but  by 
misery. 

11  Shall  lead  thee  continually] 
For  it  was  not  enough  to  be  guided 
(or  to  have  been  guided  back)  to 

Palestine:    see    on    xl.    n. In 

dry   places]     The    Messianic  age 
seems  to  have  receded  for  a  time 
into  the  dim  distance.     There  are 
still  *  dry  places '  to  apprehend,  but 
a  foretaste  of  the  expected  blessings 

shall  be  granted  to  the  faithful. 

Ziike  a  well-watered  garden]   So 
Jer.  xxxi.   12  (nowhere   else) ;    for 
the  idea,  comp.  xliv.  3,  4. 

12  Shall  build  up  .  .  .  ]  Closely 

parallel  with  Ixi.  4. The  ancient 

ruins]  Lit.,  the  ruins  of  antiquity  ; 
by  'antiquity'  is  meant   the   long 
period  of  the  Exile  (comp.  xlii.  14, 

Ivii.    ii    Hebr.). The    breach] 

i.e.,   the   broken    down   walls. 

Roads  for  habitation]  We  should 


have  expected  'roads  for  travelling,' 
but  Job  xxiv.  13  proves  that  'to  in- 
habit roads '  is  an  idiomatic  Hebrew 
phrase.  It  seems  to  have  come 
from  a  time  when  a  large  part  of 
the  country  was  uninhabitable,  be- 
cause devoid  of  roads. 

13<  I4  The  prophet  evidently  re- 
gards the  fast-days  as  mere  forms 
without  authority  or  significance. 
All  the  more  strict  is  his  view  of 

the  claims  of  the  Sabbath. Turn 

thy  foot  from  the  Sabbath]  As  if 
it  were  holy  ground  (Ex.  iii.  5).     A 
similar  phrase  in  Prov.  iv.  27. — 
Thy    wont]     Lit.,    thy    ways,    i.e., 
thy  wonted  round  of  occupations. 

MTor  speak  -words]    Not  that 

either  now  or  at  any  later  time 
absolute  silence  was  a  part  of  the 
unwritten  Sabbath-law  (see  Del.'s 
note),  but  that  '  in  the  multitude  of 
words  there  wanteth  not  transgres- 
sion' (Prov.  x.  19,  comp.  Eccles.  v. 
3).  So  '  a  man  of  tongue  '  =  a  ma- 
licious speaker,  Ps.  cxl.  11  (comp. 
v.  9  above).  The  phrase  will  also 
cover  false  or  unfounded  statements 
(Hos.  x.  4,  Job  xv.  13?)  'words  of 
the  lips '  (xxxvi.  5).  Observe  the 
emphasis  laid  on  «/<?;Y/J,  both  human 
and  divine,  as  well  in  the  Old  as  in 
the  New  Test.  (comp.  on  ix.  8). 


8o 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i. ix. 


words  ;  M  then  shalt  thou  delight  thyself  in  Jehovah,  and  I 
will  make  thce  to  ride  over  the  heights  of  the  land,  and  to  cat 
the  inheritance  of  Jacob  thy  father;  for  the  mouth  of  Jehovah 
hath  spoken  it. 

14  Tben  shalt  thou  delight  thy-       over  .  .  .  ]  i.e.,  to  take  triumphal 
self  .  .  .  ]     The  condition   being,      possession    of    Palestine   with    its 

L     J  £   A!.  ~.         AA  11     4-V*  j-t     C  «-k  VtVL*-k4-V»     n     A  *%1  ?  sv1t  4-    *  J-*  illr-     *\**A     f*-\+*t-+-f\f*e*  c*.f     /  T^*iii4-       wvii         ¥   *> 


If  thou  call  the  Sabbath  a  delight, 
we  should  expect  the  apodosis  to 
run  '  Then  shall  Jehovah  delight 
himself  in  thee,'  and  this  is  evi- 
dently the  meaning. To  ride 


hills  and  fortresses  (Deut.  xxxii.  13, 
comp.  xxxiii.  29).  Comp.  for  the 
idea  Ixv.  9  ;  also  Ezek.  xxxiv.  13,  14, 
xxxvi.  1-12  (obs.  Ezekiel's  passion 
for  'the  mountains  of  Israel'). 


CHAPTER  LIX. 

Contents. — This  chapter  continues  the  subject  of  chap.  Iviii.  With  all  its 
observance  of  the  outward  forms  of  religion,  the  prophet's  contemporaries 
(unless  we  suppose  his  point  of  view  to  be  ideal,  that  is,  prophetically 
imaginative,  and  not  historical)  are  guilty  of  open  violations  of  the  moral 
law  (w.  1-8).  But  soon  the  prophet  assumes  that  his  admonitions  have 
borne  fruit.  The  Jews  penitently  confess  their  sins,  and  their  breach  of 
the  covenant  with  Jehovah  ;  they  lament  their  unhappy  state,  and  own 
that  they  have  no  claim  upon  their  God  for  assistance  (w.  9-1 5  a).  Then 
follows  a  splendid  theophany.  As  there  is  no  other  champion,  Jehovah 
interposes.  The  last  verse  communicates  a  special  word  of  promise  to 
the  true  Israel. — The  first  part  of  the  chapter  presents  affinities  to 
Proverbs  (see  especially  on  vv.  7,  8),  and  to  Ps.  Iviii.  (see  Kay,  The  Book 
of  Psalms,  p.  181). 

1  Behold,  the  hand  of  Jehovah  is  not  too  short  to  deliver, 
nor  his  ear  too  heavy  to  hear  ;  2  but  your  iniquities  have  been 
separating  between  you  and  your  God,  and  your  sins  have 
hidden  the  Face  from  you,  so  that  he  heareth  not.  3  For  your 


1  The  prophet  meets  some  im- 
plied objections  of  the  Jews. 

The  hand  of  Jehovah  •"••'] 
Comp.  1.  2,  Num.  xi.  23. 

8  Your  iniquities  .  .  .  ]  '  For  a 
long  time  past  your  acts  have  been 
belying  your  professions,  and  pre- 
cluding an  answer  to  your  prayers ' 

(Iviii.  2-4). Have  hidden  the 

Face  .  .  .  ]  '  The  Face '  means 
much  the  same  as  *  the  Name  of 


Jehovah,'  i.e.,  the  self-manifesting 
side  of  the  Divine  nature  (see  on 
Ixiii.  9,  i.  12,  xl.  10).  Notice  the 
absence  both  of  article  and  of 
suffix  (in  the  Hebrew)'  '  Face ' 
(pdnijri)  has  almost  become  a 
proper  name.1 

3  Your  hands]  '  The  very  hands 
ye  stretch  out  in  prayer,  i.  1 5 '  (Dr. 

Weir). Are  defiled  with  blood] 

On  this  accusation,  the  strangeness 


1  The  only  other  passages  in  which  histlr  ( '  to  hide ')  and  pantm  ( '  face ')  without  a 
suffix  occur  together  are,  according  to  Dr.  Weir,  liii.  3,  Job  xxxiv.  29.  In  the  former 
passage  there  is  no  occasion  for  a  suffix  ;  in  the  latter,  it  is  '  the  Face  '  of  Jehovah,  as 
here,  which  is  spoken  of. 


CHAP.  LIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


8r 


hands  are  defiled  with  blood,  and  your  fingers  with  iniquity  ; 
your  lips  speak  lies,  and  your  tongue  muttereth  depravity. 
4  None  a  preferreth  his  suit a  with  truthfulness,  and  none 
pleadeth  with  honesty ;  they  trust  in  chaos,  and  speak  empti- 
ness ;  they  conceive  trouble,  and  bring  forth  iniquity.  5  Basi- 
lisks' eggs  they  hatch,  and  spiders'  webs  they  weave  ;  he  that 
eateth  of  their  eggs  will  die,  and,  if  one  be  crushed,  it  breaketh 
out  into  a  viper.  6  Their  webs  will  not  serve  for  clothing, 
neither  can  men  cover  themselves  with  their  works ;  their 
works  are  works  of  mischief,  and  the  deed  of  violence  is  in 
their  hands.  7  Their  feet  run  to  evil,  and  make  haste  to  shed 
innocent  blood  ;  their  thoughts  are  thoughts  of  iniquity  ;  de- 
solation and  destruction  are  in  their  highways.  8  The  way  of 

Similarly  Lowth,  Ges.,   Knob.,  Naeg.,  Weir.— Speaketh  in  public,  Hitz.,  Ew., 


Del. 

of  which  is  only  not  felt  because 
of  its  frequency,  see  notes  on  i.  1 5, 
Ivii.  17.  I  entirely  coincide  with 
Dr.  Weir,  that  'the  description  in 
this  and  the  following  verses  can 
scarcely  [cannot  possibly]  apply  to 
Israel  in  exile.' 

4  None  preferreth  bis  suit]   In 
W.    1-3  grace  was    seeking    and 
pleading  ;    hence  the  second  per- 
son. At  this  point  the  remonstrance 
passes   into   a    denunciation — The 
sense  '  to  prefer  a  suit '  (  =  in  jtfs 
vocare,  KaXdv  «rt  Swoyi'),  is  justified 
by  Job  ix.  16,  xiii.  22;  it  accords 
well   with   w.    14,   15.     Dr.   Weir 
remarks,  '  Perhaps  qore  is  here  the 
person  who  appeals  to  the  judge 
for  vindication  and  assistance.     If 
so,  he  will  be  qore  in  relation  to  the 
judge,   nishpat  in   relation    to  his 
adversary.'     A  different  view  was 

taken  in  /.  C.  A.,  p.  210. They 

trust    in    chaos]       The   basis    of 
society  (if  it  can  be  said  to  have 
one)  is,  not  faith  in  God  and  good- 
ness, but  falsehood  and  deceit,  in 
other  words,  a  lifeless,  unproduc- 
tive   chaos    (see    on    xl.    17). 

Emptiness]     That  which  has  no 
moral  content. Conceive  trou- 
ble .  .  .  ]      The  same    image    in 
Job  xv.  35,  Ps.  vii.  14  (15),  comp. 
Isa.  xxxiii.  n. 

5  Basilisks'   eggs   they   hatch] 
They  brood  over  purposes  as  per- 

VOL.  II. 


nicious  as  the  eggs  of  basilisks 
(see  on  xiv.  29),  and  as  unprofitable 
to  others  as  spiders'  webs.  So  the 
figures  are  explained  in  the  sequel, 
though  the  application  of  the 
second  strikes  a  Western  reader 

as  far-fetched  (see  on  v.  6). He 

that  eatetb  .  .  .  ]  When  any  of 
their  plans  are  opposed,  they  take 
a  cunning  and  malicious  revenge. 
For  the  mixture  of  images  in  the 
last  clause,  comp.  Deut.  xxxii.  32,33. 

6  Their  webs  .  .  .  for  clothing] 
Here  the  prophet  gives  a  fresh  turn 
to  the  figure.  The  Jews  themselves 
are  now  the  weavers,  not  of  any 
useful  object,  but  of  works  of  vio- 
lence. 

7  Their  feet  run  ...  in  tiieir 
highways]     The  first  half  of  the 
verse  occurs  again  in  Prov.  i.  16 
(except  that    '  innocent '    is    want- 
ing) ;    the   second   reminds   us  of 
Prov.  xvi.  17,  'The  highway  of  the 
upright  is  to  avoid  evil'  (i.e.,  he 
bestows  as  much  care  on  avoiding 
evil  as  the  pioneer  does    on    con- 
structing a  road).     These  demoral- 
ised Jews,  however,  build  up  their 
highways  with  '  desolation  and  de- 
struction '  (an  assonance  in  the  ori- 
ginal). 

8  Note  the  four  words  for  '  way' 

in  this  and    the   preceding   verse, 

all  found  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs. 

In  v.  7  we  have   the   laboriously 

G 


82 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  MX. 


peace  they  know  not,  and  there  is  no  justice  in  their  tracks; 
their  paths  they  have  made  for  themselves  crooked  ;  whoso- 
ever treadeth  thereon  knoweth  not  peace. 

9  Therefore  hath  justice  been  far  from  us,  and  righteous- 
ness doth  not  overtake  us  ;  we  wait  for  light,  but  behold  dark- 
ness, for  gleams  of  light,  but  we  walk  in  thick  darkness. 
10  We  grope  like  blind  men  along  the  wall  ;  and  as  eyeless 
men  we  grope  ;  we  have  stumbled  at  noonday  as  in  the 
twilight ;  amidst  b  those  full  of  life  (?)b  as  dead  men.  H  We 
growl,  all  of  us,  like  bears,  and  mourn  sore  like  doves ;  we 

*  So  Ew.,  Del.,  Naeg.— Dark  places,  Targ.,  Vulg.,  D.  Kimchi,  Rodiger,  Knob. 


constructed    *  highway '  :    in   v.   8, 
first,  the    most   general   word    for 

*  way,'  next,  the  waggon-tracks,  and 
lastly,  the  paths  made  by  the  con- 
stant treading  of  wayfarers. Por 

themselves]  i.e.,  in  their  interest. 

Crooked]  reminds  us  of  Prov. 

x.  9,  xxviii.  18,  ii.  15. Knoweth 

not  peace]     Note  the  suggestive 
variation  on  the  opening  clause  of 
the  verse. 

9-i5  a  Here  the  prophet  speaks  in 
the  name  of  his  penitent  people. 
Contrast  the  self-righteous  language 
of  Iviii.  3. Therefore]  i.e.,  be- 
cause of  our  sins  ;  not  because 
Jehovah  cannot  or  will  not  help  us 

(comp.     v.     12). Hath    justice 

been  far  from  us]     'Justice'  or 

*  judgment ' — either    rendering    is 
admissible.       'Judgment'      would 
mean   a  judicial    interposition    of 
Jehovah  on  behalf  of  his  people ; 
this  would  suit  the  immediate  con- 
text, including  v.  n,  but  would  not 
fit  v.  14,  and  hardly  v.  15.     'Jus- 
tice'  or   'right'   will    suit  all  the 
passages ;    only  we    must   distin- 
guish (with  Naeg.)  between  theo- 
cratic   and    civil    'justice.'       The 
theocratic  covenant  entitled  Israel 
to  expect  the  help  of  Jehovah  in 
time   of  need.      Israel,    however, 
complained  (as  xl.  27)  or  at  least 
lamented  (as  here)  that  its   '  right ' 
was   withheld,  and    the   claims  of 
'justice'  disallowed.     There  is  no 
essential    difference    between    the 
two  renderings  ;   it  is  on  account 
of  v.  15  that  I  prefer  'justice.'     In 
v.  14  it  is  of  course  civil  'justice 


which  is  meant ;  it  is  implied  that 
the  absence  of  theocratic  is  con- 
ditioned by  that  of  civil  'justice.' 
The  former  is  called,  in  the  parallel 
line,  '  righteousness,'  still  alluding 
to  the  covenant  between  Jehovah 
and  Israel. — Knobel  suggests  that 
the  despondency  of  the  Jews  may 
have  arisen  from  Cyrus's  temporary 
transference  of  the  seat  of  war 
from  Babylonia  to  Asia  Minor  (he 
quotes  Xen.  Cyrop.  vi.  2  9,  Justin 
i.  7)  :  and  Delitzsch  too  thinks  that 
this  is  conceivably  right.  I  doubt 
it  greatly  :  it  is  Jehovah,  and  not 
Cyrus,  or  any  human  champion,  of 
whom  the  Jews  here  complain.  All 
that  is  certain  is  that  the  prophet 
is  painting  from  the  life  ;  it  is  no 
rhetorical  phrasemonger  that  we 
have  before  us.  But  the  historical 
reference  of  the  section  is  wrapt  in 
obscurity. 

10  -We    grope    like    blind   men 
.  .  .  ]     Comp.  Deut.  xxviii.  29  :  it 
is  not  clear  at  first  sight  which  pas- 
sage is  the  original,  and  which  the 

imitation. Amidst  those  full  of 

life]    On  Knobel's  theory,  this  will 
refer  to  the  arrogance  of  the  Baby- 
lonians, who,  according  to  the  story, 
ventured  to  hold  a  revel  at  the  very 
height    of  the    siege    of   Babylon. 
But  reading,  rendering,  and  inter- 
pretation   are    perhaps    all    rather 
doubtful. 

11  like    bears  .  .  .  like    doves] 
The  'dove'  is  a  well-known  symbol 
of  lamentation  (comp.  xxxviii.  14, 
Ezek.  vii.  16,  Nah.  ii.  7)  ;  Horace 
and  Ovid  (quoted  by  Bochart),  but 


CHAP.  LIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


wait  for  justice,  but  there  is  none,  for  deliverance,  but  it  is  far 
from  us.  12  For  our  rebellions  are  manifold  before  thee,  and 
our  sins  each  testify  against  us  ;  for  our  rebellions  are  with  us  ; 
and  as  for  our  iniquities,  we  know  them, — 13  treason  and  un- 
faithfulness to  Jehovah,  and  drawing  back  from  after  our 
God,  speaking  c  perverseness  and  transgression,  conceiving 
and  uttering  from  the  heart  lying  words.  14  And  justice  hath 
been  driven  back,  and  righteousness  standeth  afar  off;  for 
truth  hath  stumbled  in  the  broad  place,  and  rectitude  cannot 

c  So  Graetz  (see  on  xxx.  12). — Oppression,  Hebr.  text. 


no  other  Biblical  writer,  speak  of 
the  bear  as  'groaning'  (gemere^ 
gemitus], 

12  Before    thee]    implying    that 
they  are  well  known  to  Jehovah  ; 

comp.  Ps.  xc.  8,  Prov.  xv.  n. 

With  us]  i.e.,  in  our  consciousness  ; 
so,  in  the  Hebr.,  Job  xii.  3  (W/t), 
xv.  9  (li»i). 

13  A     threefold    description     of 

apostasy    opens     the    verse. 

Treason  (lit.,  'diruptio'  sc.  foederis), 
unfaithfulness  (lit.,  '  belying,'  i.e., 
atheism,  Jer.  v.  12),  and  drawing- 
back  (i.e.,  the  overt  act  of  apos- 
tasy).   Evidently  the  prophet  refers 
to  a  paganising  movement  of  special 
intensity,  of  which  we  would  gladly 
have  received  more  ample  informa- 
tion.— Then  follow  sins  of  the  lips 
(comp.    on   vi.    5-). Transgres- 
sion]     Lit.,     '  deviation '      Hebr. 
Silrah}.      Naeg.  remarks  that  this 
phrase    (*  speaking    deviation ')   is 
elsewhere   used  only  of  the   false 
teaching  of 'pseudo-prophets'  Deut. 
xiii.  5  -  Hebr.  6,  Jer.  xxviii.  16,  xxix. 
32),  and  that  the  writer  is  probably 
alluding  to  the  seductive  discourses 
of  such  persons.     This  is  possible 
indeed,  but  far  from  certain,  as  sins 
of  the    lips   are    ascribed   to    the 
whole  nation  in  v.  3,  and  '  devia- 
tion '     from    moral    and    spiritual 
truth  was  not  peculiar  to  prophets 
(comp.  i.  5,  Hebr.). 

4  The   confession   passes  on  to 
public  sins,  especially  the   crying 

Jewish  sin  of  injustice. Justice 

bath  been  driven  back]     If  this 


passage  refers  to  the  Babylonian 
exiles  (which  is  in  my  opinion  very 
doubtful),  it  supplies  a  valuable 
confirmation  of  the  continuance  of 
Jewish  institutions  during  the  Cap- 
tivity (comp.  Ezek.  viii.  i,  £c.). 

Kath  stumbled  in  the  broad 
place]  *  Broad  places '  wa.s  a  name 
specially  given  to  the  recesses  on 
each  side  of  the  city-gate,  '  used  as 
places  of  assembly  during  the  day, 
and  as  places  of  rest  for  guests 
[say  rather  for  strangers,  Judg.  xix. 
20]  during  the  night.' *  Here,  during 
the  continuance  of  the  Jewish  state, 
the  '  elders  '  and  '  princes '  sat  and 
judged  (comp.  Jer.  v.  i,  Zech.  viii. 
1 6,  2  Chron.  xxxii.  6).  The  question 
cannot  be  avoided,  Has  the  pro- 
phet in  view  the  circumstances  of 
the  pre-Exile  period  ?  or  may  we 
venture  to  conjecture  that  the  Baby- 
lonian cities,  like  those  of  mediaeval 
Europe,  contained  separate  *  Jew- 
ries '  or  Jewish  quarters,  each  with 
its  own  *  broad  place '  or  *  forum  '  ? 

Por  truth  .  .  .  ]     Justice  has 

perished,  because  truth  and  recti- 
tude, its  essential  presuppositions, 
have  previously  been  overthrown. 

Cannot  enter]  i.e.,  cannot  find 

admittance  to  the  tribunal,  to  give 

evidence    for    the   right. Hatii 

been  left  behind]  Or  (for  the 
phrase  leaves  it  open  whether  the 
absence  spoken  of  is  self-caused 
or  due  to  others),  '  hath  become  an 
absentee' — 'terras  Astraea  reliquit* 

ZVIaketh  himself  a  prey]     So 

excellently  Auth.  Vers.  ;  '  muss  Je- 


1  Layard,  Nineveh  and  Babylon,  p.  57, 
G  2 


84 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i. ix 


enter  ;  15  and  truth  hath  been  left  behind,  and  he  that  avoid- 
eth  evil,  maketh  himself  a  prey. 

And  Jehovah  saw  it,  and  it  was  evil  in  his  eyes  that  there 
was  no  justice  ;  16  and  he  saw  that  there  was  no  man,  and  was 
stupefied  that  there  was  none  to  interpose  ;  therefore  his  own 
arm  brought  deliverance  unto  him,  and  his  own  righteousness 
upheld  him.  17And  he  put  on  righteousness  as  a  coat  of 


dermanns  Raub  sein,'  Luther.  The 
word  sums  up  vv.  3-7.  Comp.  Ps. 
Ixxvi.  6  a  (same  verb  in  Hebr.). 

136  Here  a  new  verse  ought  to 
begin-  This  mistake  of  our  present 
arrangement  of  the  verses  is  spe- 
cially unfortunate,  as  the  words 
which  follow  evidently  introduce  a 
new  stanza  or  strophe  of  the  pro- 
phecy. For  other  instances  of 
faulty  verse-division,  see  i.  16 ; 
Ixiii.  19  Hebr.  ;  Ixvi.  3  ;  Gen.  xlix. 
24  ;  i  Kings  ii.  46— iii.  i  ;  iii.  4,  5  ; 
Jer.  ii.  23  ;  Neh.  vii.  73  ;  xii.  23. 
(Comp.  Last  Words.} And  Je- 
hovah saw  it]  .  .  .  ]  But  had 
not  Jehovah  seen  it  from  the  first  ? 
Yes  (comp.  xviii.  4,  Ps.  x.  14)  ;  but 
he  had  not  shown  this  in  act.  It 
was  Israel's  penitent  confession 
which  drew  forth  the  Divine  love- 
tokens.  It  was  a  genuine  '  fast ' 
(contrast  Iviii.  2-4),  'a  rending  of 
the  heart  and  not  [merely]  the  gar- 
ments'  (Joel  ii.  13),  the  germs  of  a 
new  life. — The  tenses  in  w.  i$b- 
17  are  at  first  sight  difficult  to  ex- 
plain. Del.  thinks  that  they  are 
historical  perfects ;  that  Jehovah 
has  already  equipped  himself  for 
judgment,  and  seen  with  surprise 
that  no  man  takes  his  side,  but  not 
as  yet  obtained  satisfaction  for  his 
dishonoured  holiness.  To  me  it 
appears  that  to  divide  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  theophany  between  the 
past  and  the  future  seriously  injures 
its  poetical  effect,  nor  can  I  see  that 
it  is  necessary  to  do  so.  The  case 
seems  to  me  to  be  analogous  to  that 
of  Joel  ii.  1 8,  19.  The  Jews  in  the 
time  of  Joel  were  in  great  trouble, 
and  had  been  called  to  repentance. 
The  prophet  foresees  that  Jehovah 
will  pity  and  grant  relief,  and  de- 
scribes this  in  prophetic  perfects 


('  Then  was  Jehovah  jealous  .  .  . 
pitied  .  .  .  answered  and  said'). 
Precisely  so  here.  All  is  still  future, 
though  described  as  past  in  the  lan- 
guage of  prophetic  certitude. — 
That  there  was  no  man]  The  ap- 
parent parallelism  of  Jer.  v.  i  is  de- 
lusive ; '  no  man '  does  not  here  mean 
'  no  man  of  honesty  and  integrity,' 
but  *  no  champion.'  It  corresponds 
to  the  phrase  in  the  next  line,  '  none 
to  interpose.'  Comp.  Ezek.  xxii. 
30,  *  And  I  sought  for  a  man  among 
them  who  should  make  up  the 
fence  .  .  .  but  I  found  none.'  In 
the  parallel  passage,  Ixiii.  5,  we  find 
'  none  to  help,'  and  '  none  to  up- 
hold.' It  is  only  the  necessities  of 
parallelism  which  have  separated 
the  substantive  from  its  participial 
adjective.  -  -  Was  stupefied] 
'  Durior  est  metaphora  de  Deo 
usurpata,  quae,  nisi  fallor,  alibi  non 
occurrit.  Sed  Jesaias  passim  valde 
est  evfpyrjs  in  omni  sua  dictione,  et 
figuras  orationis  ex  alto  petit.  In 
re  ipsa  significat  summum  ejus  rei 
de  qua  agitur  rrapd8<j£ov.  A  parte 
Dei  ipsius  docet  metaphora,  Deum 
instar  stupentis  aliquamdiu  taciturn 
exspectasse,  hoc  est,  moram  aliquam 
traxisse  antequam  ecclesiae  labo- 
ranti  succurreret '  Vitringa,  com- 
paring Ps.  1. 21, '  These  things  thou 
doest,  and  I  am  silent.'  If  the 
precise  word  c  was  stupefied '  is  not 
again  applied  to  Jehovah  (except 
in  Ixiii.  5),  an  equally  forcible  one 
is  in  Jer.  xiv.  9,  *  Why  shouldst 
thou  be  as  a  man  in  consternation 
(nidham},  as  a  mighty  man  that 
cannot  deliver  ? '  The  painful  as- 
tonishment spoken  of  here  is  appa- 
rently inconsistent  with  other  pas- 
sages, in  which  deliverance  from 
trouble  is  ascribed  to  God  alone. 


CHAP.  LIX.] 


ISAIAH. 


mail,  and  the  helmet  of  deliverance  upon  his  head  ;  and  he 
put  on  garments  of  vengeance  for  clothing,  and  clad  himself 
with  jealousy  as  a  mantle.  18  According  to  their  deserts,  ac- 
cordingly he  will  repay,  wrath  to  his  adversaries,  retribution 
to  his  enemies  ;  to  the  countries  he  will  repay  retribution. 
19  And  they  shall  fear  the  Name  of  Jehovah  from  the  sun's 
setting,  and  his  glory  from  the  sun's  rising  ;  d  for  he  shall 
come  like  a  rushing  stream,d  e  which  the  breath  of  Jehovah 
driveth,6  20but  as  a  Goel  shall  he  come  to  Zion,  and  unto 

d  So  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Symmachus,  Saadya,  Ew.,  Knob.— For  .  .  .  like  a  straitened 
(i.e.,  dammed-up  stream,  Lowth,  Ges.,  Del.,  Naeg. — For  adversity  shall  come  in  like 
a  stream,  Hitz. — When  the  adversary  (or,  adversity,  Targ.)  shall  come  in  like  the  (or 
a)  river,  Hebr.  accents,  Targ.,  Pesh.,Calv.,  Vitr.,  Henderson,  Kay. 

e  So  Vulg.,  Lowth,  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Knob.,  Del.,  Naeg.— The  Spirit  of  Jehovah 
shall  lift  up  a  banner  against  him,  Targ.,  Vitr.,  Henderson,  Kay. 


But  we  have  no  right  to  strain  a 
bold,  poetical  phrase  in  a  dogmatic 

interest. None    to     interpose] 

viz.,  in  battle  ;  elsewhere  in  prayer 

(liii.    12). Therefore    his    own 

arm  .  .  .  ]  Sword  and  bow  are  un- 
necessary ;  '  with  battles  of  swing- 
ing will  he  fight  against  them' 
(xxx.  32). — The  words  recur  in  Ixiii. 
5,  with  the  changes  of  'my'  and 
*  me '  for  'his '  and  '  him,  and  '  fury' 
for  '  righteousness ' ;  comp.  Job  xl. 

14,   Ps.  xcviii.  I. Deliverance] 

Here  and  in  v.  17  in  the  common 
sense  of  victory  (as  i  Sam.  xiv.  45). 

18  To    the     countries    he    will 
repay  retribution]     The  fate  of 
the   rebel   Israelites  is  merged  in 
that  of  the  heathen.  By  « the  coun- 
tries,'the  prophet  means,  not  merely 
the  peoples   of  Asia   Minor  who, 
under  the  leadership   of  Croesus, 
had  helped  the  Babylonians  against 
Cyrus  (Knob.),  but  all  the  nations 
of  the  heathen  world,  banded  to- 
gether for  a  final  struggle  against 
Jehovah.     It  is  as   an  act  in  the 
great    drama    of   the   world-judg- 
ment that  the  prophet  regards  the 
impending  deliverance  of  the  Jews 
(comp.  on  chap.  xxiv.). 

19  Those  Gentiles  who  are  spared 
are   imagined    as    hastening   from 
their  distant  abodes  in  tremulous 

anxiety  to  meet  Jehovah. Fear 

the  Name  of  Jehovah]   A  striking 
amplification  of  the  common  phrase 
4  fear  Jehovah,'  found  also  in  Deut. 


xxviii.  58,  Mic.  vi.  9  (probably :  see 
Q.  P.  B.\  Neh.  i.  11,  Ps.  Ixxxvi.  11, 
and  especially  cii.  15  (which  is 
clearly  a  quotation  from  our  pas- 
sage). *  Name ' ;  see  on  xxx.  27, 

Ixiii.  9. He    shall    come]     i.e., 

Jehovah,  or,  more  correctly,  the 
Name  of  Jehovah.  Comp.  '  (the 
Face)  heareth,'  lix.  2  ;  the  Name 

of  Jehovah  cometh,'  xxx.  27. 

Xiike  a  rushing  stream  .  .  .  dri- 
veth] So,  in  xxx.  27,  28,  after  men- 
tioning the  coming  of  the  Name  of 
Jehovah,  the  prophet  continues, 
'  And  his  breath  is  as  an  overflow- 
ing stream.'  Alt.  rend,  is  in  itself 
noble  and  poetical ;  comp.  Jer. 
xlvi.  7,  8,  where  the  hostile  move- 
ment of  Egypt  is  compared  to  a 
flood.  It  has  been  vigorously  sup- 
ported by  Dr.  Kay,  but  is  contrary 
to  the  connection,  which  requires  a 
continuous  description  of  the  theo- 
phany.  I  feel  uncertain,  however, 
whether  the  words  rendered  '  rush- 
ing '  and  '  driveth '  are  not  corrupt. 
'-'"  But  as  a  Goel  shall  he  come] 
This  prediction  differs  rather  in 
tone  from  xli.  14,  xliii.  i,  and  similar 
passages  in  which  Jehovah  is  re- 
ferred to  as  Israel's  Goel.  It  wants 
the  usual  setting  of  kindly  en- 
couragement, and  reminds  us  rather 
of  less  evangelical  prophecies,  such 

as  chap.  i. To  Zion]  i.e.,  to  the 

remnant  of  Israel — *  those  that  have 
turned  from  rebellion'  (comp.  i.  27), 
as  the  parallel  line  tells  us.  This 


86 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP. 


those  that  have  turned  from  rebellion  in  Jacob  :  the  oracle 
of  Jehovah.  21  And  I — this  is  my  covenant  with  them,  saith 
Jehovah,  My  spirit  which  is  upon  thee,  and  my  words  which 
I  have  put  in  thy  mouth,  shall  not  withdraw  from  thy  mouth, 
nor  from  the  mouth  of  thy  seed,  nor  from  the  mouth  of  thy 
seed's  seed,  saith  Jehovah,  from  henceforth  even  for  ever. 


limitation  is  one  which  English 
students  of  the  prophecies  would 
do  well  to  remember :  it  shows 
that  the  Messianic  promises  to 
Israel  are  only  meant  for  a  con- 
verted and  regenerate  people. 

21  And  I — this  Is  my  covenant 
with  them]  There  are  several  re- 
markable points  about  this  closing 
verse,  (i)  its  change  of  number  and 
person  ('with  them  .  .  .  upon  thee'); 
(2)  its  tone  of  promise  and  en- 
couragement ;  (3)  the  difficulty  of 
connecting  it  with  the  preceding 
verses.  The  first  point  is  slight ; 
a  change  almost  as  striking  occurs 
in  i.  29.  The  plural  doubtless 
refers,  not  to  the  converts  spoken 
of  in  v.  20  (as  V.  F.  Oehler),  but  to 
the  person  addressed  in  the  second 
person  together  with  his  descend- 
ants. The  second  and  third  points 
seem  to  me  to  indicate  that  the 
verse  has  been  removed  hither 
from  some  other  position.  The 
recipient  of  the  '  covenant '  (or, 
appointment,  see  footnote  on  xlii. 


7)  is  the  spiritual  Israel,  to  whom 
a  similar  promise  has  already  been 
given  in  xliv.  3.  Klostermann  in- 
deed has  a  strange  theory  that  the 
recipient  is  the  prophetic  writer, 
and  that  his  prophetic  gifts  are  to 
descend  to  his  sons  and  grandsons. 
But  the  promise  is  too  high  for  an 
ordinary  man,  and  its  validity  is 
not  confined  to  'sons  and  grand- 
sons J ;  it  is  to  last  *  from  hence- 
forth even  for  ever.'1  To  whom 
can  such  words  apply,  but  to  the 
imperishable  people  of  Jehovah? 
Israel,  according  to  II.  Isaiah,  is 
destined  to  be  the  religious  centre, 
from  which  the  words  of  truth 

radiate    in    all   directions. l*y 

•words  ...  in  thy  mouth]  The 
'  words '  referred  to  are  not  the 
message  of  the  true  God  which 
Israel  is  to  carry  to  the  Gentiles 
(Knob.),  but  all  God's  revelations, 
whether  declaratory  of  his  character 
or  predictive  of  the  future  of  the 
world,  of  all  which  Israel  is  the 
depository  (comp.  li.  16?). 


CHAPTER   LX. 

Contents. — Song  upon  glorified  Zion,  in  five  stanzas — I.  w.  1-4;  II.  W. 
5-9;  ill.  w.  10-14;  IV.  vu.  15-18;  v.  vv.  19-22.  The  leading  idea  of 
the  first  stanza  is  the  return  of  the  exiles ;  of  the  second,  the  rebuilding 
of  the  temple ;  of  the  third,  the  glory  of  the  new  Jerusalem  ;  of  the 
fourth,  the  prosperity  of  the  state  ;  while  the  fifth  and  last  exhausts  the 
powers  of  language  in  describing  the  favour  which  Jehovah  will  extend  to 
his  righteous  people. 

The  song  looks  as  if  it  were  a  designed  counterpart  to  the  magnificent 
ode  in  chap,  xlvii.  The  one  described  Babylon's  fall ;  the  other  glorifies 
Jerusalem's  rising  again.  It  further  resembles  its  lyric  predecessor  in  the 

1  Klostermann  supposes  the  author  of  this  verse  to  be  a  student  of  Isaiah,  who  has 
assumed  his  master's  mantle  (Ztitschr.f.  lutkcr.  Tlieologiet  1876,  p.  46). 


CHAP.  LX.] 


ISAIAH. 


looseness  of  its  connection  with  the  prophecies  among  which  it  is  inserted, 
and  it  is  not  an  unreasonable  conjecture  that  both  songs  originally  existed 
in  a  separate  form. 

1  Arise,  be  lightsome,  for  thy  light  hath  come,  and  the 
glory  of  Jehovah  hath  dawned  upon  thee.  2  For,  behold,  the 
darkness  shall  cover  the  earth,  and  a  deep  gloom  the  nations, 
but  upon  thee  shall  Jehovah  dawn,  and  his  glory  shall  appear 
upon  thee  ;  3  and  nations  shall  set  forth  unto  thy  light,  and 
kings  to  the  brilliance  of  thy  dawning.  4  Lift  up  thine  eyes 
round  about  and  see:  they  are  all  gathered  together  and 
come  unto  thee  ;  thy  sons  come  from  far,  and  thy  daughters 
are  supported  on  the  side.  5  Then  shalt  thou  a  see  and  be 
radiant ;  and  thy  heart  shall  b  throb  and  be  enlarged  ;  for  the 
abundance  of  the  sea  shall  turn  unto  thee,  the  riches  of  the 
nations  shall  come  unto  thee.  6  A  swarm  of  camels  shall 

*  Fear.    Many  Hebr.  MSS.,  Lowth,  Vitr.,  Ges.  (another  reading). 
b  Tremble,   Some  MSS.,  Sept.  (another  reading). 

Thy  sons  .  .  .  thy  daughters] 
See  on  xlix.  22. Supported  on 

the  side]  i.e.,  on  the  hip  (so  Ixvi. 
12),  the  arm  of  the  mother  'sup- 
porting '  the  child's  back,  a  custom 
still  kept  up  both  in  the  Semitic 
and  the  non-Semitic  East.  Older 
children  would  be  carried  on  the 
shoulder  (xlix.  22). 

5  Then  shalt  thou  see]  If  the 
former  summons  had  been  neg- 
lected, then  (when  the  prophecy 
has  been  fulfilled)  thou  shalt  per- 
force take  notice.  Alt.  reading  in- 
volves a  tautology. Be  radiant] 

viz.,  with  joy ;  the  same  word  oc- 
curs in  Ps.  xxxiv.  6  (5). Shall 

throb]  '  As  a  man  shudders  at  an 
unexpected  deliverance'  (Ibn  Ezra). 
Comp.  Jer.  xxxiii.  9,  'They  shall 
fear  and  shudder  (the  same  word  as 
here)  for  all  the  goodness,'  &c.- 


*, 3  The  ideal  Zion  (see  on  xl.  9) 
is  personified  as  a  woman  lying  on 
the  ground  in  mental  and  bodily 
prostration — it  is  the  same  figure  as 
in  li.  23,  lii.  i.  Thick  darkness  en- 
folds the  earth,  the  darkness  which 
typifies  alienation  from  God.  But 
Jehovah  has  begun  to  reveal  him- 
self anew — not  as  yet  to  the  whole 
earth,  but  to  its  central,  one  may 
almost  say  its  mediatorial  people, 
Israel.  As  'the  children  of  Israel 
had  light  in  their  dwellings,'  when 
there  was  '  thick  darkness  in  all  the 
land  of  Egypt,'  so  now  there  are 
beaming  over  Israel  the  first  rays 
of  a  newly  risen  sun  (comp.  ix.  2). 
Zion  however  is  still  held  by  the 
stupor  of  captivity ;  she  is  therefore 
bidden  to  arise  and  drink  in  the 
transfiguring  brightness.  Contrast 
the  summons  to  Babylon  in  xlvii.  i. 

1  The  glory  of  Jehovah]  Jeho- 
vah is  a  '  sun '  as  well  as  a  '  shield ' 
(Ps.  Ixxxiv.  n),  the  'sun  of  right- 
eousness' (Mai.  iv.  2).  The  same 
figure  is  implied  in  Ps.  xviii.  12 
(13),  Hab.  iii.  4,  where  the  same 
word  (nogah,  'brilliance')  is  used 
for  the  appearance  of  the  Divine 
glory  as  in  v.  3. 

4  lift  up  .  .  .  and  come  unto 
thee]  Repeated  from  xlix.  18. 


enlarged]  i.e.,  have  a  sense  of 
freedom  and  happiness  (so  Ps.  cxix. 
32).  The  opposite  is  '  to  be  strait- 
ened' (so  Lam.  i.  20,  comp.  Jer.  iv. 

19,  Q.  P.  £.}. The  abundance 

of  the  sea]  i.e.,  the  wealth  of  the 
maritime  countries  of  the  West  (in 
Hebrew,  'the  sea'). 

6-7  This  passage  has  perhaps  a 
bearing  on  the  question  as  to  the 
date  of  II.  Isaiah.  As  Prof.  A.  S. 


88 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LX. 


cover  thee — young  camels  of  Midian  and  Ephah,  from  Shel 
shall  they  all  come,  bearing  gold  and  incense,  and  heraldinj 
the  praises  of  Jehovah.     7  All  the  flocks  of  Kedar  shall  gath< 
unto  thee,  the  rams  of  Nebaioth  shall  minister  unto  thee : 
they  shall  go  up  mine  altar  acceptably,  and  my  glorious  house 
will  I  glorify.     8  Who  are  these  which  fly  as  the  clouds,  anc 
as  doves  to  their  lattices  ?     9  Yea, c  for  me  the  countries  wait 
and  the  ships  of  Tarshish  are  the  foremost,  to  bring  thy  sons 
from  far,  their  silver  and  their  gold  with  them,  to  the  name 
of  Jehovah  thy  God,  and  to  the  Holy  one  of  Israel,  inasmuch 
as  he  hath  glorified  thee. 

10  And  strangers  shall  build  thy  walls,  and  their  kings 

c  Unto  me  the  countries  shall  assemble,  Luzzatto,  Geiger  (changing  vowel-points). 


Wilkins  remarks,  'the  country  with 
which  the  historic  Isaiah  was  espe- 
cially familiar  would  lie  somewhat 
out  of  the  direct  line  of  this  com- 
merce.5 1  Still  the  tradition  con- 
necting these  nations  with  Abraham 
(comp.  Gen.  xxv.  2-4,  13)  can 
hardly  have  been  unknown  to 
Isaiah,  and  this  will  sufficiently 
account  for  his  giving  them  so 
honourable  a  mention.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  extremely  doubtful 
whether  the  names  Kedar  and 
Nebaioth  (in  v.  7)  were  still  tribal 
appellations  in  the  time  of  the 
Exile.  If  therefore  we  assign  a 
Babylonian  origin  to  II.  Isaiah, 
we  must  probably  assume  that  the 
names  in  question  are  used  with 
poetical  liberty. — On  the  commerce 
of  Arabia,  see  Alexander's  notes, 
and  comp.  Movers,  Die  Phbnizier, 
ii.  3,  p.  293. 

fl  Ephah]  A  'son'  of  Midian 
(Gen.  xxv.  4) ;  mentioned  (under 
the  form  Khayappa)  in  an  inscrip- 
tion of  Tiglath-Pileser  II.  in  com- 
pany with  Massa  and  Tema,  tribes 

of    N.    Arabia.2 Sheba]     The 

caravans  of  the  Midianites,  espe- 
cially those  of  Ephah  (Gen.  xxv.  4), 
appear  to  have  gone  to  Sheba  (or 
Yemen)  for  gold  and  spices. — 
The  praises]  i.e.,  the  praiseworthy 
deeds  (as  Lxiii.  7). 


7  Kedar    .    .    .    Nebaioth]     On 

the  locality  of  the  tribes  thus  in- 
dicated, see  Sprenger,  Journal  of 
Royal  Asiatic  Soc.,  1872,  p.  8. 

8  Who    are    these  .  .  .]      The 
predictive  tone  gives  place  for  a 
moment  to  the  descriptive.     It  is  a 
vision  of  the  sea  which  we  have  be- 
fore us — of  the  sea  covered  by  ships 
which   with   their   outspread   sails 
resemble  the  clouds,  or  flights  of 
home-sick  doves  (comp.  Hos.xi.  1 1). 

9  The     countries     wait]     The 
'countries'  (i.e.,  the  'far-offpeoples,' 
xlix.  i)  'wait'  in  believing  expect- 
ancy for  the  blessings,  which  be- 
long to  them  too,  at  least  in  the 
second  rank.     This  is  one  motive 
for  their  haste.     Another  is  regard 
for  the  children  of  Zion,  who  are 
impatient  to  be  restored  to  their 

home. Ships  of  Tarshish]  Or, 

'  Tarshish-ships'  (ships  of  the  first 
class,   suitable  for    long  voyages, 

comp.    I    Kings    x.    22. Their 

silver]  i.e.,  the  silver  of  the  Gen- 
tiles (vv.  6,  1 1,  not  of  the  Israelites. 

— To  the  name]  i.e.,  to  the 
place  of  the  name  (xviii.  7).  The 
clause  is  almost  a  verbal  repetition 
of  Iv.  5  b. 

10  And  strangers  ...].' The 
walls  of  Zion  are  raised  with  the 
willing  co-operation  of  converted 
foreigners  (Ivi.  6,  7),'  thinks  De- 


1  Wilkins,  Phoenicia  and  Israel  (Lond.  1871),  p.  no. 

2  Schrader,   Keilinschriften   itnd  Geschichtsforschung,   pp.    261-2  ;  comp.   Friedr. 
Delitzsch,   Wo  lag  das  Faradies  f  p.  304. 


CHAP.  LX.] 


ISAIAH. 


89 


shall  minister  unto  thee,  for  in  my  wrath  I  smote  thee,  and 
in  my  favour  I  will  have  compassion  upon  thee :  u  and  thy 
gates  shall  stand  open  continually,  day  nor  night  they  shall 
not  be  shut,  that  men  may  bring  unto  thee  the  riches  of  the 
nations,  and  their  kings  led  along :  12  for  the  nation  and  king- 
dom that  will  not  serve  thee  shall  perish,  and  those  nations 
shall  surely  be  laid  waste.  13  The  glory  of  Lebanon  shall  come 
unto  thee,  the  fir  and  the  plane  and  the  sherbin  together,  that 
I  may  glorify  the  place  of  my  sanctuary,  and  make  the  place 
of  my  feet  honourable.  u  And  the  sons  of  them  that  afflicted 
thee  shall  go  unto  thee  crouching,  and  all  they  that  spurned 
thee  shall  bow  down  to  the  soles  of  thy  feet,  and  they  shall 
call  thee,  City  of  Jehovah,  Zion  of  the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

15  Instead  of  thy  being  forsaken  and  hated,  and  with  none 
passing  through,  I  will  make  thee  an  everlasting  pride,  the 


litzsch.  But  does  not  the  context 
(see  w.  n,  12,  14)  point  rather  to 
the  mass  of  the  heathen  world  than 
to  willing  proselytes  ?  Is  not  the 
submission  of  these  foreigners 
rather  a  consequence  of  the  recent 
judgment  (comp.  lix.  19  a)  than  the 
result  of  spiritual  affinities?  See 
Ixi.  5,  6,  where  the  assignment  of 
menial  services  to  '  strangers '  is 
evidently  intended  as  a  retribution 
(comp.  xiv.  2).  This  passage  illus- 
trates Ixi.  4  (see  note). 

11  Thy  gates  shall  stand  open] 
Because   there  will  be    'no   night 
there'  (comp.  v.  20,  Rev.  xxi.  25), 
and  no  foes  seeking  entrance,  but 

an  endless  stream  of  caravans. 

And  tbeir  kings  led  along:]  i.e., 
not  'accompanied  by  a  large  re- 
tinue' (Kimchi,  Vitr.,  Lowth,  Ges. 
in  Commentary),  but  (as  the  verb 
always  means)  '  led  captive '  (same 
word   in   xx.   4),   or  at   least   *  led 
against  their  will.'     All    eager  to 
minister  to  Israel,  the  'far-off  na- 
tions '  force  their  reluctant  chiefs  to 
join  them.     The  reason  is  given  in 
the  next  verse. 

12  The  prosperity  of  Gentile  na- 
tions shall  depend  on  their  relations 
to  Israel  (comp.  Zech.  xiv.  17,  18). 

— Nations    .     .     .    laid    -waste] 


*  Nation '  and '  territory '  being  con- 


vertible terms  in  Hebrew,  whatever 
is  predicted  of  the  one  may  also 
be  predicted  of  the  other  (comp. 
xxxvii.  1 8,  2  Kings  iii.  23,  Hebr.). 

13  The  barren  hills  of  Jerusalem 
shall  henceforth  be  decked  with  the 
most   beautiful  forest-trees  (comp. 
xli.  19). The  place  of  my  sanc- 
tuary]    What   sanctuary?      It    is 
natural  to  think  first  of  the  temple. 
The  trees  which  have  been  men- 
tioned might  be  required,  either,  if 
felled,  for  the  temple-buildings  (so 
Vitr.),  or,  if  unfelled,  for  decorating 
the  temple-courts,  comp.  Ps.  Iii.  8, 
xcii.  13  (so  Cel.).    But  the  Shekinah 
is  no  longer  confined  to  a  single 
house  :  all  Jerusalem  has  become 
the  *  sanctuary'  of  Jehovah  (so  too 
perhaps  iv.  5). 

14  The    sons  of  them   that  af- 
flicted   thee]     '  The   sons,'    appa- 
rently    because     the     'afflicters' 
themselves  will  have  perished  in 

the  Divine  judgment. Zion  of 

the  Holy  One  .  .  .]  A  combination 
like  '  Bethlehem  (of)  Judah.' 

15  Forsaken  and  hated]  Zion  is 
again  imagined  as  Jehovah's  bride 
(comp.  1.  i,  liv.  6).     But  the  figure 
is   not  carried  out   consistently. — 
The  word  '  hated '  is  used  in  Gen. 
xxix.  31,  Deut.  xxi.  15,  of  a  less  be- 
loved wife. 


90 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LX. 


delight  of  successive  generations.  16  And  thou  shalt  suck  the 
milk  of  nations,  and  the  breast  of  kings  shalt  thou  suck,  and 
thou  shalt  know  that  I  Jehovah  am  thy  saviour,  and  that  thy 
Goel  is  the  Hero  of  Jacob.  17  Instead  of  copper  I  will  bring 
gold,  and  instead  of  iron  I  will  bring  silver,  and  instead  of 
wood  copper,  and  instead  of  stones  iron  ;  and  I  will  make 
d  peace  thy  government,  and  righteousness  thy  magistrates  d. 
18  Violence  shall  no  more  be  heard  of  in  thy  land,  desolation 
nor  destruction  in  thy  borders  ;  and  thou.  shalt  call  thy  walls 
Salvation,  and  thy  gates  Praise. 

19  No  more  shalt  thou  have  the  sun  for  a  light  by  day, 
and  as  for  brightness,  the  moon  shall  not  enlighten  thee ;  but 
thou  shalt  have  Jehovah  for  an  everlasting  light,  and  thy  God 
for  thy  glory.  20  No  more  shall  thy  sun  go  down,  and  thy 


d  Thy  government   peace   (i.e.,   peace-loving) 
Henderson. 


16  And  thou  shalt  suck  .  .   .  ] 

Perhaps  a   reminiscence   of  Deut. 


Sept.,  Saad.,  Hitz.,   Knob., 


xxxiii.  19,  'They  shall  suck  the 
abundance  of  the  seas.'  --  The 
breast  of  kin§>]  'Of  kings;' 
perhaps  to  exclude  a  realistic  inter- 
pretation. The  phrase  strikingly 
indicates  the  new  feeling  of  tender- 
ness towards  Zion  which  shall 
animate  the  kings  of  the  earth, 
(comp.  xlix.  23).  -  That  I  Jeho- 
vah .  .  .]  Repeated  from  xlix.  26  b. 
17  Instead  of  copper  .  .  .] 
Evidently  an  allusion  to  the  ac- 
count of  Solomon  in  I  Kings  x.  21, 
27.  The  language  is  of  course 
figurative,  and  means  that  the  new 
Jerusalem  shall  be  at  the  height  of 
splendour  and  security  (metal  tak- 
ing the  place  of  stone).  -  "Will 
make  peace  thy  government] 
For  the  prosopopeeia,  comp.  xxxii. 
16,  17,  lix.  14.  —  It  has  been 
questioned  whether  '  peace  '  and 
'  righteousness  '  are  accusatives  of 
the  object  or  of  the  predicate. 
But,  as  Naeg.  well  remarks,  it 
would  be  comparatively  little  to 
say  that  Jerusalem's  governors 
should  be  men  of  peace  and 
righteousness,  for  this  would  not 
exclude  much  unhappiness  and  un- 
righteousness among  the  governed. 


But  if  Peace  and  Righteousness 
themselves  are  the  governors,  it  is 
as  much  as  to  say  that  government 
in  the  ordinary  sense  has  become 
superfluous.  —  This  passage  evi- 
dently implies  that  those  for  whom 
our  prophet  wrote  only  had  the 
Messianic  belief  in  its  wider  sense, 
Jehovah  alone  being  Israel's  king. 

18  Shalt  call  thy  walls  Salva- 
tion .  .  .]  There  is  the  same  doubt 
as  to  whether  the  abstract  nouns 
are  objects  or  predicates  as  in  v. 
17.      Such   names   as    'Salvation' 
and  '  Praise '  would  not  be  impos- 
sible ;   Naeg.  (on  xxvi.  i)  reminds 
us  that  the  walls  of  Babylon  were 
named.1     But  it  is  more  forcible  to 
take  '  Salvation '   and  '  Praise '  as 
accusatives    of    the    object.     The 
meaning  of  the  passage  will  then 
be,  '  Thou  shalt  need  no  walls  nor 
gates,  for  Jehovah  shall  be  a  con- 
stant source  of  salvation,  and  of  a 
renown  which  shall  keep  all  foes  at 
a  distance.'     Comp.  xxvi.  i,  xxxiii. 
21.    We  need  not  mind  the  obvious 
inconsistency  with  vv.    10,  11,  for 
we  are  in  the  region  of  symbol  and 
metaphor. 

19  The  sun  for  a  light]  See  note 
on  xxx.  26. 

20  Go   down]     Lit,  'go  in,'  viz. 


1  See  Records  of  the  Past,  v.  124  ;  Schrader,  K.  A.  T.t  p.  88. 


CHAP.  LXI.]  ISAIAH.  9 1 

moon  shall  not  withdraw  itself,  for  thou  shalt  have  Jehovah 
for  an  everlasting  light,  and  thy  days  of  mourning  are  ful- 
filled. 21  And  thy  people  shall  be  all  righteous,  they  shall 
possess  the  land  for  ever ;  the  shoots  of  my  plantation,  the 
work  of  my  hands,  for  showing  myself  glorious.  22The  smallest 
shall  become  a  thousand,  and  the  least  a  great  nation  ;  I 
Jehovah  in  its  time  will  hasten  it. 

into  his  chamber  (Ps.  xix.  5). The  shoots  of  my  plantation] 

Itself]    Lit.    '  himself.'     Both   sun  and   therefore  flourishing ;    comp. 

and  moon  are  masc.  in  the  Semitic  Ps.  Ixxx.  9,  10. 

languages,  and  have  male  divinities  22  The  smallest]  i.e.,  he  who  has 

corresponding  to  them.  few  or  no  children. A.  thousand, 

21  Thy   people   .  .  .    for    ever]  i.e.,  probably,  a  chiliad,  or  part  of 

Now  that  Israel  is  righteous,  there  a  tribe  (so  Del.)  ;  comp.  Mic.  v.  2 

will  be  no  reason  for  the  stern  dis-  (Hebr.  i),  which  makes  a  fine  con- 

cipline  of  exile  ;  comp.  lix.  13,  14.  trast  with  '  nation'  in  the  next  line. 


CHAPTER   LXI. 

A  SOLILOQUY  of  the  Servant  *  concerning  the  message  of  grace,  com- 
fort, and  prosperity  committed  to  him  for  Zion  by  Jehovah. — But  is  it  really 
'  the  Servant '  who  is  the  speaker  ?  The  title  itself  does  not  occur  once 
throughout  the  soliloquy.  Hence  it  is  not  surprising  that  several  modern 
critics  (Hitz.,  Ew.,  Knob.,  Diestel)  question  this  view,  and  assign  the 
speech  to  the  prophet  who  writes  these  chapters  ;  the  Targum,  too,  dog- 
matically asserts,  *  (Thus)  saith  the  prophet.'  Our  conclusion  will  depend 
mainly  on  that  which  we  have  adopted  with  regard  to  1.  4-9 — a  passage 
in  some  respects  closely  parallel  to  the  present.  There,  as  well  as  here, 
the  title  of  the  speaker  is  withheld  ;  there,  as  well  as  here,  the  opening 
verse  declares  the  mission  of  the  speaker  to  be  pre-eminently  one  of 
consolation.  It  is  true  that  in  1.  5  the  speaker  suddenly  turns  aside  to 
describe  his  patience  under  persecution  ;  but  this  is  all  the  more  reason 
why  in  the  present  chapter  he  should  compensate  us  for  our  disappoint- 
ment by  resuming  the  strain  so  abruptly  cut  short.  Diestel 2  urges  two 
objections  against  assigning  this  soliloquy  to  the  Servant,  viz.,  I.  that  the 
personification  of  the  Servant  ceases  with  chap,  liii.,  and  2.  that  as  the 
prophet  is  himself  a  member  of  the  organism  of  the  Servant,  whatever 
can  be  predicated  of  the  one  both  can  and  must  be  true  of  the  other. 
The  answer  to  I.  is,  that  it  is  an  assumption  based  on  a  too  exclusive  view 
of  chaps,  liv.,  lv.,  and  the  very  loosely  connected  discourses  which 
follow  ;  to  2.,  that  precisely  as  in  xliv.  26  we  find  the  prophetic  writer 

1  So   Hengst.,  Stier,  Del.,  Seinecke,  Kay,  Naeg.,   and  so  /.  C.  A.,  p.  216.  De- 
litzsch,  therefore,  is  not  so  comparatively  isolated  as  he  supposes.     (Jesaia,  3te  Ausg. 
p.  620.) 

2  Der  Prophet  Jesaia,  erklart  von  Dr.  A.  Knobel.     Vierte  Auflage,  herausgeg.  von 
Dr.  L.  Diestel,  p.  487. 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXI. 


described  as  'his  (Jehovah's)  servant,'  without  precluding  the  higher 
acceptation  of  the  term  in  Hi.  13,  so  the  occurrence  of  the  phrase  'the 
servants  of  Jehovah '  in  liv.  17  does  not  destroy  the  superior  right  of 
Him  who  is  pre-eminently  the  Servant  of  Jehovah.  True,  the  speaker  in 
chap.  Ixi.  does  not  expressly  assume  the  title ;  but  is  it  necessary  that  he 
should  ?  Having  been  introduced  as  the  Servant  in  xlii.  1-4,  why  should 
he  not  sometimes  speak  in  his  own  name  ?  It  may  safely  be  affirmed 
that,  but  for  the  absence  of  the  title  '  the  Servant,'  no  one  could  fail  to 
be  struck  by  the  appropriateness  of  w.  1-3  (especially)  to  the  personal 
Servant  of  Jehovah  : — the  great  things  which  the  speaker  volunteers  to  do 
are  so  far  beyond  the  range  of  a  mere  prophet  like  our  author.  This 
need  not,  however,  hinder  us  from  admitting  that  vv.  4-9  have  nothing 
to  mark  them  out  as  belonging  to  the  Servant.  Just  as  here  and  there 
in  St.  John's  Gospel  the  speeches  of  our  Lord  suddenly  pass  into  re- 
flexions of  the  Evangelist,  so  it  may  here  be  that  the  prophet  for  a  time 
takes  the  place  of  the  Servant  ',  comp.  1.  10,  n. 

!The  Spirit  of  athe  Lorda  Jehovah  is  upon  me,  because 
Jehovah  hath  anointed  me  to  bring  good  tidings  to  the 
afflicted,  hath  sent  me  to  bind  up  the  broken-hearted,  to  pro- 
claim liberty  to  the  captives,  and  b  opening  (of  the  prison)  b 
to  the  bound  ;  2to  proclaim  an  acceptable  year  of  Jehovah, 

B  Omitted  in  Sept.,  Vulg.,  one  MS.  (Kennicott),  two  early  editions. 
b  Opening  (of  the  eyes),  Hebr.  text  (see  crit.  note). 


1  The  Spirit  ...   is  upon  me] 

Precisely  the  same  statement  is 
made  respecting  the  Servant  in 

xlii.    I. Hath     anointed    me] 

Anointing  was  the  rite  with  which 
both  priests  (Ex.  xxix.  7,  Lev.  vii. 
36)  and  kings  (i  Sam.  ix.  16,  x.  I, 
xvi.  13)  were  consecrated.  But  the 
phrase  '  to  anoint '  seems  to  be  also 
used  metaphorically  for  '  to  appoint 
to  a  sacred  office.'  Thus  in  i  Kings 
xix.  1 6  Elijah  is  directed  to  '  anoint ' 
Elisha,  though  as  the  sequel  shows, 
Elisha  was  never  actually  anointed. 
So,  too,  in  xlv.  i  Cyrus  is  called 
'Jehovah's  Anointed  Oue,'  i.e.,  His 
chosen  instrument ;  and  in  i  John 
ii.  20  (comp.  v.  27)  the  'unction 
from  the  Holy  One'  is  also  clearly 

metaphorical. To    bring-    good 

tidings]  Hebr.  I bhasser,  happily 
rendered  by  Sept.  eyayyAiVao-^u 
(similarly  throughout  II.  Isaiah, 
where  verb  and  participle  occur 


five  times,  except  xli.  27). To 

proclaim  liberty .  .  .  ]  The  phrase 
is  peculiar,  and  is  probably  taken 
from  the  Law  of  Jubilee  (Lev.  xxv. 
10,  comp.  Ezek.  xlvi.  17,  Jer.  xxxiv. 
8),  but  is  applied  with  poetical  free- 
dom ;  the  Law  of  Jubilee  says 
nothing  about  the  release  of  prison- 
ers or  the  remission  of  debts.1 

To  the  captives]  See  on  xlii.  7. 

2  An  acceptable  year]  Obs. 
the  antithesis  between  the  'year' 
of  grace  and  the  '  day  of  vengeance ' 
(so  Ixiii.  4,  whereas  xxxiv.  8  is  only 
partly  parallel).  It  reminds  us  of 
the  contrast  in  Ex.  xx.  5,  6  (comp. 
Deut.  vii.  9),  where  retribution  is 
declared  to  descend  to  the  third 
and  fourth  generation,  but  mercy 
to  the  thousandth  \  comp.  also  liv. 
8  (note).  '  Year '  is  of  course  used 
rhetorically,  though,  strange  to  say, 
this  passage  gave  rise  to  the  theory 
of  some  of  the  Christian  Fathers 


1  Mr.  Fenton  has  explained  the  institution  of  the  Jubilee  as  a  relic  of  the  '  Village 
Community '  system  of  land-tenure  (Hebrew  Social  Life,  1880). 


CHAP.  LXl]. 


ISAIAH. 


93 


and  a  day  of  vengeance  of  our  God,  to  comfort  all  mournful 
ones  ;  3  to  set  upon  the  mournful  ones  of  Zion — to  give  them 
a  coronet  instead  of  ashes,  oil  of  joy  for  mourning,  a  mantle 
of  renown  for  a  failing  spirit,  so  that  men  shall  call  them  oaks 
of  righteousness,  the  plantation  of  Jehovah  for  showing  him- 
self glorious.  4  And  they  shall  build  up  the  ruins  of  antiquity, 
the  desolations  of  the  forefathers  shall  they  raise  up,  and  shall 
renew  the  ruined  cities,  the  desolations  of  past  generations. 
5  And  strangers  shall  stand  and  feed  your  flocks,  and  aliens 
shall  be  your  ploughmen  and  your  vinedressers,  6but  ye — 


that  the  public  ministry  of  our 

Lord  lasted  but  a  single  year. 

All  mournful  ones]  Zion  occupies 
the  foreground  of  the  speaker's 
thoughts  (comp.  next  verse  and 
Ivii.  1 8  <£),  but  the  marks  of  suscep- 
tibility of  the  Divine  promises  are 
in  the  two  opening  verses  perhaps 
designedly  left  free  from  national 
limitations  (comp.  Ivii.  15).  See 
above,  on  '  to  the  captives,'  and 
below  on  '  a  failing  spirit.' 

3  To  set  ...  to  give]  It  seems 
as  if  the  speaker  corrected  himself. 
The  verb  'to  set'  is  appropriate  for 
the  'coronet,'  but  a  more  general 
word  is  required  for  the  'oil  of  joy' 

and  the  '  mantle  of  renown.' A 

coronet  instead  of  ashes]  In  it. 
10  we  read  of  the  bridegroom's 
'  coronet ; '  by  using  the  same  word 
here  the  prophet  may  imply  that 
the  penitents  were  newly  espoused 
to  their  Divine  Lord.  The  Hebrew 
expresses  the  change  in  their  state 
by  a  striking  assonance  (pPer  ta- 
khath  lefer),  which  Ewald  strives 
to  represent  by  '  schmuck  statt 
schmutz.'  '  Ashes,'  i.e.,  ashes  strewn 
upon  the  head,  were  a  sign  of  mourn- 
ing ;  comp.  2  Sam.  xiii.  19. Oil  of 

joy]  The  phrase  only  occurs  again 
in  Ps.  xlv.  (u.  7  =  Hebr.  8),  the  royal 

nuptial  song. A  failing-  spirit] 

The  word  is  the  same  as  in  xlii.  3, 
{  a  dimly  burning  wick'  (comp.  xlii. 
4,  and  Ezek.  xxi.  7  =  Hebr.  12),  a 
phrase  which,  be  it  remarked,  refers 
at  any  rate  partly  to  the  Gentiles. 

— Oaks  of  righteousness]  i.e., 
strong  and  enduring,  because 
'  rooted  and  grounded  in  right- 


eousness. Whose  righteousness  ? 
we  may  ask ;  that  of  man  or  of  God  ? 
The  former,  is  certainly  the  most 
natural  reply  :  '  righteousness '  in 
a  phrase  of  this  construction  ought 
to  mean  an  intrinsic  quality  of  the 
'oaks';  comp.  liv.  14.  It  is  no 
counter-argument  that  in  v.  10 
'righteousness'  means  God's  right- 
eousness as  exhibited  in  the  pros- 
perity of  his  own,  for  we  have  the 
two  senses  of  righteousness  equally 
close  together  in  liv.  14,  17.  The 
next  words,  the  plantation  of 
Jehovah,  &c.,  are  repeated  almost 
verbally  from  Ix.  21  b. 

4  And  they  shall  build  up  .  .  .] 
The  implied  subject  is  '  strangers ' 
(see  v.  5).  We  have  thus  a  varia- 
tion from  the  parallel  passage  Iviii. 
12.  Obs.,  the  speaker's  attention 
is  concentrated  on  the  first  act  of 
the  great  drama  of  Israel's  regene- 
ration. He  presently  passes  on 
to  the  more  splendid  second  act, 
which  he  describes  as  if  it  syn- 
chronised with  the  first.  The  first 
act  is  the  return  of  the  exiles  and 
the  rebuilding  of  the  desolate  cities 
of  Judah  ;  the  second,  the  union 
of  Jews  and  Gentiles  in  one  great 
and  glorious  religious  community. 

6  Shall  stand  and  feed]  The 
description  is  still  true  to  life. 
(Thomson,  The  Land  and  the 
Book,  p.  599). Your  plough- 
men .  .  .  ]  No  brilliant  prospect 
for  the  *  aliens,7  if  the  peasants  of 
the  Messianic  period  were  to  be 
as  miserable  and  downtrodden  a 
race  as  the  Fellahs  of  Palestine 
are  now  !  But  we  must  evidently 


94 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP  LXI. 


the  priests  of  Jehovah  shall  ye  be  called  ;  men  shall  name  you 
the  ministers  of  our  God  ;  the  riches  of  the  nation  shall  ye 
eat,  and  c  of  their  glory  shall  ye  make  your  boast.c  7  Instead 
of  your  shame  ye  shall  have  double,  and  (instead  of)  reproach 
they  shall  exult  for  their  portion  ;  therefore  in  their  land  they 
shall  possess  double,  everlasting  joy  shall  be  unto  them.  8  For 
I  Jehovah  love  justice,  I  hate  things  torn  away  unjustly,  and  I 
will  give  them  their  recompence  faithfully,  and  an  everlasting 

c  To  their  glory  shall  ye  succeed,  Saadya,  Rashi,  Ges.  (Thesaurus),  Hitz.,  Ew., 
Knob. 


suppose  that  all  classes  in  the 
1  coming  age '  were  to  partake  in 
their  several  degrees  of  the  Mes- 
sianic blessing.  A  relative  differ- 
ence between  classes  would  remain, 
but  it  would  be  accepted  thankfully 
even  by  those  lowest  in  the  scale 
(comp.  xlv.  14).  The  highest  place 
would  naturally  be  reserved  for 
the  Israelites.  These  would  be 
called  the  priests  of  Jehovah,  for 
they  would  have  realised  the  ideal 
set  forth  in  Ex.  xix.  6,  and  be  able 
to  dispense  with  a  separate  sacer- 
dotal order  (see,  however,  Ixvi.  21). 
The  priests,  as  Hermann  Schultz 
justly  remarks,1  were  only  an  official 
representation  of  Israel's  national 
idea,  viz.  that  those,  with  whom 
their  God  had  entered  into  cove- 
nant-relations, should  be  both  out- 
wardly and  inwardly  worthy  of  their 
high  position.  The  existence  of 
the  priesthood  did  not  by  any  means 
imply  that  the  rest  of  the  people 
were  profane  ;  it  was  only  provi- 
sional. But  when  the  Israelites 
had  become  a  'kingdom  of  priests' 
(Ex.  /.  c.},  who  were  to  occupy  the 
place  out  of  which  the  faithful  por- 
tion of  the  people  had  just  been 
raised  ?  The  Gentile  world  (comp. 
Zech.  viii.  23).  This  *  natural  and 
surely  not  unlovely  touch  of  national 
complacency '  was  never  quite  lost 
by  any  of  the  old  Testament  writers. 

Shall  ye  make  your  beast] 

It  is  a  strong  argument  for  this 
reading  that  the  same  verb  in  the 
same  conjugation  occurs  in  this 


sense  in  Ps.  xciv.  4,  which  forms 
part  of  the  deutero-Isaianic  section 
of  the  Psalter  (Ps.  xci.-c).2 

7  Ye   shall    have   double]    i.e., 
double  compensation.   Comp.  Zech. 
ix.  12,  'Yea,  to-day  do  I  foretell 
that  I  will  recompense  double  unto 
thee';  also  Jer.  xvi.  14-18,  'where 
the  unparalleled   grandeur  of  the 
second  restoration  of  the  Jews  is 
justified  by  the  extreme    severity 
of  their  previous  chastisment.' 3     It 
is  not,  however,  double  compensa- 
tion in  honour  which   is  intended 
(Naeg.,  and  partly  Knob.),  for  this 
would  not  be  concrete  enough  for 
the  prophets.     '  The  land'  was  the 
one   blessing   which    included    all 
others.     Hence  the  prophecy  con- 
tinues,  therefore   (i.e.,  the    result 
will  be  that — see  on  xxvi.  14)  in 
their    land    they    shall    possess 
double,    i.e.,    their    ancient    land 
(  =  ' their   portion'    in    the   former 
half  of  the  verse)  shall  be  restored 
in  more  than  its  old  fertility  and 
with    extended   boundaries.     Thus 
the   idea  of   this    passage   is   the 
counterpart  of  that   in  xl.   2  ;    the 
peculiarity  of  Jer.  xvi.  14-18  is  that 
it  unites  both  ideas  (see  above). 

8  For  I  Jehovah  love  justice 
.  .  .  ]     The  speaker  quotes  a  con- 
firmatory   utterance    of    Jehovah. 
The  'right'  of  the   Israelites  has 
been  violently  '  torn  away '  (comp. 
x.   2,  same  word)  :    Jehovah,  who 
hates    injustice,    will    compensate 
them  for  their  sufferings.     Kloster- 
mann's     interpretation      is     over- 


1  Alttestamentliche  Theologie,  ist  ed.,  i.  183-4. 

2  See  Canon  Elliott's  comparative  list  of  passages  in  the  Speaker  s  Commentary, 
iv.  506,  &c.  *  /.  C.  A.,  p.  147. 


CHAP.  LXI.] 


ISAIAH. 


95 


covenant  will  I  make  with  them  ;  9  so  that  their  seed  shall  be 
known  among  the  nations,  and  their  offspring  in  the  midst  of 
the  peoples — all  that  see  them  shall  acknowledge  them,  that 
they  are  a  seed  which  Jehovah  hath  blessed. 

10  I  will  greatly  rejoice  in  Jehovah  ;  let  my  soul  exult  in 
my  God,  for  he  hath  clothed  me  with  garments  of  salvation, 
in  a  robe  of  righteousness  hath  he  arrayed  me,  like  a  bride- 
groom that  maketh  his  coronet  priestly,  and  like  a  bride  that 
putteth  on  her  jewels.  n  For  like  the  earth  which  bringeth 
forth  its  sprouting,  and  like  a  garden  which  causeth  the  things 
sown  in  it  to  sprout,  so  [the  Lord]  Jehovah  shall  cause  right- 
eousness to  sprout,  even  renown  before  all  the  nations. 


subtle1:  'the  Israelites  shall  not 
return  as  conquerors,  as  their 
ancestors  entered  Canaan,  by  the 
right  of  the  strongest,  but  with  the 
free-will  of  their  former  enemies.' 

— Their  recompence]  i.e.,  com- 
pensation for  their  sufferings  (comp. 
on  v.  7). Faithfully]  i.e.,  with- 
out curtailment,  in  exact  accordance 
with  his  promise. An  everlast- 
ing: covenant]  See  on  Iv.  3. 

9  Known]  i.e.,  renowned. 

10  I  will  greatly  rejoice  .  !  .] 
According  to  the  Targum,  Jeru- 
salem is  here  the  speaker,  appro- 
priating and  rejoicing  in  the  fore- 
going promises.  This  is  certainly 
plausible,  for  the  speaker  clearly 
implies  that  he  looks  forward  to 
a  share  in  the  promised  blessings, 
and  how  can  the  Servant,  himself 
the  mediator  of  these  blessings,  feel 
this  longing  ?— How  ?  by  his  sym- 
pathy; for  though  he  has  not  literally 
shared  in  the  sin  of  his  people,  he 
has  'taken  it  upon  him'  (liii.  4,  11) 
out  of  sympathy,  and  must  be  both 
able  and  desirous,  through  the 
same  fellow-feeling,  to  share  in  the 
coming  blessedness.  It  is  the  Ser- 
vant of  Jehovah,  then,  who  con- 
tinues to  speak. Garments  of 

salvation]  The  figure  reminds  us 

of  lix.  17. Righteousness]  i.e., 

the  prosperity  which  a  righteous 
God  will  give  (comp.  on  liv.  17). 
-Xiike  a  bridegroom  .  .  .]  The 


it  is  evidently  the  Servant  and  not 
Jehovah,  who  is  the  subject  of  com- 
parison. The  I sraelitish  bridegroom 
appears,  from  Cant.  iii.  11,  to  have 
been  crowned  '  on  the  day  of  his 
espousals,'  and  so  at  least  in  later 
times  was  the  bride.  A  well-known 
passage  in  the  Mishna  (Sofa,  ix.  14) 
states  that  during  the  war  of  Ves- 
pasian bridegrooms  were  forbidden 
to  wear  crowns  ('ataroth],  and  that 
during  that  of  Titus  (Gratz  corrects 
'  Quietus ')  the  prohibition  was  ex- 
tended to  brides — a  sign  of  the 
passionate  grief  of  the  Jews  at  the 
ruin  of  the  nation.  The  promise  of 
Jehovah,  realised  by  faith,  is  com- 
pared by  the  Servant  to  such  a 
headdress.  From  the  expression 
'  maketh  priestly,'  it  would  seem 
that  the  style  of  this  headdress 
resembled  that  of  the  priests'  tiara 
(Ex.  xxix.  9,  comp.  Jos.  Ant.  iii.  7, 
3).  To  suppose  that  this  resem- 
blance was  symbolical  of  the  priestly 
character  of  the  head  of  the  house- 
hold, seems  to  me  farfetched.  It 
is  well  known  that  archaic  forms 
and  fashions  linger  longest  in  ritual 
and  ceremonial  observances. 

11  Cause  ...  to  sprout]  Another 
allusion  (comp.  xlii.  9,  xliii.  19,  Iviii. 
8)  to  the  self-fulfilling  power  of  the 

Divine    word. Renown]     Lit., 

4  praise.'  The  prophet  means  events 
stirring  up  men  to  praise  Israel 
and  Israel's  God. 


simile  is  very  loosely  attached,  but 

1  It  is,  however,  accepted,  I  see,  by  Delitzsch,  in  his  third  edition. 


96 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXII. 


CHAPTER   LXII. 

Contents. — A  continuation  of  the  bright  promises  of  the  last  chapter, 
concluding  with  the  welcome  summons  to  depart  from  Babylon. — Most 
modern  critics  regard  this  chapter  as  the  soliloquy  of  the  prophet  ;  Vitr. 
alone  gives  it  to  a  chorus  of  prophets  and  other  servants  of  God,  while 
Henderson,  Stier,  Kay,  Naeg.,  assign  it  to  the  Servant  of  Jehovah  or  the 
Messiah.  If  there  is  nothing  in  the  chapter  specially  suggestive  of  the 
Servant,  and  as  the  opening  words  '  I  will  not  be  silent '  are  elsewhere 
uttered  by  Jehovah,  it  is  safer  to  follow  Targ.,  Ibn  Ezra,  Kimchi, 
Luzzatto,  Del.,  and  suppose  Jehovah  himself  to  be  the  speaker.  See 
also  note  on  v.  6. 

1  For  Zion's  sake  I  will  not  be  silent,  and  for  Jerusalem's 
sake  I  will  not  rest,  until  her  righteousness  go  forth  as  the 
shining  light,  even  her  salvation  as  a  torch  that  burneth. 
2  And  the  nations  shall  see  thy  righteousness,  and  all  kings 
thy  glory,  and  men  shall  call  thee  by  a  new  name  which  the 
mouth  of  Jehovah  shall  appoint ;  3  and  thou  shalt  be  a  crown 
of  adorning  in  the  hand  of  Jehovah,  and  a  diadem  of  royalty 


1  But  will  these  great  promises 
be  realised  ?     Will  Jehovah  indeed 
'cause   righteousness    to   sprout'? 
The  '  deep  gloom '  with  which  Zion 
as  well  as  the  other  nations  is  still 
oppressed  may  well  excuse  a  mo- 
ment of  despondency.     But  Jeho- 
vah will  not  let  such  despondency 

pass  unchecked. 1  will  not  be 

silent,  he  says,  I  will  not  for  ever 
hold  back  that   restoring  and  re- 
viving word  for  which  my  people 
are  longing.    Comp.  xlii.  14,  Ivii.  1 1, 

Ixiv.    12,    Ixv.    6. The    shining: 

li?bt]  Lit,  'the  brilliance' ;  Ewald 
has  '  der  Sonnenstrahl.'    The  word 
is  used  of  the  dawn  (the  Eastern 
dawn)  in  Ix.   3,  Dan.  vi.  20,  and 
especially  Prov.  iv.  18.    Luzzatto  is 
alone   in   thinking    of   the   planet 
Venus. 

2  By  a  new  name]     So  in  Ixv. 
15,  'he  shall  call  his  servants  by 
another  name.'     It    is   a  title    of 
honour  which  is  meant,  such  for 
instance  as  that  in  Jer.  xxxiii.  16, 
'  Jehovah    (is)    our    righteousness.' 
This  prophet  however  goes  beyond 
Jeremiah,  for  he  speaks  of  a  'new 


name,'  one  past  human  imagining, 
and  which,  like  the  new  heaven 
and  the  new  earth,  depends  upon 
the  appointment  of  the  Creator; 
compare  Rev.  ii.  17,  iii.  12  (in  the 
Greek). 

3  A  crown  of  adorning:]  Not 
'the  crown;'  Jehovah  has  'many 
crowns.'  The  regeneration  of  Israel 
constitutes  a  fresh  claim  on  the 
part  of  Jehovah  to  the  reverence 
and  admiration  of  the  universe 
(comp.  v.  2  a) ;  this  appears  to  be 
the  meaning  of  the  prophecy. 
Knobel,  indeed,  supposes  the  ex- 
pression to  be  a  figurative  descrip- 
tion of  the  situation  of  Jerusalem 
(comp.  on  xxviii.  i),  and  the  fol- 
lowing phrase,  'in  the  hand,'  to 
be  a  metaphor  =  '  under  the  Divine 
protection'  (comp.  xlix.  2).  But 
this  is  farfetched,  nor  is  there  any 
allusion  in  the  context  to  the 
dangers  of  the  new  Jerusalem. 
Jehovah  is  pictured  as  holding 
the  crown  in  his  hand  to  exhibit 
it  to  the  admiring  world  (Ew., 

Del.). In     the     open     hand] 

Cornp.    Bonomi,  Nineveh,  p.    191, 


CHAP.  LXII.] 


ISAIAH. 


97 


in  the  open  hand  of  thy  God.  4  No  more  shalt  thou  be  named 
Forsaken,  neither  shall  thy  land  any  more  be  named  Desola- 
tion ;  for  thou  shalt  be  called  a  Well-pleasing,  and  thy  land 
Married  ;  for  Jehovah  delighteth  in  thee,  and  thy  land  shall 
be  married.  5  For  (as)  a  young  man  marrieth  a  virgin,  thy 
sons  shall  marry  thee,  and  with  the  joy  of  the  bridegroom 
over  the  bride  shall  thy  God  joy  over  thee. 

6  Upon  thy  walls,  O  Jerusalem,  I  have  set  watchers  ;  all 
day  and  all  night  they  are  never  silent :  ye  that  are  Jehovah's 
remembrancers,  take  ye  no  rest ;  7  and  give  no  rest  to  him, 
until  he  establish  and  until  he  make  Jerusalem  a  renown  in 

a  Most  render,  My  delight  (is)  in  her  ;  comp.,  however,  Oholibah,  'there  is  a  tent 
in  her, '  Ezek.  xxiii.  4,  and  Smend,  ad  loc. 


where  the  guests  at  a  banquet  hold 
their  drinking-vessels  in  the  deeply 
hollowed  palms  of  their  hands. 

4  For  the   present  Jehovah  re- 
serves the  mystic  name  of  the  new 
Jerusalem    to    himself.     But    the 
prophet  is  allowed  to  mention  two 
inferior,    every-day    names    which 
may  appropriately  be  used,  the  one 
for  Jerusalem,  the  other  for  the  land 
of  Israel.     By  an  odd  coincidence, 
the  name  which  is  now  repudiated 
for  Jerusalem — Forsaken   (Hebr. 
Azubah} — is  also  the  name  of  the 
mother  of  the  pious  Jehoshaphat 
(i  Kings  xxii.  42),  while  that  which 
is    adopted    in    its    place — Well- 
pleasing-    (Hebr.    HephzibaJi) — is 
that  of  the  mother  of  the  idolatrous 
Manasseh  (2  Kings  xxi.  i). 

5  For    as    a    young:    man  .  .   .] 
An  explanation  of  the  new  names 
in  v.  4.     As  a  young  man  marries 
a  virgin,  so  shall  the  restored  Jewish 
exiles  take  possession  of  their  terri- 
tory ;  and  as  a  bridegroom  rejoices 
over  his  bride,  so  shall  Jehovah 
rejoice  over  his  erring  but  repen- 
tant people  (comp.  1.  i).     The  ex- 
pression, thy   sons    snail   marry 
thee,  is   less    strange   in   Hebrew 
than  in  English,  the  word  for  'to 
marry '  being  properly  '  to  be  lord 
over.' 

6  Upon  thy  walls]  The  walls  are 
those  of  which  we  have  heard  in 
xlix.  1 6  as  being  'continually  be- 
fore'  Jehovah;    the  Jerusalem   is 

VOL.  II. 


the  ideal  or  supersensible  one  (not 
the  less  real  because  ideal) — see 
on  xl.  9.  The  '  watchers '  therefore 
are  not  prophets  (Knob.,  Del),  but 
angelic  beings  (Targ.,  Ew.,  Harm, 
Seinecke).  Their  function  is  to 
'remind'  Jehovah,  not  of  human 
sin  (i  Kings  xvii.  18)  and  infirmity 
(Job  i.  1 1,  ii.  5),  but  of  his  covenant- 
promise  to  protect  his  people,  and 
we  have  perhaps  a  sample  of  their 
intercession  in  li.  9,  10  (see  note  on 
'Awake,  awake').  They  are  thus 
analogous  to  that  '  angel  of  Jeho- 
vah' in  Zech.  i.  12,  who  intercedes 
for  mercy  for  Jerusalem  and  the 
cities  of  Judah,  and  perhaps  to 
the  friendly  angel-mediator  in  Job 
xxxiii.  23.  We  have  met  with  these 
'  watchers '  before  (a  synonymous 
word  is  used)  in  Hi.  8  (see  note), 
where  they  give  notice  of  the  ap- 
proach of  Jehovah  with  the  return- 
ing exiles.  In  Daniel,  too  (e.g.,  iv. 
13),  and  in  Enoch  (e.g.,  i.  5),  the 
angels  are  called  'watchers'  (Hebr.) 
'/>-/>;/,  ./Ethiop.  fguhan,  i.e.,  irigiles), 
and  there  is  a  special  class  of 
angels  called  eyp^yopot  in  the 
Testaments  of  the  Twelve  Patri- 
archs. More  distant,  but  not  the 
less  genuine,  is  the  relation  of  the 
phrase  to  the  Trapa/cA^ros-  of  the 
Johannine  Gospel. — But  who  is  it 
that  declares,  X  have  set  watchers  ? 
Surely  not  the  prophet,  even  grant- 
ing that  the  '  watchers '  themselves 
are  prophets  (Knob.).  Who  but 


H 


98 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXII 


the  earth.  8  Sworn  hath  Jehovah  by  his  right  hand,  and  by 
his  strong  arm,  Surely  I  will  no  more  give  thy  corn  for  food 
to  thy  enemies,  and  strangers  shall  not  drink  thy  grapes,  for 
which  thou  hast  laboured  ;  9  for  they  who  have  garnered  it 
shall  eat  it  and  praise  Jehovah,  and  they  that  gathered  it 
together  shall  drink  it  in  my  holy  courts. 

10  Pass  ye,  pass  ye  through  the  gates  ;  clear  ye  the  way  of 
the  people  ;  cast  ye  up,  cast  ye  up  the  highway ;  take  ye 
out  the  stones  ;  lift  ye  up  a  banner  over  the  peoples.  n  Be- 
hold, Jehovah  causeth  it  to  be  heard  unto  the  end  of  the 
earth  ;  say  ye  unto  the  daughter  of  Zion,  Behold,  thy  Salva- 
tion cometh  ;  behold,  his  wage  is  with  him,  and  his  recom- 
pence  before  him.  12  And  men  shall  call  them,  The  holy 
people,  Jehovah's  released  ones  ;  and  thou  shalt  be  called 
Sought  out,  City  not  forsaken. 


Jehovah  could  commission  either 
angelic  or  prophetic  watchers  ? 
(So  Del.) 

8-9  Perhaps  Jehovah's  reply  to 
the  intercession  of  the  'remembran- 
cers ' ;  at  the  same  time  a  special 
supplement  to  the  promise  in  vv. 
2-$.  The  tone  corresponds  to  the 
circumstances  of  a  very  primitive 
period,  when  the  harvest  and  the 
vintage  were  liable  to  be  pillaged 
by  nomadic  hordes  (comp.  Judg. 
vi.  4,  u,  Isa.  xvi.  9). 

9  In  my  holy  courts]  Lowth 
and  Ges.  see  here  a  reference  to 
the  rules  about  the  tithes  and 
firstfruits,  which  were  to  be  eaten 
'before  Jehovah'  (Deut.  xii.  17,  18, 
xiv.  23-26).  But  the  whole  of  the 
harvest  could  not  be  eaten  in  the 
courts  of  the  temple  !  The  expres- 
sion is  figurative,  like  *  to  dwell,  to 
worship,  in  Jehovah's  house'  (Ps. 
v.  7,  xv.  i,  £c.),  for  'to  hold  com- 
munion with  Jehovah,'  and  simply 
means  '  shall  eat  and  drink  praising 
Jehovah,'  which  indeed  is  the  very 
phrase  used  in  the  parallel  line. 
(So  Diestel.) 

10-12  i^e  prophet  returns  to  the 
exiles  in  Babylon,  and  urges  them 
not  to  delay  their  homeward  march. 
It  is  the  same  call  which  sounded  in 
the  two  former  divisions  of  the  pro- 
phecy (xlviii.  20,  lii.  11). Clear 

ye  the  way]  An  imaginative  direc- 


tion to  Jehovah's  invisible  servants 
(so  xl.  3,  Ivii.  14).  It  is  tantamount 
to  a  prophecy  such  as  xi.  16. — 
Over  the  peoples]  i.e.,  high  above 
them,  so  as  to  be  seen  far  and  wide. 
The  'peoples'  are  the  Gentiles  who 
are  to  escort  the  Jewish  exiles, 
comp.  xlix.  22,  xi.  10,  12. 

11  Causeth  it  to  be  heard]  viz., 
as  appears  from  the  sequel,  the 
news  of  the  imminent  deliverance 

of  Israel  (as  xlviii.  20). Say  ye 

.  .  .]  This  is  a  fresh  summons, 
and  is  not  to  be  included  in  the 
utterance  to  '  the  end  of  the  earth ' 
— for  what  object  could  there  be  in 
enlisting  the  most  remote  nations 
in  the  service  of  Zion  ?  No  ;  the 
'daughter  of  Zion'  is  in  captivity 
in  Babylonia.  Her  heralds  are 
either  supersensible  beings  (comp. 
lii.  7,  8)  or  the  prophets  addressed 
in  xl.  i.  The  misunderstanding  of 
the  critics  is  caused  by  the  crowd- 
ing of  thoughts  in  the  prophet's 

joyfully  excited  mind. Behold, 

his  wag-e  .  .  .]    Repeated  from  xl. 

10. The  holy  (i.e.  consecrated) 

people]  Such  they  were  destined 
to  be  (Ex.  xix.  6),  though  the  ideal 
was  but  most  imperfectly  realised. 
But  now  the  real  and  the  ideal  are 

one. Sought   out]  i.e.,  eagerly 

cared  for.  A  contrast  to  Jer.  xxx. 
17,  'She  is  Zion;  no  man  seeketh 
her  out.' 


CHAP.  LXIII.]  ISAIAH.  99 


CHAPTER   LXIII.   1-6. 

THESE  six  verses  are  entirely  detached  both  from  the  foregoing  and 
from  the  following  prophecy,  and  ought  to  have  formed  a  chapter  by 
themselves.  They  contain  a  lyrico-dramatic  dialogue  (which  reminds  us 
of  that  in  Ps.  xxiv.  7-10)  between  the  prophet  as  a  bystander  and  a 
victorious  warrior  (i.e.  Jehovah)  returning  from  the  field  of  battle  in 
Idumasa. 

'  This  highly  dramatic  description,'  according  to  Ewald,1  '  unites  depth 
of  emotion  with  artistic  perfection,  and  reproduces  a  genuine  prophetic 
vision.'  Certainly  there  is  a  wonderful  forcefulness  of  phrase,  and  pic- 
torial power,  in  this  brief  prophecy,  though  it  is  impossible  to  read  it 
without  shuddering  (with  reverence  be  it  said)  at  the  vehement  indigna- 
tion which  it  expresses.  No  wonder  that  it  drew  the  attention  of  the 
seer  of  Patmos,  who  interwove  some  of  its  striking  phrases  in  one  of 
the  sublimest  but  most  awful  passages  of  the  Apocalypse  (xix.  13,  15). 
Ewald  then  goes  on  to  state  one  of  his  bold  critical  conjectures,  viz.,  that 
Ixiii.  1-6,  together  with  chap.  Iviii.  and  lix.  1-20,  is  the  work  of  a  fresh 
writer,  distinct  from  the  prophet  who  composed  the  greater  part  of 
II.  Isaiah.  I  do  not  here  discuss  this  view  as  a  critical  hypothesis,  and 
merely  mention  it  as  a  symbol  of  the  striking  impression  made  upon 
Ewald  by  the  literary  affinities  of  these  prophecies,  especially  Ixiii.  1-6 
and  the  imaginative  description  in  lix.  I5<£-2O.2  These  affinities  exist, 
and  are  of  some  importance  to  exegesis,  as  it  follows  from  them — i.  that 
at  any  rate  chap.  lix.  and  Ixiii.  1-6  were  occasioned  by  the  same  contem- 
porary circumstances,  and  2.  that  the  subject  of  the  latter  prophecy  is 
the  same  as  that  of  the  description  in  lix.  15  £-20,  viz.,  a  theophany,  i.e.,  a 
divinely  ordained  turn  in  the  fortunes  of  Israel.  When,  therefore,  Mr.  Row 
(refining  upon  the  well-known  patristic  interpretation)  supposes  3  that  the 
mysterious  warrior  in  Ixiii.  1-6  is  Israel — not  indeed  Israel  as  he  is,  but 
idealised  into  a  being  of  a  nature  chiefly  divine  but  partly  human,  he  can 
be  at  once  refuted  by  pointing  to  lix.  15,  where  the  warrior  is  expressly 
affirmed  to  be  Jehovah.  Mr.  Row's  mistake  is  probably  caused  by  his 
blind  following  of  the  division  into  chapters.  For  in  the  first  six  verses 
Israel  is  completely  in  the  background  ;  it  is  only  at  v.  7  that  the  hopes 
and  fears  of  God's  covenant-people  begin  to  find  expression.  It  may  not 
be  superfluous  to  add,  that  there  is  this  marked  difference  between 
Jehovah,  as  described  in  the  prophecies,  and  Jehovah's  Servant,  that  the 
one  can  employ  violent  means,  when  he  thinks  it  necessary  or  expedient, 
while  the  other  is  throughout  represented  as  employing  moral  means,  and 
as  being  rewarded  by  Jehovah  for  his  self-sacrifice. 

Modern  critics  in  general,  both  Roman  Catholic4  and  Protestant, 

1  Die  Propheten,  iii.  119. 

2  Observe  that  one  verse  is  almost  identical  in  both  prophecies  (comp.  Ixiii.  5  with 
lix.  16). 

3  The  Jesus  of  the  Evangelists,  p.  163. 

4  E.g  ,  the  two  recent  Rom.  Cath.  commentators,  RohlingandNeteler  (seeNaeg.'s 
introduction  to  Ixiii.  1-6). 

H  2 


100 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXIII. 


deny  at  any  rate  that  the  primary  reference  of  the  prophecy  is  to  the 
personal  Servant  of  Jehovah.  Calvin  long  ago  put  this  view  with  a  clear- 
ness and  a  force  which  leave  nothing  to  be  desired  ;  he  calls  the  tradi- 
tional Christian  interpretation  a  violent  wresting  of  the  prophecy,  which 
simply  declares  in  figurative  terms  that  God  will  interpose  for  His  people. 
The  only  doubt  is  whether  Edom  is  to  be  taken  literally  or  symbolically  ; 
whether,  that  is,  the  calamity  described  means  only  the  general  judgment 
upon  the  world,  or  a  special  visitation  of  Edom  ;  or  whether,  again,  we 
may  combine  these  views.  Our  conclusion  upon  this  point  will  depend 
on  the  opinion  we  have  formed  of  the  parallel  prophecy  in  chap,  xxxiv. 

It  is  certainly  a  strange  phenomenon,  this  reference  to  a  great  battle- 
field in  Edom,  when  the  grand  object  of  II.  Isaiah  is  to  help  the  Jews 
to  realise  their  coming  deliverance  from  Babylon.  It  creates  a  serious 
difficulty  for  those  who  maintain  that  II.  Isaiah  was  written  at  one  time 
and  under  one  set  of  impressions.  The  complications  of  the  problems  of 
Biblical  criticism  are  only  beginning  to  be  adequately  realised. 

1  *  Who  is  this  that  cometh  from  Edom,  in  bright-red  gar- 
ments from  Bozrah  ?  this  that  is  splendid  in  his  raiment,  that 
8  tosseth  (his  head)  a  in  the  fulness  of  his  strength  ?  '  *  I  am 

•  So  Ges.,  Naeg.— Bending  to  and  fro,  Del.— Stretching  himself  out,  Ew. 


1  That    cometh     from    Edom] 

From  this  it  would  appear  that 
the  battle  which  chiefly  excites  the 
writer's  interest  has  been  in  Edom. 
In  w.  3,  6,  however,  a  subsequent 
encounter  is  referred  to,  in  which 
1  the  peoples '  (or  '  peoples,'  for  the 
article  is  not  expressed),  i.e.,  the 
mass  of  the  Gentile  world,  feel  the 
weight  of  the  mighty  warrior's 
hand.  They  are  cursed,  like  Meroz 
(Judg.  v.  23),  because  'they  came 
not  to  the  help  of  Jehovah.'  Thus 
the  national  judgment  upon  Edom 
is  presented  as  an  earlier  stage 
of  the  great  world -judgment  (see 

introd.  to  chaps,  xxiv.-xxvii.). 

In  bright-reel  garments]  There 
is  a  doubt  whether  red  is  mentioned 
as  the  proper  colour  of  a  soldier's 
dress  (comp.  Nah.  ii.  3),  or  as  indi- 
cating the  slaughter  in  which  the 
hero  has  been  engaged  (v.  3).  Some 
have  felt  that  there  would  be  an 
incongruity  in  the  description  if  a 
blood-stained  robe  were  called 
*  splendid.'  Yet  the  second  is  the 
more  natural  view  (comp.  Rev.  xix. 


13).  It  represents  the  warrior  as 
'con  signo  di  vittoria  incoronato,' 
as  Dante  has  it  in  a  partly  parallel 
passage  ; l  and  the  stress  laid  upon 
the  shedding  of  blood  in  v.  3  sug- 
gests that  the  writer  himself  saw 
nothing  discreditable  in  the  cir- 
cumstances.  That  tosseth  (his 

head)]  I  cannot  agree  with  Dr. 
Weir  that  Del.'s  explanation  is 
absurd  ;  the  emotional  expressions 
of  more  primitive  races  may  appear 
strange,  but  we  ought  to  take  ac- 
count of  them  in  interpreting  ancient 
writers.  The  rend,  adopted,  how- 
ever, is  equally  possible,  and  comes 
home  more  to  our  feelings.  The 
tone  of  this  passage  reminds  us  of 
xlii.  13,  14;  comp.  also  Ps.  Ixxiv. 
3,  '  Lift  up  thy  steps  (O  Jehovah  !) 
to  the  everlasting  ruins,'  i.e.,  ad- 
vance in  long,  swift  steps. 1  am 

one  that  speak  .  .  .  J  The  warrior 
himself  answers  with  far-echoing 
voice  (for  he  is  seen  at  a  distance, 
as  Del.  subtly  remarks).  '  Speak- 
ing' is  mentioned,  to  recall  the 
numerous  prophecies  which  had 


1  Inftrno,  iv.  54. 


CHAP.  LXIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


IOI 


one  that  speak  in  righteousness,  that  am  mighty  to  save.' 
2 '  Why  is  there  red  on  thy  raiment,  and  thy  garments  like  his 
that  treadeth  in  the  wine-press  ? '  3  *  The  wine-trough  I  have 
trodden  alone,  and  of  the  peoples  there  was  no  man  with 
me  ;  so  I  b  trode  them  in  mine  anger,  and  trampled  them  in  my 
fury ;  and  their  life-stream  besprinkled b  my  garments,  and 
all  my  raiment  have  I  defiled.  4  For  a  day  of  vengeance  was 
in  my  heart,  and  c  my  year  of  release c  was  come.  5  And  I 
looked,  but  there  was  no  helper,  and  was  stupefied,  but  there 

b  Will  tread  .  .  .  will  trample  .  .  .  shall  besprinkle,  Vowel-points,  Targ. ,  Calv., 
Auth.  Vers.,  Kay,  Naeg.  (see  crit.  note). 

c  So  Sept.  (omitting  'my"),  Pesh.,  Vulg.^Ges.,.  Hitz.,  Del.,.  Naeg.—  The  year  of 
my  released  ones,  Ew.,  &c.  (But  see  IxL  2.) 


announced  this  great  display  of 
righteous  wrath  and  equally  right- 
eous love :  Jehovah  is  as  mighty  in 
word  as  in  act.  'Righteousness' 
is  not  synonymous  with  '  truth,' 
'veracity,'  but,  as  elsewhere  in  II. 
Isaiah,  the  fidelity  of  God  to  His 

revealed  principles  of  action. 

Why  is  there  red  .  .  .  ]  The 
speaker  is  evidently  surprised  at 
this  red  appearance  ;  it  is  acciden- 
tal, and  not  the  proper  colour  of 
the  dress  (see  above).  The  Hebr. 
word  for  '  red '  Qadoni)  suggests  the 
thought  of  Edom,  and  from  the 
sequel  we  may  infer  an  ideal  asso- 
ciation of  the  name  of  Bozrah  with 
the  vintage  (<fop>),  the  names  of 
countries  or  cities  being  regarded 
as  emblematic  of  their  fortunes. 

3  The  wine-trough  I  have 
trodden]  The  warrior  accepts  the 
metaphor,  which  indeed  is  a  stand-- 
ing equivalent  for  the  carnage  of 
battle  (Joel  iii.  13,  Lam.  i.  15,  Rev. 

xiv.    18-20). Of    the     peoples 

there  was  no  man  .  .  .  ]  The 
nations  of  the  world  (at  any  rate, 
those  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Israel)  are  regarded  as  a  single 
body  ;  they  are  in  fact  united  by  a 
common  fear  and  hatred  of  Jeho- 
vah (Ps.  ii.  2).  Hence  'no  man.' 

— So  I  trode  them  .  .  .  ]  The 
'wine-trough'  was  meant  for  Jeho- 
vah's enemies  and  those  of  his 
faithful  people  ;  but  there  was  no 
fatal  decree  binding  the  Gentile 
nations  to  persist  in  their  hostility. 


Any  one  of  them  might  have  sepa- 
rated itself  from  the  rest.  But,  as 
no  such  separation  occurred,  the 
Divine  warrior  took  summary  ven- 
geance upon  them  all. Their 

life-stream]  Lit,  'their  juice' 
(Kimchj,  less  suitably,,  '-their 
vigour').  C.omp.  PS.  xxxii.  4, 
'  my  sap  (a  synonymous  word)  was 
turned  into  the  drought  of  summer.' 
— Obs.,  it  is  his  enemies'  blood,  and 
not  his  own,,  with  which  the  dress 
of  the  hero  is  stained..  For  it  is, '  a 
more  than  man'  (/^'z^,,xxxi..8)  who 
goes  to  war,  and  a  heavenly  sword 
(xxxiv.  5)  which  cuts  down  the  foe. 

4  A  day  of  vengeance  .  .  .  my 
year  of  release]  Comp.  on  Ixi.  2. 
'Vengeance';  as  lix.  17,  xxxv.  4. 
— -Was  in  my  heart]  i.e.,  was 
in  my  intention  (as  x.  7). — Obs., 
v.  4  places  us  at  the  moment  pre- 
ceding the  act  of  vengeance  j  v.  5 
describes  the  internal  debate  of 
the  hero  ;  v.  6y  the  deed  which  fol- 
lowed, contemporaneous,  evidently 
with  v.  3.  '  Release'  suggests  the 
object  of  the  Divine  intervention  ; 
it  was  to  procure  the  release  of 
Jehovah's  people.  Alt.  rend,  is 
equally  admissible,  and  in  fact  more 
obvious,  but  does  not  make  such 
a  good  parallel  to  '  a  year  of  ven- 
geance.') 

5  And  I  looked  .  .  .  ]  See  note 
on  1.  2.  The  first  part  of  the  verse 
is  a  free  variation  on  lix.  16  a,  Ezek. 
xxii.  30 ;  the  second  is  a  repetition 
of  lix.  i6£,  with  the  change  of 


102 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXIII. 


was  no  supporter  ;  therefore  mine  arm  wrought  salvation  for 
me,  and  my  fury — it  supported  me  ;  G  and  I  d  stamped  upon 
the  peoples  in  mine  anger,  and  e  broke  them  to  pieces c  in  my 
fury,  and  'spilled  their  life-stream  on  the  ground.' 

d  Will  stamp,  Vowel-points,  Targ.,  Calv.,  &c. — Stamp,  Ew. 

c  So  Cappel,  Lowth,  Hitz.,  Knob.— Will  break  them  in  pieces,  Many  Hebr.  MSS. 
Targ. — Break  them  in  pieces,  Ew. — Will  make  them  drunk,  Received  text,  Calv.,  &c. — 
Made  them  drunk,  Sept.  Vulg.  Vitr. ,  Ges,,  Luzatto,  Del.     (The  letters,  which  alone 
properly  form  the  text,  leave  the  tense  of  the  rendering  open). 

1  Will  spill,  Vowel-points,  Targ.,  Calv.,  &c. 

then,  that  in  the  next  verb,  broke 
them  to  pieces,  the  figure  of  the 
vintages  is  altogether  deserted. 
The  common  reading,  'will  make 
(or  made)  drunk,'  is  against  the 
parallelism. 


1  righteousness '  into  '  fury,'  and  the 
third  into  the  first  person. 

6  I  stamped]  Auth.  Vers., ' I  will 
tread  down.'  But  the  verb  is  dif- 
ferent from  either  of  those  used 
in  v.  2.  There  is  the  less  wonder, 


CHAPTERS   LXIII.    y-LXIV. 

Contents. — A  thanksgiving,  confession  of  sin,  and  supplication,  which 
'the  prophet  puts  into  the  mouth  of  the  Church  of  the  Exile,  or  rather 
prays  out  of  their  heart '  (Del.),  for  he  thoroughly  identifies  himself  with  his 
people. — The  chapter  (for  such  it  virtually  is — see  on  Ixiv.  i)  falls  naturally 
into  a  number  of  short  paragraphs.  In  the  first  (Ixiii.  7-9),  the  tone  is 
that  of  thanksgiving,  in  accordance  with  the  beautiful  custom  of  the 
Psalmists  to  interlace  supplication  and  praise ;  in  the  second  (vv.  10-14) 
the  prophet  turns  to  Israel's  ingratitude  and  rebellion,  but  forgets  not  to 
record  his  people's  'remembrance'  of  Jehovah's  past  mercies,  a  remem- 
brance which  is  the  first  step  to  the  recovery  of  prosperity  (on  this 
characteristic  retrospect  see  note  on  v.  n) ;  in  the  third  (vv.  15-19)  the 
Church  supplicates  Jehovah,  as  being  still  the  'father'  of  his  people,  to 
'look  upon'  its  distress  ;  in  the  fourth  (Ixiv.  1-5  a)  it  ventures  further,  and 
utters  a  deep  longing  for  a  theophany,  nothing  short  of  which  will  touch 
the  root  of  its  misery;  in  the  fifth  and  last  (vv.  5^-11)  it  puts  forth  a 
humble  confession  of  its  utter  unworthiness,  and  again  bases  its  plea  for 
help  on  the  fatherly  relation  of  Jehovah,  and  on  the  desolate  condition  of 
his  chosen  land  and  habitation.  The  manner  is  that  of  a  liturgical 
psalm ;  the  prophet,  as  it  were,  leads  the  devotions  of  the  assembled 
Church.  The  tone  reminds  us  strongly  of  the  Lamentations  ;  the  deso- 
lation of  the  temple  and  of  the  Jewish  cities  (Ixiii.  18,  Ixiv.  10,  n)  are 
described  with  all  the  emotion  of  a  contemporary.  Shall  we  refer  this 
to  the  mighty  force  of  an  ecstatic  vision  ?  Or  is  the  prophet  a  contem- 
porary of  the  Jewish  exiles  ?  And  if  so,  when  and  where  did  he  write  ? 
Such  are  the  difficult  questions  which  meet  the  interpreter,  but  which,  as 
interpreter,  it  is  not  his  function  to  answer.  He  has  indeed  difficulties 
enough  of  his  own  in  this  chapter,  the  style  of  which  is  unusually  abrupt, 
and  the  text  not  always  handed  down  with  perfect  accuracy. 


CHAP.  LXIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


103 


7  Jehovah's  loving-kindnesses  will  I  celebrate,  Jehovah's 
deeds  of  renown,  according  to  that  which  is  due  for  all  that 
Jehovah  hath  bestowed  upon  us,  and  the  abundant  goodness 
toward  the  house  of  Israel,  which  he  hath  bestowed  upon  them, 
according  to  his  compassion  and  according  to  his  abundant 
loving-kindnesses.  8  He  said,  Surely  they  are  my  people,  sons 
that  will  not  play  the  liar,  and  he  became  unto  them  a  saviour. 
9  In  all  their  distress  a^was  distressed  a,  and  the  angel  of  his 
Face  saved  them  ;  in  his  love  and  in  his  clemency  he  himself 
released  them  ;  and  he  took  them  up  and  carried  them  all 
the  days  of  old.  10  But  they  defied  and  grieved  his  Spirit  of 

0  So  Hebr.  marg.  and  most  moderns. — There  was  no  (real)  affliction,  Ges.  ;  he 
was  not  an  adversary,  Dathe,  Kay  (both  possible  renderings  of  the  text- reading). — The 
versions  agree  with  the  Hebr.  text  in  reading  the  negative  particle. 


7  loving-kindnesses]  See  on  Iv. 
3. Deeds  of  renown]  Lit.,  *  re- 
nowns ';   as  in  v.   15,  '  mights  ;  = 
'acts   of  might    (or,   of  heroism),' 
and,  in  Ixiv.  6  '  righteousnesses '  = 
'righteous  deeds.' 

8  He  said  .  .  .  ]   The  retrospect 
of  the  prophet  or  the  Church  begins 
with  the  original  covenant  between 
Jehovah  and  Israel,  and  the  first 
great  deliverance  from  Egypt  (comp. 
Ex.  ii.  24,  iii.  7). Sons]  Remind- 
ing us  of  i.  2,  4. 

'•'  In  all  their  distress]  The 
wanderings  in  the  desert  are  re- 
ferred to. He  was  distressed 

i.e.,  he  himself  sympathised  with 
them.  Comp.  Judg.  x.  16,  'His 
(Jehovah's)  soul  was  impatient  for 
the  misery  of  Israel.  Against  the  al- 
ternative reading  (which  is  difficult 
to  construe),  see  Ps.  cvi.  44,  '  He 
regarded  (them)  in  their  distress.' 
Occurring  as  this  does  in  a  context 
closely  related  to  II.  Isaiah,  it  may 
not  unfairly  be  viewed  in  the  light 
of  an  interpretation.  The  early 
critics  seem  (as  in  ix.  3)  to  have 
stumbled  at  the  somewhat  unusual 
position  of  Id  (regarded  as  a  pre- 
position and  suffix). The  angel 

of  his  Pace]  No  doubt  this  is  a 
synonymous  phrase  for  'the  angel 
of  Jehovah,'  and  there  may  be  an 
allusion  to  the  promise  in  Ex.  xxiii. 
20-23,  'Behold,  I  send  an  angel 


before  thee,'  &c.  But  the  novelty 
of  the  phrase  invites  further  inquiry. 
Ewald  L  considers  it  to  be  a  meta- 
phorical equivalent  for  the  angel 
constantly  in  waiting  for  the  com- 
mands of  the  heavenly  King.  But 
it  seems  to  be  certain  that  the  ex- 
pression 'the  Face  (or,  the  Name) 
of  God'  is  not  merely  metaphorical, 
but  a  common  mythic  phrase  of  the 
early  Semites  for  the  self-manifest- 
ing aspect  of  the  Divine  nature 
(comp.  on  xxx.  27,  lix.  19),  and  that 
when  the  later  Old  Testament 
writers  discarded  mythic  phraseo- 
logy, they  gave  a  similar  content  to 
the  term  'angel.'  In  the  phrase, 
'  the  angel  of  his  Face,'  we  seem  to 
have  a  confusion  of  two  forms  of 
expression  incident  to  a  midway 
stage  of  revelation. His  clem- 
ency] Indicating  that  Jehovah  had 

much  to  forgive. He  took  them 

up]  Comp.  xl.  11,  xlvi.  3,  4  (note). 
10  But  they  defied  and  grieved 
.  .  .  ]  The  contrast  involved  in  the 
pronouns  'he'  and'  they'  reminds 
us  of  the  similar  antithesis  in  chap, 
liii. — It  is  probably  the  religious 
and  political  decline  of  Israel,  as 
represented  in  the  Book  of  Judges, 
to  which  the  prophet  refers  in  this 
clause  :— comp.  the  familiar  phrase, 
'And  the  children  of  Israel  again 
did  evil  in  the  eyes  of  Jehovah' 
(Judg.  ii.  11,  iii.  7,  £c.).  The  same 


1  Die  Lehre  der  Bibel  von  Gott,  ii.  289. 


104 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXIII. 


holiness  ;  so  he  changed  for  them  into  an  enemy,  he  himself 
fought  against  them.     n  Then  bhe  remembered  the  days  of 

b  His  people  remembered  the  ancient  days  of  Moses,  Saadya,  Rashi,  Ges.,  Hitz., 
Ew.,  Del.,  Naeg.— He  (Israel)  remembered  the  days  of  old  (and)  the  deliverer  of  his 
people  (viz.  Jehovah),  Horst,  Stier.  (This  rend,  is  mentioned  by  A.E.,  and  approved, 
though  not  adopted,  by  Ges.). 


combination  of  verbs  ('  defied '  and 
'grieved'  occurs  again  in  Ps.  Ixxviii. 
40 ;  and  the  former  of  these  verbs, 
in  conjunction  with  'his  Spirit'  (i.e., 
the  Spirit  of  Jehovah,  not  that  of 
Moses),  in  Ps.  cvi.  33  (comp.  v.  43). 

His    Spirit    of   holiness]      It 

would  be  dangerous  to  attempt  a 
'  Theology  of  1 1.  Isaiah,'  but  there  is 
evidently  a  tendency  in  this  book 
to  hypostatise  the  Divine  Spirit 
(which  it  mentions  no  less  than 
seven  times)  with  special  distinct- 
ness. The  author  has  already 
claimed  to  have  been  sent  in 
personal  union  with  the  Spirit  of 
Jehovah  (see  on  xlviii.  16),  he  now 
employs  another  phrase  (comp.  v. 
14)  which  could  not  have  been 
used,  except  of  a  person.  From  the 
connection  of  this  verse  with  the 
preceding  we  may,  I  think,  infer 
that  'his  Spirit  (of  holiness)'  is 
virtually  equivalent  to  '  the  Angel ' 
or  '  the  Face '  of  Jehovah  ;  and  the 
same  conclusion  may  be  reached 
(see  below)  by  comparing  the  last 
clause  of  the  next  verse  with  Ex. 
xxxiii.  14.  Another  slight  coinci- 
dence may  confirm  this  view.  The 
word  in  Ex.  xxiii.  21  rendered  in 
Auth.  Vers.  'provoke'  is  cognate 
with  the  word  here  rendered  'de- 
fied,' and  the  accusative  to  the  verb 
in  Ex.  /.  c.  is  the  '  Angel '  of  whom 
it  is  said,  '  My  Name  (  -  Face)  is  in 
him.'  Comp.  also  iii.  8  'to  defy 
the  eyes  of  his  glory '  ( = '  to  defy 
his  Face'). — The  phrase  'Spirit  of 
holiness'  is  particularly  appropriate 
here,  as  the  '  defiance '  of  the  Jews 
consisted  in  their  transgressing  that 
religious  covenant,  fidelity  to  which 
constituted  Israel's  'holiness.'  In 
fact,  the  phrase  was  not  improbably 
coined  for  w.  10,  11,  as  it  only 
occurs  again  in  Ps.  li.  (see  v.  11,  or 
in  the  Hebr.  12),  a  psalm  probably 
written  by  one  already  acquainted 


with  II.  Isaiah. So  he  changed 

.  .  .  ]     For  '  his  name  is  Jealous,' 
Ex.    xxxiv.     14. He     himself] 

Although  their  Father,  full  of  '  love 
and  clemency.' 

11  The  pressure  of  a  calamity 
excites  a  longing  for  the  return  of 
the  good  old  days. He  remem- 
bered] viz.,  the  people ;  comp. 
'within  him.'  This  'remembering' 
is  a  characteristic  feature  of  the 
later  Psalms ;  see  Ps.  Ixxviii.  35, 
Ixxvii.  11,  cv.  5,  cxliii.  5  (and  so 
Deut.  xxxii.  7).  When  man  '  re- 
members,' a  corresponding  'change 
of  mind'  seems,  to  human  expe- 
rience, to  be  wrought  in  God ; 
comp.  Ps.  Ixxviii.  39,  cvi.  45  (and 
the  parallel  in  Lev.  xxvi.  45).  It 
may  also  be  remarked  that  the 
point  of  view  of  edification  pre- 
dominates in  Hebrew  historical 
literature  from  the  time  of  the  Cap- 
tivity onwards  ;  in  their  studies  as 
well  as  in  their  prayers  these  earnest 
Jewish  believers  '  remembered.' — 
Of  the  text-reading  it  seems  to  me 
impossible  to  give  a  natural  transla- 
tion. I  must  still,  however,  agree 
with  Gesenius  (in  a  note  appended 
to  his  translation  of  Isaiah,  and 
very  generally  overlooked)  that  '  if 
the  text  is  correct,  the  explanation 
of  Horst  (1823)  deserves  particular 
attention,  according  to  which  mo- 
sheh  is  taken  appellatively '  (see 
above).  In  this  case  there  is  per- 
haps an  allusion  to  the  Hebrew 
etymology  of  Moses  (Ex.  ii.  10), 
and  we  might  render  (as  in  I.  C.  A., 
p.  221),  'the  (true)  Moses  of  his 
people.'  I  confess,  however,  that 
this  now  appears  to  me  too  abstruse 
an  expression  and  too  subtle  a 
thought  for  such  a  context.  In  his 
Commentary,  Gesenius  suggests 
that  'Moses'  (mosheJt)  is  a  marginal 
gloss  which  has  intruded  into  the 
text.  But  this  is  not  an  adequate 


CHAP.  LXIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


105 


old  b  ;  '  Where  is  he  that  °  brought  them  up  out  of  the  sea 
with  the  shepherds  °  of  his  flock  ?  where  is  he  that  placed 
within  him  his  Spirit  of  holiness  ?  12  He  that  caused  his  Arm 
of  splendour  to  go  forward  at  the  right  hand  of  Moses,  that 
cleft  the  waters  before  them,  to  make  unto  himself  an  ever- 
lasting monument  ?  13  He  that  made  them  to  go  through  the 
deeps,  like  horses  through  the  prairie,  without  stumbling  ? 

c  So,  many  Hebr.  MSS.  and  editions,  Vulg.,  Kimchi,  Vitr.  Del.— Brought  them 
up  ...  with  the  shepherd,  Received  text. — Brought  up  out  of  the  sea  the  shepherd, 
Sept.,  Pesh.,  three  Hebr.  MSS.  (two  of  some  importance),  Naeg. 


remedy ;  we  have  still  to  account 
for  the  unnatural  position  of  'his 
people'  ('ammo}.  The  Sept.  omits 
both  ivords,  and  Dr.  Weir  remarks, 
'  It  would  almost  seem  as  if  they 
were  a  marginal  gloss,  afterwards 
introduced  into  the  text,  "Moses" 
perhaps  explanatory  of  "shepherd 
of  his  flock,"  and  "his  people"  of 
"his  flock"  or  "within  him"'  [or, 
perhaps  still  better,  as  a  subject 

to    the   verb    '  remembered  ']. 

Where  is  be  .  .  .  ]  Here  begins 
a  series  of  questions,  reminding  us 

of  those  in  li.  9,  10. With,  the 

shepherds  of  his  flock]  ('  With ' 
=  *  under  the  conduct  of).  These 
additional  words  seem  to  follow 
rather  awkwardly,  and  I  can  under- 
stand Naeg.'s  preference  for  a  sim- 
pler reading  (see  above).  Still  the 
parallel  of  Ps.  Ixxvii.  20,  '  who  led- 
dest  thy  people  like  sheep  by  the 
hand  of  Moses  and  Aaron,'  seems 
to  justify  an  adherence  to  the  re- 
ceived text  (comp.  also  Num.  xxxiii. 
i).  From  Mic.  vi.  4  it  may  perhaps 
be  inferred  that  popular  tradition 
gave  a  place  to  Miriam  (called 
'  the  prophetess,'  Ex.  xv.  20)  among 

the  divinely  appointed  chiefs. 

"Where  is  he  that  placed  .  .  .  his 
Spirit .  .  .  ]  That  the  Spirit  of  Je- 
hovah was  specially  present  among 
the  Israelites  in  their  wanderings, 
was  the  constant  belief  of  the  Bibli- 
cal writers.  But  what  is  more  par- 
ticularly involved  in  this  belief?  A 
Levitical  prayer  in  Neh.  ix.  (see  v. 
20)  represents  the  operations  of  the 
Spirit  as  didactic,  but  the  aim  of 
the  speaker  or  writer  is  here  evi- 
dently, not  truthfulness  of  historic 


colouring,  but  edification.  Provi- 
dential guidance  and  sagacious 
government  seem  to  be  the  benefits 
primarily  associated  with  the  pre- 
sence of  the  Spirit,  or,  as  we  may 
also  say  (see  above),  the  Face  of 
Jehovah.  Hence  we  read  in  v.  14 
*  the  Spirit  of  Jehovah  brought  them 
to  rest,'  followed  by  '  so  didst  thou 
lead  thy  people';  hence  Jehovah 
declares  to  Moses,  '  My  Face  shall 
go  (with  thee),  and  I  will  give  thee 
rest'  (Ex.  xxxiii.  14,  comp.  Hag.  ii. 
4,  5,  Q.  P.  £.} ;  and  hence  the 
narrative  in  Num.  xi.  10-30  ascribes 
the  endowment  of  the  seventy 
elders  with  the  Spirit  of  Jehovah 
to  the  inadequate  provision  for 
the  functions  of  government.  The 
qualifying  term  '  of  holiness '  is 
neither  otiose  nor  vague.  It  recalls 
to  mind  (see  on  the  same  phrase  in 
v.  10)  that  the  external  prosperity 
of  the  Israelites  was  due  to  the 
fidelity  of  their  God,  and  implies  a 

rebuke  for  their  own  infidelity. 

Within  him]  viz.,  Israel,  not  merely 
Moses  (as  Ges.),  see  last  note. 

12  His  Arm  of  splendour]  An- 
other symbolic  phrase  nearly  equi- 
valent to  'the  Face  of  Jehovah' 

(see  on  xl.  10). To  g-o  forward 

at  the  right  hand  of  Moses] 
Ready  to  grasp  him  when  he 

stumbled,   xli.  13    (Dr.  Weir). 

"Who  cleft  the  waters  .  .  .]  Refer- 
ring still,  not  to  the  Jordan,  nor  to 
the  rock  in  Horeb,  but  to  the  Red 
Sea;  comp.  Ps.  cvi.  9,  Ixxvii.  16(17), 
where  'the  deeps'  are  mentioned, 

as  in  v.  13. The  prairie]    i.e., 

not  the  barren  'wilderness'  (as 
Auth.  Vers.),  but  the  uncultivated 


io6 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXIII. 


14  Like  the  beast  that  goeth  down  into  the  highland  plain,  the 
Spirit  of  Jehovah  d  brought  them  to  restd;  thus  didst  thou 
guide  thy  people,  to  make  unto  thyself  a  monument  of  glory. 

15  Look  from  heaven  and  behold,  from  thy  height  of  holiness 
and  splendour.     Where  are  thy  jealousy  and  thine  acts  of 
might  ?    the  sounding  of  thy  bowels  and   thy  compassions 
restrain  themselves  towards  me.     16  For  thou  art  our  Father, 
for  Abraham  taketh  no  notice  of  us,  and  Israel  doth  not  re- 

d  Led  them,  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Vulg.,  Targ.,  Lowth,  E\v.  (another  reading). 


pasture-land,  or  (to  adopt  a  word 
from  Messrs.  Jennings  and  Lowe's 
notes  on  the  Psalms),  the  prairie. 

13  That  goeth  down]  viz.,  from  the 

bare  mountain-side. Brought 

them  to  rest]  *  Rest '  is  a  favourite 
phrase  for  the  state  of  the  Israel- 
ites in  the  land  of  Canaan  after 
their  weary  wanderings ;  comp.  Ex. 
xxxiii.  14,  Deut.  iii.  20,  xii.  9,  Josh, 
i.  13,  xxii.  4,  Ps.  xcv.  u,  and  the 
applications  in  Jer.  xxxi.  2  (Q.P.B.}, 
Heb.  iv.  i,  3,  9. Thus]  Sum- 
ming up  the  several  stages  of  the 
history. 

15  Here,  strictly  speaking,  chap. 
Ixiv.  ought  to  begin  :  w.  15-19  are 
parallel  to  Ixiv.  1-3. — It  is  difficult 
to  overrate  the  spiritual  beauty  of 
the  prayer  contained  in  the  former 
passage.  We  may  admit  that  the 
most  prominent  motive  urged  by 
the  speaker  has  a  nationalistic  air, 
but  behind  this,  and  strengthening 
it,  is  his  sense  of  the  infiniteness  of 
the  Divine  mercy,  and  of  the  strong 
vitality  of  the  union  between  Jeho- 
vah and  his  people. look  from 

heaven]  As  if  Jehovah  had  given 
up  caring  for  his  people,  and  with- 
drawn into  his  heavenly  palace. 
This  bold  apostrophe  reminds  us 
of  a  similar  outburst  of  the  prophet- 
poet  of  the  middle  ages  : — 
E  se  licito  m'  e,  o  sommo  Giove, 

Che  fosti  in  terra  per  noi  crucifisso, 

Son  li  giusti  occhi  tuoi  rivolti  altrove  ? 

The  peculiar  Hebr.  original  occurs 
again  in  Ps.  Ixxx.  15  (A.  V.  14),  and 
nowhere  else.  Dr.  Weir  adds,  that 
the  whole  of  the  psalm  may  be 
compared  with  this  section  of  the 


prophecy. From    thy   height] 

It  is  not  marom,  the  usual  word  for 
'  height,'  but  z'bhul.  The  rendering 
seems  to  be  established  from  the 

Assyrian  (see  crit.  note). Where 

(is)  thy  jealousy]  Jehovah  seems 
to  have  become  callous  to  his 
people's  need  ;  his  '  jealousy ;  (see 
on  ix.  7  b]  slumbers,  and  needs  to 
be  '  stirred  up '  (xlii.  13,  where,  as  in 
this  passage,  it  is  combined  with  the 
expression  'heroism'  or  'manifes- 
tation of  might'). The  sound- 
ing of  thy  bowels  .  .  .]  A  figure 
for  'sympathy';  comp.  xvi.  11 
(note),  Jer.  xxxi.  20,  xlviii.  36. 
16  Here  the  prophet  gives  place 

as  speaker  to  the  Church. For 

thou  (only)  art  our  Father]  '  Our 
father,'  as  in  Ixiv.  8,  and  perhaps 
i  Chron.  xxix.  10. — Not  in  the 
wide,  spiritual  sense  of  the  New 
Testament,  but  as  the  founder  and 
preserver  of  the  Israelitish  nation 
(see  Deut.  xxxii.  6),  which  hence- 
forth (carrying  out  primitive  legal 
conceptions)  is  under  the  patria 
potestas.  This  is  the  constant  mean- 
ing of  the  title  '  Father '  as  applied 
to  Jehovah  ;  see  e.g.  Ex.  iv.  22, 
Hos.  xi.  i,  Isa.  i.  2,  Jer.  iii.  4,  19, 
xxxi.  9,  20,  Mai.  i.  6,  ii.  10.  The 
first  example  of  the  individualising 
use  of  the  term  is  in  Sirach  xxiii. 
1-4,  '  O  Lord,  Father  and  Governor 
of  my  whole  life  .  .  .  O  Lord, 

Father  and  God  of  my  life.' *) 

For  Abraham  taketh  no  notice 
of  us  .  .  .]  Two  explanations  are 
open  to  us:  i.  'Abraham  and 
Jacob,  fathers  according  to  the 
flesh,  are  long  since  dead,  and 


1  Comp.  Wittichen,  Die  Idee  Gottes  ah  des  Vaters,  Gottingen,  1865. 


CHAP.  LXIII.] 


ISAIAH. 


107 


cognise  us  ;  thou,  O  Jehovah,  art  our  Father  ;  '  our  Goel '  hath 


know  us  no  more,  and  cannot  help 
us.  But  Jehovah  is  the  everlasting 
Father  and  Redeemer  of  his  people.' 
So  Dr.  Weir,  expressing  (I  believe) 
the  general  view  of  commentators. 
But  let  the  reader  ask  himself, 
Does  this  really  explain  the  pas- 
sage ?  Why  should  Abraham  and 
Israel  be  introduced  in  this  con- 
nection ?  Is  it  not  a  platitude  to 
say  that  the  remote  ancestors  of 
the  Jews  cannot  help  them,  unless 
— and  this  is  the  second  of  our 
theories — there  was  some  chance, 
from  the  popular  point  of  view  (and 
obs.,  the  prophet  is  speaking  in 
the  name  of  the  people],  that  they 
might  both  sympathise  and  power- 
fully co-operate  with  their  descen- 
dants— unless,  in  short,  they  were 
regarded  somewhat  as  demigods 
(comp.  the  Homeric  poems),  or 
patron-saints,  or  the  angelic  'holy 
ones'  in  a  speech  of  Eliphaz  the 
Temanite  (Job  v.  i) 1  ?  It  was 
Ewald  who  first  pointed  out  some 
traces  of  such  a  popular  belief  in 
the  Old  Testament  writings,  though 
he  does  not  call  attention  to  it  in 
the  present  passage.  The  instances 
which  he  quotes  (not  all  of  them, 
I  think,  of  equal  value)  are  Jer. 
xxxi.  1 5  ('  Rachel  weeping  for  her 
children '),  Hos.  xii.  4,  5  (A.  V.  3, 
4),  Isa.  xxix.  22,  23,  Luke  i.  54,  55, 
73,  xvi.  22.2  Of  these  the  first  and 
the  last  are  the  most  striking ;  the 
passage  from  Hosea  seems  merely 
to  embody  a  typical  interpretation 
of  the  history  of  Jacob,  and  instead 
of  '  with  us '  we  should  perhaps  fol- 
low Noldeke  and  read  'with  him' ; 
on  Isa.  xxix.  22,  23,  I  may  refer  to 
my  own  note  ;  Luke  i.  54  probably 
alludes  to  Isa.  xliv.  2,  while  w. 
55,  73,  expressly  refer  to  the  past. 
But  if  there  are  only  a  few  passages 
alluding  to  this  popular  belief,  we 
need  hardly  be  surprised ;  it  was 


not  the  object  of  the  sacred  writers 
to  preserve  material  for  archaeolo- 
gists. These  few  passages,  however, 
seem  to  me  sufficiently  conclusive. 
They  enable  us  moreover  to  account 
for  some  remarkable  statements  in 
later  Jewish  writings — statements, 
be  it  said  in  passing,  which  render 
it  a  priori  probable  that  germs  of 
the  belief  expressed  in  them  would 
be  found  in  the  earlier  literature. 
Among  these  may  be  mentioned 
the  vision  of  Jeremiah  'who  prayeth 
much  for  the  dead'  (2  Mace.  xv. 
13,  14),  and  the  Talmudic  assump- 
tion that  the  Messianic  redemption 
would  be  the  recompence  of  the 
merits  of  the  patriarchs  (especially 
Jacob  and  Joseph),  or  of  the 
prayers  of  'ancient  Rachel.'3  I 
trust  no  reader  will  suppose  that 
there  is  anything  derogatory  to  the 
prophet  in  this  view  of  his  meaning. 
The  fearless  security  with  whiqh 
the  sacred  writers  employ  popular 
language  is  only  adverse  to  a  me- 
chanical theory  of  inspiration,  and 
adds  greatly  to  the  interest  of  Bib- 
lical studies.  [The  above  stands, 
with  slight  alterations,  as  it  was 
written  several  years  ago.  Since 
then  Dr.  Goldziher  has  arrived 
independently  at  a  similar  view.4 
His  opinion,  however,  is  that  the 
prophet  aims  at  overthrowing  the 
popular  belief.  This  seems  to  me  an 
arbitrary  conjecture.  No  evidence 
in  support  of  it  can  be  gained  from 
the  passage  itself.  The  prophet 
speaks  in  the  name  of  the  people, 
and  the  analogy  of  passages  (see 
above)  in  which  a  controversial  in- 
tention cannot  be  supposed,  seems 
to  me  to  be  unfavourable  to  Dr. 
Goldziher's  view.  Indeed,  on  re- 
considering my  note,  it  appears  to 
me  that  the  prophet  is  not  merely 
speaking  dramatically  for  the 
people,  but  expressing  his  own 


1  Of  course  it  was  only  the  patriarchs  and  great  men  who  were  expected  thus  to 
sympathise  across  the  gulf  of  death.  The  popular  belief  as  to  the  relation  of  the 
common  dead  to  their  descendants  is  shown  in  Job  xiv.  21,  22  (see  Dillmann's  note). 

*  History  of  Israel,  i.  296.     We  might  add  Mic.  vii.  20. 

3  See  Rashi  on  Ixii.  6  and  comp.  Castelli,  //  Me ssia  secondo  gli  Ebrei,  pp.  184-5. 
See  also  below,  on  v.  17  b,  and  quotation  from  Targum,  at  end  of  note  on  Ixiv.  5. 

4  Hebrew  Mythology,  translated  by  Russell  Martineau,  p.  229. 


io8 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXIII. 


been  thy  name  from  of  old.  17  Why  dost  thou  make  us  to 
stray,  O  Jehovah,  from  thy  ways,  and  harden  our  hearts  so  as 
not  to  fear  thee  ?  Return,  for  thy  servants'  sake,  the  tribes  of 
thine  inheritance.  18  e  For  (but)  a  little  while  have  they  had 

•  (  '  Mountain'  is  the  reading  of  Sept.,  Lowth,  Klostermann.)  For  a  little  while 
have  thy  holy  people  possessed  (the  land,  Vitr.,  Del.,  &c.,  or,  thy  sanctuary,  Hitz., 
Knob. ),  Hebr.  text,  according  to  most. — They  have  been  within  a  little  (?)  of  dispossess- 
ing thy  holy  people,  Hebr.  text,  according  to  Luther,  Luzzatto,  Seinecke,  Riehm. — 
For  a  little  while  have  they  (viz.,  thy  servants,  or,  the  enemies  of  Israel)  had  posses- 
sion of  thy  holy  city,  Weir  (emendation). 


beliefs.     See  Last  Words  on  this 

passage.] Israel]     Sometimes 

used  as  a  synonym  for  'Jacob'  in 
the  more  solemn  style ;  see  i  Kings 
xviii.  36  'God  of  Abraham,  Isaac, 

and  Israel.' pur  Goel  .  .  .  from 

of  old]  The  history  of  Israel  pre- 
sented a  continual  succession  of 
'captivities'  and  deliverances  (see 
on  xli.  14). 

17  Why  dost  thou  make  us  to 
stray  .  .  .]  (Comp.  Ixiv.  5,  7.) 
It  is  as  if  the  Jews  would  throw  the 
responsibility  of  their  errors  upon 
Jehovah  ;  and  this  in  spite  of  the 
encouraging  invitations  contained 
in  this  very  book.  They  speak  as 
if  it  is  not  they  who  need  to  return 
to  Jehovah  (Iv.  7),  but  Jehovah  who 
is  reluctant  to  return  to  them ; 
as  if,  instead  of  'feeding  his  flock 
like  a  shepherd'  (xl.  n),  he  has 
driven  it  out  of  the  safe  fold  into 
the  '  howling  wilderness.'  But  it 
is  only  a  temporary  gloom  which 
has  settled  upon  the  Jewish  be- 
lievers. Depressed  by  melancholy, 
they  give  way  for  the  moment  to 
those  human  '  thoughts '  which  are 
not  as  'My  thoughts'  (Iv.  8). 
Their  question  is  a  bold  one,  and 
in  other  lips  would  be  even  blas- 
phemous. But  an  ardent  affection 
to  their  God  underlies  it.  It  is  be- 
cause the  Divine  power  and  help- 
fulness has  been  so  often  proved 
of  old  (v.  1 6),  that  Israel's  present 
degradation  seems  so  unintelligible. 
The  sense  of  sin,  too,  has  deepened 
during  the  Exile,  and  with  it  has 


arisen  a  painful  feeling  of  the  in- 
consistency of  evil  with  the  be- 
neficent character  of  the  Deity.1 
Fundamentally  opposed  to  Dualism, 
the  Jewish  believers  are  involved 
in  a  speculative  problem  which, 
from  the  side  of  the  intellect,  they 
are  utterly  powerless  to  explain 
(comp.  Rom.  ix.  17-22).  How  can 
Jehovah  have  rejected  his  people? 
— this  was  their  first  difficulty,  and 
that  which  beset  even  the  less  re- 
ligious minds  among  the  exiles. 
How  can  God  be  the  author  of  sin? 
— this  is  the  added  sting  to  true 

believers. From  thy  ways]  i.e., 

from  thy  righteous    rules   of  life 

(Ixiv.     5). And     harden     our 

hearts]  See  on  vi.  10. Return] 

Jehovah  had  turned  away  in  dis- 
pleasure ;  comp.  Ps.  Ixxx.  14 

(quoted  by  Dr.  Weir). For  thy 

servants'  sake]  'Thy  servants' 
are  not  Israel's  'fathers'  or  fore- 
fathers (Ibn  Ezra  and  Kimchi, 
following  the  Targum,8  in  the  face 
of  v.  1 6),  but  those  Jews  who  are 
still  worthy  of  the  title  of  'Jeho- 
vah's servants'  and  are  therefore 
competent  to  receive  the  promised 
blessings.  In  the  parallel  line  they 
are  called  the  tribes  of  thine 
Inheritance.  This  is  not  merely 
a  consecrated  phrase,  but  the  lan- 
guage of  faith.  Jehovah  knows  his 
own,  however  widely  the  tribes  of 
Israel  may  be  dispersed. 

18  For  (but)  a  little  while]  It  is 
a  'pathetic  fallacy.'  The  tedious- 
ness  of  the  Exile  (see  on  xlii.  14) 


1  Comp.  I.  C.A.,  p.  224. 

2  It  is  a  favourite  idea  of  the  Targum  (see  Ps.  Ix.  6,  7,  Ixxxiv.  n),  and  of  the 
Talmud,  that  the  redemption  of  Israel  will  be  accorded  to  the  merits  of  '  the  fathers  ' 
(see  above,  on  v.  16).     Vitringa  compares  the  first  of  the  eighteen  Benedictions,  but 
khasde  there  means,  not  '  pious  deeds  '  (of  the  fathers),  but  '  promises  '  (as  Iv.  3  £). 


CHAP.  LXIV.] 


ISAIAH. 


109 


possession  of  thy  holy  mountain e :  our  adversaries  have 
trampled  upon  thy  sanctuary.  19  f  We  are  become  (like)  those 
over  whom  thou  hast  never  ruled,  upon  whom  thy  name  hath 
never  been  called.* 

LXIV.  l  Oh  that  thou  didst  rend  the  heavens,  that  thou 
didst  come  down,  that  the  mountains  g  shook  at  thy  presence, 
2  as  when  fire  kindleth  brushwood,  (as  when)  fire  causeth  water 
to  boil,  to  make  thy  name  known  to  thine  adversaries,  so  that 

f  We  are  become  as  of  old,  when  thou  ruledst  not  over  us,  neither  was  thy  name 
called  upon  us,  Sept.,  Vulg. — We  were  of  old,  before  thou  ruledst  over  them,  &c. 
Pesh. — We  are  thy  people  from  of  old,  &c.,  Targ.  (Dr.  Weir  doubtfully  suggests 
that  these  renderings  approach  the  truth). 

s  Flowed,  Sept.,  Vulg.,  Ew.,  Stier,  Weir.,  Naeg. 


made  the  preceding  period  of 
national  independence  seem  but 
too  short. Thy  holy  moun- 
tain] (Same  phrase  in  Ivii.  13.) 
This  phrase  considerably  dimi- 
nishes the  harshness  of  the  re- 
ceived text,  as  it  provides  the  verb 
in  the  first  line  with  an  accusative. 
(The  subject  of  the  verb  is,  of 
course,  'thy  servants,'  v.  17).  Alt. 
rend.,  it  is  true,  does  even  more 
than  this,  for  it  brings  the  verb  in 
the  first  line  into  parallelism  with 
that  in  the  second.  But  the  rend. 
'  within  a  little '  has  no  analogy, 
and  besides  it  is  difficult  to  think 
of  the  pre-Exile  Israelites  as  a  'holy 
people,'  which  would  seem  to  be  a 
title  specially  reserved  for  the  re- 
generate Israel  (Ixii.  12,  comp.  iv.  3). 
19  We  have  become  (like) 
those  .  .  .]  The  meaning  of  this 
half-verse  is  very  uncertain.  The 
omission  of  'like'  constitutes  a 
serious  difficulty  in  the  ordinary 

rendering. Thou    hast    never 

ruled]  (Comp.  the  complaint  of 
the  Church  in  xxvi.  13  a.)  The 
theocratic  covenant  was  regarded 
as  a  pledge  of  the  indestructibility 
of  the  Jewish  state.  Other  nations 
may  have  Baal,  Chemosh,  Asshur, 
for  their  king;  Israel  alone  can 
say  'Jehovah  is  our  King'  xxxiii. 
22).  The  prophets  admit  the  jus- 
tice of  the  popular  belief ;  only  they 
emphasise  the  moral  conditions  on 
which  alone  security  and  deliver- 
ance can  be  enjoyed. Thy 

name]  The  'calling'  of  the  '  name' 


of  Jehovah  upon  Israel  gave  a  mystic 
union  to  the  two  parties ;  comp. 
xliii.  7,  Ixv.  i,  Deut.  xxviii.  10,  Jer. 
xiv.  9. 

K3  These  verses  are  parallel  to 
Ixiii.  15,  but  grander  and  bolder. 
There  the  prophet  in  the  name  of 
the  Church  petitioned  that  Jehovah 
would  look  down  on  the  misery  of 
his  people.  Here,  a  look  is  felt  to 
be  sufficient,  so  widely  yawns  the 
gulf  between  Israel  and  his  God. 
A  revelation  on  the  largest  possi- 
ble scale  is  necessary  to  smite  down 
unbelief  and  annihilate  opposition  ; 
God  Himself  must  appear  (Naeg.). 
— In  the  modern  editions  of  the 
Hebrew  Bible,  the  verse  which,  in 
the  printed  editions  of  the  ancient 
as  well  as  in  the  modern  versions, 
stands  as  Ixiv.  i,  forms  the  second 
half  of  Ixiii.  19.  The  context  is 
obviously  against  separating  this 
verse  from  the  two  following  (our 
Ixiv.  2,  3),  but  the  arrangement  in 
the  Hebrew  Bible  may  also  perhaps 
be  taken  as  an  unconscious  protest 
against  the  interruption  of  a  pro- 
phecy which  is  really  a  connected 

whole    (Ixiii.    7-lxiv.    12). That 

thou  didst  rend  the  heavens] 
God  seems,  in  time  of  trouble,  to 
be  separated  by  thick  clouds  (Job 
xxii.  13,  14).  But  the  Church 
firmly  believes  that  He  will  show 
Himself  again,  and  only  wishes 
that  this  most  certain  event  had 
already  taken  place.  Hence  the 
perfect  tense,  'O  that  thou  hadst 
rent  .  .  .  hadst  come  down'  (so 


no 


ISAIAH. 


ICIIAI-.  LXIV. 


nations  trembled  before  thce,  3  while  thou  didst  terrible  things 
which  we  hoped  not  for  :  [that  thou  didst  come  down,  that 
the  mountains  *  shook  at  thy  presence  ;]  4  yea,  from  of  old 
men  have  not  heard,  nor  perceived  with  the  ear,  (and)  eye 
hath  not  seen,  a  God  beside  thee,  who  will  do  gloriously  for 
him  that  waiteth  for  him  !  5  h  Thou  meetest  h  him  who  joy- 
fully worketh  righteousness  ;  in  thy  ways  they  remember 
thee.  Behold,  thou  wast  wroth,  *  and  we  sinned  !  ;  k  *  *  *  k 
1  and  we  went  astray  l.  6  And  we  all  became  as  one  who  is 
unclean,  and  all  our  righteous  deeds  as  a  menstruous  garment, 
and  we  all  faded  away  as  the  leaves,  and  our  iniquities  like 

b  O  that  thou  wouldst  meet,  Ew.  (similarly  Stier). 

1  So  Hitz.,  Ew.,  Knob.,  Naeg.  —  And  we  stood  forth  as  sinners,  Del. 

k  Therein  (i.e.,  in  our  sins,  or,  in  the  tokens  of  thine  anger)  [have  we  been]  a  long 
time,  Ges.,  Del.  —  (Thou  wast  wroth)  with  them  (i.e.,  the  people)  a  long  time,  Vitr.,  Ew. 

1  So  Ew.  —  We  fell  away,  Lowth  (both  Ew.  and  Lowih  follow  Sept.).  —  Hebr.  text, 
And  shall  we  be  delivered?  Hitz.,  Del.,  Naeg. 


literally).  -  Mountains      shook] 

A  frequent  feature  in  the  Biblical 
theophanies  ;  comp.  Judg.  v.  5, 
Mic.  i.  4,  Hab.  iii.  6,  and  especially 
Ex.  xix.  1  8.  -  As  when  fire  .  .  .] 
To  emphasise  the  foregoing  state- 
ment. Solid  as  the  mountains 
seem,  they  shall  be  as  powerless 
as  so  much  brushwood  or  water  to 
resist  the  destructive  influences  of 
Jehovah.  -  To  make  thy  name 
known  .  .  .]  Name  is  not  merely 
character,  but  one  special  aspect  of 
the  Deity  (see  on  xxx.  27). 

3  Terrible  tilings]  A  standing 
phrase  (see  Deut.  x.  21,  2  Sam.  vii. 
23,  Ps.  cvi.  22)  for  the  wonders  of 
the  Exodus,  to  which  later  deliver- 
ances are  compared.  -  Which  we 
hoped  not  for]  Exceeding  our 
wildest  dreams,  although,  as  the 
next  verse  says,  we  had  a  right  to 
expect  great  things,  on  account  of 
the  mighty  exploits  of  Jehovah  in 
the  past.  The  concluding  words 
are  probably,  as  Mr.  Robertson 
Smith  has  pointed  out,  repeated  by 
accident  from  v.  i  ;  the  passage 
gains  greatly  by  their  removal. 

4  From  of  old  men  have  not 
heard  .  .  .]  The  only  living  God 
who,  from  the  beginning  of  the 
world,  has  proved  himself  to  be 
such  by  acts,  is  Jehovah.  -  Do 
gloriously]  Lit.,  '  do,'  in  a  preg- 
nant sense  (as  xliv.  23). 


5  Thou  meetest]  '  Meetest '  in 
such  a  way  as  to  leave  no  doubt 
of  a  Divine  visit  (etymologically, 

strikest  against.) Behold,  thou 

wast  wroth  .  .  .]  Instead  of  this 
desired  harmony,  Jehovah  has 
manifested  his  displeasure,  and  the 
only  consequence  has  been  (comp. 
v.  7  end,  and  Ixiii.  17  a)  that  we 
sinned  (or,  perhaps,  went  on  sin- 
ning). For  Del.'s  rend.,  comp.  Gen. 
xliii.  9  Hebr. ;  *  and '  =  *  so  that,'  the 
'  viv  consecutive '  here  expressing 
the  sequence  of  fact,  and  not  of 
logic)  .  .  .  and  -we  -went  astray] 
This  portion  of  the  verse  is  difficult 
in  the  extreme  (see  crit.  note),  Del.'s 
rend,  is  grammatically  the  safest, 
but  it  is  harsh,  and  interrupts  the 
parallelism.  The  paraphrase  of 
the  Targum  is  interesting,  as  illus- 
trative of  the  Jewish  doctrine  of 
merit,  referred  to  on  Ixiii.  16.  It 
runs,  '  because  of  the  works  of  our 
righteous  fathers  which  have  been 
from  of  old,  we  are  delivered.' 

6  And  we  all  became]  With  an 
emphasis  on  '  all,'  even  more 
marked  in  the  Hebr.  than  in  liii.  6. 

As  one  who  is  unclean]  Like 

the  leper,  who  is  excluded  from 
society  (Lev.  xiii.  44-46).  The 
people  is  personified  as  one  man 

(as  i.  6). Our  iniquities]     The 

word  ('fivdn)  includes  the  idea  of 
punishment  (see  on  liii.  6  b}. — 


CHAP.  LXIV.] 


ISAIAH. 


I  I  I 


the  wind  have  carried  us  away  :  7and  there  is  none  that  calleth 
on  thy  name,  that  stirreth  up  himself  to  take  hold  of  thee  ; 
for  thou  hast  hid  thy  face  from  us,  and  hast  m  delivered  us  ra 
into  the  hand  of  our  iniquities. 

8  And  now,  Jehovah,  thou  art  our  father ;  we  are  the  clay, 
and  thou  our  fashioner,  and  the  work  of  thy  hands  are  we  all. 

9  Be  not  wroth,  Jehovah,  to  the  uttermost,  and  remember  not 
iniquity  for  ever :    lo,  do  but  look,  we  are  all  thy  people. 

10  Thy  holy  cities  have  become  a  desert ;  Zion  hath  become  a 
desert,  Jerusalem  a  desolation.     H  Our  house  of  holiness  and 
splendour,  where  our  fathers  praised  thee,  is  burned  up  with 
fire,  and  all  our  delectable  things  are  laid  waste.     12  Wilt  thou, 

m  So  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Lowth,  Ew.,  Knob. — Made  us  to  melt  away  (by  means 
of,  or,  into  the  hand  of),  Hebr.  text,  Vulg.,  &c.  (unusual  transitive  use  of  the  verb). 


Have  carried  us  away]  Into  a 
region  where  Jehovah's  presence  is 
not  felt. 

7  Who    stirreth    up     himself] 

From  the  lethargy  of  the  con- 
science (same  word  in  li.  17). 

Bast  delivered  us]  The  low  ebb 
of  religion  being  ascribed  (comp.  v. 
5  and  xliii.  17)  to  Jehovah's  with- 
drawal of  his  felt  presence. 

Hand]  i.e.,  'power,'  'sins'  being 
personified  as  a  tyrant  seeking  to 
destroy.  Comp.  the  whole  passage 
with  Ezek.  xxxiii.  10,  *  Thus  ye 
speak,  saying,  If  our  transgressions 
and  our  sins  be  upon  us,  and  we 
pine  in  them,  how  should  we  then 
live?' 

8  The  Church,  in  the  boldness  of 
faith,  has  held  up  the  mirror  to  Je- 
hovah.    She  has   pointed  out  the 
disastrous  consequences  of  his  pre- 
sent inactivity,  and  sums  up  all  her 
longings  in  the  pleading  ejaculation, 
And   now  (bad  as   our   state   is), 
Jehovah,  thou    art    our  father ; 
this  is  the  hope,  which  will  bear 
the    full    weight   of    our    reliance. 
The   Church    had   indeed  already 
expressed  this  great  truth  (Ixiii.  16). 
She  now  couples  with  it  an  appeal 
to  Jehovah's  reasonableness.     Will 
the  potter  lightly  break  a  vessel  on 
which  he  has  lavished  his  utmost 
skill  ? — The   same  combination  of 
figures  occurs  in  xlv.  9  (note). 


We  all] 

>,  9). 


Unworthy  as  we  are  (see 


10  Another  motive  for  Jehovah's 
interference. Thy  holy  cities] 

The  phrase  is  remarkable  ;  else- 
where Jerusalem  is  '  the  holy  city ' 
(xlviii.  2,  Hi.  i)  :  Sept.  and  Vulg. 
read  '  thy  holy  city.'  We  find  how- 
ever 'his  holy  border'  (Ps.  Ixxviii. 
54),  and  'the  holy  land'  (Zech.  ii. 
12,  Hebr.  16). 

11  Our  house  of  holiness  .  .  .] 
'  Our  house,'  i.e.,  that  of  which  we 
are  so  proud  (comp.  Matt,  xxiii.  38). 
Not  '  the  house  of  our  holiness,  &c., 
for  the  '  holiness  '  and  the  '  splen- 
dour' are  Jehovah's  (Ivii.  15,  lx.  7, 
comp.  Ixiii.  15). All  our  delec- 
table   thmg-s]      The    parallelism 
shows  that  this  is  to  be  taken  in  a 
religious  sense  (comp.  xliv.  9),  and 
the  phrase  '  are  laid  waste,'  or  '  are 
laid  low  in  ruin'  (Tkhorbah,  else- 
where only  in  Jer.,  Ezek.,  and  Lev. 
xxvi.  31,  33),  suggests  that  build- 
ings are  meant — probably  the  tem- 
ple  and   its   contents    (hence   'all 
.  .  .').     This  is  confirmed  by  Joel 
iii.  5  ('  my  goodly  delectable  things  ' 
parallel  to '  my  silver  and  my  gold '). 
In  2  Chron.  xxxvi.  19  the  phrase  is 
used,  in   connection  with  the   de- 
struction of  Jerusalem,  of  all  artistic 
or  precious  objects,  sacred  or  other- 
wise.— To  illustrate  this  verse,  see 
introd.  to  chap.  Ixvi. 


112  ISAIAH.  [CHAP. 

in  spite  of  these  things,  restrain  thyself,  Jehovah,  keeping 
silence,  and  afflicting  us  to  the  uttermost  ? 

12  Restrain  thyself]     See  Ixiii.  15,  xlii.  14  (note). 


CHAPTER  LXV. 

Contents. — Alternate  threatening  and  promise,  the  one  addressed  to  a 
polytheistic  party,  the  other  to  true  believers. 

Most  commentators  regard  this  prophecy  as  the  answer  of  Jehovah 
to  the  foregoing  prayer  of  the  Church.  This  view  is  certainly  plausible ; 
such  deep  penitence  and  such  earnest  though  struggling  faith  ought  surely 
to  strike  a  responsive  chord  in  the  divine-human  heart.  Unfortunately, 
it  will  not  stand  a  critical  examination  ;  at  least,  there  are  objections  to 
it,  which  have  not  yet  been  answered.  The  most  serious  one  is  this — that 
the  Divine  speaker  not  only  makes  no  recognition  of  the  advances  of  his 
penitent  servants,  but  passes  by  without  notice  the  grave  religious  pro- 
blem by  which  they  were  harassed.  The  Church  had  complained  that 
Israel's  continuance  in  sin  was  itself  a  consequence  of  the  withdrawal  of 
the  Divine  favour  (see  on  Ixiv.  5).  It  is  difficult  to  understand  that  the 
only  reply  of  Jehovah  should  be  that  he  had  always  been  ready  to  renew 
his  intercourse  with  his  people  (Ixv.  i).  It  would  appear  to  follow  from 
this  inconsistency  that  chap.  Ixv.  was  not  originally  intended  to  be  the 
sequel  of  chaps.  Ixiii.,  Ixiv.  There  are  also  some  other  difficulties  in  the 
way  of  admitting  the  ordinary  view  of  commentators,  though  they  touch 
too  closely  on  the  domain  of  *  the  higher  criticism '  to  receive  a  thorough 
treatment  here.  They  are  such  as  these — that,  while  some  passages 
appear  to  presuppose  the  Exile  as  past,  others  refer  to  circumstances 
characteristic  of  Jewish  life  in  Canaan.  The  former  are  to  be  found  in 
w.  11-25,  *  But  as  for  you  .  .  .  that  forsake  my  holy  mountain'  (v.  u), 
and  *  They  shall  not  build,  and  another  inhabit,'  &c.  (v.  22) ;  the  latter 
in  w.  3-5,  11,  where  some  at  least  of  the  sins  referred  to  belong  dis- 
tinctly to  Palestinian  idolatry,  and  in  v.  8,  which  appears  to  contain  a 
quotation  from  a  vintage-song.  It  is  for  criticism  to  say  how  these  appa- 
rently conflicting  phenomena  are  to  be  accounted  for ;  but  exegesis  has 
a  right  to  point  out  that  a  chapter  with  such  pronounced  Palestinian 
features  can  hardly  have  been  intended  as  the  sequel  of  Ixiii.  7-lxiv.,  of 
which  the  real  or  assumed  standing-point  is  in  the  Babylonian  exile.1 

1 1  have  offered  answers  to  those  who  have  not  asked  ;  I 
have  been  at  hand  to  those  who  have  not  sought  me  :  I  have 

1  I  have  offered  answers]  Lit.,       (same  idiom  as  in  liii.  7,  on  which 
*  I  allowed  myself  to  be  consulted '      see  crit.  note).     The  expression  is 

1  I  feel  that  this  argument,  though  not  without  weight,  is  not  so  strong  as  the  fore- 
going one. 


CHAP.  T.XV.J 


ISAIAH. 


said,  Here  I  am,  here  I  am,  unto  a  nation  which  hath  not 
a  called  upon  a  my  name.  2 1  have  spread  out  my  hands  all 
the  day  unto  an  unruly  people,  who  walk  in  a  way  which  is 
not  good,  after  their  own  thoughts.  3  The  people  who  irritate 
me  to  my  face  continually,  who  sacrifice  b  in  the  gardens  b, 
and  burn  incense  upon  the  bricks  ;  4  who  tarry  in  the  graves 

a  So  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Vulg.,  Lowth,  Ew.,  Diestel.— Been  called  by,  Vowel- 
points,  Ges.,  Del.,  &c.  (unusual  use  of  the  conjugation), 
b  On  (?)  the  roofs,  Ew. 


vague,  and  may  mean  either  that 
Jehovah  was  actually  consulted  (it 
is  the  word  for  consulting  an  oracle), 
or  merely  that  He  might  have  been. 
The  vowel-points  (which  are  no 
part  of  the  text,  but  embody  an 
ancient  interpretation)  in  the  se- 
cond half  of  the  verse  imply  that 
the  Gentiles  are  the  people  referred 
to,  and  consequently  favour  the 
former  view  of  the  meaning.  St. 
Paul,  too,  following  perhaps  the 
tradition  of  Gamaliel,  applies  the 
passage  to  the  conversion  of  the 
Gentiles  (Rom.  x.  20),  and  most 
Christian  commentators  have  done 
the  same.  The  context,  however, 
is  very  decidedly  against  such  a 
reference.  There  is  no  indication 
that  the  prospects  of  the  Gentiles 
occupied  the  mind  of  the  prophet 
at  this  time.  The  sins  of  the  Jews, 
committed  against  light  and  know- 
ledge, must  bring  down  upon  them 
a  proportionately  heavy  punishment 
— this  is  the  burden  of  the  section. 
— Hath  not  called  upon  my 
name]  Comp.  Ixiv.  7,  xliii.  22.  The 
difficulties  of  alt.  rend,  are  well 
brought  out  by  Del.  (who  however 
adheres  to  it). 

2  Z  nave  spread  out  my  hands] 
The  gesture  of  prayer — what  a  con- 
descension ! Who  walk]     The 

nation  is  not  here  personified — it  is 
the  plural  number  in  the  Hebrew. 

3  Who    sacrifice    in    the    gar- 
dens]     This  was   a  characteristic 
sin  of  the  pre-Exile  period  (Ivii.  5, 
i.   29).     Ew.'s  correction   (baggag- 
goth   for   baggannoth],  anticipated 
but  rejected   by   Vitr.,   is   against 
Hebr.    usage,  which   requires    the 


preposition      *al. Upon       the 

bricks]  i.e.,  upon  the  tilings  of  the 
houses  (2  Kings  xxiii.  12,  Zeph.  i.  5, 
Jer.  xix.  13).  Or,  upon  altars  made 
of  bricks,  which  were  contrary  to 
the  Law  (Ex.  xx.  24,  25)  ;  but  this 
seems  rather  less  probable,  i.  be- 
cause it  implies  an  ellipsis,  and  2. 
because  it  points  to  Babylonia  or 
Egypt  as  the  scene  of  the  trans- 
gression. The  former  view,  imply- 
ing Palestine  as  the  locality,  is 
more  in  harmony  with  the  con- 
text. 

4  In  the  graves]  The  rock-graves 
of  Palestine  with  their  distinct 
chambers,  supplied,  and  still  sup- 
ply,1 a  comfortable  resting-place  on 
emergencies.  Of  course,  to  lodge 
in  the  houses  of  the  dead  involved 
ceremonial  impurity,  but  the  con- 
text shows  that  the  persons  spoken 
of  had  cut  themselves  adrift  from 
the  religion  of  Jehovah. — What 
was  the  object  of  these  visits  to  the 
graves?  Vitr.  and  Ges.  think  of 
propitiatory  sacrifices  to  the  dead, 
but  the  parallel  passages  (viii.  19, 
xxix.  4)  rather  suggest  necromancy. 
Sept.  already  adopts  this  view,  in- 
serting the  words  Sta  evvnvta  (the 
revelations  being  expected  in 
dreams).  But  the  graves  were,  in 
popular  estimation,  not  only  the 
abodes  of  the  dead,  but  those  of 
demons,  or  infernal  deities  or  demi- 
gods (comp.  Matt.  viii.  28,  Mark  v. 
3).  The  revelations  might  therefore 
be  looked  for  from  these,  and  the 
offence  against  Jehovah  would  be 
the  greater.  So  Jerome,  who  ren- 
ders the  next  line,  'et  in  delubris  (?) 
idolorum  dormiunt,'  commenting 


i 
VOL.  II. 


E.  von  Orelli,  Durch 's  Heilige  Land  (Basel,  1879),  p.  178. 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i.xv. 


and  cin  secret  places0  take  up  their  lodging,  who  eat  swine's 
flesh,  and  broth  of  abominations  is  in  their  vessels  ;  5  who  say, 
Keep  by  thyself,  do  not  come  near  me,  for  I  dam  holy  unto  theeu ! 
These  are  a  smoke  in  my  nose,  a  fire  burning  all  the  day 


c  In  the  caves,  Sept. 

d  Make  thee  holy,  Geiger. 


thus,  '  ubi  stratis  pellibus  hostiarum 
incubare  soliti  erant,  ut  somniis 
futura  cognoscerant.  Quod  in  fano 
,/Esculapii  usque  hodie  error  celebrat 
ethnicorum  multorumque  aliorum.' 

Comp.  Virg.  ^En.  vii.  87,  &c. 

Who  eat  swine's  flesh]  That  is, 
in  sacrificial  meals,  as  the  context 
shows  (comp.  Ixvi.  17).  The  flesh 
of  the  swine  was  forbidden  by  the 
Law  (Deut.  xiv.  8,  Lev.  xi.  7),  not 
merely  for  dietetic  reasons,  but  pre- 
sumably from  its  connection  with 
the  myth  of  Adonis,  who  was  said 
to  have  been  killed  by  a  wild  boar 
in  the  forests  of  Lebanon  ;  an  ad- 
ditional reason  for  the  prophet's 
indignation  is  mentioned  in  the 
note  on  Ixvi.  3.  How  loathsome 
swine's  flesh  was  to  pious  Jews 
may  be  seen  from  the  narratives  in 
2  Mace,  vi.,  vii.  The  charge  of  eat- 
ing it  points  on  the  whole  to  Pales- 
tine rather  than  to  Babylonia  as 
the  country  of  the  offenders,  for  not 
even  an  allusion  to  the  swine  has 
yet  been  found  in  the  cuneiform 
inscriptions.  It  is  true  that,  as 
Bochart  remarks,1  'there  were  no 
swine  in  Judaea,  as  long  as  the  com- 
monwealth of  the  Jews  stood  : '  it 
was  in  a  '  far  country '  that  the  pro- 
digal son  was  sent  into  the  fields 
to  feed  swine  (Luke  xv.  13-15). 
But  we  know  that  there  were  swine 
in  Galilee  in  our  Lord's  time  (Matt. 
viii.  30),  and  that  some  at  least  of 
the  Phoenicians  sacrificed  swine 
(Lucian,  de  ded  Syria,  c.  54). 
Ewald  points  to  the  mention  of  eat- 
ing swine  as  confirming  his  view 
that  these  chapters  were  written  in 
Egypt ;  but  though  the  swine  does 
appear  to  have  been  sacrificed  in 
Egypt  (Herod,  ii.  47,  48),  its  flesh 


was  'forbidden  to  all  initiated  in 
the  mysteries,  and  only  allowed  to 
others  once  a  year.' 2-  — Broth  of 
abominations]  i.e.,  broth  made  of 
the  unclean  animals  offered  to 
heathen  deities.  'Abominations' 
(shiggti$im]  occurs  only  in  this  and 
the  next  chapter  (Ixvi.  3,  comp.  v. 
17)  in  Isaiah;  it  is  specially  cha- 
racteristic of  Jeremiah  and  the 
writers  who  followed  him.  We 
find  it  however  once  in  Hosea  (ix. 
10),  once  in  the  disputed  Book  of 
Deuteronomy  (xxix.  17,  Hebr.  16), 
and  often  in  the  disputed  Book  of 
Leviticus.  For  the  construction  of 
the  phrase  of  which  these  words 
form  part,  comp.  v.  I2a. 

5  Who  say,  Keep  by  thyself) 
An  allusion  to  some  heathen  myste- 
ries, into  which  the  Jewish  renegades 
had  been  initiated  (comp.  Ixvi.  17). 
Idolatry  was  bad  enough  itself, 
but  that  idolaters  should  assume 
a  superiority  over  Jehovah's  'holy 
ones'  (comp.  Ixvi.  5)  was  still 

worse. 1  am  holy  unto  thee] 

i.e.,  by  implication,  unapproachable, 
tabooed,  sacrosanctus  (comp.  on  iv. 
3).  So  of  the  priests  it  is  said, 
'  Thou  shalt  sanctify  him  therefore, 
for  the  food  of  thy  God  doth  he 
present  :  he  shall  be  holy  unto 
thee '  (Lev.  xxi.  8,  quoted  by  Bau- 
dissin).  Geiger's  reading  is  plau- 
sible (comp.  Ezek.  xliv.  19  end, 
Hag.  ii.  12,  I3).3  But  a  warning 
not  to  run  the  risk  of  becoming 
'  sanctified  '  (and  therefore  disquali- 
fied for  ordinaiy  work)  by  contact, 
does  not  sufficiently  bring  out  the 
pride  of  these  pagan  '  Pharisees.' 

• These  are]  i.e.,  these  supply 

the  material  of.  A  smoke  in  my 
nose]  The  indignation  of  the 


1  Hierozoicon,  i.  696. 

2  Sir  Gardner  Wilkinson,  note  on  Herod,  ii.  47  (Rawlinson). 

3  See  Geiger,  Urschrift  und  Uebersetzungcn  der  Bibel,  pp.  56,  172,  493. 


CHAP.  LXV.j 


ISAIAH. 


long.  G  Behold,  it  is  written  before  me  ;  I  will  not  keep  silence, 
except  I  have  requited,  and  requited  into  their  bosom.  7  Your 
iniquities,  and  the  iniquities  of  your  fathers  together,  saith 
Jehovah,  who  burned  incense  upon  the  mountains,  and  re- 
proached me  upon  the  hills !  And  I  will  measure  their  re- 
compence  first  into  their  bosom. 

8  Thus  saith  Jehovah,  As  when  grapes  are  found  in  the 
cluster,  and  one  saith,  '  Destroy  it  not,  for  a  blessing  is  in  it,' 
so  will  I  do  for  my  servants'  sake,  that  I  destroy  not  the 
whole :  9  and  I  will  bring  out  from  Jacob  a  seed,  and  from 
Judah  possessors  of  my  mountains,  and  my  chosen  ones  shall 
take  it  in  possession,  and  my  servants  shall  dwell  there. 
10  And  Sharon  shall  become  a  pasture  for  flocks,  and  the 
valley  of  Achor  a  place  for  oxen  to  lie  down  in,  for  my  people 
who  have  enquired  of  me. 


speaker  makes  his  breath  issue  forth 
like  smoke.  Comp.  nasus  proflat 
iras. 

6  It  is  written  before  me]    The 
subject  may  be  either  the   sin  of 
the  Jews  (Calv.,  Hitz.,  Knob.,  Del.), 
which  is  'written,' as  Jeremiah  says 
(xvii.  i),  '  with  a  pen  of  iron,' or  the 
Divine  decree  for  its  punishment 
(Vitr.,   Ges.,   Stier,    Naeg.,    Kay). 
The  fortunes  of  men,  past,  present, 
and  future,  are  all   noted   in    the 
heavenly  books  or  registers  (iv.  3, 
Ps.  Ivi.  8,  Dan.  vii.  10),  but  in  this 
passage  it  is  rather  the  past  than 
the  future  which   is   recorded,  as 
appears  from  the  emphatic  '  before 
me.'     Comp.  Mai.  iii.  1 6, 'Jehovah 
hearkened    and    heard    it,   and   a 
book  of  remembrance  was  written 
before  him} 

7  Your  iniquities  .  .  .  ]    Some 
take  this  as  the  accusative  to  the 
verb  at  the  end  of  the  last  verse. 
But  the  change  of  pronoun  is  harsh 
in  the  extreme,  and  it  is  more  natu- 
ral to  suppose  that  v.  7  a  has  been 
left  imperfect  (the  verb  '  I  will  re- 
quite '  being  omitted),  owing  to  the 
excitement  of  the  speaker — that  it 

is,  in  fact,  an  exclamation. Upon 

the  mountains  ]    Again  a  Palesti- 
nian feature ;    comp.  Ivii.   7,  Hos. 

iv.  13 And  X  will  measure  .  .  .] 

The  most  pressing  act  which  Jeho- 


vah as  Judge  has  to  perform  is  to 
punish  these  evil-doers,  both  fathers 
and  sons.  See  the  parallel,  Jer. 
xvi.  1 8  (which  passage  is  the  origi- 
nal ?). 

8  Transition  from  threatening  to 
prorhise  marked  by  a  figure  from 
the  vintage.     Jehovah  will  not  re- 
ject all  Israel  because  of  its  many 
bad   members.     His  dealings  will 
be  like  those  of  vintagers,  who,  if 
they  find  even  a  few  good  grapes 
on  a  cluster,  say  to  each  other,  De- 
stroy it  not,  for  a  blessing:  is  in  it] 
('  A  blessing '  =  a  source  of  blessing, 
as  xix.  24,  Gen.  xii.  2).     Perhaps, 
as  Mr.   Samuel   Sharpe   and  Pro- 
fessor Robertson    Smith  have  in- 
dependently conjectured,  these  are 
the  opening  words  of  a  vintage-song. 
This  would  account  for  the  words 
'Destroy  not'   (Al^   tashkheth}   at 
the  head  of  Ps.  Ivii.-lix.     Each  of 
these   three  psalms  was   probably 
sung  to  the  air  of  this   favourite 
song. 

9  IMCy  mountains]    This  is  one 
of  Isaiah's  striking  phrases,  though 
not  confined  to  him  (see  on  xiv.  24), 

— Sharon  .  .  .  Achor]  i.e.,  the 
whole  land  from  east  to  west ;  see 
on  xxxiii.  9,  and  Josh.  vii.  24-26. 
The  same  prominence  is  given  to 
agriculture  in  an  earlier  ideal  pic- 
ture of  the  future  (xxx.  23,  24). 


I  2 


i6 


ISAIAH. 


11  And  as  for  you  that  forsake  Jehovah,  that  forget  my 
holy  mountain,  that  set  in  order  a  table  for  Gad,  and  fill  up 
mixed  drink  for  M'nf — 12 1  destine  you  for  the  sword,  and 


11  The  tone    of   threatening    is 

resumed    (as    so    often). That 

forget  my  holy  mountain]  This 
need  not,  as  most  commentators 
suppose,  imply  that  the  persons 
addressed  are  the  Jewish  exiles  in 
Babylon.  It  may  simply  mean, 
*  that  keep  aloof  from  the  rites  and 
ceremonies  of  the  temple.'  A  si- 
milar phrase,  'to  forget  Jerusalem,3 
occurs  in  Ps.  cxxxvii.,  which  all 
will  probably  admit  to  be  a  post- 
Exile  work. That  set  in  order 

a  table]  Alluding  to  the  '  lectister- 
nia,' or  meals  prepared  for  divine 
beings.  This  feature  will  suit  Ba- 
bylonia as  well  as  (probably)  Pales- 
tine. See  the  second  calendar 
translated  by  Sayce  in  Records  of 
the  Past,  vii.  159-168  (every  day  of 
the  month  Ebul  is  marked  by  a 
royal  offering) ;  and  comp.  Herod, 
i.  181,  Bel  and  Drag.  v.  11,  Ep.  of 
Jude  w.  26,  27.  The  only  other 
allusions  to  '  lectisternia '  in  the 
canonical  books  are  Jer.  vii.  18,  li. 
44.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  a 
similar  practice  in  honour  of  Gad 
survived  in  certain  Jewish  families 
even  down  to  the  time  of  Rashi 

(nth  cent.)1 For  Gad]  i.e.,  for 

Good  Fortune  ;  Sept.,  ro>  dai^ovico. 
Gad  is  probably  the  star-god  Jupi- 
ter (called  by  the  Arabs  'the  greater 
fortune').  His  cultus  exemplifies  the 
closeness  with  which  polytheistic 
rites  cling  to  their  native  soil.  Its 
origin  (see,  however,  below)  was 
Canaanitish  ;  comp.  Baal-gad  (i.e., 
Baal  in  the  character  of  the  god 
of  good  fortune),  the  name  of  a 
place  to  the  south  of  Hermon, 
mentioned  in  Josh.  xi.  17,  xii.  7. 
Some  have  also  traced  the  name 
of  Gad  in  the  proper  name  Azgad 


(which  occurs  four  times  in  Ezra 
and  Nehemiah),  but  this  is  rather 
the  Aramaic  izgad^z.  messenger.' 
In  Phoenician  inscriptions  we  find 
the  names  Gad-astoreth  and  Gad- 
moloch  (de  Vogue).  The  preva- 
lence of  the  worship  of  the  deity 
called  Gad  in  Syria  has  been  abun- 
dantly shown  by  Mordtmann,^  who 
quotes  inter  alia  a  remarkable  pas- 
sage from  the  Christian  writer, 
Jacob  of  Serug  :  '  Henceforth,  on 
the  summit  of  the  mountains,  they 
build  monasteries,  instead  of  Beith- 

tade '  (gad£t  the  plural  of  gad  in 
yriac,  means  generally  both  '  the 
good  fortunes,  viz.  Jupiter  and 
Venus,  though  in  the  Peshito  ver- 
sion of  our  passage  it  is  the  equiva- 
lent of  Gad  and  M'ni  conjointly). 
[It  is  possible,  however,  that  Gad 
has  a  Babylonian  origin.  'Jupi- 
ter,' according  to  Mr.  Sayce,3  '  was 
properly  termed  Lubat-Guttav ;  pos- 
sibly this  Gad  (in  Isa.  Ixv.  11)  is 
derived  from  Guttav,  with  a  change 
of  the  dental  to  assimilate  the  word 
to  the  Semitic  gad,  luck.'  Of  course, 
the  existence  of  a  Babylonian  ana- 
logue would  not  prove  that  the 
worshippers  spoken  of  lived  in 
Babylonia.  The  analogy  might  go 
back  (as  in  other  cases)  to  a  remote 

antiquity.] For   M'ni]   i.e.,    for 

Destiny  \  Sept.  rfj  n'^.  M'nf  is 
probably  Venus,  called  in  Arabic 
4  the  lesser  fortune.'  M'ni,  like 
Gad,  was  a  Syrian  deity,  though  the 
evidence  for  this  only  belongs  to 
the  post-Exile  period.  De  Luynes 
and  Levy  have  found  the  name 
in  compound  proper  names  on 
Aramaean  coins  of  the  Achaemeni- 
dae  ;  the  latter  has  also  found  it  on 
a  Sinaitic  inscription.4  Delitzsch 


1  See  the  Talmudic  and  Rabbinic  authorities  in  Chwolson,  Die  Ssabier,  ii.  226. 
The  Arabic  writer  en-Nadim  also  mentions  lectisternia  in  honour  of  '  the  lord  of  for- 
tune '  (i.e.,  Jupiter) ;  these  were  given  by  the  heathen  population  of  Harran  (Chwolson, 
op,  cit.  32). 

3  Zeitschr.  d.  deutsch.  morg.  Ges.,  xxxi.  9Q-ior. 

5   Transactions  of  Soc.  of  Bibl.  Archeology,  iii.  170-1. 

4  Levy,  Zeitschr.  d.  deutsch.  morg.  Ges. ,  xiv.  410  ;  Rodiger,  in  Addenda  to  Ges 
nius'  Thesaurus,  p.  97. 


CHAP.  LXV.] 


ISAIAH. 


117 


ye  all  to  the  slaughter  shall  bow  down,  because  I  called  and 
ye  did  not  answer,  I  spoke,  and  ye  did  not  hearken,  but  did 
that  which  was  evil  in  mine  eyes,  and  that  in  which  I  had  no 
pleasure  ye  chose.  13 Therefore  thus  saith  the  Lord,  Jehovah: 
Behold,  my  servants  shall  eat,  but  ye  shall  hunger  ;  behold 
my  servants  shall  drink,  but  ye  shall  thirst ;  behold,  my  ser- 
vants shall  rejoice,  but  ye  shall  be  ashamed  ;  14  behold,  my 
servants  shall  sing  aloud  for  gladness  of  heart,  but  ye  shall 
cry  out  for  anguish  of  heart,  and  for  breaking  of  spirit  shall 
ye  howl.  15  And  ye  shall  leave  your  name  for  a  curse  unto 
my  chosen  ones — e<  Then  may  the  Lord  Jehovah  slay  theee ', 
but  his  servants  shall  he  call  by  another  name,  1G  so  that  he 
who  blesseth  himself  on  earth  shall  bless  himself  by  the  God 

e  So  Ew.— Most,  And  the  Lord  Jehovah  shall  slay  thee. 


remarks  that  there  is  no  Babylo- 
nian analogue  for  M'ni.  Finzi  and 
Lenormant,  however,  have  both 
found  a  Babylonian  god  of  the 
second  order  called  'great  Manu.' l 
M'ni  may  very  possibly  be  a  Semi- 
tised  form  of  Manu. — M'ni  appears 
to  be  a  masculine  form  ;  we  know 
that  among  the  Babylonians  at 
least  there  was  a  masculine  as  well 
as  a  feminine  Venus  (see  on  xiv.  1 2). 
It  seems  probable  that  the  Arabic 
Manat  represents  a  collateral  femi- 
nine form  of  the  name.2  If  so,  we 
have  an  interesting  link  between 
Syrian  and  pre- Mohammedan  Ara- 
bian religion,  Manat  being  the 
name  of  one  of  the  three  chief 
deities  of  Arabia,  who  were  re- 
cognised for  a  time  by  Mohammed 
as  mediators  with  Allah  (Koran, 
Sur.  liii.  19-23). 

15  For  a  curse]  i.e.,  as  the  cen- 
tre of  a  formula  of  imprecation. 
Comp.  Num.  v.  21,  Zech.  viii.  13, 
Ps.  cii.  8  (Q.  P.  B.\  and  especially 
Jer.  xxix.  22,  'And  from  thee  shall 
be  taken  a  curse  .  .  .  saying,  Je- 
hovah make  thee  like  Zedekiah  and 
like  Ahab,  whom  the  king  of  Baby- 
lon wasted  in  the  fire.'  The  for- 
mula is  quoted  imperfectly,  like  the 
first  words  of  a  song.  Alt.  rend, 
seems  to  me  to  interrupt  the  flow 


of  the  sentence,  and  involves  a 
harsh  change  of  number.  Del., 
who,  on  supposed  grammatical 
grounds  (see  crit.  note),  adopts  it, 
yet  assumes  that  '  the  prophet  has 
in  his  mind  the  words  of  this  im  • 
precatory  formula  (hence  the  singu- 
lar "...  kill  thee ''),  though  he  does 

not  express  them.' By  another 

name]  It  is  implied  that  the  name 
'Israel'  has  become  debased  by 
the  lapse  of  so  many  of  the  Israel- 
ites. Comp.  the  '  new  name '  in 
Ixii.  2b. 

16  Shall  bless  himself  by]  i.e., 
shall  wish  himself  the  blessings 
which  proceed  from.  So  Gen.  xxii. 
1 8,  xxvi.  4,  Jer.  iv.  2,  Ps.  Ixxii.  17. 

— The  God  of  the  Amen]  Comp. 
Rev.  iii.  14,  '  The  Amen,  the  faith- 
ful and  truthful  witness.'  The  ex- 
pression is  generally  derived  from 
the  custom  of  saying  Amen  (i.e., 
'  It  is  sure ')  in  a  solemn  covenant 
(comp.  Deut.  xxvii.  15  &c.)  :  Targ. 
renders  '  the  God  of  the  oath  '—at 
any  rate  a  plausible  paraphrase.  I 
confess,  however,  that  I  can  hardly 
believe  that  our  prophet  would  have 
coined  such  a  phrase,  which  seems 
to  me  to  belong  to  a  more  liturgical 
age,  when  '  Amen '  had  become  a 
common  formula  in  the  temple- 
services.  One  is  tempted  to  alter 


1  They  refer  to  the  Brit.  Mus.  collection  of  cuneiform  inscriptions,  iii.  66. 

2  Comp.  Sprenger,  Leben  Mohammads,  ii.  16. 


n8 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXV. 


of f the  Amen' ;  and  he  who  sweareth  on  earth  shall  swear  by 
the  God  of  f  the  Amen  f ;  because  the  former  distresses  are 
forgotten,  and  because  they  are  hidden  from  mine  eyes. 

17  For  behold,  I  create  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth  ;  an< 
the  former  things  shall  not  be  remembered,  nor  come  up  inl 
the  mind.  18  Rejoice  ye  rather,  and  exult  for  ever  on  account 
of  that  which  I  create  ;  for  behold,  I  create  Jerusalem  (anew) 
as  exultation  and  her  people  as  joy  ;  19  and  I  will  exult  in  Jeru- 
salem, and  rejoice  in  my  people,  and  no  more  shall  there  be 
heard  in  her  the  sound  of  weeping,  nor  the  sound  of  a  cry. 
20  And  no  more  shall  there  proceed  thence  an  infant  of 
(a  few)  days,  nor  an  old  man  who  cannot  fill  up  his  days  ;  for 
the  youth  shall  die  when  a  hundred  years  old,  and  the  sinner, 

'  Faithfulness,  Weir  (see  below). 


the  vowel  points,  and  read  'omen 
or  *emun  'faithfulness'  (xxv.  i)  in- 
stead of  'amen ;  comp.  Sept.,  roi> 
Qfbv  TOV  d\r]0ivov.  [Similarly,  I  ob- 
serve, Dr.  Weir.] Bidden  from 

mine  eyes]  One  chapter  of  the 
heavenly  book  (see  on  v.  6)  is  can- 
celled ;  its  contents  are  as  though 
they  had  never  been.  The  con- 
tinuity of  Israel's  development  is 
restored. 

17-25  T^  new  creation.  Justin 
Martyr  (Dial.  c.  Tryph.  c.  81)  quotes 
these  verses  as  a  prediction  of  the 
millennium. 

17  X  create  new  heavens  and  a 
new  earth  .  .  .  ]  This  is  no  mere 
poetical  figure  for  the  return  of 
prosperity  (as,  e.g.,  Albert  Barnes 
would  have  it).  The  prophet  does 
his  utmost  to  exclude  this  view  by 
his  twofold  emphatic  statement — 
'  new  heavens  shall  be  created,  and 
the  old  shall  pass  away.'  The 
fundamental  idea  is  that  nature 
itself  must  be  transformed  to  be  in 
harmony  with  regenerate  Israel ; 
we  have  met  with  it  in  more  than 
the  germ  already  (see  xi.  6-9  with 
note  xxx.  26,  xliii.  19,  li.  16).  The 
supposition  of  Dr.  Kohut,1  that  we 
have  here  a  loan  from  Zoroastrian- 
ism  is  altogether  gratuitous,  i.  be- 
cause such  a  conception  arises 


naturally  out  of  the  fundamental 
Biblical  idea  of  the  perpetual  crea- 
torship  of  God  (comp.  John  v.  17), 
and  2.  because  the  regeneration  of 
nature  expected  by  the  prophet 
differs  from  that  taught  in  the 
Bundehesh  in  several  essential  par- 
ticulars— e.g.,  he  looks  forward  to 
the  continuance  of  births  and 
deaths  (w.  20,  22)  and  of  the  ordi- 
nary process  of  nourishment  (z/.  21), 
and  he  makes  no  mention  of  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead  (comp.  on 

xxvi.  I9.2 The  former  things] 

Some  understand  by  this  phrase 
*  the  former  troubles '  (comp.  liv.  4)  ; 
others  'the  former  heaven  and 
earth'  (comp.  Jer.  iii.  16).  But 
why  may  we  not,  as  Naeg.  suggests, 
combine  both  references  ? 

18  On  account  of  .  .  .  ]  Lit,  in 
respect  of ...  (comp.  xxxi.  6  Hebr.). 

— I  create  Jerusalem]  The  'new 
creation'  will  still  have  its  Jerusa- 
lem !  It  is  not  a  creation  de  nihilo, 
but  a  transformation. As  ex- 
ultation] i.e.,  with  an  abounding 
sense  of  joy  as  the  basis  of  the 
new  nature  (like  '  I  am  prayer,'  Ps. 
cix.  4). 

-°  The  youth  shall  die  .  .  .  ] 
i.e.,  he  who  dies  at  the  age  of  a 
hundred  shall  be  regarded  as  early 
lost,  and  even  the  wicked,  suppos- 


1  Zcitschr.  d.  dtutsch.  morg.  Ges.,  xxx.  716,  717. 
3  Matthes,  Tkeologisch  Tijdschrijt,  1877,  p.  585. 


CHAP.  LXV.] 


ISAIAH. 


119 


when  a  hundred  years  old,  shall  come  under  the  curse.  21  And 
they  shall  build  houses,  and  inhabit  them,  and  shall  plant 
vineyards,  and  eat  their  fruit :  22  they  shall  not  build,  and 
another  inhabit ;  they  shall  not  plant,  and  another  eat  ;  for  as 
the  days  of  g  a  tree  g  shall  be  the  days  of  my  people,  and  the 
work  of  their  hands  mine  elect  shall  use  to  the  full.  23  They 
shall  not  labour  for  vanity,  nor  bring  forth  for  sudden  trouble, 
for  they  are  a  seed  of  the  blessed  of  Jehovah,  and  their  off- 
spring (shall  remain)  with  them.  24  And  it  shall  come  to  pass 
that  before  they  call,  I  will  answer ;  while  they  are  yet  speak- 
ing, I  will  hear.  25  The  wolf  and  the  lamb  shall  graze  to- 

s  The  tree  of  Life,  Sept.,  Targ.     (Gloss.) 


ing  such  to  exist,  shall  not  be  cut 
off  by  the  curse  which  pursues 
them  before  their  hundredth  year. 
Our  prophet  has  not  so  glorious  a 
view  of  the  future  as  that  which  is 
embodied  in  xxv.  8.  It  is  not  eter- 
nal life  which  he  here  anticipates, 
but  patriarchal  longevity  (as  Zech. 
viii.  4).  Comp.  the  picture  in  the 
apocrypal  Book  of  Enoch  (v.  9), 
'  And  they  shall  not  be  punished  all 
their  life  long,  neither  shall  they 
die  by  plagues  and  judgments  ;  but 
the  number  of  their  days  shall  they 
complete,  and  they  shall  grow  old 
in  peace,  and  the  years  of  their 
happiness  shall  be  many,  in  ever- 
lasting bliss  and  peace,  their  whole 
life  long.'  (This  reminds  us  of  the 
Paradise  of  the  Avesta,  in  which  a 
year  was  equal  to  a  day,  Ve?ididad> 
ii-  I33-) 

21  And  they  shall  build  houses 
.  .  .  ]  Alluding  perhaps  to  the 
curse  in  Deut.  xxviii.  30,  the  exact 
opposite  of  which  forms  the  basis 
of  the  promise.  Comp.  also  Ixii. 
8,  9,  Am.  ix.  14. 

82  As  the  days  of  a  tree]  In- 
stances enough  of  long-lived  trees 
can  be  found  in  Palestine,  without 
referring  to  the  boabab-tree  of 
Senegal  !  Comp.  in  Ixi.  3  ' oaks 
of  righteousness,'  and  Ps.  xcii.  14, 
'  They  shall  still  shoot  forth  in  old 

age.' Shall  use  to  the  full]  Lit., 

wear  out.  Comp.  Job  xxi.  13, '  They 


Legend  of  Ishtar,  line  8  (back  side). 


wear  out  their  days  (i.e.,  live  out 
their  full  term)  in  prosperity.' 

23  MTor  bring  forth  .  .  .]  i.e., 
their  children  shall  not  perish  by 
any  of  God's  *  four  sore  judgments.' 
Comp.  Ps.  Ixxviii.  33,  'and  (he 
consumed)  their  years  by  a  sudden 

trouble.' (Shall  remain)  with 

them]  It  is  a  part  of  the  'blessing' 
that  their  children  grow  up  and  enjoy 
life  with  them.  Comp.  Job  xxi.  8. 

25  The  picture  of  the  new  crea- 
tion is  completed  by  a  reference 
to  the  animal  world.  It  would  be 
inconsistent  to  leave  the  lower 
animals  with  untransformed  na- 
tures. But  it  is  only  a  single  fea- 
ture which  is  given,  and  that  in 
the  form,  mainly,  of  a  condensed 
quotation  from  xi.  6-9.  One  origi- 
nal clause,  however,  is  added,  And 
the  serpent — dust  shall  be  his 
food]  i.e.,  the  serpent  shall  content 
himself  with  the  food  assigned  him 
in  the  primeval  Divine  decree  (there 
is  a  manifest  allusion  to  Gen.  iii.  14). 
This,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  is  meant 
literally  ;  '  much  dust '  is  the  food 
of  the  shades  in  the  Assyrio- 

Babylonian  Hades.1 They  shall 

not  harm  .  .  .]  The  subject  is,  of 
course,  the  wild  animals  mentioned 
in  the  original  passage,  xi.  6,  7. 
Hence  a  strong  presumption 
(whatever  be  the  date  of  chap.  Ixv.) 
in  favour  of  interpreting  xi.  9  (see 
note)  literally,  and  not  allegorically. 

All  the  translations  agree. 


I  20 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP. 


gether,  and  the  lion  shall  eat  straw  like  the  ox  ;  and  the  ser- 
pent— dust  shall  be  his  food  :  they  shall  not  harm  nor  destn 
in  all  my  holy  mountain,  hath  Jehovah  said. 


CHAPTER   LXVI. 

Contents. — A  declaration  by  Jehovah  that  he  requires  no  earthly  habi- 
tation, and  is  displeased  with  the  service  of  unspiritual  worshippers  ;  this 
is  followed  by  a  solemn  antithesis  between  the  fate  of  the  persecutors 
and  the  persecuted  (w.  1-5).  Next,  a  renewal  of  the  alternate  threats 
and  promises  of  chap.  Ixv.  (w.  6-24).  The  former  are  mainly  addressed 
to  the  hostile  Gentiles,  but  partly  also  to  the  idolatrous  Jews,  and  the 
idolatrous  practices  denounced  (v.  1 7)  are  the  same  as  those  mentioned 
in  Ixv.  4,  5,  viz.  initiation  into  heathen  mysteries,  and  eating  'unclean'  food. 
The  prophecy  closes  gloomily  with  an  awful  glance  at  the  punishment  of 
the  guilty  souls  (v.  24). 

In  deference  to  custom,  I  have  treated  these  two  parts  as  rightly 
united  in  a  single  chapter,  though  not  entirely  convinced  that  this  view 
is  correct.  The  most  obvious  interpretation  of  w.  1-3  is  that,  at  the 
real  or  assumed  standing-point  of  the  writer,  the  temple  was  no  longer 
standing,  and  that  the  Divine  speaker  reprobates  any  attempt  to  rebuild 
it  and  to  restore  the  sacrificial  system.  On  the  other  hand,  v.  6,  and 
perhaps  also  w.  20,  21,  seem  at  least  as  clearly  to  imply  that  the  temple 
is  in  existence.  I  have  endeavoured  to  remove  this  apparent  inconsis- 
tency in  my  note  on  v.  i  b ;  still  I  cannot  think  it  d  priori  probable  that 
passages  apparently  so  inconsistent  should  have  been  intended  to  form 
part  of  one  and  the  same  chapter. 

1  Thus  saith  Jehovah,  The  heavens  are  my  throne,  and  the 
earth  is  my  footstool  ;  what  manner  of  house  would  ye  build 


1  The  heavens  are  my  throne 

.  .  .]     For  parallels,  see  Ps.  xi.  4, 
ciii.    19  ;  comp.  also  the  words  of 
Jesus  in  Matt.  v.  34,  xxiii.  22. — 
What    manner     of    house  .   .   .  ] 

Many  consider  this  to  be  a  repro- 
bation of  a  plan  for  rebuilding  the 
temple,  whether,  with  Hitzig,  we 
suppose  this  to  have  proceeded 
from  the  Jews  who  remained  be- 
hind in  Chaldsea  (the  reprobation 
applying,  according  to  him,  to  a 
Chaldasan  and  not  to  a  Judaean  tem- 
ple), or  whether,  with  Lowth  and 
Vitringa,  we  assume  a  reference 
to  the  temple  of  Herod  the  Great. 


The  words  need  not,  however,  be 
more  than  an  emphatic  declaration 
that  Jehovah  *  dwelleth  not  in 
houses  made  with  hands.'  It  may, 
in  fact,  be  another  example  of  *  the 
Gospel  before  the  Gospel'  (see 
Acts  vii.  48,  xvii.  24),  for  a  similar 
statement  of  equal  distinctness  will 
be  looked  for  in  vain  in  the  Old 
Testament.  The  'Light  which 
lighteth  every  man '  in  this  in- 
stance shone  earlier  on  the  banks 
of  the  Nile.  An  Egyptian  hymn 
to  the  Nile,  dating  from  the  io.th 
dynasty  (i4th  cent.  B.C.),  contains 
these  words,  '  His  abode  is  not 


CHAP.  I.XVI.] 


ISAIAH. 


121 


for  me  ?  and  what  manner  of  place  for  my  rest  ?  2  For  all 
these  things  did  my  hand  make  ;  [a  I  spoke  aj  and  all  these 
came  into  being  (the  oracle  of  Jehovah)  ;  but  this  is  the  man 
upon  whom  I  look,  even  he  who  is  afflicted,  and  crushed  in 
spirit,  and  trembleth  on  account  of  my  word.  3  He  that 
slaughtereth  an  ox  is  a  man-slayer  ;  he  that  sacrificeth  a 
sheep,  breaketh  a  dog's  neck  ;  he  that  bringeth  a  meal-offering 

»  So  Gratz,  Monatschrift,  1878,  p.  293. 


known :  no  shrine  is  found  with 
painted  figures  :  there  is  no  build- 
ing that  can  contain  him.' *  It  is 
also  a  Persian  sentiment ;  comp. 
Herod,  i.  131,  'They  have  no 
images  of  the  gods,  no  temples,' 
&c. 

2  All  these  things]  viz.,  heaven 
and  earth,  and  all  things  therein  ; 

comp.  xl.  26,  Job  xii.  9. 1  spoke] 

These  words   seem    necessary  to 
complete   the    clause ;    comp.    Ps. 
xxxiii.  6,  '  By  a  word  of  Jehovah 
were  the  heavens  made,'  and  v.  9, 
*  He  spake,  and  it  came  into  being' 

(also   Gen.   i.   3). This   is   the 

man    upon    whom  .  .   .]       Comp. 
Ivii.    15. Trembleth    on     ac- 
count of  my  word]     Not  in  alarm, 
but  in  a  filial  awe,  which  does  not 
exclude   the   transports  of  delight 
(comp.  Ps.  cxix.   161  with  v.  ill). 
The  'word'  is  that  delivered  in  the 
name  of  Jehovah  by  the  prophets. 
The  phrase  is  only  found  again  in 
Ezra  (ix.  4,  x.  3). 

3  He    that    slaugrhtereth  .  .  .] 
i.e.,  he  that  would  slaughter  .  .  . 
The  sacrifice  (contemptuously  called 
the    slaughter)    of    an    ox,    when 
offered  by  unspiritual  worshippers, 
is  as  displeasing  to  God  as  the  sin 
of  murder  (comp.  i.  11-15).     It  is 
tempting  to  compare  Ixv.  3-5,  but 
though   the   several    parts   of    the 
prophetic  book  beginning  at  chap, 
xl.  have  many  points  of  connection, 
we  must  be  on  our  guard  against 
illusory    affinities.      The    persons 
spoken  of  here  are  evidently  wor- 
shippers of  Jehovah,  and  are  there- 
fore distinct  from  those  in  Ixv.  3-5. 


— Breaketh  a  dog's  neck]  Why 

this  feature  ?  It  seems  far-fetched 
to  suppose  a  covert  polemical  re- 
ference to  the  religious  reverence 
for  the  dog  in  Persia  and  Egypt 
(comp.  Bochart,  Hierozotcon,  i. 
691-2),  and  better  to  explain  the 
expression  from  the  uncleanness 
and  despicableness  of  this  animal 
among  the  Jews.  Taking  this  pas- 
sage, however,  in  connection  with 
v.  17,  and  with  Ixv.  4,  one  feels 
that  some  very  peculiar  sin  of  the 
contemporaries  of  the  prophet  is 
referred  to,  and  the  remains  of  a 
Scottish  scholar  have  thrown  an 
unexpected  light  upon  it.  In  short, 
it  is  totem-worship  (see  above,  on 
xv.  6)  against  which  the  prophet 
lifts  up  his  voice ;  the  unclean 
animals  referred  to  were,  most  pro- 
bably, the  totems,  or  animal-fetishes, 
of  certain  Jewish  families.  The 
survival  of  this  low  form  of  religion 
(if  the  word  may  be  used  in  this 
connection),  is  presupposed  even 
more  certainly  by  a  passage  in 
Ezekiel  (viii.  10,  11),  hitherto  wrapt 
in  obscurity,  where  'we  find  seventy 
of  the  elders  of  Israel— that  is,  the 
heads  of  houses  — worshipping  in  a 
chamber  which  had  on  its  walls 
the  figures  of  all  manner  of  unclean 
creeping  things  and  quadrupeds, 
"  even  all  the  idols  of  the  house  of 
Israel? '  and  in  the  midst  of  the 
worshippers  Jaazaniah,  the  son  of 
Shaphan,  i.e.,  the  son  of  the  rock- 
badger  (the  '  coney '  of  Auth. 
Vers.),  which  is  one  of  the  unclean 
quadrupeds,  according  to  Deut.  xiv. 
7,  Lev.  xi.  5.  In  fact,  the  proper 


1  Canon  Cook's  translation,  Records  of  the  Pant,  iv.  109.     The  hymn  has  also  been 
translated  by  M.  Maspero  (1868). 


122 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXVI. 


— (it  is)  swine's  blood  ;  he  that  maketh  a  memorial  of  incense, 
blesseth  an  idol.  As  they  have  chosen  their  own  ways,  and 
their  soul  hath  pleasure  in  their  abominations,  4  so  will  / 
choose  freaks  of  fortune  for  them,  and  their  terrors  will  I 
bring  unto  them,  because  I  called,  and  there  was  none  that 
answered,  I  spoke,  and  they  did  not  hearken,  but  did  that 
which  was  evil  in  mine  eyes,  and  that  in  which  I  had  no 
pleasure  they  chose.  5  Hear  the  word  of  Jehovah,  ye  that 
tremble  at  his  word  :  Your  brethren  that  hate  you,  that  put 
you  away  for  my  name's  sake,  say,  '  Let  Jehovah  show  himself 
glorious,  that  we  may  look  upon  your  joy,'  but  as  for  them, 
they  shall  be  ashamed. 

6  A  sound  of  uproar  from  the  city,  a  sound  from  the  tem- 
ple ;  the  sound  of  Jehovah  who  rendereth  their  deserts  to  his 


names  of  the  Israelites  give  evi- 
dence which  is,  I  think,  conclusive 
to  a  philological  eye,  in  favour  of 
the  survival  of  this  archaic  worship. 
In  Isa.  Ixv.,  Ixvi.,  the  swine,  the 
dog,  and  the  mouse  are  specially 
mentioned  in  connection  with  an 
illegal  cultus,  and  all  of  them  are 
found  in  the  O  Id  Testament  as  names 
of  persons — the  swine  (Auth.  Vers., 
Hezer,  rather  khezlr]  in  I  Chron. 
xxiv.  15,  Neh.  x.  21  ;  the  dog 
(Caleb  =  kalib  =  Arab  kalb  or  Hebr. 
keleb]  in  Num.  xiii.  6,  &c. — hence 
the  dog-tribe  (Hebr.  kalibbi)  to 
which  Nabal  belonged,  I  Sam.  xxv. 
3  ;  the  mouse  (Achbor)  in  Gen. 
xxxvi.  38,  2  Kings  xxii.  12,  14, 
Jer.  xxvi.  22,  xxxvi.  12.  (A  panther- 
totem  is  presupposed  in  Isa.  xv.  6 ; 
see  above.)  Of  course  the  prophet 
regarded  this  worship  as  a  super- 
stition dishonouring  to  the  one  true 
God.  The  tenacity  with  which  a 
section  (probably  a  large  section) 
of  the  Israelites  clung  to  it  throws 
a  bright  light  on  the  repeated  asser- 
tions of  the  prophets  that  their 
people  was  not  chosen  by  Jeho- 
vah for  any  merits  of  its  own. 
On  this  whole  subject,  see  'Ani- 
mal Worship  and  Animal  Tribes 
among  the  Arabs  and  in  the  Old 
Testament,'  by  Mr.  Robertson 
Smith,  in  Journal  of  Philology, 
where  abundant  parallels  to  the 


totemism  of  the  Israelites  are  ad- 
duced from  Arabia. Swine's 

blood]      See   on   Ixv.   4. That 

maketh  a  memorial  .  .  .  ]  '  Me- 
morial '  is  a  technical  term  in  the 
sacrificial  ritual  for  the  burning  of 
a  part  of  the  minkhah  or  meal- 
offering  with  incense  upon  the  altar 

(see  Lev.  ii.  2,  Q.  B.  P.}. Bles- 

seth]  i.e.,  worshippeth. 

4  So  will  /  choose  .  .  .  ]     *  The 
Orientals   are   fond   of  such   anti- 
thesis,' remarks  Gesenius.      It  is, 
however,  more  than  a  verbal  anti- 
thesis which  we  have  here  ;  it  is 
Jehovah's  fundamental  law  of  re- 
tribution (see  on  v.  8).     So  in  the 
KorAn    (as    Gesenius   points    out), 
'  .  .  .  they  say,  We  are  with  you, 
we  have    only   mocked   at   them  : 
God   shall  mock  at  them'  (Sur.  ii. 
13,    14);    'The    hypocrites   would 
deceive  God,  but  he  will  deceive 

them'  (Sur.  iv.  141). Freaks  of 

fortune]     The  word  is  very  pecu- 
liar :  it  represents  calamity  under 
the  figure  of  a  petulant  child  (comp. 
iii.  4  Hebr.). 

5  The  prophet  turns  abruptly  to 
those  who  in  holy  reverence  wait 
upon  Jehovah.  They  have  suffered 
for    Jehovah,   and    He   will   work 

mightily   for   them. That    put 

you   away]    i.e.,    that    refuse    to 
associate  with  you  (comp.  Ixv.  5). 
In  later  Hebr.  the  word  (niddah)  is 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


ISAIAH. 


12 


enemies  !  7  *  Before  she  travailed,  she  brought  forth  ;  before 
pangs  came  unto  her,  she  was  delivered  of  a  man-child.  8  Who 
hath  heard  such  a  thing  ?  Who  hath  seen  things  like  these  ? 
Can  a  country  be  travailed  with  in  a  day,  or  a  nation  be 
brought  forth  at  once  ?  for  Zion  hath  travailed,  and  also 
brought  forth  her  sons.'  9  Should  I  bring  to  the  birth,  and 
not  cause  to  bring  forth,  saith  Jehovah  ?  or  should  I,  who 
cause  to  bring  forth,  restrain  it  ?  saith  thy  God. 

10  Rejoice  ye  with  Jerusalem,  and  dance  for  joy  because  of 
her,  all  ye  who  love  her  ;  exult  together  with  her,  all  ye  who 


used  of  '  putting  out  of  the  syna- 
gogue '  (comp.  the  use  of  d<pop[fa  in 
Luke  vi.  22) ;  niddfty  is  the  lightest 
of  the  three  grades  of  excommuni- 
cation.   let  Jehovah  show 

himself  glorious  .  .  .  ]  An  ironical 
speech,  reminding  us  of  v.  19.  Dr. 
Kay  renders  the  verb  '  .  .  .  be 
glorious';  but  'become  glorious' 
seems  better,  or  the  equivalent 
given  above.  (Kal.  is  used, as  in  Mai. 
i.  5,  though  we  should  expect  Nifal.) 

6-Z4  Alternate  threats  and  pro- 
mises ;  the  glorious  return  of  the 
believing  Jews  contrasting  with  the 
terrible  and  endless  punishment  of 
their  enemies. 

6  A  sound  of  uproar  .  .  .  ] 
The  form  of  the  verse  reminds 
us  of  xiii.  4,  There,  however,  the 
'  uproar  is  caused  by  the  assem- 
bling of  Jehovah's  human  agents; 
here  it  is  that  symbolic  thunder 
which  marks  a  theophany.  There 
the  primary  object  is  the  destruc- 
tion of  Babylon  ;  here  the  sole  end 
is  the  last  act  of  the  drama  of  the 
judgment,  in  which  all  Jehovah's 
enemies  bear  a  passive  part.  The 
catastrophe  is  to  take  place  before 
Jerusalem  (as  in  Joel  and  Zecha- 
riah) ;  hence  it  is  added,  From  the 
city  .  .  .  from  the  temple]  No 
doubt  the  latter  words  come  in 
rather  strangely  after  the  seeming 
disparagement  of  temples  in  v.  i. 
But  the  inconsistency  is  probably 
merely  superficial  (see  above). 
The  precise  meaning,  however,  of 
the  words  '  from  the  temple  '  will 
depend  on  our  view  of  the  origin 


of  this  prophecy.  If  written  from 
the  point  of  view  of  the  Babylonian 
Exile,  we  must  suppose  Jehovah  to 
have  (in  a  sense)  taken  up  his 
abode  again  on  the  site  of  the  de- 
stroyed and  for  a  long  time  God- 
forsaken temple.  If  from  the 
point  of  view  of  the  restored  exiles, 
then  we  may  suppose  that  the 
temple  has  been  rebuilt,  and  that 
Jehovah  (in  a  sense)  issues  from  it 
to  take  vengeance  on  his  own  and 
Israel's  enemies.  However  this 
may  be,  w.  7,  8  are  written  from  a 
new  point  of  view.  They  represent 
the  other  side  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
judgment  (comp.  a  similar  transition 
in  Ixv.  8).  Israel  has  been  restored 
and  an  imaginary  spectator  bursts 
out  into  a  wondering  exclamation. 
The  subject  of  v.  6  is  resumed  in 
-v.  15. 

7  Before  she  travailed  .  . 
The  same  figure  has  been  us 
before  (see  xlix.  17-21,  liv.  i),  but 
with  less  drastic  energy.  A  child  is 
born,  a  man-child,  but  swiftly  and 
without  pain.  The  '  child  '  is  the 
Israel  of  the  latter  days,  the  con- 
cluding stages  of  Israel's  history- 
being  fused  in  the  dim  prophetic 
light.  Grotius  (who  had  philolo- 
gical instincts)  explained  of  the 
achievements  of  Judas  Maccabeus, 
He  rightly  felt  that  the  age  of  Ze- 
rubbabel  presented  no  fulfilment  of 
the  prophet's  burning  words. — The 
mention  of  a  '  man-child  '  is  signifi- 
cant. *  Sweeter  than  the  birth  of  a 
boy,'  says  an  Arabic  proverb  quoted 
by  Gesenius.  Till  Mohammed  in- 


124 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXVI. 


mourned  inwardly  over  her  ;  n  that  ye  may  suck,  and  be  satis- 
fied, from  the  breast  of  her  consolations  ;  that  ye  may  press 
out,  and  delight  yourselves,  from  the  bosom  of  her  glory. 
12  For  thus  saith  Jehovah,  Behold,  I  will  direct  peace  unto  her 
like  a  river,  and  the  glory  of  the  nations  like  an  overflowing 
torrent,  and  ye  shall  suck  therefrom  ;  upon  the  side  shall  ye 
be  borne,  and  upon  the  knees  shall  ye  be  caressed.  13  As  a 
man  whom  his  mother  comforteth,  so  will  I  comfort  you  ;  yea, 
in  Jerusalem  shall  ye  be  comforted.  H  And  ye  shall  behold, 
and  your  heart  shall  exult,  and  your  bones  shall  spring  up  like 
young  grass,  and  the  hand  of  Jehovah  shall  make  himself 
known  towards  his  servants,  but  he  shall  deal  indignation  to 
his  enemies. 

15  For  behold,  Jehovah  shall  come  in  fire,  and  his  chariots 
are  like  the  whirlwind,  to  return  his  anger  in  fury,  and  his 
rebuke  in  flames  of  fire.  1G  For  by  fire  will  Jehovah  hold 
judgment,  and  by  his  sword  with  all  flesh,  and  many  shall  be 
the  slain  of  Jehovah.  17  Those  that  consecrate  and  purify 


terfered,  the  Arabs  had  a  cruel  cus- 
tom of  burying  female  infants  alive. 

9  Should  X  bring:  to  the  birth 
.  .  .  ]  '  Should  I  arrange  all  the  pre- 
liminary circumstances  for  the  re- 
storation of  my  people,  and  stop 
there  ? '  '  Restrain  it '  implies  that 
the  expansiveness  of  Zion  is  such 
that  naught  but  Omnipotence  will 
be  able  to  check  it,  and  as  Omni- 
potence has  no  motive  for  checking 
it,  Zion  has  nothing  to  fear  either 
in  heaven  or  on  earth. 

10, 11  The  prospect  is  so  near  that 
the  friends  of  Jerusalem  should  at 
once  give  expression  to  their  joy, 
if  they  wish  to  be  rewarded  by  a 
share  in  her  bliss. Mourned  in- 
wardly] For  the  rend.,  see  i  Sam. 
xv.  35  Hebr. 

11  That  ye  may  suck  .  .  .  ]  The 
blessings  which  Jerusalem  has  re- 
ceived are  compared  to  a  mother's 
milk.     Comp.  a  different  use  of  the 
figure  in  v.  12  and  Ix.  16. 

12  I  will  direct  peace]   So  Gen. 
xxxix.  21  '  (Jehovah)  directed  kind- 
ness unto  him.' Upon  the  side] 

See  on  Ix.  4.  Obs.,  those  who  'bear' 
and  '  caress  '  are  the  Gentiles. 


13  As  a  man  .  .  .  ]    As  a  mother 
comforts,  not  merely  her  child,  but 
her  grown-up  son. 

14  Your  bones  shall  spring:  up 

.  .  .  ]  The  body  is  likened  to  a  tree 
of  which  the  bones  are  the  branches 
(Job  xviii.  13  Hebr).  During  the 
anger  of  Jehovah,  the  latter  had 
been  dried  up  and  sapless  (comp. 

Ps.    xxxii.    4). The     hand    of 

Jehovah]  No  mere  figure  of  speech 
(Ges.  renders,  'Jehovah's  might'), 
but  God  under  His  self-revealing 
aspect  (see  on  viii.  n). 

15  The  theophany.     There  is  no 
occasion,  with   Dr.  Kohut,  to  con- 
nect this  with  the  Zoroastrian  doc- 
trine of  the  end  of  the  world  by 
fire,  even  if  this  doctrine  be  really 
ancient,  and  not  rather  due  to  Se- 
mitic influences.    '  He  cometh  with 
fire '  is  the  natural  description  of  a 
theophany    in    Biblical    language  ; 
comp.   xxix.   6   (note),  xxx.  27,  28. 

—His  chariots]  In  Ps.  xviii.  10 
Jehovah  rides  upon  '  a  cherub  ' ; 
here,  as  in  Hab.  iii.  8,  the  single 
chariot  is  multiplied,  to  symbolise 
the  '  hosts '  of  natural  and  super- 
natural forces  at  his  command. 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


ISAIAH. 


'25 


themselves  for  the  gardens  [b  after  One  in  the  midst b],  that 
eat  swine's  flesh,  and  the  abominations,  and  the  mouse,  to- 

b  So  Hebr.  text  ('One'  is  masc. ).  — Behind  one  (viz.,  one  image  of  a  goddess, 
'one'  being  fern.),  Hebr.  marg.,  Vulg.  (see  Del.'s  note). — One  after  the  other,  Pesh., 
Targ. ,  Symmachus,  Theodotion.  Sept.  omits  the  words. 


16  His  sword]  See  on  xxxiv.  5,  6. 
— All  flesh]  See  on  v.  18. 

17  A   fresh    denunciation  of  the 
sins    mentioned    in  Ixv.  3,  4    (see 
notes).    Those  Jews  who  are  guilty 
of  them  will  share  the  punishment 

of    the   hostile    Gentiles. That 

consecrate      and    purify    them- 
selves]    As  a  preparation  for  the 
heathen  mysteries  in  the  gardens 

(i.  29,  Ixv.  3). After  One  in  the 

midst]     An    obscure,    enigmatical 
phrase,  and  possibly  corrupt.     The 
prevalent  explanation  (a}  is  (Ges., 
Hitz.,  Knob.,  Del,  Naeg.,  Baudis- 
sin)  that  it  describes  the  way  in 
which   the   rites  of  the  mysteries 
were  performed,  viz.,  standing  be- 
hind, or  perhaps  rather  with  close 
adherence  to  ('  after '  =  '  according 
to ')  the   directions    of   the   hiero- 
phant  or  leader  (who  would  natu- 
rally stand  in  the  centre  of  the  ring 
of  celebrants).     This  is  no  doubt 
plausible,  but  requires  a  great  deal 
to  be  supplied,  unless  (per  impossi- 
bile)  we  suppose  that  the  initial  rite 
of  purification  was  so  complicated 
that  it  needed  a  special  superin- 
tendent even  more  than  the  mys- 
teries themselves.     It  is  surprising 
that   those   critics  who,  one   after 
another,    have    adopted    it,    have 
not  felt  obliged  to  go  further,  and 
put  a  blank  space  in  their  transla- 
tion between  the  words   'garden' 
and  '  after,'  to  indicate  that  some 
words  have  fallen  out.     This  is  at 
any  rate  a  possible  solution,  (b}  An- 


other view  of  the  meaning  is  em- 
bodied in  alt.  read.,  but  is  adaptable 
to  the  ordinary  reading.  Early 
Jewish  critics  felt  that  some  refer- 
ence was  required  to  the  deity  in 
whose  honour  the  mysteries  were 
celebrated,  and  appear  to  have 
thought  of  the  Syrian  goddess 
Asherah,  whose  licentious  rites  were 
doubtless  performed  in  groves. 
Hence  their  conjectural  emendation 
(for  such  alt.  read,  most  certainly 
is),  ^akhath  for  *ekhadh  (the  feminine 
for  the  masculine).  Their  general 
view  seems  confirmed  by  the  com- 
mon use  of  '  after '  in  technical 
religious  phrases,  e.g.,  '  to  walk 
after  other  gods '  (Jer.  vii.  9),  '  to 
walk  after  Jehovah '  (Hos,  xi.  10), 
'to  lament  after  Jehovah'  (i  Sam. 
vii.  2),  '  to  fulfil  after  (=  wholly  to 
follow)  Jehovah '  (Deut.  i.  36).  But 
the  mention  of  swine's  flesh  just 
afterwards  suggests  the  worship  of 
Adonis  (the  Tammuz  of  Ezek.  viii. 
14)  rather  than  of  Asherah,  and  the 
reference  to  '  the  gardens '  suits  this 
equally  well  (see  on  xvii.  10).  This 
view  was  the  prevalent  one  among 
the  post- Reformation  scholars,1  and 
has  been  advocated  with  much 
force  by  Prof,  de  Lagarde  (in  spite 
of  a  faulty  inference  from  a  passage 
in  Macrobius).2  It  may  now  be 
confirmed  from  the  cuneiform  ac- 
count of  the  Assyrian  or  Babylo- 
nian festival  of  Istar  and  Tammuz 
(strictly,  Dum-zi  or  Tam-zi),  on 
which  occasion  we  are  told  that 


1  '  Scaliger,  Seldenus,  Drusius,  Vossius,  Grotius,  Bochartus,  Marshamus,  magna  in 
literis  nomina  et  appellari  digna,  huic  conjecture  faverunt  ;  estque  summe  probabilis.' 
Vitringa, 

2  Hieronymi  quastiones  hebraicce,  &c.,  ed.  Lagarde,  p.  121.     The  words  of  Mac- 
robius  referred  to  are — '  (Assyrii)  deo  quern  summnm  maximumque  venerantur  Adad 
nomen  dederunt '  (Saturn,  i.  23).     Lagarde  conjectures  that  Macrobius  found  in  his 
Greek  authority  A  A  A  miswritten  for  A  A  A  ( =  Hebr.   'ekhdddh}.    But  no  such  name  of 
a  deity  as  'ekhddh  has  yet  been  found.     Macrobius  evidently  uses  'Assyrians  '  synony- 
mously with  '  Syrians,'  and  wrongly  derives  the  Syrian  divine  name  Hadad  (he  calls  it 
Adad)  from  the  Syriac  khadkhad  (lit.,    'unus  unus,'  but  in  usage   '  unusquisque '). 
Lagarde's  appeal  to  the  Old  Test,  phrase,  '  mourning  for  an  (or,  the)  only-begotten 
son  '  (Am.  viii.  10,  Jer.  vi.  26,  Zech.  xii.  10)  is  more  plausible  (see  the  writer's  obser- 


126 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  i. xvi. 


gether  shall  they  be  consumed — the  oracle  of  Jehovah.  18  But 
I  [cwill  punish0]  their  words  and  their  thoughts  ;  [behold  the 
time]  is  come  that  I  gather  all  nations  and  tongues,  and  they 
shall  come  and  see  my  glory.  10  And  I  will  work  a  sign  upon 

e  So  Maurer,  Del. — I  know,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  some  MSS.  and  early  editions  of  Sept., 
Saidya,  Auth.  Vers.,  Vitr.,  Ges. — I  have  seen,  Gratz. 


'  the  figure  of  the  goddess  is  carried 
in  procession,  adorned  with  jewels 
and  robes  of  rich  material,  attend- 
ed by  her  maids  of  honour,  Sam- 
khal  or  Pleasure,  and  Harimatu  or 
Lust  ;  and  they  go  in  procession 
to  meet  the  mourners  bearing  the 
body  of  the  dead  Tammuz.' x  But 
why  should  Adonis  be  called  '  One '  ? 
Prof,  de  Lagarde  would  apparently 
take  'fkk&dk  (here  rendered  *  One ') 
in  the  sense  of  yakhidh  '  unique  ' 
(as  Job  xxiii.  13),  for  he  compares 
the  remarkable  phrase,  'mourning 
for  an  only-begotten  son'  (ebhel 
yakhidJi).  But  this  seems  hazard- 
ous (see  note 2).  The  only  alterna- 
tive is  to  take  the  word  in  question 
as  a  contemptuous  or  evasive  ap- 
pellation. Maurer  comments  thus  : 

*  Hebr.    'ekhadh,  nescio   quis,   per 
contemptum.'      It   is   rather   more 
natural   to  regard  it  as  a  piously 
evasive  phrase,  somewhat  like  that 
employed  by  the  Rajah  of  Burdwan, 
in  speaking  to  Weitbrecht  the  mis- 
sionary, *  O  yes,  I  have  no  objec- 
tion,  if  you   do   not  mention  one 
name'  (meaning  the  name  of  Jesus).1 
(c)  And  yet,  plausible  as  both  the 
above  views  are,  especially  the  lat- 
ter, the  combination  of  letters  which 
the  received  text  presents,  impresses 
me  by  a  family-likeness  to  other 
passages    of    indubitable    corrupt- 
ness.    May  it  not  be  a  mutilated 
fragment  of  a  clause   parallel   to, 
though     somewhat    shorter    than, 

*  those  that  consecrate  themselves,' 


&c.  ?  The  conjecture  seems  to  be 
confirmed  by  the  evident  defective- 
ness  of  a  part  of  the  next  verse. 
The  abominations]  A  techni- 
cal expression  in  Leviticus,  used 
synonymously  with  '  swarming 
things.'  Among  *  the  uncleanest '  of 
these  animals  are  mentioned  (Lev. 
xi.  29)  the  lizard,  the  snail,  and 
the  mouse,  or  rather,  perhaps,  the 
jerboa,  which  is  still  eaten  by  the 
Arabs. 

18  In  this  verse  the  prophet  re- 
sumes the  subject  opened  in  v.  6, 
viz.,  the  overthrow  of  Jehovah's 
enemies.  Comp.  the  striking  pa- 
rallels in  Joel  iii.  2,  Zeph.  iii.  8, 
Zech.  xiv.  2. But  I  (will  pun- 
ish)] Some  word  or  words  have 
evidently  dropped  out  of  the  text ; 
an  aposiopesis  is  not  at  all  probable, 
as  there  is  no  trace  of  passion  or 
excitement  in  the  context,  and  a 
parallel  to  the  Virgilian  Quos 
ego — 3  is  not  adducible  in  Hebrew. 
Maurer's  suggestion,  adopted 
above,  is  at  any  rate  forcible. — 
(Behold,  the  time)  is  come]  It  is 
not  absolutely  necessary  to  sup- 
pose that  the  bracketed  words  have 
dropped  out  of  the  text  (see  Ezek. 
xxxix.  8),  but  the  lacuna  in  the  open- 
ing words  makes  it  a  not  unreason- 
able conjecture.  Otherwise,  we  must 

assume  an  ellipsis. All  nations] 

This  must  be   understood  with  a 

limitation  (see  next  verse). And 

tongues]  This  supplement  is  re- 
markable. Though  not  inconsis- 


vations  in  Academy,  x.  524  note),  but  our  text  reads  'ekhddh  '  one,1  not  ydkhldh  'only- 
begotten.'  See  further"  Vitringa's  Comment.,  ii.  941,  note  A  ;  E.  Meyer,  Zeitschr. 
d.  deutsch.  morg.  Ges.,  1877,  p.  734  ;  and  Baudissin,  Studien  zur  semit.  Religions- 
geschichte,  i.  315. 

1  St.   Chad  Boscawen,  in  Academy,  xiv.   91  (July  27,  1878).      The  basis  of  the 
festival  is  demonstrably  a  nature-myth,  leading  up  to  the  union  of  the  new  moon  (Istar) 


and  the  summer  sun  (Tam-zi  or  Tammuz). 

2  Memoir  of  the  Rev.  John  James  Weitbrecht,  p.  543. 

3  Quoted  by  Del.  in  his  first  and  second  editions   but  not  in  his  third. 
agrees  with  Naeg.  that  the  passage  is  probably  corrupt. 


He  now 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


ISAIAH. 


127 


them,  and  will  send  the  escaped  of  them  unto  the  nations,  to 
Tarshish,  dPut  and  Lud,  ethat  draw  the  bowe,  to  Tubal  and 

d  So  Sept.,  Knob.,  Gratz,  Stade.      (Del.  inclines  to  this  reading ;  as  to  Hitz.  and 
Ew.,  see  note  below.) — Pun,  Wetzstein.  — Pul,  Hebr.  text. 

«  To  Meshech,  Sept.,  Stade.     (Lowth  approves  in  his  note.) 


tent  with  the  authorship  of  Isaiah, 
it  agrees  still  better  with  a  Cap- 
tivity-date, and  reminds  us  for- 
cibly of  the  frequent  references  in 
Daniel  to  'peoples,  nations,  and 
tongues'  (Dan.  iii.  4,  7,  29,  iv.  i,  v. 
19,  vi.  25,  vii.  14).  The  same  use 
of  the  word  'tongue'  occurs  in 
Zech.  viii.  23  (of  post-Captivity 
origin),  and  in  vv.  5,  20,  31  of  Gen. 
x.  (based  probably  on  a  Phoenician 
document). Itty  glory]  as  dis- 
played in  judicial  rewards  and 
punishments. 

19  Work  a  sign  upon  them]  viz., 
upon  the  assembled  Gentile  hosts. 
The  precise  meaning  of  '  work  a 
sign '  is  obscure.  It  is  an  emphatic 
phrase  (sum — not  nathan  or  lasah 
^oth]  ;  a  strict  rendering  would  be 
*  set  a  sign,'  i.e.,  as  a  permanent 
memorial.  Elsewhere  we  find  it 
used  of  wonders  which,  by  a  mo- 
dern distinction,  we  call  superna- 
tural (Ex.  x.  2,  Ps.  Ixxviii.  43,  cv. 
27),  but  '  sign '  has  a  wide  meaning 
in  the  Old  Test.,  and  can  be  used 
of  any  markedly  providential  oc- 
currence (see  i  Sam.  x.  7  with  the 
context).  Hence  it  may  here  mean 
the  wonderful  escape  of  some  of 
the  Gentile  host  (Ew.,  Del.),  or  the 
all  but  total  destruction  of  Jehovah's 
enemies  ('  it  is  a  vague  but  sugges- 
tive expression,  and  well  calculated 
to  prepare  the  mind  of  the  reader 
for  the  awful  description  with 
which  the  prophetic  volume 
closes  ').*  The  latter  was  my  first 
view,  but  the  eschatological  paral- 
lel in  Zech.  xiv.  seems  to  me  now 
to  suggest  some  mysterious  event, 
which  the  prophet  leaves  his  awe- 
struck readers  to  imagine. Un- 
to the  nations]  The  nations  which 
have  had  no  relation  to  Israel,  nor, 
consciously  at  least,  to  Jehovah, 


form  a  kind  of  outer  world,  with 
which  Jehovah  has  no  controversy. 

Put  and   Xmd]    Put  is  either 

the  Egyptian    Put  (nasalised  into 
Punt),  i.e.,  according  to  Brugsch, 
the    Somali  country   on   the    east 
coast  of  Africa,  opposite  to  Arabia, 
or  it    comes    from   the    Egyptian 
Puti,  another  name  for  the  people 
commonly   called    Thehennu,    i.e., 
the  Marmaridas,  who  lived  west  of 
the  Delta.3     Pul,  the  reading  of  the 
received  text  occurs  nowhere  else 
as  an  ethnic  name ;  Put,  however, 
occurs  in  combination  with  Lud  in 
Ezek.  xxvii.  10,  xxx.  5  (comp.  Jer. 
xlvi.   9).      Hence   Hitz.   and    Ew. 
suppose  Pul  to  be  a  collateral  form 
of  Put,  but  the  interchange  of  teth 
and  lamedh  does  not  seem  to  be 
established.     It  is  better  therefore 
to  adopt  the  read,  of  Sept.     Wetz- 
stein's  correction,   however,   is  on 
several  accounts   plausible.      The 
letters  /and  n  (lamedh  and  mm] 
might  be  easily  confounded  in  the 
Hebrew   writing.    Pun    and    Lud, 
Punians  (Carthaginians)  and  Lydi- 
ans,  might  naturally  be  mentioned 
together  in  *  the  period  subsequent 
to    the   conquest   of    Babylon    by 
Cyrus,  in  which  this  part  of  Isaiah 
places  us.' 3     The  Lydians,  too,  are 
actually   called    Ludi    in   Assyrian 
inscriptions  of  the  reign  of  Assur- 
banipal.     The  objection,  raised  in 
my  first  ed.,  *  that  the  Lydians  had 
already  learned  by  experience  the 
might     of    Jehovah,'    is     only    of 
weight    if   chaps.    Ixv.,   Ixvi.    were 
written   with  an  eye   to  the  same 
circumstances     as    chap.    xl.    &c. 
Lud  (as  is  shown  by  the  reference 
to  it  in  Ezek.  xxx.,  comp.  Gen.  x. 
13)  must  be  a  N. -African  people, 
though  one  may  hesitate  to  adopt 
Ebers'    combination    of    Lud    and 


1  7.  C.  A.,  p.  234. 

2  So  Brugsch-Bey,  History  of  Egypt,  second  ed.,  ii.  404. 

5  Wetzstein,  as  reported  by  Delitzsch,  Jesaia,  third  ed.,  p. 


720. 


128 


ISAIAH. 


[(  HAP.   I. XI 


Javan,  to  the  distant  countries  which  have  not  heard  the  re- 
port of  me,  nor  seen  my  glory,  and  they  shall  make  known 
my  glory  among  the  nations.  20  And  they  shall  bring  all 
your  brethren  out  of  all  the  nations  as  an  offering  unto  Je- 
hovah upon  horses  and  in  chariots  and  in  litters,  and  upon 
mules  and  dromedaries,  to  my  holy  mountain,  to  Jerusalem, 
saith  Jehovah,  as  the  children  of  Israel  bring  [or,  used  to 
bring]  the  meal-offering  in  a  clean  vessel  to  the  house  of 
Jehovah  ;  21  and  some  of  them  also  will  I  take  unto  the  priests 


Rut  (the  name  for  the  native-born 
Egyptians  in  the  hieroglyphic  in- 
scriptions).1 See  further  Last 

Words. That  draw  the  bow] 

A  similar  characterisation  of  the 
Ludim  in  Jer.  xlvi.  9.  The  reading 
of  Sept.  has  the  air  of  a  conjectural 
emendation,  and  is  unnecessary, 
but  certainly  plausible.  Meshech 
and  Tubal  are  several  times  men- 
tioned together  ;  the  Muskai  of  the 
Assyrian  inscriptions  lived  to  the 

north-east  of  the  Tablai. Tubal] 

The  Tablai  of  the  inscriptions 
dwelt  to  the  west  of  the  northern 
arm  of  the  Euphrates,  in  a  part  of 
Armenia  Minor.2  They  are  men- 
tioned in  the  table  of  nations  (Gen. 
x.  2),  also  in  Ezekiel  (three  times). 
— Javan]  Javan,  like  Tubal  and 
Meshech,  was  famous  for  its  traffic 
in  slaves  (Ezek.  xxvii.  13).  It  is 
obviously  the  same  as  'Iafov-ey,  and 
was  successively  applied  to  the 
countries  where  Ionian  Greeks 
dwelt,  as  they  became  known  to 
the  Phoenicians,  and  even  (Zech.  ix. 
13,  Dan.  viii.  21,  x.  20)  to  Greece 
in  general.  Here,  however,  it  cer- 
tainly designates  some  particular 
nation,  and  most  probably  the 
lonians  on  the  west  coast  of  Asia 
Minor,  though  Mr.  Sayce  prefers 
to  identify  it  with  Cyprus,  which 
he  thinks  suits  the  geographical 
order  better.  Cyprus  certainly 
bears  a  name  in  the  Assyrian  in- 
scriptions which  is  simply  Javan 
without  the  '  digamma.'  Most 
cuneiform  scholars  have  read  this 
name  Yatnan,  but  it  is  rather  Yanan 


(one  of  the  Assyrian  characters 
having  the  value  a  as  well  as  at  or 
ad}.  The  distant  countries]  i.e., 
the  coast-lands  and  islands  of  the 
Mediterranean  Sea. 

20  And  they  shall  bring  .  .  .] 
Not  only  shall  the  Gentiles  '  stream' 
to  the  holy  city  themselves  (ii.  2, 
Ix.  4),  but  they  shall  escort  the 
Israelitish  exiles  to  Jerusalem  with 
the  tender  care  and  reverence  be- 
longing to  holy  things  and  persons 
(comp.  Zeph.  iii.  10  with  Keil's 
note).  Note  the  emphasis  on  '  all 
your  brethren,'  &c. As  an  offer- 
ing] Or,  *  as  a  present '  (comp. 
xxxix.  i).  Probably,  however,  the 
Hebr.  word  (minkhatt)  is  here  used 
in  its  technical  sense.  Without  ab- 
solutely denying  the  acceptableness 
of  the  ordinary  meal-offering,  the 
prophet  asserts  that  the  honour 
thus  shown  to  the  chosen  people 
will  be  fully  equal  to  that  paid  to  the 
traditional  minkhdh.  Comp.  Rom. 
xv.  1 6,  f)  Trpo(r(f)opa  TWV  (6vu>V)  where 
the  genitive  is  that  of  apposition. 

Upon  horses  .  .  .  mules  and 

dromedaries]  The  variety  in  the 
mode  of  transport  corresponds 
to  the  wide  extent  of  the  Jewish 
dispersion.  A  similar  catalogue  is 
given  in  Zech.  xiv.  1 5,  to  indicate 
the  multitude  of  hostile  nations  as- 
sembled round  Jerusalem. lit- 
ters] The  word  only  occurs  else- 
where in  Num.  vii.  3  (in  Lev.  xi. 
29  it  is  the  name  of  an  animal). 

— Bring]  Whether  we  render 
in  the  present  or  the  imperfect 
tense  (to  keep  the  familiar  terms) 


1  Ae%ypten  und  die  Biicher  Mosis,  i.  96-98. 

2  Schrader,  K.  G.  F.,  p.  156. 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


ISAIAH. 


129 


1  and  unto  the  Levitesf,  saith  Jehovah.  22  For  like  as  the  new 
heavens  and  the  new  earth,  which  I  make,  stand  perpetually 
before  me  (the  oracle  of  Jehovah),  so  shall  your  seed  and 
your  name  stand.  23  And  it  shall  come  to  pass :  from  new 
moon  to  new  moon,  and  from  sabbath  to  sabbath,  all  flesh 
shall  come  to  worship  before  me,  saith  Jehovah.  24  And  they 

'  f  So  many  Hebr.  MSS.  (including  almost  all  the  oldest),  and  all  the  versions  (see 
Curtiss,  The  Levitical  Priests,  pp.  205-213,  and  comp.  Del.'s  note,  Jesaia,  3rd  ed., 
p.  684). — Unto  the  Levites,  Received  Hebr.  text. 


depends  on  our  view  of  the  date  of 
the  prophecy.  If  we  think  that  it 
was  written  during  the  Babylonian 
Exile,  we  shall  adopt  the  latter 
tense  ;  if  otherwise,  the  former. 

21  And  some  of  them  also  .  .  .] 
The  language  used  leaves  it  quite 
uncertain  whether  the  Gentiles  are 
referred  to  (so  Vitr.,  Ges.,  Ew., 
Alexander,  Del.,  Kay,  Naeg.),  or 
the  Jews  of  the  dispersion  (so. 
Ibn  Ezra,  Kimchi,  Hitz.,  Herzfeld, 
Knob.,  Henderson,  Seinecke,  H. 
Schultz).  The  advocates  of  the 
latter  view  refer  to  Ivi.  6,  7  as  show- 
ing the  utmost  hopes  held  out  to 
the  Gentile  proselytes ;  to  Ixi.  6, 
where  the  restored  Jews  are  dis- 
tinguished from  the  Gentiles  by  the 
title  'priests  of  Jehovah ;'  and  to 
Ixvi.  22,  where  the  permanence  of 
the  Jewish  race  appears  to  be 
guaranteed.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  may  fairly  be  urged  that  a  special 
privilege  granted  to  a  select  few 
does  not  affect  the  general  inferi- 
ority of  the  Gentile  to  the  Jew. 
The  spirit  of  the  context  points 
decidedly  to  a  throwing  open  of 
the  gates  as  widely  as  possible. 
When  the  Gentiles  are  converted, 
a  larger  number  of  temple-officers 
will  become  necessary,  and  the 
same  divine  mercy  which  accepted 
the  converts  will  select  those  of 
them  who  are  suitable  to  minister 
in  holy  things,  even  at  the  cost  of 
breaking  through  the  exclusive  Le- 
vitical system.  This  seems  to  be 
confirmed  by  the  parallel  passage  at 
the  end  of  Zechariah.  See  also  on 
Ixi.  6. And  unto  tne  Xievites] 


Both  this  and  alt.  read,  presuppose 
that  a  distinction  in  rank  between 
the  Aaronite  priests  and  the  ordin- 
ary Levites  continues  ;  this  is 
marked  by  the  repeated  preposition 
in  the  Hebr.  (comp.  Deut.  xviii.  i, 
Jer.  xxxiii.  1 8,  where  the  preposition 
is  not  repeated).  The  prophet  in 
this  respect  occupies  the  point  of 
view  of  the  Levitical  legislation. 

22  I    make]      Strictly,     <  I     am 

about   to    make.' Your    name] 

Perhaps  alluding  to  the  *  new  name  ' 
which  was  to  supersede  Israel  (Ixii. 
2,  Ixv.  15). 

23  From     new    moon    to     new 
moon]     The  old  forms  of  worship 
have  been  reduced  to  the  utmost ; 
new  moons  and  sabbaths  alone  re- 
main.     '  All  flesh '  attends  in  the 
temple  on  these  hallowed  occasions 
(comp.  the  similar  anticipation  in 
Zech.  xiv.   16).— Is  all  this   to  be 
taken  literally  ?     Does  the  prophet 
mean   that  the   old  conditions   of 
time  and  space  will  have  ceased  ? 
Or  is  the  language  figurative  ?  The 
latter  view  is  certainly  nearer  the 
truth    than    the    former.       *  It    is 
already  the   revelation  which   our 
Lord     makes    to    the     Samaritan 
woman  (John  iv.  21).     The  literal 
meaning  was  physically  impossible ; 
and  so  it  was  plain  that  he  (Isaiah) 
spoke  of  a  worship  other  than  that 
at  any  given  place '  (Dr.  Pusey *). 
Still  the  prophet  has  but  a  confused 
vision  of  this  great  spiritual  change. 
He  cannot  give  up  the  idea  of  the 
religious  supremacy  of  Jerusalem  ; 
at  the  same  time,  he  cannot   ex- 
clude  any  from   communion  with 


VOL.  II. 


Prophecy  of  Jesus.  &c.,  a  sermon  (1879),  p.  39. 
K 


130 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXVI. 


shall  go  out  and   look  upon  the  carcases  of  the  men  who 

is  not  quenched'  (Mark  ix.  43,  44, 
comp.  45-48). l  Both  views  being 
so  strongly  supported,  we  must,  I 
think,  endeavour  to  combine  them, 
and  the  study  of  primitive  beliefs 
may  suggest  a  way.  The  eschato- 
logy  of  the  Bible  is  symbolic,  and 
its  symbols  are  borrowed  (with  that 
large-hearted  tolerance  which  we 
have  so  often  had  to  notice)  from 
the  popular  forms  of  belief  respect- 
ing the  unseen  world.  Now  it  is 
one  of  the  most  primitive  and  most 
tenacious  of  these  forms  of  belief 
that  the  soul  itself  has  a  kind  of 
body,  without  which  indeed  those 
phantom-visions  in  which  all  races 
have  believed  would  be  impossi- 
bilities. As  soon  as  men  begin  to 
reflect,  however  rudely,  upon  this 
belief,  the  theory  arises  that  there 
are  different  kinds  of  spirit,  or  soul. 
Some  primitive  races  say  that  man 
has  three  souls  ;  some,  that  he  has 
four ;  but  a  simpler  and  more 
natural  idea  is  that  he  has  two. 
This  is  said  to  be  the  belief  of  the 
Algonquins,  a  tribe  of  North  Ameri- 
can Indians ; 2  it  also  appears  to 
have  been  current  upon  the  banks 
of  the  Nile  and  of  the  Jordan.  The 
Egyptian  priests,  who  were  never 
ashamed  of  the  archaic  basis  of 
their  theology,  taught  this  doctrine 
— that  after  the  separation  of  soul 
and  body  in  death,  the  soul  went 
through  a  series  of  trials  in  Amenti 
or  Hades,  not  however  as  a  pure 
spirit,  but  accompanied  by  an 
eidolon  of  the  cast-off  body  ;  mean- 
time the  body  remained  in  the 
upper  world,  seemingly  inanimate, 
but  really  still  possessing  a  kind  of 
soul,  the  pale  reflection  of  the  soul 
in  Amenti.  The  Book  of  Job,  so 
full  of  references  to  popular  beliefs, 
and  so  abundant  in  illustrations  of 
II.  Isaiah,  contains  a  passage  which 
presupposes  a  closely  analogous 
belief  among  the  Jews.  After  ex- 
pressing an  earnest  desire  for  a 


God  merely  on  the  ground  of  their 
local  distance  from  the  temple. 
Hence  the  strange  inconsistencies 
in  his  picture. 

24  And  they  shall  go  out]  viz., 
to  the  hills  and  valleys  around 
Jerusalem,  where  the  Divine  judg- 
ment has  taken  place.  It  is,  of 
course,  the  old  and  not  the  new 
Jerusalem  of  which  the  prophet  is 

thinking. And  look  upon]  i.e., 

look  with  awful  interest  upon. 
(Comp.  Ps.  xci.  8,  and  for  the  idiom, 

Isa.lxvi.  5,  Gen.  xxi.  i6,xliv.34). 

For  their  worm  shall  not  die, 
and  their  fire  shall  not  be 
quenched]  Three  questions  arise 
in  considering  this  passage  :  i.  Is 
it  the  world  of  men  or  of  souls 
which  is  the  scene  of  the  torments ; 
2.  if  the  latter,  how  far  are  we  to 
interpret  the  description  in  a  ma- 
terial sense ;  and  3.  in  what  sense 
is  everlastingness  here  predicated 
of  the  fire  and  the  worm?  i.  As 
to  the  scene  of  the  torments.  The 
context  naturally  leads  us  to  sup- 
pose that  the  reference  is  to  the 
bodies  of  the  slain,  lying  unburied 
upon  the  ground  ;  and  this  view  is 
partly  confirmed  by  the  parallel 
passage  in  Zechariah  (xiv.  12).  On 
the  other  hand,  the  details  of  the 
description  suggest,  by  their  ob- 
vious inconsistency,  that  the  terms 
are  symbolic  of  the  tortures  of  the 
souls  in  Hades.  This  is  the  view 
embodied  in  the  Targum,  which 
renders  the  second  half  of  the  verse 
thus  :  *  Because  their  souls  shall  not 
die,  and  their  fire  shall  not  be 
quenched,  and  the  ungodly  shall  be 
judged  in  Gehenna,  until  the  righte- 
ous say  concerning  them,  '  We  have 
seen  enough  ; '  it  also  underlies  the 
solemn  warning  of  Jesus,  *  It  is 
better  for  thee  to  enter  into  Life 
maimed,  than  having  two  hands  to 
go  into  Gehenna,  into  the  fire  that 
never  shall  be  quenched ;  where 
their  worm  dieth  not,  and  the  fire 


1  Gehenna,  according  to  Jesus  (see  Matt.  x.  28)  as  well  as  according  lo  the  Tar- 
gum,  is  a  place  where  both  soul  and  body  undergo  punishment. 
2  Tylor,  Primitive  Culture,  i.  392. 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


ISAIAH. 


rebelled  against  me,  for  their  worm  shall  not  die,  and  their  fire 


second  life  upon  earth,  the  suffering 
patriarch  falls  back  into  despon- 
dency, as  he  recalls  to  mind  the 
melancholy  consequences  of  death. 
'  Thou  overpowerest  him  for  ever, 
and  he  goeth  •  changing  his  face, 
and  thou  sendest  him  away.  His 
sons  come  to  honour,  and  he 
knoweth  it  not  ;  they  become  mean, 
and  he  observeth  them  not.  Never- 
theless, his  flesh  upon  him  feeleth 
pain,  and  his  soul  upon  him  mourn- 
eth  '  (xiv.  22).  So,  too,  in  another 
of  his  speeches  Job  expresses  a  de- 
gree of  painful  doubt  whether  his 
body  (his  not  entirely  unconscious 
body)  will  share  the  rest  which  his 
soul  (his  not  absolutely  bodiless 
soul)  will  enjoy  in  the  underworld 
(Job  xvii.  1 6,  Q.  P.  £.).  In  the 
Book  of  Isaiah  itself  we  have 
met  with  one  doubtful  trace  of  the 
belief  in  a  duplicate  body  (see  on 
Ivii.  2),  and  the  Book  of  Ezekiel 
has,  in  a  highly  imaginative  pas- 
sage, a  sufficiently  distinct  refer- 
ence to  it  (Ezek.  xxxii.  25).  A 
kindred  belief  is  presupposed  in  the 
passage  before  us.  The  delivered 
Israelites  are  represented  as  going 
out  to  behold  a  signal  instance  of 
righteous  retribution.  What  they 
see  can  be  only  the  corpses  of  their 
enemies.  But  the  prophet  con- 
tinues in  terms  which  properly  can 
only  belong  to  the  souls  in  Hades. 
How  is  this  ?  It  is  because  of  the 
supposed  double  consciousness  of 
soul  and  body.  Just  as,  according 
to  primitive  belief,  '  the  mutilation 
of  the  body  will  have  a  correspond- 
ing effect  upon  the  soul,'1  so  the 
tortures  of  the  soul  in  Hades  will 
be  felt  in  some  degree  by  the  corpse 
on  earth.  The  emphasis  in  the 
prophetic  statement  is  of  course  not 
on  the  sympathy  of  soul  and  body, 
but  on  the  sense  of  punishment 
which  the  personalities  of  the  guilty 
ones  shall  never  lose  (comp.  1.  1 1 
end).  2.  As  to  the  materiality  of 
the  torments  of  the  guilty  souls. 


By  the  inconsistency  of  the  de- 
scription, the  prophet  clearly  warns 
us  not  to  understand  it  literally. 
The  Egyptian  authors  of  the  Book 
of  the  Dead  would  have  equally 
deprecated  a  literal  interpretation 
of  the  torments  of  the  condemned. 
The  eschatology  of  the  Bible,  as  has 
been  already  stated,  is  symbolic  ; 
the  prophet,  like  the  other  men  of 
God,  speaks  in  figures.  His  sym- 
bols are  borrowed  partly  from  the 
valley  of  Hinnom,  which  had  for- 
merly been  the  scene  of  the  burnt 
sacrifices  to  Moloch  (comp.  on  Ivii. 
5),  and  afterwards  became  the  re- 
ceptacle of  the  filth  of  Jerusalem, 
and  partly  (as  we  have  seen)  from 
the  popular  imaginations  respect- 
ing the  soul.  We  must  be  on  our 
guard,  however,  against  supposing 
that  the'kernel  of  his  symbols  is  a 
mere  abstraction.  This  would  be 
high  treason  against  his  Semitic 
origin  and  his  prophetic  calling. 
There  is  no  reasonable  doubt  that 
material  torments  form  a  very  de- 
finite part  of  his  eschatology.  In 
one  essential  point,  however,  our 
prophet  is  distinguished  from  later 
non-prophetical  writers,  viz.,  his 
self-restraint  in  referring  to  the 
unseen  world.  3.  As  to  the  ever- 
lastingness  of  the  torments.  Did 
the  prophet  merely  mean  'that 
nothing  should  put  the  fire  out, 
while  any  portion  of  the  carcases 
remained  to  be  devoured — that  it 
should  be  unquenchable  until  it 
had  done  its  work,  and  all  was  en- 
tirely consumed  ? '  And  in  the  ap- 
plication of  the  figure  to  the  soul, 
that  pangs  of  conscience  should 
continue  to  afflict  the  guilty  ones 
until  they  were  purified  thereby? 
This  at  any  rate  does  not  seem 
to  have  been  the  interpretation  of 
the  early  readers  of  the  prophecy. 
Not  to  quote  again  the  words  of 
our  Lord,  the  proverbial  use  of  the 
fire  and  the  worm  in  Sirach  vii.  17, 
Judith  xvi.  I7,2  would  hardly  have 


1  Ibid.  i.  407. 

2  Mr.  E.  White  is  carried  too  far  by  his  controversial  bias,  when  he  accuses  the 

x  2 


132 


ISAIAH. 


[CHAP.  LXVI. 


shall  not  be  quenched,  and  they  shall  be  an  abomination  unto 
all  flesh. 


arisen,  if  the  Jewish  people  had 
given  the  phrases  so  mild  a  mean- 
ing. But  the  theory  mentioned 
may  I  think  be  refuted  out  of  the 
Book  of  Isaiah  itself,  where  we 
read  (xxxiv.  10)  respecting  the  fire 
with  which  guilty  Edom  is  threat- 
ened, that  it  shall  be  quenchless, 
and  that  its  smoke  shall  go  up  for 
ever,  so  that  '  none  shall  pass 
through '  Edom  '  for  ever  and  ever.' 
There  is  no  an  tire  pensde  here  ; 
the  everlastingness  spoken  of  is 
absolute  and  without  qualification. 
The  phrase  'perpetual  burnings' 
(xxxiii.  14,  see  note)  has  quite 
another  reference. An  abomin- 
ation] The  Hebr.  word  (deraori) 
only  occurs  again  in  Dan.  xii.  2 

post-Christian  writer  of  Judith  of  '  going  beyond  prophecy,  and  yielding  to  the  influ- 
ence of  a  philosophical  doctrine  of  an  immortality  learned  from  Greece  and  Egypt,  and 
not  found  in  his  national  Scriptures '  (Life  in  Christ,  3rd  ed.,  p.  170), 


(which,  from  the  context,  appears 
to  be  an  allusion  to  our  passage). 
— Such  is  the  awful  picture  with 
which  the  Book  of  Israel's  Con- 
solation closes.  Is  there  not  an 
incongruity  in  this  ?  The  early 
Jewish  critics  appear  to  have 
thought  so.  They  directed  that 
when  this  chapter  (or  the  last  chap- 
ter of  the  Minor  Prophets,  the 
Lamentations,  and  Ecclesiastes) 
was  read,  the  last  verse  but  one 
should  be  repeated  to  correct  the 
sad  impression  of  the  last.  One 
cannot  but  sympathise  with  them. 
But  how  should  there  not  be  a  dif- 
ference between  the  Old  Testa- 
ment and  the  New  ? 


CRITICAL    NOTES. 


i.  7.  Dnt,  the  reading  of  the  text,  may  be  either  the  gen.  of  the 
subject  or  of  the  object.  If  of  the  subject,  the  whole  phrase  will 
mean  Mike  a  subversion  in  which  strangers  (or,  enemies)  are  the 
agents.'  If  of  the  object,  'like  a  subversion  of  strangers'  land.1 
The  former  meaning  is  natural  in  itself,  but  there  are  three  objec- 
tions to  it  :  (a)  that  a  gen.  standing  alone  after  an  infinitive  or  a 
noun  used  infmitivally  is,  according  to  usage,  a  gen,  of  the  object 
(see  Deut.  xxix.  22,  Jer.  xlix.  18),  (b)  that  rtoanD  is  the  standing  term 
for  the  catastrophe  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  (which  is  also  an  ob- 
jection to  Dr.  Neubauer's  suggestion  DHT),  and  (c)  that  the  context 
shows  that  Sodom  is  in  the  mind  of  Isaiah  here.  The  latter  meaning 
has  only  one  argument  against  it,  viz.  that  it  is  forced,  and  requires 
us  to  take  DHT  in  different  senses  in  two  successive  lines.  It  is 
better  therefore  to  suppose  that  D^T  was  written  either  carelessly  (the 
word  having  occurred  just  before)  or  by  design,  from  a  patriotic 
motive,  instead  of  DHD-  Against  Lowth's  conjecture  D")T,  see  my 
Notes  and  Criticisms,  ad  loc.  (Ibn  Ezra  supposed  Dnt  to  be  a  col- 
lateral form  of  DX)  Mr,  Robertson  Smith  also  accepts  DHD- 

i.  9.  tDVDD.  To  attach  this  word  to  the  first  half  of  the  verse 
makes  this  disproportionately  long.  Geiger !  has  shown  that  the  old 
Jewish  students  of  Scripture  (represented  by  the  Versions)  were 
startled  by  some  of  the  hard  things  said  of  Israel,  and  substituted 
milder  expressions.  He  even  thinks  that  the  text  was  sometimes 
gently  touched  from  the  same  patriotic  motive.  Certainly  in  this 
verse,  if  anywhere,  we  may  assume  a  softening  interpolation  ;  that 
the  judges  should  be  called  '  judges  of  Sodom  '  might  be  tolerated, 
but  that  the  entire  people  should,  even  in  a  hypothesis,  be  likened  to 
Sodom,  was  too  great  a  shock.  Three  of  the  versions  (Sept,  Pesh., 
Vulg.)  omit  the  word,  and  the  fourth  (Targ.)  gives  a  rendering  which 
clearly  reveals  a  dissatisfaction  with  the  text,  even  in  its  mitigated 
form  :  the  offence  remained,  to  the  author  of  this  rendering,  even 
after  the  insertion  of  the  gloss.  It  seems  to  me  possible  that  a 
similar  feeling  of  national  complacency  dictated  the  change  of  D11D 
into  DHT  in  v.  7. 

i.   12.   'oaniN^  Read  'a  ni&r&,  and  see  note  in  LC.A.,  p.  39. 

1  Urschrift  nnd  Uebenefzttngen  derBibcl  (Breslau.  1857),  p.  346,  &c. 


134  CRITICAL   NOTES. 

Geiger  !  has  shown  by  a  number  of  passages  that  the  authors  of  tl 
points  and  the  early  translators  took  great  offence  at  the  expression 
1  to  see  God.'  Hence,  they  frequently  modify  this  phrase ;  but  as 
where  one  modifies  it  another  sometimes  does  not,  we  are  now  and 
then  able  to  produce  documentary  evidence  that  the  original  reading 
has  been  changed.  It  was  enough  (or  seemed  enough)  to  change 
the  vowels  ;  the  letters  of  the  text  were  allowed  to  remain.  Yet  it  is 
doubtful  whether  the  reading  of  the  points  in  the  present  case  is 
even  grammatically  admissible,  not  so  much  on  account  of  the  as- 
sumed syncope  of  n,  which  Bottcher  and  Stade  in  their  grammars 
call  in  question  (for  even  if  the  Massoretic  pointing  in  the  four  other 
supposed  cases  of  syncopated  infin.  Nifal  be  erroneous,  yet  the  prin- 
ciple of  such  a  syncope  is  assured  by  the  admitted  examples  of  syn- 
copated Hifil — see,  e.g.,  iii.  8,  xxiii.  1 1),  as  because  of  the  prepositional 
use  of  *3B,  which  only  occurs  elsewhere  in  two  passages  precisely 
analogous  to  the  present  (Ex.  xxiii.  15,  xxxiv.  20).  Del.  in  his  3rd  ed. 
admits  the  plausibility  of  this  argument  ('vielleicht  aber  eben  nur 
vielleicht  rich  tig '). — The  same  offence  at  the  anthropomorphism,  *  to 
see  God,'  dictated  the  Sept.  version  of  xxxviii.  u  (see  vol.  i.,  p.  224, 
note  h). 

i.  13  &  rmyi  p«.  The  rendering  adopted  has  been  objected  to  as 
giving  the  Vav  a  kind  of  sarcastic  value.  But  the  Vav  of  association, 
though  commoner  in  Arabic,  is  not  unknown  in  Hebrew  (see  below 
on  vii.  i).  Auth.  Vers.  is  grammatically  less  probable.  For  the 
principle  of  the  Hebrew  idiom,  see  Driver  (Hebrew  Tenses,  §  197, 
obs.  2),  who  compares  Jer.  xiii.  27. 

n.  1 6.  monn  nratP.  '&  is  evidently  the  same  as  nV3E>»,  which 
occurs  in  Num.  xxxiii.  52  (comp.  Lev.  xxvi.  i),  in  the  sense  of 
'carved  idolatrous  obelisks,'  and  in  Prov.  xxv.  u  of  'chased  (silver) 
vessels.'  The  (Aramaic)  root  is  rot?  'to  pierce  through,'  'to  distinguish,' 
and  hence  '  to  look  at.1  The  Vulgate  and  Saadya  have  understood  the 
phrase  to  mean  all  kinds  of  ornaments ;  but  the  usage  of  the  word 
JT3E>O  (comp.  also  Ezek.  viii.  12)  favours  the  view  that  some  sort  of 
imagery  was  represented  on  the  foreign  works  of  art  referred  to.  The 
wider  meaning  'objects  which  attract  the  gaze'  is,  however,  amply 
defensible  on  the  analogy  of  the  Aramaic  khezvo  and  Assyrian  ta- 
martu,  both  used  of  costly  things,  and  both  from  roots  meaning  'to  see.' 
Ewald's  'watch-towers  of  pleasure'  is  derived  from  the  Peshito,  and 
confirmed  by  the  Aramaic  nnD  'watch-tower,'  but  has  the  Hebrew 
usage  against  it,  and  is  scarcely  suitable  at  the  close  of  the  catalogue. 

in.  10.  nOK-  The  present  reading  is  no  doubt  grammatically 
defensible  (cf.  Gen.  i.  4,  vi.  2),  but  it  is  weak.  Should  we  not  read 
nK>N,  thus  completing  the  parallelism  between  v.  10  and  v.  n? 
(Lowth  has  a  similar  suggestion). 

1  Urschrift  vnd  Uebersetzungen  der  Bibel,  p.  337-9. 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  135 

in.  12.  1*8303  here  without  connoting  oppression  ;  comp.  Ix.  17, 
Zech.  x.  4.  The  plural  is  to  be  explained  as  a  construction  KO.TO. 
o-vVeo-tv.  The  thought  of  the  prophet  was,  '  My  people's  governors 
are  a  petulant  child  and  the  court  women.'  He  began  to  write  this 
down  and  then  broke  up  the  clause  into  two,  to  produce  a  rhythmic 
parallelism  (comp.  xli.  27,  Zeph.  iii.  10). 

in.  25.  *pno.  DTID  is  a  poetic  archaism  (see  Notes  and  Criti- 
cisms, ad  loc.}.  In  usage  it  always  implies  dependence  or  weakness 
(the  former  even  in  Job  xix.  19,  Job  being  described  as  a  kind  of 
emir).  It  does  not  appear  to  connote  fewness  ;  else  there  would  be 
no  occasion  for  the  familiar  compound  phrase  "IBDD  ^flft  (Gen. 
xxxiv.  30,  &c.).  Hence  in  xli.  14,  we  should  render  '  petty  folk ' 
(Sept.  wrongly  oXtyoo-ros).  '  Dependents '  would  probably  be  the 
best  general  rendering  ;  this  will  include  warriors  (implied  here)  and 
household  servants  (see  Job  xxxi.  31). 

v.  i.  »*rn  rn*5P.  For  the  objection  to  the  ordinary  view,  see 
my  note  ad  loc.  The  phrase  should  probably  be  explained,  on  the 
analogy  of  D^fn  25#P  'bed  of  love'  (Ezek.  xxiii.  17),  'a  song  of 
love,'  i.e.  'a  lovely  song.'  Two  ways  of  explaining  the  'nil  of  the 
text  are  open  to  us.  (a)  It  may  be  an  example  of  the  popular 
apocopated  plural  (z  for  tm\  recognised  by  Ewald  in  2  Sam.  xxii.  44 
(Ps.  cxliv.  2),  Lam.  iii.  14,  Cant.  viii.  2,  and  perhaps  Ps.  xlv.  9 
(Lehrbuch,  §  177  a).  If  Ewald  (Die  Dichter  des  Alien  Bundes,  ii. 
425)  may  be  followed,  we  have  another  instance  of  'nil  for  DH11  in 
Cant.  vii.  10,  but  this  is  very  doubtful.  But  although  the  Himya- 
ritic  plural  of  tens  is  formed  by  /  without  the  n  which  should  follow, 
I  question  whether  the  second  mode  of  explanation  (fr)  is  not  better, 
not  only  for  Isa.  v.  i  (which  is  not  included  by  Ewald  in  his  instances 
of  the  apocopated  plural),  but  for  the  other  passsages  quoted  above- 
Bishop  Lowth  writes,  '  [There  is  in  all  such  cases]  a  mistake  of 
the  transcribers,  by  not  observing  a  small  stroke,  which  in  many 
MSS.  is  made  to  supply  the  D  of  the  plural,  thus  '^111. '  See  below, 
on  liii.  8. 

v.  13.  For  'HID  read  *tfo,  with  Hitz.  &c.  ;  comp.  Deut.  xxxii.  24. 
An  error  of  the  ear  rather  than  of  the  eye. 

vi.  6.  nayi.  Ges.,  Hitz.,  Knob.,  Luzzatto,  render  'hot  stone' 
(Gluhstein,  pietra  infuocata),  and  refer  to  the  Eastern  custom  of 
cooking  food  on  stones  heated  in  a  fire  (comp.  i  Kings  xix.  6,  *|¥"i). 
But  nQVI  is  not  necessarily  a  'hot  stone,'  see  Esth.  i.  6,  &c.,  and  for 
post-Biblical  Hebrew,  Joma,  i.  7.1  (Vulg.  rightly,  calculus ;  Ewald, 
Stuckstein.} 

vii.  i.  SD*  &6l.  The  singular  is  used,  because  Pekah  is  only  an 
appendage  to  his  more  powerful  neighbour.  The  Vav  before  his 
name  is  that  of  association  (=' together  with');  see  i.  13^,  xiii.  9, 

1  Siegfried,  review  of  I.C.A.,  in  Hilgenfeld's  Zeitsckrtft,  1872,  p.  179. 


136  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

xlii.  5,  xlviii.  16  £,  li.  19,  and,  for  other  examples,  Ewald,  Lehrbuch  d.  h. 
Spr.,  §  339  a  (or  see  Kennedy's  transl.  of  Ewald's  Syntax). 

On  vii.  8,  9.  (See  end  of  note.)  The  corruption  of  "ia:DK  (As- 
napper)  from  ^Bjfa-ilDK  (Assurbanipal)  is  easy.  Two  letters  only  had 
become  effaced  in  the  manuscript  from  which  Ezra  iv.  9,  10  was 
copied.  Friedr.  Delitzsch,  Paradies,  p.  329,  in  adopting  this  identi- 
fication, remarks  that  Assurbanipal  was  the  conqueror  of  Susa,  and 
that  the  Susanchites  are  among  the  nations  which  Asnapper  trans- 
ported to  N.  Israel  (Ezra  iv.  9,  10). 

vn.  14.  n£7yn. — Dr.  Pusey  has  published  his  view  of  the  ren- 
dering and  etymology  of  n£?y  in  a  learned  note  to  a  university 
sermon.  See  Prophecy  of  Jesus >  &c.,  Oxford,  1879,  PP-  4&-51'  With 
characteristic  independence,  he  boldly  defends  the  rendering  *  vir- 
gin,' and  the  connection  of  nD^JF  with  C&y  'to  hide.'  His  argu- 
ments are  drawn  partly  from  the  Biblical  usage  of  HK&y,  partly 
from  the  superior  suitability  which  he  attributes  to  the  native 
Hebrew  root.  He  remarks  incidentally  that  the  rendering  '  young 
woman '  deprives  the  prophecy  of  its  emphasis — a  criticism  which  I  do 
not  understand,  for  would  not  the  article  prefixed  render  any  noun 
emphatic  ?  On  the  latter,  he  is  really  suggestive ;  at  any  rate,  one  or 
two  of  the  facts  which  he  has  adduced  from  the  Arabic  lexicon  throw 
some  valuable  light  on  the  synonymik  of  the  Semitic  languages.  For 
instance,  bint  in  Arabic  (like  D3  in  Hebrew)  is  used  in  the  sense  of 
'  girl ; '  and  a  synonym  for  bint  is  habat,  evidently  derived  from  the 
root  habaa^  'to  hide,'  and  meaning  'a  girl  kept  in  the  tent,'  i.e.  'not 
yet  married'  (Lane,  pp.  692-3).  Dr.  Pusey,.  however,  does  not  go 
so  far  as  to  include  habaa  among  the  four  roots  from  which,  he  re- 
marks, as  many  distinct  groups  of  words  signifying  'virginity'  are 
derived  ;  and  he  will  hardly  deny  that  the  Arabic  guldm,  '  a  young 
man,  youth,  boy,  or  male  child '  (Lane),  is  derived  from  the  Tootgatima, 
commonly  rendered  'coeundi  cupidus  esse,'  but  more  accurately  (for 
the  Arabic  lexicon  only  gives  the  coarsened  Arabic  usage,  not  the  fun- 
damental meaning)  'maturus  esse.'  Dr.  Pusey  infers  that  nD^y  might 
have  the  same  meaning  as  habdt ;  I  follow  the  majority  in  inferring 
that  it  might  be  synonymous  with  gulamat  (fern,  of  guldm).  There 
would  be  no  objection  to  his  theory  of  the  etymology,  if  riD^y  stood 
alone  in  the  Semitic  vocabulary,  if  D.^y  and  D^-lSy,  and  the  ana- 
logues of  D.^.y  and  nppy  in  Arabic  and  Aramaic,  were  non-existent 
— if,  that  is,  nctay  were  not  a  member  of  a  widely-spread  family  of 
words  which  require  to  be  accounted  for  in  the  same  way.  When  it 
can  be  shown  that  Aramaic  and  Arabic  had  a  root  D^>y  '  to  hide,' 
Dr.  Pusey's  argument  will  gain  greatly  in  cogency.  I  admit,  of 
course,  that  the  etymology  does  not  necessarily  agree  with  the  usage 
of  a  word  (Dr.  Pusey  well  refers  to  the  Arabic  bikr,  'a  virgin,'  but 
etymologically  only  '  a  young  woman  '),  but  I  urge  that  in  the  case  of 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  137 

D^y  and  D*p-l!?y  it  does  so  agree,  and  that  the  context  of  Isa.  vii.  14 
does  not  compel  us  to  decide  that  np?yn  has  any  but  the  etymo- 
logically  correct  rendering  'the  young  woman.'  May  I,  in  conclusion, 
suggest  that  the  nuance  which  galima  has  acquired  in  Arabic  should 
not  be  confounded  with  the  fundamental  meaning  ?  It  seems  to  me 
as  if  Dr.  Pusey's  natural  aversion  to  Arabian  coarseness  has  impeded 
him  in  the  critical  use  of  the  Arabic  vocabulary. 

On  the  Septuagint  rendering  f]  7rap0eVos  I  have  no  new  suggestion 
to  propound.  It  may  of  course  be  used  loosely  like  virgo.  The 
aTroKpvcfros  of  Aquila,  Gen.  xxiv.  4,  may  be  safely  disregarded.  Criti- 
cal etymologies  were  not  \hzforte  of  the  Hellenistic  Jews.  Delitzsch 
remarks,  with  laconic  positiveness,  '  The  assertion  of  Jerome,  Hebra- 
ictim  nD^SJ  nunquam  nisi  de  virgine  scribitur,  significant  enim  puellam 
virginem  absconditam,  defended  by  Vercellone  in  a  lengthy  lecture,  is 
untenable'  (Jesata,  ed.  3,  p.  115,  note  3). 

vn.  25.  'ui  nKT  n»^  Kiam&  The  rendering  of  Vitr.  and  Ew. 
is  variously  explained  (according  to  Ew.,  'there  is  not  even  the  fear 
of  thorns,  for  they  are  allowed  to  grow  up  anywhere  undisturbed '; 
which  is  very  unnatural) ;  but  in  any  case  the  contrast  between  the 
present  renunciation  of  agriculture  and  the  past  careful  pursuance 
of  it  is  entirely  lost.  The  construction  preferred  is  not  indeed  free 
from  awkwardness  (ntf'Vp  would  have  been  simpler) ;  but  it  is  the 
fault,  not  of  Isaiah,  but  of  the  early  editor  of  chap.  vii.  (see  vol.  i. 

P-  43). 

vin.  9.  inni  has  been  repeated  accidentally  from  the  second 
verse-half  (Gratz.) 

vin.  15.  D3-  Most  critics  render  DS  '  among  them,'  which  is  weak 
in  itself,  and  leaves  the  verse  rather  isolated.  I  prefer,  with  Ges.  and 
Hitz.,  to  attach  the  word  to  the  verb  (comp.  Jer.  vi.  21,  xlvi.  12).  The 
plural  is  however  less  natural  than  the  singular  (for  the  '  stone '  and 
the  '  rock  '  are  but  one),  and  I  therefore  adopt  Prof,  de  Goeje's  sugges- 
tion (Revue  critique,  May  8,  1875)  to  point  D3,  and  explain  on  the 
analogy  of  liii.  8  (see  below),  em  being  in  all  probability  a  Phcenicio- 
Hebrew  pronominal  suffix  form  for  the  3rd  pers.  masc.  sing. 

vin.  19.  Sept.  renders  the  last  clause  of  this  verse,  ri  IK^TOVO-I 
Trepi  TWV  £oWoov  TOUS  vcKpovs ;  Did  Sept.  read  tyiTTUD?  or  are  the 
first  two  words  simply  an  interpolation  ? 

vin.  21,  22.  The  transposition  of  these  verses  is  made  (on  the 
analogy  of  many  similar  cases  in  ancient  texts)  in  order  to  soften  the 
transition  to  ix.  i.  The  mere  difficulty  of  the  proleptic  ellipsis  of 
the  noun  to  which  the  pronoun  in  ra  -refers,  is  not  great ;  comp. 
(with  Del.  on  Hab.  i.  5)  xiii.  2,  bJ^«nnpDfe  ;  Job  vi.  29,  R^-'lMpklj 
Ps.  ix.  13,  DniK,  viz.  DW. 

On  vin.  22,  ix.  1-7  comp.  Selwyn's  Hortz  Hebraica  (Cambr. 
1860),  pp.  5-130. 


138  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

ix.  2.  Selwyn's  conjecture,  alluded  to  in  vol.  i.  p.  60,  is  i^n  (for 
fc6  vijn),  Roorda's  A»$,  Reifmann's  n^|H. 

ix.  4.  PiTO.  Most  render  'in  the  tumult  (of  battle),'  but  the 
parallelism  leads  us  to  expect  a  qualification,  and  this  produces  a 
grander  description. 

ix.  6.  nnD^  Lagarde  (Semitica,  i.  17)  regards  the  Q^J  as  a 
fragment  of  a  half-illegible  word  in  the  MS.  from  which  the  scribe 
was  copying.  Why  should  it  not  be  a  case  of  6VToy/3a<£ia,  DI^S? 
having  been  first  of  all  written  '  defectively '  D^B>  ?  The  verse  would 
then  run  more  smoothly.  *  Increased  (pointing,  nin)  is  the  govern- 
ment, and  peace  hath  no  end,'  &c.  (So  Gratz,  Geschichte,  ii.  i,  p. 
223.)  (rmo  is  no  doubt  an  Isaianic  word,  see  xxxiii.  23,  but  we  have 
to  account  for  the  D  clausum.) 

ix.  8.  "Q1!  might  also  be  taken  in  the  sense  of  '  a  thing '  (as 
i  Sam.  xiv.  12),  t.e.,  in  this  case,  an  evil  thing.  So  Nestle  (Theolog. 
Literaturzeitung,  1878). 

ix.  10.  >-)¥•  Hitzig  (on  Job  xxx.  13)  conjectures  ^tV  '  helpers.' 

ix.  1 6.  Read  riDD"1  tfb  with  Lagarde.  riDS  is  an  Isaianic  word 
(xxxi.  5).  True,  the  litotes  in  the  text  may  be  supported  by  Eccles. 
iv.  1 6.  But  it  gives  a  poor  parallel  to  Dm*  tfh- 

x.  4.  Prof,  de  Lagarde  (letter  in  Academy,  Dec.  15,  1870)  pro- 
poses to  read  TDK  nn  nynb  »n^  'Beltis  stoops,  Osiris  is  con- 
founded;' comp.  xlvi.  i,  Jer.  1.  2.  Lagarde  thinks  that  Beltis 
(••n^yi)  and  Osiris  were  worshipped  by  some  of  the  Judahites. 
There  is,  it  is  true,  abundant  evidence  *  of  the  worship  of  Beltis  in 
Syria  at  a  later  time ;  but  early  testimony  seems  to  be  wholly  wanting, 
unless  with  Geiger  we  point  T173?  in  2  Kings  xxiii.  10  (comp.  v.  ^ 
mG?fc6  DTQ).2  The  form  again  is  doubtful.  If  the  deity  intended 
be  the  Babylonian  Bilit,  the  form  (as  Mr.  Sayce  points  out  to  me) 
should  be  -in?l.  In  later  Phoenician,  the  form  was  certainly  rpjn 
(see  de  Vogiie's  Stele  de  Yehawmelek,  p.  8),  and  the  Graecised 
BaaXrcs  is  from  rfon,  not  T^m  (Schlottmann;  Schroder).  Still  less 
if  possible,  is  there  any  evidence  that  Osiris  was  a  popular  deity  in 
Palestine.  It  may  perhaps  be  that  Assir,  in  Ex.  vi.  24,  should  be 
Osir  (comp.  Hur,  Ex.  xvii.  10,  probably =Horus),  and  that  Amon, 
the  son  of  King  Manasseh,  is  the  same  as  the  Egyptian  Amen  (=Ra, 
the  sun-god).  Pinehas  may  be  *  the  negro '  (so  Lowth  and  Brugsch), 
and  Putiel,  in  Ex.  vi.  25,  may  be  half- Egyptian,  like  the  Pet-Baal 
mentioned  by  Brugsch ; 3  but  the  general  result  of  Old  Testament 
study  is  to  reduce  Egyptian  influence  on  the  Israelites  within  very 

1  See  Lagarde's  note  in  Semitica,  Heft  i  ;  Payne  Smith,  Thesaurus,  p.  519  (Bilati 
or  Belati— the  planet  Venus  in  Syriac). 

2  Jiidische  Zeitschrift,  ii.  259.     This  view  is  very  questionable  ;  Jer.  xxxii.  35  en- 
titles us  to  expect  Baal  and  not  Beltis. 

3  This  and  other  interesting  new  comparisons  are  due  to  Mr.  Tomkins,  author 
of  Studies  on  the  Times  of  Abraham.    See  '  Biblical  Proper  Names  Illustrated,'  &c., 
Victoria  Institute  Transactions,  vol.  xvi.  1882.    [Mr.  R.  S.  Poole  well  suggests  Ahi-ra.J 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  139 

narrow  dimensions.  A  sporadic  reverence  for  either  Osiris  or  Beltis 
would  surely  not  have  been  referred  to  in  this  context  and  in  these 
terms.  —  The  case  is  not  much  improved  if  with  Geiger  l  we  take  the 
Beltis  in  Lagarde's  proposed  reading  as  a  symbol  of  Babylon,  and 
Osiris  of  Egypt.  The  fugitive  Judahites  would  never  think  of  taking 
refuge  in  Assyria,  when  the  Assyrians  had  but  just  ravaged  Gilead 
and  Naphtali  (ix.  i,  2  Kings  xv.  2Q).2  Prof,  de  Lagarde's  ingenious 
conjecture  must  therefore  on  various  grounds  be  decidedly  rejected. 
Gladly  would  we  learn  more  of  the  popular  religion  of  Palestine,  but 
we  must  .not  read  our  own  fancies  into  the  scanty  records  at  our 
disposal.  (Sept.  seems  to  have  had  a  mutilated  Hebrew  text  ;  it 
renders  by  guess  TOV  ///»)  e/XTreo-etv  ets  d-Traycoy^i/.) 

x.  5  b.  There  is  no  various  reading  of  moment  in  the  MSS.,  but 
Sept.  appears  to  be  based  on  a  text  which  omitted  Kin  ntDO.  Hitzig, 
Ewald  (ist  ed.),  and  Diestel  omit  DTI  Kin  as  an  intrusive  marginal 
note,  suggested  (Diestel)  by  v.  24.  But  the  omission  of  these  words 
seems  to  leave  the  clause  too  short.  Seeker  (ap.  Lowth)  simply  cor- 
rects DT3  into  DVn. 

x.  13.  T;i1N1:  .  .  TDKI..  Hitzig  and  Dr.  Kay  regard  this  as  the  im- 
perfect of  habit  ('  I  am  wont  to  .  .  .'),  but  this  hardly  suits  the  con- 
text ;  Ewald  (so  Mr.  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §  §  83,  84),  as  a  vivid 
way  of  representing  past  events  as  in  course  of  happening,  but  yet 
without  implying  at  the  same  time  the  idea  of  sequence  or  causation. 
The  '  tense  '  is  singularly  appropriate  here,  as  it  is  the  one  which 
the  Assyrian  kings,  for  the  same  reason  as  Isaiah  here,  habitually  use 
in  their  inscriptions.  Comp.  on  xii.  i. 

x.  1  8.  Dp:  Db»5  A  singular  phrase;  can  it  be  correct  ?  DDE  occurs 
nowhere  else  in  Kal,  and  though  Dpb  and  Dp.  Jflfl  are  found  in  three  other 
places  (lix.  19,  Zech.  ix.  16,  Ps.  Ix.  6),  none  of  them  seem  to  illustrate 
our  passage.  '  It  is  easier,'  as  Dr.  Weir  remarks,  '  to  find  objections  to 
all  the  various  renderings  which  have  been  proposed,  than  to  say  which 
is  the  true  one.  The  ancient  versions  give  very  little  assistance.'  He 
suggests,  however  (in  which  I  do  not  agree),  that  some  light  is  thrown 
upon  the  passage  by  xxxi.  8,  9. 

x.  25.  Luzzatto  reads  On*  ^JJf-T^y  ;  but,  as  Diestel  remarks,  the 
next  stage  was  to  be,  not  the  cessation  of  Jehovah's  anger,  but  its 
manifestation  on  a  larger  scale. 

x.  27  (last  clause).  Probably  corrupt  (see  note,  vol.  i.  p.  71). 
For  the  rendering  by  'reason  of,'  comp.  Ps.  Ixviii.  3,  (Hebr.),  and 
see  note  on  Ivii.  i. 

x.  33.  rnxft.  Gesenius's  explanation,  adopted  in  my  translation 
and  also  by  Del.,  'foliage,  lit.  glory,'  seems  not  to  suit  the  passages 
(six  in  Ezekiel),  in  which  rnKQ  occurs  in  the  plural.  The  several 


1  Jiidische  Zeitschrift,  ix.  119. 

2  Hitzig  in  Hilgenfeld's  Zeiischrift,  xv.  228. 


140  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

branches  would  not  naturally  each  be  called  the  '  glory '  of  a  tree. 
Better,  therefore,  to  derive  the  word  from  the  root  par  'to  break 
forth,'  and  render  'bough'  (see  Ezek.  xvii.  6),  or  collectively 
'boughs.' 

xi.  3.  'I  imm.  The  phrase  is  without  a  parallel,  and  was  evi- 
dently suggested  by  the  four  PIT)  of  the  preceding  verse.  Alt.  rend, 
would  run  more  literally,  '  And  he  shall  smell  delightedly  at  the  fear 
of  Jehovah.'  I  cannot  reconcile  myself  to  such  an  expression,  the 
object  of  the  'smelling'  having  no  reference  (as  in  Am.  v.  21,  Lev. 
xxvi.  31)  to  ceremonial  observances,  nnn,  'to  make  0-vr='to 
breathe,'  as  ptKPi  'to  make  ears'='to  hear,'  jt^n  'to  make  tongue' 
=  'to  slander'  (quoted  by  Naeg.). 

xi.  4.  For  the  second  pK  read  pny  with  Lagarde  (see  vol.  i.  p.  76). 

xi.  8.  mn  m  Render,  'lay  down  his  hand.'  See  Wetzstein's 
second  excursus  in  third  ed.  of  Delitzsch's  Jesaia.  (The  original 
meaning  of  the  root  is  shown  from  the  Arabic  to  be  probably  demit- 
tere,  rather  than  tendered] 

xi.  15.  D^SD.  Read  D^V5  with  Gesenius  (in  Thesaurus}  and  Luz- 
zatto,  •"  and  V  being  easily  confounded  in  the  earlier  stages  of  the 
alphabetic  characters.  So  perhaps  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Vulg.,  though  their 
renderings  may  be  mere  guesswork  (comp.  Kimchi).  To  call  in  the 
aid  of  the  Arabic  in  this  exceedingly  plain  piece  of  Hebrew  seems 
very  dubious. 

xii.  i.  *j»n:J>1  •  •  ifeJJ.  My  friend  Mr.  Driver  suggests l  that 
this  may  be  taken  as  a  prayer  ('May  thine  anger  turn,'  &c.),  comp. 
Ps.  lxxxv.5  with  2-4,  and  cxxvi.  4  with  1-3.  To  me  this  does  not 
seem  natural,  as  the  next  verse  is  entirely  in  the  strain  of  thanks- 
giving. I  would  not,  however,  assert  that  •  3  is  to  be  understood,  but 
rather  that  the  construction  with  the  imperfect,  in  poetic  Hebrew  as 
in  epigraphic  Assyrian,  is  a  vivid,  emotional  way  of  representing  even 
past  events  as  in  course  of  happening  (comp.  on  x.  13).  Whether 
another  imperfect  with  simple  Vav  follows,  makes  no  difference  (see 
on  the  other  hand  Delitzsch,  whose  references,  however,  scarcely 
prove  his  case). 

xii.  2.  mrr  pp  JTptt.  The  termination  HT  is  not,  as  is  generally 
supposed,  a  poetic  or  archaic  form  instead  of  n  T, . .  but  an  apocopated 
flexional  form  of  the  feminine  iiT.  It  comes  either  from  *£T,  or  from 
the  accusative  (?)  nriT,  as  may  in  all  cases  be  satisfactorily  shown ' 
(Hupfeld  on  Ps.  xvi.  6).  In  the  present  instance  certainly  the  for- 
mer alternative  is  the  more  obvious  one  (it  assumes  an  Aramaizing 
apocope  of  the  suffix) ;  but  Hupfeld's  comment  must  be  supplemented 
by  that  of  Geiger,2  who  appears  to  have  shown  the  reason  why,  at 
least  in  Ex.  xv.  2,  Isa.  xii.  2,  and  Ps.  cxviii.  14,  the  apocopated  form 

1   The  Use  of  the  Tenses  in  Hebrew,  §  84  (a). 

3  Ursckrift  und  Uebersetzungen  der  Bibel,  pp.  274-8. 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  14! 

was  adopted.  It  is  well  known  that  the  later  Jews  (even  in  the 
times  of  the  Septuagint)  scrupled  to  pronounce  the  Tetragrammaton. 
Fl>,  it  is  true,  is  only  half  of  the  Tetragrammaton,  but  it  is  natural 
that  the  same  scruple  (I  speak  of  pre-Massoretic  times)  should  have 
prevented  the  pronunciation  even  of  this  half.  How  could  this  be 
avoided?  By  connecting  the  syllable  PT  (wherever  the  sense  appeared 
to  allow  it)  so  closely  with  the  preceding  word,  that  the  hearer  was 
not  conscious  of  hearing  the  Divine  name.  Hence  in  Ex.  xv.  2,  the 
Samaritan  Pentateuch  reads  iTJTiDn  as  one  word,  and  Sept.  translates 
or  paraphrases  there  (3orjOo<s  KOL  o-KeTrao-r*)?  eyeVero.  The  later  ver- 
sions, however,  express  the  f^,  and  it  is  in  accordance  with  this  later 
abatement  of  scrupulousness  that  the  Massoretic  text  of  Isa.  xii.  2  in- 
troduces mn\  It  was  apparently  still  the  custom  among  some  public 
readers  of  the  Scriptures  to  let  the  FP  be  absorbed  in  the  preceding 
word,  and  to  make  the  true  sense  quite  clear  the  Massoretic  critics 
inserted  the  full  name  m."P  (only  here  however,  not  in  Ex.  xv.  2,  nor 
in  Ps.  cxviii.  14).  (The  case  is  much  stronger  than  can  be  shown  in 
this  condensed  note.  Nor  can  inconsistencies  on  the  part  of  the 
Massoretes  be  pleaded  against  Geiger's  view ;  perfect  consistency  is 
not  a  virtue  even  of  these  careful  critics.) 

xin.  6.  In  his  lectures  on  The  Old  Testament  in  the  Jewish 
Church,  p.  423,  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  developes  more  fully  his  view 
of  the  origin  of  Shaddai  'the  rain-giver.'  He  thinks  that  the  deriva- 
tion from  TTfc?  is  discredited  by  the  fact  of  its  having  been  suggested 
by  the  punctuation,  which  was  itself  determined  by  a  faulty  traditional 
etymology  (from  the  relative  K>  and  *1).  I  agree  that  the  Aramaic 
affinity  pointed  out  by  him  and  Gesenius  is  plausible,  though  I 
desiderate  a  good  Assyrian  cognate  ;  but  I  am  not  convinced  that 
the  derivation  from  11£J>  (already  present  to  the  mind  of  our  prophet) 
stands  or  falls  with  the  Jewish  traditional  etymology.  If  you  had  HK> 
(unpointed)  before  you  as  the  name  of  a  god,  you  might  quite  well 
form  the  hypothesis  that  it  was  connected  with  lit?. 

xiii.  21.  D^V'wild  cats.'  See  my  Notes  and  Criticisms,  p.  23. 
D'n'tf.  This  corresponds  to  the  Assyrian  akhu  (singular),  which  is 
given  as  the  equivalent  of  the  Accadian  lig-bar-ra,  i.e.  '  striped  beast 
(dog).'  Houghton,  Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.,  V.  328. 

xiv.  6.  Read  JT3TO  (t|  and  n  confounded,  as  in  2  Kings  x.  32, 
where  read,  with  Targ.,  Hitz.,  *p¥p^). 

xiv.  21.  Dny.  To  the  question,  'Why  should  cities  be  denounced 
so  unqualifiedly  ? '  (vol.  i.  p.  93),  Dr.  Weir  replies  by  referring  to  the 
view  of  the  antitheistic  origin  of  Babylon  given  in  Gen.  xi.  ;  how  in- 
genious, but  how  far-fetched  !  Ibn  Ezra,  adopting  Targ.'s  rendering 
'enemies,' compares  i  Sam.  xxviii.  16,  where,  however,  Sept's  read- 
ing is  now  generally  adopted.  (See  Q.  P.  £.}  Read  D'?y;  a  similar 
correction  is  necessary  in  xxiv.  15,  Ps.  Ixxii.  9,  Jer.  xlix.  3.  (For  other 
slight  errors  in  this  section,  see  xiii.  22,  xiv.  4,  6.) 


142 


CRITICAL    NOTES. 


xiv.  22.  pj.  Comp.  Assyrian  ninu  '  family '  (Friedr.  Delitzsch, 
Assyrische  Studien,  i.  20). 

xiv.  30.  ni33.  Hupfeld,  on  Ps.  xxxvii.  20,  suggests  n^3,  comp. 
nn,  v.  25.  ID  is  an  Isaianic  word  (see  xxx.  23). 

3"in\     *  Shall  he  slay.'     From  a  Semitic  point  of  view,  a 

verb  is  never  used  impersonally.  If  there  is  no  other  subject,  the 
'  nomen  agentis '  of  the  verb  is  always  either  expressed  or,  as  here, 
implied.  But  who  is  'the  slayer'  in  this  passage?  Not  Jehovah, 
for  he  is  the  speaker,  but  the  enemy  who  is  Jehovah's  'rod'  (x.  5). 
(Comp.  Hos.  vi.  n,  and  Wiinsche's  note,  to  which  I  am  indebted.) 

xiv.  32.    »u.     Read    D'U,  with  Sept.,  Pesh.,  Targ.,  Gratz. 

xv.  i.  Jij.  If  the  pointing  is  correct,  this  must  be  a  collateral 
form  of  W?  (it  occurs  again  in  xxi.  n,  but  in  pause).  It  is  interest- 
ing that  it  should  occur  in  a  Moabite  inscription  (on  the  stele  of 
Mesha,  1.  15,  we  have  nW>3  ballelah).  Comp.  on  xxiii.  n. 

xv.  5.  Read  Wyh*  with  Lagarde  and  some  earlier  scholars  (see 
Ges.).  Why  suppose  a  unique  verbal  form,  when  transposition  is  so 
natural  ? 

xvi.  i.  Gratz  (Geschichte,  ii.  i.  258),  reads  ^BnflD"OB>K.  He  ex- 
cises v.  2,  and  connects  vv.  i  and  3. 

xvi.  4.  Lagarde's  edition  of  Targ.  reads  M*fata&=D'rru  ;  but  this 
is  probably  not  the  original  reading — see  Geiger's  Urschrift,  p.  300 
note.  I  therefore  adhere  to  the  statement  in  vol.  i.  p.  100,  note  b. 
Comp.  the  mispointing  in  Gen.  xlix.  26. 

xvn.  i.  Omit  WD  with  Lagarde.  The  scribe  had  TlflD  in  his  head, 
and  began  to  write  it  over  again.  He  would  not  spoil  his  manuscript 
by  excising  it,  and  so  it  remained  a  non-word.  See  on  xxviii.  25, 
xliii.  12,  and  Q.  P.  B.  (2nd  ed.)  on  Zech.  ii.  2,  Mai.  ii.  n. 

XVII.  9.  TOKiT)  BTin.  Sept.  renders  (ov  rpo-n-ov  KareXtTrov)  ot  'A/xo/5- 
patot  Kat  ot  Evaiou  The  reading  implied  is  plausible ;  only  'Amorites' 
and  '  Hivites '  must  be  transposed.  As  Lagarde  points  out  (Semitica^ 
i.,  p.  31)  BH  and  »1  look  very  similar  in  Phoenician  and  old  Hebrew  cha- 
racters, and  might  easily  be  confounded  by  a  scribe.  Still  the  received 
text  gives  a  very  appropriate  sense  (see  Commentary) ;  the  only  doubt 
is  whether  *V!D8  would  have  been  used  in  the  sense  of  ( the  summit  of 
a  hill'  so  near  to  v.  6,  where  it  means  'the  top  of  a  tree.'  Vulg.  has 
'  (derelictse)  sicut  aratra  et  segetes '  (comp.  Bnn  to  'plough,' and  T»y 
'sheaf');  Pesh.,  Theodotion,  Saadya  take  Horesh  and  Amir  to  be 
names  of  places  ;  and  so  Aquila  and  Symmachus  understand  Amir. 
Hitzig  strangely  adopts  this  view,  comparing  Harosheth  (Judg.  iv.  2). 
Surely  a  resource  of  despair  !  In  conclusion,  it  is  worth  suggesting 
that  the  strange  story  in  Procopius  and  in  the  Jerusalem  Talmud  of 
Jewish  fugitives  in  Africa  (see  Ewald,  History,  ii.  229,  230),  may  per- 
haps have  some  connexion  with  this  passage  of  Isaiah. 

xvni.   i.  'D  ?¥^y.     See   my  Notes   and  Criticisms,  p.  20    (where 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  143 

on  line  23,  for  'day'  I  should  have  said  'year')  ;  see  also  Stade's 
discussion  of  the  phrase,  De  Isaice  Vaticiniis  sEthiopicis,  pp.  89-94, 
where  he  comes  to  the  same  conclusion  as  that  here  adopted.  In 
h'shf  comp.  Arabic  sarsaru,  the  '  creaking '  insect  (Lane),  also  found 
in  Assyrian  ('the  cricket,'  Friedr.  Delitzsch,  Assyrische  Studien,  i.  26). 

xviu.  2.  Read  with  Stade  1j21i2.  The  Metheg  of  the  received 
text  no  doubt  indicates  that  they  understood  the  word  (or  words) 
somewhat  as  M'Gill  or  Delitzsch,  against  whom  see  commentary. 
Iplp  might  be  an  adjective  (like  "ijny),  but  is  more  probably  a  sub- 
stantive meaning  'great  strength' ;  comp.  Arab,  kuwwat,  i.  robur,  2. 
pars  quaedam  funis. 

xvm.  7.  Read  DVD  (comp.  parallel  clause),  with  Sept.,  Targ., 
Vulg.,  Lowth,  Knobel,  Stade.  Ges.  renders  as  I  have  done,  but 
thinks  the  second  D  is  retroactive.  This,  however,  is  not  proved  by 
Job  xxxiii.  17,  where  a  Q  has  dropped  out  of  the  text  (see  Dillmann, 
ad  loc.\  Ewald  reads  Dy  Dy£.  I  observe  that  Del.,  in  his  3rd  ed., 
thinks  the  text-reading  is  established  by  'parallels  like  Zeph.  iii. 
10.'  But  "nny,  there,  should  be  taken  in  the  sense  of  '  sweet 
odours '  (comp.  Ezek.  viii.  11),  parallel  to  Timfc  ;  for  the  form  of  the 
sentence,  comp.  on  iii.  12. 

xix.  7.  Ti&O  why.  Del.  (on  Prov.  viii.  29)  denies  that  its  ever 
means  the  shore,  whether  of  the  sea,  or  of  a  river,  and  in  the  third 
edition  of  hisjesaia  renders  the  above  words  'at  the  mouth  (Miindung) 
of  the  Nile,'  i.e.  where  the  stream  approaches  the  sea.  But  the 
ordinary  view  seems  more  appropriate.  Dr.  Weir  has  ' "  by  the 
brink  of  the  river,"  i.e.  where  the  last  vestige  of  green  might  be  sure 
to  be  found.' 

xix.  10.  '1J1  n^nn^  vm.  There  are  several  difficulties  in  both 
halves  of  this  verse,  which  have  not  been  adequately  recognised  by 
most  commentators.  Philologically  I  see  no  objection  to  my  render- 
ing (which  is  the  common  one)  of  the  first  half ;  but  I  am  not  quite 
sure  of  the  ordinary  exposition,  partly  because  the  meaning  of  the 
second  half  is  so  uncertain,  and  partly  because  the  preceding  verses 
are  full  of  minute  special  features.  In  the  second  half  there  are  two 
difficulties:  i.  that  DJN  everywhere  else  (even  Jer.  li.  32)  means 
'pond,'  'marsh' — see  especially  Ex.  vii.  19,  viii.  i,  where  it  is  used 
in  this  sense  in  connection  with  the  Nile;  and  2.  that  "Ofc?  'Bty  is 
a  strange  way  of  expressing  '  hired  workmen  ' — after  *G?y  we  naturally 
expect  rD&OD  (Dr.  Weir),  and  there  is  no  apparent  reason  for  passing 
over  the  usual  form  D»T3B>.  I  do  not  object  to  the  text  because  it 
is  not  quite  plain  (the  variations  of  the  versions  make  it  probable  that 
there  was  from  the  first  some  uncommon  expression  in  it),  but  because 
the  actual  reading,  as  commonly  understood,  is  so  difficult  to  justify. 
The  "1D#  read  by  Sept.,  Pesh.  is  plausible  (Dr. Weir  compares  xxiv.  9); 
these  versions  suppose  an  allusion  to  the  barley-wine  of  Egypt 


144  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

(Herod,  ii.  77).  But  this  hardly  suits  the  context.  I  lean  myself  to 
the  view  of  Targ.,  Saad.,  Rashi,  Ibn  Ezra,  Gratz  (Monatsschrifa  1877, 
p.  376),  that  IDG?  meant  'dams,'  comp.  "DD  'to  stop  up,'  Arab,  sakara 
'to  dam  up  a  river.'  This  harmonises  admirably  with  the  preceding 
verses,  but  not  so  well  with  the  first  half  of  this  verse.  Either,  there- 
fore, the  text  of  the  first  verse-half  must  be  corrupt,  or  the  '  pillars  ' 
have  an  obscure  reference  to  the  '  dams,'  or  at  any  rate  to  the  Nile. 

xix.  1  8.  Dinn  TJJ.  So  most  MSS.  and  editions,  the  Massora 
(see  however  Geiger,  Urschrift,  p.  79),  and  the  Peshito.  The  other 
reading  Dinn  TV  is  supported  by  15  MSS.  in  the  text  and  one 
in  the  margin  (Kennicott  and  de  Rossi)  ;  also  by  Symmachus,  the 
Vulgate,  Saadya,  the  Talmud  ('  Menachoth,  no  a'),  Rashi,  Vitr.,  Ges. 
(Thesaurus,  but  not  Commentary),  Hitz.,  Naeg.  Aquila  and  Theodo- 
tion  have  "Ape?,  which  leaves  the  reading  doubtful.  Sept.  has  TroAis 
do-eSe*,  i.e.,  pltfil  TJ7,  which  Geiger  (as  above)  boldly  maintains  to  be 
the  true  reading,  Din  (deliberately  altered,  he  thinks,  into  Din  by  the 
Egyptian  Jews)  being  a  disparaging  corruption  of  this.  To  me  the 
Sept.  reading  looks  more  like  a  retort  upon  the  Palestinian  Jews  for 
expounding  Dinn  1*17  in  a  manner  complimentary  to  Onias. 

xxi.  ii,  12.  The  Greek  versions  referred  to  in  vol.  i.  p.  127 
(note  c),  translate  as  if  they  read  1W£  B^BH,  which  Dozy  accord- 
ingly 'proposes  to  read  (De  Israeliten  te  Mekka,  p.  72).  For  a 
complete  restoration  of  the  text,  however,  Gratz's  is  perhaps  more 
satisfactory  (Geschichte  der  Juden,  ii.  i,  p.  485).  The  translation  of 
it  runs  thus  :  — 


The  fugitives  (lll^n)  ca^  unto  me  fr°ni  Seir  ; 
'  Watchman,  what  of  the  night  ? 

Watchman,  what  of  the  night  of  distress  ?  ' 

The  watchman  saith, 
'The  morning  cometh,  the  night  fleeth  ('-jfi  Q)))  ; 

O  that  ye  would  ask  !     Ask  ye  ; 

Return,  come.' 

The  supposition  is  that  the  Simeonites  in  mount  Seir  (i  Chr.  iv. 
42,  43)  applied  for  restoration  to  the  privileges  of  citizenship. 

xxn.  3.  nt?pD  '  without  the  bows  being  strung  '  either  on  their 
side  or  the  enemy's. 

xxn.  5.  yi&?.  The  word  stands  so  close  to  Elam,  that  it  seems 
inevitable  to  take  it  as  the  name  of  the  tribe  referred  to  in  the  com- 
mentary. Added  to  this,  the  other  mfc?  means,  not  '  a  cry  of  despair  ' 
(which  the  ordinary  rendering  presupposes),  but  '  a  cry  for  help.  ' 
The  remark  is  Luzzatto's. 

xxn.  14.  For  the  construction'^  1BD,  Riehm  (Der  Begriff  der 
Suhne  im  A.  T.,  p.  9)  well  compares  Ezek.  xvi.  63. 

xxn.  15.  pb.  Saknu  in  Assyrian  means  'a  high  officer,'  from 
sakin  '  to  set  up,  place,  make  ;  '  saknu  and  pb  alike  descend  from 
the  period  of  '  undivided  '  Semitic  speech.  As  a  rule,  no  doubt, 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  145 

organic  s  in  Assyrian  remains  so  in  the  corresponding  word  in 
Hebrew  ;  but  there  are  exceptions,  e.g.  bislu  =  ?DD,  isid  —  ^D^  At  a 
later  time,  the  Babylonian  form  of  this  word  (sagmi)  became  the 
Hebrew  s'agan  (see  comm.  on  xli.  25).  In  this  case,  the  sibilant  is 
just  what  we  should  expect,  since  Assyrian  proper  names,  when 
transferred  into  Hebrew,  usually  change  their  sibilants,  e.g.  Sarrukin 
becomes  p^D,  and  S'amirina  ji"i)?K>.  Obviously,  the  Jews  were  not 
conscious  that  they  already  had  the  same  word  under  the  form  |Db. 
M.  Ganneau  has  found  the  title  '  the  pD  of  Qarthadachat '  applied 
to  a  person  dedicating  a  vase  to  Baal-Lebanon  in  a  Phoenician  in- 
scription (Alhenaum,  Apr.  17,  1880,  pp.  502-4). 

xxiii.  7.  nt^y  DD*?  rsKtn.  Del.  (see  vol.  i.  p.  134)  regards  'y  as 
the  vocative,  remarking  that  '  the  omission  of  the  article  is  not  sur- 
prising (xxii.  2,  Ewald  §  327  a),  whereas,  on  the  other  view,  though 
possible  (see  xxxii.  13),  it  is  still  harsh  (comp.  xiv.  16).'  The  phrase 
is  harshly  constructed,  on  any  view  of  it ;  but  nr?}?  as  epexegetical 
of  DpS  seems  to  me  peculiarly  harsh,  and  considering  that  a  plurality 
of  persons  (viz.  the  Phoenicians  in  general)  has  been  addressed  just 
before  (?'.  6),  it  is  rather  unlikely  that  a  fresh  company  (viz.  the 
Tynans)  should  be  referred  to  now. 

xxiii.  ii.  n^tuto.  Possibly  an  intentional  Phoenicism  ;  comp. 
the  Moabitism  in  the  prophecy  on  Moab  (see  above  on  xv.  i).  At 
any  rate,  there  is  an  affinity  with  Phoenician  in  the  suffix  with  a  (comp. 
on  liii.  8).  See  Euting,  Seeks  phoniz.  Inschriften  aus  Idalion,  p.  15, 
(also  referred  to,  I  see,  by  Del  in  his  3rd  ed). 

xxiii.  13.  DHB>3  pK.  Ewald's  conjecture  D'JJtta  pK,  which  for- 
merly attracted  me,  still  deserves  chronicling.  Kuenen's  objections 
to  it  are  :  i.  that  usage  requires  *jyj3Pi  pR  ;  and  2.  that  it  is  na- 
tural to  expect  a  reference  to  a  fresh  people  rather  than  to  the  Phoeni- 
cians, who  have  been  addressed  all  along  (Theologisch  Tijdschrift, 
1871,  pp.  74,  75).  The  first  is  not  very  important ;  the  phrase  quoted 
by  Dr.  Kuenen  only  occurs  in  catalogues  of  nations.  We  can  as 
well  say  D^JJM  p«  as  DW^B  pK.  The  second  is  really  strong.  (See 
further  my  Notes  and  Criticisms.} 

xxiv.  15.  Dn«3. 'May  it  not  be  ^WJ  p.??>  somewhat  as  xxv. 
3?  Comp.  Esth.  x.  i,  the  only  other  passage,  except  xi.  n,  in  which 
D»n  "N  is  found.'  Dr.  Weir. 

xxiv.  19.  'For  np  read  y'l,  inf.  abs.  with  n  being  without  ex- 
ample, and  the  n  being  taken  from  next  word :  so  read  pK  (n  re- 
peated from  last  word).'  Dr.  Weir  after  Maurer,  Hitzig,  Knobel. 

xxiv.  22.  Dr.  Weir  reads  "VDNn  tjpfc  ;  comp.  ^Dnn  ?)DK  xxxiii.  4. 

xxvi.  4.  Ges.  suggests  that  nirp  may  be  a  gloss  on  the  uncom- 
mon W  ;  so  too  Knobel.  But  though  Aquila  already  has  tV  TOJ 

it  is  possible  that  the  text  is  imperfect. 
VOL.  II.  L 


146  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

xxvn.  6.  Has  not  D^n  fallen  out  (comp.  Eccles.  ii.  16)?  There 
is  a  similar  doubt  in  Ixvi.  18. 

xxvin.  ii.  tysfa.    See  Hupfeld  or  Perowne  on  Ps.  xxxv.  16. 

xxvin.  1 6.  The  construction  'I  am  he  that  have  founded'  is 
most  unnatural ;  read  1p\  (I  am  glad  to  find  myself  supported  by 
Dr.  Weir,  who  also  suggests  "T|9*l?,  and  by  Stade,  Hebr.  Grammatik. 
§  214  b.)  *)pV  is  not  a  genuine  parallel.  There  is  no  occasion  to  take 
it  as  3  s.  m.  imperf.  Hif. ;  it  can  equally  well  be  partic.  Kal  (comp. 
Arab,  qatit). 

Read  £"PT»  ;  I  forget  to  whom  the  suggestion  is  due. 

The  Hifil  is  used  absolutely,  as  Nah.  iii.  i.  The  letters  D  and  n  are 
easily  confounded  in  the  square  character.  The  Sept.  translator 
either  reads  ^'n.l,  or  (since  Targ.  has  an  equivalent  rend.)  falls  into 
paraphrase.  Pesh.  follows  Sept.,  Targ. 

xxvni.  1 8.  "193).  This  is  the  only  passage  in  which  the  Pual  of 
1BD  is  used  in  the  sense  of  'cancelling.'  But  the  meaning  is  in 
accordance  with  the  root-meaning  (whether  we  adopt  the  Hebrew 
or  Arabic  sense  of  '  covering,'  comp.  Gen.  vi.  14,  or  the  Aramaic  of 
'wiping  out').  Hence  the  conjecture  "ton}  (comp.  Jer.  xxxiii.  21) 
is  unnecessary,  though  supported,  not  merely  by  Hupfeld,  to  whom 
Del.  refers,  but  by  Targ.,  Seeker,  Lowth,  Houbigant,  and  Df.  Weir. 

xxvin.  25.  The  difficult  words  rniE>  and  JOD3  are  simply  mis- 
written  for  myt?  and  HDDD.  The  scribe  did  not  like  to  spoil  his  ma- 
nuscript by  excising  the  faulty  letters  (as  in  xvii.  i,  xliii.  12,  see  notes): 
Wellhausen,  Geschichte  Israels, ;  i.  409  (the  conjecture  had  already 
been  made,  so  far  as  mi£>  is  concerned). 

xxvin.  29.  n^in  •  •  •  N?Bn.  Comp.  Job  xi.  6,  where  read  with 
Mr.  Robertson  Smith  and  (partly)  Merx,  rwrA  D^Q  »3.  Another 
sign  of  the  gnomic  affinities  of  this  paragraph. 

xxix.  i.  tanK.  Del.  and  Hitzig  (Jesaia,  but  not  Gesch.  d.  V. 
Israel}  explain,  'God's  hearth;'  comp.  Ezek.  xliii.  15,  16.  But  this 
meaning  is  very  dubious,  even  in  Ezekiel  (see  Notes  and  Criticisms, 
pp.  31,  32,  and  comp.  Smend  on  Ezek.  /.  c.\  whereas  that  adopted 
has  the  support  of  usage,  and  suits  the  context. 

xxix.  9.  Read  -in^rin.  See  the  parallel  passage  Hab.  i.  5,  and 
comp.  for  the  form  of  the  phrase  Zeph.  ii.  i  (where  read  -l^ini  -I^Efisrjn 
for  the  unintelligible  'pnn). 

xxix.  22.  Drra&rnK  m&  nt?K.  Wellhausen  regards  these  words  as 
a  gloss  based  on  the  late  legend  of  the  deliverance  of  Abraham  from 
the  furnace  of  the  Chaldeans  {Geschichte  Israels,  i.  373,  note  !).  But 
is  not  the  expression  too  forcible  for  a  mere  gloss,  and  may  not 
Abraham's  deliverance  from  his  idolatrous  kinsmen  (see  my  note, 
vol.  i.,  p.  1 66)  be  typical  of  the  deliverance  of  the  faithful  Israel  from 
the  tyrant,  the  scorner,  and  the  unrighteous  (xxix.  20)?  I  admit, 
however,  that  the  clause  comes  in  very  unexpectedly ;  it  does  not 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  147 

fall  in  quite  naturally  with  the  context ;  and  if  we  approach  the  pas- 
sage with  the  presuppositions  (a)  that  Abraham  is  a  legendary  or 
mythical  personage,  and  (b)  that  this  personage  only  attained  im- 
portance at  a  late  period  of  Hebrew  literature  compared  with  Isaac 
('Abraham  first  appears  in  Isa.  xl.-lxvi.'  [xli.  8,  li.  2],  says  Well- 
hausen),  it  becomes  natural  to  excise  the  words,  as  this  talented 
though  hypercritical  scholar  has  proposed.  My  objection  to  admitting 
his  view  is  not  that  he  supposes  a  gloss  to  have  intruded  into  the 
received  text.  Considering  the  large  number  of  glosses  which  in- 
truded into  the  Hebrew  text  reproduced  by  the  Sept. ,  it  would  be 
no  wonder  if,  with  all  the  care  bestowed  by  the  Palestinian  Jewish 
critics,  a  fair  number  of  glosses  should  have  lingered  in  the  Mas- 
soretic  text.  It  is  rather  this  :  that  in  the  present  position  of  inquiry 
a  commentator  on  the  prophets,  whether  of  orthodox  or  rationalistic 
leanings,  cannot  allow  himself  to  take  the  mythical  theory  of  the 
early  Jewish  narratives  into  account.  I  have  thought  it,  however, 
only  fair  to  warn  the  student  of  the  rocks  which  may  be  hidden  even 
in  a  passage  so  simple  grammatically  as  the  present.  No  book  of 
the  Bible  can  be  fully  understood  by  itself;  a  future  commentator  on 
Isaiah  will  be  able  to  assume  positive  critical  results  which  are  yet  far 
from  having  been  attained. 

xxx.  1 8.  Dn\  This,  the  text-reading,  does  not  give  a  suitable 
sense.  D-in  with  a  gerund  following  can  only  mean  'to  arise  for 
action'  (so  Ges,  in  Thesaurus);  we  have  no  right  to  import  the 
meaning  of  'desire'  from  the  Arabic.  Rashi  indeed  explains  by 
pmiv,  and  similarly  Delitzsch  ('  God  will  withdraw  Himself  from 
Israel's  history  to  His  royal  and  judicial  throne  in  heaven ').  But 
how  forced  a  view,  and  how  opposed  to  the  context !  Yet  the  view 
of  Ges.,  though  supported  by  the  usage  of  the  Psalms  (see  Ps.  xviii. 
47,  xxi.  14,  &c.),  does  not  suit  the  parallelism.  ^  nan  means 'to  ex- 
pect with  longing'  (as  may  also  be  urged  against  Del's  rendering) ; 
D111'  ought,  it  would  seem,  to  have  a  similar  meaning.  It  is  best  there- 
fore to  adopt  the  reading  of  two  MSS.  D1T1,  not  in  the  artificial  sense 
'  stirreth  not '  given  to  it  by  Ewald,  '  but  in  that  which  it  undoubtedly 
bears  in  Ps.  xxxvii.  7,' l  (where  note  the  parallelism).  The  difficulty 
of  the  passage  partly  arises  from  the  fusion  of  two  distinct  prophecies 
(see  Commentary). 

xxx.  32.  Read  D3,  with  Q'ri,  Targ.,  Vulg.,  and  many  MSS.,  in- 
cluding the  Babylonian  Codex  ; 2  so  Naegelsbach.  Chap,  xxiii.  13 
must  not  be  quoted  in  favour  of  rD,  for  there  both  land  and  people  of 
Chaldaea  are  referred  to — here  only  the  Assyrian  army. 

1  Notes  and  Criticisms  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  Isaiah  (Macmillan,  1868),  pp.  32,  33. 

2  By  this  title  I  designate  a  Codex  of  the  prophets  (i.e.  the  so-called  later  prophets), 
with  the  Babylonian  punctuation,  dated  A.D.  916-17,  and  now  preserved  at  St.  Peters- 
burg.    It  was  edited  for  the  Russian  Government  in  a  superb  photo-lithographic  fac- 
simile by  Dr.  Hermann  Strack  in  1876. 

L  2 


148  CRITICAL   NOTES. 


On  xxx.  33.  nnQn.  From  nDfl,  i.  an  object  spat  upon  ;  2.  the 
*  abominable  '  place  where  children  were  sacrificed  to  Baal  as  Moloch, 
comes  nB£?n  (as  n$K  from  £>$).  The  word  is  masculine  ;  and  the 
feminine  suffixes  at  the  end  of  the  verse  are  to  be  referred  (as  Del. 
points  out)  to  the  nDl,  or  '  high  place  '  on  which  any  sacrifice  had  to 
be  offered.  The  Jewish  derivation  from  sjh  'a  drum,  'has  only  an 
imaginative,  '  Haggadic  '  value  ;  though  in  Egypt,  as  well  as,  accord- 
ing to  the  legend,  in  Palestine,  the  tambourine  was  possibly  asso- 
ciated with  Baal-worship.  (So  Mr.  Tomkins,  referring  to  Revue 
Egyptienne,  i.  43.) 

xxxi.  8.  Sept.,  Vulg.,  and  the  Babylonian  Codex  read  &6  for  V?  ; 
comp.  xxii.  3  (see  above). 

xxxii.  i.  Read  D'TBM.  The  scribe  began  to  write  LSS^D^,  which 
the  parallel  line  led  him  to  expect  here.  A  similar  error  in  Ps.  Ixxiv. 
14  (end). 

xxxiii.  i.  Read  *]ni733  ;  the  argument  of  Ges.  (in  Thesaurus, 
s.  v.  rfa)  is  conclusive.  3  and  3  confounded,  as  Ex.  xvii.  16,  Josh. 
viii.  13  (comp.  v.  9  fo*l)* 

xxxin.  ii.  Notice  the  rhyme.  Assonance  and  even  rhyme  are 
more  frequently  and  deliberately  employed  in  Hebrew  poetry  than  is 
observed  at  first  sight.  —  'The  last  clause,  remarks  Dr.  Weir,  'is  dif- 
ficult. The  present  reading  seems  to  have  been  that  of  the  copy 
from  which  Sept.  was  translated  ;  so  of  the  other  old  versions,  except 
Pesh.,  which  puts  5  before  DSrrn,  and  joins  it  to  the  preceding  clause 
(as  Sept.  also  does),  and  the  Targ.  which  gives,  "My  word  shall 
destroy  you  as  the  whirlwind  chaff."  A  conjectural  reading  is  1DD  Tin 
for  DDni"i,  which  seems  borne  out  by  other  passages  of  Isaiah,  as 
iv.  4,  xi.  4,  and  especially  xxx.  27,  28.'  The  conjecture  is  that  of 
Seeker  and  Lowth. 

xxxiii.  14  &  Dr.  Weir  proposes  to  render,  'Who  will  abide  for 
us  the  devouring  fire?'  /"&,  on  our  behalf,  for  the  salvation  of  the 
people. 

xxxiii.  23.  Dnrrp  1pm*73.  A  hard  passage.  The  subject  of 
the  verb  is  clearly  the  ropes  which  have  just  been  mentioned  (not 
the  sailors,  as  A.  E.,  Kimchi,  Drechsler)  ;  hence  'their  mast,'  i.e.  the 
mast  which  it  is  their  function  (according  to  the  ancient  Greek  and 
doubtless  also  the  Phcenicio-Hebrew  system)  to  bind  to  the  ia-To-n-eSr) 
(a  piece  of  wood  set  in  the  keel).  Now  arises  a  difficulty  with  p. 
To  render,  with  most  since  Cocceius,  'the  stand'  (i.e.  the  IO-TOTT.) 
seems  to  contradict  these  primitive  naval  arrangements  ;  so  that  I 
have  preferred,  with  Luzzatto,  the  Jewish  commentator,  and  Naegels- 
bach,  to  recur  to  the  original  sense  of  'firm.,'  or  rather  '  upright.'  It 
is  true  (as  remarked  in  the  review  of  vol.  i.  in  the  Dublin)  that  p  does 
not  occur  as  an  adjective  elsewhere  in  the  sense  of  physical,  but  only 
in  that  of  moral  uprightness,  but  there  is  no  reason  whatever  why  the 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  149 

physical  sense  (guaranteed  by  the  use  of  |3  the  substantive  for 
*  pedestal')  should  not  occur  —  comp.  'pJV  (i)  straightness,  (2) 
righteousness.  On  the  whole  passage,  comp.  the  beautiful  ode  of 
Horace  :  *  O  navis,  referent  '  (i.  14). 

xxxiv.  12.  Read  DB>  JW  1K"Jp>  rO&ttl  'in  with  Dr.  Weir  ;  comp. 
xli.  12,  I.  2, 

xxxv.  i.  131»  D1W.  The  final  |  of  the  verb  is  assimilated  to 
the  following  O;  comp.  DI^IS,  Num.  iii.  49  (Ibn  Ezra).  Apparent 
orthographical  errors  may  now  and  then  indicate  phonetic  laws.  So 
Ezek.  xxxiii.  26,  'n  |HW  (m  before  /  becomes  n). 

xxxv.  7.  nsai.  The  suffix  has  not  yet  been  explained.  Del. 
thinks  of  the  female  jackal,  comp.  Lam.  iv.  3,  but  how  strangely  ! 
Nor  is  it  easy  to  see  why  reeds  and  rushes  should  be  endowed  with 
an  enclosure.  Pesh.  has  m$,  in  Vulg.  orietur,  whence  Knobel  con- 
jectures npy?.  Or  might  we  read  nfcO*  (comp.  Job  viii.  n)? 

xxxv.  8.  That  Kim  lob  can  be  construed,  no  one  doubts  ;  and 
ingenuity  can  always  devise  a  point  of  connection  with  the  context. 
Mr.  Wordsworth  suggests  that  '  for  them  '  may  refer  to  the  blind, 
deaf,  and  lame  oivv.  5,  6  (Bampton  Lectures,  1881).  The  difficulty 
of  the  words  1C&  Kin  is  increased  by  their  vicinity  to  "pi  "frn,  which 
Ewald,  with  great  plausibility,  connects  with  the  two  preceding  words. 
If  some  one  of  the  current  readings  must  be  chosen,  that  of  Ewald 
seems  preferable  ;  though  I  am  not  convinced  of  its  correctness. 

xxxv.  10.  Read  as  in  Iv.  n,  and  see  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses, 
§  14  y  note  l. 

xxxvn.  1  6.  D'Olin  3E?\  It  is  debated  whether  this  should  be 
rendered  'who  sitteth  between,'  or,  'upon  the  cherubim.'  It  is  best 
to  adhere  to  the  undeniable  usage,  and  render  *  who  inhabiteth  the 
cherubim.'  So  Ewald,  who  does  not,  however,  mean  anything  sub- 
stantially different  from  the  alternative  rendering  (see  his  Commen- 
tary on  Ps.  xxii.  4).  Riehm,  however  (rendering,  like  Ewald,  '  in- 
habitest  '),  thinks  the  Hebrew  phrase  meant  that  Jehovah  in  the 
temple  was  altogether  inclosed  by  the  cherubs  and  their  wings. 

xxxvn.  24.  Elsewhere  Lebanon  is  opposed  to  teia  (xxix.  17). 
But  as  '3  means  properly  a  plantation  of  noble  growths,  the  cedars  of 
Lebanon  may  conceivably  be  honoured  with  this  appellation. 

xxxvii.  28.  TVp  vsb  is  probably  a  corruption  of  sjpj?  ^  ;  see 
Commentary.  So  Wellhausen,  4th  ed.  of  Bleek's  Einleiiung  in  das 
Alte  Testament,  p.  257,  note1. 

xxxviii.  8.  Read  tP&BM,  for  the  sake  of  simplicity  and  'concord.' 

xxxvin.   n.  The  Babylonian  Codex  is  among  those  which  read 


xxxviii.  12.  nn  'my  dwelling.'  Kimchi  well  compares  Ps. 
Ixxxiv.  n,  where  the  verb  in  occurs  in  this  sense.  But  I  must  still 
maintain  that  it  is  an  Aramaism,  and  '  not  part  of  the  proper  Hebrew 


150  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

vocabulary  ;  in  the  Targums  it  is  the  constant  rendering  of  "1-13  ' 
(Notes  and  Criticisms,  p.  37).  Compare  Assyrian  duru  and  Arabic 
daru,  'dwelling.' 

xxxviii.  12.  M-nBI?.  Ftirst  emends  Pn^p;  and  so  my  Notes  and 
Criticisms,  p.  37  :  it  is  not  a  conjecture  for  'J-nj?^  as  Del.  sup- 
poses (in  both  his  2nd  and  his  3rd  ed.).  The  rendering  of  A.  V. 
follows  the  Chaldee  usage. 

xxxviii.  16.  'IJI  vrv  Dri^y.  Gratz  (Geschichte,  ii.  i,  p.  478) 
conjectures  this  to  be  a  prayer  of  the  king  that  his  life  might  be 
spared  for  his  people's  sake.  Comp.  Lam.  iv.  20,  'The  breath  of 
our  nostrils,  the  anointed  of  Jehovah.'  The  sense  would  then  be, 
'  O  Lord  !  [mayest  thou  recover  me]  for  their  sakes,  that  they  may 
live  ;  indeed,  for  every  one  of  them  is  the  breath  of  my  life.' 

xxxix.  i.  JWty.  Read  VD£>  »5  (after  2  Kings  xx.  12).  So  Sept., 
Pesh.  For  instances  of  the  confusion  of  1  and  D  see  Driver, 
Hebrew  Tenses,  §  75  a,  note. 

XL,  21.  nnDID.  We  may  either  supply  the  prep,  from  ^&O£>, 
comp.  xlviii.  9  (see  however  Commentary),  or  read  'JDO,  and  suppose 
that  the  first  D  dropped  out,  owing  to  the  D  preceding  and  the  »  fol- 
lowing. Vitr.  thinks  that  the  Massorites  accented  off  pxn  HHD1D 
to  show  that  it  was  the  common  object  of  all  the  three  verbs.  More 
probably  they  assumed  an  ellipsis  of  D. 

XL.  24.  bn  5]tf.  The  phrase  only  occurs  here.  But  we  find  j'8  *)$ 
repeated  three  times  in  xli.  26,  and  ^K  repeated  without  a  nega- 
tive in  xli.  10,  xliv.  15,  xlvi.  n  ;  for  the  repetition  of  73  comp. 
xxxiii.  20.  There  is,  therefore,  no  occasion  for  Dr.  Weir's  conjec- 
ture bn  IK. 

t  .  .  .  -1yt21     Sept.,  Pesh.,  W|J  .  .  .  Wtpa,     '  A  good  deal 


may  be  said  in  favour  of  this  reading,  (i)  iflM  is  not  found  else- 
where in  Nifal,  nor  int  in  Piel  or  Pual.  (2)  The  meaning  is  good 
(comp.  xvii.  10,  n).  "Before  they  have  planted  or  sown,  i.e.  pro- 
pagated themselves  in  any  way  ;  nay,  before  they  have  themselves 
taken  root,  jnt  may  be  used  of  the  plant,  Gen.  i.  29,  and  perhaps 
MM  may  also  of  the  y^  for  "  to  shoot  forth  fresh  plants."  '  Dr.  Weir. 
XL.  31.  -QK  Ay\  My  own  rend,  is  that  of  Sept.,  Targ.,  Pesh., 
Vulg.,  Saadya,  Bochart,  Lowth,  Ewald,  Naegelsbach.  It  seems  to  be 
required  by  the  parallelism  with  tpbnn  (for  which  word  Dr.  Pusey 
compares  Arab,  akhlafa,  to  put  forth  fresh  feathers  after  moulting  '). 
Hitz.  indeed  objects  (i)  that  though  r6y='to  grow  up'  in  v.  6, 
there  is  no  instance  of  such  a  sense  of  npyn,  and  (2)  that  instead  of 
-QN  we  should,  on  the  view  opposed  to  his  own,  expect  n¥W.  But 
as  to  (i),  the  observation,  though  adopted  by  Del.,  seems  incorrect  ; 
for  in  Ezek.  xxxvii.  6,  n^»yn  is  used  of  bringing  flesh  upon  the  bones. 
And  with  regard  to  (2),  let  me  simply  ask,  Why?  Are  not  the  pinion- 
feathers  renewed  ?  —  As  to  the  form  mDK,  it  is,  strictly  speaking,  a 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  151 

nomen  iinitatis  (see  Ewald,  Gramm.  arab.,  §  295,  Lehrlntch  der  hebr. 
Sprache,  §  176*7),  but  the  distinction  is  not  always  present  to  the 
Hebrew  writers. 

XLI.  8.  *3nK.  Dr.  Weir,  while  admitting  that  the  pronominal 
suffix  of  an'K  elsewhere  always  denotes  the  object  ('my  lover  ;='he 
who  loveth,  or  loved,  me ')  thinks  that  in  this  passage  it  marks  the 
subject,  and  renders  'whom  I  have  loved'  (comp.  Deut.  iv.  37). 
Comp.  Vitringa, 

XLI.  10.  "pnVDtf.  For  the  sense  adopted,  comp.  Ruth  i.  18 
(partic.  Hithp.  =  ' steadfastly  purposing,')  and  especially  Ps.  Ixxx.  16, 
1 8  (Piel  used  precisely  as  here) ;  also  (with  Naeg.)  Matt.  xii.  18,  where 
the  "|E>nK  of  Isa,  xlii.  i  is  rendered  ypert<ra. 

XLI.  25.  Read  Dl*  with  Clericus,  Seeker,  Lowth  (besides  those 
mentioned  already). 

XLI.  27.  pB>n  receives  a  colour  from  the  parallel  word  "1BOID, 
precisely  as  jnnK  in  the  famous  passage  Job  xix.  25  is  coloured  by 
the  corresponding  word  v&O  (as  if  '  the  future  defender  of  my  right '). 

XLII.  2.  Nt?\  Reifmann's  conjecture  JN£??  (Del.,  Jesaia,  p.  440) 
is  very  plausible.  It  brings  out  with  much  force  the  contrast  between 
the  old  and  the  new  dispensation  ;  comp.  Am.  i.  2,  iii.  8. 

XLII.  6.  pT.nK1:.  The  presence  of  the  jussive  is  a  great  difficulty. 
I  cannot  bring  myself,  with  my  friend  Mr.  Driver,  to  render  '  that 
I  may  take  hold'  (Hebreiv  Tenses,  §  176  Obs,\  and  would  rather 
suppose  a  laxity  of  pronunciation,  which  has  found  expression  here 
and  there  in  the  punctuation.  What  the  sense  requires  seems  to  me 
clearly  \ 

XLIL  15.  D^N.  This  passage  is  strongly  against  the  view  that  D"K 
can  mean  *  islands.'  The  sense  required  and  established  by  etymo- 
logy (it  is  cognate  with  Arab,  awd?,  '  he  sojourned ')  is  '  habitable 
land.'  Hence  elsewhere  'countries'  (see  Commentary  on  xl.  15). 

XLII.  21.  Note  the  construction,  which,  though  thoroughly  Hebrew 
(Job  xxxii.  22,  Lam.  iv.  14,  Ewald),  reminds  us  still  more  of  Arabic. 

XLII.  25.  HDn.  The  adverbial  accusative  is  doubtless  used  for 
the  sake  of  the  assonance  with  n£n?D  (Del). 

XLIII.  9.  IVDpl  Of  the  three  ways  of  understanding  this  word — 
(i)  as  an  ordinary  perfect,  (2)  as  a  precative  perfect,  and  (3)  as  an 
imperative — the  second  and  third  are  alone  suitable  to  the  context. 
A  precative  perfect,  however,  seems  too  much  of  an  Arabism  to  be 
easily  admitted,  especially  as  the  evidence  for  it  in  Hebrew  is  not  by 
any  means  strong  (see  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §  20).  There  is  no 
choice,  therefore,  but  to  accept  the  form  as  an  imperative.  One  can 
hardly  suppose  a  corruption  of  the  text,  for  the  same  form  occurs  in  a 
similar  context  in  Joel  iv.  1 1  ;  comp.  \h)  Jer.  1.  5. 

XLIII.  12.  ^JWim.  The  view  proposed  in  my  commentary  is 
supported  by  the  parallel  of  xxviii.  25  (see  above). 


CRITICAL    NOTES. 


XLIII.  22.  On  the  force  of  'D  here,  see  Ewald,  Lehrb.  der  hebr. 
Sprache,  §  354  £  (—Hebrew  Syntax^  by  Kennedy,  p.  269). 

XLIII.  28.  Sept.,  Pesh.,  also  render  in  the  past  tense. 

XLIV.  5.  Read  1T3  irp*,  with  Klostermann.  A  repeated  letter 
here,  as  so  often,  was  dropped.  '?  2J"O  'to  write  upon,  'as  Neh.  vii.  5, 
viii.  14,  xiii.  i.  'Write  with  his  hand'  is  surely  a  very  harsh  expres- 
sion, though  I  see  it  has  the  authority  of  Dr.  Kay. 

XLIV.  12.  '  Unstreitig  ist  em  Wort  ausgefallen  '  (  Del.).  Read,  as  the 
first  word  of  the  verse,  with  Sept,  Pesh.,  either  *nri  (Del.),  or  1pn 
(comp.  Prov.  xxvii.  17),  which  would  easily  fall  out,  owing  to  the  pre- 
ceding hin\  Mr.  Driver  (Hebrew  Tenses^  §  123  /3),  prefers  IfV  (jussive 
form)  or  10!  ;  but  the  analogy  of  v.  13  favours  the  perfect. 

XLIV.  14.  TTO^.  Read  rnD1:.  1  or  *  and  *?  might  possibly  be  con- 
founded in  the  square  character  ;  but  more  probably  the  first  ^  is  pro- 
duced by  the  vicinity  of  another  word  beginning  with  h.  This  seems 
to  me  much  more  natural  than  to  suppose  a  'periphrastic  future,'  the 
instances  of  which  given  by  Del.  on  Hab.  i.  1  1  may  perhaps  require 
sifting.  The  three  other  supposed  instances  in  Isaiah  all  seem  to  me 
very  doubtful.  In  xxi.  i,  the  construction  is  rather  gerundial  ;  in 
xxxvii.  26,  the  phrase  is  *?  JITI  'to  serve  for';  and  in  xxxviii.  20, 
though  there  is  no  rvn  expressed,  the  ^  is  still  that  of  tendency  (see 
translation). 

XLIV.  15.  l»^.  It  is  not  very  natural  in  this  individualising  de- 
scription (contrast  xlii.  1  7,  where  it  is  a  class  of  persons  who  say  DflK 
to  fDDD)  to  regard  this  as  a  collective.  The  suffix  is  amply  de- 
fensible as  a  singular  (see  on  liii.  8).  Sept.,  however,  (not  Pesh.) 
takes  it  as  a  plural. 

XLIV.  23.  pK  JTPnnn.  This  and  similar  phrases  always  have  an  at 
least  implied  reference  to  Shedl.  It  is  Sheol,  as  the  context  shows, 
which  is  called  JTHnn  pN  in  Ezek.  xxxi.  14,  16,  18,  nrnnn  pK  in 
Ezek.  xxvi.  20,  xxxii.  18,  24  ;  JTiTinn  "I'D  in  Ps.  Ixxxviii.  7,  Lam.  iii. 
55,  and,  more  explicitly  still,  nTinn  71NE>  in  Ps.  Ixxxvi.  13  (comp. 
nnnE  blNB>,  Isa.  xiv.  9).  In  Ps.  cxxxix.  15  the  context  is  obscure, 
but  even  there  we  have  no  right,  I  think,  to  depart  from  the  universal 
meaning  of  the  phrase  elsewhere.  Possibly,  as  Hupfeld  suggests, 
Sheol  is  there  used  as  an  image  of  an  utterly  dark,  mysterious  place. 


XLV.  ii.  'Or  should  we  not  read 


(Pencil  note  of  Dr. 


Weir's).     See  Commentary. 

XLV.  24.  1DK  'h.  Read  "iptf.1*.  with  Luzzatto.  The  h  probably  arose 
out  of  the  mark  put  by  the  scribe  to  separate  the  name  of  God 
from  the  following  word.  Comp.  the  use  of  P'siq  in  the  Masso- 
retic  text  of  Ex.  xvii.  15,  Jer.  xxiii.  6,  xxxiii.  16.  For  a  parallel  to 
such  an  interruption  of  the  speech,  see  Ivii.  19. 

XLVI.  4.  ^JVW  Klostermann  would  read  T1DDV  (Zeitschr.  f.  hither. 
Theologie,  1876,  p.  18).  But  the  received  text  gives  a  finer  meaning  : 
'I  have  made,'  or  begotten  ;  paternal  love  impels  me  to  'carry.' 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  153 


XLVI.  8.  Read  IWann  (tf  and  n  may  be  confounded  in  several 
older  forms  of  the  characters).  Comp.  above  on  xxix.  9.  The 
commentaries  cite  the  Vulgate  as  reading  '  confundamini  '  ;  but  the 
Codex  Amiatinus  has  '  fundamini  '  (Heyse),  and  this  is  the  rendering 
of  St.  Jerome  in  his  Commentary  ('  imb  fundamini,  ne  rursum  subitus 
idolatriae  vos  turbo  subvertat  ').  In  any  case,  *  fundamini  '  and  not 
'fundemini,'  seems  to  be  established. 

XLVII.  7.  ly  'for  ever.'  See  Commentary,  and  compare  the  form 
of  v.  6.  Hitzig  goes  so  far  as  to  deny  that  117  ever  means  '  usque  '  or 
*  adeo  ut,'  and  certainly  the  passages  generally  quoted  require  revi- 
sion. In  i  Sam.  ii.  5,  ly  may  very  well  =  '  for  ever,'  as  here  ;  in 
i  Sam.  xx.  41,  it  probably  has  the  prepositional  meaning  'unto'  (see 
Sept.)  ;  in  Job  viii.  21,  Ewald,  Dillmann,  Merx,  and  Hitzig  point  iy, 
and  the  connexion  seems  to  require  this  ;  in  Job  xiv.  6,  '  until  ' 
yields  a  perfectly  satisfactory  sense.  In  Josh.  xvii.  14  (where  what 
Ges.  calls  the  fuller  form  1£>tf  ly  stands  at  present)  we  should  pro- 
bably rather  read  16?K  h]3  —  notice  that  a  second  1JJ  follows  ;  and 
Gratz  proposes  to  read  Sy  '  because  '  in  our  passage  (Monatsschrift, 
1881,  p.  228). 

XLVII.  1  1.  Piin#.  Not  '  its  dawn  '  (Dr.  Weir  remarks  that  iri#  occurs 
nowhere  else  with  a  suffix),  but  'to  charm  away.'  How  does  the 
word  obtain  this  meaning  ?  Through  the  root-meaning  of  '  dark- 
ness.' ins?  is  properly  'to  be  dark'  (whence  10£>  'the  morning- 
grey  '.  To  '  charm  '  is  to  bring  something  about  by  dark,  mysterious 
means  (see  Wiinsche  on  Hos.  vi.  3)  ;  comp.  our  own  phrase  '  the 
black  art.'  It  is  not  therefore  (as  might  be  supposed  by  the  oft- 
repeated  reference  to  the  Arabic  sahard)  a  sense  not  thoroughly  native 
to  Hebrew. 

XLVIII.  6.  nmi  Very  possibly  we  should  read  ni1X3  'ardua  in- 
tellectu,'  as  in  the  parallel  passage,  Jer.  xxxiii.  3. 

XLVIII.  1  8,  19.  Ewald's  view  of  the  construction,  alluded  to  in 
the  Commentary,  is  peculiar.  He  puts  '  O  that  thou  hadst  '  down  to 
'  as  the  grains  thereof  into  a  parenthesis,  and  continues  'his  (Israel's 
name  shall  not  be  cut  off  nor  destroyed  before  me,'  thus  making 
the  last  clause  a  categorical  affirmation  of  Israel's  indestructibility. 
Against  this  see  my  note.  The  slight  change  in  the  construction  is 
simply  due  to  the  fact  that  the  consequence  expressed  in  JTO'"fc6  is 
still  future.  On  M»i  see  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §§1277,  140.  His 
alternative  rendering  is  one  of  those  subtleties  in  which  able  gram- 
marians delight,  but  which  the  exegete  is  obliged  regretfully,  but  de- 
cidedly, to  reject.  The  version  of  Hitz.,  Del.  (see  above,  p.  8,  note  %) 
seems  almost  to  require  Wi  (comp.  Deut.  xxxii.  29)  or  nM*  (as  Mic. 
ii.  n),  as  Del.  himself  frankly  admits  ;  comp.  also  Ps.  Ixxxi.  14-16 

)*). 

XLIX.  5.  s\QW  &O  (Q'ri,  17).    The  reading  of  the  text  is  harder  than 


154  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

that  of  the  margin,  but  is  not  on  that  account  (comp.  ix.  2)  to  be 
preferred.  The  latter  is  evidently  required  by  the  context.  The 
division  among  the  ancient  interpreters  was  partly  occasioned  by 
their  party  prejudices.  Thus  St.  Jerome  objects  to  the  rendering  of 
Sept. ,  because  it  gives  up  '  a  very  strong  testimony  against  the  perfidy 
of  the  Jews.'  He  himself  renders  *  et  Israel  non  congregabitur '  (the 
exact  opposite  of  Aquila). 

XLIX.  7.  riT^.  Most  explain  this  as  either  an  infinitival  substan- 
tive or  an  uncommon  adjective.  But  it  is  more  natural  (comp.  next 
phrase)  either  to  point  nT?  (Aram,  partic.  Piel)  with  Luzzatto,  or 
(as  this  would  be  unique  in  Hebr.)  to  read  ntDJ  (comp.  liii.  3)  with 
Lagarde. 

Syfip.  According  to  Ew.,  Hitz.,  Del.,  a  participial  sub- 
stantive in  Piel=' object  of  abhorrence'  (Ewald,  Lehrbuch,  §  i6oe, 
compares  "iflp£  in  liii.  3).  Ges.,  however,  remarks  that  the  easiest 
explanation  is  to  take  the  Piel  as  'poetically  intransitive  '=nyhE.  But 
how  much  more  natural  to  read  nyhp  with  Luzzatto  (pointing,  how- 
ever, nyrip) !  It  really  seems  as  if  the  authors  of  the  points  made  a 
desperate,  though  partial,  attempt  to  efface  a  meaning  which  was 
offensive  to  the  national  pride. 

XLIX.  8.  Ewald  would  insert  D^U  TffcA  from  Sept.,  and  supports 
this  by  Just.  Mart.  c.  Try  ph.  c.  122  (but  wrongly,  for  Justin  quotes 
from  chap.  xlii.).  Against  this,  see  Commentary. 

XLIX.  1 2.  D*0.  Clericus  and  Hupfeld  (on  Ps.  cvii.  3)  conjecture 
P£*D  for  the  Psalm-passage,  and  this  seems  to  be  absolutely  necessary 
there,  since  the  West  has  been  already  mentioned  in  the  parallel  line.1 
It  is,  I  think,  but  little  less  necessary  here.  It  is  clear  from  the  mis- 
takes of  Sept.  that  abbreviations  were  of  frequent  occurrence  in  the 
most  ancient  Hebrew  MSS.  See  the  instances  in  Frankel,  Vorstudien 
zu  der  Septuaginta,  pp.  214-6  (a  notable  one  is  ets  Odvarov^IKh,  as 
if  this  were  abbreviated  from  H.)^,  liii.  8  ;  see  also  Jer.  iii.  19,  Judg. 
xix.  1 8). 

L.  4.  n-liA  If  it  is  undesirable  in  any  case  to  appeal  solely  to  the 
superabundant  Arabic  vocabulary,  it  is  specially  so  in  a  section  so 
plain  and  natural  in  its  phraseology.  I  incline  to  agree  with  Kloster- 
mann,  that  both  DliA  and  nyl!?  are  only  variants  for  the  one  true 
reading  nir)!?.  Comp.  the  use  of  nyi  for  'to  teach'  in  Prov.  x.  21. 
Perhaps  £to  edify'  (suggested  by  Del.  on  Prov.)  would  be  the  best 
rendering. 

LI.  6.  '»»  p-1D3.  Del.  objects  to  a  singular  |3  to  the  plural  D^3 
'gnats,'  as  Talmudic  (which  has  probably  preserved  a  good  many 
fragments  of  the  Ancient  Hebrew  vocabulary)  gives  the  singular  as 
n|3.  A  friend  suggests  that  |3  in  Num.  xiii.  33  may  perhaps  mean 

1  Auth.  Vers.,  too,  boldly  renders  in  Ps.  I.e.  'from  the  south/  though  perhaps  by 
a  guess  ;  see  Poole,  Synopsis  ad  loc. 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  155 

'a  gnat,'  or  collectively  'gnats'  (parallel  to  D*'33PG) ;  but  it  seems 
safer  and  more  natural  in  that  place  (the  particle  of  comparison 
being  wanting)  to  explain  |3,  on  the  analogy  of  the  passages  referred 
to  in  my  note,  as  'thus  miserably.'  An  easy  and,  I  think,  self- 
evident  correction  of  li.  6  is  suggested  by  Dr.  Weir.  'Is  not,'  he 
asks,  '  the  right  reading  DSJ3,  the  next  word  beginning  with  D>  ? ' 

LI.  19.  *pmK  'D.  I  doubt  if  this  text  is  translatable.  The  com- 
mentators quote  Am.  vii.  2,  5,  but  there  *D  =  'in  what  plight,'  a 
meaning  which  will  not  suit  here.  Probably  there  is  an  error  of  the 
ear,  and  we  should  read  "pny  (Notes  and  Criticisms,  p.  32 ;  so  after- 
wards Lagarde).  Comp.  the  false  reading  "IK3  for  1&03,  Am.  viii.  8  ; 

for  &\  2  Sam.  xiv.  9,  TOfcW  for  "OO,  Zech.  iv.  2,  &c.,  "i$*n  for 
,  Zech.  xi.  13. 

LII.  5.  PX3IO.  As  Del.  (3rd  ed.)  remarks,  the  pointing  is  very 
strange  ;  we  should  expect  the  Pual  partic.,  or,  if  a  reflexive  at  all 
(which,  however,  seems  out  of  place),  Hithpoel  and  not  Hithpoal. 
Luzzatto's  view  is  very  plausible,  and  in  harmony  with  the  pheno- 
mena brought  out  so  fully  (perhaps  too  fully)  by  Geiger  in  his  Urschrift. 
He  would  point  f$5p,  and  accounts  for  the  actual  pointing  from  an 
aversion  on  the  part  of  the  Massorites  to  speak  of  Jehovah's  name  as 
1  reviled.'  All  that  they  succeeded  in  doing,  however,  was  to  shroud 
the  passage  in  obscurity. 

LII.  8  (end).  On  the  view  of  the  text  adopted,  Del.  thinks  we 
should  expect  p*¥?  ;  but  the  accus.  loci  is  amply  justified  (see  2  Sam. 
xv.  34).  At  the  end  of  my  note  (p.  37),  I  have  suggested  that  316? 
might  be  taken  as  the  short  for  J1136?  316?  ;  comp.  Ps.  Ixxxv.  5,  where 
-1:3-16?  corresponds  to  3py»  H136?  H36?,  v.  2  (Q'ri).  One  of  the  best 
discussions  of  D136?  3*6?  is  by  Dr.  Kuenen,  Theologisch  Tijdschrift, 
1873,  PP-  520-21.  A  priori^  it  certainly  seems  probable  that  fl136? 
and  316?  should  be  of  cognate  origin  (comp.  'to  rejoice  with  a  great 
joy,'  &c.)  ;  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  meaning  'to  restore  the  re- 
storation of  suits  all  the  passages  in  which  the  phrase  occurs,  whereas 
the  alternative  meaning  does  not.  71136?  from.  316?,  as  mtoT  from  D1"» 
(Ezek.  xxxii.  5),  nit1?  from  tA=p!?  (Prov.  iv.  24). 

LII.  15.  n-£.  No  word  in  the  whole  of  the  Old  Testament  so 
forcibly  exemplifies  the  necessity  for  keeping  the  philological  depart- 
ment in  exegesis  separate  from  the  theological  (see  Preface  to  Vol.  i. 
p.  xi.).  Through  a  failure  in  this  respect,  even  Dr.  Pusey  is  unable 
(be  it  said  with  all  respect)  to  state  the  facts  of  Hebrew  usage  accu- 
rately.1 The  truth  is,  as  Mr.  Taylor  remarks,  that  '  ntn  does  not 
mean  besprinkle  (a  person  with  a  liquid),  but  sprinkle  (a  liquid  upon  a 
person)  '  ;  2  Mr.  Urwick  wholly  misses  the  point  when,  after  Reinke, 

1  The  Fifty-  Third  Chapter  of  Isaiah  according  to  the  Jewish  Translators,  Intro- 
duction to  the  English  Translation,  by  Rev.  E.  B.  Pusey,  p.  xxxviii. 

2  Review  of  The  Fifty-Third  Chapter,  &c.,  in  the  Academy,  May  19,  1877,  p.  441. 


156  CRITICAL   NOTES. 

he  quotes  Lev.  iv.  6,  17,  in  favour  of  the  old  rendering.1  In  one 
point,  I  entirely  agree  with  Dr.  Pusey,  viz.  that  the  reference  of  many 
of  the  moderns  to  the  Arabic  nazd,  l  to  leap,'  is  out  of  place.  The 
case  is  parallel  to  that  of  my  in  1.  6.  There  are  so  many  undoubtedly 
Hebrew  words  both  for  'to  help '  and  '  to  leap,'  that  it  is  quite  un- 
necessary to  resort  to  the  Arabic  Lexicon.  It  is  also  worth  noticing 
(though  the  objection  is  not  absolutely  fatal)  that  nazd  is  rare  in  grave 
and  classical  literature,  being  used  properly  of  animals,  and  mostly 
in  an  obscene  sense.2  If  a  conjecture  is  to  be  ventured  upon  (for 
Mr.  Taylor's  new  interpretation  of  HP — see  note  on  Essay  X. — seems 
the  effort  of  despair),  I  would  suggest  "ijy  (if  no  one  has  offered  it 
before).  The  word  occurs  in  Hab.  iii.  6  (comp.  Job  xxxvii.  i)  with 
an  implication  of  fear  ;  but  in  another  context  it  might  be  used 
differently.  A  reference  to  Stade's  comparative  table  of  the  forms 
of  the  Hebrew  characters  will  show  that  the  confusion  between  in* 
and  PIP  might  easily  have  occurred. 

Dr.  Weir's  comment  on  this  word  and  its  context  is  peculiar.  He 
sees  no  difficulty  in  the  omission  of  *?y  or  ^  after  n:t!,  which  he 
regards  as  a  justifiable  poetical  licence  (as  if  a  licence  of  this  kind 
were  credible,  when  so  much  depended  on  intelligibility — consider 
the  position  of  this  prophecy  !) ;  nor  yet  in  the  context,  which  he 
considers  to  be  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  meaning  sprinkle.  He 
explains  the  connection  thus : — '  As  many  shrank  back  in  horror 
from  him,  as  one  unclean  or  accursed  ...  so  shall  he  sprinkle  many. 
Many  who  looked  upon  him  as  unclean,  and  avoided  and  loathed 
him  as  such,  shall  themselves  be  cleansed  by  him.'  But  where  is  the 
Servant  said  to  be  a  priest  ? 

LIII.  3.  DH^K  Tjq.  Dr.  Kay  explains,  '  ceasing  to  be  of  men ' ;  of 
so  mean  appearance  that  He  *  was  no  longer  reckoned  with  men ' 
(A.  Ezra).  But  Job  xix.  14,  and  the  analogy  of  the  Arabic  khadilu 
1  abstaining  from  aiding  '  or  '  holding  back  from  going  with  '  (Lane), 
justifies  the  rendering  adopted  (so  Del). 

LIII.  4.  Many  MSS.,  Pesh.,  Vulg.,  insert  K-1PJ  before  D^nfc?.  This 
adds  force,  and  Lowth  and  Bleek  incline  to  accept  it. 

LIII.  5.  U£'&#.  32  MSS.  read  •Ut|£it?^,  and  Dr.  Weir  suggests 
•liD-1?^  'our  retribution.' 

LIII.  7.  njia.  •  Nifal  tolerativum\  comp.  v.  12,  Iv.  6,  Ixv.  i,  Ps. 
ii.  10,  Gen.  xiii.  16.  We  need  not  therefore  quote  Ex.  x.  3  (with 
Del.) ;  the  syncope  of  Pi  in  Nifal  is  questionable  (see  on  i.  12).  On 
the  syntax  of  the  clause,  see  Del's  note  in  his  3rd  ed. 

LIII.  8.  '1J1  nivntfl.  For  the  view  of  the  construction,  see 
Ewald,  Lehrbuch^  §277^  (—Hebr.  Syntax,  by  Kennedy,  p.  38), 
where  Ew.  compares,  not  indeed  our  passage,  but  Ivii.  15,  Ezek. 

1  Urwick,  The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  p.  102. 

2  See  Tayler  Lewis,  '  The  Purifying  Messiah ;  Interpretation  of  Isa.  Iii.  13 '  ;  Biblio- 
thtca  Sacra,  1873,  pp.  166-177. 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  157 

xvii.  21,  xliv.  3,  Neh.  ix.  19,  and  refers  to  the  demonstrative  force 
of  ns  in  the  Hebrew  of  the  Mishna.  —  To  revert  to  the  exegesis.  Dr. 
Weir  thinks  that  liii.  Sa  is  precisely  parallel  to  xxxviii.  1  2,  '  my  age 
(i.e.  my  full  life-circle,  my  life-time)  is  cut  off  like  a  weaver's  web  '  ; 
but  the  meaning  thus  ascribed  to  "in  is  arbitrary,  nil  can  only 
have  one  of  these  three  meanings  —  (a)  l  his  contemporaries  ',  (b)  '  those 
like-minded  with  him'  (iV!i  =  a  class  of  characters,1  comp.  Ps.  xii. 
8,  xiv.  5,  cxii.  2,  Prov.  xxx.  11-14),  or  (c)  'his  dwelling,'  z>.  his 
grave  (comp.  xxxviii.  12).  Both  (b]  and  (c)  anticipate  unnaturally 
the  statements  of  subsequent  verses  ;  Seinecke  (approved  by  Riehm) 
thinks  that  (b)  is  supported  by  the  plural  suffix  in  1D^,  but  see  next 
note,  (a)  is  favoured  by  the  parallel  passage,  Ivii.  i. 

LIII.  8.  IE?.  I  had  already,  in  1870,  explained  this  mysterious 
form  (/  C.  A.,  p.  192)  by  a  reference  to  the  Phoenician  suffix  e  or 
2m  for  the  3rd  pers.  sing.,  following  Schroder  (Die  Phonizische 
Sprache,  p.  153),  and  Bickell  (  Theologisches  Literaturblatt,  Bonn,  1869, 
p.  366).  2  Dr.  Pusey,  in  1877,  notices  the  same  linguistic  fact  (Jew- 
ish Interpreters,  &c.  p.  liii.),  but  overlooks  his  English  predecessor. 
The  suffix  e  reminds  us  of  course  of  Aramaic  ;  the  appended  m  is 
doubtless  '  a  remnant  of  the  primitive  Semitic  "  nunnation  "  or  "  mim- 
mation  "  ;  in  other  words,  the  pronoun  of  the  third  person  singular, 
like  the  noun,  was  terminated  by  n  or  m.'  The  same  explanation 
in  all  probability  applies  to  the  suffix  in  em  in  viii.  15  (see  note 
above),  and  those  in  dmo  or  emo  in  xliv.  15,  Job  xx.  23,  xxii.  2,  xxvii. 
23,  Ps.  xi.  7,  but  not  to  Gen.  ix.  26,  27,  Ps.  xxviii.  8,3lxxiii.  10  (where 
the  reference  is  collective).  The  o  in  the  Hebrew  form  seems  to 
point  to  a  marginal  note,  to  the  effect  that  o  or  av  was  to  be  read, 
and  not  dmo  or  emo.  The  correct  pronunciation  would  therefore 
seem  to  be  bem,  lem,  pattern,  &c.  —  It  is  quite  true,  as  my  late  friend, 
Dr.  Diestel  observed,4  that  the  above  merely  proves  the  possibility 
that  1D^  may  be  singular,  but  when  the  remainder  of  this  paragraph 
(putting  aside  the  dubious  vriDl)  is  so  strikingly  individualising  in 
its  phraseology,  have  we  not  a  right  to  demand  that  of  two  possible 
meanings  that  one  should  be  chosen  which  harmonises  with  this  cast  of 
phraseology  ?  Dr.  Diestel  certainly  misses  the  mark  when  he  main- 
tains that  my  view  is  against  the  usage  of  II.  Isaiah,  referring  to  \vi 
in  xliv.  15,  as  '  also  collective.'  It  is  noteworthy  that  both  Pesh.  and 
Vulg.  understand  the  suffix  to  be  singular  ;  Targ.,  however,  to  be  plural. 

LIII.  9.  "VSJty.  To  the  difficulty  urged  in  my  note  (p.  48),  I 
may  add  that  to  use  ^V  synonymously  with  YDn  or  pnv  is  quite 

1  Or,  as  Del.  untranslateably  expresses  it,  '  Einem  Zeitgeist  huldigende  Zeitgenossen- 
schaft'  (on  Ps.  xii.  8). 

3  See  also  Stade  in  Morgenlandische  Forschungen.  (1875),  p.  302,  &c.  ;  Lehrbuch 
der  hebr.  Gramtn.  (1879),  p.  205. 

3  But  here  we  should  probably  read,  with  Sept., 


4  Knobel's  Jesaia,  4te  Aufl.,  von  Dr.  L.  Diestel  (1872),  p.  444. 


158  CRITICAL  NOTES. 

natural,  for  *jy  is  etymologically  'humble,'  and  'humility*  is  the 
fundamental  note  of  Biblical  piety.  But  T£*y  has  not  the  parallel 
root-meaning  of  'proud.'  It  is  therefore  not  without  some  reason 
that  Del.  has  abandoned  the  view  which  he  held  as  lately  as  1864 
(Hiobj  ite  Ausg.,  note  on  xxi.  28),  viz.  that  'rich'  here  =  ungodly,' 
and  now  maintains  that  there  is  an  antithesis  between  the  first  clause 
and  the  second  —  '  He  was  appointed  to  be  buried  with  deceased 
malefactors,  but  when  dead  he  was  appointed  to  lie  in  a  rich  man's 
grave.'  It  seems  to  me  as  if  Delitzsch  had  here  for  once  confounded 
philological  and  Christian  exegesis.  —  Ewald  (and  so  /.  C.  A.) 
conjectures  pi#}7.  Against  this  it  is  urged  by  Del.  that  the  word 
(which  he  wrongly  quotes  as  p^y)  occurs  nowhere  else.  This,  how- 
ever, is  not  decisive  ;  both  ifo^  and  jirQ  are  a-rag  Aeyo/teva. 

LIII.  9.  vniM.  There  is  no  evidence  that  D'flb  was  used  for 
'the  state  of  death,'  on  the  analogy  of  D"Pl  ;  nor  yet  for  'violent 
death,'  which  is  rather  D'fltop,  Ezek,  xxviii.  8  (which  determines  the 
reading  of  v.  10),  and  even  D'TiiDp  is  only  used  in  construction  with 
a  collective  noun.  The  alternatives  are  either  to  read  vnbs  or  inb3. 
The  former,  which  is  the  reading  of  three  of  de  Rossi's  MSS.,1  is  ren- 
dered either  '  his  tombs  '  or  '  his  tomb,'  according  as  we  suppose  the 
subject  of  the  prophecy  to  be  a  collective  term  for  a  real  person  :  in  the 
latter  case,  the  plural  will  be  honorific  (comp.  niJDE^D,  Isa.  liv.  2,  Ps. 
cxxxii.  5).  I  much  doubt,  nowever,  whether  nDl  will  bear  the  render- 
ing 'tomb.'  It  is  true,  there  is  the  analogy  of  {^H|  in  Job  xxi.  32, 
but  the  very  definite  use  of  HD3,  both  in  Biblical  and  in  Rabbinic 
Hebrew,  for  '  high  place'  or  '  altar,'  makes  this  wider  use  highly  im- 
probable. Ezek.  xliii.  7  has  been  quoted  in  its  favour,  but  in  that 
passage  we  ought,  with  the  Babylonian  Codex,  to  point  DniE3.  On 
the  whole,  I  prefer  inb?  ;  an  intrusive  »  is  no  novelty  in  the  O.  T. 
text.  'In  his  death  '  =  after  his  death  (Lev.  xi.  31,  &c.)  ;  Shak- 
spere's  'Speak  me  fair  in  death.'. 

LIII.  10.  .^nn-  I  understand  this  as  referring  to  1X3*7  (comp. 
Mic.  vi.  13,  Nah.  iii.  19),  but  not  as  grammatically  in  combination 
with  it.  This  seems  the  most  natural  view. 

-  D^n.     The  difficulty  of  rendering  the  text-reading  na- 


turally is  obvious,  whether  we  prefer  to  make   nin*  or  Ifc^SJ  the  sub- 
ject.    A  similar  error  in  Ps.  xlix.  19. 

LIII.  12.  D^l.  The  rendering  adopted  is  the  only  one  fully 
in  harmony  with  the  parallel  line.  The  alternative  is  to  take  the 
preposition  distributively,  as  serving  to  specialise  the  contents  of  the 
P^D  ;  comp.  e.g.  Gen.  .xxiii.  18  (Job  xxxix.  17,  often  referred  to,  is 
an  unfortunate  example,  for  it  would  suggest  that  the  p^O  only  in- 
cluded a  part,  and  not  the  whole,  of  the  D^n).  Del.'s  note  on 

1  Ibn  Ezra  keeps  the  reading  1>n)D3>  but  gives  '3  the  sense  of  '  tomb,'  and  says 
that  it  has  two  construct  forms  of  the  plural,  like  D^D- 


CRITICAL   NOTES.  159 

this  passage  is  obscurely  expressed,  and  seems  inconsistent  with  his 
translation. 

LIV.  9,  The  Babylonian  Codex  has  »ft$. 

LIV.  15.  *>13*.  The  renderings  'sojourn,'  'congregate,'  do  not 
suit  the  context.  As  Ewald  rightly  holds,  "I-15  borrows  its  meaning 
here  from  rr#  (comp.  nw— rm,  Til— nt2»  "n'P-rw),  as  in  Ps.  cxl.  3. 

71D»  ffcft  Alt.  rend.,  which  brings  before  us  Israel's 

moral  conquest  of  his  enemies,  is  not  in  harmony  with  the  context, 
which  speaks  only  of  the  failure  of  their  hostile  enterprises.  Besides, 
as  Dr.  Kay  points  out,  the  preposition  here  precedes  the  verb  ;  where 
the  phrase  ?y  ^>S3  or  *?  ^B3  means  'to  join  the  opposite  party,'  the 
preposition  follows.  Perhaps,  however,  this  is  too  subtle  a  distinction. 

LIV.  17.  Win.  Comp.  Syriac  khob  'to  be  defeated,'  z'k&  'to 
conquer.' 

LV.  13.  DP.  This  is  one  of  the  passages  which  seem  to  require 
the  rendering  'monument'  "(note  m«  in  the  parallel  clause).  See 
also  especially  Ivi.  5,  Ps.  cxxxviii.  2  (observe  7D,  which  hardly  suits 
the  rend,  'name'),  (2  Sam.  iii.  13,  Gen.  xi.  4).  In  fact,  if  Ges.'s 
etymology  be  accepted,  this  should  be  the  primary  meaning  of  the 
word. 

LVI.  ii.  Read  D^hn  nt|»n. 

LVII.  3  end.  Klostermann  reads  H3T}  n&WD,  simplifying  the 
construction  at  the  expense  of  a  tautology. 

LVII.  13.  T'Vllp.  Sept.  ev  rfj  OXtyei  o-ov,  'probably  reading 
pwro  or  -jnpisa,  an  indication  that  there  was  some  different  ar- 
rangement of  the  letters  of  the  text,  and  apparently  favouring  T'VlpP.' 
Dr.  Weir. 

LVIII.  6.  '  The  ancient  versions  seem  to  have  had  a  different  text.' 
Dr.  Weir. 

LVIII.  7.  D'H-'HO.  Read  D^'Tlft.  An  accidental  transposition, 
as  in  2  Kings  xi.  2,  where  the  k'thibh  is,  by  an  obvious  error,  D^mbO. 
Ewald  apparently  supposes  a  peculiarity  of  pronunciation  in  both 
cases  (Lehrbuch,  §  131^);  but  surely  this  is  improbable.  Del. 
assumes  a  secondary  formation  from  W  viz.  "Hfcp,  of  which  the  form 
in  the  text  would  be  a  passive  participle. 

On  LVIII.  1 1.  f*Wft  The  ancient  versions  stumbled  at  this  word, 
and  it  is  possible  that  we  have  here  a  very  ancient  corruption  of 
*pbrp,  'he  shall  renew.'  But  we  need  not  in  this  case  read  ^flDVy, 
'  thy  strength '  (as  Seeker  and  Lowth) ;  Hupfeld  (on  Ps.  vi.  3)  well 
compares  Ps.  xxxii.  3,  'my  bones  waxed  old.' 

LVIII.  12.  *pb.  'Should  we  not  read  7:1?'  Dr.  Weir.  The 
text-reading  is,  of  course,  not  untranslateable,  but  there  is  no  obvious 
reason  here  for  such  a  construction.  The  case  is  different  in  Ps. 
Ixviii.  27,  Jobxviii.  15. 

LIX.  3.  J6fi$33.     The   same    form    (the    passive    of   the    Arabic 


l6o  CRITICAL    NOTES. 

seventh  verbal  stem)  occurs  in  Lam.  iv.  14.  It  is  odd  that  it  should 
only  occur  as  a  derivation  of  7K1  Luzzatto  suspects  that  the 
authors  of  the  points  wished  to  avoid  a  confusion  with  17&OJ  from 
?&O  'to  redeem.' 

LIX.   1 8.  7XJ3.     The  versions  seem  to  have  found  this  grami 
tical  anomaly  unintelligible  ;  so  too  Bp.  Lowth,  who  adopts  7! 
7UD  from  Targ.  (see  his  note). 

The  difficulty  of  the  closing  words  lies  in  the  fact  that 

npB  is  elsewhere  only  used  of  the  eyes  or  (once,  viz.,  xlii.  20)  of  the 
ears.  We  should  therefore  expect,  mpnpB  Dniu71.  It  is  tempt- 
ing to  suppose  that  we  have  in  the  Massoretic  text  a  combination  of 
two  readings — one,  that  just  quoted  (favoured  by  Sept.),  and  the 
other  mnnna  DniDK71  (favoured  by  Pesh.,  Vulg.).  This  is  the  view 
of  Dr.  Neubauer,  who  remarks  that  a  combination  of  this  sort,  where 
manuscript  authorities  were  equally  divided,  would  be  quite  in  the 
spirit  of  the  Massoretic  critics  (Academy,  June  n,  1870). 

LXIII.  3.  DDTIK1.  Point  this,  and  the  corresponding  verbs  in 
this  and  the  following  verses,  according  to  the  rule  of  'vav  consecu- 
tive.' So  Luzzatto.  It  is  only  those  who  are  unaware  of  the  numerous 
instances  in  which,  from  exegetical  or  theological  peculiarities,  or  from 
some  obscure  causes,  the  Massoretic  punctuation  is  entirely  or  probably 
erroneous,  who  will  accuse  such  a  proceeding  of  uncritical  rashness. 
Here  the  cause  of  the  wrong  pointing  is  patent — it  is  the  theory,  em- 
balmed in  that  other  record  (the  Massoretic  punctuation  being  also  one) 
of  early  Jewish  exegetical  traditions,  the  Targum,  that  this  section  of 
prophecy  relates  to  the  future  (comp.  on  xliii.  28.)  It  is  singular  that 
in  v.  5  the  authors  of  the  points  should  have  allowed  themselves  to 
write  venni  mechanically  following  lix.  16).  This  is  one  of  those 
inconsistencies  which  occasionally  puzzle  us  in  the  Massoretic  punc- 
tuation.—Comp.  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §  84  a,  176  Obs.  i,  (he  in- 
clines to  agree  as  to  W:). 

*rAfeOK.     The  initial  K  is   miswritten  by  an  Aramaism 

for  Pi;  comp.  Jer.  xxv.  3,  and  perhaps   Mic.  vii.  15. 

LXIII.  9.  Dr.  Kay  objects  that  IV  17  can  only  mean,  '  he  was  re- 
duced to  a  strait,'  'which,  of  course,  is  not  suitable  here.'  But  it  is 
as  suitable  as  any  other  anthropomorphic  expression  (see,  e.g.,  lix.  16). 

LXIII.  1 1.  The  reason  why  the  accents  unite  1DJJ  n^D  appears  from 
Targ.,  which  paraphrases  'the  mighty  deeds  which  he  had  done 
through  Moses  to  his  people.' 

—  The  Babylonian  Codex  has  *jn ;  Baer,  too,  adopts  this 
as  the  Massoretic  reading.     This  determines  the  subject  of  Il"ip3. 

LXIII.  15.  The  meaning  'habitation'  has  been  generally  ac- 
quiesced in,  but  seems  very  uncertain,  and  has  no  philological  foun- 
dation. The  verb  73T  is  found  only  in  Gen.  xxx.  20,  where  it 
is  commonly  rendered  'dwell  (with  me),'  not  to  suit  the  context,  but 


CRITICAL    NOTES.  l6l 

in   obedience   to  a  prejudice  as   to  the   meaning  of   ^13T.     The 
writer  himself  seems  to  have  felt  that  the  root  hit  was  unfamiliar  to 
his  readers,  and  he  therefore  selects  an  alternative  root  *DT  to  illus- 
trate J172T.      We   are   evidently  justified   in   expecting  some    light 
from  the  allied  languages,  especially  from  Assyrian.     In  Chaldee,  ^51 
and  the  cognate  words  have  no  connection  with  the  idea  of  '  dwell- 
ing,' but  with  that  of  '  manure.'     In  Arabic,  too,  according  to  Lane, 
zabala  means — i.  to  dung,  manure  ;  2.  to  bear,  carry.     The  latter 
meaning  is  important   for  us,  for  M.  Stanislas  Guyard   has   lately 
pointed   out1  that   Assyrian  also    possesses  the  root  zabal,   in   the 
sense  of  'bearing'  (whence  zdbil  kudurri*  'crown-bearer'  =  Arab. 
wazir  [vizier],  a  title  of  the  kings  tributary  to  Assyria),  and  hence  of 
'  elevating. '     My   friend    Mr.    Sayce   corroborates   the   meaning   of 
'  elevation '  for  zabal  by  a  reference  to  bilingual  tablets  (see,  e.g.,  the 
British  Museum  Inscriptions ',  vol.  ii.  p.  15, 1.  45),  where  the  Accadian 
sagil  (lit.   'high  head')3  is  explained   by  the  Assyrian  zabal.      It 
cannot  be  denied  that  several  passages  of  the  Old  Testament  gain  in 
force  if  we  explain  ^DT  on  the  analogy  of  zabal.     How  suitably,  for 
instance,  does  Solomon,  after  alluding  to  Jehovah's  dwelling  in  '  thick 
clouds,'  refer  to  the  newly  built  temple  as  a  ^5T  TV2  'a  house  of 
height'  (i  Kings  xii.  12,  13,  comp.  ix.  80),  a  house  which  by  its 
elevation  pointed  men  upwards  to  the  heavenly  temple  (comp.  Isa. 
vi.  i)  !     How  opposite  is  the  same  sense  of '  elevation '  in  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  sun  and  moon  (Hab,  iii.  u)  !•   We  cannot  exactly  see 
this  of  Ps.  xlix.  15,  but  the  decided  meaning  of  'glory'  (already  hit 
upon  by  the  Vulgate)  is  at  any  rate  as  suitable  to  that  obscure  and  per- 
haps corrupt  passage  as  any  other.     In  Gen.  xxx.  20,  where  the  verb 
occurs,  the  same  decided  meaning  of  '  honour '  is  appropriate,  and, 
as  M.  Guyard  remarks,  avoids  the  necessity  of  understanding  a  pre- 
position.    In  the  passage  of  Isaiah  before  us,  the  gain  in  force  by 
substituting  '  height '  for  '  habitation  '  is  obvious.     Of  course,  a  vague 
sense  like  '  habitation '  may  just  suffice  for  the  passages  in  which  ^I2T 
occurs.     But  what  greater  claim  has  it  than  '  elevation  '  ?     The  sup- 
posed tradition  in  its  favour  seems  really  to  be  based  on  a  guess. 

We  might  take  the  second  part  of  the  verse  as  a  ques- 
tion, with  Dr.  Gratz,  who  also  reads  13Nl?K  (comp.  Sept.) 

LXIII.  19.  The  versions  (see  p.  109)  certainly  favour  the  supposi- 
tion of  corruptness,  though  II.  Isaiah  does  contain  rather  extreme 
cases  of  constructions  in  which  the  logical  syntax  is  not  expressed, 
e.g,  xii,  2  0,  24,  xlviii.  14  b.  Mr.  Driver  compares  Gen.  xxxi.  40,  Job 
xii.  4. 

1  'Remarques  sur  le  mot  assyrien  zabal,'  &c. ;  Journal  asiatique,  aout-sept., 
1878,  pp.  220-5.  A  part  of  M.  Guyard's  evidence,  however,  seems  doubtful. 

8  Mr.  Norris,  with  exemplary  self-restraint,  leaves  this  title  untranslated  (Assyrian 
Dictionary,  i.  310). 

3  Comp.  130  and  2270  in  the  Syllabary  in  Sayce's  Elementary  Assyrian  Grammar. 
VOL.  II.  M 


162 


<   RITICAL    NOTKS. 


LXIV.  4  (5).  nns*.  Gratz  (Monatsschrifl,  1880,  p.  52)  reads 
'  formerly  thou  wast  favourable,  but  now  thou  art  wroth.'  But  there 
is  an  emphasis  in  the  nnx  (how  often  the  personal  pronoun  is  used 
when  Jehovah  speaks  !  ).  'It  was  because  thout  whose  nature  is  to 
be  gracious,  becamest  angry,'  &c. 

The  rend,  adopted  seems  called  for  (as  against 


Del.'s)  by  the  statement  at  the  end  of  v.  6  (7). 

--  D?1V  Dili.  To  illustrate  Ew.'s  view  of  the  passage,  comp. 
iii.  12  (note  above).  It  is  against  it,  however,  that  f]¥p  is  never 
elsewhere  constructed  with  ?.  (Del.  takes  Dm  in  a  neuter  sense  (so 
St.  Jerome,  '  in  ipsis,'  sc.  peccatis)  ;  comp.  xxx.  6,  xxxviii.  16,  xliv.  15, 
Ezek.  xxxiii.  18.  Possible  ;  but  probable  here? 

LXV.  15.  /(iil  iJVOiU  The  suffix  seems  to  me  to  prove  that  this  is 
a  fragment  of  a  formula  of  imprecation.  Not,  however,  the  opening 
words.  Hence  the  perfect  need  not  be  the  precative,  the  existence 
of  which  is  doubtful  (see  on  xliii.  9),  nor  need  we  be  surprised  by  the 
omission  of  Dii3  or  n^N3. 


***  The  reader  is  requested  to  take  notice  of  a  few  Addenda  to  these  Notes 
at  the  beginning  of  this  volume. 


ESSAYS 

ILLUSTRATIVE   OF   THE   COMMENTARY 
ON    ISAIAH. 


I. 'THE   OCCASIONAL   PROPHECIES   OF   ISAIAH 
IN   THE   LIGHT   OF   HISTORY. 

I. 

THE  editor  of  a  modern  classic  of  the  interest  and  importance 
of  the  Book  of  Isaiah  would  naturally  preface  his  illustrations 
with  a  life  of  his  author.  But  of  Isaiah  what  has  the  editor 
to  tell?  Later  legend,  indeed,  hovered  busily  about  the 
prophet  ; 1  but,  except  as  giving  evidence  of  his  posthumous 
influence,  its  imaginative  creations  are  of  no  interest  to  the 
student  of  Isaiah.  The  prophet  is  not,  however,  a  mere 
name,  vox  et prceterea  nihily  for  his  works  are  the  monuments 
of  a  widely-reaching  activity  ;  and  through  his  teaching,  and 
probably  through  a  scanty  but  enthusiastic  band  of  disciples,2 
he  was  the  means  of  beginning,  or  at  any  rate  of  greatly 
strengthening,  that  remarkable  phase  of  belief  which  we  may 
call,  in  the  literal  sense  of  the  word,  the  Messianic.  Of  the 
latter  I  shall  say  more  in  a  subsequent  essay  ;  my  immediate 
subject  is  the  place  of  Isaiah  in  the  history  of  his  times,  and 
the  chronological  arrangement  of  his  extant 3  prophecies. 

By  thus  limiting  my  subject,  I  do  not  intend  to  deny  that 
Isaiah,  by  some  of  his  prophecies,  was  an  important  factor  in 
the  history  of  later  times— that  he  foretold,  and  by  foretelling 
contributed  to  bring  about  (for  such  is  the  Biblical  doctrine  of 
prophecy 4),  events  long  subsequent  to  his  own  age  ;  but  I  am 
equally  far  from  affirming  it.  Either  course  would  require 
me  to  carry  my  researches  into  the  domain  of  the  '  higher 
criticism,'  whereas  at  present,  in  the  interests  of  the  student, 
I  have  limited  myself  to  the  functions  of  an  exegete,  and 
only  pretend  to  set  before  the  reader  the  facts  (sometimes 
the  conflicting  facts)  supplied  by  the  text  itself. 

1  One  Rabbinic  authority  makes  Amoz,  the  father  of  Isaiah,  a  brother  of  King 
Amaziah,  and  there  is  a  general  agreement  that  Isaiah  himself  was  martyred  by  being 
sawn  asunder  at  the  order  of  Manasseh.  (See  references  in  Gesenius,  Commentar  uber 
den  Jesaia,  i.  3-15.)  The  former  story  is  evidently  based  on  an  etymological  fancy  ; 
the  latter  may  have  been  occasioned  by  Isa.  lii.  I3~liii.  12.  (So  Furst,  Geschichte  der 
biblischen  Literatur,  \\.  393). 

8  Comp.  viii.  12-16,  xxviii.  23-29  ;  both  passages  presuppose  such  a  band  of 
disciples. 

3  For  of  course  we  have  no  reason  to  assume  that  all  Isaiah's  prophetic  writings 
have  been  preserved. 

4  Comp.  notes  on  ix.  8,  Iv.  IT.     This  doctrine  of  the  self-fulfilling  power  of  pro- 
phecy explains  the  imprisonments  of  Micaiah  and  Jeremiah,  and  a  similar  belief  its 
presupposed  in  the  narrative  <?f  Balaam  (Num.  xxii,  6). 


1 66  ESSAYS. 

The  prophecies  with  which  I  am  now  concerned  are  the 
occasional  ones — that  is,  those  which  were  called  forth  by 
passing  events.  A  difference  of  opinion  in  specifying  these  is 
hardly  possible,  except  in  the  case  of  xxi.  i-io,  but  critics 
are  very  much  divided  as  to  the  time  when  the  prophecies 
were  composed.  Nor  can  this  be  greatly  wondered  at.  In 
the  first  place,  Israelitish  history  has  only  come  down  to  us 
in  fragments.  If  even  the  plays  of  Aristophanes  contain 
numerous  obscure  allusions,  though  the  author  lived  subse- 
quently to  the  rise  of  history  (i<rropfoi\  how  much  more 
should  we  expect  this  to  be  the  case  with  the  religious  litera- 
ture of  a  nation  with  no  gift  for  scientific  research  !  In  the 
second  place,  it  is  evident  from  the  form  of  not  a  few  pro- 
phecies that  they  are  summaries  of  discourses  delivered  at 
various  times,  and  even  when  it  is  not  so,  the  cultivated  style 
of  the  oracles  sufficiently  proves  that  they  have  been  much 
altered  since  the  time  of  delivery ;  we  cannot,  therefore,  be 
sure  that  they  give  an  absolutely  faithful  picture  of  the 
prophet's  original  feelings  and  circumstances.  Hence  a 
distinction  must  be  drawn  between  two  entirely  separate 
objects  of  enquiry — viz.  I.  the  date  of  Isaiah's  original  dis- 
course or  discourses,  and  2.  that  of  the  final  editing  of  the 
discourse  or  summarising  of  the  discourses.1 

But  it  may  be  asked,  Have  we  not  already  in  the  Book 
of  Isaiah  itself  an  authoritative  chronological  arrangement? 
This  is  the  view  of  Hengstenberg.  '  In  the  first  six  chapters,' 
remarks  this  celebrated  critic,  '  we  obtain  a  survey  of  the 
prophet's  ministry  under  Uzziah  and  Jotham.  Chap.  vii.  to 
x.  4  belongs  to  the  time  of  Ahaz.  From  x.  4  to  the  end  of 
chap.  xxxv.  everything  belongs  to  the  time  of  the  Assyrian 
invasion  in  the  fourteenth  year  of  Hezekiah  ;  in  the  face  of 
which  invasion  the  prophetic  gift  of  Isaiah  was  displayed  as 
it  had  never  been  before.  The  section,  chap,  xxxvi.-xxxix., 
furnishes  us  with  the  historical  commentary  on  the  preceding 
prophecies  from  the  Assyrian  period,  and  forms,  at  the  same 
time,  the  transition  to  the  second  part,  which  still  belongs  to 
the  same  period.'2  The  faults  of  this  theory  are,  I.  that  it 
implies  the  infallibility  of  the  later  Jewish  editors  of  Isaiah, 
and  2.  that  it  regards  the  prophecies  of  Isaiah,  or  at  any  rate 
those  in  the  first  part,  as  if  they  had  been  sent  out  into  the 
world  singly,  whereas  internal  evidence  strongly  favours  the 
view  that  underlying  our  present  book  there  are  several 
partial  collections,  made  either  by  Isaiah,  or  by  Isaiah's  dis- 

1  See  /.  C.  A.,  introduction,  p.  xii. 

2  Christology  of  the  Old  Testament,  ii.  2,  3. 


ESSAYS.  167 

ciples,  or  perhaps  some  by  the  former,  and  others  by  the 
latter.  If  we  accept  this  position,  it  will  be  extremely  un- 
likely that  after  the  combination  of  these  small  collections 
the  prophecies  should  turn  out  to  be  in  exact  chronological 
order.  In  fact,  before  the  recent  Assyrian  discoveries  it 
seemed  easy  to  show  that  this  was  no  less  improbable  than  the 
similar  view  that  the  Minor  Prophets,  as  they  stand,  are  in 
chronological  order ;  for  how  could  the  section  x.  5~xii.  6, 
evidently  written  in  the  crisis  of  an  invasion,  be  rightly 
placed  so  far  from  chaps,  xxviii.-xxxii.,  which  only  express 
an  increasing  confidence  that  an  invasion  was  inevitable  ? 
The  discovery  of  the  large  part  played  by  Sargon  in  the 
affairs  of  Palestine  has,  it  is  true,  made  Hengstenberg's 
position  a  more  tenable  one.  The  prophecy  in  x.  5~xii.  6 
may  conceivably  refer  to  the  invasion  of  Sargon,  and  those  in 
xxviii.-xxxii.  to  that  of  Sennacherib.1  Hence  it  is  less  sur- 
prising that,  after  being  abandoned  by  scholars  in  general, 
Hengstenberg's  view  should  again  be  independently  maintained 
by  Mr.  George  Smith  the  Assyriologist2  Still,  some  of  the 
old  objections  to  it  remain  in  full  force.  Some  prophecies 
(e.g.  chap.  i.  and  chap.  xvii.  i-ii)  cannot  be  in  their  right 
chronological  order,  unless  the  remarks  in  the  preceding 
commentary  are  very  far  wrong  indeed.  The  evidence  for 
the  existence  of  groups  of  prophecies  is  moreover  too  strong 
to  be  disregarded  ;  and  it  would  argue  a  mean  estimate  of 
the  intellect  of  those  who  formed  these  groups  to  suppose 
that  chronology  was  their  only  guide,  and  that  affinity  of 
subjects  had  no  influence  on  their  selection  of  prophecies. 

I  assume,  then,  that  the  actual  order  of  the  prophecies  in 
the  Book  of  Isaiah  is  not  strictly  chronological.  The  results 
of  the  present  work,  however,  tend  to  show  that  the  devia- 
tions from  chronological  accuracy  are  not  considerable.  A 
brief  summary  will  make  this  at  once  clear,  and  serve  as  a 
table  of  contents  to  the  introductions  in  the  preceding  com- 
mentary. 

Isaiah  came  forward  as  a  young  prophet  (vi.  i)  in  the 
year  of  the  death  of  Azariah,3  that  warlike  and  enterprising 
monarch,  who  ventured  to  defy  Assyria  by  heading  a  con- 
federacy of  discontented  Syrian  powers.  Jotham,  the  next 

1  This  is  certainly  conceivable,  but  far  from  probable,  as  the  phraseological  points 
of  contact  between  the  prophecy  in  x.  5-xii.  6  and  chaps  xxviii.  xxix.  (see  vol.  i.  p. 
68)  naturally  suggests  a  contemporary  origin. 

2  Transactions  of  the  Society  of  Biblical  Archaology,  ii.  (1873),  328-9. 

5  The  text  of  Isa.  vi.  i  calls  him  Uzziah,  and  so  2  Kings  xv.  13,  2  Chr.  xxvi.;  but 
the  name  is  given  as  Azariah  in  2  Kings  xiv.  21,  and  in  the  contemporary  Assyrian 
inscriptions  as  Azriyau.  On  the  Syrian  coalition,  see  vol.  i.,  p.  43,  and  note  the  refer- 
ence to  Schrader. 


1 68  ESSAYS. 

king,  was  as  secular  in  tastes  as  his  father,  and  the  denuncia- 
tions in  chap.  ii.  and  in  ix.  8-x.  4  may  well  have  been 
delivered  in  substance  during  his  reign.  In  these  sterner 
passages  our  prophet  reminds  us  of  his  predecessor  Amos. 
But  as  soon  as  a  real  calamity  draws  near,  the  tone  of  his 
discourses  begins  to  soften,  and  the  passages  which  we 
naturally  turn  to  as  typical  of  his  genius  are  centred  in  the 
three  invasions  of  Judah  by  Rezin,  Sargon,  and  Sennacherib. 
Rezin  and  his  Israel itish  vassal  were  already  at  the  gates  of 
Jerusalem  when  Isaiah  delivered  the  substance  of  the  pro- 
phecies in  vii.  i-ix.  7,  famous  as  containing  the  first  distinct 
predictions  of  the  Messiah.  Chap.  xvii.  i-u  evidently 
belongs  to  the  same  period,  but  is  probably  a  little  earlier 
than  vii.  i-ix.  7.  In  724  (?)  Shalmaneser  opened  that  siege  of 
Samaria  which  was  so  soon  brought  to  its  fatal  end  by  Sargon,1 
and  we  may  presume  that  chap,  xxviii.  embodies  the  dis- 
courses of  Isaiah  on  that  striking  occasion  ;  but  Shalmaneser 
has  left  but  little  impression  on  the  Israelitish  literature  com- 
pared with  Sargon,  his  successor.  It  is  to  this  king's  inter- 
ference with  the  affairs  of  Judah  2  that  we  are,  as  I  believe, 
indebted  for  the  following  important  group  of  prophecies  :— 

Chap.  xiv.  29-32,  a  prophecy  on  Philistia. 

Chap.  xix.  i    1 6,  a  prophecy  on  Egypt. 

Chap,  xx.,  a  prophecy  on  Egypt  and  Ethiopia. 

Chap,  xxix.-xxxii.,  a  prophecy  on  the  Egyptian  alliance  and  the  Assyrian 

invasion. 
Chap.  x.  5 — xi.   16,  a  prophecy  on  the  Assyrian  invasion  and  the  times 

following. 

Chap,  xxii.,  a  prophecy  on  the  siege  of  Jerusalem. 
Chap,  i.,  a  prophecy  on  the  spiritual  lessons  of  the  invasion. 

(Perhaps  also  chap.  xvi.  13,  14,  the  epilogue  attached  to  an 
older  prophecy  on  Moab,  and  chap.  xxi.  1 1-17,  containing 
short  prophecies  on  Dumah  and  Kedar.) 

The  Philistines,  destined  to  suffer  so  much  from  Assyria, 
were  already  hankering  after  independence,  when  Isaiah 
wrote  the  short  prophecy  in  xiv,  29-32  ;  '  The  rod  which 
smote  them  '  (i.e.  Shalmaneser)  was  *  broken,'  but  the  prophet 
warned  them  that  the  new  king  (Sargon)  would  dart  upon 
them  like  a  basilisk,  and  punish  them  for  their  disobedience. 
The  unfavourable  'oracle  of  Egypt'  (xix.  1-16)  probably 
comes  from  the  same  period.  The  '  hard  lord '  into  whose 
hand  the  Egyptians  are  to  be  delivered  (xix.  4)  is  Sargon, 

1  There  is  some  doubt  respecting  the  chronological  limits  of  the  siege  of  Samaria  ; 
it  is  safest,  however,  to  follow  Sargon's  expiess  s'atement,  that  he  captured  Samaria  in 
the  beginning  of  his  reign.  See  further  Schrader,  K.  G.  F.,  pp.  314-15  ;  Smith,  The 
Jiponym  Canon,  p.  175. 

3  See  introd.  to  x.  5-xii.  6  (vol.  i.  pp.  68,  69), 


ESSAYS.  1 69 

and  the  event  referred  to  is  the  defeat  of  Shabaka,  King  of 
Egypt  and  Ethiopia,  B.C.  720,  near  the  Philistine  town  of 
Raphia.  It  does  not  appear  that  Sargon  interfered  with 
Judah  on  this  occasion.  Hezekiah  had  probably  refrained 
from  assisting  Shabaka,  so  that  the  Assyrian  army  would 
naturally  keep  to  the  coast-road.  The  security  of  Judah  will 
also  perhaps  account  for  the  falling  off  in  style  which  has 
been  noticed  in  chap.  xix.  When  the  danger  was  nearer 
home,  the  prophet's  voice  became  trumpet-toned. 

The  woes  denounced  on  Egypt  in  chap.  xix.  were  not 
immediately  realised,  and  in  chap.  xx.  Isaiah  renews  his 
warning.  Still,  the  results  of  the  battle  of  Raphia  were  by 
no  means  insignificant.  To  Rahab,  '  the  arrogant  one,'  (such 
was  the  symbolic  name  of  Egypt  in  Hebrew  :  see  on  xxx.  7) 
the  acknowledgment  of  Assyrian  supremacy  was  galling  in 
the  extreme  ;  a  still  greater  national  calamity  was  the  dis- 
memberment of  the  country  (see  introduction  to  chap.  xx.). 
That  Hezekiah  should  have  thought  it  worth  while  after  this 
to  seek  Egyptian  assistance  is  a  fact  so  improbable  that 
nothing  short  of  Isaiah's  authority  (see  chaps,  xxx.  xxxi.) 
could  establish  it.  Chap.  xxix.  also  belongs  in  substance  to 
this  period  ;  it  declares  that  Jerusalem  itself  is  in  imminent 
peril.  Shortly  after,  in  xxxii.  9-20,  the  prophet  repeats  his 
denunciation  to  the  frivolous  ladies  of  Jerusalem. 

Nor  are  these  the  only  words  spoken  by  the  great  prophet 
at  this  dark  period.  The  two  prophecies  on  the  Egyptian 
alliance  contain  some  passages  which  clearly  refer  to  this 
later  stage  in  the  history,  Thus  chap.  xxx.  18-33  evidently 
assumes  that  the  people  of  Judah  are  actually  suffering  from 
an  Assyrian  invasion,  and  xxxi.  4  announces  that  Jehovah 
will,  as  it  were,  personally  descend,  and  fight  for  Jerusalem. 
We  are,  in  fact,  in  the  midst  of  the  first  of  the  two  invasions 
under  Hezekiah,  when  Sargon  (i.e.  probably  his  Tartan,  or 
commander-in-chief)  took  '  all  the  fenced  cities  of  Judah.' ! 
Hezekiah  had  probably  followed  the  example  of  Yavan,  King 
of  Ashdod,  and  refused  the  usual  tribute  to  the  King  of 
Assyria  ;  so,  at  least,  we  may  infer  from  the  statement  of 
Sargon  that  the  Judahites  who  used  to  bring  tribute,  were 
'  speaking  treason.' 2  The  fate  of  Ashdod  seemed  likely  to 
become  that  of  Jerusalem,  and  Isaiah  (who  had  already 
pointed  out  the  danger,  xx.  6)  felt  the  urgency  of  the  call  for 
prophetic  admonition.  Of  his  discourses  during  this  critical 
period  at  least  three  appear  to  have  been  preserved — chap,  x, 

1  2  Kings  xviii.  13  (  =  Isa.  xxxvi.  i).     On  this  passage,  see  vol.  i.  p.  197. 

2  See  introd.  to  chap.  xx.  (vol.  i.  pp.  120-1). 


ESSAYS. 

5-xii.  6,  chap.  xiv.  24-27,  and  chap.  xxii.  The  date  of  th< 
first  two  is  absolutely  certain  (see  introds.),  and  even  Mr. 
Robertson  Smith  admits  that  they  were  written  in  the  time  of 
Sargon.1  The  only  reasonable  doubt  can  be  with  regard  to 
chap,  xxii.,  the  explanation  of  which,  as  the  student  will  have 
seen,  requires  a  more  than  ordinary  degree  of  exegetical  tact. 

At  length  the  tide  of  invasion  turned,  and  very  soon  after- 
wards, if  I  am  not  mistaken,  in  a  case  which  again  especially 
calls  for  tact,  Isaiah  wrote  one  of  his  most  beautiful  prophecies, 
chap.  i.  The  generality  of  its  contents  (which  marks  it  out 
as  composed  for  an  introduction)  makes  it  unusually  difficult 
to  pronounce  upon  its  date ;  yet  there  is  some  internal 
evidence  which  points  to  the  time  of  Sargon's  invasion.  It 
would,  in  fact,  be  an  incongruity  if  a  prophet  like  Isaiah  had 
been  able  to  compose  a  purely  literary  work. 

Three  years  after  the  subjugation  of  Judah  occurred  an 
event  second  only  in  importance  for  Palestine  to  the  battle  of 
Raphia — the  conquest  of  Babylonia  by  Sargon  (710).  From 
a  narrative  certainly  based  on  an  early  tradition  (2  Kings 
xx.  12,  &c.  =  Isaiah  xxxix.  I,  &c.),  we  may  probably  infer  that 
Hezekiah  had  had  some  thoughts  of  a  Babylonian  alliance. 
Isaiah  would,  of  course,  be  opposed  to  this,  but  the  fall  of 
Babylon  must  have  profoundly  shocked  him  as  an  evidence 
of  the  (humanly  speaking)  irresistible  progress  of  Assyria. 
The  prophecy  in  xxi.  i-io,  which,  taken  by  itself,  is  so  ob- 
scure,2 seems  in  most  respects  easier  of  explanation,  if  we 
refer  its  origin  to  the  siege  of  Babylon  in  710.  I  say  'in 
most  respects,'  for  I  do  not  deny  the  striking  plausibility  of 
some  of  the  arguments  for  a  Captivity  origin. 

Isaiah  took  no  narrow  view  of  his  prophetic  mission,  and 
the  fall  of  Babylon  was,  according  to  him,  a  warning  to  other 
nations  besides  his  own.  '  Behold  the  land  of  Chaldea,'  he 
cried  to  the  proud  merchant  people  of  Phcenicia  ;  *  this  people 
is  no  more'  (xxiii.  13).  Indeed,  Tyre  was  nearer  to  the 
common  foe,  and  had  a  still  better  reason  for  alarm  (in  pro- 
portion to  its  greater  power)  than  the  second-rate  or  third- 
rate  kingdom  of  Judah.  So  sure  is  Jehovah's  prophet  of  the 
catastrophe  that  he  bursts  into  an  elegiac  ode  on  the  ruin 
of  Zidon's  greatest  daughter.  The  concluding  verses  of  the 
chapter,  however,  which  form  no  part  of  the  elegy,  and  seem 


1  The  Prophets  of  Israel  (1^2),  pp.  297-8. 

2  The  obscurity  consists  in  the  depression  into  which  the  writer  apparently  falls  at 
the  news  of  the  fall  of  Babylon.     In  /.  C.  A.,  p.  xxvii.,   I  conjectured  that  he  was 
'  almost  unmanned  by  affection  for  his  adopted  home. '     But  this  is  not  very  probable 
in  a  pious  Jewish  exile,  and  the  theory  of  a  Babylonian  origin  is  also  opposed  (though 
not,  of  course,  absolutely  disproved)  by  the  numerous  points  of  contact  with  Isaiah 
(see  vol.  i.  pp.  123-4). 


ESSAYS.  1 71 

to  have  been  added  by  an  after-thought,  prophesy  a  revival 
of  Tyre  at  the  end  of  *  seventy  years.' 1 

The  third  event  which  called  forth  the  energies  of  the 
prophet  was  the  invasion  of  Sennacherib ;  the  attendant  cir- 
cumstances have  been  described  already  (vol.  i.  pp.  200-3). 
Great  as  the  war  was — greater  even  than  the  invasion  of 
Sargon — only  four  of  the  extant  prophecies  appear  to  have 
been  originated  by  it.  These  are  chap,  xviii.,  chap.  xvii.  12-14, 
chap,  xxxiii.,  and  chap,  xxxvii.  22-35  (or  32).  The  first  of 
the  four  was  evidently  produced  by  the  news  of  the  approach 
of  the  Assyrians,  and  the  consequent  excitement  of  the 
warlike  Ethiopians.  The  second  and  third  were  (according 
to  the  historical  sketch  referred  to  above)  probably  composed 
during  the  march  of  the  Assyrian  general,  who,  after  captur- 
ing forty-six  fortified  towns,  was  so  wonderfully  and  provi- 
dentially checked  beneath  the  walls  of  Jerusalem.  The 
fourth  has  all  the  incisive  energy  which  we  should  expect 
from  the  circumstances  under  which  the  Book  of  Isaiah  itself 
declares  it  to  have  been  delivered. 


2. 

Such  now  appears  to  me,  upon  a  reconsideration  of  the 
subject,  to  be  the  most  probable  chronological  arrangement  of 
the  occasional  prophecies.  My  endeavour  has  been  to  avoid 
arbitrary  conjecture,  and,  whenever  practicable,  to  explain  the 
prophet's  allusions  from  the  contemporary  Assyrian  inscrip- 
tions. I  confess  therefore  to  some  disappointment  when  that 
excellent  scholar,  Mr.  Robertson  Smith,  expresses  the  opinion 
that  one  of  the  historical  bases  of  the  preceding  sketch  is  un- 
sound, and  that  '  the  mere  statement  of  this  hypothesis  is 
sufficient  to  show  its  extreme  improbability.' 2  A  page  or  two 
in  reply  to  Mr.  Robertson  Smith's  leading  objections  is  indis- 
pensable to  complete  this  essay. 

Did  Sargon  invade  Judah,  and  threaten,  or  even  cap- 
ture Jerusalem,  or  not  ?  The  grounds  on  which  three  well- 
known  Assyriologists3  maintain  that  he  did,  have  been  already 
given ;  the  documentary  evidence  is,  no  doubt,  scanty,  still  it 
exists,  and  historical  probability  is  altogether  in  favour  of  this 
view.  Mr.  Robertson  Smith's  counter  argument  has  not  yet 
been  put  in  a  complete  form  ;  but  appearances  rather  indicate 

1  Hence  one  of  the  arguments  for  the  view  that  the  epilogue,  as  we  may  call  these 
verses,  is  the  work  of  some  unknown  writer  at  the  close  of  the   Babylonian  exile. 
Against  it  see  my  note  on  xxiii.  15-18. 

2  The  Prophets  of  Israel,  (1882),  p.  206.  3  Sayce,  Schrader,  and  Oppert. 


172  ESSAYS. 

that  he  has  been  biassed  by  a  partiality  for  a  distinguished 
recent  critic. 

In  admiration  for  Julius  Wellhausen's  brilliant  genius  I 
hardly  yield  to  Mr.  Robertson  Smith.  But  I  cannot  help 
adding  that  his  insight  is  sometimes  marred  by  excessive  self- 
assertion.  His  personal  dislikes  are  indeed  painfully  visible 
in  some  of  his  critiques  in  the  Gottingen  Gelehrte  Anzeigen, 
and  his  bias  against  Assyriology  !  (shared,  it  is  true,  by  others 
in  Germany)  comes  out  very  strongly  in  an  article  in  vol.  xx. 
of  the  Jahrbiicher  fur  deutsche  Theologie  (1875),  replied  to 
with  exemplary  calmness  by  Schrader,  in  vol.  ii.  of  the  Jahr- 
bucher  fur  protestantische  Theologie  (1876),  in  his  article  on 
'  The  Azriyahu  of  the  cuneiform  inscriptions,  and  the  Azaryah 
of  the  Bible.'  I  am  the  more  confirmed  in  my  opinion  that 
Mr.  Robertson  Smith  has  been  '  misled  '  by  German  influences, 
when  I  notice  his  own  insufficient  estimate  of  the  value  of  the 
Assyriologists'  work  in  p.  377  of  The  Prophets  of  Israel^  where 
Gutschmid's  extravagant  attack  on  Assyriology  is  charac- 
terised as  setting  forth  the  state  of  things  '  very  forcibly, 
though  perhaps  (!)  with  an  extreme  of  scepticism,'  and  no 
mention  is  made  of  Schrader's  reply,  so  impressive  from  its 
honesty  and  documentary  completeness,  in  the  K.G.F. 

Mr.  Robertson  Smith  objects  to  the  view  which  I  have 
advocated,  that  it  represents  Judah  as  suffering  '  precisely  in 
the  same  way,  and  to  the  same  extent,'  both  from  Sargon  and 
Sennacherib,  that  '  history  does  not  repeat  itself  exactly,'  and 
that  'we  must  conclude  that  Isaiah  held  precisely  similar 
language  in  the  two  cases,  and  that  he  did  this  in  the  second 
invasion  without  making  any  reference  back  to  the  events  of 
the  siege  which  has  called  forth  similar  predictions  two  years 
before'  (p.  295).  'Precisely'  and  'exactly'  are  words  that 
shoot  beyond  the  mark.  It  has  not  been  asserted  that  history 
*  repeated  itself  exactly,'  nor  that  Isaiah  used  '  precisely 
similar  language  '  in  the  two  cases.  History  may  surely  have 
repeated  itself  in  the  career  of  Hezekiah,  as  it  did  in  that  of 
Merodach-Baladan,  but  the  repetition  need  not  have  been 
'exact';  all  that  is  claimed  by  Mr.  Sayce  and  myself  is  a 
parallelism  between  the  two  invasions.  Next,  with  regard  to 
the  language  of  Isaiah.  It  is  true,  that  in  both  groups  of  pro- 
phecies (those  referring  to  Sargon  as  well  as  those  to  Senna- 
cherib), Isaiah  is  well  assured  that  Jehovah  will  interpose  for 
Mount  Zion  ;  but  is  there  not  a  variety  amidst  the  similarity  ? 
In  Sargon's  reign,  Isaiah  says  that  the  chief  men  of  the  city 
have  been  captured,  and  that  many  of  the  inhabitants  of  Jeru- 

1  Comp.  introd.  to  chap,  xxxvii.  (vol.  i.,  p.  198). 


ESSAYS.  I  73 

salem  shall  be  slain  (xxii.  3,  14)  ;  in  Sennacherib's,  he  implies 
that  all  shall  escape  (xxxvii.  22).  In  Sargon's,  he  declares 
that  Jerusalem  shall  be  reduced  to  extremities  (xxix.  1-6)  ; 
in  Sennacherib's,  that  the  Assyrian  shall  not  come  before  the 
city,  nor  raise  a  bank  against  it  (xxxvii.  33  ;  see  vol.  i.  p.  202). 
In  Sargon's,  his  tone  towards  his  countrymen  is  most  severe 
(see  introd.  to  chap,  xxii.)  ;  in  Sennacherib's,  it  is  one  of  con- 
solation and  hope. 

But  why,  asks  Mr,  Robertson  Smith,  did  Isaiah  make  no 
reference  during  Sennacherib's  invasion  to  the  events  of  the 
former  crisis  ?  The  question  could  only  be  answered  with 
certainty  from  the  contemporary  Jewish  annals,  which  we  do 
not  possess.  It  may  be  that  there  were  circumstances  con- 
nected with  Sargon's  siege  of  Jerusalem,  which  it  was  no  un- 
mixed pleasure  to  remember  (comp.  chap,  xxii.),  but  I  do  not 
care  to  reconstruct  history  speculatively.  Mr.  Robertson 
Smith  thinks  it  also  ' highly  improbable  that  [Hezekiah] 
would  have  been  allowed  to  restore  the  Judaean  fortresses  ' 
(p.  296).  Bnt  Sargon,  in  his  latter  years,  was  enfeebled  by 
age,  and  Sennacherib,,  on  his  accession,  had  work  enough 
on  his  hands  nearer  home,  on  his  southern  and  eastern 
frontier.  Next,  my  friendly  critic  is  surprised  at  the  non- 
mention  of  any  punishment  of  Judah  in  the  Annals  of  Sargon. 
But  these  annals  cannot  claim  to  be  exhaustive.  The  por- 
tion for  7 1 1  seems  to  be  little  more  than  an  extract  from  an 
eponym  list,  where  only  the  chief  object  of  the  year's  cam- 
paign is  recorded.  Is  it  reasonable  to  suppose  that,  while 
Philistia  was  punished  for  '  speaking  treason,'  Judah  was 
allowed  to  go  scot  free  ?  Certainly  the  peoples  of  Palestine, 
according  to  Isa.  xx.  6,  had  very  different  anticipations.  On 
the  following  page  our  author  questions  whether  the  Book  of 
Kings  would  have  entirely  ignored  the  invasion  of  Sargon, 
had  it  really  taken  place.  But  he  might  as  well  question 
whether  Sargon  captured  Samaria,  because  the  Book  of  Kings 
is  silent  as  to  the  fact.1  The  written  traditions  of  the  Jews 
have  obviously  come  down  to  us  in  so  fragmentary  a  state 
(thanks  to  the  catastrophe  of  the  Exile)  that  hardly  any 
omission  can  much  surprise  us.  We  may  well  be  thankful 
for  the  supplementary  and  corrective  uses  of  the  Assyrian  in- 
scriptions, and  not  least,  as  students  of  the  prophecies  of 
Isaiah.  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  himself  admits  this,  which  in- 
creases my  disappointment  that  I  have  failed  to  convince  him 
on  this  important  question  of  detail.  All  opinions  on  ancient 

1  The  absence  of  any  reference  to  Assurbanipal,  except  under  the  mutilated  form 
Asnapper  (Ezra  iv.  10),  may  also  be  mentioned  in  this  connection. 


ESSAYS. 

history  must  be  held  with  a  certain  amount  of  reserve,  and 
be  liable  to  modification  or  correction  from  more  thorough 
criticism,  or  the  discovery  of  more  complete  evidence.  ^  Mr. 
Robertson  Smith  is  well  able  to  contribute  to  this  desirable 
result.  Let  me  add  that,  if  I  have,  in  the  foregoing  commen- 
tary or  elsewhere,  expressed  myself  too  positively,  I  regret  it, 
as  it  may  perhaps  have  encouraged  his  own  too  positive  con- 
tradiction. At  any  rate,  he  will,  I  know,  echo  the  words  with 
which  I  concluded  this  essay  in  the  first  edition,  that  '  the 
prophecies  have  surely  become  more  vivid  through  being  read 
in  this  new  light,  and  the  character  of  Isaiah  as  a  "  watcher  " 
of  the  political  as  well  as  spiritual  horizon  does  but  shine 
with  a  steadier  and  more  enlivening  glow.' 


II.  THE  ARRANGEMENT  OF  THE  PROPHECIES. 

I. 

THAT  there  is  some  principle  (or,  that  there  are  some  prin- 
ciples) of  arrangement  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah,  is  now  universally 
acknowledged.  The  book  is  no  mere  anthology  of  single 
prophecies  ;  this  cannot  even  be  said  of  chaps,  i.-xxxix., 
where  a  continuous  thread  of  thought  is  undoubtedly  wanting. 
But  the  plan  of  the  book  is  by  no  means  easy  to  grasp.  It 
seems  simple  enough  to  suppose  with  Hengstenberg  that  the 
prophecies  in  chaps,  i.-xxxix.  are  arranged  chronologically, 
or  with  Vitringa  that  similarity  of  contents  was  the  guiding 
principle  of  the  collector  and  editor.  But  neither  theory  can 
be  carried  out  without  violence  to  facts.  The  suggestion  has 
therefore  been  offered  to  divide  the  book  into  four  smaller 
books  or  parts,  viz.  chaps,  i.-xii.,  chaps,  xiii.-xxiii.,  chaps, 
xxiv.-xxxv.  (with  its  appendix,  chaps,  xxxvi.-xxxix.),  and 
chaps,  xl.-lxvi.;  and  this  view  has  been  adopted  by  Gesenius, 
Havernick,  and  (in  1856)  Dr.  S.  Davidson.  When,  however, 
we  come  to  analyse  these  groups,  we  find  that  they  are  by  no 
means  homogeneous,  and  that  there  are  several  breaks  in  the 
continuity.  Hence  Ewald  and  Delitzsch  seem  fully  justified 
in  subdividing  the  book  still  further.  These  eminent  scholars 
differ  widely,  it  is  true  ;  the  reason  being  that  while  Delitzsch 
regards  the  prophet  Isaiah  as  himself  the  sole  author  and 
editor,  Ewald  postulates  a  variety  of  authors  and  several 
editors.  Controversy,  however,  is  not  my  object.  Those  who 
wish  to  see  the  thoughtful  and  only  too  ingenious  arrange- 
ment of  Delitzsch  can  easily  refer  to  his  widely-known 


ESSAYS.  175 

commentary  (Introduction,  paragraph  2).  My  own  view 
on  the  subject  of  this  essay  continues  to  be  based  on  that  of 
Ewald,  and,  in  offering  it  anew  for  acceptance,  I  would  merely 
remark  that  it  is  in  no  way  bound  up  with  any  preconceived 
opinion  as  to  the  unity  or  plurality  of  the  authorship  of  the 
book. 

It  was  stated  in  the  present  writer's  former  edition  of 
Isaiah,1  that  at  any  rate  that  part  of  the  book  which  contains 
occasional  prophecies  *  appears  to  be  composed  of  several 
smaller  books  or  prophetic  collections.'  This  view,  I  repeat, 
will  still  be  the  most  probable  one,  even  if  we  should  admit 
the  Isaianic  authorship  of  the  entire  book.  Let  us  see  what 
it  is  that  it  involves.  '  The  chapter  which  opens  the  book  in 
the  traditional  arrangement  is  evidently  intended  as  a  general 
introduction  to  a  large  group  of  prophecies.  It  is  impossible, 
however,  to  trace  any  distinct  connection  between  that  chapter 
and  the  three  following  ones,  which  certainly  constitute  a 
single  homogeneous  prophecy.  Equally  difficult  is  it  to  trace 
a  connection  between  chap.  i.  and  chaps,  vi.-x.  4  ;  the  latter 
chapters,  with  the  exception  of  ix.  8— x.  4 '  (see  vol.  i.,  p.  64), 
'  are  as  distinct  and  homogeneous  as  the  prophecy  already 
mentioned.'  But  there  is  a  general  agreement  between  the 
historical  circumstances  of  chap,  i.,  of  chaps,  x.  5-xi.  16,  and 
of  most  of  the  minor  prophecies  .on  foreign  nations,  all  of 
which  were  probably  written  under  the  shadow  of  the  first 
Assyrian  invasion  under  Sargon.  It  seems  therefore  reason- 
able to  suppose  that,  after  the  retirement  of  Sargon,  Isaiah 
prepared  '  a  new  and  enlarged  edition  of  his  works,'  consisting 
of  the  two  prophetic  writings  mentioned  above  (ii.-v.,  and 
vi.  i— ix.  7),  supplemented  by  x.  5—  xii.  62  (which  once  doubt- 
less had  an  independent  existence,  and  which  was  now  inserted 
as  a  pendant  to  the  prophecy  of  Immanuel),  and  by  most  of 
the  prophecies  on  foreign  nations.3  Later  still,  Isaiah,  or  some 
of  his  disciples  availing  themselves  of  his  literary  material, 
made  several  insertions  in  his  already  extant  works,  and 
added  a  new  one  to  their  number.  The  insertions  are  xiv. 
24-27,  which  looks  like  an  appendix  to  x.  5-xii.  6  (compare 
vol.  i.  p.  93),  xvii.  i-u,  xvii.  12-xviii.  7,  and,  according  to 
conservative  critics,  xiii.  i-xiv.  23,  which  were  included 
among  the  oracles  on  foreign  nations.  The  only  one  of  these 

1  /.  C.  A.,  Introduction,  pp.  xii.-xiv.     The  reader  will  at  once  notice  the  points  in 
which  I  have  modified  my  views. 

2  I  am  aware  that  Ewald  considers  chap.  xii.  to  be  an  insertion  of  post-Exile  origin. 
But  it  is  not  my  object  here  to  discuss  questions  belonging  to  the  '  higher  criticism.' 

5  Amos  had  already  given  a  series  of  short  decisive  oracles  on  the  neighbouring 
peoples  (i.  3-ii.  3).  Zephaniah  (ii.  4-15),  Jeremiah  (xlvi.-li.),  and  Ezekiel(xxv.-xxxii.) 
did  so  afterwards. 


I76  KSSAVS. 

insertions  which  requires  any  special  explanation  is  the  last- 
mentioned,  and  to  this  I  will  return  presently.  The  new 
prophetic  work  consists  of  chaps,  xxviii.-xxxii. ;  it  seems 
intended  as  a  memorial  of  the  state  of  the  Jews  during 
Sargon's  intervention  in  the  affairs  of  Palestine.  Four 
groups  of  chapters  still  remain,  viz ,  xxiv.-xxvii.,  xxxiv.  and 
xxxv.,  xxxvi.-xxxix.,  and  xl.-lxvi.  Let  me  begin  with  the 
third.  It  consists  of  a  historical  narrative  in  which  two 
prophecies  (xxxvii.  21-35  and  xxxix.  5-7)  and  a  poem 
(xxxviii.  9-20),  the  latter  ascribed,  not  to  Isaiah,  but  to 
Hezekiah,  are  imbedded.  By  whom  the  narrative  was 
written,  and  when,  is  much  disputed  (see  vol.  i.,  p.  203)  ;  but 
that  the  first  of  the  two  prophecies  is  the  work  of  Isaiah  is 
admitted  on  all  hands,  and  the  analogy  of  chaps,  vii.  and  xx. 
shows  that  the  narrative,  long  as  it  is,  exists  for  the  sake  of 
the  prophecies,  and  not  the  prophecies  for  the  narrative.  The 
parallel  of  Jer.  Hi.  suggests  further  that  Isa.  xxxvi.-xxxix. 
were  originally  intended  as  a  conclusion  or  appendix  to  the 
Book  of  Isaiah. 

As  to  the  three  other  groups,  we  must  first  of  all  separate 
chaps,  xl.-lxvi.,  the  difficulty  with  regard  to  which  is,  not  so 
much  its  position,  as  the  arrangement  of  its  contents.  Not, 
I  say,  its  position,  for  supposing  Isaiah  to  have  written  these 
chapters,  he  or  his  disciple-editor  could  not  well  have  placed 
them  anywhere  else.1  To  its  internal  arrangement  I  return 
presently.  There  remain  chaps,  xxiv.— xxvii.,  and  xxxiv., 
xxxv.,  which  must  be  taken  in  connection  with  xiii.  i-xiv.  23. 
Why  these  groups  of  prophecies  received  their  present  position 
is  certainly  not  clear  at  first  sight  ;  plausible  reasons  are  all 
that  can  be  given.  The  last-mentioned  not  unnaturally  heads 
the  series  of  foreign  oracles  with  its  emphatic  description  of 
the  day  of  Jehovah — that  day  which  is  always  coming  anew, 
whether  Babylon  or  Assyria,  Moab  or  Philistia,  be  its  most 
prominent  victim  ;  while  the  group,  chaps,  xxiv.-xxvii.,  not 
unsuitably  closes  it,  since  the  restoration  of  Israel  in  which 
these  prophecies  culminate  is,  in  fact,  the  object  of  history 
as  viewed  by  Jehovah's  prophets.  There  is  also  a  striking 
similarity  between  the  closing  verse  (xxvii.  13)  and  the  passage 
(xi.  11-16)  which  concludes  the  predictive  portion  of  the  group 
x.  5-xii.  6.  As  to  chaps,  xxxiv.,  xxxv.,  their  wide  and  com- 
prehensive character  fully  explains  their  present  position  at 
the  end  of  what  we  may  call  the  first  book  or  volume  of 
Isaiah  (chaps,  xxxvi.-xxxix.  being  regarded  as  an  appendix). 

1  Chap,  xxxix.  6,  with  its  reference  to  a  '  carrying  to  Babylon,'  forms  a  natural  link 
between  the  two  halves  of  the  book. 


ESSAYS. 


77 


Chap,  xxxv.,  in  particular,  would  commend  itself  as  a  finale 
to  one  of  the  most  characteristic  feelings  of  a  Jew.  We  have 
already  seen  how  distressed  the  Rabbis  were  by  the  gloomy 
tone  of  the  last  verse  of  chap.  Ixvi.  On  the  other  hand,  such 
a  comforting  word  as  '  They  shall  overtake  gladness  and  joy, 
trouble  and  sighing  shall  flee  away,'  would  appear  a  most 
appropriate  epilogue  to  the  works  of  so  great  a  prophet. 


2. 

With  regard  to  the  second  part  of  Isaiah,  the  writer  has 
already  stated  that  he  cannot  see  his  way  to  adopt  any  of  the 
current  arrangements  (vol.  i.  p.  237).  The  discourse  no 
doubt  makes  a  fair  show  of  continuity.  There  are  none  of 
those  headings  which  in  the  first  part  so  rudely  dispel  the 
dream  of  homogeneousness,  and  one  can  read  on  for  a  con- 
siderable way  without  any  striking  break  in  the  thread  of 
thought.  Besides  this,  there  occurs  at  equal  intervals  in  the 
volume  an  expression  which  looks  as  if  it  were  intended  to 
mark  the  close  of  a  book,  in  the  manner  of  a  chorus  or 
refrain — '  There  is  no  peace  to  the  ungodly '  (xlviii.  22,  Ivii. 
21),  and  the  closing  verse  of  the  last  chapter  may  be  regarded 
as  repeating  the  idea  of  this  refrain  in  a  new  and  more 
striking  form.  On  this  ground,  Friedrich  Ruckert,  scholar 
as  well  as  poet,  suggested  in  1831  a  division  of  the  prophecy 
into  three  parts,  each  consisting  of  nine  chapters  ;  and  Rue- 
tschi,  a  Swiss  scholar,  attempted,  on  this  basis,  to  draw  out 
the  design  of  the  book,  and  to  show  that  there  was  a  unity, 
not  only  of  form,  but  of  subject  and  of  time.1  This  view  has 
met  with  a  large  measure  of  acceptance  ;  it  flatters  the  natural 
love  of  symmetry,  and  appears  to  accord  with  the  supposed 
fondness  of  the  Jews  for  the  number  three  (it  gives  three 
books  with  three  times  three  subdivisions).  Voices  on  the 
other  side,  however,  have  not  been  wanting,  and  chief  among 
these  is  Ewald's,  who  declares  the  popularity  of  Ruckert's 
view  to  be  inconceivably  perverse.2  It  is,  in  fact,  too  simple, 
too  mechanical.  Had  it  really  the  support  of  the  contents, 
Riickert,  a  dilettante  student  of  the  prophets,  would  hardly 
have  been  the  first  to  discover  it.  Nor  are  the  writers  who 
hold  with  him  at  all  at  one  among  themselves  as  to  the 
arrangement  of  the  prophecies  within  the  three  books. 
Naegelsbach,  for  instance,  the  latest  commentator  on  Isaiah, 

1  Theolog.  Studien  und  Kritiken,  1854,  p.  261  &c. 

2  So  I  suppose  I  may  paraphrase  the  characteristic  '  es  ist  im  guten  sinne  unbe- 
greiflich  '  (Ewald,  Die  Propheten,  iii.  29,  note  2). 

VOL.    II.  N 


1 78  ESSAYS. 

only  admits  five  discourses  in  the  last  book,  and  Prof.  Birks 
prefers  a  sevenfold  to  a  ninefold  subdivision.  -Approaching 
the  book  with  disenchanted  eyes,  we  see  that  there  is  a  much 
larger  number  of  interruptions  of  continuity  than  Riickert's 
division  supposes  ;  and,  while  granting  the  importance  of  the 
division  at  xlviii.  22,  we  can  attach  comparatively  little  weight 
to  that  at  Ivii.  21,  chap.  Ivi.  1-8  being  closely  akin  to  chap.  Iviii., 
and  even  chap.  Ivii.  not  so  violently  separated  from  the  next 
chapter  by  its  subject-matter  as,  for  instance,  Ivi.  8  from  Ivi. 
9,  and  chap.  Ixii.  from  chap.  Ixiii.  We  cannot,  indeed,  suppose 
that  the  occurrence  of  the  same  striking  verse  at  equal  inter- 
vals is  purely  accidental.  But  may  it  not  be  that  the  two 
verses  at  the  end  of  chap.  Ivii.  were  added  by  an  after- 
thought to  gratify  a  fondness  for  external  symmetry  ?  that 
the  original  prophecy  ended  at  xlviii.  22,1  and  that  the  re- 
mainder of  the  book  grew  up  by  degrees  under  a  less  per- 
sistent flame  of  inspiration  ?  This  view  clearly  involves  no 
disparagement  to  the  spiritual  importance  of  the  latter 
prophecies,  the  importance  of  which  stands  in  no  relation  to 
their  technical  perfection. 

It  is  the  frequency  with  which  the  thread  of  thought  is 
broken  which  makes  it,  in  my  opinion,  so  difficult  to  offer  a 
satisfactory  division  of  the  latter  part  of  Isaiah.  Even  in 
chaps,  xl.-xlviii.  which  are  tolerably  coherent,  there  are 
several  points  at  which  it  is  quite  uncertain  whether  or  not 
we  ought  to  begin  a  new  chapter  :  this  is  particularly  the 
case  in  chaps,  xlii.-xlv.  To  me,  indeed,  it  is  tolerably  clear 
that  xliii.  i-xliv.  5  forms  one  section  in  itself,  and  xliv.  6- 
xlv.  25  another.  But  when  I  find  Delitzsch  connecting  xliii. 
1—13  with  chap,  xlii.,  and  Ewald,  not  only  accepting  chap, 
xliv.  as  an  independent  section,  but  even  forming  xliv.  1-9 
into  a  single  paragraph,  I  am  obliged  to  distrust  my  own 
insight.  In  the  portion  beginning  at  chap,  xlix.,  however,  the 
difficulties  of  distribution  are  much  increased.  The  opening 
chapter,  no  doubt,  connects  itself  with  the  preceding  part  by 
the  obvious  parallelism  of  verses  1-6  with  xlii.  1-7,  and  down 
to  Hi.  12  (see  note  below)  there  is  no  unusual  break  in  the 
continuity.  But  from  Hi.  13  to  Hii.  12  both  style  and  ideas 
become  strikingly  different  (see  p.  39).  It  seems  to  me  clear 
that,  though  not  discordant  with  the  other  passages  relative  to 
the  Servant,  this  obscure  and  difficult  section  cannot  have  been 
originally  intended  to  follow  chaps,  xlix.  i-lii.  12.  Let  any 
plain,  untheological  reader  be  called  upon  to  arbitrate  ;  I  have 

1  Hi.  12  has  equally  the  appearance  of  having  been  designed  as  the  close  of  a 
book.  It  woxildbe  a  plausible  conjecture  that  xlix.  i-lii.  12  was  originally  meant  as  an 
epilogue. 


ESSAYS.  179 

no  doubt  as  to  his  decision.  And  this  section  does  but 
introduce  a  series  of  still  more  strikingly  disconnected  pas- 
sages which  occur  at  intervals  in  the  remainder  of  the  book — 
viz.  Ivi.  1-8  ;  Ivi.  9-lvii.  21  1 ;  Iviii.  i-lix.  21  ;  Ixiii.  1-6  ;  Ixiii. 
/-Ixiv.  ;  Ixv.  ;  Ixvi.2  The  preceding  commentary  will,  I  hope, 
have  proved  that  these  opinions  are  not  thrown  out  loosely 
and  at  random.  But  a  mere  glance  is  sufficient  to  show  the 
wide  discordance  of  tone  between  chaps.  Ix.-lxii.  and  the 
passages  to  which  I  have  just  referred. 


III.   THE   CHRISTIAN   ELEMENT   IN   THE   BOOK 
OF   ISAIAH. 


I. 

AN  influential  modern  writer  upon  the  Old  Testament, 
whose  name  is  now  at  least  as  often  heard  as  that  of  Ewald, 
has  thought  it  necessary  in  the  preface  to  his  most  considerable 
work  to  defend  himself  against  the  charge  of  arguing  points 
of  criticism  upon  concealed  metaphysical  premisses.  He  ob- 
serves in  reply  3  that,  if  he  were  to  introduce  his  researches 
by  an  explicit  statement  of  his  theory  of  the  universe,  he 
would  make  it  appear  that  his  critical  method  and  results 
are  the  outcome  of  his  views  on  theology,  and  consequently 
of  no  value  to  those  who  do  not  belong  to  his  own  school  of 
thought.  The  object  of  the  present  work,  as  has  been  stated 
already,  is  mainly  exegetical,  and  only  indirectly  critical ;  but 
it  is,  perhaps,  for  that  very  reason  important  to  meet  the  ex- 
pectations of  any  section  of  its  readers  with  more  than  usual 
frankness.  For  it  is  emphatically  not  a  party-book,  but  de- 
signed to  help  as  many  students  as  possible  to  a  philologically 
sound  view  of  the  text,  from  which  they  may  proceed,  if  they 
are  so  disposed,  to  the  fruitful  investigation  of  the  ulterior 
critical  problems.  Most  English  books  on  Isaiah  carry  their 
theological  origin  on  their  forefront  ;  this  one  can  hardly  be 
said  to  do  so.  The  same  reason  which  weighed  with  Dr. 

1  The  tone  of  Ivii.  n£-2i  is  more  in  harmony  with  that  of  xl.-lii.  12,  than  the 
earlier  part  of  the  chapter  (see  on  Ivii.  n  a). 

s  I  cannot  bring  myself  to  believe  that  chaps.  Ixv.,  Ixvi.,  in  spite  of  their  unde- 
niable points  of  contact,  were  written  continuously,  much  less  (see  on  Ixv.  i)  that  they 
were  intended  as  a  sequel  to  chap.  Ixiv.  Even  chap.  Ixvi.  is  not  as  a  whole  very  co- 
herent ;  compare  w.  1-5  with  vv.  6-24. 

5  Dr.  A.  Kuenen,  Historisch-kritisch  onderznek  naar  et  onlstaan  .  .  ,  van  de  boekcn. 
des  Ouden  Verbonds  (Leiden,  1861),  vol.  i.  pp.  vii.  viii.  of  the  preface. 

N  2 


iSo 


ESSAYS. 


Kucnen  has  influenced  the  writer.  But  as  he  has  not  thought 
it  right  to  express  himself  fully  in  the  main  body  of  the  work, 
he  hastens  to  repair  the  omission  in  the  supplementary  portion. 

*  There  is  a  philological  exegesis,  and  there  is  a  Christian ' 
(Preface,  vol.  i.  p.  vii.).  In  what  sense  this  laconic  aphorism 
is  intended,  the  present  essay  will  show.  Its  scope,  then,  is 
not  polemical.  The  '  strife  of  tongues  '  too  often  leads  to  the 
'  darkening  of  counsel,'  and  the  essays  on  Biblical  subjects 
called  forth  by  controversy  have  seldom  been  those  which 
have  permanently  advanced  the  sacred  interests  of  truth. 
After  spending  even  a  short  time  in  the  heavy  air  of  contro- 
versial theology,  the  student  is  forced  to  exclaim  with  a  kin- 
dred spirit  among  the  prophets,1  '  Oh  that  I  had  in  the  wilder- 
ness a  lodging-place  of  wayfaring  men  ! '  And  if  in  these 
days  of  toleration  he  cannot  join  in  the  same  prophet's  watch- 
word, '  Fear  is  on  every  side,'2  yet  the  misunderstanding  and 
suspicion  which  from  opposite  sides  meet  the  Biblical  inves- 
tigator may  well  render  him  as  reluctant  to  publish  on  ques- 
tions of  the  day  as  Jeremiah  was  to  prophesy.  Still  there  is 
a  worse  fate  than  being  misunderstood,  and  that  is  to  be  *  to 
truth  a  timid  friend  ; '  and  if  the  conclusions  of  this  essay 
should  incur  the  reproach  of  triteness,  yet  there  may  be 
something  a  little  new  and  suggestive  in  the  road  by  which 
they  have  been  reached.  For  they  were  certainly  as  great 
a  surprise  to  the  writer  as  any  of  his  results  in  the  critical  or 
exegetical  field,  and,  as  the  preceding  commentary  will  have 
shown,  he  belongs  to  a  school  of  interpretation  mainly,  at 
any  rate,  composed  of  rationalists.  It  is  true  he  has  come  to 
believe  in  a  definitely  Christian  interpretation  of  the  Old 
Testament,  but  this  he  thinks  should  be  based  entirely 
upon  the  obvious  grammatical  meaning.  To  give  even  the 
slightest  stretch  to  a  word  or  construction  in  deference  to 
theological  presuppositions,  is  a  fault  of  which  he  has  an  un- 
feigned horror.  Believing  personally  in  the  Virgin-born,  he 
dares  not  render  a  certain  famous  text  in  Isaiah,  *  The  virgin 
shall  conceive  ; '  and  while  accepting  the  narrative  in  Matt, 
xxvii.  57-60,  he  scruples  to  translate  another  celebrated  pas- 
sage, '  He  was  with  the  rich  in  his  death.' 

It  will  perhaps  be  said  that  all  Biblical  expositors  are  now 
agreed  in  admitting  the  full  supremacy  of  the  grammar  and 

1  See  Jer.  ix.  2.    Jeremiah  was  evidently  a  profound  student  of  the  writings  of 
inspired  men,  and  has,  I  think,  a  better  title  than  Ezra  to  be  regarded  as  the  father  of 
the  Soferim  (students  of  Scripture  :  A.  V.  'scribes  '). 

2  Jer.  vi.  25.  xx.  3,  10,  xlvi.  5,  xlix.   29,  comp.  Ps.   xxxi.    14.     (Hitzig  and  Ewald 
ascribe  Ps.  xxxi.  to  Jeremiah.     It  would,  however,  be  too  bold  to  assert  that  all  pas- 
sages with  affinities  to  Jeremiah  were  actually  written  by  that  prophet,  who  seems,  in 
fact,  to  have  been  the  founder  of  a  school  of  writers.) 


ESSAYS.  I  8  I 

the  lexicon.  They  are  doubtless  agreed  in  theory,  but  their 
practice  does  not  always  correspond.  I  may  seem  to  be  un- 
necessarily earnest,  and  even,  I  fear,  discourteous,  and  I  am 
eager  to  proceed  to  still  more  interesting  matters.  But  even 
this  point  has  a  degree  of  importance,  and  the  evidence  for  it 
cannot  be  relegated  to  a  footnote.  Let  me  refer,  then,  to  the 
two  passages  quoted  above — Isa.  vii.  14,  liii.  9.1  It  is  a  fact 
which  I  have  myself  emphatically  stated,  that  the  word  'almah 
is  used  everywhere  else  of  an  unmarried  woman.  But  it  is  also 
a  fact  that  this  is  only  inferred  from  the  context,  and  there  is 
nothing  in  Isa.  vii.  14—16  to  enable  us  to  determine  positively 
whether  the  mother  of  Immanuel  was  a  married  or  simply  a 
marriageable  woman.  We  may,  indeed,  suspect  from  the  form 
of  the  prophecy  that  Isaiah  *  saw  something  peculiar  in  her 
circumstances '  (vol.  i.  p.  48)  ;  but  we  cannot  venture  to  go  an 
inch  further.  Just  as  'elem  might  legitimately  be  used  of  a 
young  man  who  happened  also  to  be  married,  so  might  talmak 
be  used  of  a  young  woman  who  was  also  a  wife.  It  is  stretch- 
ing language  unduly,  and  converting  translation  into  exegesis, 
to  exclude  this  full  possibility  with  such  a  meagre  context  as 
the  prophecy  of  Immanuel. 

With  regard  to  the  second  passage  referred  to,  a  protest  is 
perhaps  still  more  necessary,  because  two  eminent  scholars 
(Dr.  Delitzsch  and  Dr.  Kay),  while  rejecting  the  ungramma- 
tical  rendering  of  Vitringa  (and  Auth.  Vers.),  continue  to 
illustrate  the  passage  by  quoting  Matt,  xxvii.  57—60.  How 
this  can  be  done  without  a  violation  of  the  rules  of  parallelism, 
and  an  injury  to  the  harmony  of  the  style,  it  is  difficult  to 
understand  (see  note  p.  48).  This,  then,  appears  to  be  a  case 
of  the  involuntary  nullification  of  a  rendering  by  the  exegesis, 
and  reminds  us  forcibly  of  the  words  of  Scaliger,  '  Non 
aliunde  dissidia  in  religione  pendent,  quam  ab  ignoratione 
grammatical.' 

I  have  ventured  to  use  the  phrase  '  a  definitely  Christian 
interpretation  of  the  Old  Testament.  I  do  not  thoroughly 
like  it,  any  more  than  I  like  the  distinction  between  the  na- 
tural and  the  supernatural.  Both  expressions,  however  con- 
venient and  for  purposes  of  classification  indispensable,  are 
but  provisional  to  those  who  have  learned  'to  sum  up  all 
things  in  Christ '  (words  which  have  happily  not  yet  become 
a  Shibboleth,  and  which  have  as  profound  a  philosophical  as 
religious  significance).  Everything  in  the  Old  Testament 
stands  in  some  relation  to  Christ,  whether  '  definitely  '  or  not. 
Nor  is  this  all.  Every  revolution  of  the  ancient  heathen 

1  On  the  Christian  interpretation  of  these  passages,  see  belo\v. 


1 82  ESSAYS. 

world,  whether  in  politics  or  in  thought,  is  a  stage  in  its 
journey  towards  that  central  event,  which  is  the  fulfilment  of 
its  highest  aspirations.  Plato  speaks  almost  as  if  he  foresaw 
the  crucifixion,1  and  Seneca  insists  on  the  historic  character 
of  the  ideal  wise  man,  '  even  though  within  long  periods  one 
only  may  be  found.2  As  an  accomplished  historical  theologian 
has  well  said  : 

'  The  fact  that  such  a  character  [as  Jesus  Christ],  so  unique, 
so  divine,  should  have  come  into  the  world,  leads  us  to  feel 
that  there  surely  must  have  been  in  earlier  times  some  shadows 
at  least,  or  images,  to  represent,  dimly  it  may  be,  to  former 
generations  that  great  thing  which  they  were  not  actually  to 
witness.  It  would  lead  us  to  believe  that  there  must  have 
been  some  prophetic  voice  to  announce  the  future  coming  of 
the  Lord,  or  else  the  very  stones  would  have  cried  out.' 3 

But  provisionally  one  must  draw  a  distinction  between 
some  foreshadowings,  some  prophecies,  and  others.  There 
are  not,  indeed,  two  Spirits  of  prophecy,  the  one  for  the  Gen- 
tile, the  other  for  the  Jewish  world  ;  but  in  our  present  condi- 
tion of  ignorance  it  is  at  least  not  irrational  to  maintain  that 
the  '  prophetic  voices '  which  announce  the  Messiah  in  the  Old 
Testament  are  so  definite  and  distinct,  and  in  such  agreement 
with  history,  as  to  prove  that  God  has  in  very  deed  revealed 
himself  to  Israel  (not  for  Israel's  sake  alone)  in  a  fuller  sense 
than  to  other  nations. 

It  is  not,  however,  everyone  who  is  honestly  able  to  come 
to  this  conclusion.  It  depends  on  one's  moral  attitude  to- 
wards the  two  great  Biblical  doctrines  summed  up  in  the  ex- 
pressions '  the  Living  God,'  and  '  the  God-man  Jesus  Christ.' 
If  you  believe  heartily  in  the  God  of  Revelation  and  of  Pro- 
vidence, you  are  irresistibly  impelled  to  a  view  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, which,  though  it  may  be  difficult  to  demonstrate,  is 
none  the  less  in  the  highest  degree  reasonable.  It  is  only 
half  of  your  belief  that  the  Biblical  writers  saw  deeper  into 
spiritual  things  and  spoke  more  forcibly  of  what  they  had 
seen  than  ordinary  men.  It  seems  to  you  the  most  natural 
thing  in  the  world  that,  at  important  moments  in  the  history 
of  God's  people,  and  at  the  high-water  marks  of  the  inspira- 
tion of  His  prophets,  typical  personages  should  have  been 

1  Plato,  De  repubL,  ii.  pp.  361-2.  It  is  just  possible  that  Plato's  imaginative  pic- 
ture of  the  sufferings  of  the  righteous  man  was  inspired  by  the  story  of  Osiris  (though 
the  important  detail  of  the  resurrection  is  wanting)  ;  but  from  a  Christian  point  of 
view  this  most  touching  story  is,  in  its  post-mythic  or  spiritualised  form,  an  unconscious 
prophecy  of  the  Gospel.  Tertullian,  I  think,  calls  our  Lord  '  alter  Osiris.' 

'*  Seneca,  De  constant.,  c.  7,  §  i. 

5  Sermon  preached  in  Westminster  Abbey  by  the  Very  Rev.  Dr.  Stanley,  Christmas 
Day,  1879.  (Abstract  in  Daily  Telegraph.  Dec.  26.)  On  revising  my  work,  I  cannot 
help  adding,  Quis  desiderio  sit  pudor  aut  modus  Tarn  cari  capitis  ? 


ESSAYS.  183 

raised  up,  and  specially  definite  prophecies  have  been  uttered. 
Not  that  the  laws  of  human  nature  were  violated,  nor  that 
Christian  interpreters  are  to  explain  the  prophets  unphilo- 
logically,  but  that  God  overruled  the  actions  and  words  of 
His  servants,  so  as  to  cast  a  shadow  of  the  coming  Christ. 
If,  again,  you  believe  in  the  true  though  '  veiled '  Divinity  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  humbly  accept  His  decrees  on  all  subjects 
related  to  His  Messiahship,  you  will  feel  loyally  anxious  to 
interpret  the  Old  Testament  as  He  beyond  question  inter- 
preted it.  You  will  believe  His  words  when  He  says  (and  I 
attach  no  special  importance  to  the  accuracy  of  this  parti- 
cular report  of  His  words,  for  the  idea  of  it  pervades  all  the 
four  Gospels)  :  *  The  Scriptures  are  they  which  testify  of  me.' 
You  will  reply  to  non-Christian  critics,  '  In  spite  of  modern 
criticism  and  exegesis,  there  must  be  some  sense  in  which  the 
words  of  my  Lord  are  true.  He  cannot  have  mistaken  the 
meaning  of  His  own  Bible,  the  book  on  which  in  His  youth 
and  early  manhood  He  nourished  His  spiritual  life.  He  who 
received  not  the  Spirit  by  measure,  cannot  have  been  funda- 
mentally mistaken  in  the  Messianic  character  of  psalms  and 
prophecies.' 

In  short,  there  are  two  fixed  points  with  the  class  of 
students  here  represented :  i.  that  in  order  to  prepare  suscep- 
tible minds  for  the  Saviour,  a  special  providential  guidance 
may  be  presumed  to  have  been  given  to  the  course  of  certain 
selected  lives  and  the  utterances  of  certain  inspired  person- 
ages ;  and  2.  that  this  presumption  is  converted  into  a  certainty 
by  our  Lord's  authoritative  interpretation  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. To  accept  these  two  fixed  points  is  to  many  persons 
a  very  real  '  cross.'  The  torrents  of  ridicule  which  have  been 
poured  out  upon  '  circumstantial  fulfilments '  have  left  a 
general  impression  that  they  can  only  be  admitted  by  doing 
violence  to  grammar  and  context,  which  to  a  modern  student 
is  nothing  short  of  *  plucking  out '  his  '  right  eye.'  Hence 
many  '  liberal '  theologians l  have  been  fain  to  stunt  their 
religion  in  favour,  as  they  suppose,  of  their  philology,  and  their 
example  has  been  followed  with  less  excuse  by  many  who 
are  guiltless  of  special  study.  But  must  there  not  be  some 
mistake  both  on  the  side  of  the  cross-bearers  and  of  the  cross- 

1  It  is  a  pleasure  to  be  able  to  except  F.  D.  Maurice.  Speaking  of  the  attractive- 
ness to  the  Rabbis  of  the  time  of  Christ  of  '  merely  incidental '  statements,  such  as 
Mic.  v.  2,  he  observes,  '  I  do  not  see  that  it  was  any  disparagement  to  their  wisdom 
that  they  recognised  a  divine  order  and  contrivance  even  in  such  circumstances  as 
these.  .  .  .  Devout  men  welcome  such  coincidences  and  recurrences  as  proofs  that 
they  are  under  a  divine  education.  Why  should  the  like  be  wanting  in  a  national 
story  ?  Why  should  they  not  be  noted  in  a  book  which  traces  all  the  parts  of  it  as  the 
fulfilment  of  a  divine  purpose?'  (Prophets  and  Kings  of  the  Old  Testament,  p.  341.) 


184  ESSAYS. 

rejecters  ?  Can  it  be  that  human  nature  is  '  divided  again; 
itself/  and  left  to  choose  between  intellectual  and  religious 
mutilation  ?  Here  at  least  scepticism  is  the  truest  piety.  It 
is  the  conviction  of  the  writer  that  there  is  a  '  more  excellent 
way,'  and  that  the  philological  and  the  Christian  interpretation 
can  be  honestly  combined,  without  any  unworthy  compromise. 


2. 

The  definitely  Christian  elements  in  the  Old  Testament 
are  mainly  (not  by  any  means  entirely)  of  two  kinds  :  i.  fore- 
shadowings  of  special  circumstances  in  the  life  of  Christ, 
occurring  as  it  were  casually  in  the  midst  of  apparently 
rhetorical  descriptions  ;  and  2.  distinct  pictures  of  Jesus  Christ, 
the  suffering  Messiah.  It  is  of  the  former  that  I  speak  at 
present.  We  have  a  right  to  expect  them,  and  we,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  find  them.  But  it  must  be  remembered,  in 
deference  to  common  sense,  that  the  passages  in  which  they 
occur  admit  of  another  but  a  perfectly  combinable  interpre- 
tation. The  object  of  special  or  circumstantial  features  in 
an  Old  Testament  description  is  primarily  to  symbolise  the 
character  of  the  person  or  work  referred  to,  and  the  literal 
fulfilment  of  the  clause  or  verse  containing  them  in  some 
event  of  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ  is  a  superabundant  favour  to 
those  who  believe  in  the  Providence  of  a  '  Living  God.' *  For 
prophecy  has  in  the  first  place  to  do  with  principles  and 
broad  general  characteristics,  and  only  in  the  second  with 
details.  This  caution  should  be  borne  in  mind  to  avoid 
misunderstanding  the  sequel. — The  special  foreshadowings 
spoken  of  are  exemplified  in  no  portion  of  the  Old  Testament 
to  the  same  extent  as  the  Psalms  ;  they  relate  especially  in 
this  book  to  scenes  or  features  of  the  Passion.  The  following 
references  have  already  been  given  in  the  New  Testament  :— 

Ps.  xxxiv.  20,  in  John  xix.  36  ; 

Ps.  xli.  9,  in  John  xiii.  18  ; 

Ps.  xxii.  i8,2  in  John  xix.  24  (not  Matt,  xxvii.  35) ; 

Ps.  Ixix.  10,  in  Rom.  xv.  3  ; 

Ps.  Ixix.  21,  in  John  xix.  28. 

But  the  Biblical  writers  have  only  given  us  specimens — 
the  parallelisms  are  both  more  numerous  and  more  striking 
than  might  be  supposed  from  these  few  instances.  In  Ps. 
xxxv.  n,  we  have  a  foreshadowing  of  the  false  testimony 
against  Jesus  ;  in  Ps.  xxii.  7,  8,  Ixix.  12,  of  the  revilings  ;  in 

1  Comp.  Mr.  C.  H.  H.  Wright,  Zechariah  and  his  Prophecies,  p.  239. 
3  Our  Lord  Himself  regarded  the  whole  psalm  as  prophetic  of  Himself,  as  we  must 
infer  from  His  utterance  of  the  opening  words  (Matt,  xxvii.  46,  Mark  xv.  34). 


ESSAYS.  185 

Ps.  xxii.  1 6,  of  the  piercing  of  the  hands  and  the  feet  (or,  if  the 
other  reading  be  adopted,  the  cruel,  v  lion-like '  worrying  of  the 
helpless  prey);  in  Ps.  Ixix.  21,  of  the  offering  of  the  gall  and 
vinegar.  It  should  be  observed  that  these  parallels  are  not 
such  as  can  be  disputed  (like  some  of  the  Old  Testament 
references  in  the  Epistles)  on  the  ground  of  far-fetched 
Rabbinic  exegesis  ;  they  are  taken  from  psalms  which,  with 
one  exception,1  are,  as  we  shall  see  presently,  in  a  very  strict 
sense  Messianic,  and,  in  fact,  also  supply  instances  of  our 
second  class  of  prophecies — viz.  distinct  pictures  of  the  suffer- 
ing Messiah.  It  is  of  course  possible  to  maintain  2  that  the 
whole  of  the  narrative  of  our  Lord's  Passion  was  suggested 
by  reminiscences  of  these  passages  of  the  Psalms  ;  but  the 
conjecture  would  not  be  a  plausible  one,  I.  because  of  the 
extreme  casualness  of  the  Psalm-parallels,3  and  2.  because  the 
whole  of  the  Gospel-narrative,  from  the  beginning  of  Mat- 
thew to  the  end  of  John,  is  pervaded  by  a  parallelism  to  the 
Old  Testament.  Yet  Strauss  himself  did  not  suppose  that 
the  whole  narrative  was  a  conscious  or  unconscious  fiction  on 
the  basis  of  Old  Testament  reminiscences.  It  may  be  con- 
tended, therefore,  that  the  existence  of  these  circumstantial 
prophecies  in  the  Book  of  Psalms  confirms  the  view  that  there 
are  similar  circumstantial  prophecies  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah. 
That  they  were  conscious  prophecies  the  writer  does  not  sup- 
pose, and  to  many  they  will  only  seem  accidental  coincidences. 
It  is  their  amount  and  quality  which  give  them  significance  ; 
and  the  full  Christian  explanation  of  them  as  due  to  Providen- 
tial overruling  (a  'pre-established  harmony ')  is  therefore  in  sole 
possession  of  the  field.4 

I  have  ventured  to  state  my  belief  that  the  psalms  to 
which  these  circumstantial  foreshadowings  belong  are  Mes- 
sianic. Let  me  briefly  explain  my  position.  There  is  much 
haziness  in  the  minds  of  most  persons  as  to  the  meaning 
of  the  words  Messiah  and  Messianic.  I  have,  therefore, 
first  of  all  to  state  in  what  sense  I  use  these  expressions.  I 
think  I  am  in  harmony  with  the  Biblical  writers  if  I  define 

1  The  exception  is  of  course  Ps.  xxxiv.,  which  is  only  Messianic  in  so  far  as  any 
characteristic  utterance  of  a  pious  sufferer  is  in  the  highest  degree  true  of  Christ.     But 
the  overruling  of  Providence  is  as  manifest  in  the  literal  fulfilment  of  John  xix.  36  as 
in  any  other  passage  of  the  group. 

2  Strauss  did  in  fact  hold  that  Psalms  xxii.  and  Ixix.,  'together  with  the  extract 
from  Isa.  liii.,'  '  form,  as  it  were,  the  programme  according  to  which  the  whole  history 
of  the  Crucifixion  in  our  Gospels  is  drawn  up'  (New  Life  of  Jesus,  Eng.  Transl., 
ii.  369). 

3  I  mean  that  except  in  the  light  of  the  Gospel -narratives  no  one  would  have  thought 
of  regarding  these  incidental  phrases  in  the  Psalms  as  anticipations  of  scenes  in  the 
Passion. 

4  See  Delitzsch,  '  Der  Messias  als  Versohner,'  Saat  auf  Hoffnuiig,  1866,  pp.  116- 
138,  especially  p.  136. 


l86  ESSAYS. 

the  word  Messiah  as  meaning  one  who  has  received  some 
direct  commission  from  God  determining  his  life's  work,  with 
the  single  limitation  that  the  commission  must  be  unique,  and 
must  have  a  religious  character.  Thus  Cyrus  will  not  be  a 
Messiah,  because  *  his  function  was  merely  preparatory  ;  he 
was  to  be  instrumental  in  the  removal  of  obstacles  to  the 
realisation  of  [God's  kingdom]'  (/.  C.  A.,  p.  1 66).  An  in- 
dividual priest  will  not  be  a  Messiah,  because  he  has  received 
no  unique  personal  commission  ;  even  the  High  Priest  Joshua 
is  only  represented  as  typical  of  Him  who  was  to  be  pre- 
eminently the  Messiah  (Zech.  iii.  8).  David  was  a  Messiah 
(compare  Ps.  xviii.  50),  because  he  was  God's  vicegerent  in  the 
government  of  His  people  Israel ;  the  laws  which  David  was 
to  carry  out  were  not  merely  secular,  but  religious,  and  of 
Divine  appointment.  Each  of  David's  successors  was  in  like 
manner  theoretically  a  Messiah.  The  people  of  Israel  was 
theoretically  a  Messiah,  because  specially  chosen  to  show 
forth  an  example  of  obedience  to  God's  laws  (Ex.  xix.  5>  6), 
and  to  preach  His  religion  to  the  Gentiles  (Isa.  ii.  3,  Iv.  5). 
Above  all,  a  descendant  of  David  who  should  take  up  the  ill- 
performed  functions  of  his  royal  ancestors  was  to  be,  both  in 
theory  and  in  fact,  the  Messiah  (Isa.  ix.  6, 7,  &c.) ;  and  so,  too, 
was  the  personal  Servant  of  Jehovah  (Isa.  Ixi.  i),  who  was 
both  to  redeem  His  people  from  their  sins,  and  to  lead  them 
in  the  performance  of  their  commission. 

Hence  we  may  reckon  five  groups  of  Messianic  psalms  : — 
I.  Psalms  which  refer  to  a  contemporary  Davidic  king, 
setting  him,  either  directly  or  by  implication,  in  the  light 
of  his  Messianic  mission.  II.  Those  entirely  devoted  to  the 
future  ideal  Davidic  sovereign.  III.  Those  which  relate  to 
the  future  glories  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  but  without  ex- 
pressly mentioning  any  Messiah.  IV.  Those  which,  though 
seemingly  spoken  by  an  individual,  in  reality  describe  the 
experiences  of  the  Jewish  nation  in  their  unsteady  performance 
of  their  Messianic  commission.  V.  Those  in  which,  with 
more  or  less  consistency,  the  psalmist  dramatically  introduces 
the  personal  and  ideally  perfect  '  Servant  of  Jehovah '  (to 
adopt  the  phrase  in  Isa.  xlii.  &c.)  as  the  speaker. 

On  the  first  group  there  cannot  be  much  difference  of 
opinion.  It  contains  Psalms  xx.,  xxi.,  xlv.,  ci.,  cxxxii.  The 
interest  of  the  interpreter  is  more  awakened  by  the  second 
group,  containing  Psalms  ii.,  Ixxii.,  ex.  In  Ps.  ii.  we  are 
presented  first  with  a  picture  of  the  whole  world  subject  to 
an  Israelitish  king,  and  vainly  plotting  to  throw  off  the  yoke  ; 
then  with  the  divine  decree  assuring  universal  dominion  to 


ESSAYS.  187 

this  particular  king  ;  then  with  an  exhortation  to  the  kings 
of  the  earth  to  submit  to  Jehovah's  Son.1  It  is,  I  know, 
commonly  supposed  that  the  psalm  has  a  primary  reference 
to  circumstances  in  the  life  of  David,  but  the  ordinary  Chris- 
tian instinct  seems  to  me  much  nearer  the  truth.  Even 
granting  for  the  moment  that  the  chiefs  of  the  Syrians  and 
the  Ammonites  could  be  dignified  in  liturgical  poetry  with  the 
title  '  kings  of  the  earth,'  there  is  not  the  slightest  indication 
in  2  Sam.  vii.  or  elsewhere,  that  a  prophet  ever  conveyed  an 
offer  to  David  of  the  sovereignty  of  the  whole  world.  Even 
Jewish  tradition,  so  zealous  for  the  honour  of  the  Davidic  lyre, 
has  not  ascribed  this  psalm  to  David.  Who,  then,  can  the 
Son  of  Jehovah  and  Lord  of  the  whole  earth  be  but  the 
future  Messiah,  whom  the  prophets  describe  in  such  extra- 
ordinary terms  ?  Why  should  we  expect  the  psalms  always  to 
have  a  contemporary  political  reference  ?  If  one  psalmist  (see 
below)  takes  for  his  theme  the  Messianic  glories  of  Jerusalem, 
why  may  not  another  adopt  for  his  the  glories  of  the  Messiah 
himself  ? 

The  same  arguments  apply  to  Ps.  Ixxii.,  which  a  Uni- 
tarian divine  pronounces  '  the  most  Messianic  in  the  collection/ 
adding  that  it  '  is  applied  by  Bible  readers  in  general,  with- 
out hesitation  or  conscious  difficulty,  to  the  Messiah  of 
Nazareth,  as  beautifully  describing  the  spirit  of  his  reign.' 2 
The  judgment  of  the  plain  reader  is  not  to  be  lightly  disre- 
garded, and  though  Mr.  Higginson  goes  on  to  speak  of  '  its 
true  historic  marks,  which  assign  it  distinctly  to  the  accession 
of  Solomon,'  other  critics  (e.g.  Hupfeld)  altogether  deny  these, 
and  the  Messianic  interpretation  has  not  yet  been  satisfactorily 
refuted.  The  psalm  is  not,  indeed,  a  prediction  (as  King 
James's  Bible  makes  it),  but  is  at  any  rate  a  prayer  for  the 
advent  of  the  Prince  of  peace  and  of  the  world.  Ps.  ex., 
again,  is  as  a  whole  only  obscure  to  those  who  will  not  admit 
directly  Messianic  psalms.  How  significantly  the  first  of  the 
two  Divine  oracles  opens,  with  an  invitation  to  sit  on  the 
throne,  'high  and  lifted  up'  (Isa.  vi.  i),  where  the  Lord 
Himself  is  seated  !  Can  we  help  thinking  of  the  'El-gibbor 
in  Isaiah  (ix.  6),  and  still  more  of  the  '  one  like  a  son  of  man  ' 
who  '  came  with  the  clouds  of  heaven,'  and  was  '  brought  near 
before  the  Ancient  of  days '  (Dan.  vii.  1 3)  ?  True,  that  '  son 
of  man '  is  not  said  to  be  a  priest,  but  he  agrees  with  the 
personage  in  the  psalm  in  that  he  is  conceived  of  as  in 
heaven,  and  as  waging  war  and  exercising  sovereignty  on  earth 

1  The  Aramaic  bar,  not  admitting  the  article,  suited  the  unique  position  of  the 
personage  spoken  of. 

3  Higginson,  Ecce  Messias,  p.  30. 


iS8 


ESSAYS. 


from  heaven.  Neither  in  Daniel  nor  in  the  psalm  is  an] 
thing  said  about  the  Davidic  origin  of  the  high  potentate, 
but  his  nature  and  functions  are  clearly  those  of  the  Davidic 
Messiah.  The  priestly  character  of  the  '  lord  '  in  Ps.  ex.  I  can 
be  fully  explained  from  Zech.  iii.  8,  vi.  11-13,  where  a  priestly 
element  in  the  Messianic  functions  is  distinctly  recognised. 

Over  the  third  group  I  may  pass  lightly.  It  contains 
some  late  psalms,  such  as  xcvi.-c.,  in  which  the  happiness  of 
being  under  Jehovah's  personal  government  is  celebrated,  and 
also  Ps.  Ixxxvii.,  in  which,  chief  among  the  Messianic  privi- 
leges of  Jerusalem,  the  conversion  of  the  heathen  is  represented 
as  their  being  'born  again  in  Zion  '  (comp.  Isa.  xliv.  5). 

The  fourth  contains  a  number  of  psalms  commonly  re- 
garded as  Davidic,  and  as  typically  Messianic,  and  some 
which  are  merely  supposed  to  describe  the  sufferings  of  a 
pious  individual.  In  both  subdivisions  the  language  is  often 
hyberbolical,  which  is  explained  in  the  case  of  the  former  by 
the  typical  character  of  the  writer,  and  the  overruling  influence 
of  the  Spirit.  A  similar  explanation  might  plausibly  be 
offered  for  the  seeming  hyperboles  of  the  latter  subdivision, 
for  every  pious  sufferer  is  in  a  true  sense  a  type  of  Jesus 
Christ.  But  it  is  much  simpler  to  suppose  that  these  psalms 
really  describe  the  experiences  of  the  Jewish  nation  in  the 
pursuit  of  its  Messianic  ideal  :  the  supposed  speaker  is  a  per- 
sonification. This  is  no  arbitrary  conjecture.  The  Jewish 
nation  and  its  divinely  appointed  ideal  were,  in  fact,  to  the 
later  prophets  and  students  of  Scripture  a  familiar  subject 
of  meditation.  I  need  hardly  remind  the  reader  of  the 
4  Servant  of  Jehovah  '  in  some  parts  of  II.  Isaiah,  but  may  be 
allowed  to  state  my  opinion  that  one  principal  object  of  the 
Book  of  Jonah  was  to  typify  the  spiritual  career  of  Israel,  and 
that  the  so-called  Song  of  Solomon  was  admitted  into  the 
Canon  on  the  ground  that  the  Bride  of  the  poem  symbolised 
the  chosen  people.  Can  we  wonder  that  some  of  the  psalmists 
adopted  a  similar  imaginative  figure  ? 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  of  these  psalms  is  the  eigh- 
teenth. It  is  probable  enough  that  the  psalmist  in  writing  it  had 
the  life  of  David  in  his  mind's  eye  ;  but  it  would  be  unreasonable 
to  suppose  that  he  merely  wished  to  idealise  a  deceased  king, 
or  even  the  Davidic  family.  The  world-wide  empire  claimed 
by  the  supposed  speaker,  and  the  analogy  of  cognate  psalms, 
are  totally  opposed  to  such  a  hypothesis.  But  when  we  con- 
sider that  the  filial  relation  to  God  predicated  of  David  as 
king  in  2  Sam.  vii.  is  also  asserted  of  the  Israelitish  nation 
(Ex.  iv.  22,  Hos.  xi.  I,  Ps.  Ixxx.  15),  and  that  in  Isa.  Iv.  3-5 


ESSAYS.  189 

the  blessings  promised  to  David  are  assured  in  perpetuity  to 
the  faithful  Israel,  it  becomes  difficult  to  deny  that  David  may 
have  been  regarded  as  typical  of  the  nation  of  Israel. — Another 
of  these  psalms  is  the  eighty-ninth,  which  supplies  further 
evidence  of  the  typological  use  of  David.  The  psalmist  has 
been  describing  the  ruin  which  has  overtaken  the  Davidic 
family,  but  insensibly  passes  into  a  picture  of  the  ruin  of  the 
state,  and  identifies  'the  reproach  of  the  heels  of  thine 
anointed'  (z/.  51)  with  'the  reproach  of  thy  servants  '  (v.  50). 
—  Ps.  Ixxi.  is  another  important  member  of  this  group,  as 
anyone  must  admit  who  will  candidly  apply  this  key  ;  see 
especially  v.  20,  where  the  reading  of  the  Hebrew  text  is  not 
4  me,'  but  '  us.'  Perhaps  also  Ps.  cii.  may  be  added.  The 
expressions  in  vv.  3-9  are,  some  of  them  at  least,  far  too 
strong  for  an  individual,  whereas  in  the  mouth  of  the  perso- 
nified people  they  are  not  inappropriate.  The  words  in  v.  23 
'he  hath  shortened  my  days  '  (virtually  retracted  in  v.  28) 
remind  us  of  Ps.  Ixxxix.  45  ;  and  those  in  the  parallel  clause, 
'  he  hath  weakened  my  strength  in  the  way,'  are  perhaps  an 
allusion  to  the  '  travail  in  the  way '  of  the  Israelites  in  the 
wilderness  (Ex.  xviii.  8).  There  are  some  reasons,  however, 
for  rather  placing  this  psalm  in  the  next  group. 

The  remaining  members  of  the  fourth  group  are  the  so- 
called  imprecatory  psalms  l  (e.g.  v.,  xxxv.,  xl.,  lv.,  Iviii.  Ixix., 
cix.).  As  long  as  these  are  interpreted  of  an  individual 
Israelite,  they  seem  strangely  inconsistent  with  the  injunctions 
to  benevolence  with  which  the  Old  Testament  is  interspersed.2 
If,  however,  they  are  spoken  in  the  name  of  the  nation  — 
'  Jehovah's  Son/  their  intensity  of  feeling  becomes  intelligible. 
Certainly  it  was  not  '  obstinate  virulence  and  morbid  morose- 
ness  '  which  inspired  them,  for  '  each  of  the  psalms  in  which 
the  strongest  imprecatory  passages  are  found  contains  also 
gentle  undertones,  breathings  of  beneficent  love.  Thus, 
"  When  they  were  sick,  I  humbled  my  soul  with  fasting  ;  I 
behaved  myself  as  though  it  had  been  my  friend  or  brother." 
"  When  I  wept  and  chastened  my  soul  with  fasting,  that  was 
to  my  reproach."  "  They  have  rewarded  me  evil  for  good, 
and  hatred  for  my  love  !  " ' 3  And,  '  finally  in  the  most  awful  of 
these  psalms,  the  denunciations  die  away  into  a  strain  which, 
in  the  original,  falls  upon  a  modern  ear  with  something  of 

1  Some  of  these  psalms,  however  (xxxv.,  xl.,  lv.,  Ixix.),  belong  more  properly  to 
the  fourth  group. 

2  Ex.  xxiii.  4,  5  ;  Lev.  xix.  18  ;  Prov.  xx.  22,  xxiv.  17,  18,  29,  xxv.  21,  22,  comp. 
Job  xxxi.  29,  30. 

3  Bishop  Alexander,  Bampton  Lectures  on  the  Psalms,  1876,  p.  53  (Ps.  xxxv.  13, 
Ixix.  10,  ii  ;  cix.  4,  5). 


I QO  ESSAYS. 

the  cadence  of  pathetic  rhyme   (v'libbee  khaldl  Vkirbee,  "  and 
my  heart  is  pierced  through  within  me  ").'  * 

Among  the  psalms  not  ascribed  to  David  which  belong 
to  this  group  is  the  forty-first,  from  which  a  quotation  is  made 
in  a  Messianic  sense  in  John  xiii.  18.  It  is  only  the  people 
of  Israel  which  can  at  once  confess  its  former  sins  (v.  4), 
and  appeal  to  its  present  'integrity'  (v.  12). — The  fifth  and 
last  group  marks  the  highest  level  attained  by  the  inspired 
poets.  It  contains  Ps.  xxii.,  xxxv.,  xl,  lv.,  Ixix.,  cii.  I  can- 
not think  that  the  persistency  of  the  traditional  interpreta- 
tion, at  any  rate  as  regards  the  two  first  of  these  psalms, 
is  wholly  due  to  theological  prepossessions.  In  some  of  its 
details,  the  traditional  Christian  interpretation  is  no  doubt 
critically  untenable,  but  in  essentials  it  seems  to  me  truer 
than  any  of  the  current  literary  theories.  Let  me  briefly 
refer  to  the  twenty-second  psalm,  which  presents  such  strik- 
ing affinities  with  II.  Isaiah.  In  two  respects  it  is  distin- 
guished from  most  others  of  the  same  group  ;  it  contains  no 
imprecations  and  no  confession  of  sinfulness.  It  falls  into 
two  parts.  The  first  and  longer  of  these  is  a  pathetic  appeal 
to  Jehovah  from  the  lowest  depth  of  affliction.  The  speaker 
has  been  God's  servant  from  the  beginning  (yv.  9,  10),  yet 
he  is  now  conscious  of  being  God-forsaken  (v.  i).  Not  only 
are  his  physical  sufferings  extreme  (yv.  14-17),  but  he  is  the 
butt  of  scoffers  and  a  public  laughing-stock  (yv.  6,  7).  Who 
his  enemies  are — whether  heathen  oppressors  or  unbelieving 
Israelites — is  not  here  stated,  but  from  a  parallel  passage 
(Ps.  Ixix.  8)  it  is  clear  that  the  hostility  arises,  partly  at  least, 
from  the  sufferer's  fellow-countrymen.  Only  after  long 
wrestling  with  God  does  the  psalmist  attain  the  confidence 
that  he  has  been  heard  of  Him  (y.  21).  At  this  point  the 
tone  suddenly  changes.  The  prayer  becomes  a  joyous 
declaration  of  the  answer  which  has  been  vouchsafed,  and  a 
promise  of  thank-offerings.  '  But  he  does  not  end  there. 
He  treats  his  deliverance  as  a  matter  of  national  congratula- 
tion, and  a  cause  of  more  than  national  blessings.  He  not 
only  calls  upon  his  fellow-countrymen  to  join  him  in  his 
thanksgiving  (y.  23),  but  breaks  out  into  an  announcement 
which  draws  the  whole  world  within  the  sphere  of  his  triumph 
(yv.  27,  28,  31).' 2  I  need  not  stay  to  point  out  how  unsuitable 
is  language  of  this  description  to  any  of  the  Israelites  men- 
tioned in  the  Old  Testament,  and  how  unnatural  it  is  that 
the  establishment  of  God's  universal  kingdom  should  be 

1  Ibid.,  p.  57.     (It  is  not  necessary  to  assume  that  the  faithless  friends  in  Ps.  xxxv., 
lv. ,  are  mere  figures  of  speech. ) 

'2  Maitland,  The  Argument  from  Prophecy  (S.  P.  C.  K.)  pp.  95,  96. 


ESSAYS.  I  9 1 

placed  in  sequence  to  the  deliverance  of  an  individual  sufferer.1 
The  difficulties  are  strikingly  analogous  to  those  which  meet 
us  in  II.  Isaiah.2  There,  as  here,  some  features  of  the  de- 
scription seem  to  compel  us  to  explain  them  of  an  individual 
Israelite,  while  others  remain  unintelligible  unless  referred  in 
some  way  to  the  people  of  Israel,  with  its  Messianic,3  mission- 
ary functions.  There,  as  here,  the  deliverance  of  the  sufferer 
has  a  vital  influence  on  the  spiritual  life,  first  of  all  of  his  own 
people,  and  then  of  all  mankind.  There,  as  here,  the  newly- 
acquired  spiritual  blessings  are  described  under  the  figure  of 
a  feast.  Is  it  so  very  bold  to  explain  Ps.  xxii.  and  the  psalms 
like  it  as  utterances  of  that  ideal  and  yet  most  real  personage, 
who  in  II.  Isaiah  is  the  fruit,  from  one  point  of  view,  no  doubt, 
of  special  revelation,  but  from  another  equally  justified  and 
perfectly  consistent  with  the  former,  of  an  intense  longing  for 
the  fulfilment  of  Israel's  ideal  ?  To  assume  that  both  the 
sacred  poets  and  the  poet-prophet  are  feeling  their  way  (not, 
however,  at  random)  to  the  presence  of  the  Redeemer  ?  That 
they  have  abandoned  the  hope  of  an  earthly  King  of  Israel, 
and  are  conscious,  too,  that  even  the  noblest  members  of  the 
nation  are  inadequate  to  the  Messianic  functions  ?  And  that 
hence  they  throw  out  in  colossal  outlines  an  indistinct  because 
imaginatively  expressed  conception  of  One  who  shall  perfectly 
fulfil  these  functions  for  and  with  his  people  ? 

The  above  is  but  a  bare  statement  of  results,  which,  what- 
ever be  their  intrinsic  value,  may  claim  a  certain  degree  of 
attention  on  account  of  the  process  by  which  they  were  gained. 
It  is  not  often  that  a  Saul,  in  searching  for  his  father's  asses, 
finds  a  kingdom.  The  object  of  the  special  study,  of  which 
these  results  are  the  principal  fruit,  was  the  composition  of 
a  chapter  in  a  literary  history  of  the  Old  Testament.  It  now 
appears  to  the  author  that  they  supply  a  sound  basis  for  the 
1  Christian  interpretation  '  at  any  rate  of  the  Psalter  ;  but  this 
is  entirely  an  after-thought.  That  there  is  a  mysterious  x  in 
this  wonderful  book  became  clear  to  the  author  from  a  purely 

1  Hupfeld,  I  know,  denies  that  the  anticipations  expressed  in  w.  27-31  stand  in 
any  relation  to  the  deliverance  of  the  speaker.     But  by  this  denial  he  destroys  the 
unity  of  plan  of  the  poem  ;  it  is  certain,  too,  that  the  later  O.  T.  writers  often  con- 
nect  the   conversion  of   the  heathen  with  the  sight  of  the  wonderful  deliverance  of 
Israel.     And  the  very  connection  which  Hupfeld  denies  in  Ps.  xxii.,  he  grants  in  the 
parallel  passage  in  Ps.  cii.  (vv.  16-18). 

2  It  would  be  instructive  to  make  out  a  list  of  the  numerous  parallels  in  these 
psalms  to  II.  Isaiah  and  the  Book  of  Job  (for  the  author  of  Job,  as  we  have  seen,  is 
not  without  flashes  of  Gospel  light).     Comp.  for  instance,  Ps.  xxii.  6,  '  I  am  a  worm,' 
with   Isa.  xli.  14,  Job  xxv.  6;  ibid,  'and  no  man,'  with  Isa.  Hi.  14,  liii.  2  ;  ibid.  '  de- 
spised of  people,'  with  Isa.  xlix.  7  ;  w.  16,  17,  with  Job's  descriptions  of  his  sickness  ; 
vv.  26,  28  with  Isa.  Iv.  i,  21.      Vv.  27-29  also  find  their  best  commentary  in  Isa.  lii. 

14-  IS- 

5  On  the  sense  of  the  word  Messianic,  see  above,  pp.  185-6. 


192  ESSAYS, 

literary  point  of  view.  Applying  the  key  furnished  by  the 
Christian  theory,  he  then  found  himself  in  a  position  to  ex- 
plain this  mystery,  and  was  further  enabled  to  rediscover  those 
peculiar,  circumstantial  prophecies  which  are  so  natural  and 
intelligible  upon  the  Christian  presuppositions. 


Such  being  the  case  with  the  Psalter,  are  we  not  justified 
in  expecting  corresponding  phenomena  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah, 
viz.  I.  foreshadowings  of  special  circumstances  in  the  life  of 
our  Saviour ;  and  2.  distinct  pictures  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
suffering  Messiah  ?  We  may  for  our  present  purpose  leave 
on  one  side  the  question  whether  or  not  this  book  is  of  com- 
posite origin.  It  is  at  any  rate  a  very  comprehensive  work, 
by  no  means  limited  to  the  thoughts  and  prospects  of  the 
age  of  Isaiah.  Indeed,  it  may  be  called  a  text-book  of  pro- 
phetic religion,  and  strange  would  it  be  if  belief  in  the 
Messiah  were  the  only  dumb  note  in  its  scale. 

The  foreshadowings  of  special  events  in  the  life  of  Christ 
pointed  out  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah  by  New  Testament  writers, 
are  even  fewer  in  number  than  those  in  the  Psalms.  Com- 
pare the  following  passages  : — 

Isa.  vii.  14,  Matt.  i.  23  ; 

Isa.  ix.  i,  2,  Matt.  iv.  15,  16 ; 

Isa.  liii.  12  (fourth  clause),  Luke  xxii.  37. 

To  these  are  added  by  the  higher  exegesis  l  liii.  5  (first  clause), 
liii.  9,  and  the  last  clause  of  liii.  12 — added,  we  can  hardly 
doubt,  in  the  spirit  of  the  apostolic  age,  which,  as  the  use  of 
TTOLS  in  Acts  iii.  13,  26,  iv.  27,  30,  shows,  interpreted  the  '  Ser- 
vant '  to  mean  Jesus  Christ.  Let  me  touch  upon  each  of 
these  passages.  [Add.  1.  6,  comp.  Matt.  xxvi.  67,  xxvii.  30.] 
(a)  Isa.  vii.  14. — It  is  true  that  the  sign  given  to  Ahaz 
consists  chiefly  in  the  name  and  fortunes  of  the  child  Imma- 
nuel,  but  the  mother  is  not  to  be  left  entirely  out  of  account 2 
(see  note  ad  loc^],  Isaiah's  '  dim  intuition  '  of  something  re- 
markable in  the  circumstances  of  the  mother  must,  from  a 
Christian  point  of  view,  be  ascribed  to  the  *  Spirit  of  Christ 
which  was  in  '  the  prophet  (i  Pet.  i.  1 1).  This  is  one  part  of 

1  If  we  admit  the  phrases  'higher '  and  'lower  criticism,'  why  not  also  '  higher'  and 
'  lower  exegesis  '  ?     By  '  higher  exegesis  '  I  understand  one  which  '  interprets  prophecy 
m  the  light  of  fulfilment,  and  develops  the  germs  of  doctrine  in  a  New  Testament 
sense    (Preface  to  vol.  i.) ;  it  stands  or  falls  with  a  belief  in  the  predominant  divine 
element  in  prophecy. 

2  I  admit  an  error  of  judgment  in  /.  C.  A.,  p.  31. 


ESSAYS.  193 

the  unexpected  '  pre-established  '  harmony  between  the  verbal 
form  of  the  prophecy  and  its  fulfilment.  Another  part  is  the 
meaning  of  the  name.  Isaiah  and  Ahaz  may  have  under- 
stood it  to  mean  simply  (  God  is  on  our  side  ;'  but  the  fulfil- 
ment in  the  Person  of  Jesus  Christ  revealed  a  depth  of 
meaning  which  Isaiah  (though  with  'El  gibber,  '  God-the- 
Mighty-One,'  before  us  in  Isa.  ix.  6,  we  should  speak  hesi- 
tatingly) did  not  probably  suspect. 

(b)  Isa.  ix.   i,  2. — It  is  most  remarkable  (and  might  at 
first  sight  justify  a  suspicion  of  interpolation)  that  Isaiah,  a 
man  of  Judah,  should  have  delivered  this  exuberant  promise 
to  the  border-districts  of  Israel,  especially  as  their  inhabitants 
had  most  likely  approximated  more  to  heathenism  than  those 
of  the  rest  of  Israel.     The  coincidence  with  the  circumstances 
of  Jesus  Christ  is  too  remarkable  to  be  explained  away.    The 
Jews  certainly  inferred  from  this  passage   of  Isaiah  that  the 
Messiah  would  appear  in  Galilee.1 

(c)  Isa.  liii.  12  (fourth  clause). — The  prophet  merely  meant 
that  the  Servant  of  Jehovah  was  regarded  as  a  transgressor  ; 
but  by  a  providentially  '  pre-established  harmony  '  the  coinci- 
dence with  facts  is  even  literally  exact.     Such  honour  did  the 
Hand  which  moves  the  world  put  upon  the  words  of  prophecy. 

(d)  Isa.  liii.  5  (first  clause). — The  context  shows  that  by 
'  pierced '  the  prophet  intended  to   signify  a  violent   death 
accompanied  by  torture.     As  Vitringa  remarks,  '  there  is  no 
word  in  Hebrew  which  can  more  appropriately  be  referred  to 
the  torture  of  the  cross  of  Christ.' 

(e)  Isa.  liii.  9. — Dr.  Weir  observes,  '  When  the  whole  verse 
is  viewed  in  connection,  there  seems  no  reference  to  the  burial 
of  Christ  in  the  grave  of  Joseph  of  Arimathea.     It  would, 
indeed,  be  scarcely  consistent  with  the  spirit  of  the   Bible, 
which  makes  little  account  of  the  mere  possession  of  riches, 
to  give  prominence  in  the  prophetic  page  to  the  circumstance 
of  Christ's  being  buried   in   a  rich  man's  grave.     Surely  it 
added  nothing  to  the  glory  of  the  Saviour  to  have  His  body 
entombed  in  Joseph's   sepulchre;    it  was  a  high  honour  to 
Joseph  that  he  was  privileged  to  supply  a  resting-place  for 
the  body  of  Jesus  ;  but  surely  it  did  not  add  to  the  honour  of 
Jesus  to  lie  in  the  rich  man's  tomb.'     I  need  not  repeat  what 
I  have  said  above  on    the    inconsistency   into   which    some 
eminent  expositors  appear  to  have  fallen.     Those  who,  like 
Stier,  appeal  to  the  singular  '  rich  man  '  in  the  second  clause, 
as  indicating  Joseph  of    Arimathea,   forget   that   the   alter- 

1  Eisenmenger,  Entdecktesjudenthum,  ii.  747.     Delitzsch  also  refers  to  Literatnr- 
blatt  des  Orients,  1843,  col.  776. 

VOL.  II.  O 


1 94  ESSAYS. 

nation  of  numbers  is  a  characteristic  Hebrew  idiom  (comp 
Isa.  x.  4). 

(/)  Isa  liii.  12  (last  clause). — This  is  one  of  the  passages 
which,  from  an  evangelical  point  of  view,  place  Isa.  liii.  as 
much  above  Ps.  xxii.,  as  that  psalm,  owing  to  its  complete 
freedom  from  imprecations,  is  (as  it  may  seem  to  us  in  some 
of  our  moods)  above  Ps.  Ixix.      It  received   a  fulfilment  of 
which  the  prophet  could  never  have  dreamed  in  Luke  xxiii.  34. 
Let  us  now  turn  to  the  other  group  of  passages  in  Isaiah, 
containing  a  distinctly  Christian  element,  viz.  the  portraits  of 
the  teaching,  suffering,  but  in  and  through  his  suffering  trium- 
phant Messiah  (xlii.  1-7,  xlix.  1-6,  1.  4-9,  Hi.  I3~liii.  12).     No 
greater  problem,  whether  we  regard  its  intrinsic  difficulty  or 
the  importance  of  its  issues,  is  presented  to  the  Old  Testa- 
ment   interpreter    than    that    of  explaining  these  wonderful 
passages.     Their  difficulty  arises  partly  from  the  abruptness 
with  which  they  are  introduced,  partly  from  the  apparent  in- 
consistency of  some  of  the  expressions,  partly  (if  we  may 
judge  from  the  efforts  of  some  to  explain  it  away)  from  the 
extraordinary  distinctness  with  which  the   most  striking   of 
them  at  any  rate  prefigure  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ.     Let  us 
first  of  all  clearly  understand  the  alternatives  set  before  us. 
(a)  It  is  one  source  of  difficulty,  that  the  portrait-passages 
are  introduced  abruptly.     (There  is  an  analogy  for  this,  how- 
ever, in   the  abruptness  of  the  two  earliest   Messianic  pro- 
phecies in  chaps,  vii.  and  ix.).     The  alternatives  in  this  case 
are  to  suppose  (i)  that  these  passages  are  based  on  extracts 
from  a  separate  work,  which,  perhaps,  contained  a  spiritualised 
biography  of  the  great  martyr-prophet,  Jeremiah  ;   and  (2) 
that  the  prophetic  writer  is  carried  beyond  himself  by  a  spe- 
cially strong  inspiration  of  the  '  Spirit  of  Christ.'     The  former 
alternative  is  proposed  by  Dr.  Duhm,  of  Gottingen.1     The 
theory  partly  agrees  with  that  of  Ewald,  according  to  whom 
xl.  i,  2,  Hi.  13-liv.  12,  Ivi.  9-lvii.  n,  were  taken  from  an  earlier 
prophet,  but  the  difference  is  sufficient  to  allow  us  to  quote 
Ewald's   authority   as  opposed    to    the  view  of   Dr.  Duhm. 
The  objections  to  the  latter  are  (i)  stylistic  (how,  e.g.,  can 
xlii.  1-6  be  ascribed  to  a  different  author  from  the  rest  of  the 
prophecy  ?);  and  (2)  that  the  theory  makes  the  prophet  re- 
sponsible for  gratuitously  misleading  his  readers,     (b)  It  is 
also  said  that  some  of  the  expressions  used  of  the  Servant 
are  inconsistent.     This  may  be  explained,   I.  on  the  quota- 
tion-theory just   mentioned  ;  2.  as  due  to  a  haziness  in  the 
author's  conception  of  the  Servant  (a  view  unfavourable  to  his 

1  Duhm,  Die  Theologie  der  Prophcten  (Bonn,  1875),  p.  289. 


ESSAYS.  195 

poetic  vigour,  and  not  to  be  adopted  without  compulsion),  or 
3.  on  a  subtle  but  beautiful  and  (as  it  seems  to  me)  well-sup- 
ported theory  to  be  mentioned  presently,  (c)  Another  source 
of  difficulty  to  some  minds  is  the  extraordinary  resemblance 
of  the  description  to  the  Person  of  Jesus  Christ.  Here,  again, 
we  have  our  choice  of  alternatives,  (i)  We  may  say  with 
Mr.  Matthew  Arnold,  that  this  harmony  between  II.  Isaiah  and 
the  Gospels  is  perfectly  natural.  '  To  a  delicate  and  penetrat- 
ing criticism  it  has  long  been  manifest  that  the  chief  literal 
fulfilment  by  Christ  of  things  said  by  the  prophets  was 
the  fulfilment  such  as  would  naturally  be  given  by  one  who 
nourished  his  spirit  on  the  prophets  and  on  living  and  acting 
their  words.' l  Or  (2)  we  may  hold  that  the  Divine  Spirit 
overruled  in  such  a  way  the  mental  process  of  the  prophet 
that  he  chose  expressions  which,  while  completely  conveying 
his  own  meaning,  also  corresponded  to  a  future  fact  in  the  life 
of  Jesus  Christ.  This  does  not  exclude  us  from  searching 
for  a  point  of  contact  in  the  prophet's  consciousness,  and  such, 
I  think,  it  will  be  possible  to  find.2  Nor  does  it  prevent  us 
from  accepting  thankfully  the  element  of  truth  in  Mr.  Matthew 
Arnold's  too  self-eulogistic  observation.  The  harmony  be- 
tween Isaiah  and  the  Gospels  is,  in  fact,  perfectly  natural.  But 
it  is  also  perfectly  unique,  and  what  is  unique  may  in  one 
very  good  sense  be  called  supernatural.  And  so  we  come 
round  again  to  the  judgment  of  the  plain  reader,  that  the 
hand  of  God  is  in  this  extraordinary  correspondence,  and  as 
we  read  the  chapter  afresh  we  are  conscious  of  something  of 
the  impression  which  it  produced  upon  the  Earl  of  Rochester, 
whose  vivid  language  is  traceable  in  his  biographer's  report. 
'  He  said  to  me,'  says  Bishop  Burnet,  '  that,  as  he  heard  it 
read,  he  felt  an  inward  force  upon  him,  which  did  so  enlighten 
his  mind,  and  convince  him,  that  he  could  resist  it  no  longer : 
for  the  words  had  an  authority,  which  did  shoot  like  rays  or 
beams,  in  his  mind  ;  so  that  he  was  convinced,  not  only  by  the 
reasonings  he  had  about  it,  which  satisfied  his  understanding, 
but  by  a  power  which  did  so  effectually  constrain  him,  that 
he  did,  ever  after,  as  firmly  believe  in  his  Saviour,  as  if  he  had 
seen  him  in  the  clouds.' 3 

4- 

With  this  striking  confession,  with  which  nothing  need 
prevent  even  a  philologist  from  agreeing,  it  would  be  natural 

1  Arnold,  Literature  and  Dogma  (Lond.,  1873),  p.  114. 

2  Some  suggestions  in  aid  of  this   are   given   in   the  Essay  on  the  Servant  of 
Jehovah. 

3  Burnet's  lire  of  John  Earl  of   Rochester  (Lives  and  Characters,   ed.  Jebb,   p. 
229). 

O  2 


196  ESSAYS. 

to  close  this  essay.  Definitely  Christian  elements  of  the  two 
principal  kinds  mentioned  above  have,  it  is  believed,  been 
found,  without  any  injury  either  to  common  sense  or  to  lite- 
rary exegesis,  in  the  noblest  of  all  the  prophetic  books.  But 
a  few  remarks  seem  at  any  rate  expedient  on  what  may  be 
called  the  secondary  Christian  elements  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah 
— secondary,  only  so  far  as  they  relate  to  doctrines,  and  not 
to  material,  objective  facts  in  the  life  of  the  Saviour.  To 
treat  these  fully  would  require  a  peculiar  spiritual  ^dpio-pa, 
not  to  mention  the  heavy  demand  which  it  would  make  on 
the  remaining  space.  Stier,  with  all  his  faults,  still  deserves 
a  most  honourable  place  among  Christian  interpreters  for  the 
spiritual  insight  with  which  he  has  treated  this  department  of 
exegesis,  and  to  his  important  work  I  provisionally  refer  the 
reader.  Two  of  these  '  secondary  '  Christian  elements,  how- 
ever, imperatively  require  to  be  noticed. 

(a)  First,  the  divinity  of  the  Messiah  (I  take  the  word 
Messiah  in  an  enlarged  sense,  thus  including  the  truths  em- 
bodied in  the  Messianic  king,  and  in  the  personal  (  Servant  of 
Jehovah  ').  Both  parts  of  Isaiah  give  us  to  understand  clearly 
(and  not  as  a  mere  VTTOVOIO)  that  the  agent  of  Jehovah  in  the 
work  of  government  and  redemption  is  himself  divine.  Not, 
indeed,  the  much-vexed  passage  in  iv.  2,  where,  even  if  the 
date  of  this  prophecy  allowed  us  to  suppose  an  allusion  to 
the  Messiah,  '  sprout  of  Jehovah '  is  much  too  vague  a  phrase 
to  be  a  synonym  for  *  God's  Only-begotten  Son.'  But  the 
not  less  famous  'El  gibbor  in  ix.  6  may  and  must  still  be 
quoted.  As  Hengstenberg  remarks,  it  '  can  only  signify  God- 
Hero,  a  Hero  who  is  infinitely  exalted  above  all  human  heroes 
by  the  circumstance  that  he  is  God.  To  the  attempts  at 
weakening  the  import  of  the  name,  the  passage  x.  21 '  [where 
'El  gibbor  is  used  of  Jehovah]  'appears  a  very  inconvenient 
obstacle.' !  And  who  can  doubt  that,  granting  the  subject  of 
chap.  liii.  to  be  an  individual,  he  must  be  an  incarnation  of 
the  Divine  ?  That  such  a  conception — such  a  revelation — was 
not  opposed  to  primitive  religious  beliefs  has  been  already 
pointed  out  in  the  notes  on  ix.  6,  xiv.  14. 

(ft)  Next,  Vicarious  Atonement  It  is  not  surprising  that 
most  of  those  who  deny  the  personal  Servant  are  unwilling  to 
allow  the  presence  of  this  doctrine  in  Isa.  liii.2  Yet  in  itself 

1  Christology  of  the  Old  Testament,  iii.  88. 

2  In  /  C.  A.,  p.  191,  I  fully  admitted  this  idea,  but  my  inadequate  explanation  of 
'  the  Servant '  compelled  me  to  give  the  vicariousness  an  artificial  turn.     For  a  survey  of 
the  interpretations  opposed  to  the  full  Christian  one,  see  V.  F.  Oehler,  Der  Knecht 
Jehovas  im  Deuterojesaia,  ii.  66-136.     To  the  list  might  now  be  added  Riehm's,  in 
his  Messianic  Prophecy  (Eng.  Transl.),  p.  147,  and  Albrecht  Ritschl's,  in  his  Diechrist- 
liche  Lehre  von  der  Rechtfcrtigiwg,  &c.,  ii.  64,  65. 


ESSAYS.  197 

it  cannot  be  regarded  as  an  unexpected  phenomenon,  nor 
ought  it  to  be  described  as  a  '  heathenish  idea.'  As  Oehler 
has  well  observed,  '  That  the  intercession  of  the  righteous  for 
a  sinful  nation  is  effectual,  is  a  thought  running  through  the 
entire  Old  Testament,  from  Gen.  xviii.  23  sqq.  and  Ex.  xxxii. 
32  sqq.  (comp.  Ps.  cvi.  23,  and  subsequently  Amos  vii.  I  sqq) 
onwards.' l  And  though  no  doubt  it  is  also  stated  '  that 
guilt  may  reach  a  height  at  which  God  will  no  longer  accept 
the  intercession  of  His  servants '  (Jer.  xv.  I,  comp.  xi.  14), 
yet  this  is  not  inconsistent  with  the  idea  of  Vicarious  Atone- 
ment, as  even  Christians  understand  it,  and  in  chap,  liii.,  the 
blessings  promised  by  the  Servant  (whatever  we  understand 
them  to  be)  are  not  promised  unconditionally  to  every  member 
of  the  community.2  Now,  intercession  is  one  form  of  substi- 
tution. But  there  was  another  and  a  more  striking  form  of 
it  constantly  before  the  eyes  of  the  Israelites  in  their  sacrifices, 
whether  the  taking  of  life  was  involved  in  them  or  not,  for 
the  offerer  was  represented 3  by  his  offering.  And  so  the  way 
was  prepared  for  the  revelation  (comp.  Isa.  liii.)  of  One  to 
whom  a  prohibition  like  that  addressed  to  Jeremiah  could  not 
apply,  because  He  was  not  only  perfectly  righteous  Himself, 
but  able,  by  uniting  them  mystically  to  Himself,  to  '  make 
the  many  righteous  ; '  of  One  whose  sacrifice  of  Himself  was 
so  precious  that  it  could  be  accepted  even  for  a  people  which 
had  deliberately  broken  its  covenant  with  Jehovah,  and  which 
therefore  was  legally  liable  to  the  punishment  of  extermina- 
tion. (Here  the  conception  implied,  as  it  would  seem,  by  the 
prophet  passes,  strictly  speaking,  beyond  the  range  of  the 
sacrificial  ideas  of  the  Old  Testament.  For  the  law  recog- 
nised no  sacrifice  for  deliberate  violations  of  the  covenant. 
Be  it  remembered,  however,  that  even  chap.  liii.  and  the  lead- 
ing New  Testament  writers  make  a  distinction  among  those 
who  are  equally  liable  to  the  legal  sentence  of  death  ;  some, 
though  rebels,  are  at  least  susceptible  of  penitence.)  It  is  true 
that  none  of  the  other  foreshadowings  of  Christ  contain  this 

1  Oehler,  Old  Testament  Theology  (Eng.  Transl.),  ii.  425. 

2  See  commentary  on  liii.  n  ('the  many '). 

3  In  every  case  of  a  sacrifice  (whether  with  or  without  shedding  of  blood)  there  is 
representation  (or,  using  the  word  loosely,  'substitution').     But  we  must  carefully 
guard  against  an  error  of  the  older  divines,  viz.  that  when  a  victim  was  put  to  death,  it 
was  as  a  substitute  for  the  penal  death  of  the  sacrificer.     This  view  is  now  generally 
abandoned  by  Old  Testament  scholars.     The  truth  is  that  the  blood,  according  to  the 
Hebrew  conception,  is  the  vehicle  of  the  'soul'  (Lev.  xvii.  n),  and  the  shedding  of 
the  blood  of  the  victim  signifies  the  offering  of  its  life  in  place  of  the  life  of  him  who 
offers  it.     The  pure  'soul*   of  the  victim  'covers'  ("If3?)  or  atones  for  the  impure 
'soul'  of  the  offerer  ;  the  innocence  of  the  one  neutralises  the  sin  of  the  other.     (It 
must  be  remembered,  however,  that  the  verb  in  question  sometimes  has  for  its  subject 
Jehovah,  especially  in  the  Psalms  ;  God  '  covers'  or  cancels  sin,  without  our  being  told 
how  this  is  possible). 


198  ESSAYS. 

characteristically  (though  not  exclusively)  Christian  elemc 
of  Vicarious  Atonement.  But  that  constitutes  no  reason  why 
it  should  not  occur  once.  In  fact,  it  is  really  necessary  that 
it  should  occur  somewhere,  to  explain  that  wonderful  psalm 
which,  next  to  Isa.  liii.,  contains  the  clearest  anticipation  of 
Jesus  Christ  in  the  Old  Testament,  for  there  is  a  gap  between 
the  former  and  the  latter  part  of  Ps.  xxii.,  which  can  only 
be  filled  up  by  assuming  the  Vicarious  Atonement  from  Isa. 
liii.  The  writer  of  the  psalm  foresaw,  as  it  were  in  a  vision, 
the  sufferings  of  Christ  and  the  glory  that  should  follow,  but 
it  was  not  revealed  to  him  how  those  sufferings  produced  so 
immense  a  result.  His  spiritual  intuitions  were  true,  but 
limited.  But  the  prophet  of  the  Servant  of  Jehovah  saw 
further,  and  it  is  upon  this  ground  especially  that  he  has  been 
rightly  called  an  Evangelist  before  the  Gospel. 


IV,   THE   ROYAL   MESSIAH   IN   GENESIS. 

IT  is  a  singular  fact  that  the  prophet  Isaiah  should  be  at  once 
so  communicative  and  so  reserved  on  the  subject  of  the  Royal 
Messiah.  The  prophecies  in  chaps,  ix.  and  xi.  are  so  distinct 
and  vivid,  that  we  naturally  look  for  more  revelations  in  the 
same  lofty  style.  Whatever  be  the  reason,  whether  some 
prophecies  on  the  Messiah  have  been  lost,  or  whether  Isaiah 
did  not  regard  his  audience  as  sufficiently  prepared  for  further 
teaching — our  expectations  are  unrealised.  I  venture,  how- 
ever, to  adduce  a  specimen  of  an  early  Messianic  prophecy 
of  the  same  type  as  those  in  Isa.  ix.,  xi.,  which,  as  it  seems  to 
me,  has  been  much  misapprehended.  Here,  again,  there  is 
reason  to  suspect  that  the  instinct  of  simple  Christian  readers 
has  led  them  nearer  to  the  true  meaning  than  the  critical 
researches  of  '  liberal '  divines.  Some  qualifications,  indeed, 
are  necessary  in  my  opinion  to  the  traditional  Christian  view. 
These  will  be  explained  in  the  following  essay>  which  will 
probably  be  new  to  most  readers,  though  the  substance  of  it 
has  already  appeared  in  a  theological  paper.1 

It  is  necessary  to  mention  that  I  had  at  first  a  strong  pre- 
judice in  favour  of  the  rendering,  '  until  he  (or,  one)  come  to 
Shiloh,'  which  is  certainly  the  most  natural  meaning  of  the 
four  Hebrew  words  taken  by  themselves.  And  what  event 
was  so  likely  to  be  referred  to  in  this  group  of  historical  and 
descriptive  songs  (whether  we  regard  Gen.  xlix.  3-27  as  really 

1  Theological  Review,  Ir75,  pp.  300-306. 


ESSAYS.  199 

the  work  of  one  man,  or  as  a  collection  of  ancient  popular 
songs,  ascribed  by  a  poetical  fiction  to  Jacob,  makes  no  differ- 
ence to  the  argument)  as  the  assembly  of  the  tribes  of  Israel 
at  Shiloh  (Josh,  xviii.  i),  when  'the  land  had  been  subdued 
before  them  '  ?  Indeed,  the  closing  words  of  this  very  verse 
(Gen.  xlix.  10)  inevitably  suggest  a  comparison  with  the 
words  just  quoted,  and  therefore  favour  the  view  that  it  is  the 
assembly  at  Shiloh  which  is  referred  to.  We  cannot,  indeed, 
interpret '  until '  in  the  most  obvious  of  its  possible  meanings. 
It  cannot  signify  that  the  '  sceptre  '  of  Judah  was  to  be  re- 
signed at  the  point  of  time  referred  to.  Occurring  as  the 
clause  in  question  does  in  the  midst  of  an  unqualified  eulogy 
of  the  tribe  of  Judah  (contrast  the  sayings  on  the  less  fortu- 
nate tribes  of  Simeon,  Levi,  and  Issachar),  it  can  only  be 
intended  to  mark  a  great  increase  in  the  power  of  Judah, 
otherwise  the  blessings  already  promised  would  be  neutralised. 
I  therefore  took  the  passage  to  mean,  '  Judah  shall  be  always 
the  head  of  the  tribes  of  Israel,  which,  under  her  valiant 
leadership,  shall  vanquish  the  tribes  of  Canaan,  and  celebrate 
their  victories  by  a  solemn  assembly  at  Shiloh.' 

But  the  question  at  once  arose,  How  far  do  the  traditions 
of  the  Israelites  agree  with  this  conjectural  paraphrase  ?  First, 
Did  Judah  enjoy  the  priority  among  the  tribes  of  Israel  be- 
fore the  meeting  referred  to  in  Joshua  ?  and,  secondly,  Did 
she  succeed  in  maintaining,  and  more  than  maintaining,  that 
priority  afterwards  ? 

There  are  some  plausible  arguments  for  answering  both 
questions  in  the  affirmative,  i.  It  is  true  that  the  personal 
leadership  of  the  Israelites  in  their  wanderings  was  not  in  the 
hands  of  a  Judahite,  but  in  those  first  of  a  Levite,  and  then 
of  an  Ephraimite.  It  is  true  also  that  on  various  solemn 
occasions  Judah  appears  as  low  as  third  or  fourth  in  the  list 
of  tribes  (Numb.  i.  7,  26,  xiii.  6,  xxvi.  19;  Deut.  xxvii.  12), 
the  order  being  regulated  by  the  seniority  of  the  sons  of  Jacob. 
On  the  other  hand,  Judah  is  the  most  numerous  of  all  the 
tribes  at  both  the  censuses  (Numb.  i.  27,  xxvi.  22),  and  it  is 
only  natural  to  expect  that  its  superiority  in  numbers  would 
give  it  a  priority  de  facto,  if  not  de  jure,  whenever  peculiar 
zeal  and  energy  were  requisite.  And  this  we  find  to  have 
been  actually  the  case.  The  tribe  of  Judah  took  the  lead  in 
pitching  the  tents  on  the  arrival  of  the  Israelites  at  a  halting- 
place  and  removing  them  on  their  departure  (Numb.  ii.  3,  x. 
14).  It  was,  again,  the  captain  of  the  Judahites  who  had  the 
privilege  of  making  his  offering  to  the  tabernacle  on  the  first 
clay  (Numb.  vii.  12).  And  when  the  territory  of  Canaan  was 


200 


ESSAYS. 


portioned  out  among  the  tribes  by  Joshua,  it  was  Judah  wh< 
received  the  first  'lot'  (Josh.  xv.  i).  2.  The  very  first  thing 
which  is  related  after  the  death  of  Joshua  is  a  privilege  ac- 
corded to  the  Judahites.  'The  children  of  Israel,'  we  are 
told,  '  asked  Jehovah,  saying,  Who  shall  go  up  first  against 
the  Canaanites  ?  And  Jehovah  said,  Judah  shall  go  up ' 
(Judg.  i.  2).  The  privilege  is  renewed  in  the  war  against 
Benjamin  (Judg.  xx.  18).  A  long  interval  elapses  before  the 
greatest  of  the  heroes  of  Judah  appears  on  the  stage  in  the 
person  of  the  second  Israelitish  monarch. 

It  would  seem,  therefore,  at  first  sight  as  if  the  men  of 
Judah  had  enjoyed  a  sufficient  priority  among  the  tribes  to  ac- 
count for  the  enthusiastic  language  of  the  *  Blessing  of  Jacob.' 
But  there  are  two  objections  to  this  view.  i.  The  assembly 
of  Shiloh,  of  which,  indeed,  we  have  but  very  scanty  informa- 
tion, was  not  so  manifestly  a  turning-point  in  the  history  of 
Judah  as  to  explain  this  decisive  promise  of  imperial  rule  ; 
and,  2.  the  words  '  and  unto  him '  ought,  by  the  rules  of 
parallelism,  which  are  adhered  to  in  this  chapter  with  unusual 
strictness,  to  refer  to  the  subject  of  the  verb  in  the  preceding 
line. 

The  next  question  is,  What  other  meaning  can  '  coming 
to  Shiloh '  have  ?  Dr.  Kalisch,  one  of  our  most  prominent 
English  critics,  understands  it  to  refer  to  the  election  of  Jero- 
boam as  king  by  the  northern  tribes  ;  Tuch,  Hitzig,  and  Dozy 
to  pilgrimages  to  Shiloh,  which  the  pious  imagination  of  the 
supposed  song-writer  represented  as  perpetual — though,  by 
the  way,  the  Shiloh  of  Dozy  is  very  remote  from  that  of 
Tuch  and  Hitzig,  being  no  other  than  the  Arabian  Mecca ! l 

The  main  objection  to  both  these  explanations  is  that  they 
compel  us  to  put  an  unnatural  sense  on  '?  ly,  whether,  with 
Kalisch  and  Luzzatto,  we  render  *  even  when  '  (#),  or,  with 
Tuch  and  Hitzig,  '  as  long  as  '  (£).  With  regard  to  (#),  al- 
though IV  does  not  necessarily  introduce  a  terminus  ad  quern, 
it  does  imply  that  the  act  or  state  which  it  introduces  is  inti- 
mately connected  with  that  described  by  the  preceding  verb. 
And  it  would  be  absurd  to  say  that  the  accession  of  Jeroboam 
was  in  any  way  connected  with  the  sceptre  not  departing  from 
(  =  remaining  with)  Judah.  Against  (b)  it  must  be  urged  that 

1  Mr.  Samuel  Sharpe,  I  think,  has  suggested  that  '  coming  to  Shiloh  '  may  allude 
to  some  historical  event  not  recorded  in  the  Old  Testament,  which  took  place  at  the 
temple  of  Shiloh  (as  to  this  temple  see  i  Sam.  i.  9,  Jer.  vii.  12,  xxvi.  6,  9),  and  re- 
marked that  the  genealogist  in  i  Chron.  vi.  appears  deliberately  to  avoid  any  mention 
of  Eli  and  Shiloh,  in  accordance  with  the  natural  jealousy  of  later  writers  for  the  ex- 
clusive sanctity  of  the  temple  at  Jerusalem.  But  though  there  are  many  omissions 
in  the  historical  part  of  the  Old  Testament  (history  not  being  the  primary  object  of 
its  authors),  I  doubt  if  an  actual  turning-point  in  the  fortunes  of  Judah  and  of  the 
Israelites  could  or  would  have  been  entirely  ignored. 


ESSAYS.  201 

the  sense  is  contrary  to  Hebrew  usage.  And  there  is  this 
further  objection  to  Tuch's  explanation,  that  the  regular  word 
for  pilgrimages  and  solemn  journeys  of  any  kind  is,  not  simply 
to  '  go/  but  to  '  go  up  ;'  comp.  Ex.  xxxiv.  24  ;  I  Sam.  i.  3,  &c.; 
Isa.  ii.  3  ;  Deut.  xvii.  8. 

Failing  to  be  satisfied  with  the  geographical  meaning  of 
Shiloh,  some  have  tried  to  extract  from  it  some  other  sense, 
such  as  '  rest-bringer  '  (as  Hengstenberg  formerly)  ;  or  *  rest/ 
or  '  place  of  rest '  (as  Kurtz).  Colenso  and  Delitzsch  (for 
once  united)  adopt  Kurtz's  view,  so  far  as  the  meaning  of 
Shiloh  is  concerned,  but  think  it  is  used  here  with  a  double 
meaning  (Shiloh  the  town  and  '  resting-place  '),  '  to  render  the 
oracle  more  mysterious/  as  the  former  thinks.  And  they 
compare  the  supposed  play  upon  the  name  of  Shechem  in 
Gen.  xlviii.  22.  The  objection  is,  that  while  Shechem  is 
known  to  have  been  used  in  the  sense  of  '  back/  Shiloh  is  not 
known  in  that  of  '  rest.'  There  is  absolutely  no  authority  for 
such  an  a-Traf  \sy6fjisvov.  It  would  really  be  a  less  violent 
assumption  to  suppose  that  an  Ephraimitish  scribe  (or  editor) 
had  substituted  *  Shiloh  '  for  '  Hebron  '  (just  as  in  Deut.  xxvii. 
4,  the  Samaritans  changed  *  Ebal'  into  *  Gerizim  '),  for  it  was 
the  coronation  of  David  at  Hebron  which  formed  the  true 
turning-point  in  the  fortunes  of  Judah  (see  2  Sam.  v.  3). 

Two  other  explanations  have  a  claim  to  be  mentioned 
from  their  ingenuity.  One  is  a  very  old  guess,  quoted  from 
the  Rabbinical  compilation  called  the  Yalkut,  by  Delitzsch, 
'  until  he  come  whose;is  tribute  '  ('A  »#,  cf.  Ps.  Ixviii.  30,  Hebr.), 
which  involves  no  interference  with  the  received  text,  except 
dividing  the  group  of  letters.  The  other  is  that  of  Matthew 
Hiller,1  a  learned  German  Orientalist  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, <  until  there  come  his  (Judah's)  asked  one  '  (nW>=r6w, 
comp.  i  Sam.  i.  17),  thus  forming  a  parallel  to  Mai.  iii.  i, 
'the  Lord  whom  ye  seek.'  Both  explanations  imply  that 
the  writer  of  Gen.  xlix.  10  had  a  clear  and  vigorous  belief  in 
the  advent  of  the  Messiah.  This,  in  fact,  seems  to  me  certain, 
whatever  be  the  construction  of  the  disputed  clause ;  other- 
wise how  can  one  make  sense  of  the  passage  ?  It  is  also 
confirmed  by  the  last  line,  which  reminds  one  strongly  of  the 
Messianic  promise  in  Ps.  ii.  8. 

But  I  am  not  prepared  to  accept  either  of  the  above  ex- 
planations. They  are  both  founded  on  a  late  form  of  the 
text,  the  older  form  being  not  rhw,  but  >"fe>.  The  former 

1  Onomastica  Sacra  (Tubingae,  1706),  p.  911.  Prof,  de  Lagarde  (whom  no  one 
will  suspect  of  theological  prejudice)  has  independently  proposed  the  same  explanation 
in  his  own  Onomastica  Sacra  (Gbttingen,  1870),  ii.  96. 


202  ESSAYS. 

would  require  the  relative  ;  the  latter  has  against  it  the  elision, 
which  we  should  hardly  expect  in  a  word  which  it  was  so  im- 
portant to  make  intelligible.  And,  above  all,  neither  of  them 
accounts  for  the  phenomena  of  the  ancient  versions. 

The  facts  about  the  versions  are  briefly  these.  There  are 
two  renderings,  both  claiming  the  authority  of  the  Sept.,  ra 
airoKSt/jLEva  auro)  and  c5  airo/ceiTCM.  The  former  rendering  is 
also  that  of  Theodotion  ;  those  of  Aquila  and  Symmachus 
are  unknown  (in  spite  of  the  commentators),  as  Dr.  Field  has 
pointed  out  in  his  edition  of  the  Hexapla  fragments.  The 
Targums  of  Onkelos  and  Jerusalem  render,  'whose  is  the 
kingdom  ;'  the  Syriac  and  Saadya,  'whose  it  is  ;'  the  Vulgate 
'  qui  mittendus  est/  i.e.  either  !i6#,  of  which  Siloam  (*  which 
is,  by  interpretation,  Sent,'  John  ix.  7)  is  a  collateral  form,  or 
the  passive  participle  D^.  From  these  renderings  together 
we  may  safely  infer  (i)  that  the  earliest  known  form  of  the 
Hebrew  did  not  read  rbw,  and  (2)  that  there  was  a  wide- 
spread exegetical  tradition  explaining  the  passage  of  the 
Messiah.  Most  critics  have  drawn  a  third  inference,  viz.  that 
the  text  followed  by  the  versions  had  1^,  which,  as  some 
think,  means  Shiloh,  or,  as  others,  is  another  way  of  writing 
1?^,  i.e.  with  vowel-points,  ')?&,  'whose.'  But  we  have  al- 
ready seen  that  Shiloh  does  not  make  a  satisfactory  sense, 
and  pointing  'A#  involves  two  difficulties  :  (i)  the  abbrevia- 
tion of  the  relative,  which  seems  to  be  peculiar  l  to  the 
Hebrew  of  the  northern  tribes  and  to  the  debased  Hebrew 
of  Ecclesiastes,  and  (2)  the  ellipsis  '  whose  '  for  *  whose  is  the 
kingdom,'  which  I  suppose  is  unexampled  for  boldness  in  any 
language.2  The  second  difficulty  is  in  my  opinion  insuperable. 
Nor  can  it,  I  think,  be  called  probable  that  the  Septuagint 
translator  of  Genesis  (a  fairly  good  scholar,  be  it  remembered) 
should  have  extracted  such  a  meaning  as  ra  OLTTOK.  avra)  or 
to  airoK.  from  such  a  miserable  scrap  of  a  sentence  as  i?£*. 
Must  he  not  (and  compare  in  this  connection  the  other  versions 
quoted  above,  except  Vulg.)  have  either  known  or  half-con- 
sciously  divined  that  something  had  dropped  out  of  the  text  ? 
If  he  had  the  same  text  that  we  have,  he  may  have  supplied 
either  Mfi  (scil.  two)  or  more  thoughtfully  DS^PD  from 
Ezek.  xxi.  32  (A.  V.,  27),  which  most  regard  as  an  allusion  to 

1  Job  xix.  29  would  be  an  exception,  if    ^jfe?  were  correct.     But  there  is  reason 


upon  reason  against  admitting  this  (see  Dillmann  ad  loc.}. 

2  Wellhausen's  theory  presents  only  the  first  of  these  difficulties.     He  would  pro- 
nounce 'i^,  and  strike  out  "^  as  an  intrusive  various  reading.     But  this  has  the 

effect  of  spoiling  the  parallelism,'  and  making  v.  10  less  symmetrical  than  w.  9,  n  (see 
Gesckichtc  Israels,  i.  375). 


ESSAYS.  2O3 

the  passage  before  us.  But  it  is  quite  as  possible  that  he 
found  in  his  copy  of  the  Hebrew  a  word  before,  rh  (ft),  of 
which  &  is  but  a  fragment,  the  rest  of  the  word  having  be- 
come obliterated,  as  is  so  often  the  case  in  ancient  manuscripts. 
The  disconnected  letters  would  naturally  be  drawn  together, 
as  perhaps  in  Job  xxvii.  1 8,  xiii.  8,  and  other  instances  quoted 
by  Dr.  Merx.1  The  latter  alternative  is  clearly  preferable,  as 
it  avoids  the  abbreviation  of  the  relative  (see  above).  There 
still  remain  two  questions,  but  these  can  easily  be  answered  : 
(i)  What  words  are  there  in  Hebrew  meaning  'to  lay  up' 
(aTTOKSifjLai)  and  containing  a  w  ?  Answer  :  Two  ;  JVt?  (Symma- 
chus  renders  n^,  used  impersonally,  in  Hos.  vi.  n,  by  a?r6- 
/csirai),  and  D-tt?,  comp.  Assyrian  simtu, (  destiny.'  (2)  What 
construction  admits  of  beiftg  equally  well  rendered  ra  airo- 
Ksifjisva  avrw  and  G£  aTTOKSirail  Answer:  3rd  sing,  masc., 
perf.  or  imperf.  Hofal  followed  by  P,  the  relative  being  sup- 
plied either  with  the  verb,  or  with  the  preposition  and  pro- 
nominal suffix.  If  so,  the  probably  true  reading  will  be  neither 
rftfc>  nor  rft#  (ft#),  but  either  (ft)  rft  nfc>V  or,  as  Dr.  Ronsch  has 
already  suggested  for  the  reading  of  the  Sept.,2  (ft)  n?  D&-V. 
And  we  thus  obtain  a  prophecy,  in  flowing,  parallelistic  rhythm, 
of  that  ideal,  Messianic  king,  whom  Isaiah  saw  in  prophetic 
vision,  and  of  whom  he  said  that  *  his  rule  should  be  ample  ' 
(ix.  7),  and  that  'unto  him  should  the  nations  seek'  (xi.  10). 
Render  therefore — 

The  sceptre  shall  not  depart  from  Judah, 

Nor  the  staff  (of  authority)  from  between  his  feet) 

Until  he  come  for  whom  it  (i.e.  the  dominion)  is  appointed, 

And  to  him  be  the  obedience  of  peoples, 

the  meaning  of  which  will  be,  'The  dominion  granted  to 
Judah  shall  only  give  place  to  a  far  wider  monarchy,  viz.  that 
of  the  Messiah.' 

[Two  observations  by  way  of  appendix. —  I.  That  the 
above  explanation  does  not  stand  or  fall  with  the  hypothesis 
as  to  the  existence  of  a  fragment  of  an  older  reading  in  the 
Hebrew  MS.  used  by  the  Sept.  translator — the  corruption  of 
the  text  may  have  been  complete  before  the  Sept.  version  of 
Genesis  was  made  ;  and  2.  that  if  this  explanation  be  rejected, 
we  must,  I  fear,  go  back  either  to  Mr.  Sharpe's  hypothesis  (see 
p.  200,  note  ]),  or  to  my  own  alternative  suggestion  of  the  sub- 
stitution of  '  Shiloh  '  for  '  Hebron,'  both  of  which  are  far  more 
violent,  and  therefore,  in  my  opinion,  far  less  acceptable.] 

1  Das  Gedichtvon  Hiob  (Jena,  1871),  pp.  liii.-lvi.  of  the  introduction. 

2  Zeitschrift  fur  wissvischaftliche  Theologie,  1872,  p.  291.     Dr.  Ronsch  does  not 
give  the  steps  by  which  he  reached  his  conclusion,  but  it  was  his  suggestion  which 
started  my  own  train  of  thought  in  the  latter  part  of  this  essay. 


2O4  ESSAYS. 

V.    THE  SERVANT   OF  JEHOVAH. 
I. 

WHO  has  not  heard  of  *  one  of  the  great  results  of  German 
criticism  '  that  the  personage  called  the  '  Servant  of  Jehovah ' 
is  not  really  an  individual  at  all,  but  a  collective  term  for  the 
Jewish  people  ?  And  that  the  view  which  formerly  prevailed 
was  due  to  a  theological  prejudice  in  favour  of  orthodox 
Christianity  ?  Such  at  least  is  the  form  in  which  popular 
writers  set  forth  this  '  result/  though  their  teachers  at  any 
rate  are  too  learned  to  maintain  the  second,  contrary  to  the 
notorious  facts  of  early  Jewish  exegesis.1  Now  Strauss  and 
Dr.  Kuenen  (whose  names  may  in  the  present  context  with- 
out offence  be  combined)  are  both  extremely  able  critics, 
but  both,  as  it  seems  to  me,  more  skilful  in  the  analysis  of 
composite  literary  works  than  in  fellow-feeling  (Nachempfind- 
ungt  to  borrow  an  expressive  German  word)  for  the  imagi- 
native conceptions  of  great  poets.  The  facts,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  a  Review  not  usually  favourable  to  orthodoxy,  may 
be  briefly  stated  thus  :— «  "  The  Servant  of  Yahveh  "  is,  at 
least  sometimes,  a  collective  term  for  the  people  of  Israel. 
He  is,  however,  at  other  times  described  in  language  quite 
unsuitable  to  a  body  of  persons.  The  Christian  view'  [in 
its  crudest  form,  which  rejects  points  of  contact  for  revelation 
in  the  consciousness  of  the  prophets]  'is  opposed  to  the 
analogy  of  Hebrew  prophecy.  What  third  theory  is  open  ? ' 2 
The  '  Westminster  Reviewer '  here  complains  of '  liberal  critics  ' 
for  'not  having  given  enough  attention  to  the  phenomena 
which  partly  prevent  a  more  general  acceptance  of  their  own 
views.'  He  charitably  conjectures  that  there  is  something  in 
the  opposition  of  conservative  critics  besides  theological  re- 
pulsion, viz.  a  sense  that  the  *  collective '  theory  does  not  do 
justice  to  the  most  salient  and  impressive  passages  devoted  to 
*  the  Servant.'  And  does  not  this  suggest  the  real  point  of 
difference  between  the  two  sides,  viz.  that  Dr.  Kuenen  starts 
from  the  passages  in  which  the  conception  of  '  the  Servant ' 
is  least  developed,  and  conservative  critics  from  the  highest 
points  which  the  prophet's  poetic  intuition  (not  to  speak 
theologically)  has  reached  ?  And  is  it  not  fairer  to  estimate 
a  poet's  ideas  rather  by  their  strongest  than  by  their  weakest 
expression — rather  by  the  passages  in  which  he  has  fully 

1  Strauss,  New  Life  of  Jesus,  Eng.  Transl.,  i.  314-8  ;  Kuenen,  The  Prophets  and 
Prophecy  in  Israel,  pp.  221-2.     Comp.  Neubauer  and  Driver,  The  Jewish  Interpreters 
of  Isaiah  liii. 

2  Westminster  Review,  Oct.  1875,  p.  475. 


ESSAYS.  205 

found  his  voice,  than  by  those  in  which  he  is  still  labouring  - 
after  fitting  accents  ? 

The  exegetical  facts  have  been  sufficiently  laid  before  the 
reader  in  the  preceding  commentary.  It  has,  I  hope,  been 
shown  that  '  the  Servant '  is  neither  exclusively  the  people  of 
Israel  as  a  whole,  nor  the  pious  portion  of  it,  nor  the  class 
of  prophets,  nor  any  single  individual,  but  that  some  form  of 
conception  must  be  found  which  does  justice  to  the  elements 
of  truth  contained  in  all  these  theories.  In  my  earlier  work  l 
I  was  captivated  by  an  extremely  tempting  theory  of  Ewald, 
which  has  hardly  met  with  the  attention  which  it  deserves. 
'  Sometimes,'  I  said,  '  the  prophet  views  the  people  of  Israel 
from  an  ideal,  sometimes  from  a  historical  point  of  view. 
Hence  in  several  important  sections  the  "  Servant  of  Jeho- 
vah "  (like  the  Zion  of  xl.  9,  &c.)  is  a  purely  poetical  figure, 
personifying  the  ideal  character  of  the  pious  Israelite, 
and  decorated  by  the  prophet  with  all  the  noblest  achieve- 
ments of  faith,  whether  actually  realised  in  the  past,  or  merely 
hoped  for  from  the  future'  (LC.A.,  p.  155).  This  theory  does 
not  exclude  the  possibility  that  some  features  in  the  descrip- 
tion may  have  been  taken  from  individual  righteous  men  (such 
as  Jeremiah),  just  as  Dante  in  his  pilgrimage  through  the 
unseen  world  is  at  once  a  banished  Florentine  and  the  repre- 
sentative of  humanity  ;  and  as  Calderon's  Philotea  is  said  to 
be  sometimes  the  ideal  of  the  Church,  and  sometimes  a  single 
soul.  But  I  erred,  and  Ewald  erred,  in  regarding  this  per- 
sonage as  a  *  purely  poetical  figure.'  The  truth  in  the  theory 
is,  that  *  the  Servant '  does  in  reality  embody  the  highest 
qualities  of  the  Israelite — he  is  not  merely  a  collective  term. 
But  the  truth  which  it  has  entirely  missed  is,  that  the  prophet 
actually  sees  as  it  were  in  vision  (such  is  the  strength  of  his 
faith)  the  advent  of  such  an  ideal  Israelite.  And  one  whole 
side  of  the  difficulty  connected  with  the  Servant  it  has  left  out 
of  view,  viz.,  the  application  of  the  very  same  term  to  the 
actual  people  of  Israel.  Well  may  the  '  Westminster  Re- 
viewer' call  out  for  some  fresh  theory  to  reconcile  the 
apparently  conflicting  phenomena  ! 

I  believe  myself  that  the  theory  of  Delitzsch  and  Oehler 
(see  vol.  i.  p.  259)  meets  the  requirements  of  the  case  ;  but 
that  it  admits  of  a  fuller  and  more  complete  justification  than 
those  eminent  scholars  have  supplied.  I  reached  it  myself 
from  the  starting-point  of  the  fragment  of  truth  taught  me 

1  A  complete  retractation  of  the  writer's  former  opinions  might  justly  expose  him 
to  the  charge  of  instability.  But  in  his  present  view  he  hopes  to  retain  the  element  of 
truth  in  his  former  position.  The  most  widely  known  living  commentator  on  Tsaiah 
(Dr.  Delitzsch)  has  himself  not  always  held  his  present  theory.  See  above,  p.  40. 


206  ESSAYS. 

by  Ewald.  Let  me  attempt  to  explain  the  course  of  my 
thought  —  i.  The  truth  in  Ewald's  theory  (as  I  ventured  to 
state  above)  is,  that  *  the  Servant '  in  the  finest  and  therefore 
regulative  passages  does  really  embody  the  highest  Israelitish 
ideal,  We  Aryans  of  the  West  are  accustomed  to  draw  a 
hard  and  fast  line  between  the  ideal  and  the  real ;  but  the 
unphilosophical  Israelite  made  no  such  distinction.  The 
kingdom  of  God  he  regarded  as  really  in  heaven,  waiting  to 
be  revealed  ;  and  so  the  ideal  of  Israel  was  to  an  Israelite 
really  in  heaven,  in  the  super-sensible  world,  waiting  for  its 
manifestation.  But  in  order  to  be  real,  this  ideal  must  at  the 
same  time  be  personal.  This  is  one  important  element  in 
the  solution  of  our  question. — 2.  Next  let  us  consider  the 
state  of  mind  of  the  Jewish  exiles,  for  whom  (as  all  agree) 
chaps,  xl.-lxvi.  of  Isaiah  were  (mainly,  at  any  rate)  written. 
During  the  interruption  of  the  ceremonial  system  they  felt 
the  want  of  a  more  spiritual  type  of  religion,  and  above  all 
of  a  new  ideal,  high  enough  for  veneration,  but  not  too  high 
to  be  imitated.  They  belonged,  as  we  have  seen  to  an  ima- 
ginative race,  prone  to  symbolism,  and  averse  to  abstract  con- 
ceptions. One  of  their  number,  less  absorbed  than  some  in 
the  national  traditions,1  and  not  without  some  flashes  of  the 
light  of  the  Gospel,  produced  a  wonderfully  striking  type  of 
character,  divested  of  everything  Israelitish  in  appearance,  into 
which  he  flung  in  profuse  abundance  the  new  divinely-inspired 
thoughts  which  were  craving  for  utterance.  The  result  (as 
after  long  thought  I  have  satisfied  myself)  was  the  poem  of 
Job,  in  which  Job  is  the  type  of  the  ideal  righteous  man, 
(  made  perfect  through  suffering.  But  there  were  others  who, 
with  all  their  admiration  for  Job,  retained  an  overpowering 
interest  in  the  national  institutions.  One  of  these  was  a 
prophet,  for  the  author  of  the  4Oth  and  following  chapters  of 
the  Book  of  Isaiah,  as  all  will  agree,  either  is  one  of  the  Jewish 
exiles,  or  (to  use  the  language  of  Delitzsch)  Meads  a  life  in 
the  spirit  among  the  exiles,'  reaching  in  the  power  of  the 
Spirit  across  the  centuries  to  the  contemporaries  of  the  author 
of  Job.  Others  were  psalmists  ;  for  it  must,  as  we  have  seen, 
be  admitted,  that  some  at  least  of  the  psalms  refer,  not  to  a 
historical  individual,  but  (in  different  shades  of  the  concep- 
tion) to  an  ideal  and  yet  (in  the  psalmist's  mind)  real  repre- 
sentative of  the  people  of  Israel.  3.  Here  I  come  to  the 
point  where  I  have  felt  obliged  to  diverge  from  Ewald.  These 

1  That  the  publication  of  the  '  Book  of  the  Law '  by  Ezra  presupposes  a  long 
study  of  the  Pentateuchal  (or  Hexateuchal)  narratives  and  laws,  and  a  band  of  patient 
students,  all  critics  will  probably  agree. 


ESSAYS.  207 

devout  and  inspired  men  were  acutely  sensible  of  the  incom- 
petency  of  the  actual  Israel  for  the  embodiment  of  the  newly 
revealed  ideal.  They  felt  that,  if  expressed  at  all,  it  must  be 
through  a  person  ;  and  the  longings  which  they  felt  for  the 
appearance  of  such  a  person,  and  their  faith  that  Jehovah  had 
not  deserted  his  people,  prepared  their  minds  for  a  special 
revelation  that  such  a  Person  would  appear.  Only  it  was  not 
in  a  definite  prediction  that  their  newly  attained  conviction 
found  expression.  Theirs  was  rather  a  presentiment  (Aknung) 
than  a  clear  view  of  the  future,  and  hence  a  certain  vagueness 
in  it,  which,  however,  almost  if  not  quite  disappears  at  the 
two  highest  points  of  the  Old  Testament  revelation,  Psalm 
xxii.  and  Isaiah  liii.  It  was  not,  therefore  (as  I  once  thought), 
the  ideal  and  yet  real  Genius  of  Israel,  who  preached  to  an 
unbelieving  generation,  who  was  slain  but  not  given  up  to  the 
power  of  Hades,  and  for  whom  an  endless  life  and  a  posterity 
were  reserved — but  a  literal  human  being  perfectly  righteous 
himself,  and  able  therefore  to  *  make  the  many  righteous.' 

Thus  much  to  account  for  the  assertion  that  in  the  more 
salient  and  elaborate  passages1  the  '  Servant  of  Jehovah'  is  the 
historical  Redeemer  of  Israel  and  the  world.  I  am  not  with- 
out hope  that  the  difficulty  felt  by  some  in  conceiving  of  such 
a  surpassing  revelation  may  have  been  relieved  by  showing 
the  point  of  contact  for  it  in  the  mind  of  the  prophet.  The 
remaining  portion  of  the  theory  of  Delitzsch  and  Oehler  does 
not  seem  to  require  a  lengthened  justification.  In  xlii.  19 
and  xliii.  10  the  '  Servant'  is  evidently  the  people  of  Israel  as 
a  whole  ;  while  in  xli.  8,  9,  xliv.  I,  2,  21,  xlv.  4,  and  xlviii.  20, 
it  is  the  kernel  of  the  nation,  the  spiritual  Israel.  No  doubt 
*  Servant  of  Jehovah '  was.  a  common  prophetic  title  for  the 
people  of  Israel,  and  the  sublime  interpretation  given  to  it 
sometimes  in  chap,  xlii.— liii.  is  superimposed  upon  this.  It 
was  the  fact  that  Israel  did  not  act  up  to  his  title  '  Servant  of 
Jehovah,'  which  filled  the  pious  exiles  with  a  longing  for  a 
person  who  should  realise  it,  and  by  redeeming  the  Israelites 
from  their  sins  enable  them  to  realise  it  likewise.  Difficult 
it  was  of  course  to  imagine  how  such  a  redeemer  could  arise. 
1  Oh  for  a  clean  among  the  unclean  ! '  cried  mournfully  one  of 
the  inspired  writers  among  the  exiles  (Job  xiv.  4).  Yet  he 
must  be  '  bone  of  our  bone,  and  flesh  of  our  flesh  ; '  else  how 
can  he  offer  himself  a  sacrifice  for  us,  and  be  our  teacher  ? 
The  prophet  in  Isa.  liii.  leaves  the  solution  of  the  problem  to 
God  !  he  trusts  Him  who  cannot  abandon  His  people  to  pro- 
duce such  an  Israelite.  And  here  is  the  point  of  contact 

1  These  are  xlii.  1-7,  xlix.  1-9,  1.  4-10,  lii.  i3~liii.  12. 


208  ESSAYS. 

between  the  personal  and  the  national  '  Servant  of  Jehovah,' 
viz.  that  the  person  is,  strange  as  it  seems,  the  mature  product, 
the  flower  and  fruit,  of  the  Jewish  nation.  If  all  this  has  a 
New  Testament  sound,  if  Jesus  Christ,  der  grosse  Jude,  as 
Zinzendorf  calls  him,1  answers  to  this  description,  so  much 
the  better  !  But  the  present  writer,  at  any  rate,  started  from  a 
point  of  view — viz.  that  of  Ewald — which  is  not  in  the  faintest 
degree  theological.  Is  not  the  theological  prejudice  rather 
on  the  side  of  our  liberal  critics  ?  Why  should  they  grant 
the  personality  of  the  Messiah  (who  might  surely  be  a  '  col- 
lective term  ' ;  comp.  Isa.  xxxii.  I,  2),  but  not  that  of  the  Ser- 
vant ?  May  not  one  of  their  motives  unconsciously  be  that 
the  Servant,  as  described  in  Isa.  xlii.-liii.,  is  more  distinctly 
superhuman  than  the  Messiah  ? 


2. 


I  have  spoken  in  the  preceding  section  of  the  need  felt 
by  the  Jewish  exiles  (among  whom  the  author  of  II.  Isaiah, 
to  say  the  least,  moves  in  spirit)  of  a  new  ideal,  a  new  object 
of  hope,  and  tried  to  show  how  this  want  was  actually  sup- 
plied. It  must  not,  however,  be  supposed  that  there  was  no 
point  of  contact  between  the  new  ideal  and  the  old.  New 
phases  of  prophecy  are  as  carefully  adapted  to  the  old,  as  to  the 
moral  and  social  state  of  the  persons  for  whom  they  are  pri- 
marily designed.  Thus  the  '  one  increasing  purpose '  becomes 
more  and  more  manifest,  and  no  past  phase  can  be  set  aside 
as  useless  or  uninstructive.  The  connection  of  the  new  ideal 
with  the  old  is  the  subject  of  the  conclusion  of  this  essay. 

The  Old  Testament  is  pervaded  by  a  longing  for  the 
•  kingdom  of  God '  to  be  set  up  on  earth.  Jehovah  no  doubt 
was  Israel's  heavenly  king,  but  the  prophets  and  other  holy 
men  yearned  for  a  time  when  the  reality  of  earth  should 
correspond  to  the  ideal  of  heaven,  and  when  He  whom  with 
more  and  more  intensity  they  believed  to  be  the  rightful 
Lord  of  the  world  should  be  universally  acknowledged  by  his 
liege  subjects.  The  universal  and  (for  the  Semitic  king  was 
not  an  arbitrary  despot)  spontaneous  obedience  of  mankind 
to  the  will  of  Jehovah  is  the  kernel  of  the  conception  of  '  the 
kingdom  of  God.'  There  is,  however,  a  certain  variety  in  the 
way  of  expressing  this  conception.  According  to  some  Old 
Testament  passages,  Jehovah  himself,  after  an  act  of  swift 

1  '  Wann,  grosser  Jude,  wann  kommt  deine  Stunde  ? '     A  line  in  a  metrical  prayer 
sung  by  Zinzendorf  before  the  Moravian  Church  on  the  Jewish  Day  of  Atonement 
Oct.  12,  1739. 


ESSAYS.  209 

and  sure  judgment,  is  to  undertake  the  personal  government 
of  the  world  ;  according  to  others,  a-  wonderfully  endowed 
descendant  of  David  is  to  be  enthroned  as  his  representative. 
The  former  type  of  expression  is  particularly  prominent  in 
the  later  psalms,  but  is  also  found  in  the  prophets  (see  Isa. 
iv.  5,  6,  xxiv.  23,  Joel  iii.  21,  Zech.  xiv.  3-11) ;  the  latter  be- 
came current  in  the  prophetic  literature  through  the  splendid 
revelations  of  Isaiah,  but  is  far  from  unrepresented  in  the 
Book  of  Psalms,  though  to  what  extent  is  a  matter  of  much 
controversy. — These  two  forms  of  the  conception  are  never 
entirely  fused  in  the  Old  Testament,  though  an  incipent 
union,  pointing  in  a  New  Testament  direction,  cannot  (see  pp. 
187,  196)  fairly  be  denied. 

It  is  one  of  the  great  peculiarities  of  the  last  twenty-seven 
chapters  of  Isaiah  that  they  contain  no  distinct  reference  to  the 
royal  Messiah.  The  c  David '  in  Iv.  3,  4  is  not  the  second  David 
predicted  in  Hos.  iii.  5,  Jer.  xxx.  9,  Ezek.  xxxiv.  23,  24,  but  the 
David  of  the  historical  books  and  the  Psalms.  Still  we  must 
not  conclude  too  hastily  that  the  older  Messianic  belief  has 
left  no  traces  in  the  second  part  of  Isaiah.  This  would  be  a 
strange  result  indeed — a  dumb  note  in  the  scale  of  prophetic 
harmony  !  Even  if  the  author  of  the  prophecies  of  *  the  Ser- 
vant '  be  not  Isaiah,  he  has  certainly  formed  himself,  to  say 
the  least,  in  no  slight  degree  on  his  predecessor ;  and  in 
limning  the  portrait  of  Jehovah's  ideal  Servant,  he  was  in 
a  manner  bound  to  preserve  some  at  least  of  the  features  of 
the  Messianic  king.  And  this  is  what  we  actually  find  in  the 
prophetic  description  of  the  Servant.  In  the  statement  that 
1  kings  shall  shut  their  mouths  because  of  him '  (Iii.  1 5),  and 
that  '  he  shall  divide  spoil  with  the  powerful '  (liii.  1 2),  it  is 
clear  that  for  the  moment  the  humble-minded  Servant  is 
represented  as  a  conqueror  in  the  midst  of  a  victorious  host. 
This  is  not  without  analogy,1  nor  is  it  so  anomalous  as  it  may 
seem.  It  was  natural  and  necessary  that  the  die,  from  which 
the  coins  with  a  royal  stamp  had  proceeded,  should  be  broken, 
the  royalistic  form  of  the  Messianic  conception  having  become 
antiquated  with  the  hopeless  downfall  of  the  kingdom  of 
Judah ;  but  equally  so  that  fragments  of  the  die  should 
be  gathered  up  and  fused  with  other  elements  into  a  new 
whole.  The  ideal  and  yet  real  Israelite  of  the  future  has 

1  There  is,  in  fact,  a  parallel  for  it  in  Zech.  ix.  9,  where  the  royal  Messiah  is  described 
as  '  lowly,'  as  if  by  an  anticipation  of  the  meek  Servant  of  Jehovah.  It  was  not  enough 
for  the  prophet,  and  for  those  to  whom  he  prophesied,  that  the  Deliverer  should  be  a 
just  judge  and  a  victorious  warrior  :  he  must  also  be  one  with  his  people  in  experience 
of  suffering,  and  who  could  be  touched  with  a  feeling  of  their  infirmities.  It  is  clear 
that  this  passage  was  written  in  a  time  of  national  depression. 

VOL.   II.  P 


2IO  ESSAYS. 

therefore  some  points  in  common  with  a  king,  but  withal 
he  is  much  more  than  an  earthly  king.  He  is  a  prophet, 
for  it  is  written  that  '  he  shall  bring  forth  (God's)  law  to 
the  Gentiles '  (xlii.  i)  ;  a  priest,  for  '  he  shall  make  ...  an  offer- 
ing for  guilt '  (liii,  10)  :  and  yet  he  is  more  than  a  prophet,  for 
he  is  in  his  own  person  '  a  covenant  of  the  people  and  a  light 
of  the  Gentiles '  (xlii.  6),  and  more  than  a  priest,  for  the  vic- 
tim which  he  lays  down  is  his  own  life  (liii.  10).  Exclusively, 
he  is  neither  king  nor  prophet  nor  priest,  but  all  of  them 
together  and  more.1  These  are  but  words  '  thrown  out '  (to 
adopt  a  phrase  from  Mr.  Matthew  Arnold)  at  an  object  beyond 
the  power  of  language  to  describe.  Of  the  Servant  of  Jeho- 
vah, as  well  as  of  the  earlier  Messiah,  it  may  be  said,  *  His 
name  is  called,  Wonderful.' 


VI.     THE  PRESENT  STATE   OF  THE   CRITICAL 
CONTROVERSY. 

I. 

IT  is  with  some  hesitation  that  I  cross  the  border  which 
separates  exegesis  from  the  higher  criticism.  The  public 
is  eager  for  results  ;  a  Chaldean  Genesis,  a  Babylonian  Isaiah, 
and  even  M.  Jacolliot's  Sanskrit  life  of  'Jeseus  Christna' 
receive  the  same  undiscriminating  welcome.  For  though 
keenly  interested  in  criticism,  the  public  takes  wonderfully 
little  pains  to  master  the  preliminaries.  It  demands  the  truth 
about  Homer,  with  the  slenderest  knowledge  of  the  Homeric 
poems  ;  and  to  have  the  mystery  of  Isaiah  dispelled,  when 
it  has  but  skimmed  the  surface  of  the  Isaianic  prophecies. 
And  yet  the  chief  thing  is,  not  to  know  who  wrote  a  pro- 
phecy, but  to  understand  and  assimilate  its  essential  ideas  ; 
this  is  important  for  all— the  rest  can  be  fully  utilised  only 
by  the  historical  student.  Parts  there  may  be  of  the  exegesis 
which  remain  vague  and  obscure  till  we  know  the  circum- 
stances under  which  a  prophecy  was  written,2  but  these  in 
the  case  of  Isaiah  form  but  a  small  proportion  of  the  whole. 
There  is  no  absolute  necessity  for  an  honest  exegete  to  give 
any  detailed  treatment  to  the  higher  critical  problems. 

A  comprehensive  discussion  of  the  date  and  authorship 
of  II.  Isaiah  is  therefore  not  to  be  looked  for ;  and  it  is 
chiefly  because  I  have  given  the  outlines  of  such  a  discussion 

1  Delitzsch,  Zeitschrift  fur  lutherische  Theologie,  1850,  p.  34. 

2  Vol.  i.  p.  237. 


ESSAYS.  2  I  I 

elsewhere  that  I  return  to  the  subject  here.  For  though 
the  pages  devoted  to  it  in  my  earlier  work  are  not  yet  by 
any  means  superseded,  they  require  both  filling  up  and  cor- 
recting, especially  in  the  survey  of  the  arguments  for  the 
unity  of  the  authorship.  The  present  essay  will  therefore  be 
necessarily  in  a  high  degree  incomplete  and  fragmentary  ;  it 
only  supplements,  and  will  at  the  right  moment  be  supple- 
mented. It  relates  exclusively  to  the  last  twenty-seven 
chapters  :  not  as  if  chaps,  i.— xxxix.  constituted  '  the  First 
Isaiah/  and  chaps,  xl.-lxvi.  'the  Second/1  but  simply  be- 
cause the  data  furnished  by  the  disputed  chapters  in  the  first 
part  of  the  book  are  found  with  important  additions  in  the 
second  ;  and  it  is  mainly  concerned  with  one  special  question 
relative  to  these  chapters,  viz.,  what  evidence  do  they  afford 
as  to  the  locality  in  which  they  were  composed  ? 

The  section  in  The  Book  of  Isaiah  Chronologically 
Arranged  headed  *  Arguments  in  Favour  of  the  Unity  of 
Authorship '  is  introduced  by  a  quotation  from  Dr.  Franz 
Delitzsch,  containing  the  admission  that,  '  there  is  not  a  single 
passage  in  the  book  (Isa.  xl.-lxvi.)  which  betrays  that  the 
times  of  the  Exile  are  only  ideally,  and  not  actually,  present 
to  the  prophetic  writer.' 2  It  was  tempting  to  make  the  most 
of  these  suggestive  words  ;  but  it  was  a  mistake.  One  may 
still  admire  the  childlike  candour  and  the  strong  faith  in  the 
absolute  security  of  prophecy,  which  rendered  the  admission 
possible,  but  a  renewed  examination  has  shown  that  it  was  en- 
tirely uncalled  for,  and  that  some  passage  of  II.  Isaiah  are  in 
various  degrees  really  favourable  to  the  theory  of  a  Palestinian 
origin.  Thus,  in  Ivii.  5,  the  reference  to  torrent-beds  is  alto- 
gether inapplicable  to  the  alluvial  plains  of  Babylonia;  and 
equally  so  is  that  to  subterranean  'holes'  in  xlii.  22.  And 
though,  no  doubt,  Babylonia  was  more  wooded  in  ancient 
times  than  it  is  at  present,3  it  is  certain  that  the  trees  men- 
tioned in  xli.  19  were  not  for  the  most  part  natives  of  that 
country,  while  the  date-palm,  the  commonest  of  all  the 
Babylonian  trees,  is  not  once  referred  to.  The  fact  has  not 
escaped  the  observation  of  Mr.  Urwick,  who  has  devoted 
special  attention  to  the  agricultural  and  botanical  references 
in  both  parts  of  Isaiah,  with  the  view  of  obtaining  a  subsi- 

1  Yet  the  author  of  one  of  the  most  remarkable  products  of  rationalistic  criticism 
in  England  asserts  that  '  only  the  most  uncompromising  champions  of  what  is  taken 
for  orthodoxy  now  venture  to  deny  that  the  Book  of  Isaiah  is  the  work  of  two  per- 
sons. .  .  .  [cc.  i.-xxxix.  constitute  the  work  of  the  former,  cc.  xl.-lxvi.  that  of  the 
latter].     (The  Hebrew  Migration  from  Egypt,  Lond.,  1879,  p.  61  note.) 

2  See  /.  C.  A.,  Introduction,  p.  xvii,  but  comp.  the  qualifications  of  this  admission 
in  the  new  (third)  edition  of  Delitzsch's  Jesaia,  p.  406. 

3  Rawlinson's  note  on  Herod.,  i.  193. 


212  ESSAYS. 

diary  argument  in  favour  of  the  unity  of  the  book.1  Mi 
Urwick,  however,  does  not  seem  to  have  noticed  that  the 
argument  is  a  two-edged  one.  For  the  trees  mentioned  in 
xli.  19  are  for  the  most  part  as  unfamiliar  to  a  native  of 
Judaea  as  to  a  man  of  Babylonia.2  By  a  similar  method  it 
could  be  proved  that  the  Book  of  Jeremiah  was  written  in 
northern  Israel,  because  in  xvii.  8  a  figure  is  taken  from 
perennial  streams,  which  were  unknown  in  the  drier  south  ; 
and  even  that  the  book  of  the  exile-prophet  Ezekiel  is  a  for- 
gery, because  of  his  frequent  references  to  the  mountains  and 
rivers  of  Israel  (vi.  2,  3,  xxxiv.  13,  14,  xxxvi.  1-12,  &c.).  As 
has  been  remarked  elsewhere,  '  a  Semitic  race,  when  trans- 
planted to  a  distant  country,  preserves  a  lively  recollection  of 
its  earlier  home.  The  Arabic  poets  in  Spain  delighted  in 
allusions  to  Arabian  localities,  and  descriptions  of  the  events  of 
desert-life.  Why  should  not  a  prophecy  of  the  Exile  contain 
some  such  allusions  to  the  scenery  of  Palestine,'  3  especially, 
it  may  be  added,  if  the  natural  objects  referred  to  have  a  sym- 
bolical meaning  ?  The  allusions  will,  at  any  rate,  be  of  small 
critical  value  unless  they  be  supported  by  historical  references, 
which  unmistakably  point  away  from  the  period  of  the  Exile. 

Such  references,  however,  are  really  forthcoming,  as 
the  elder  traditionalists  rightly  saw.  They  are  most  nume- 
rous and  striking  in  chapters  Ivi.,  Ivii.,  Ixv.,  Ixvi.,  where, 
however,  they  are  probably  often  under-estimated,  owing  to 
the  prejudice  produced  by  the  earlier  chapters.  Let  us  read 
them  by  themselves,  and  I  think  we  shall  hardly  doubt  that 
the  descriptions  refer  to  some  period  or  periods  other  than 
the  Exile.  And  yet,  on  the  other  hand,  it  cannot  be  denied 
that  there  are  still  more  numerous  passages  which  presuppose 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  the  exile  of  the  Jews  in  Baby- 
lon. How  are  these  conflicting  phenomena  to  be  reconciled  ? 

One  way  (a)  is  to  suppose  that  they  are  Isaiah's  involun- 
tary betrayals  of  his  authorship.  It  will  be  remembered  that, 
according  to  a  prevalent  theory,  Isa.  xl.-lxvi.  is  a  '  mono- 
graph '  written  by  Isaiah  in  a  quasi-ecstatic  state  for  the 
future  use  of  the  exiles.  No  one  perhaps  (putting  aside 
Dr.  Delitzsch)  has  better  expressed  this  view  than  the  present 

1  The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  p,  49.     Mr.  Urwick  remarks  that  there  were  no  vine- 
yards in  Babylonia.     But  M.  Lenormant  has  shown  that  Mesopotamia  produced  an 
abundance  of  valuable  wines  (Syllabaires  cimdiform.es>  Par.  1876,  pp.  121-129). 

2  The  myrtle  is  probably  one  of  the  unfamiliar  trees.     It  is  only  mentioned  (ex- 
cluding Isa.  xli.  19,  Iv.  13)  in  two  books  of  post-exile  origin  (Zech.  i.  8,  10,  n,  Neh. 
viii.  15),  and  in  the  parallel  Pentateuch-passage  to  Neh.  loc.  cit.  the  myrtle  is  omitted 
(Lev.  xxiii.  40).     Dean  Perowne  has  suggested  that  it  may  have  been  imported  into 
Palestine  from  Babylonia  (Smith's  Bible  Diet.,  art.  '  Zechariah  ') 

3  /.  C.  A.,  p.  201. 


ESSAYS.  2  I  3 

Dean  of  Westminster,  who  does  not,  however,  venture  to 
decide  upon  its  merits.  '  The  Isaiah/  he  says,  '  of  the  vexed 
and  stormy  times  of  Ahaz  and  of  Hezekiah  is  supposed  in 
his  later  days  to  have  been  transported  by  God's  Spirit  into 
a  time  and  a  region  other  than  his  own.  .  .  .  He  is  led  in 
prolonged  and  solitary  visions  into  a  land  that  he  has  never 
trodden,  and  to  a  generation  on  whom  he  has  never  looked. 
The  familiar  scenes  and  faces,  among  which  he  had  lived 
and  laboured,  have  grown  dim  and  disappeared.  All  sounds 
and  voices  of  the  present  are  hushed,  and  the  interests  and 
passions  into  which  he  had  thrown  himself  with  all  the 
intensity  of  his  race  and  character  move  him  no  more.  The 
present  has  died  out  of  the  horizon  of  his  soul's  vision.  .  .  . 
The  voices  in  his  ears  are  those  of  men  unborn,  and  he  lives  a 
second  life  among  events  and  persons,  sins  and  suffering,  and 
fears  and  hopes,  photographed  sometimes  with  the  minutest 
accuracy  on  the  sensitive  and  sympathetic  medium  of  his  own 
spirit ;  and  he  becomes  the  denouncer  of  the  special  sins  of  a 
distant  generation,  and  the  spokesman  of  the  faith  and  hope 
and  passionate  yearning  of  an  exiled  nation,  the  descendants 
of  men  living  when  he  wrote  in  the  profound  peace  of  a  re- 
newed prosperity.' 1 

It  would  carry  me  too  far  from  my  present  object  to 
criticise  this  theory,  but  let  me  observe  in  passing  that,  if  the 
passages  with  Palestinian  references  can  be  taken  as  uncon- 
scious self-betrayals,  they  furnish  a  reply  to  one  of  the  chief 
objections  by  which  it  has  been  met.  It  is  commonly  said 
(and  with  much  justice)  that  so  long-continued  a  transference 
of  a  prophet's  point  of  view  into  the  ideal  future  is  without  a 
parallel.  For  a  short  time  a  prophet  of  the  classical  period 
may  indeed  pass  beyond  his  habitual  horizon,  but  he  cannot 
help  betraying  his  own  date  in  the  course  of  a  very  few 
verses  or  paragraphs.  Whether  or  not  this  inference  from  the 
classical  prophecies  is  justified,  need  not  here  be  discussed. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  the  reply  to  the  objection  furnished  by 
the  proposed  view  of  the  Palestinian  references  is  at  any  rate 
plausible,  supposing  that  the  passages  containing  them  form 
an  integral  portion  of  the  book. 

(b)  Another  conceivable  view  (which  again  I  do  not  pro- 
nounce upon,  but  only  mention)  is  this — that  the  Palestinian 
references  are  the  involuntary  self-betrayal  of  a  prophetic  writer 
living  in  Palestine  during  the  Exile?-  It  is  clear  from  several 

1  Abstract  of  University  sermon  by  the  Rev.  G.  G.  Bradley,  in  the  Oxford  Under- 
graduates "Journal,  Feb.  18,  1875. 

2  So  F.  W.  Seinecke,  Der  Evangelist  des  Alien   Testaments  (Leipzig,  1870)  ;  also 
apparently  H.  Oort  (at  least  for  some  part  of  II.  Isaiah),  Tkeologisch  Tijdschrift,  1876,, 
pp.  528-536. 


214 


ESSAYS. 


passages  (especially  Ezek.  xxxiii.  24),  and  from  the  fact 
that,  unlike  the  northern  kingdom,  Judah  was  not  colonised 
by  foreigners  after  the  fall  of  the  state,  that  a  considerable 
number  of  Jews  remained  behind  in  their  own  country.1  It 
is  far  from  incredible  that  some  literary  men  should  have 
formed  part  of  this  remnant,  and  that  one  of  them,  at  least, 
should  have  been  a  prophet. .  In  fact,  it  seems  almost  certain 
that  Lam.  v.  was  written  in  Judah  during  the  Exile,  and  we 
cannot  suppose  that  this  was  the  only  Palestinian  production 
of  that  long  period.  There  are  passages  in  II.  Isaiah,  besides 
those  already  referred  to,  which  may  be  considered  to  favour 
the  view  under  consideration  (e.g.  xl.  9,  Hi.  i,  2,  5  [?],  7-9), 
though  perfectly  capable  of  explanation  on  the  ordinary 
theory.  It  is  no  doubt  a  little  difficult  to  realise  the  selection 
of  a  prophet  in  Judah  to  address  the  whole  body  of  the 
nation  (the  most  important  and  most  cultivated  part  of 
which  was  in  exile),  but  if  there  was  no  equally  great  prophet 
in  Babylonia,  it  was  the  only  possible  choice.  There  may 
even  have  been  special  advantages  in  his  distance  from  the 
centre  of  the  nation,  of  which  we  are  ignorant.  Certainly 
this  theory  has  the  merit  of  simplicity  ;  it  accounts,  not  only 
for  the  Palestinian  features  in  some  of  the  descriptions,  but 
for  the  paucity  of  the  references  to  Babylonian  circumstances. 
Yes,  it  has  the  merit  of  simplicity  ;  but  that  is  hardly 
a  recommendation  to  'those  who  know.'  If  the  solution 
of  this  problem  is  so  extremely  simple,  it  will  be  almost 
unique.  Complication,  and  not  simplicity,  is  the  note  of  the 
questions  and  of  the  answers  which  constitute  Old  Testament 
criticism.  It  is  becoming  more  and  more  certain  that  the 
present  form  especially  of  the  prophetic  Scriptures  is  due  to 
a  literary  class  (the  so-called  Soferim,  '  scribes,'  or  ( Scrip- 
turists '),  whose  principal  function  was  collecting  and  supple- 
menting the  scattered  records  of  prophetic  revelation.  This 
function  they  performed  with  rare  self-abnegation.  Of  a  regard 
on  their  part  for  personal  distinction  there  is  not  a  trace  ; 
self-consciousness  is  swallowed  up  in  the  sense  of  belonging, 
if  only  in  a  secondary  degree,  to  the  company  of  inspired 
men.  They  wrote,  they  recast,  they  edited,  in  the  same  spirit 
in  which  a  gifted  artist  of  our  own  day  devoted  himself  to 
the  glory  of  'modern  painters.'  To  apply  the  words  of  a  great 
American  prose-poet,  *  They  chose  the  better,  and  loftier  and 
more  unselfish  part,  laying  their  individual  hopes,  their  fame, 
their  prospects  of  enduring  remembrance,  at  the  feet  of  those 

1  Kuenen,  Religion,  of  Israel,  ii.   176;   comp.  his  Historisch-kritisch  onderzoek, 
ii.  150,  note  8,  iii.  357-8  (on  Lam.  v.). 


ESSAYS.  2 1  5 

great  departed  ones,  whom  they  so  loved  and  venerated.' ! 
Surely  if  the  prophets  were  inspired,  a  younger  son's  portion 
of  the  Spirit  was  granted  to  their  self-denying  editors.2 

St.  Jerome  had  evidently  more  than  a  mere  suspicion  of 
the  activity  of  the  Soferim,  when  he  significantly  remarked 
that  Ezra  might  be  plausibly  described  as  the  '  instaurator' 
of  the  Pentateuch.  It  is,  however,  to  Ewald  that  we  owe  the 
first  rough  sketch  of  their  probable  proceedings.  The  sub- 
jective element  is  unreasonably  strong  in  all  that  great 
master's  work  ;  and  a  careful  re-examination  of  the  Old 
Testament  records  from  the  same  literary  point  of  view  as 
Ewald's  is  urgently  needed.  At  the  same  time  his  treatment 
of  the  latter  part  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah  cannot  be  com- 
plained of  on  the  score  of  excessive  analysis.  The  only 
passages  which  he  denies  to  have  been  written  by  '  the  Great 
Unnamed'3  are  xl.  I,  2,  lii.  I3~liv.  12,  Ivi.  9-lvii.  II  (by  a 
prophet  of  the  reign  of  Manasseh),  Iviii.  i-lix.  20  (written 
soon  after  Ezekiel).  He  also  maintains,  however,  that  the 
author  is  well  acquainted  with  the  works  of  the  older  pro- 
phets, from  which  he  now  and  again  borrows  the  text  of 
his  discourse  (see,  e.g.,  the  description  of  the  folly  of  idolatry 
in  Jer.  x.).  It  is  this  free  use  of  *  motives '  from  the  earlier 
literature,  and  this  combination  of  old  material  with  new  in 
the  manner  of  mosaic-work,  which  is  characteristic  of  the 
Soferim. 

But  though  Ewald  has  been  the  first,  or  one  of  the  first, 
in  the  field,  he  has  left  much  land  still  to  be  occupied.  First 
of  all,  he  has  taken  no  account  of  the  possibility  that  the 
author  of  chaps,  xl.-lxvi.  not  only  put  old  ideas  and  phrases 
into  a  new  setting,  but  also  incorporated  the  substance  of 

1  Hawthorne's  Transformation  ;  character  of  Hilda  (chap.  vi.  '  She  chose, '  &c. ). 

2  This  habit  of  recasting  and  re-editing  ancient  writings  was  still  characteristic  of 
Jewish  literary  men  at  a  much  later  period.     As  Dr.  Edersheim  observes,  '  There  are 
scarcely  any  ancient  Rabbinical  documents  which  have  not  been  interpolated  by  later 
writers,  or,  as  we  might  euphemistically  call  it,  been  recast  and  re-edited  '  (Sketches  oj 
Jewish  Social  Life,  p.  131).     The  habit,  I  say,  survived,  but  the  spirit  which  vivified 
the  habit,  was  changed.     For  the  editors  of  the  Scriptures  were  inspired  ;  there  is  no 
maintaining  the  authority  of  the  Bible  without  this  postulate.     True,  we  must  allow  a 
distinction  in  degrees  of  inspiration,  as  the  Jewish  doctors  themselves  saw,  though  it 
was  some  time  before  they  clearly  formulated  their  view.     I  am  glad  to  notice  that  one 
so  free  from  the  suspicion  of  Rationalism  or  Romanism  as  Rudolf  Stier  adopts  the 
Jewish  distinction,  remarking  that  even  the  lowest  grade  of  inspiration  (tjnj-jn  rVPS') 
remains  one  of  faith's  mysteries. 

3  Such  is  Ewald's  title  for  the  author  of  the  greater  part  of  Isa.  xl.-lxvi.,  and 
abundant  has  been  the  contumely  it  has  brought  upon  him.     '  As  if,'  remarks  a  well- 


the  self-abnegation  characteristic  of  Biblical  authors  (where  there  was  no  special  reason 
for  mentioning  their  names),  and  the  remark  of  Origen  with  regard  to  the  Epistle  to 

the  Hebrews,  It's  5e   6  ypd^as  TT\V  eVtoroArji',  TO  fxei/  aArjfles  0fbs  olSej/. 


2l6 


ESSAYS. 


connected  discourses  of  that  great  prophet,  of  whose  style  we 
are  so  often  reminded  in  these  chapters — Isaiah.  This  is  a  pos- 
sibility which  it  is  impossible  to  raise  to  a  certainty,  or  even 
to  such  an  approximate  certainty  as  we  are  so  often  fain  to 
be  content  with  in  literary  criticism.  For  if  the  work  of  Isaiah 
has  been  utilised,  it  has  been  so  skilfully  fused  in  the  mind 
and  imagination  of  the  later  prophet,  that  a  discrimination 
between  -the  old  and  the  new  is  scarcely  feasible.  But  the 
view  is  quite  in  harmony  with  what  we  know  of  the  Soferim. 
Some  of  the  class  were,  from  a  literary  point  of  view,  mere 
workers  in  mosaic  (to  repeat  an  expressive  figure),  others  were 
real  artists,  real  poets  and  orators,  quite  capable,  therefore,  of 
such  work  as  we  are  supposing  II.  Isaiah  to  contain.  Moreover, 
the  view  offers  two  especial  advantages  :  i.  It  gives  a  very 
simple  explanation  (though  simplicity,  as  we  have  seen,  is  not 
always  a  mark  of  truth)  of  the  linguistic  points  of  contact 
between  the  original  and  the  '  Babylonian '  Isaiah  ;  and  2.  it 
dispenses  us  from  the  necessity  of  assuming  (against  the  con- 
text) such  a  suspension  of  the  laws  of  psychology  as  is  implied 
on  the  traditional  theory  by  the  mention  of '  Cyrus '  in  xliv.  28 
(see  note),  xlv.  I.  I  may  add  that  it  is  partly  parallel  to  the 
case  of  certain  portions  of  I.  Isaiah,  where  the  preceding  com- 
mentary has  recognised  the  hand  of  another  writer,  perhaps 
that  of  a  disciple  of  Isaiah,  reproducing  in  a  new  connection 
authentic  remains  of  the  master's  teaching  (see  vol.  i.  pp.  43, 
185,  235).  Still  it  appears  to  me  that  the  objections  urged 
in  another  connection  (vol.  i.  p.  234)  against  Isaiah's  having 
foretold  the  fall  of  Babylon  have  to  be  met,  before  this  hypo- 
thesis can  be  said  to  be  securely  grounded.1 

Secondly,  there  are  other  parts  of  II.  Isaiah  as  difficult  to 
interpret  on  the  theory  of  the  original  unity  of  the  book  as 
any  of  those  which  Ewald  has  mentioned.  In  fact,  from 
chap.  liii.  onwards,  it  is  the  exception  to  find  a  chapter  which 
is  not  studded  with  passages  by  no  means  easy  to  reconcile 
with  the  Unitarian  theory.  Bleek,  who,  I  need  not  say,  enjoys  a 
high  reputation  for  the  caution  and  reverence  of  his  criticism, 
points  out  especially  the  three  prophecies,  Ixiii.  1-6,  Ixiii.  7— 
Ixv.  25,  and  chap.  Ixvi.,  which,  according  to  him,  were  composed 
shortly  after  the  close  of  the  Exile,2  and  even  Naegelsbach 

1  The  hypothesis  is  supported  by  Dr.  Klostermann  of  Kiel  in  a  dissertation  in  the 
Lufherische  Zeitschrift,  for  1876  (pp.  1-60),  and  in  the  article  '  Jesaja '  in  the  second 
edition  of  Herzog's  Real-encyclopddie.  A  worse  advocate  for  a  good  cause  could  hardly 
be  found  ;  such  perverse  reasoning  surprises  one  in  a  trained  theologian.  Still  the 
fundamental  idea  deserves  attention.  Both  in  the  first  and  in  the  second  part  of 
Isaiah  the  presence  of  exilic  prophecies  appears  as  certain  to  Dr.  Klostermann  as  to 
any  of  the  rationalistic  critics. 

3  Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament  (Eng.  Transl.),  ii.  49,  50.     Bleek,  indeed,  is  of 


ESSAYS.  2  I  7 

commenting  on  Isaiah  in  Lange's  Bibelwerk,  is  so  impressed 
by  .the  peculiarities  of  chaps.  Ixv.,  Ixvi.,  that  he  somewhat 
arbitrarily  supposes  them  to  have  been  interpolated.  '  It 
appears,'  he  says,  'that  one  of  the  faithful  Israelites  used 
every  opportunity  of  attaching  to  the  words  of  the  prophet  a 
threat  against  the  abhorred  apostates.'  His  instances  are, 
Ixiv.  9-11,  Ixv.  3^-5^,  Ixv.  II,  12,  Ixv.  25,  Ixvi.  3<M),  Ixvi.  17. 
But  I  must  postpone  further  remarks  on  this  too  seduc- 
tive theme.  Suffice  it  if  I  have  made  it  plain  that  a  number 
of  important  exegetical  questions  have  to  be  settled  before  the 
Isaianic  authorship  of  Isa.  xl.— Ixvi.  can  be  fruitfully  discussed. 
It  is  possible  that  it  may  some  day  become  an  approximate 
certainty  that  the  latter  part  of  II.  Isaiah  was  once  much 
shorter,  and  that  the  author,  or  one  of  the  Soferim,  enlarged 
it  by  the  insertion  of  passages  from  other  prophets,  intro- 
ducing at  the  same  time  an  artificial  semblance  of  unity  by 
the  insertion  of  a  slightly  altered  version  of  the  gnomic  say- 
ing in  xlviii.  22  as  a  refrain  in  Ivii.  21.  There  is  nothing  dis- 
paraging to  prophecy  in  such  a  view,  as  long  as  we  maintain 
the  divine  inspiring  and  overruling  influence  for  which  I  have 
pleaded  above.  On  the  contrary,  it  appears  to  me  that  it 
does  honour  to  the  Spirit  of  prophecy  by  enlarging  the  range 
of  His  operations,  according  to  that  saying  of  the  Man  of 
God  in  reply  to  those  who  '  envied  for  his  sake,'  '  Would  God 
that  all  Jehovah's  people  were  prophets ! '  It  must  be  re- 
membered, however,  that  this  view  can  only  become  an  ap- 
proximate certainty,  when  the  outlines  have  been  sketched  of 
a  history  of  the  later  Old  Testament  literature,  in  which  the 
place  of  these  and  similar  insertions  has  on  reasonable  grounds 
been  indicated.  The  fault  of  modern  critics  has  been  that 
they  have  considered  the  Old  Testament  writings  too  much 
as  isolated  phenomena,  whereas  the  complicated  nature  of 
the  problems  urgently  demands  that  the  books  should  be 
treated  in  connection.  It  may  indeed  be  confidently  antici- 
pated that  the  history  of  Old  Testament  literature  will  prove 
the  most  effectual  justification  of  Old  Testament  criticism. 

2. 

There  are  still  a  few  other  points  in  which  I  desire  to 
supplement  my  earlier  statement.  I.  As  to  the  paucity  of 
allusions  in  chaps,  xli.-lxvi.  to  the  special  circumstances  of 
Babylon.  The  fact  must  be  allowed  ;  it  was,  indeed,  so  con- 
spicuous as  to  induce  Ewald  to  suppose  that  the  author 

opinion  that  the  passages  referred  to  were  by  the  same  author  as  the  earlier  prophecies  ; 
but  this  may  on  plausible  grounds  be  contested. 


2  1 8  ESSAYS. 

resided  in  Egypt.  It  is  not  unfavourable  to  the  authorship 
of  Isaiah,  who  might  have  learned  almost  as  much  about 
Babylon  as  is  mentioned  in  these  chapters  either  from  travel- 
ling merchants,  or  from  the  ambassadors  of  Merodach  Ba- 
ladan.  The  only  possible  allusion  of  this  kind  (if  we  may 
press  the  letter  of  the  prophecy)  distinctly  in  favour  of  an 
exilic  date,  is  that  in  xlvi.  i.  to  the  worship  of  Bel-Merodach 
and  Nebo,  which  specially  characterised  the  later  Babylonian 
empire.1  This  paucity  of  Babylonian  references  would  be  less 
surprising  (for  prophets  and  apostles  were  not  curious  ob- 
servers), were  it  not  for  the  very  specific  allusions  to  Pales- 
tinian circumstances  in  some  of  the  later  chapters.  As  I  have 
indicated,  there  is  more  than  one  way  of  accounting  for  it. 

2.  With  regard  to  style.  It  is  proverbially  difficult  to 
obtain  unanimity  on  a  question  of  style,  but  I  think  it  will 
hardly  be  gainsaid  that  the  style  of  the  second  part  of  Isaiah 
is  on  the  whole  in  many  ways  different  from  that  of  the  first. 
This  judgment  will  be  none  the  less  valid  because  it  is  founded 
on  an  impression.  The  impression  is  no  casual  or  arbitrary 
one,  but  produced,  as  Professor  A.  B.  Davidson  truly  says, 
by  the  combined  force  of  many  elements.  *  It  is  quite  pos- 
sible to  subject  this  impression  to  the  crucible  and  dissolve 
it,  reasoning  it  away  bit  by  bit,  and  then  to  assert  that  the 
testimony  of  style  is  worth  nothing.  .  .  .  But  when  the  tide 
of  logic  recedes,  the  impression  remains  as  distinct  as  ever/ 
The  question  is,  whether  such  a  diversity  of  style  as  we  are 
supposing  necessarily  argues  a  diversity  of  authorship.  This 
can  only  be  decided  by  a  careful  examination  of  the  elements 
of  the  diversity  ;  and  here  I  cannot  but  think  that  recent 
English  scholars  have  failed  ;  Professor  Stanley  Leathes, 
Professor  Birks,  and  Dr.  Kay,  all  endeavour  unduly  to  mini- 
mise the  diversity  in  phraseology  between  I.  and  II.  Isaiah. 
None  of  them  appear  to  understand  what  it  is  that  the  dis- 
integrating critics  mean  by  their  appeal  to  phraseology,  and 
one  can  well  imagine  that  they  have  all  felt  inclined  to  use 
language  in  which  Dr.  Payne  Smith  has  actually  expressed 
himself,  that  'the  aberrations  of  the  human  intellect  are 
infinite.' 2  The  truth  is,  however,  that  it  is  not  merely  upon 
isolated  words  or  phrases  that  those  critics  found  their  argu- 
ment, but  upon  'the  peculiar  articulation  of  sentences  and 
the  movement  of  the  whole  discourse  ; '  and  even  within  the 
field  of  phraseology,  it  is  not  so  much  upon  the  fact  that 

1  See  e.g.  the  Birs  Nimrud  Inscription  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  Records  of  the  Past, 
vii.  73-78,  in  which  the  names  of  Marduk  and  Nabu  (and  no  other  gods)  constantly 
recur.     Sargon,  it  is  true,  also  mentions  these  deities  with  high  honour,  but  makes 
Assur  precede  them  (Records  of  the  Past,  vii.  25). 

2  The  Old  Testament,  with  a  Brief  Commentary  by  Various  Writers.  (S.P.C.K.). 


ESSAYS.  219 

some  words  are  peculiar  to  the  second  part  of  Isaiah,  as  upon 
this,  that  certain  words,  though  common  to  both  parts,  are 
used  in  the  second  in  a  peculiar  sense,  and  one  which  implies 
a  great  development  of  thought.  And  so  the  argument  from 
phraseology  runs  up  into  another  (3)  based  upon  the  new 
ideas  and  forms  of  representing  ideas  in  the  disputed  pro- 
phecies, on  which  on  a  former  occasion  some  may  have 
thought  that  I  placed  undue  reliance.  If  I  erred,  I  did  so  in  good 
company,  for  the  tendency  of  the  most  thoughtful  Continental 
scholars  is  in  the  same  direction.  Dr.  Paul  Kleinert,  for 
instance,  in  his  condensation  of  the  Old  Testament  Prolego- 
mena into  tables  for  the  use  of  students,  mentions  as  the  second 
argument  for  the  non-Isaianic  origin  of  II.  Isaiah  that  '  the 
development  of  many  primary  ideas  (P*i¥,  BDC'D,  nin*  13SJ,  &c.) 
is  subsequent  not  only  to  Isaiah  but  to  Jeremiah.'  1  Still 
it  is  well,  perhaps,  to  be  reminded  of  the  necessity  of  caution, 
lest  one  should  be  so  far  carried  away  in  the  ardour  of  criti- 
cism as  to  relegate  to  a  later  '  stage  '  an  idea  which  an  early 
inspired  prophet  might  perhaps  under  peculiar  circumstances 
have  conceived.  On  the  other  hand,  conservative  scholars 
should  take  into  careful  consideration  whether  it  is  admissible 
to  maintain  that  an  idea  is  Isaianic,  if  it  can  only  be  justified 
as  such  by  assuming,  contrary  to  the  analogy  of  classical 
prophecy,  a  suspension  of  the  ordinary  laws  of  psychology.2 
Too  many  theologians  rush  into  the  thick  of  prophetic  inter- 
pretation without  any  deep  study  of  this  most  fundamental 
of  questions. 

If  I  might  return  for  a  moment  to  the  argument  from 
diversity  of  style,  I  would  venture  to  supplement  the  question 
as  to  its  critical  value  raised  above  by  another,  Does  unity  of 
style  necessarily  argue  unity  of  authorship?  Dr.  Colenso 
obviously  replied  to  this  in  the  affirmative  when  he  main- 
tained that  the  Book  of  Deuteronomy  was  written  by  the 
prophet  Jeremiah,  and  Ewald  and  Hitzig,  by  their  treatment 
of  the  Psalms,  have  given  some  support  to  such  a  position. 
But  I  suppose  all  that  need  be  inferred  from  unity  of  style  is 
that  one  of  the  books  which  display  this  unity  exercised  a 
strong  influence  on  the  author  of  the  other.  We  know  that 
the  Soferim  had  their  favourite  Scriptures,  and  it  is  a  conjec- 
ture of  recent  critics  that  when  the  prophetic  Epigoni  edited 
the  older  prophecies,  they  sometimes  added  parallel  works  of 
their  own  (Begleitschreiben\  in  which  they  sought  to  treat 

1  Abriss  der  Einleitung  ziim  Alien   Testament  im   Tabellenform  (Berlin,  1878), 
p.  25. 

2  On  the  point  thus  raised,  the  student  should  refer  to  Prof.  Riehm's  Messianic 
Prophecy  (Eng.  Transl.,  Edinb.  1876). 


220 


ESSAYS. 


existing  circumstances  in  the  spirit  of  their  predecessors. 
This  is  at  least  a  good  working  hypothesis,  and  is  not  in 
itself  inconsistent  with  a  belief  in  prophetic  inspiration. 

4.  The  argument  from  parallel  passages  is  sometimes 
much  over-rated.  How  prone  we  are  to  fancy  an  imitation 
where  there  is  none,  has  been  strikingly  shown  by  Mr.  Munro's 
parallels  between  the  plays  of  Shakspere  and  Seneca,1  and 
even  when  an  imitation  on  one  side  or  the  other  must  be 
supposed,  how  difficult  it  is  to  choose  between  the  alternatives  ! 
That  there  are  parallels  between  II.  Isaiah  on  the  one  hand 
and  Zephaniah  or  Jeremiah  on  the  other  is  certain,  and  that 
the  one  prophet  imitated  the  other  is  probable  ;  but  which  is 
the  original  one  ?  As  I  have  remarked  elsewhere,  our  view 
of  the  relation  between  two  authors  is  apt  to  be  biassed  by  a 
prejudice  in  favour  of  the  more  brilliant  genius ;  we  can 
hardly  help  believing  that  the  more  strikingly  expressed 
passage  must  be  the  more  original.  A  recent  revolution  of 
opinion  among  patristic  students  may  be  a  warning  to  us  not 
to  be  too  premature  in  deciding  such  questions.  It  has  been 
the  custom  to  argue  from  the  occurrence  of  almost  identical 
sentences  in  the  Octavius  of  Minucius  Felix  and  the  Apolo- 
geticum  of  Tertullian,  that  Minucius  must  have  written  later 
than  the  beginning  of  the  third  century,  on  the  ground  that 
a  brilliant  genius  like  Tertullian  cannot  have  been  such  a 
servile  imitator  as  the  hypothesis  of  the  priority  of  Minucius 
would  imply.  But  Adolf  Ebert  seems  to  have  definitively 
proved 2  that  Tertullian  not  only  made  use  of  Minucius,  but 
did  not  even  understand  his  author  rightly. 

I  do  not,  on  the  ground  of  the  difficulties  encompassing 
it,  desire  to  expel  this  argument  from  our  critical  apparatus. 
But  I  do  think  that  it  can  only  be  properly  used  in  a  compre- 
hensive work  on  the  Biblical  and  especially  the  prophetic 
literature  as  a  whole.  And  so  I  come  round  to  my  original 
proposition  that  he  who  would  take  part,  whether  as  a  teacher 
or  a  student,  in  the  controversies  of  the  higher  criticism,  must 
first  of  all  have  equipped  himself  by  a  self-denying  and 
theory-denying  examination  of  the  texts.  Can  it  be  said  that 
all  our  critics  have  so  equipped  themselves,  or  that  all  even 
of  our  interpreters  have  been  fully  conscious  of  the  moral 
pre-requisites  ? 

1  Journal  of  Philology,  vol.  vi.  (Camb.  1876),  pp.  70-72. 

2  Ebert,  Tertullians  Verhalttiiss  zu  Minucius  Felix,  reviewed  in  Jahrbiicher  fiir 
deutsche  Theologie,  1869,  pp.  740-743. 


ESSAYS.  221 


VII.     CORRECTION   OF  THE   HEBREW  TEXT. 

THE  subject  described  in  the  above  title  is  one  peculiarly  unfit 
for  an  essay  ;  it  is  obviously  not  a  dissertation,  but  facts,  which 
the  reader  requires  in  order  to  form  a  well-grounded  opinion 
upon  it,  and  the  facts  cannot  be  condensed  into  a  few  pages, 
Still,  for  the  same  reason  that  I  ventured  to  sketch  the  con- 
nection which,  as  I  think,  exists  between  the  philological  and 
the  theological  interpretation  of  Isaiah,  I  will  devote  a  brief 
study  to  clearing  away  some  possible  misunderstandings 
arising  out  of  my  treatment  of  the  text. 

It  is  a  depressing  discovery  to  the  student  when  he  first 
realises  the  weakness  of  the  authority  for  the  received  Hebrew 
text.  And  yet  the  state  of  the  case  might  fairly  have  been 
anticipated.  If,  in  the  judgment  of  Lachmann  and  Tischen- 
dorf,  corruptions  of  some  moment  have  taken  place  even  in 
the  text  of  the  New  Testament,  almost  infinitely  greater  is 
the  probability  that  a  similar  misfortune  on  a  larger  scale  has 
befallen  the  text  of  the  Old.  To  explain  the  causes,  and 
investigate  the  degree  of  this  phenomenon,  would  be  a  subject 
well  worthy  of  a  scholar's  pen ;  but  it  lies  outside  my  immediate 
province.  Among  the  manifold  causes,  however,  there  is  one 
which  will  occur  directly  to  every  student — the  transcription 
of  the  Hebrew  records  from  the  latest  archaic  to  the  modern 
or  square  character.  M.  de  Vogue,  an  authority  on  palaeo- 
graphy, thus  describes  the  fortunes  of  the  rival  alphabets  :— 

'  If  we  consider  in  its  entirety  the  history  of  the  Hebrew 
writing,  as  it  results  from  the  study  of  the  monuments  alone, 
we  may  resume  it  thus  : 

'  A  first  period,  during  which  the  only  writing  in  use  is  the 
archaic  Hebrew,  a  character  closely  resembling  the  Phoeni- 
cian; 

'  A  second  period,  during  which  the  Aramaic  writing  is 
employed  simultaneously  with  the  first,  and  is  little  by  little 
substituted  for  it ; 

'  A  third  period,  during  which  the  Aramaic  writing,  now 
become  square,  is  the  only  one  in  use. 

'  The  first  period  is  anterior  to  the  Captivity,  and  the  third 
posterior  to  Jesus  Christ. 

'  The  limits  of  the  second  cannot  be  determined  exactly  by 
the  aid  of  the  monuments  alone,  for  these  are  entirely  wanting ; 
but  here  the  traditions  and  the  texts  come  to  our  help.  The 
name  of  ashurlth  (  Assyrian,'  given  by  the  Rabbinic  school 


222  ESSAYS. 

to  the  square  alphabet  ;  the  part  in  the  introduction  of  thai 
alphabet  which  it  assigns  to  Ezra,  a  collective  term  for  the 
totality  of  the  traditions  relative  to  the  return  of  the  Jews, 
seem  to  prove  that  the  introduction  of  the  Aramaic  writing 
coincides  with  the  great  Aramaic  movement  which  invaded 
the  whole  of  Syria  and  Palestine  in  the  sixth  and  seventh 
centuries  before  our  era.' l 

It  need  hardly  be  pointed  out  what  a  wide  door  this  series 
of  changes  opens  for  confusions  of  various  kinds.  In  each 
of  the  alphabets  referred  to  some  letters  are  more  easily  con- 
founded than  others.  We  have  therefore  presumably  in  the 
received  or  Massoretic  Hebrew  text  a  combination  of  the  errors 
which  arose  (i)  from  the  confusion  of  similar  letters  in  the 
archaic  Hebrew  character,  (2)  from  the  confusion  of  letters 
in  the  archaic  alphabet  with  similar  letters  in  the  Aramaic, 

(3)  from  the  transliteration  into  the  later  square  character,  and 

(4)  from  the  confusion  of  similar  letters  in  the  square  character 
itself,  after  the  texts  had  been  transliterated.     We  have  not 
yet  made  half  enough  of  palaeography  as  an  index  of  possible 
corrections,  and   it  would   probably  be  worth  while,   as  M. 
Renan  has  suggested,  to  publish  selected  books  of  the  Hebrew 
Bible  in  the  Phoenician  character.2 

Hardly  less  striking  are  the  facts  relative  to  the  date  of 
the  received  Hebrew  text,  and  the  extant  Hebrew  MSS. 
The  former  appears  to  have  been  settled  during  the  Talmudic 
period  which  preceded  the  Massoretic,  i.e.  some  time  before 
the  close  of  the  fifth  century  A.D.  Since  then  the  text  has 
no  doubt  been  handed  down  with  scrupulous  fidelity,  but 
whether  '  the  oracles  of  God  '  had  been  as  jealously  guarded 
in  the  earlier  periods,  at  any  rate  before  the  idea  of  the 
canon  had  attained  complete  precision,  may  well  be  doubted. 
In  Egypt,  as  the  Septuagint  sufficiently  proves,  the  transcribers 
of  the  Old  Testament  were  specially  careless  :  but  even  in 
Palestine,  judging  from  the  present  state  of  the  Hebrew  Bible, 
its  guardians  do  not  appear  to  have  been  fully  conscious  of 
their  responsibility.  True,  there  was  a  higher  guardian,  Pro- 
vidence :  true,  the  defects  of  the  letter  have  been  overruled  to 
the  good  of  the  Church,  which  might  otherwise  have  fallen  (as 
fragments  of  the  Church  doubtless  have  fallen)  into  worship  of 
the  letter.  But  the  difficulties  arising  out  of  these  circum- 

1  De  Vogue",  Melanges  d 'archtologie  orientah  (Par.  1868),  p.  164.     M.  Lenormant, 
in  his  Essai  sur  la  propagation  de  I' alphabet  Phtnicien,  assigns  the  introduction  of  the 
square  character  to  the  first  century  before  the  Christian  era. 

2  For   judicious   observations    on  this  subject,  see  M.  Berger's  elaborate  article, 
Ecriture,  in  the  theological  encyclopaedia  published  by  MM.  Sandoz  et  Fischbacher, 
and  for  a  valuable  list  of  instances  of  palseographic  confusions  in  the  texts  of  the 
Hebrew  Bible  and  the  Septuagint,  Herzfeld's  Geschichte  des  Volkes  Jisrael,  iii.  80-84. 


ESSAYS.  223 

stances  to  the  exegete  are  great  indeed.  Could  we  feel  sure 
that  the  standard  text  had  been  formed  on  a  critical,  diplo- 
matic basis,  we  might  to  some  extent  be  reassured.  But  though 
it  is  only  a  conjecture,  it  comes  from  perhaps  the  most  com- 
petent of  non-Jewish  scholars,  and  has  great  probability  on  its 
side,  that  the  received  text  is  derived  from  a  single  archetype, 
the  peculiarities  of  which  were  preserved  with  a  'servile 
fidelity.' l  And  even  apart  from  this,  it  is  but  too  obvious  to 
anyone  with  a  sense  for  language  that  parts  of  the  texts  are 
extremely  incorrect ;  and  it  stands  to  reason  that  the  post- 
Massoretic  MSS.  (the  oldest  are  not  older  than  the  tenth 
century)  cannot  help  us  in  healing  pre-Massoretic  corrup- 
tions.2 

These  are  the  grounds  on  which  I  venture  to  urge  that 
without  a  temperate  use  of  conjectural  (but  not  purely  sub- 
jective) emendation,  but  little  progress  can  be  made  in  Old 
Testament  exegesis.  It  is  from  a  real  sense  of  duty  that  I 
have  utilised  a  number  of  such  corrections  of  the  text  in  my 
translation  of  Isaiah.  My  experienced  reviewer,  Mr.  Samuel 
Cox,  fresh  from  the  study  of  New  Testament  criticism,  is 
slightly  shocked  at  this,  and  kindly  attributes  it  to  '  the  influ- 
ence of  Ewald's  somewhat  too  arbitrary  and  impatient  genius.'3 
This  is  a  misconception  which  will  interfere  with  the  usefulness 
of  my  work.  I  am  in  no  other  sense  a  follower  of  that  great 
critic  than  is  Professor  Delitzch  or  Professor  Kuenen,  and,  in 
the  days  when  the  name  might  not  unjustly  have  been  applied 
to  me,  my  treatment  of  the  text  was  much  more  conservative 
than  at  present.  Purely  subjective  emendation,  I  repeat,  is 
not  to  be  admitted  on  any  excuse.  If  a  passage  is  so  utterly 
corrupt  as  to  give  no  clue  to  the  correct  reading,  a  commen- 
tator, penetrated  with  the  spirit  of  Hebrew,  may  suggest  an 
approximation  to  what  may  have  been  in  the  writer's  mind  ; 
but  his  suggestion  should  be  confined  to  the  commentary. 
Some  of  the  corrections  proposed  with  the  utmost  confidence 
by  Ewald  and  Hitzig  are  as  arbitrary  as  most  of  those  of  the 
too  brilliant  Oratorian,  C.  F.  Houbigant,  in  the  last  century. 
But  when  a  conjecture  has  some  external  support,  especially 
from  the  versions  or  from  palaeography,  it  is  more  respectful 
to  the  Hebrew  writer  to  adopt  it  than  to  '  make  sense '  by 
sheer  force  out  of  an  unnatural  reading.  I  would  not  propose 
to  introduce  even  these  justifiable  emendations  into  a  version 

1  Lagarde,  Ammcrkungen  zur  griechischen   Uebersetzung  der  Proverb  ten  (Leipz. 
1863),  pp.  i,  2  ;  Symmicta  (Gotting.  1877),  p.  50. 

2  On  the  extant  Hebrew  MSS.,  and  on  the  state  of  the  text  in  the  Talmudic  period, 
see  Hermann  Strack's  Prolegomena  Critica  in  Vetus  Testamentum  (Lips.  1873),  pp. 

1- 

Expositor,  May,  1880,  p.  400. 


224 


ESSAYS. 


for  ecclesiastical  use  (though  King  James's  translators  con- 
sciously or  unconsciously  did  admit  a  few  emendations),1  but  in 
a  work  intended  solely  for  students,  it  is  sometimes  necessary 
to  emphasize  them  as  I  have  done  (never  without  stating  in 
prominent  place  the  received  reading),  that  the  reader  ma 
feel  the  difficulty  of  the  passage,  and  judge  of  the  effect  of  the 
alteration.  Otherwise  we  may  go  on  for  ever,  crying  Shalom  t 
shdlom,  when  the  text  is  far  indeed  from  *  peace'  or  'soundness.' 
With  a  good  will  and  some  poetic  imagination  most  readings, 
at  least  in  the  poetical  and  prophetical  books,  admit  of  a 
plausible  translation  ;  but  at  what  a  grievous  cost  to  grammar 
(some  grammatical  rules  must  surely  be  admitted),  and  to  a 
critical  conception  of  the  duties  of  an  interpreter  ! 

The  slightest  changes  are,  of  course,  those  which  affect  the 
vowel-points,  which,  as  we  are  too  prone  to  forget,  form, 
properly  speaking,  no  part  of  the  text.2  They  represent  a 
comparatively  ancient  exegetical  tradition,  and  stand  on  a 
somewhat  similar  footing  to  the  versions,  especially  to  the 
Targums,  which  in  some  obscure  places  enable  us  to  interpret 
the  pointed  text.  But  the  early  exegetical  schools  had  pre- 
judices of  their  own  (see  e.g.  on  xliii.  28,  Ixiii.  3,  6),  and  we 
ought  not  to  regard  any  of  them  as  infallible.  The  Church 
has  abstained  in  her  wisdom  from  giving  more  than  a  negative 
rule  of  interpretation  ;  why  should  we  submit  to  the  yoke  of 
the  doctors  of  the  Synagogue  ?  I  would  not,  however,  be  in 
a  hurry  to  forsake  the  reading  of  the  points.  Doubtless  future 
critics  may  find  much  to  amend,  but  the  alterations  of  Dr. 
Klostermann 3  are  rather  beacons  of  warning  than  examples 
of  critical  tact. 

It  will  surprise  no  student  of  the  Septuagint  that  I  have 
followed  Gesenius,  Ewald,  and  Hitzig  in  omitting,  or  bracket- 
ing, certain  intrusive  glosses  (see  iii.  I,  vii.  17,  20,  viii.  7,  ix. 
15,  xxix.  10,  xxx.  6),  analogous  to  those  which  disfigure  the 
Alexandrine  version.  The  only  question  can  be  whether  a 
more  advanced  critical  study  of  the  text  may  not  add  to  their 
number.  For  instance,  the  concluding  verse  of  chap,  ii.,  a 
word  in  xxx.  23,  and  a  phrase  in  xxx.  26  seem  very  suspicious. 
They  are  omitted  in  the  Septuagint,  which  gives  a  certain 
external  support  to  the  view  that  they  are  interpolations,  but, 
as  they  do  not  seriously  disfigure  the  context,  I  have  ventured 
to  retain  them.  I  may  perhaps  be  accused  of  subjectivism  ; 

1  See, e.g.,  Ps.  viii.  i,  cvii.  3,  Jer.  1.  5.  Alterations  of  the  Hebrew  text  in  accordance 
with  one  or  more  of  the  ancient  versions  (e.g.  Job  xxxiii.  17)  are  also  not  altogether  un- 
common in  the  Authorised  Version. 


On  the  origin  of  the  punctuation,  see  Gratz,  Geschichte  der  Juden,  v.  154. 

In  the  article  in  the  Lutherische  Zcitschrift  already  referred  to  (1876,  pp.  1-60). 


ESSAYS.  225 

but  in  the  present  unrevised  state  of  the  Septuagint  text,  it 
seems  unwise  to  appeal  to  it,  except  in  comparatively  urgent 
cases. 

'  The  uncritical  state  of  the  Septuagint.'  Professor  de 
Lagarde,  than  whom  no  one  has  a  better  right  to  speak  on 
this  subject,  would  have  critics  postpone  using  the  Septuagint 
altogether,  until  its  text  has  been  restored  to  the  *  original 
form/1  There  are  two  objections  to  this: — I,  the  valuable 
results  which  have  been  already  attained  by  the  critical  use 
of  the  Septuagint  (it  is  sufficient  to  refer  to  the  labours  of 
Thenius  and  especially  of  Wellhausen  on  the  text  of  Samuel) 
—results  which  would  have  had  to  be  foregone  if  Professor 
de  Lagarde's  wishes  had  been  consulted  ;  and  2,  the  extreme 
difficulty  of  his  own  plan  for  a  critical  edition  of  the  Septua- 
gint, which  in  fact  seems  to  relegate  the  desired  end  almost 
to  the  Greek  Calends.  Surely  we  cannot  be  justified  in 
neglecting  so  important  a  witness  to  the  Egyptian  form  of 
the  pre-Massoretic  text,  provided  that  we  remember,  i,  that 
our  best  MSS.  of  the  Septuagint  are  faulty,  and  2,  that  the 
Hebrew  MSS.  which  the  Alexandrine  translators  employed 
were  probably  still  faultier. 

But  is  it  not  hopeless  to  correct  the  text  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, when  the  critical  authority  both  of  the  Hebrew  and  of 
the  Greek  is  so  lamentably  scanty  ?  Modifying  a  well-known 
German  proverb,  I  would  reply  that  we  ought  not  to  allow 
an  impossible  Better  to  be  the  enemy  of  the  Good.  A 
perfect  text  is  unattainable,  and  perhaps  in  one  sense  un- 
desirable ;  but  a  more  perfect  one  than  we  now  possess  is 
within  our  reach.  It  would  not  be  right,  from  a  philological 
point  of  view,  to  exclude  the  Hebrew  texts  from  the  operation 
of  improved  critical  methods  ;  and  much  more,  from  a  theo- 
logical point  of  view,  to  exhibit  any  certainly  or  all  but 
certainly  corrupt  passage  as  the  inspired  *  Word  of  God.'  The 
needs  of  the  period  of  the  Reformation  were  met  by  the  Re- 
formation scholars  ;  those  of  a  more  scientific  and  historical 
age  require  the  application  of  sounder  critical  principles.  The 
time  for  indifference  on  the  part  of  religious  students  has  gone 
by.  It  may  be  the  fact  that  the  leaders  of  modern  criticism, 
whether  in  the  correction  of  the  text  or  in  still  thornier  fields, 
have  been  often  devoid  of  interest  in  spiritual  truths.  But 
there  is  no  law  either  of  nature  or  of  grace  that  it  should  be 
so.  It  is  a  pure  loss  to  reverent  readers  of  the  Bible  to  be 
shut  off  from  the  invigorating  influences  of  critical  research. 
For  the  true  spiritual  meaning  of  the  Scriptures  can  only  be 

1  Ammerkungen  zur  griech.  Uebers.  d.  Proverbien,  pp.  2,  3. 
VOL.  II.  Q 


226 


ESSAYS. 


reached  through  the  door  of  the  letter,  and  the  nearer  we 
approach  to  a  correct  reading  of  the  text,  the  more  vivid  will 
be  our  apprehension  of  the  sacred  truths  which  it  conveys. 


[Three  recent  dissertations  are  concerned  with  the  textual  criticism 
of  the  Book  of  Isaiah  : — 

Hermann  L.  Strack,  c  Zur  Textkritik  des  Jesaias'  in  Zeitschrift  fur 
lutherische  Theologie,  1877,  pp.  17-52.  Valuable  from  its  account  of  the 
St.  Petersburg  MSS. 

G.  L.  Studer,  *  Beitrage  zur  Textkritik  des  Jesaja,'  in  Jahrbiicherfiir 
protestantische  Theologie,  1877,  Heft  4;  1881,  Heft  i.  Confirms  the 
view  that  an  editor  of  Isaiah  has  to  strike  the  mean  between  conservative 
immobility  and  the  *  chartered  libertinism '  of  hypothesis. 

Paul  de  Lagarde,  Semitica,  Part  I.  (Gottingen,  1878).  Pp.  1-32  con- 
tain critical  notes,  occasionally  very  striking,  on  chaps,  i.-xvii.  of  Isaiah. 

The  older  books  hardly  need  mention.  Kocher's  reply  to  Bishop 
Lowth,  under  the  title  Vindicice  S.  Textiis  Hebrcei  Esaice  Vatis  (Berne, 
1736),  is  little  known,  but  worth  consulting.] 


VIII.  THE  CRITICAL  STUDY  OF  PARALLEL  PASSAGES. 

I. 

THE  exaggerated  value  sometimes  attached  to  the  argument 
from  parallel  passages  must  not  drive  us  to  the  other  extreme 
of  treating  them  as  non-existent  or  unimportant.  This 
thought,  among  others,  has  suggested  the  present  essay,  one 
object  of  which  is  to  qualify  and  supplement  the  discouraging 
remarks  which  the  over-statements  of  some  critics  obliged  me 
to  offer  (p.  220).  It  would  indeed  be  an  unfortunate  result, 
were  any  of  my  student-readers  to  draw  an  inference  from 
words  of  mine  unfavourable  to  the  study  of  parallelisms  of 
expression — a  study  which  is,  in  my  own  opinion,  a  whole- 
some and  much-needed  corrective  of  the  various  kinds  of 
theoretical  bias.  The  criticism  of  the  Old  Testament,  which 
draws  its  material  from  so  many  sources,  may  yet  derive  some 
light  from  a  discriminating  selection  of  parallel  passages  ;  and 
so,  still  more  manifestly,  may  its  exegesis.  The  principle  of  ex- 
plaining the  Scriptures  by  themselves  has,  it  is  to  be  feared, 
fallen  into  some  disrepute,  for  which  the  blunders  of  our 
popular  { Reference  Bibles '  supply  an  ample  justification. 
And  yet  our  forefathers,  whose  uncritical  but  devout  Scripture- 
knowledge  is  piled  up,  stratum  above  stratum,  in  these  editions, 
were  doubtless  right  in  their  principle,  however  widely  they 
may  have  erred  in  its  application.  A  few  pages  will  not  be 
wasted  on  the  enforcement  of  this  doctrine,  especially  as  a 


ESSAYS.  227 

request  made  in  my  first  preface  fell  but  too  probably  on 
unheeding  ears. 

Self-abnegation  is  the  mark  of  prophetic  writers  quite  as 
much  as  of  their  editors  (comp.  p.  214).  They  experienced 
no  Sturm  und  Drang,  no  '  storm  and  stress  '  of  an  unchastened 
individuality.  They  never  attempted  to  set  themselves  on 
high,  on  the  pedestal  of  original  genius.  Isaiah,  eke  sovra  gli 
altri  come  aquila  vola,  is  as  dependent  on  his  less  famous  pre- 
decessors as  a  Marlowe  or  a  Shakspere.  On  at  least  two 
occasions  (such  at  least  is  the  most  probable  view  of  chap, 
ii.  2-4  and  the  main  part  of  chaps,  xv.  i-xvi.  12)  he  inserts 
passages  from  earlier  prophets,  whose  entire  works  have  not 
come  down  to  us  ;  and  he  is  not  without  some  striking  affini- 
ties (some  of  which  at  least  will  be  reminiscences)  of  contem- 
porary prophets.  Look  again  at  his  elaborate  style,  and  the 
artistic  distribution  of  his  poetic  material  !  His  art  is  no 
doubt  subordinate  to  his  inspiration,  but  in  no  disparaging 
sense  ;  and  its  comparatively  high  perfection  attests  a  longer 
history  of  Hebrew  poetry  and  prophecy,  and  a  more  numerous 
band  of  unrecorded  prophetic  writers,  than  we  are  accustomed 
to  suppose.  But  it  is  enough  on  this  head  to  refer  to  the 
Introduction  to  Ewald's  great  work  on  the  prophets  (now 
translated);  I  content  myself  here  with  grouping  (and  observe 
it  is  on  this  grouping  that  the  value  of  *  references '  largely 
depends)  a  few  striking  parallels  between  the  prophet  Isaiah 
and  other  writers — first  of  all,  those  who  are  acknowledged 
on  all  hands  to  be  his  predecessors  or  contemporaries ; !  next, 
those  respecting  whose  chronological  relation  to  Isaiah  more  or 
less  doubt  has  arisen  ;  and  lastly,  some  of  those  who  certainly 
belong  to  a  later  age.  In  conclusion,  it  will  be  only  fair  to  set 
down  some  of  the  striking  parallels  between  the  acknowledged 
and  the  disputed  portions  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah,  and  also 
some  of  the  parallel  passages  for  the  latter  in  other  books  of 
the  Old  Testament. 

To  the  first  of  the  three  classes  of  writers  mentioned  belong 
Amos,  Hosea,  and  Micah,  the  two  former  being  older,  the 
latter  probably  younger,  than  our  prophet.  It  has  been  well 
observed  that  the  characteristics  of  Amos  and  Hosea  have 
found  their  synthesis  in  Isaiah.2  It  is  not  surprising,  there- 
fore, that  there  should  be  striking  points  of  affinity  between 
these  three  prophets — of  an  affinity,  moreover,  which  extends 
beyond  mere  forms  of  expression  to  fundamental  conceptions 
and  beliefs.  Take  the  following  carefully  selected  instances  : 

1  I.e.  the  predecessors  or  contemporaries  of  the  author  of  the  acknowledged  pro- 
phecies.    The  disputed  prophecies  require,  of  course,  to  be  considered  separately. 

2  Duhm,  Die  Theologie  der  Propheten,  p.  104. 

Q  2 


228 


ESSAYS. 


the  student  will  be  repaid  for  the  trouble  of  examining  them 
by  a  more  critical  and  comprehensive  knowledge  of  the 
prophetic  Scriptures. 

Isa.  i.   n,  14     Am.  v.  21,  22,  Hos.  vi.  6,  Mic.  vi.  6-8  (against  formal 

worship). 

„   ix.  13,  Hos.  ii.  21,  22  (fertility  in  the  Messianic  age). 
„  vi.  5-7  (luxury  of  the  princes). 
„  v.  7,  vi.  12  (confusion  of  morals). 
ix.  n,  12  (the  Messianic  empire). 


IV.  2 

V.  II,  12 
V.  20 

ix.  10,  &c. 
i.  21 
i.  23 
i.  29 
i.  2 
ii.  2-4 
Hi.  15 
v.  8 

vii.  14,     i 
ix.  7         I 

XXX.  22 

xxxii.  13,  14 
xxxviii.  17 


Hos.  iv.  15  (spiritual  adultery). 

„   ix.  1 5  ('  law-makers,  law-breakers '). 

„   iv.  13  (idolatrous  groves). 
Mic.  i.  2  (prosopopoeia  of  inanimate  nature). 

»   iv-  I-3-] 

„   iii.  2,  3  (strong  figure  for  oppression). 

„   ii.  2  (violent  extension  of  landed  estates). 

)>   v-  3~5  (tne  Messiah  and  his  birth). 

„   v.  13  (idols  to  be  destroyed  in  the  Messianic  age). 
.  iii.  12  (destruction  of  Jerusalem). 
vii.  19  (strong  figure  for  the  forgiveness  of  sin). 


The  second  class  of  writings  to  be  compared  with  Isaiah  in- 
cludes especially  Job,  Joel,  Zech.  ix.-xi.,  the  Psalms,  and  the 
Pentateuch.1  I  venture  to  offer  these  as  fair  specimens  of 
parallel  passages : — 

Isa.  i.  8  Job  xxvii.  18  (figure  from  a  booth  in  a  vineyard). 

„     v.  24  „   xviii.  1 6  (root  and  branch  consumed). 

„     xix.  5  „   xiv.  1 1  (rivers  dried  up — a  quotation). 

„    xix.  13,  14  „  xii.  24,  2  5  (figurative  description  of  general  unwisdom). 

„     xxviii.  292  „   xi.  6  (God's  wisdom  marvellous). 

„     xxxiii.  ii  „  xv.  35  (reap  as  you  sow). 

„    xxxviii.  12  „   iv.  21,  vii.  6  (figures  from  the  tent  and  the  weaver's 

shuttle). 


(See  also  the  other  parallels  between  the  Song  of  Hezekiah 
and  the  Book  of  Job  in  vol.  i.  pp.  222-3.) 

Joel  iii.  10  (*  swords  into  ploughshares,'  and  the  reverse). 
„     iii.  1 8  (fertility  in  the  Messianic  age). 


Isa.  ii.  4 

iv.  2 

x-  2.3 


XXV111.22 

xxxii.  15 
xi.  1-4  | 
xxxii.  I  J 
xi.  ii  i 
xxvii.  13  J 


„     iii.  14  (pn). 

„     ii.  22-29  (outpouring  of  the  Spirit,  &c.). 
Zech.  ix.  9  (the  Messianic  King). 

„     x.  10  (return  of  captives  from  Egypt  and  Assyria). 


1  I  might  have  added  Judges,  Joshua,  and  2  Samuel  (see  notes  on  ix.  3  x.  26, 
xxviii.  21).    Joel  and  Zech.  ix.-xi.  are  included  out  of  deference  to  the  traditional 
opinion  ;  for  personally!  have  no  doubt  that  Joel,  and  in  its  present  form,  the  whole 
of  the  latter  part  of  Zechariah,  belong  to  post-Exile  times.     The  question  of  the  date 
of  the  Book  of  Job  is  too  intimately  connected  with  that  of  the  date  of  II.  Isaiah  for 
me  to  hazard  an  opinion  upon  it  here. 

2  See  critical  note,  p.  146  of  this  volume. 


ESSAYS.  229 

ISa'  Viii  84iol  Ps'  xlvi'  7)  U  (G°dj  °r  Jehovah>  is  with  us)- 

„    viii.  7,  8 )          xjyj       g  /tjie  enemies  compared  to  a  flood). 

„    xvn.  12  I 

„    ix.  5  „  xlvi.  9  (the  instruments  of  war  broken). 

„  xxxiii.  13  „  xlvi.  10  (summons  to  the  heathen  to  acknowledge 

Jehovah). 

„  xxxiii.  1 8  „  xlviii.  13  ('counting  the  towers;'  see  my  note  on 

Isa.  /.  c.). 

„    xxxiii.  21      „  xlvi.  4  (Jehovah  comp.  to  a  river  ;  see  on  Isa.  I.e.}. 

„     xxxiii.  22      „   xlvii.  6  ('  our  king '). 

„  xxxiii.  22  „  xlviii.  14  (the  nation's  divine  patron ;  Delitzsch  re- 
marks :  'There  is  reason  to  conjecture 
that  the  proper  concluding  words  [of 
Ps.  xlviii.]  are  lost.  The  original  close 
may  have  been  in  fuller  tones,  and  have 
run  somewhat  as  Isa.  xxxiii.  22 '). 

„    i.  2  a         Deut.  xxxii.  i  ('  Hear,  O  heavens '). 

»     L  2  b       \        ,   xxxii.  6,  20  (faithless  children). 
„    xxx.  9     I 

„  i.  3  „    xxxii.  6,  28,  29  ('  Israel  is  without  knowledge'). 

„  i.  6  „    xxviii.  35  (Israel's  sickness). 

„  i.  7  „    xxix.  22,  Auth.  Vers.  23  (rOSn»). 

„  i.  9,  10  „    xxxii.  32  ('  Sodom,  Gomorrah  '). 

„  i.  17,  23  i  £x  xxjj  22^  j)eut  xxvii.  19  (the  orphan  and  the  widow),. 

2)        X.    2  J 

„     i.  19  Lev.  xxv.  1 8,  19,  xxvi.  18,  25  (prosperity  through  obe- 

dience). 
„    i.  24,  iii.  i,  | 

x.  16,  23,  Y  Ex.  xxiii.  17,  xxxiv.  23  (jnKn ;  also  Mai.  in.  i).. 
xix.  4       J 
„     iii.  i  b       \ 

(but  see  L  Lev.  xxvi.  26  (the  staff  of  bread), 
note)      J 

„     iii.  9  Gen.  xix.  5  ('  their  sin  as  Sodom '). 

„    iv.  5  Ex.  xiii.  21,  (Num.  ix.  15,  16  ('a  cloud  by  day,'  &c.)c 

„     v.  8  Deut.  xix.  14  (violent  extension  of  estates). 

„     v.  10  „     xxviii.  39  (curse  upon  the  vineyards). 

„     v.  23  „     xvi.  19,  Lev.  xix.  15  (unjust  judgment). 

"     V"  2;::    ,«  \       »     xxviii.  49  (the  swift,  unintelligible  foe). 
,,     xxxm.  19  / 

"    X;  2T6r   TA  \  Ex-  xiv-  2I>  22  (the  passage  of  the  Red  Sea). 
,,     xi.  15,  10  > 

„     xii.  2  b  „     xv.  2  (song  of  Moses  quoted). 

„    xxx.  17          Deut.  xxxii.  30,  Lev.  xxvi,  &  ('  one  thousand  at  the  rebuke 

of  one '). 

The  exegetical  value  of  these  parallels  is  too  obvious  to 
need  exhibiting.  Their  critical  significance,  however,  which 
is  sometimes  even  greater,  may  not  be  at  once  apparent. 
First  with  regard  to  Job.  I  would  not  venture  to  assert  that 
all  the  passages  quoted  involve  reminiscences  on  the  one  side 
or  the  other  ;  and  yet  in  some  cases  this  is  too  plain  to  be 
mistaken.  Thus  (a)  between  Isa.  xix.  5  and  Job  xiv.  1 1  the 
most  scrupulous  critic  must  admit  a  direct  relation  of  debtor 


230 


ESSAYS. 


and  creditor,  though  which  passage  is  the  original,  is  a  ques- 
tion differently  answered.  And  (b)  the  parallels  referred  to 
on  Isa.  xxxviii.  12,  &c.  are  held  by  one  of  our  leading  com- 
mentators (Hezekiatis  authorship  of  the  Song  being  assumed) 
to  prove  the  Solomonic  (or,  more  strictly,  the  pre-Hezekianic 
origin  of  the  Book  of  Job.  Secondly,  with  regard  to  the 
Pentateuch.  The  number  of  references  to  Pentateuchal  nar- 
ratives is  smaller  in  the  acknowledged  than  the  disputed  pro- 
phecies, and  appears  to  me  insufficient  to  justify  even  a  con- 
jecture as  to  Isaiah's  acquaintance  or  non-acquaintance  with 
that  famous  Elohistic  document,  the  date  of  which  is  so  excit- 
ing a  subject  to  modern  critics.  We  cannot  even  be  sure  that 
Isaiah  refers  to  any  written  narrative  ;  his  language  may  be 
perfectly  explained  from  oral  tradition.  It  is  different,  I  think, 
with  regard  to  the  apparent  allusions  to  Deuteronomy.  The 
presumption  from  the  number  of  such  references  in  the  first 
chapter  of  Isaiah  certainly  is  that  the  author  or  editor  of 
that  chapter  had  the  book,  or  a  part  of  the  book,  of  Deutero- 
nomy before  him.  But  I  must  not  allow  myself  to  wander 
too  far  from  the  exegetical  frontier  (p.  210),  and  will  only  add 
a  remark  on  the  parallels  between  Isaiah  and  Psalms  xlvi.- 
xlviii.  It  has  been  conjectured  by  Hitzig  (with  whom  I  was 
formerly  inclined  to  agree)  that  the  latter  are  the  lyric  effusions 
of  the  prophet  Isaiah  on  occasion  of  the  successive  overthrows 
of  the  Syrians,  Philistines,  and  Assyrians.1  It  is,  however, 
simpler,  and  therefore  perhaps  in  this  case  safer  to  explain 
their  Isaianic  affinities  from  the  influence  of  the  prophet  upon 
contemporary  writers.  I  say '  contemporary  writers '  advisedly ; 
for  though,  in  deference  to  Dr.  Delitzsch,2  I  have  placed  these 
psalms  in  the  second  rather  than  in  the  first  class,  I  can 
entertain  no  doubt  that  they  belong  at  any  rate  to  the  age  of 
Isaiah  and  Hezekiah. 

Class  III.  includes  Nahum,  Habakkuk,  Zephaniah,  Zech.  i. 
-viii.,  xii.— xiv.,3  Ezekiel,  and  above  all,  Jeremiah,  upon  whom 
the  acknowledged  prophecies  of  Isaiah  exercised  a  most 
powerful  influence.  Compare 

Isa.  xxviii.  4         Nahum  iii.  12  (simile  of  the  early  fig). 
„     xi.  9  Hab.  ii.  14  ('  the  earth  full  of  the  glory  of  Jehovah  '). 

„     xxxiii.  I  „     ii.  8  (retribution  to  the  tyrant). 

„     xviii.  i,  7      Zeph.  iii.  10  (tribute  from  beyond  Ethiopia). 
„     ii.  3,  iv.  i      Zech.  viii.  21-23  (spiritual  honour  of  Jerusalem  and  the 
Jews). 

1  Hitzig,  Die  Psalmen  (Leipz.  1863),  vol.  i.  p.  xxiii. ;  I.C.A.,  Introduction,  p.  xv. 

2  This  critic,  followed  by  Canon  Cook  in  the  Speakers  Commentary,  places  these 
psalms  in  the  reign  of  Jehoshaphat  (comp.  2  Chron.  xx.). 

3  Zech.  ix.-xi.  ought,  however,  in  my  opinion,  to  be  included  ;  see  above,  p.  228, 
note  1. 


ESSAYS.  231 

Isa.  xix.  24  Zech.  viii.  13  (Israel  a  source  of  blessing). 
„     vi.  13  „     xiii.  9  (repeated  purifications). 

„     i.  3  Jer.  viii.  7  (irrational  creatures  wiser  than  Israel). 
„     i.  u,  12  „    vi.  20,  vii.  21  (formal  worship  unacceptable). 

„    v.  1-7  „     ii.  21  (Israel  compared  to  a  vine). 

„     vi.  „     i.  (inaugurating  vision). 

„     vi.  9,  10  ,,     v.  21  (judicial  blindness). 

„     xv.  xvi.  „     xlviii.  (against  Moab). 


l     I       „    xxiii.  5,  xxxiii.  15  (the  righteous  King). 
,,     xi.  i 

„  xxxiii.  19  „     v.  1 5  (the  unintelligible  foe). 

„  x.  20-22  Ezek.  vi.  8,  xii.  16  (the  remnant  of  Israel). 

„  xv.  2  „    vii.  1 8  ('on  all  their  heads  baldness'). 

„  xxxvi.  6  „    xxix.  6,  7  (Egypt  a  '  cracked  reed '). 

I  now  turn  to  the  parallels  between  the  acknowledged 
and  the  disputed  prophecies  of  Isaiah,  less  with  the  view  of 
furnishing  material  for  the  higher  criticism  than  of  helping 
the  reader  to  form  a  fuller  idea  of  the  literary  and  prophetic 
physiognomy  of  the  book.  For,  to  be  quite  candid,  I  do  not 
believe  that  the  existence  of  such  numerous  links  between  the 
two  portions  of  Isaiah  is  of  much  critical  moment.  There  are 
points  of  contact/as  striking,  if  not  as  abundant,  between  Old 
Testament  books  which  no  sober  critic  will  ascribe  to  the 
same  author.  Dr.  Moody  Stuart's  remark,  questionable  even 
in  reference  to  ordinary  literature,  is  especially  so  in  its 
application  to  inspired  writers  : — 'An  assiduous  author  might 
become  the  double  of  another  by  a  skilful  repetition  of  his 
ideas.  But  he  cannot  by  any  art  fashion  himself  into  his  second 
half ;  he  cannot  engraft  his  own  conceptions  into  the  other's 
mind  by  completing  his  deepest  thoughts,  and  so  fit  them  in, 
and  fill  all  up,  as  if  only  one  thinker  had  conceived  the 
whole.' l  On  the  contrary,  it  is  a  characteristic  of  the  prophetic 
literature  that,  in  the  midst  of  superficial  divergences,  there 
is  a  fundamental  affinity  between  its  various  elements.  As- 
cribe it,  as  you  please,  to  the  overruling  divine  Spirit,  or  to 
the  literary  activity  of  the  Soferim  (see  p.  214),  or  to  both 
working  in  harmony,  but  the  fact  cannot  be  denied.  We  may 
now  proceed  to  compare — 

i.  ii,  13  with  Ixvi.  3  (against  formal  worship). 

i.  15  „    lix.  2,3  (prayers  unanswered  through  sin). 

i.  21  „    Ivii.  3-9  (spiritual  adultery). 

i.  26  „    Ixi.  3  ('  City  of  righteousness,'  <  Oaks   of  righteous- 

ness '). 
i.  27,  iv.  2,  3,     \ 

vi.  13,  x.  20,    [    „   xlviii.   10,  lix.  20,  Ixv.  8,  9  (doctrine  of  the    '  rem- 

22,  xxxvii.  31,  [  nant '). 

32  J 

i.  29  „    Ivii.  5,  Ixv.  3,  Ixvi.  17  (idolatrous  gardens). 

1  The  Old  Isaiah  (Edinb.  1880},  p.  41. 


232 


ESSAYS. 


i   30 

n.  2,  3 

ii.  11,  17,  v 

iii.  26 

v.  7 

v 


with  Ixiv.  6  (figure  of  the  fading  leaf). 
„    Ivi.  7,  Ix.  12-14  (pilgrimages  to  the  temple). 
„    xl.  4  (high  things  abased). 
„    li.  17,  Iii.  i,  2,  Ix.  i  (Zion  sitting  on  the  ground). 
Ix.  21,  Ixi.  3  (Israel,  Jehovah's  planting). 


.  13,  vi.  12,  xi.) 

ii,xxii.  1 8,      r,,   xl.-lxvi.  (captivity,  though  the  parallel  is  incomplete). 
xxxix.  5-7  (?)  J 

vi.  i  „    Ivii.  15,  Ixvi.  i  (the  two  divine  thrones), 

vi.  9,  10,  xxix.  1 8  „    xlii.  7,  18-20,  xliii.  8,  xliv.  18,  Ixiii.  17  (judicial  blind- 
ness). 

Ixiv.  10,  ii,  (cities  laid  waste). 
xlii.  9,  Iv.  1 1  (self-fulfilling  power  of  prophecy), 
liii.  2  (the  puny  Plant). 

Ixi.  i  (the  Spirit  rests  upon  the  divine  Agent). 
Ixv.  17-25,  Ixvi.  22  (future  glorification  of  nature). 
Ixii.    3  (Jehovah   a  '  crown '   to  His   people ;     His 

people  a  'crown'  to  Him). 
Ivi.  ii,  12  (carousing  habits  of  the  rulers), 
xlv.  9,  Ixiv.  8  (the  clay  and  the  potter), 
xliv.  3,  1 1  (outpouring  of  the  Spirit). 


VI.    II 

ix.  8 

xi.  i 

xi.  2 

xi.  6-9,  xxx.  26 

xxviii.  5 


XXVlll.    I, 

xxix.  1 6 
xxxii.  15 


7, 


Better  proofs  than  these  can  hardly  be  required  of  the 
intimate  connection  between  I.  and  II.  Isaiah.  The  writer  of 
the  latter  prophecies  evidently  knows  the  former,  as  our 
native  idiom  finely  has  it,  '  by  heart.'  Some  readers,  however, 
may  perhaps  be  impressed  more  by  exact  verbal  correspon- 
dences, such  as  the  following  :  — 


'  Israel's  Holy  One,'  fourteen  times  in  the  acknowledged 
prophecies  (including  x.  17),  and  fourteen  times  in  the  disputed  ones 
(including  xlix.  7).     Comp.  also  '  your  Holy  One,'  xliii.  1  5.     Rare 
outside  Isaiah. 
'*  *£5  '  the  mouth  of  Jehovah  hath  spoken,'  i.  2,  20  ;   also  xl.   5, 


Iviii.  14.     Peculiar  to  Isaiah  (but  Mic.  iv.  4  has  ' 

saith  Jehovah'  (the  imperfect  tense),  i.  n,  18,  xxxiii.  10;  also 
xli.  21,  Ixvi.  9  (comp.  xl.  i,  25).  Peculiar  to  the  Book  of  Isaiah, 
Ps.  xii.  6  being  an  echo  of  Isa.  xxxiii.  10. 

'hero,'  as  a  title  of  Jehovah  in  relation  to  his  people,  i.  24  (see 
note)  ;  also  xlix.  26,  Ix.  16.     Only  parallels,  Gen.  xlix.  24,  Ps.  cxxxii. 

2,  5. 

high  and  exalted,'  ii.  13,  vi.  i  ;  also  Ivii.  15  (comp.  Hi.  13,  Ivii. 

7).     Peculiar  to  Isaiah. 
D^D  <>{?ll(  'streams  of  water'  or  'water-courses,'  xxx.  25  ;  also  xliv.  4. 

Peculiar  to  Isaiah. 
'My  mountains,'  xiv.  25;  also  xlix.   ii,  Ixv.  9.     So  Ezek.  xxxviii.  21 

(omitted  in  Fiirst's  Concordance),  and  Zech.  xiv.  5. 

It  would  be  easy  to  make  out  a  longer  list,  but  the  gain 
would,  in  my  opinion,  be  problematical.  I  am  not  a  Pro- 
fessor of  Philosophy,  and  cannot  think  that  a  valuable 
'  cumulative  argument  '  is  produced  for  the  unity  of  Isaiah  by 
counting  up  words  like  rc«  and  p^S,  niN  and  "rttf,  which  occur 
(how  could  they  help  occurring  ?)  in  both  parts  of  the  book  ; 


ESSAYS.  233 

and  it  is  with  real  sorrow  that  I  notice  a  '  tutor  in  Hebrew  ' 
priding  himself  on  the  discovery  that  *  VW,  and  its  participle 
or  noun,  occurs  fourteen  times  in  the  later  portion,  and  seven 
times  in  the  earlier.'  l  Perhaps,  however,  the  following  data 
deserve  to  be  mentioned,  if  it  be  only  to  warn  the  student 
against  overrating  the  force  of  the  previous  instances  :  — 

TIN  'glow'  or  'glowing  fire,'  xxxi.  19;  also  xxiv.  IS(?),  xliv.  16,  xlvii. 
14,  1.  ii.     Elsewhere  only  Ezek.  v.  2. 

'  countries  '  (specially  used  of  the  maritime  countries  of  the 
West),  xi.  ii  ;  also  xxiv.  15  (?),  xl.  15,  xli.  i,  and  ten  other  pas- 
sages. (But  note  the  infrequency  in  I.  Isaiah,  and  see  further 
below.) 

*  to  create,'  iv.  5  ;  also  xl.  26,  xli.  20,  xliii.  7,  and  thirteen  other 
passages.  (But  the  infrequency  of  this  word  in  the  first  part  con- 
trasts remarkably  with  its  frequency  in  the  second.  It  is  not 
specially  Isaianic,  whereas  the  emphasis  on  the  divine  creatorship 
is  peculiarly  deutero-Isaianic.  See  Last  Words  on  iv.  5.) 
the  stock  of  a  tree,'  xi.  i  ;  also  xl.  24.  Elsewhere  only  Job  xiv.  8. 
'to  dry  up,'  xix.  5  (Nifal)  ;  also  xli.  17  (Kal).  Elsewhere  only 
Jer.  xviii.  14  (Nifal  ;  transposing  letters),  Ii.  30  (Kal). 

'  offspring,'  xxii.  24  ;  also  xxxiv.  i,  xlii.  5,  xliv.  3,  xlviii.  19,  Ixi. 
9,  Ixv.  23,.  Elsewhere  only  four  times  in  Job. 
'  chaos,'  or  '  a  thing  of  nought  '  :  a  characteristic  word  derived 
from  the  narrative  of  the  cosmogony:  xxix.  21,  also  xxiv.  10, 
xxxiv.  n,  xl.  17,  23,  and  six  other  passages.  The  same  remark 
applies  as  in  the  case  of  K"q. 

'  vexatious  petulance,'  iii.  4  ;   also  Ixvi.  4.      Peculiar  to  this 
book.     (But  the  related  verbal  stem  is  not  uncommon.) 


To  these  we  may  add  two  phrases  :  (a}  6W  ^rm  *  the 
outcasts  of  Israel,'  xi.  12,  Ivi.  8  ;  elsewhere  only  Ps.  cxlvii.  2. 
But  the  value  of  this  correspondence  will  be  diminished  by 
comparing  xvi.  3,  4,  xxvii.  13,  Jer.  xl.  12,  xliii.  5,  Deut.  xxx. 
4  ;  (£)  roa»B»  >D  '  who  can  turn  it  back  '  (said  of  God's  work), 
xiv.  27  ;  also  xliii.  13  (see  note),  and  three  times  in  Job  (with  a 
different  suffix).  And,  lastly,  a  linguistic  fact  of  much  more 
importance,  viz.  the  habit  of  repeating  a  leading  word  in 
successive  clauses,  which  is  characteristic  of  both  portions 
of  the  Book  of  Isaiah.  See  i.  7,.iv.  3,  vi.  n,  xiv.  25,  xv.  8, 
xxx.  20,  xxxvii.  33,  34  ;  and  also  xiii.  10,  xxxiv.  9,  xl.  19, 
xlii.  15,  19,  xlviii.  21,  1.  4,  Ii.  13,  liii.  6,  7,  liv.  4,  13,  Iviii.  2, 
lix.  8.2  In  grammatical  parlance,  it  is  the  figure  eTravafopd, 
another  variety  of  which  abounds  in  the  so-called  Step-psalms 
(as  the  very  name,  perhaps,  is  intended  to  indicate)  and  in  the 
Song  of  Deborah. 

It  still  remains  to  furnish  references  to  parallel  passages 
for  the  disputed  portions  of  Isaiah,  corresponding  to  those 

1  Urwick,  The  Servant  of  Jehovah,  p.  37. 

2  The  examples  are  taken  from  Delitzsch,  who  remarks  that  the  list  is  not  offered  as 
complete. 


234 


ESSAYS. 


which  have  been  already  given  for  the  undisputed  ones.  Some 
of  these,  of  course,  will  be  originals,  some  will  involve  re- 
miniscences, while  a  few  may  perhaps  arise  from  undesigned  co- 
incidences. We  must  also  allow  for  the  bare  possibility  that,  in 
the  case  of  two  parallel  passages,  neither  one  may  be  original, 
but  both  dependent  on  some  lost  work.  It  is  specially  im- 
portant to  bear  this  in  mind  in  an  enquiry  peculiarly  liable  to 
be  impeded  by  prejudice,  that  prejudice  I  mean  which  is 
unavoidably  caused  by  the  combination  of  the  acknowledged 
and  the,  disputed  prophecies  in  one  volume.  Let  me  also 
remind  the  reader  of  the  grounds  for  caution  which  I  have 
mentioned  above,  derived  from  the  phenomena  of  non-Biblical 
literatures  (p.  220).  Compare,  then  — 


Isa.  xiii.  19        with  Deut.  xxix.  23  (the  'overthrow'  of  Sodom  and  Go- 
morrah). 

Gen.  vii.  1 1  ('  windows  opened '  at  the  Deluge). 
Lev.  xxvi.  41,  43,  comp.  34  ('guilt  paid  off'). 


33 


xxiv.  1 8  c 

xl.  2 

xii.  4,  &c.    \ 

(see  note)  > 
xliii.  13 
xii.  8,  9       , 
Ii.  2 

xliii.  1 6, 17 
Ii.  9,  10 
Ixiii.  11-13 
xliii.  27  „ 

xliv._2  „ 

xlviii.  19  „ 
xlviii.  21  „ 
1.  i  (but  ) 

see  note)  )    " 

li-    3  33 

Iii.  4  „ 

Hi.  12 

liv.  9  (see  > 

note))"  » 

lyiii.  14  „ 

lix.  10  „ 

Ixiii.  9  „ 


„  Ixiii.  II 

„  Ixiii.  14 

„  Ixv.  22 

„  Ixv.  25 


Deut.  xxxii.  39  ('  I  am  He  '). 

„  „        ('  none  that  rescueth  out  of  my  hand  '). 

Gen.  xi.  3i-xii.  4  (call  of  Abraham  and  Israel). 

Ex.  xiv.  21-31  (passage  of  the  Red  Sea). 

Gen.  xxv.  29-34,  xxvii.  (Jacob's  sins). 

Deut.  xxxii.  15,  xxxiii.  5,  6  (Jeshurun). 

Gen.  xxii.  17,  xxxii.  12  (Israel  as  the  sand). 

Ex.  xvii.  5-7,  Num.  xx.  7-13  (water  from  the  rock). 

Ex.  xxi.  7,  Deut.  xxiv.  I  (law  of  divorce). 

Gen.  ii.  8  (Eden). 
„    xlvii.  4  ;  comp.  xii.  10  (Israel's  guest-right  in 

Egypt). 

Ex.  xii.  n,  51,  xiii.  21,  22  ('in  trembling  haste'; 
Jehovah  in  the  van  and  in  the  rear). 

Gen.  viii.  21,  ix.  1  1  (the  Deluge,  and  Jehovah's  oath). 

Deut.  xxxii.  13  ('riding  over  the  heights  of  the  land'). 

„     xxviii.  29  ('  groping  like  the  blind  '). 
Ex.  ii.  24,  iii.  7,  xxiii.  20-23  (Jehovah's  sympathy  with 

Israel,  and  the  guidance  of  His  Angel). 
Deut.  xxxii.  7  ('  remembering  the  days  of  old). 
Ex.  xxxiii.  14,  Deut.  iii.  20,  xii.  9  ('rest'  in  Canaan). 
Deut.  xxviii.  30  (a  promise  modelled  on  a  threat). 
Gen.  iii.  14  (dust,  the  serpent's  food). 


Notice  also  the  mention  of  Sarah  (unique  outside  the  Pen- 
tateuch) in  Ii.  2,  of  Noah  in  liv.  9  (comp.  Ezek.  xiv.  14,  20), 
and  of  the  '  shepherds  '  of  Israel  (i.e.  Moses,  Aaron,  and 
perhaps  Miriam)  in  Ixiii.  ii.  These  allusions  to  the  Penta- 


ESSAYS.  235 

teuch  in  the  disputed  prophecies  are  a  fact  of  some  critical 
moment ;  not  so  much  on  account  of  their  number  (for  such 
references  are  not  wanting  in  I.  Isaiah)  as  of  their  phraseo- 
logical exactness  and  of  their  referring  almost,  if  not  quite, 
exclusively J  either  to  Deuteronomy  or  to  the  portions  of  the 
first  four  books  of  the  Pentateuch  commonly  regarded  (by 
Delitzsch  no  less  than  by  Knobel),  as  Jehovistic.  I  do  not 
wish  to  prejudge  the  still  open  questions  relative  to  the 
higher  criticism,  but  am  bound  to  give  some  indications  of 
the  critical  bearings  of  textual  and  exegetical  data.  A 
study  which  has  such  a  varied  outlook  on  history  as  well  as 
theology  ought  not  surely  to  be  put  aside  as  dull  and  unprofit- 
able. 

The  next  group  of  parallels  which  invites  us  connects  the 
second  part  of  Isaiah  with  Job.  There  are  parallelisms,  as 
we  have  seen,  between  the  first  as  well  as  the  second  part  and 
the  Book  of  Job  ;  but  comparatively  few.  The  illustrative 
value  of  those  which  I  have  now  to  mention  is  so  great  that 
a  separate  essay  will  be  required  to  unfold  their  significance. 
Compare 

Isa.  xxvn.  i'     I  w}th  job  xxyi<  I2j  I3  (mythic  expressions). 
,,    ii.  9)  10     > 
„    xl.  2  „       „    vii.  1 1  (a  '  warfare '  of  trouble). 

*}:L7S        }    „       „    xii.  2  ('the  people '- mankind). 

„  xl.  14  „  „  xxi.  22  (God's  perfect  wisdom ;  He  has  no 

teachers). 

„    xl.  23,  24  )    „       „    xii.  17-21  (God's  omnipotence  shown  in  revolu- 

„     xliv.  25      I  tions). 

„     xl.  27         )     „       „     iii.  23,  xix.  7,  8,  xxvii.  2  (complaints  against  Pro- 

„     xlix.  14     I  vidence). 

„     xii.  14  „       „     xxv.  6  (man  likened  to  a  worm). 

„    xliv.  24          „       „    ix.  8  (God  '  alone  stretched  forth  the  heavens  '). 

„     xlv.  9  „       „     xl.  2  (murmuring  rebuked). 

„  1.  6  „  „  xii.  4,  5,  xvi.  10,  xix.  18,  19,  xxx.  10  (humiliation 

and  scorn,  the  lot  of  the  righteous). 

„     1.  9  „       „     xiii.  28  (human  frailty  ;  a  close  verbal  parallel). 

„     Iii.  14,  15  \    „       „     ii.  12,  Ps.  xxii.  6  a  (the  unrecognisable  form  of 

„     liii.  3  the  righteous  sufferer). 

„     liii.  3  „       „     xix.  14  (desertion  of  friends;  verbal  parallelism). 

„  liii.  9  (see i  „  „  xvi.  17,  vi.  29,  30,  xxvii.  4  ('although  he  had 
note)  I  done  no  wrong,'  &c.). 

„  lix.  4  „  „  xv.  35  (pernicious  scheming ;  a  proverbial  ex- 

pression). 

„     Ixiii.  10          „       „     xxx.  21  (God 'turning  himself  into  an  enemy), 

„  Ixiv.  5  „  „  xiv.  4  (none  without  sin  : — in  Job  I.e.  render, '  Oh 

for  a  clean  one  among  the  unclean  ! '), 

1  The  only  exceptions  which  occur  to  me  are  the  allusions  in  xl.  2  to  Lev.  xxvi.  41, 
43  (a  passage  of  a  section  of  Leviticus — xvii.-xxvi. — which  presents  striking  resem- 
blances to  the  Book  of  Ezekiel),  and  in  liv.  9  to  Gen.  ix.  n  (Elohistic),  which  is,  how- 
ever, not  certain  (see  my  note). 


236 


ESSAYS. 


Next  come  the  parallelisms  of  the  Psalms,  on  which  I  need 
not  delay  long.  They  chiefly  occur  in  the  later  psalms,  the 
authors  of  which  may  be  truly  said  (as  I  have  remarked,  on 
Hi.  9,  of  the  author  of  Ps.  xcviii.)  to  have  known  II.  Isaiah 
'  by  heart.'  Canon  Elliott  has  given  a  list  of  the  most  striking 
of  these  passages,  and  it  will  be  noticed  as  a  singular  fact  that 
only  one  of  them  relates  to  the  acknowledged  prophecies  of 
Isaiah.1  This  of  course  does  not  prove  that  the  latter  part  of 
Isaiah  was  a  work  of  recent  composition — we  know  how  long 
it  was  after  Shakspere's  death  before  his  works  received  the 
honour  of  quotation.  It  does,  however,  show  that  these  later 
prophecies  exercised  a  special  attraction  upon  post-Exile 
writers,  which  is  a  fact  of  no  small  significance. — The  most 
interesting  parallels  in  the  earlier  psalms  are  undoubtedly 
those  in  Ps.  xxii.,  to  which  I  have  referred  already  (p.  191, 
note  2).  See  also  those  relative  to  Jehovah's  '  highway  in  the 
desert '  (note  on  xl.  3),  His  care  of  '  grey-headed  '  Israel  (on 
xlvi.  4),  '  Rahab  '  (on  li.  9),  *  the  loving-kindnesses  of  David ' 
(on  Iv.  3),  and  'the  holy  Spirit'  (on  Ixiii.  10). 

A  large  and  important  group  follows.     Compare 

Isa.  xiii.  19-22 1  with  Jer.  1.  39,  40  (Babylon  *  overturned '  like  Sodom;  de- 
solate, and  haunted). 
„    xlvi.  10, 1.  27,  li.  40  (Jehovah's  '  sacrifice,'  &c.). 


xxxiv.  14 

xxxiv.  6,  7 

xl.  5,6 
and  pa- 
rallels 

xl.  12,  22 
and  pa- 
rallels 

xl.  13,  14 

xl.  1 8-20 1 
and  pa-  \ 
rallels  J 

xliii.  5       i 

xliv.  12     > 

xlv.  9 

xlvi.  i 

xlviii.  I 

xlviii.  6 

xlviii.  20  ) 

Hi.  li        I 

xlix.  I 

li.  is 

Iv.  3  (see) 

note)       [ 

Ixi.  8         J 


xii.  12,  &c.  (*  all  flesh  ; '  see  vol.  i.  p.  240,  col.  2). 


x.  12  (description  of  creation). 

xxiii.  1  8  (who  is  Jehovah's  counsellor?). 

x.  3-11  (Jehovah  contrasted  with  the  idol-gods, 

and  an  ironical  description  of   the 

origin  of  the  latter). 
xxx.  10,  xlvi.  27,  28  ('  my  servant  Jacob  ;  '  pro- 

mises of  restoration). 
xviii.  1-6  (the  symbol  of  the  potter). 
1.  2  (gods  of  Babylon  broken). 
iv.  2,  v.  2  (true  and  false  swearing). 
xxxiii.  3  (see  critical  note  above). 

1.  8,  li.  6,  45  (<  Go  ye  out  of  Babylon  '). 

i.  5  (predestination). 
xxxi.  35  ('who  stirreth  up  the  sea,'  &c. 
tation). 


a  quo- 


xxxii. 40  ('  an  everlasting  covenant  '). 


1  Speaker's  Commentary,  vol.  iv.  pp.  506-512  ('  Excursus  on  Psalms  xci.-c.').  The 
solitary  parallel  alluded  to  is  that  between  Ps.  xcix.  3,  5,  9  and  Isa.  vi.  3,  by  no  means 
one  of  the  closest.  Two  parallels  are  given  for  Isa.  xii.,  but  the  Isaianic  authorship 
of  this  chapter  is  disputed  on  plausible  grounds  by  Ewald  and  Lagarde,  though  ac- 
knowledged by  most  critics. 


ESSAYS.  237 

Isa.  Ivi.  9  with  Jer.  xii.  9  ('wild  beasts,  come  to  devour'). 

„     Ivii.  20  „       ,,     xlix.  23  ('  the  sea  which  cannot  rest '). 

„     Iviii.  ii  „      „     xxxi.  12  ('like  a  watered  garden'). 

„    Ixv.  7  „      „    xvi.    1 8,   comp.   xxxii.    18   ('their    recompence 

first '). 

„    Ixvi.  16          „      „    xxv.     31,    33    ('holding    judgment     with     all 

flesh,'  &c.). 

The  number  and  closeness  of  these  parallels  (as  compared 
with  those  connected  with  I.  Isaiah)  is  a  phenomenon  which 
prepares  us  for  the  still  greater  abundance  of  parallel  passages 
in  the  post-Exile  psalms.  The  fact  is  not  without  its  bearing 
on  the  '  higher  criticism.' l  Some  scholars  have  even  offered 
the  hypothesis  that,  where  the  parallelism  is  the  strongest  (viz. 
in  Jer.  x.,  1.,  li.),  the  text  of  Jeremiah  has  been  interpolated  by 
the  same  exiled  prophet  who,  as  they  suppose,  was  the  author 
of  Isa.  xl.-lxvi.  This  view  (supported  by  the  eminent  names 
of  Movers  and  Hitzig)  is  too  peremptorily  rejected  by  Dean 
Payne  Smith,2  who  has  perhaps  not  given  much  thought  to 
the  complication  of  such  critical  questions.  Each  field  of 
philological  inquiry  calls  peculiar  faculties  into  exercise,  and 
our  distinguished  Syriac  lexicographer  would  be  the  last 
person  willingly  to  put  a  stigma  through  his  dogmatism  on  the 
inquiries  of  some  as  conscientious,  and  even  as  reverent,  as 
himself.  In  the  spirit  of  confraternity,  I  venture  to  protest 
against  the  irritating  and  inaccurate  statements  which  so 
repeatedly  occur  in  the  Dean's  contribution  to  the  Speaker's 
Commentary,  whenever  he  has  occasion  to  deal  incidentally 
with  questions  of  date  and  authorship.  Non  tali  auxilio.  Agree- 
ing as  I  do  with  the  Dean's  religious  presuppositions,  I  am  the 
more  surprised  at  what  appears  to  me  a  violation  of  Christian 
love,  and  a  disregard  for  the  charismata  of  his  brethren.  At 
any  rate,  it  would  be  unseemly  for  me  to  meet  dogmatism 
with  dogmatism,  even  were  it  a  part  of  my  plan  to  furnish  a 
text  book  of  the  '  higher  criticism.'  Suffice  it  to  have  indi- 
cated anew  the  variety  of  interest  attaching  to  the  comparative 
study  of  the  Hebrew  prophets. 

The  most  important  parallels  to  Ezekiel  are  suggested  by 
chaps.  Ivii.-lix.  of  Isaiah.  These  chapters,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, stand  out  from  the  rest  of  the  *  Book  of  the  Servant ' 
by  their  striking  peculiarities  of  form  and  content.  Indeed, 

1  On  this  subject  see,  besides  the  critical  and  exegetical  works  of  Movers,  Hitzig, 
Graf,  &c.,  Kiiper's  Jeremiad  librorum  sacrorum  interpret  atque  vindex  (R&r\.  1837),  or 
better,  the  excursus  in  pp.  274-291  of  his  Das  Prophetenthum  des  Altai  B unties  (Leipz. 
1870),  and  Caspari's  'Jesaianische  Studien  '  in  the  Ze itschrift  fur  Jutkerische  'Iheologie, 
1843,  pp.  1-73.     Both  these  works  discuss  the  relation  of  the  disputed  prophecies  of 
Isaiah  to  the  other  prophecies  between  Isaiah  and  the  Exile  besides  those  of  Jere- 
miah. 

2  Speakers  Commentary,  vol.  v.  pp.  387,  554. 


238 


with  regard  to  chaps.  Iviii.-lix.,  the  impression  formed  by 
Ewald  l  on  stylistic  grounds  was  so  strong  that  he  ascribed 
them  to  a  younger  contemporary  of  Ezekiel.  A  general 
impression  cannot  of  course  be  analysed  ;  but  the  following 
passages  will  at  least  establish  the  real  affinity  of  these 
chapters  with  Ezekiel : — 


Isa.  Ivi.  1-8 
„     Ivi.  9 
„     Ivii.  7,  9 
„     Ivm.  7 
lix.  ii 


comp.  Ezek.  xx.  11-21  (see  above,  p.  62). 


xxxiv.  o,  xxxix.  4. 

xxiii.  40,  41. 

xviii.  7,  1 6  (works  pleasing  to  God). 

vii.  16  ('  mourning  like  doves '). 


As  a  rule  the  tone  of  Ezekiel  is  too  different  from  that  of 
II.  Isaiah  to  admit  of  much  parallelism  either  of  thought  or  of 
expression  ;  he  is  rather  a  legal  than  an  '  evangelical  prophet.' 
Yet  a  few  parallels  may  be  traced.  The  description  of  Sheol 
in  Isa.  xiv.  9,  &c.,  closely  resembles  the  dirge  upon  Egypt  in 
Ezek.  xxxii.  18-32.  Isa.  xxvi.  19  may  be  illustrated  from 
Ezek.  xxxvii.  i-io,  Isa.  li.  2  from  Ezek.  xxxiii.  24,  and  Isa. 
li.  17  from  Ezek.  xxiii.  32-34. 

The  so-called  Minor  Prophets  follow.     Compare — 

Isa.  xxvi.  19 

(see  note) 
„    xliii.  ii 

»  1™-  3 

„  Iviii.  i 

„  xxvi.  21 

„  xxiv.  23 

„  xli.  15 

„  lvii.  i,  2 

»     xiii-  6>  9 
„     xliv.  3 
„     xlix.  23 

lii.  i 

xxiv.  I 

li.  19 

li.  20 

lii.  i,  7 

xxxiv.  1 6 

xiii.  21 


xxxiv.  ii 
xlvii.  8 


Hos.  vi.  2  (Israel's  resurrection). 

„     xiii.  4  ('  no  saviour  beside  me '). 
„     i.  2,  ii.  4  (spiritual  adultery). 
„     viii.  i,  Mic.  iii.  8  (a  mission  to  rebuke). 
Mic.  i.  3  (a  strong  anthropomorphism). 

iv.  7  (Jehovah  'become  king'  in  mount  Zion). 

iv.  13  (Israel's  threshing-time  announced). 

vii.  i,  2  (the  pious  have  become  extinct). 

i.  15  (a  striking  assonance  quoted). 

ii.  28  (the  outpouring  of  the  Spirit). 

ii.  27  ('knowing  Jehovah,'  &c.). 

iii.  17  (Jerusalem  free  from  foreigners). 
Nah.  ii.  n,  A.  V.  10  (assonances). 
„     iii.  7  ('  who  condoleth  with  thee  ? '). 
„     iii.  10  (a  verbal  parallelism). 
„    ii.  i,  A.  V.  i.  15  (' the  feet  upon  the  mountains,'  £c.). 


Joel 


Zeph.  ii.  14  (the  desolate  city). 
„    ii.  15  ('  I  and  none  beside'). 


The  critical  importance  of  some  of  these  parallels  (viz. 
those  in  Joel,  Nahum,  and  Zephaniah)  has  no  doubt  been 
exaggerated  ;  but  no  thoughtful  person  will  disregard  them. 
They  show  how  instinctively  the  prophets  formed  as  it  were 
a  canon  of  prophetic  Scriptures  for  themselves,  and  also  how 

1   The  Prophets  of  the  Old  Testament,  Eng.  Tmnsl.,  vol.  iv.  p.  253. 


ESSAYS.  239 

free  they  were  from  the  morbid  craving  for  originality.  But 
they  have  not  the  interest  of  the  parallelisms  in  some  of  the 
former  groups.1 

2. 

Enough,  I  hope,  has  been  said  to  show  the  value  of  a 
careful  examination  of  parallel  passages,  which  is  indeed  a 
great  step  towards  the  comparative  study  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. Here  I  might  lay  down  the  pen,  were  it  not  for  certain 
peculiar  phenomena  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah,  which  the  student 
is  in  some  danger  of  overlooking.  That  Isaiah,  taken  as  a 
whole,  has  divergences  as  well  as  affinities  relatively  to  other 
books,  none  will  be  tempted  to  deny ;  but  it  is  not  every- 
one who  has  a  clear  and  single  eye  for  discerning  linguistic 
differences  within  the  Book  of  Isaiah  itself.  The  prejudice 
of  the  unity  of  authorship  is  of  such  a  natural  growth  that 
I  seem  bound  in  fairness  to  supplement  my  list  of  parallelisms 
between  I.  and  II.  Isaiah  by  a  corresponding  conspectus  of 
the  principal  phrases  and  expressions  peculiar,  at  any  rate,  to 
the  latter  prophecies.  To  be  absolutely  complete,  it  would 
no  doubt  be  necessary  to  go  further,  and  collect  the  words 
and  formulae  found  in  the  acknowledged,  but  absent  or  rare 
in  the  disputed  prophecies  ;  in  fact,  nothing  short  of  a 
thorough  analysis  of  the  two  parts  of  the  book  would  enable 
the  reader  to  estimate  the  state  of  the  evidence  with  mathe- 
matical precision.  Such,  however,  is  not  my  object.  I  would 
rather  allure  the  student  to  work  for  himself  with  his  Hebrew 
Bible  and  his  Concordance  on  the  lines  which  I  have  marked 
out ;  and  should  indeed  be  somewhat  afraid  of  weakening  the 
force  of  the  more  striking  portions  of  the  evidence  by  com- 
bining them  with  those  of  less  significance.  Now,  the  most 
essential  of  the  linguistic  peculiarities  within  the  Book  of 
Isaiah  itself  are  those  which  meet  us  in  the  disputed  pro- 
phecies. The  natural  tendency  is  to  accommodate  II.  Isaiah 
to  I.  Isaiah,  volatilising  the  differences  between  them,  rather 
than  vice  versa  ;  so  that  if,  in  pursuance  of  my  object,  a 
selection  has  to  be  made,  it  will  not  appear  strange  if  I  devote 
the  remainder  of  this  Essay  to  the  peculiar  words,  phrases, 
and  forms  of  the  disputed  portion  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah. 

It  has  been  said  by  Dr.  Franz  Delitzsch  '  that  though 
the  disputed  prophecies  contain  some  things  which  cannot 

1  Mr.  W.  H.  Cobb  thinks  he  has  proved  the  single  authorship  of  Isaiah  by  show- 
ing from  the  Concordance  that  the  vocabulary  of  Isaiah  xl.-lxvi.  (taken  as  a  whole) 
does  not  agree  with  that  of  the  later  prophets,  Ezekiel,  Haggai,  Zechariah,  and  Mala- 
chi  ('Two  Isaiahs  or  One,'  Bibliotheca  Sacra,  1881,  p.  230,  &c.).  But  such  an  un- 
critical use  of  the  Concordance  is  of  little  service. 


240 


ESSAYS. 


be  paralleled  from  the  others,  that  which  is  characteristically 
Isaianic  predominates.' l  Now,  I  admit  that  it  requires  great 
nicety  of  judgment  to  determine  such  a  point ;  but  I  must 
confess  that,  after  a  careful  revision  of  the  data,  I  have  come 
to  an  opposite  conclusion.  Not  that  I  suppose  this  conclu- 
sion to  carry  with  it  the  non-Isaianic  origin  of  the  latter  pro- 
phecies. If  on  general  grounds  it  is  probable  that  Isaiah  in 
his  old  age  entered  upon  a  new  field  of  prophetic  discoun 
it  will  appear  natural  to  suppose  that  new  forms  "of  expres- 
sion should  have  met  the  promptings  of  his  intellect.  The 
occurrence  of  numerous  peculiar  phrases  and  expressions  in 
II.  Isaiah  will  only  become  a  matter  of  primary  importance, 
should  they  warrant  the  inference  that  the  author  belonged  to 
a  different  linguistic  stage  from  the  historical  Isaiah.  Two 
writers  of  the  same  period  may  conceivably  differ  very 
widely  in  the  character  of  their  diction  ;  but  it  can  hardly  be 
admitted  that  a  writer,  conspicuous  for  the  purity  of  his 
style  in  one  prophetic  book,  should  have  sunk  to  a  lower 
level  in  another,  while  soaring  higher  than  ever  in  thought 
and  imagination.  My  own  opinion  is  that  the  peculiar  ex- 
pressions of  the  latter  prophecies  are,  on  the  whole,  not  such 
as  to  necessitate  a  different  linguistic  stage  from  the  historical 
Isaiah  ;  and  that  consequently  the  decision  of  the  critical 
question  will  mainly  depend  on  other  than  purely  linguistic 
considerations.  But  more  of  this  elsewhere. 

I.  Among  the  most  characteristic  expressions  of  the  latter 
prophecies  are — 

(i)  Those  descriptive  of  the  attributes  of  Jehovah,  and 
emphasising  especially  His  uniqueness,  eternity,  creatorship, 
and  predictive  power  : — 

(a)  '  I  am  Jehovah,  and  there  is  none  else  (or,  beside)/ 
xlv.  5,  6,  1 8,  22,  xlvi.  9. 

(b)  '  The  First  and  the  Last,'  xli.  4,  xliv.  6,  xlviii.  12. 

(c)  (  To  what  will  ye  liken  me?'  xl.  18,  25,  xlvi.  5. 

(d)  'The  creator  of  the  heavens'  (xlii.  5,  xlv.   18),  *  the 
maker  of  everything '  (xliv.  24)  ;  comp.  xl.  22  (note),  xlv.  12. 

(e)  '  Who  announced  (this)  from  the  beginning,'  and  pa- 
rallel  expressions.      See   xli.    26,   xliii.    9,  xliv.  7,  xlv.   21, 
xlviii.  14. 

(/)  '  The  Arm  of  Jehovah,'  for  the  self- revealing  aspect  of 
the  Deity,  xl.  10,  and  six  other  passages  (see  on  xl.  10). 

(g)  The  use  of  '  Holy  One'  (QadosJi)  as  a  proper  name, 
xl.  25,  Ivii.  15,  for  which  no  doubt  a  point  of  contact  may  be 
found  in  the  characteristically  Isaianic  'Israel's  Holy  One,' 

1  Der  Prophet  Jesaia,  3te  Ausg.,  p.  xxxi. 


ESSAYS. 


241 


comp.  also  '  God,  the  Holy  One/  (Jiaqqddosh,  with  the  article), 
v.  1 6,  but  which  may  by  some  be  regarded  as  a  later  develop- 
ment (it  is  only  found  elsewhere  in  a  prophecy  of  the  Baby- 
lonian period — Hab.  ii.  3,  and  in  writings  possibly  belonging 
to  the  age  of  the  Captivity — Job  vi.  10,  Ps.  xxii.  4). 

(2)  Equally  characteristic  is  the  ironical  language  of  II. 
Isaiah  with  regard  to  idolatry — see  xl.  19,  20,  xli.  7,  xliv.  9—17, 
xlvi.  6,  and  note  the  parallels  referred  to  in  my  note  on  the 
first-mentioned  passage.      In  the    acknowledged    prophecies 
idolatry  does  not  receive  a  large  share  of  the  prophet's  atten- 
tion, though  contemptuous  expressions,  side-thrusts  as  it  were, 
are  not  wanting  (ii.  20,  xxxi.  7). 

(3)  So,  too,  is  the  abundant  use  of  personification.     Zion, 
Jerusalem,  Israel,  constantly  appear  in  the  character  of  per- 
sons.    See  on  xl.  9,  and  comp.  essay  on  'The  Servant  of 
Jehovah.' 

II.  Passing  to  the  vocabulary,  let  me  mention  (i)  peculiar 
words,  and  (2)  peculiar  significations,  first  reminding  the 
student  that  in  order  to  estimate  the  importance  of  any  single 
instance,  he  will  have  to  consider  whether  the  word  or  the 
signification  is  strictly  peculiar  to  II.  Isaiah,1  or  whether  it 
occurs  elsewhere  (though  not  in  I.  Isaiah),  and  if  so,  where 
(the  comparative  study  of  the  vocabularies  of  Job  and  II. 
Isaiah  would  be  a  real  critical  and  exegetical  service).  It 
should  also  be  borne  in  mind  that  lists  similar  to  those  which 
follow  might  be  made  out  for  I.  Isaiah.  I  have  mostly  chosen 
words  which  occur  but  once  in  chaps,  xl.-lxvi.2 


yy>$ 

xli.  9 

an 

xlviii.  21 

na-iK 

Iviii.  8 

bn 

xlvi.  6 

D^DB>K 

lix.  10 

1*1 

Ixvi.  ii 

Diana 

Ii.  7 

mr 

lx.  3 

to 

'  to  be  impure  '  (Nif.  and 

man 

liii.  3 

Hif.)  lix.  3,  Ixiii.  3 

hn 

liii.  3 

D^IKa 

Ixiii.  4 

am 

xl.  22 

lia 

'to  stir  up  (strife),'  liv.  15 

Don 

xlviii.  9 

wa 

(Piel)  lix.  10 

D'wn 

1.    10 

P^ 

xl.  22 

nDD 

xlviii.  13 

PKYI 

Ixvi.  24 

"11211 

(Hithp.)  Ixi.  6 

run 

Ivi.  10 

By* 

Ixi.  10 

D'ocn 

Ixiv.  i 

p»*B» 

xliii.  19,  20 

nionn 

xlix.  19 

nna 

(verb  and  noun)  xlii.  3,  4  ; 

biat 

Ixiii.  15 

Ixi.  3 

1  Under  the  name  '  II.  Isaiah  '  I  include  all  the  disputed  prophecies — not  merely 
chaps,  xl.-lxvi. 

2  The  list,  which  is  not  complete,  is  based  upon  the  invaluable  Zusarnmenstelluitg 


at  the  end  of  Naegelsbach's  Jcsaia. 
VOL.   II. 


R 


242 

ESSAYS. 

IPO 

(Piel)  Ixi.  10 

nany     xlvii.  8 

(Piel)  xliv.  5  ;  xlv.  4 

niy       i.  4 

to? 

Ixiii.  7  (repeated,  lix.  18) 

najy       xlvii.  i 

D'VB3 

xl.  2 

D^Dy         xlix.  26 

mrp-o 

1.  i 

spy          (verb)  Ixvi.  3 

n"O"o 

Ixvi.  20 

miB        Ixiii.  3 

D'BKO 

xlvii.  9,  12 

HUD          xlii.  14 

mo 

xli.  15 

nVS         (always  with  n3")  or   J2l) 

DTI1D 

liii.  9 

xiv.   7  ;    xliv.    23  ;    xlix. 

D>iDDD 

xlv.  3 

13;  lii.  9;  liv.  i  ;  Iv.  12 

2KDD 

(plural)  liii.  3,  4 

mpnpb  ixi.  i 

nta 

(Nifal)  li.  6 

pIS          Ixv.  4 

"inDE 

liii.  3 

2¥            Ixvi.  20 

n'TO.) 

TV            lx.  4  ;  Ixvi.  12 

MM*! 

xlviii.  19 

=tw?. 

HIV          xlii.  ii 

D^IID 

Iviii.  7  (?) 

nm¥        xxiv.  ii 

nnK>D 

lii.  14 

r6l¥        xliv.  27 

rwo 

xlv.  i 

D1¥          Iviii.  3,  4 

rn;j 

Ivi.  10 

i"JU¥          li.  !4  j  Ixiii.  i 

nnM 

(plural)  lix.  9 

nmp     li.  17,  22 

ma 

Ixvi.  5 

Tn       xiv.  i 

jpKia 

Ivii.  10 

Dm  (plural)  xl.  4. 

nta 

(Hifil)    Hi.    15    (?);    (Kal) 

yp"i  (Piel  denominat^  xl.  19 

Ixiii.  3 

-in£^         xlvii.  ii 

nva 

Ixiii.  3,  6 

fc^vt^          xl.   12 

TJD 

xliv.  15,  17,  19;  xlvi.  6 

ftj¥&?         liv.  8 

po 

xli.  25 

mnn      xl.  14  (plur.),  28  ;  xliv.  19 

teo 

xliv.  25 

(sing.) 

PD 

(Pual)  xl.  20 

nonn    xl.  20 

DHy 

Ixiv.  5 

To 

these  may  be  added  the  following  peculiar  forms  :  — 

(«)  '1 

0^  for  '^)  xliv.  15,  liii.  8.     (If,  however,  my  view  is  correct,  there 

is  an  analogy  for  this  in  viii.  15,  on  which,  see  crit.  note,  p.  137.) 

(*)  ' 

nitf  for  "J-iK  liv.  15     )  No  doubt  Aramaisms.     The  same  usage  is 

(r)  DJTltffor  DHN  lix.  21  j      found  in   i   and  2  Kings,  Jeremiah  and 

Ezekiel.      It    also    occurs,    however,    in 

Josh.   xiv.    12   (perhaps    Gen.   xxxiv.    2), 

where,  as  here,  it  may  possibly  be  due  to 

a  later  editor. 

(d)  \ 

F^iOK  for  '•flpSUn  Ixiii-  3-     An  Aramaism. 

(')  V 

«'13P  lii.  5-     Hithpoal  (with  j-|  assimilated). 

(/)  <' 

?nn  liii.  10.     Hif.  from  rbn  (Aramaising),  or  from  fc^n,  another 
form  of  r6n  (2  Chron.  xvi.  12),  with  the  final  tf  omitted  before  the 

initial  ^  of  the  next  word  :  for  parallel  cases,  see  2  Kings  xiii.  6, 

Jer.  xxxii.  35.     So  Olshausen,  Lehrbuch,  §  255  /,  followed  by 

Klostermann  and  Delitzsch  (ed.  3). 

ESSAYS.  243 

(g)  &&}  h'x-  3-     The  form  reminds  one  of  the  Rabbinic  Nithpael  ; 
see,  however,  crit.  note  above,  p.  1  59. 

2.  Words  used  with  a  peculiar  shade  of  meaning.     (Not  a 
complete  list.) 


(a)  TinX  'future  time';  xli.  23,  xlii.  23. 

(£)  D^N  'maritime  lands  of  the  west';  xlii.  15  (see  note),  and  other 
passages. 

(c)  "ini  'to  test'  for  jrQ,  as  in  Aramaic  ;  xlviii.  10. 

(d}  TOP!  'to  declare'  •='  to  prophecy';  xliii.  12,  xliv.  8,  xlviii.  3. 

(tf)  Dyn  '  the  people  '  =  '  mankind  '  ;  xl.  7,  xlii.  5,  comp.  xliv.  7. 

(/)  JPJnn  'to  fix'  or  'found'  ;  li.  4. 

(g)  ^SPI  'business,'  Iviii.  3,  13  (as  in  Ecclesiastes). 

(h)  "IJV  'abundance,'  used  adverbially  for  'exceedingly,'  Ivi.  12. 

(0  yhft  'interpreter'  =  '  prophet,'  xliii.  27. 

(k]  pDID  '  impoverished,'  xl.  20. 

(/)  BBtpB  '  ordinance  '  or  '  law,'  used  technically  for  (the  true)  religion 
in  its  practical  aspect  ;  xlii.  I,  3,  4,  li.  4. 

(m)  pi*i¥  'true'  ;  xli.  26,  comp.  lix.  4. 

(«)  pIX  '  righteousness  '  =  '  success  '  (God's  justification  of  His  people 
before  the  world)  ;  xlv.  8,  24,  xlvi.  13,  li.  5,  6,  8,  Ivi.  i,  lix.  17, 
Ixi.  10,  n,  Ixii.  i. 

(o)  6Op  'to  call'  =  '  to  prophesy'  ;  xl.  2,  xliv.  7,  Iviii.  i,  comp.  Ixi.  i,  2. 

Looking  back  upon  the  preceding  lists,  it  is  obvious  that 
there  is  not  only  a  large  genuinely  Hebrew  element  peculiar 
to  II.  Isaiah,  but  also  a  certain  Aramaising  tendency.  In 
b&O  '  to  be  impure  '  we  notice  an  Aramaic  weakening  of  i; 
into  K  (comp.  ^  '  to  reject  ').  W3  '  to  grope/  is  suggested 
by  the  Aramaic  gash  '  palpavit  '  ;  the  genuine  Hebrew  synonym 
is  BTO  (Deut.  xxviii.  29,  Job  v.  14).  l£v  'exceedingly,' 
reminds  one  of  Aram.  "WV  ;  \  ?ri  <  business  '  (a  sense  which 
can  hardly  be  avoided  in  Iviii.  3,  13)  of  £bhu  '  business/ 
in  Syriac,  from  c'bha  '  to  desire/  and  fc^86f  '  a  matter/  in 
Chaldee,  from  *?%$  '  to  ask.'  1JD  '  to  worship  '  (which  only 
occurs  in  II.  Isaiah)  is  the  Syriac  s'ged,  Chald.  s*gtd,  though 
the  use  of  the  Hebrew  word  is  more  limited  than  that 
of  the  Aramaic,  13  D  being  only  used  of  idolatry  (*]BO  and 
other  similar  technical  words  of  Aramaic  origin  are  limited 
in  the  same  way).  H33  '  to  give  an  honourable  surname  to  ' 
(peculiar  to  II.  Isaiah  and  Job),  though  it  has  both  Aramaic 
and  Arabic  affinities,  is  yet  most  probably  suggested  by  the 
Aramaic.  D^JD,  '  viceroys/  the  Hebraised  form  of  an  Assy- 
rian and  Babylonian  word  (see  note,  p.  144),  doubtless  came 
to  the  Jews  through  the  Chaldee  s'gan,  plur.  signin  (Dan.  ii. 
48,  &c.).  Add  to  these  the  harsh  idiom  in  xxvi.  1  1  (see  note), 

R  2 


244 


ESSAYS. 


which  would  lose  its  harshness  in  an  Aramaic  sentence  ;  and 
the  phrase  '  all  nations  and  tongues  '  (Ixvi.  18),  which  reminds 
us  of  a  well-known  expression  in  the  Chaldee  portions  of  the 
Book  of  Daniel  (see  note,  p.  127).  If  the  Massoretic  text 
were  correct  in  xiv.  4,  we  should  also  include  the  singular 
form  nnrTjD,  '  exactress  of  gold '  (Auth.  Vers.,  margin),  from 
Chald.  nrp]  =  Hebr.  snt  'gold.'  And  yet,  when  all  has  been 
said,  most  will  probably  admit  with  Dr.  S.  Davidson  *  that 
'  the  diction  of  the  second  part  of  Isaiah  is  tolerably  pure  and 
free  from  Chaldaisms.'  Sporadic  Chaldaisms  are  in  fact  no 
novelty  in  Hebrew  literature,  and  with  our  very  conjectural 
knowledge  of  the  phases  of  the  Hebrew  language,  and  the 
process  of  the  final  editing  of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  it  seems 
rash  to  trust  to  them  as  a  criterion  of  language.  Certainly 
the  case  for  the  antiquity  of  II.  Isaiah,  on  the  linguistic  side, 
is  more  favourable  than  for  that  of  the  Book  of  Job,  and 
almost  infinitely  more  so  than  for  that  of  Ecclesiastes.  We 
must  not,  indeed,  build  too  much  on  this  comparative  purity  of 
diction ;  but  on  the  other  hand  we  must  not  fail  to  recognise  it. 


IX.     JOB   AND   THE   SECOND   PART    OF   ISAIAH  : 
A    PARALLEL. 

I. 

IF  it  is  no  easy  task  in  the  case  of  parallel  passages  to  dis- 
tinguish the  original  from  the  imitation,  how  much  more 
difficult  must  it  be  in  the  case  of  parallel  books  \  This  reflec- 
tion forms  the  link  between  the  present  and  the  preceding 
essay.  The  allusion,  I  need  hardly  tell  the  reader,  is  on  the 
one  hand  to  the  '  Book  of  the  Servant  of  Jehovah/  and  on  the 
other  to  the  twenty-second  Psalm  and  the  Book  of  Job.  It 
is  not  my  object,  however,  to  discuss  the  literary  relation  be- 
tween these  books,  but  rather  to  show  by  a  few  details  that 
the  parallelism  actually  exists.  Nothing,  perhaps,  is  more 
helpful  to  a  right  appreciation  of  books  than  to  compare  those 
which  amidst  some  divergences  have  a  real  and  predominant 
affinity.  The  twenty-second  Psalm,  short  as  it  is,  embodies 
the  essence  of  some  of  the  most  striking  passages  of  the 
'  Book  of  the  Servant,'  but  I  must  content  myself  with  the 
brief  enforcement  of  this  view  in  a  previous  essay  (pp.  190-1). 
The  Book  of  Job  claims  a  fuller  treatment,  not  with  regard 

1  hitroduc  'ion  to  the  Old  Testament,  ii.  54. 


ESSAYS.  245 

to  its  literary  aspects,  however  tempting  these  may  be,1  but 
to  the  fundamental  parallelism  of  thought  between  it  and 
IL  Isaiah. 

The  common  view  that  the  hero  of  the  poem  of  Job  is 
simply  an  individual  must,  it  is  clear,  be  abandoned.  I  do 
not  know  whether  Chateaubriand's  views  on  Biblical  subjects 
are  original,  or  whether  he  drew  from  some  Catholic  theo- 
logian ;  but  his  comment  on  the  speeches  of  Job  is  too 
strikingly  true  to  be  withheld.  He  says,  '  II  y  a  dans  la  me- 
lancolie  de  Job  quelque  chose  de  surnaturel.  L'homme  indi- 
viduel,  si  malheureux  qu'il  puisse  etre,  ne  peut  tirer  de  pareils 
soupirs  de  son  ame.  Job  est  la  figure  de  rhumanite  souf- 
frante,  et  1'ecrivain  inspire  a  trouve  des  soupirs,  pour  exprimer 
tous  les  maux  partages  entre  la  race  humaine.' 2  This  is,  in 
fact,  the  thesis  which  the  following  pages  are  to  defend,  though 
not  without  giving  the  fullest  weight  to  the  elements  of  the 
poem  which  compel  us  to  regard  the  hero  as  an  individual. 
The  truth  is  that  Job  is  at  once  an  individual  and  a  type : 
need  I  remark  how  interesting  a  parallel  is  suggested  with 
the  Servant  of  Jehovah  ? 

But  I  must  first  of  all  invite  the  reader  to  accompany  me 
in  a  brief  preliminary  survey.  I  leave  the  Prologue  for  the 
present  out  of  the  question,  and  turn  at  once  to  the  speeches 
which,  indeed,  are  capable  of  standing  independently  of  both 
Prologue  and  Epilogue.  An  analysis  would  occupy  us  too 
long ;  I  will  only  point  to  the  continually  recurring  passages 
in  which  the  sufferings  of  Job  are  spoken  of  in  terms  hardly 
suitable  to  an  individual.  Sometimes,  for  instance,  we  are 
startled  at  the  ejaculation, 

My  days  are  swifter  than  a  runner, 

They  have  fled  away  without  having  seen  prosperity  (ix.  25), 

although  we  have  learned  from  the  Prologue  that  'this  man 
was  the  greatest  of  all  the  sons  of  the  east '  (i.  3) ;  and  then 
by  still  more  excessive  complaints,  in  which  Job's  Oriental 
sense  of  dignity  seems  to  vanish  altogether,  and  which  must 
sound  strangely  enough  to  those  who  have  watched  in  real 
life  the  calm  heroism  of  great  sufferers — 

O  that  my  vexation  were  duly  weighed, 
And  my  calamity  lifted  with  it  into  balances  ! 
For  it  would  then  be  heavier  than  sand  of  seas ; 
Therefore  have  my  words  been  rash  (vi.  2,  3). 

1  I  have  touched  upon  these  in  a  paper  called  'The  Book  of  Job  ;  a  Literary  and 
Biographical  Study,'  in  Fraser's  Magazine,  July  1880,  pp.  126-134.  The  parallelism 
between  Job  and  the  Introduction  to  Proverbs  has  but  little  corresponding  to  it  in  II. 
Isaiah,  the  influence  of  proverbial  wisdom  upon  the  latter  being  comparatively  slight. 
The  range  both  of  thought  and  expression  in  the  Book  of  Job  is  wider  than  that  in 
II.  Isaiah.  3  Cdnie  du  christianisme  (Paris  1802),  ii.  305. 


246 


ESSAYS. 


How  surprising  it  is  again,  when  Job  falls  to  meditating  or 
the  hardships  of  humanity — 

Has  not  frail  man  a  hard  service  upon  earth, 

And  are  not  his  days  like  the  days  of  a  hireling?  (vii.  i) 

One  would  have  thought  that  it  would  be  some  comfort  to 
the  sufferer,  that  he  was  not  worse  off  than  the  rest  of  his 
kind  !  But  no  ;  it  does  but  open  the  floodgates  of  lamenta- 
tion— 

Like  a  slave,  who  panteth  for  shade, 
And  like  a  hireling  who  waiteth  for  his  recompence, 
So  am  I  made  to  possess  months  of  disappointment, 
And  troublous  nights  have  been  allotted  to  me  (vii.  2,  3). 

And  again,  after  the  pathetic  reflection, 

Man,  born  of  woman, 

Short  of  days  and  full  of  unrest, 

Cometh  forth  like  a  flower,  and  is  cut  down, 

Fleeth  like  a  shadow  and  stayeth  not  (xiv.  i,  2), 

how  hard  it  is,  on  the  ordinary  hypothesis,  to  account  for  the 
(apparent)  invasion  of  self-consciousness  in  the  second  line  of 
the  next  verse, 

Yet  upon  him  dost  thou  keep  open  thine  eyes, 

And  me  dost  thou  bring  into  judgment  with  thee  (xiv.  3)  ! 

Equally  strange  phenomena  are  the  political  and  social 
digressions  in  which  Job  repeatedly  indulges.  The  changes 
of  empires,  the  violence  of  tyrants,  and  their  immunity  (not 
universal,  however,  as  Job  virtually  admits  in  chap,  xxvii.) 
from  punishment,  the  hardships  of  slavery  and  poverty,  the 
calamities  of  war,  pestilence,  famine,  and  wild  beasts,  are 
mingled  inextricably  with  the  personal  theme  of  his  unmerited 
sufferings. 

It  is  strange,  no  doubt ;  but  Job  himself  seems  to  give  us 
the  clue  to  the  mystery,  when  he  and  his  friends  unexpectedly 
fall  into  language  implying  that  he  is  not  an  individual,  but  a 
plurality  of  persons.  '  For  me  the  graves'  (Job  ;  xvii.  i).  '  How 
long  will  ye  hunt  for  words/  '  Wherefore  are  we  ...  held  un- 
clean in  your  sight '  (Bildad  ;  xviii.  2,  3).  '  He  counteth  me 
as  his  adversaries' l  (Job  ;  xix.  1 1).  Perhaps  I  might  add,  in 
illustration,  xvi.  10  and  xxvii.  n,  12,  where  Job  addresses 
his  friends  as  if  they  were  the  assembled  multitude  of  *  wise 
men.'  Certainly,  I  can  see  no  other  explanation  of  those 
apparently  hyperbolical  complaints,  that  strange  invasion  of 
self-consciousness,  and  that  no  less  strange  'enthusiasm  of 

1  See,  however,  above,  p.  26  (top  of  col.  i). 


ESSAYS.  247 

humanity/  of  which  I  have  spoken  above,  than  the  view  ex- 
pressed or  implied  by  Chateaubriand  that  Job  is  a  type  of 
righteous  men  in  affliction — not  merely  in  the  land  of  Uz,  nor 
among  the  Jews  in  Babylonia,1  nor  yet,  on  Warburton's  theory 
of  the  poem,  in  the  Judaea  of  the  time  of  Nehemiah,  but  wher- 
ever on  the  wide  earth  tears  are  shed  and  hearts  are  broken. 
Not  that  Job  ceases  to  be  an  individual ;  it  is  evident,  not 
merely  from  the  Prologue,  but  from  Ezek.  xiv.  14,  20,  that 
there  was  an  ancient  tradition  of  a  Hebrew  king  Priam,  whose 
name  had  become  the  symbol  of  immeasurable  woe.  That 
Job  is  a  type,  no  more  destroys  his  claim  to  be  an  individual 
than  the  typical  character  of  Dante  in  his  pilgrimage  and  of 
Faust  in  Goethe's  great  poem  annuls  the  historical  element  in 
these  two  poetical  figures.  Job,  in  fact,  if  I  read  him  aright, 
is  '  not  merely  a  patriarch  in  the  already  remote  youth  of  the 
world,  but  the  idealised  portrait  of  the  author  himself.' 2  The 
sacred  poet,  we  may  reverently  conjecture,  was  prepared 
by  providential  discipline  for  his  appointed  work.  '  In  the 
rhythmic  swell  of  Job's  passionate  complaints,  there  is  an 
echo  of  the  heart-beats  of  a  great  poet  and  a  great  sufferer. 
The  cry,  "  Perish  the  day  in  which  I  was  born  "  (iii.  3),  is  a  true 
expression  of  the  first  effects  of  some  unrecorded  sorrow.  In 
the  life-like  description  beginning  "  Oh  that  I  were  as  in 
months  of  old  "  (xxix.  2),  the  writer  is  thinking  probably  of 
his  own  happier  days,  before  misfortune  overtook  him.  Like 
Job  (xxix.  7,  21-25),  ne  na-d  sat  in  the  "broad  place"  by  the 
gate,  and  solved  the  doubts  of  perplexed  clients.  Like  Job, 
he  had  maintained  his  position  triumphantly  against  other 
wise  men.  He  had  a  fellow-feeling  with  Job  in  the  distress- 
ful passage  through  doubt  to  faith.  Like  Job  (xxi.  16),  he 
had  resisted  the  suggestion  of  practical  atheism,  and  with  the 
confession  of  his  error  (xlii.  2-6)  had  recovered  spiritual  peace.' 
All  this  is  credible,  and  more  than  credible,  if  we  remember 
that  mere  artistic  creations  are  not  in  harmony  with  the  old 
Semitic  mind — that  personal  experience  is  the  basis  of  the 
Biblical  Hebrew  as  well  as  of  the  old  Arabian  poetry.  This 
is  not,  however,  the  only  channel  by  which  the  author's  subjec- 
tivism has  impressed  itself  on  the  traditional  story.  '  There 
is  yet  another  aspect  to  the  personality  of  the  author  of  "  Job" 
— his  open  eye  and  ear  for  the  sights  and  lessons  of  external 
nature.  He  might  have  said  with  a  better  right  than  Goethe, 
"  What  I  have  not  gained  by  learning,  I  have  by  travel." 3 

1  See  on  xl.  12  (vol.  i.  p.  242). 

2  The  passages  within  inverted  commas  are  quoted  from  the  paper  in  Frasers 
Magazine,  referred  to  above. 

5  '  Was  ich  nicht  erlernt  habe,  das  hab'  ich  erwandert.' 


248  ESSAYS. 

He  is  such  a  one  as  Sirach  describes  (Ecclus.  xxxix.  4),  "  He 
will  travel  through  strange  countries,  for  he  hath  tried  the 
good  and  the  evil  among  men."  From  a  wide  observatioi 
of  nature  he  derived  the  magnificent  scenery — scenery,  how- 
ever, which  is  more  than  scenery,  for  it  furnishes  important 
elements  of  his  sacred  philosophy.  Not  that  the  imagination 
is  allowed  to  be  inactive.  .  .  .  For  the  full  and  free  considera- 
tion of  his  subject,  he  felt  that  he  required  an  absolutely  clear 
medium,  disengaged  from  the  associations  even  of  the  true, 
the  revealed  religion.  (Is  he  not  in  this  point  a  warrant  for 
the  "  apologetic  "  treatment  to  which  we,  like  the  author  of 
"  Job,"  though  in  other  forms,  are  obliged  to  subject  our  re- 
ligion ?)  With  a  poet's  tact,  and  with  a  true  sympathy  for 
doubters,  he  created  an  ideal  medium,  in  which  hardly  any- 
thing Israelitish  is  visible.  The  elements  which  he  fused 
together  came  from  the  three  countries  with  which  he  seems 
to  have  been  best  acquainted — Arabia,  Judah,  Egypt.  From 
Arabia  he  takes  the  position  which  he  assigns  to  Job,  of  a 
great  agriculturist-chieftain.  The  stars  of  the  Arabian  sky 
must  have  deepened  his  unmistakeable  interest  in  astronomy 
(ix.  9,  xxxviii.  31-33).  Personal  knowledge  of  caravan  life 
seems  to  have  suggested  that  most  touching  figure,  which 
our  own  Thomson  has  so  finely,  though  so  inaccurately,  para- 
phrased l  (vi.  15-20).  And  the  same  desert  regions  doubtless 
inspired  those  splendid  descriptions  of  the  wild  goat,  the  wild 
ass,  and  the  horse  (chap,  xxxix.)  which  extorted  a  tribute  of 
admiration  from  the  traveller  Humboldt.  But  neither  agri- 
cultural life  alone,  nor  the  phenomena  of  the  desert,  have  fur- 
nished him  with  sufficient  poetic  material.  He  who  would 
'  rise  to  the  height  of  this  great  argument '  must  have  gained 
his  experience  of  life  on  a  more  extensive  and  changeful 
theatre.  From  Judah,  then,  the  poet  borrows  his  picture  of 
city-life,  which  presupposes  a  complex  social  organism,  with 
kings,  priests,  judges,  physicians,  authors,  and  wise  men.  This 
description  of  the  sessions  of  Job  in  the  gate  (chap,  xxix.)  is 
distinctly  Judsean  in  character.  It  was  the  Nile-valley,  how- 
ever, which  supplied  the  most  vivid  colours  to  his  palette. 
He  is  acquainted  with  the  Nile  and  its  papyrus-boats  (ix.  26), 
with  the  plants  which  grow  on  its  banks  (viii.  n,  xl.  21),  and 
with  the  habits  of  the  two  wonderful  animals  which  frequent 
its  shores  (xl.  i5-xli.  34).  He  is  no  less  familiar  with  mining 
operations  (xxviii.  I— n),  such  as  were  practised  since  the 

1  In  Cairo's  crowded  streets 

The  impatient  merchant,  wondering,  waits  in  vain, 
And  Mecca  saddens  at  the  long  delay. 

(Summer,  980-2  ;  of  the  caravan  which  perished  in  the  storm.) 


ESSAYS.  249 

earliest  times  by  the  Egyptians.  But  the  author  of  "Job" 
is  no  mere  observer  of  details.  Phenomena  are  in  his  eyes 
but  manifestations  of  the  perfect  and  all-ruling  but  incompre- 
hensible wisdom  of  God.'  No  contrast  can  be  greater  than 
that  of  the  over-taught,  sophisticated  modern,  who  exclaims 

with  Leopardi, 

.  .  .  conosciuto  il  mondo 
Non  cresce,  anzi  si  scema, 

and  the  author  of  '  Job,'  who  beholds  the  universe  with  an 
eye  quickened  by  the  thought  of  God.  In  him,  the  fountain 
of  admiration  has  not  been  dried  up  by  an  ill-assimilated 
science.  *  Orion  and  the  Pleiades  above,  the  forests  and  the 
torrents  below  .  .  .  the  neck  of  the  war-horse,  the  scales  of 
Leviathan,  are  marvels  in  his  eyes — the  speaking  fragments 
of  an  almighty  life  behind.  From  us,  the  wonder  of  these 
things  is  gone.' l  But  the  more  we  live  ourselves  into  the 
Biblical  literature,  especially  into  the  inspired  and  inspiring 
poem  of  '  Job,'  the  more  the  wonder  comes  back  to  us.  *  My 
Father  made  them  all.' 

The  infinite  wisdom  of  God — this  is  one  of  the  sacred 
poet's  two  solutions  (or  substitutes  for  solutions)  of  the  pro- 
blem before  him,  How  are  the  sufferings  of  Job  to  be  recon- 
ciled with  the  Divine  justice  ?  The  other  is  embodied  in  the 
Epilogue,  which  seems  to  have  been  appended  by  an  after- 
thought, either  by  the  poet  himself  or  by  one  of  the  Soferim 
or  Scripturists.  It  is  this,  that  Job,  after  passing  victoriously 
through  his  trial,  was  restored  to  twice  his  former  prosperity. 
The  two  solutions  are  seemingly  inconsistent :  but  are  not  so 
in  reality.  The  one  applies  to  the  case  of  Job  both  as  an 
individual  and  as  a  type  ;  the  other  only  as  a  type.  The 
sufferings  of  any  innocent  individual  could  not,  at  that  early 
stage  of  revelation,  be  accounted  for  ;  God  is  All-wise,  was 
the  only  thought  which  could  quiet  the  troubled  mind.  The 
same  truth  had,  no  doubt,  its  bearing  on  the  sufferings  of  the 
innocent  as  a  class  ;  but  there  was  also  another  still  more 
comforting  thought  in  reserve,  viz.  that  they  would  yet  receive 
compensation  ;  they  would  '  inherit  the  earth  ; '  there  would 
be,  in  Christian  language,  a  millennium.  Now  let  us  turn  to 
the  Book  of  the  Servant.  The  people  whom  the  prophet 
addresses  (whether  as  a  contemporary  or  across  the  centuries, 
we  need  not  here  enquire)  are  preoccupied  by  the  thought, 
Why  is  redemption  so  slow  in  coming  ?  And  the  answer  is, 
Because  of  your  sins,  especially  your  unbelief.  Only  a 
righteous  people  can  be  delivered  ;  a  people  which  trusts  its 
1  James  Martineau,  Hours  of  Thought,  first  series,  p.  31, 


250 


ESSAYS. 


God  implicitly,  and  devotes  itself  to  carrying  out  His  high 
purposes.  But  how  faint  and  dim  the  prospect  of  the  people's 
ever  becoming  righteous !  Hence  (not  to  repeat  my  former 
explanations  (the  inner  necessity  for  a  special  Divine  interpo- 
sition. A  divine-human  representative  must  appear,  and  at 
once  atone  for  the  breach  of  the  covenant,  and  '  make  the  many 
righteous.'  And  so  the  Servant,  like  another  Job,  appears  on 
the  stage,  and  suffers  more  than  even  Job  suffered,  and  through 
his  suffering  wins  the  reward  of  eternal  life  for  all  who  become 
his  spiritual  children.  The  sufferings  rof  the  Servant  are  those 
of  an  individual,  but  they  are  also  those  of  the  representative 
of  a  class  ;  his  reward,  too,  is  not  merely  that  of  an  indivi- 
dual, but  purchased  for  a  great  company.  This  is,  in  brief, 
the  parallelism  between  the  Book  of  Job  and  of  the  Servant 
of  Jehovah. 

2. 

Let  me  now  briefly  indicate  some  of  the  points  of  detail 
in  which  this  affinity  can  be  traced. 

1.  Both  Job  and  the  Person  in  whom  the  predictions  of 
II.  Isaiah  culminate  are  Jehovah's  righteous  servants.     '  Hast 
thou  considered  my  servant  Job,  that  there  is  none  like  him 
in  the  earth,  a  blameless  and  an  upright  man,  one  that  feareth 
God  and  escheweth  evil  ? '  (Job  i.  8).     '  The   righteous  one, 
my  servant'  (Isa.  Hii.  9).     Job  has,  indeed,  a  fault,  but  it  only 
appears  in  the  course  of  his  trial — he  misinterprets  the  All- 
wise  Creator. 

2.  Both  in  the  Prologue  and  in  the  body  of  the  poem  Job 
is  represented  as  a  leper  (ii.  7,  vii.  5,  15,  &c.).     The  sufferings 
of  the  Servant  in  II.  Isaiah  are  also  described  in  language 
suggestive  of  this  fell  disease  (see  on  liii.  3, 4).    The  leprosy  of 
the  Servant  is  doubtless  typical ;  but  so  also  is  that  of  Job,  if 
at  least  we  have  been  right  in  regarding  Job  as  at  once  an 
individual  and  a  type.     It  is,  moreover,  worth  noticing  that, 
in  the  pictures  drawn  by  Job's  friends  of  the  prosperity  to 
which  he  would  be  restored  upon  his  repentance,  and  in  the 
narrative  of  the  Epilogue,  no  allusion  is  made  to  his  recovery 
from  leprosy.  (Seev.  i/-26,viii.  5-7, 20-22,  xi.  13-20,  xxii.  21- 
30,  xlii.  7-17.)     May  we  not  infer  that  the  leprosy  of  Job  was 
in  its  highest  meaning  only  one  form  of  expression  among 
others  for  the  manifold  misery  of '  the  woman-born  '  ? 

3.  The  horror  with  which  Job's  appearance  fills  his  friends 
reminds  one  strongly  of  the  similar  effect  of  the  disfigured 
form  of  the  Servant  (see  parallel  passages  in  preceding  essay). 

4.  The  mockery   and  desertion  by  his  friends  of  which 


ESSAYS.  251 

Job  complains  find  a  close  parallel  in  the  experience  of  the 
Servant  (see  parallel  passages). 

5.  Job   is   restored   to   more  than  his  former  prosperity  ; 
'  Jehovah  gave  Job  twice  as  much  as  he  had  before'  (xlii.  10). 
The  Servant  passes  through  trial  to  a  glorious  reward  (liii.  12), 
and  the  faithful  remnant  of  Israel,  which  is  mystically  united 
to  Him,  receives  '  double  instead  of  its  shame '  (Ixi.  7). 

6.  So  near  does  Job  stand  to  his  God  that  he  can  inter- 
cede effectually  for  his  guilty  friends  (xlii.  8,  10).     Of  the 
Servant  the  same  is  told  us  (liii.  12).     We  must  not  dilute 
the  parallelism,  but  neither  must  we  exaggerate  it.     For  the 
Servant  '  makes  interceession  for  the  rebellious,5  i.e.  for  the 
breakers  of  the  covenant,  who  had  committed  the  '  sin  unto 
death,'  for  which  none  but  a  Divine  intercessor  is  allowed  to 
pray  (i  John  v.  16). 

7.  Last   of  all    (for  I  will  leave  some  parallels  for    the 
student  to  glean),  let  me  mention  the  obvious  correspondence 
between  the  happy  immortality  anticipated  by  Job  (xix.  25- 
27)  and  the  triumphant  life  after  death   of  the   Servant  of 
Jehovah  (Isa.  liii.  10-12). 

But  the  strong  points  of  resemblance  between  the  Books 
of  Job  and  of  II.  Isaiah,  and  especially  between  the  portraits 
of  the  patriarch  and  of  the  Servant,  must  not  be  allowed  to 
conceal  from  view  the  equally  strong  elements  of  contrast. 
That  luxuriant  growth  of  imaginative  ornament  which  twines 
around  the  Book  of  the  Patriarch  has  but  a  slender  counter- 
part in  the  Book  of  the  Servant.  The  author  of  the  latter 
never  forgets  that  he  is  a  prophet,  and  though  he  does  not 
literally  address  the  people  in  the  market-place,  his  style  is 
chiefly  modelled  on  that  of  the  spoken  prophecies.  He  does 
not,  indeed,  refuse  a  large  literary  and,  as  one  may  say,  poetical 
element ; l  writing  in  private,  without  any  view  to  oral  delivery, 
he  could  not  wholly  exclude  the  graces  of  literature ;  but 
there  are  times  when,  as  in  chap.  Iviii.  i~7,2  the  reproduction 
of  the  true  prophetic  style  is  so  complete  that  we  could  be- 
lieve ourselves  standing  in  the  crowd  gathered  round  a  pro- 
phetic orator. — Another  consequence  of  his  prophetic  character 
which  equally  distinguishes  him  from  the  poet  of  *  Job  '  is 
his  studious  self-concealment.  True,  he  does  apparently  refer 
to  himself  on  four  occasions  (xl.  6,  xliv.  26,  xlviii.  16,  Ivii.  21), 
whereas  the  Book  of  Job  contains  no  direct  allusion  to  the 
author  ;  but  the  four  references  to  himself  are  in  no  sense 
autobiographical,  while  the  Book  of  Job  is  so  eloquent  in  its 

1  It  is  noteworthy  that  the  affinity  of  'Job '  with  the  Book  of  Proverbs  has  nothing 
really  corresponding  to  it  in  II.  Isaiah. 
*  See  also  note  on  xlviii.  6. 


252  ESSAYS. 

seeming  silence  that  we  can  venture  to  read  c  between   the 
lines  '  the  life  of  the  author  himself.     Whether  the  prophetic 
writer  of  II.  Isaiah  had  passed  through  such  great  deeps  of 
spiritual  experience  as  the  author  of  '  Job/  whether  he  took 
as  wide  an  interest  in  nature  and  in  man,  whether  he  was  a 
traveller,  or  had  never  moved  from  Jerusalem,  we  may  feel 
inclined  to  question,  but  cannot  venture  to  pronounce  dogma- 
tically.    It  is  of  course  possible  that  being  a  prophet  and  a 
confessor,  in  picturing  Him  who  was  both  and  more  than  both, 
he  may  to  some  extent  have  pictured  himself ;  but  there  could, 
from   the  nature  of  the  case,  be  no  design  in  this  partial  co- 
incidence.     The  vocations  of  the  two  writers  were  different, 
though  not  unrelated.     The  author  of l  Job'  wrote  as  a  theistic 
moral  teacher,  excluding,  for  more  than  merely  artistic  reasons, 
'  considerations  drawn  from  revealed  religion.     '  He  has  not, 
indeed,    solved,    nor   even    tried    theoretically   to   solve,  the 
problem  of  human  suffering,  but  at  least  concentrated  into 
a  focus  the  data  for  its  discussion,  so   far  as  they  could  be 
derived  from  the  experience  of  his  day.     The  author  of  II. 
Isaiah  wrote  as  an  interpreter  of  the  signs  of  the  times  to  the 
Jewish  exiles,  as  an  agent  in  the  great  work  of  preparation 
for  redemption,  and  as  the  final  revealer  of  that  wonderful 
personage  who  should  by  his  life  and  death  explain  all  the 
problems  and   fulfil  all  the  aspirations    both    of  Israel    and 
of  humanity.     But  the  one  beyond  question  helped  the  other. 
I  cannot  say  with  some  recent  writers  1  that  the  poet  of  '  Job ' 
was  '  inspired  '  by  the  prophet  of  II.  Isaiah,  for  it  can,  I  think, 
be  made  reasonably  certain  that  '  Job '  is  the  earlier  of  the 
two  works,  and  that  if  any  work  has  suggested  the  theme  and 
the  mode  of  treatment  of  '  Job/  it  is,  not  II.  Isaiah,  but  the 
glorious  little  treatise  (chaps,  i.-ix.)  which  opens  the  Book  of 
Proverbs.2     Nor  can  I  even  adopt  the  converse  of  this  pro- 
position, and   maintain   that  the   Book  of  the   Servant  was 
suggested  by  that  of  the  Patriarch,  for  the  influence  of  the 
latter  appears  to  me  rather  indirect  than  immediate,  and  the 
author  of  the   former   to   have   immensely  outrun    his  pre- 
decessor : — how  could  it  be  otherwise  when  he  was  a  prophet  ? 
But  I  do  most  fully  admit  the  importance  of  the  general  and, 
if  I  may  say  so,  atmospheric  influence  of  the  Book  of  Job, 
which  must  have  contributed  to  a  *  fit  audience,  though  few/ 
most  precious  elements  of  thought  preparing  them  for  higher 
truths.     In  a  word,   I   think  with    Dr.  Mozley  that  from  a 

1  Seinecke,  Der  Evangelist  des  Alien  Testaments  (Leipz.  1870),  and  Hoekstra,  in  an 
essay  entitled  'Job,  the  Servant  of  Jehovah,'  which  opens  the   7  heologisch    Tijdschrift 
for  1871. 

2  See  the  paper  jn  Eraser  already  referred  to,  pp.  129-130. 


ESSAYS.  253 

Christian  point  of  view  this  great  work  was  the  providentially 
appointed  pioneer  of  the  supreme  revelation  of  the  suffering 
Saviour.     '  If  the  Jew  was  to  accept  a  Messiah  who  was  to 
lead  a  life  of  sorrow  and  abasement,  and  to  be  crucified  be- 
tween thieves,  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  be  somewhere 
or  other  distinctly  taught  that  virtue  was  not  always  rewarded 
here,  and  that  therefore  no  argument  could  be  drawn  from 
affliction  and   ignominy  against  the  person  who  suffered  it. 
The  Book  of  Job  does  this.  It  devotes  itself  to  the  enunciation 
of  this  injustice  and  irregularity  as  a  law  or  principle  of  the 
present  order  of  things.     However  the  mass  might  cling  to 
the  idea  of  a  visibly  successful  Messiah,  such  a  book  would 
insensibly  direct  the   minds  of  the  better  sort  into  another 
channel,  and  prepare  them  for  the  truth  of  the  case.     It  spoke 
things  fywvavra  crvveTolcnv,  in  describing  the  afflictions  of  one, 
whom  when  the  ear  heard,  it  "  blessed  him,  and  when  the  eye 
saw,  it  gave  witness  to  him  ;    who  delivered   the  poor  that 
cried,  the  fatherless  and  him  that  had  none  to  help  him."  l 
And  thus  [to  the  few  who  had  "  ears  to  hear  "]  it  stood  in  a 
particular  relation  to  the  prophetic  books  of  Scripture — a  kind 
of  interpretative  one  ;  supplying  a  caution  where  they  raised 
hopes,  suggesting  suspicions  of  apparent  meaning  and  con- 
jectures as  to  a  deeper  one,  and   drawing  men  from   a  too 
material  to  a  refined  faith.     By  the  side  of  a  long  line  of 
prophecy,  as  a  whole  outwardly  gorgeous  and  flattering,  and 
promising  in  the  Messiah  a  successful  potentate,  and  opener 
of  a  glorious  temporal  future  for  the  Jewish  nation,  there  rose 
one  sad  but  faithful  memento,  and  all  that  appearance  of  ap- 
proaching splendour  was  seen  in  qualifying  connection  with 
other  truths.' 2 


X.     ISAIAH   AND   HIS   COMMENTATORS. 
I. 

IT  is  an  unfortunate  custom  which,  though  of  modern  origin, 
promises  to  be  difficult  to  eradicate— that  of  interpolating 
exegetical  observations  with  a  long  array  of  names  of 
authorities.  In  spite  of  the  eminent  precedents  which  may 
be  claimed  on  behalf  of  the  practice,  its  extension  is,  I  think, 
very  much  to  be  deprecated.  If,  indeed,  '  always,  everywhere, 
and  by  all '  complete  unanimity  were  enjoyed  as  to  the  objects 

1  Job  xxix.  ii,  12. 

2  Mozley,  Essays  Historical  and  Theological,  ii.  227-8. 


254  .          ESSAYS. 

and  method  of  exegesis,  we  might  safely  allow  the  commen- 
tator the  same  liberty  which  we  grant  the  poet ;  it  is  pleasant 
to  read  a  Miltonic  roll  of  famous  names.     But  in  the  unideal 
conditions  of  human  thought  it  is  not  open  to  us  to  make 
light  of  the  distinctions  of  ages  and  schools.     To  mix  up 
St.  Augustine  with  an  Ibn  Ezra,  an  Estius  with  a  Calvin, 
Hengstenberg   with   a    Hitzig,    is    equally   offensive   to   the 
historical    sense    and    injurious   to   the    exegetical    studenl 
Perhaps  the  practical  point  of  view  is  that  from  which  on( 
may   have    most   hope    of  disestablishing   the  custom  ;    th( 
practical  danger  is  too  manifest  to  be   ignored.      Commen- 
taries are  not  written  primarily  for  the  finished  scholar,  and 
nine  students  out  of  ten  are  without  a  living  conception  of 
what   these   bare  lists   of  names   symbolise.      Not  only  are 
their  memories  clogged  with  a  useless  skeleton  of  knowledge, 
but  their  judgments  are  biassed   by  a  misplaced  regard   to 
often  very  questionable  authorities.     Authority  has  no  doubt 
a  value,  but  only  to  those  who  possess  a  clear  insight  into  the 
grounds  of  its  existence.     There  are  commentators  whom  we 
may  gladly  hear  on  a  theological  inference,1  but  whose  opinion 
is  of  little  or  no  importance  on  a  point  of  grammar.     It  is 
history  which  alone  enables  us  to  discern   between  various 
charismata — the  history,  that  is,  of  exegesis,  which  is  itself 
the  history  of  philology,  philosophy,  and  theology  in  mini- 
ature. 

It  is  impossible  here  even  to  sketch  the  outlines  of  these 
three  great  subjects  ;  but  some  of  my  readers  may  thank  me 
for  that  elementary  information  which  will  vivify  the  few 
names  of  commentators  which  I  have  thought  it  necessary 
to  mention.  Besides,  it  is  of  consequence  to  the  student  not 
to  tie  himself  to  any  single  commentator  or  school  of  com- 
mentators. The  Scriptures  shine  with  a  prismatic  radiance, 
and  the  gifts  and  perceptions  of  their  expositors  are  equally 
manifold.  The  richest  stores  of  the  intellect  have  been 
lavished  on  the  illustration  of  the  prophecies,  and  it  were 
self-impoverishment  to  neglect  to  turn  them  to  account.  A 
really  good  commentary  on  a  many-sided  author  is  never 
quite  superseded.  Two  or  three  representative  works  should 
always  be  at  hand,  not  as  crutches  for  the  indolent,  but  as 
friendly  guides  to  those  who  have  already  a  preliminary 
knowledge  of  the  text.  I  speak  here  only  of  commentators  ; 
a  special  handbook  is  required  for  the  versions,  and  in  its 
absence  the  Introductions  of  Bleek  and  Keil  are  familiar  to 

1  See,  e.g.,    the   quotation    from    St.  Athanasius   in   the  supplementary  note  on 
xlv.  14. 


ESSAYS.  255 

all.  And  I  can  say  but  little  of  the  earlier  exegetical  writers,1 
who  would  involve  me  in  too  many  digressions,  and,  indeed, 
like  the  versions,  require  a  very  special  treatment.  The 
object  of  my  work  has  been  to  place  the  reader  in  the  centre 
of  the  great  modern  exegetical  movement,  and  it  is  on  the 
merits  and  demerits  of  those  who  have  taken  part  in  this 
movement  that  the  reader  is  entitled  to  expect  a  word  of 
guidance. 

But  how  can  I  omit  ST.  JEROME,  who  in  his  seclusion  at 
Bethlehem  laid  the  foundation  of  a  philological  exegesis,  and 
bridged  over  the  gulf  between  the  Synagogue  and  the  Church  ? 
The  only  ancient  Latin  commentary  on  Isaiah  comes  from 
his  facile  pen  (A.D.  410).  It  is  divided  into  eighteen  books, 
and,  like  this  Father's  exegesis  in  general,  may  be  described 
with  Dr.  Merx  as  'eine  fleissige,  elegante,  aber  principlose 
Compilation.'  Not  the  least  valuable  element  in  its  multi- 
farious contents  is  that  derived  from  St.  Jerome's  Jewish 
rabbis  (see  his  notes  on  i.  10,  vi.  I,  vii.  8,  xiii.  10,  xiv.  19, 
xx.  6) ;  there  are  also  golden  grains  in  his  geographical 
and  archaeological  notices  (see  e.g.  on  ayi  xix.  6,  and  on 
fyOos  xix  10). 2  Among  Christian  teachers.  St.  Jerome 
probably  owes  much  to  Origen,  like  whom  he  expatiates 
freely  in  the  allegoric  mysticism  of  '  tropology.'  His  merit, 
however,  and  it  is  not  a  slight  one,  is  this — he  distinctly  lays 
down  that  '  tropology '  must  never  violate  text  and  context, 
his  tanthm  legibus  circumscripta,  lit  pietatem  sequatur  et 
intelligently  serinonisque  textum?  and  that  the  fundamental 
sense  of  the  Scriptures  is  the  literal  (fundamenta  jaciens 
Scripiurarum).4  In  the  preface  to  the  fifth  book  (on  Isa. 
xiii.-xxiii.),  written  in  a  simpler  style  than  usual  at  the 
request  of  the  bishop  Amabilis,  he  even  hazards  a  gentle 
censure  of  his  great  predecessor  Origen,  who  liberis  allegories 
spatiis  evagatur,  et  interpretatis  nominibus  singulorum  in- 
genium  suum  facit  ecclesice  sacramental 

The  next  great  link  between  Jewish  and  Christian  scholar- 
ship was  NICOLAS  DE  LYRA  (died  1340),  a  Franciscan 
monk  at  Paris,  the  author  of  Postillce  perpetuce,  in  85  books 

1  My  plan  prevents  me  from  more  than  mentioning  R.  SAADYAH  (892-942),  born 
in  the  Fayyum  in  Upper  Egypt,  who  was  one  of  the  early  lights  of  Jewish-Arabic 
philology,  and  whom  I  have  referred  to  occasionally  as  a  translator.  His  Arabic  ver- 
sion of  Isaiah  was  edited  in  a  very  faulty  manner  by  Paulus  (Jenae,  1790-1),  and  will 
be  re-edited,  it  is  hoped,  by  Prof,  de  Lagarde.  Salomon  Munk  made  important  con- 
tributions to  a  more  accurate  text  in  vol.  ix.  of  Cahen's  great  Bible  (Paris,  1838).  It 
would  be  interesting  to  examine  his  commentary,  which  has  been  discovered  (in  Arabic) 
in  a  new  collection  of  MSS.  in  the  St.  Petersburg  library,  though,  from  his  date  and 
theological  position,  we  cannot  expect  it  to  be  seriously  philological. 


Gesenius,  Der  Prophet  Jesaia,  p.  115. 
3  Comment,  in  Abac.  i.  n.  "•*  Praef.  inlibr.  quint.  Is. 


Ibid. 


256  ESSAYS. 


(Benedictine  edition,  Antwerp,  1634).  The  well-known 
verse,  f  Si  Lyra  non  lyrasset,  Lutherus  non  saltasset,' 1  is 
in  reality  a  tribute  to  Jewish  scholarship,  for  Lyra  was  so 
largely  dependent  on  Jewish  exegesis  as  to  receive  the  not 
unmerited  nickname  '  simia  Salomonis '  (Rashi's  name  being 
properly  R.  Solomon  Yi^khaki).  Let  us  pay  the  debt  of 
gratitude  to  the  name  of  Lyra,  and  be  thankful  that  we  are 
not  reduced,  like  Luther,  to  submit  to  his  infiltration  of 
Jewish  exegesis.  Lyra's  great  teacher,  RASHI  (died  1107), 
was  the  glory  of  the  rabbinical  school  of  northern  France. 
He  has  left  commentaries  on  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Old 
Testament,  printed  in  the  rabbinical  Bibles,  and  partly 
translated  into  Latin  by  Breithaupt  (3  vols.,  Gotha,  1710). 
His  merits  are  thus  summed  up  by  Gratz  the  historian  :— 
'  His  accurate  tact  and  his  sense  of  truth  guided  him  to  the 
right  meaning  and  the  appropriate  connection.  Only  he  too 
often  allowed  himself  to  be  diverted  by  the  Agadic  exegesis, 
assuming  that  the  exposition  in  the  Talmud  and  in  the 
Agadic  literature  was  meant  to  be  taken  seriously.  Yet  he 
was  conscious,  though  somewhat  vaguely,  that  the  simple 
sense  (B#$)  was  the  contradictory  of  the  Agadic  explanation 
(KJ-IT}).  In  his  old  age  this  consciousness  became  more  dis- 
tinct, and  he  expressed  the  intention  to  his  learned  grandson 
and  disciple  (Rashbam)  of  recasting  his  commentaries  on  the 
Bible  in  the  sense  of  a  sober,  literal  exegesis.' 2  A  greater 
genius  than  Rashi  was  the  illustrious  Abraham  IBN  EZRA 
of  Toledo  (died  1167),  poet,  philosopher,  theologian,  and 
exegete.  His  commentary  on  Isaiah  (one  of  his  earlier  works) 
has  received  the  honour  of  a  critical  edition  from  Dr.  Fried- 
lander,  who  has  appended  a  valuable  glossary  for  the  benefit 
of  those  who  are  not  conversant  with  the  technical  terms  of 
the  rabbis,  and  who  has  also  published  a  translation.3  As 
Mr.  C.  Taylor,  editor  of  The  Sayings  of  the  Jewish  Fathers 
remarks :  '  The  large  class  to  whom  the  term  Rabbinic 
suggests  a  futile  display  of  misapplied  subtlety  will  see  occa- 
sion to  revise  their  judgment  after  some  study  of  the  work 
now  presented  to  them  in  a  comparatively  popular  form.'4 
The  obscurity  of  the  author's  style  is  the  chief  drawback  to 
the  perusal  of  his  works  in  the  original. 

1  Or,  'totus  mundus  delirasset.'    There  are  also  other  forms  of  the  couplet.    With 
regard  to  Rashi's  influence  on  Lyra  and  on  Luther,  see  Dr.  Siegfried's  papers  in  the 
Archivfiir  •wissenschaftliche  Erforschung  des  Alien  Testamentes,  i.  428,  &c.,  ii.  39,  &c. 

2  Gratz,  Geschichte  der  Juden,  vi.  73.    Rabbi  Eleazar,  of  Beaugenci,  whose  Hebrew 
commentary  on  Isaiah  has  been  edited'  by  Mr.  Nutt  (1879),  was  a  pupil  of  Rashbam, 
the  second  grandson  of  Rashi. 

5  Published  for  the  Society  of  Hebrew  Literature  by  Triibner  &  Co.,  1873  (trans- 
lation), 1877  (text). 

4   The  Academy,  Dec.  I,  1873,  p.  451. 


ESSAYS.  257 

DAVID  KlMCHl  of  Narbonne  (died  1235)  was  distin- 
guished alike  as  a  grammarian,  a  lexicographer,  and  an 
exegete,  though  less  by  any  original  contributions  of  his  own 
than  by  his  sound  judgment,  and  his  discriminating  use  of 
the  labours  of  others. 

Of  these  three  celebrated  commentators,  Ibn  Ezra  is 
decidedly  the  most  original,  and  it  is  not  perfectly  clear  why 
Dr.  Merx  denies  him  the  capacity  of  historical  criticism,1 
when  he  has  certainly  anticipated  modern  historical  scepti- 
cism (in  the  good  sense)  on  such  a  salient  point  as  the  author- 
ship of  Isa.  xl.-lxvi.  Gesenius  more  plausibly  complains  of 
the  Jews  for  '  preferring  the  superstitious  and  often  crazy 
Rashi  to  the  clear-headed  and  thorough  Ibn  Ezra.' 2  None 
of  them  present  us,  however,  with  what  we  naturally  look  for 
at  supposed  Messianic  passages,  viz.  a  traditional  Jewish 
exegesis.  Ibn  Ezra  is  the  most  eccentric  ;  many  passages 
commonly  regarded  as  Messianic  are  explained  by  him  from 
the  history  of  David,  Hezekiah,  &c.,  though  he  protests 
against  being  supposed  to  be  a  disbeliever  in  the  Messiah's 
advent.3  Kimchi  is  the  most  polemical  ;  he  loses  no  op- 
portunity of  expressing  his  horror  at  the  idolatry  of  the 
Christians  (D'J'D).  But  a  common  '  Jewish  interpretation 
of  prophecy '  is  altogether  wanting ;  the  most  striking  proof 
of  this  is  the  thick  octavo  volume  in  which  the  comments  of 
Jewish  writers  on  the  fifty-third  chapter  of  Isaiah  have  been 
brought  together  by  Dr.  Neubauer  and  Mr.  Driver  at  the  in- 
stance of  Prof.  Pusey.  There  was  evidently- no  tradition,  no 
rule  of  interpretation,  to  bind  the  Jewish  rabbis.  All  that  we 
have  in  this  admirably  edited  work  is  the  anti-Christian  inter- 
pretations of  individual  Jews,  '  privatmeinung,  notbehilf,  ab- 
findung  mit  christlicher  theologie.' 4 

To  return  to  Christian  exegesis.  It  is  sad  but  true  that, 
by  the  unhistorical  antedating  of  '  unwritten  traditions,'  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  has  done  its  utmost  to  cut  the  nerve 
of  historical  exegesis.  It  has  even,  by  its  declaration  of  the 
'  authenticity '  of  the  Vulgate  (without,  however,  providing  a 
critical  text  of  that  version),  and  by  the  ominous  decree,  *  ad 
coercenda  petulantia  ingenia,'  made  it  practically  all  but 
impossible  to  be,  even  in  the  most  humble  sense,  an  exegete 
of  the  original  texts.5  Non  ragioniam  di  lor,  we  must  say, 

1  Die  Prophetic  des  Joel  (Halle,  1879),  p.  255. 

2  Der  Prophet  jfesaia,  p.  123. 

3  Friedlander,  Essays  on  the  Writings  of  Abraham  Ibn  Ezra,  p.  98. 

4  Lagarde,  Symmikta,  vol.  ii.  (Getting.  1880),  p.  13. 

'  .  .   .  .   Perspiciensque  hanc  veritatem  et  disciplinam  contineri  in  libris  scriptis 
et  sine  scripto  traditionibus,  quae  ab  ipsius  Christi  ore  ab  apostohs  acceptae,  aut  ab 
VOL.  II.  S 


25' 


ESSAYS. 


but  in  a  very  different  tone  from  the  stern  Florentine,  ma 
guarda  e  passa.  The  leaders  of  the  Reformation  took  a 
directly  opposite  attitude.  They  appealed,  in  the  interests, 
as  they  believed,  of  spiritual  religion,  from  an  unverifiable 
tradition  to  the  text  of  the  sacred  Scriptures,  and  the  study 
of  the  Bible  immediately  rose  to  a  position  of  primary 
importance.  Exegesis,  without  becoming  less  Christian  be- 
came distinctly  more  scientific.  In  the  Old  Testament,  for 
instance,  the  Protestant  divines  sought  to  harmonise  their 
exegesis,  not  merely  with  their  Christian  assumptions,  but 
with  the  rules  of  the  new  philology.  The  atomistic  mode  of 
treatment  gave  way  to  a  patient,  thoughtful  study  of  contexts. 
The  reaction  against  dogmatic  accretions  inspired  a  whole- 
some dread  of  the  licence  of  allegory.  A  growing  distrust 
set  in  of  the  manifold  senses  of  the  older  expositors  ;  in  fact, 
one  of  the  greatest  dangers  of  Protestant  exegesis  became  the 
identification  (so  unnatural,  if  it  be  understood  extensively, 
and  not  intensively)  of  the  literal  interpretation  with  the 
Christian.  I  speak  of  course,  merely  of  tendencies,  not  of 
accomplished  results. 

It  was  in  the  Reformed  Church,  which  attached  greater 
importance  than  the  Lutheran  to  the  authority  of  the  Scrip- 
tures on  all  points  of  doctrine,  that  the  problem  of  Biblical 
exegesis  was  apprehended  with  most  distinctness.  MUS- 
CULUS,  however  (whom  I  have  had  occasion  to  cite  once), 
has  been  praised  by  a  competent  judge  for  his  careful  dis- 
tinction between  the  scientific  and  the  practical  elements 
of  exegesis,  and  his  special  attention  to  the  former ; l  and 
Musculus  was  an  adherent  of  the  doctrines  of  Luther.  In 
the  Reformed  Church  the  name  of  the  ardent  Hebraist  PEL- 
LICANUS  deserves  honourable  mention,  as  we  have  been 
reminded  by  a  recent  discovery  in  our  national  library.2  His 

ipsius  apostolis,  Spiritu  Sancto  dictante,  quasi  per  manus  traditae,  ad  nos  usque 
pervenerunt. '  '  Praeterea,  ad  coercenda  petulantia  ingenia,  decernit,  ut  nemo,  suaa 
prudentias  innixus,  in  rebus  fidei,  et  morum  ad  aedifirationem  doctrinse  christianae 
pertinentium,  sacram  scripturam  ad  suos  sensus  contorquens,  contra  eum  sensilm, 
quem  tenuit  et  tenet  sancta  mater  ecclesia,  cujus  est  judicare  de  vero  sensu  et  interpre- 
tatione  scripturarum  sanctarum,  aut  etiam  contra  unanimem  consensum  patrum  ipsam 
scripturam  sacram  interpretari  audeat,  etiamsi  hujusmodi  interpretationes  nullo 
unquam  tempore  in  lucem  edendae  forent.'  Canones  ConciUi  Tridentini,  Sessio 
Quarta.  (I  fail  to  see  how  the  former  quotation  is  reconcileable  with  any  theory  of 
historical  development,  or  how  the  art  of  exegesis  is  ever  to  be  practised  either  by 
master  or  by  scholar  with  such  a  sword  of  Damodes  suspended  over  his  head. ) 

1  Musculus:     In    Esaiam    prophetam   commentarii  locupletissimi,    Basil.,    1570. 
Comp.  Diestel,   Geschichte  des  Alien    Testaments  in  der  christlichen  Kirche  (Jena, 
1869),  p.  268. 

2  Pellicanus  was  the  predecessor  of  Reuchlin  as  a  writer  on  Hebrew  Grammar. 
The  story  of  his  exertions  to  learn  the  sacred  tongue  can  be  read  in  his  autobiography, 
edited  by  Professor  Riggenbach  for  the  festival  of  the  fourth  centenary  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Tubingen,  in  1877.     His  grammar  (entitled  De.  modo  legendi  et  intelligendi 


ESSAYS.  259 

notes  upon  Isaiah,  which  are  concise,  and  mainly  devoted  to 
paraphrasing  the  grammatical  sense,  occur  in  the  third  volume 
of  his  Commentaria  Sacra  (Zurich,  1540).  But  the  only 
writer  of  this  age  who  still  retains,  and  is  likely  to  retain,  his 
importance  is  CALVIN  (1509-64).  'Unrivalled  in  his  own 
age/  says  Diestel,  '  his  works  offer  even  yet  a  rich  store  of 
Biblical  knowledge.' l  Mercerus  2  was  no  doubt  a  far  deeper 
Hebraist  (though  the  scholarship  of  Calvin  has  been  most 
unduly  disparaged  by  Richard  Simon),  but  if  we  consider 
Calvin's  deep  insight  into  the  aim  and  method  of  historico- 
philological  exegesis,  the  extent  of  his  exegetical  labours,  and 
the  high  average  level  which,  in  spite  of  the  enforced  rapidity 
of  his  work,  he  attained,  we  shall  probably  come  to  the  con- 
clusion that,  even  as  an  Old  Testament  interpreter  (and  he  is 
more  than  this),  there  is  no  greater  name  in  the  Reformation 
age  (nor  perhaps  in  any  subsequent  one)  than  that  of  Calvin. 
It  is  indeed  remarkable  that  one  so  eminent  as  a  dogmatic 
theologian  should  also  have  shown  himself  so  loyal  to  the 
principles  of  philology.  The  only  apparent  effect  of  his 
dogmatic  speculations  upon  his  Biblical  exegesis  is  to  give 
it  a  greater  depth.  The  most  celebrated  specimen  of  his 
exegesis  is  his  commentary  on  the  Psalms,  of  which  it  is 
hardly  possible  to  speak  too  favourably  ;  but  even  his  work 
on  Isaiah,3  though  neither  so  mature  nor  so  elaborate,  well 
deserves  to  be  consulted.  It  certainly  gives  one  a  high  idea 
of  the  exegetical  lectures — not  by  any  means  confined 
within  a  narrow  range — which  this  great  Reformer  was 
constantly  delivering  to  the  future  *  ministers  of  the  word  of 
God.' 

In  the  seventeenth  century  the  centre  of  Biblical  studies 
was  transferred  to  Holland.  The  national  characteristics  of 
coolness,  good  sense,  and  thoroughness,  appear  in  the  Dutch 
exegesis  :  let  it  suffice  to  mention  GROTIUS  and  DE  DlEU. 
The  former  (1583-1645)  was  primarily  a  statesman  and  a 
jurist.  His  peculiarity  as  an  exegete  consists  in  his 
thoroughly  secular  attitude  towards  the  Biblical  writings  ;  he 
writes  as  a  layman  for  laymen.  Of  the  depth  of  meaning  of 

Hcbrceum]  was  lost  sight  of,  till  Dr.  E.  Nestle  discovered  it  in  the  British  Museum 
copy  of  the  1504  Strasburg  edition  of  Reisch's  Margaritha  philosophica,  of  which 
Pellicanus'  Hebrew  Grammar  forms  part.  A  photolithographic  reproduction  of  this 
curious  work  was  brought  out  by  the  discoverer  in  honour  of  the  Tubingen  festival. 

1  Diestel,  op.  cit.  p.  267. 

2  Mercerus  (Le  Mercier)  was,  although  a  Huguenot,  regius  professor  of  Hebrew 
at    Paris.      He  died   1570.      Schloitmann   calls   him    '  the  greatest  Old  Testament 
exegete  of  the  sixteenth  century  '   (Das  Buck  Hiob,  p.    121).    It  is  to  be  regretted 
that  he  has  left  no  commentary  on  Isaiah. 

3  Printed  at  Geneva,  1551,  and  dedicated  to  King  Edward  VI. 

S.  2 


20O 


ESSAYS. 


the  Scriptures  he  has  no  real  comprehension ;  but  he  has  done 
yeoman's  service  for  the  letter.  He  wrote  *  annotationes ' 
in  the  strict  sense  of  the  word — i.e.  scattered,  unconnected 
notes  on  certain  difficult  passages — extending  over  the  whole 
of  the  Old  Testament,  including  the  Apocrypha.  De  Dieu 
( 1 590-1642)  excels  where  Grotius  is  deficient,  as  a  grammarian 
and  a  lexicographer  ;  he  not  only  sifted  the  vast  and  multi- 
farious Rabbinical  tradition,  but  actually  advanced  Hebrew 
philology  by  an  independent  comparison  of  the  cognate 
languages.1  He  had  also  a  keen  and  subtle  judgment,  and 
stimulates  even  where  he  does  not  convince.  Well  qualified 
as  he  was,  however,  he  seems  to  have  objected  on  principle 
to  add  to  the  number  of  continuously  written  commentaries  ; 
he  has  therefore  only  given  us  a  spicilegium.  Nor  did  any 
of  the  great  Orientalists  (not  even  our  own  Pococke),  who 
formed  a  kind  of  philological  '  succession  '  in  the  seventeenth 
and  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  choose  the 
prophet  Isaiah  as  the  subject  of  special  study.2  ALBERT 
SCHULTENS  (1686-1750),  who  has  left  an  ineffaceable  mark 
on  Hebrew  philology,  confined  himself,  like  De  Dieu,  to 
observations  on  difficult  passages,3  which,  though  highly 
praised  by  Gesenius,  require  to  be  read  with  caution,  on 
account  of  the  author's  illusion  as  to  the  illustrative  value  of 
the  Arabic  vocabulary.  It  was,  however,  a  remarkable  pro- 
duction for  a  youth  of  twenty-three,  and  reminds  us  forcibly 
of  the  early  achievement  of  one  of  his  greatest  successors. 

In  1722  the  academic  world  of  Franeker  was  gathered  in 
the  university  church  to  listen  to  an  oration  from  Albert 
Schultens  '  in  exequiis  principis  theologi  Campegii  Vitringa.' 
There  is  a  refreshing  enthusiasm  in  VlTRiNGA4  gardens, 
vehemens,  et  nobile  quid  ac  magnificum  spirans,'  are  the 
epithets  of  his  friend  Schultens)  which  makes  us  wonder 
whether  he  can  be  really  the  countryman  of  Hugo  Grotius. 
But  this  ardour  is  not  inconsistent  with  a  love  of  completeness 
and  an  aicpl^iut>t  which  have  always  characterised  the  best 
type  of  Dutch  philology.  One  is  tempted  to  add,  with  a 
prolixity  peculiar  to  himself ;  for  who  else  in  a  land  fruitful 
above  others  in  philologists  would  have  thought  of  devoting 

1  See  his  posthumous  work,  Animadversion es  in   Veteris   Testamenti  libros  omnes 
(Lugd.  Bat.,  1548). 

2  Bochart,  the  French  Protestant  (died  1667),  only  touched  on  antiquarian  and 
especially  zoological  allusions  ;  here,  however,  he  shows  vast  reading.     His  works  are — 
Geographia  sacra,  Caen,  1646  ;  Hierozoicon,  London,  1663. 

3  Schultens,  Alb. :  Animadversiones  philologica  et  criticce  ad  varia  loca   Vet.  Test. 
Amstelod.,  1709. 

4  Vitringa  :    Commentarius  in    Librum  Prophetiarum  Jesaice,  &c.      Tomi  duo- 
Leovardiae  (i.e.  Leuwarden),  1714-20,  and  1724. 


ESSAYS.  261 

two  folio  volumes  of  710  and  958  pages  respectively  to  a 
commentary  on  a  single  author  of  no  great  length  ?  Not 
that  Vitringa  is  properly  chargeable  with  verbosity,  but  that 
he  has  the  cheerful  faith  that  all  truth  is  divine  and  therefore 
reconcileable,  and  not  enough  intellectual  independence  to 
sift  the  pretensions  of  all  the  claimants  of  that  sacred  name. 
His  exegesis  is,  in  a  word,  involved  in  an  '  infinita  sensuum 
silva/  if  I  may  borrow  an  expression  from  St.  Jerome,  who 
would  certainly  not  have  recognised  his  own  type  of  tropology 
in  Vitringa's.  The  mitigation  is  that  the  various  senses  and 
fulfilments  of  the  prophecies  are  carefully  kept  asunder,  and 
that  no  pains  are  spared  to  explain  and  illustrate  the  primary 
grammatical  sense  and  historical  background.  Vitringa  was, 
for  his  day,  a  fine  Hebrew  and  especially  Rabbinical  scholar, 
and  his  commentary  is  a  mine  of  learning,  and  even  of  sound 
sense,  which  may  still  be  worked  with  advantage.  His 
preface  on  the  aims  and  methods  of  prophetic  exegesis  is  a 
brilliant  piece  of  modern  Latin  composition,  and  reveals  the 
author  as  equally  fervent  in  his  Christianity  and  profound  in 
his  erudition.  Only  one  remembers  the  very  different  ideal 
of  a  commentary  in  Calvin's  golden  preface  to  his  work  on 
the  Romans,  and  sighs  at  the  two  folio  volumes  ! 

Vitringa  is  a  specimen  of  the  late  summer  of  Continental 
orthodoxy  ;  it  is  natural  that  when  England  has  her  word 
to  say,  it  should  be  marked  with  the  secularity  of  the  English 
eighteenth  century.  ROBERT  LOWTH  (1710-1787),  Professor 
of  Poetry  at  Oxford,  by  his  lectures  on  the  sacred  poetry  of 
the  Hebrews  (first  edition,  1753)  began  that  important 
sestheticising  movement  in  Biblical  criticism  which,  with  all 
its  faults  of  shallowness  and  sometimes  perhaps  irreverence, 
fulfilled  (one  may  venture  to  surmise)  a  providential  purpose 
in  reviving  the  popular  interest  in  the  letter  of  the  Scriptures. 
What  Lowth  began  was  continued  with  far  greater  ability 
and  insight  by  Herder ;  but  an  Englishman  may  be  proud 
that  Lowth  began  it  The  principles  which  he  thus  introduced 
to  the  world  were  further  exemplified  in  his  translation  of 
Isaiah,1  in  which  the  English  text  was  for  the  first  time 
arranged  according  to  those  rules  of  parallelism,  not,  indeed, 
discovered,  but  first  brought  vividly  home,  by  the  Oxford 
professor.  A  long  preliminary  dissertation  restates  the 
principles  and  characteristics  of  Hebrew  poetry,  and  does 
justice  to  the  acute  Rabbi  Azariah  de'  Rossi  (1513-1576),  who 
'  treated  of  the  antient  Hebrew  versification  upon  principles 

1  Isaiah.      A     New    Trrnslation,    with  a  Preliminary  Dissertation   and  Notes, 
Critical,  Philological,  and  Explanatory.     Lond.  1778. 


262 


ESSAYS. 


similar  to  those  above  proposed,  and  partly  coincident  wit! 
them.'  The  chief  faults  of  the  translation  are,  not  certainly 
its  fidelity,  nor  yet  (if  I  may  venture  to  differ  from  Dean 
Milman  ')  its  inharmoniousnes,  but  the  inappropriate  selection 
of  a  Latinised  vocabulary,  and  further,  from  a  critical  point 
of  view,  the  recklessness  with  which  the  translator  treats  the 
Massoretic  text.  There  was,  indeed,  an  epidemic  of  arbitrary 
emendation  in  the  air,  and  Lowth  did  but  follow  the  example 
of  Cappellus  and  Houbigant  (cpmp.  p.  223).  I  do  not  deny, 
however,  that  he  has  often  considerable  reason  for  his  changes  ; 
it  is  rather  his  inconsiderate  haste,  which  gives  him  so  much 
the  appearance  of  holding  a  brief  against  the  traditional  text. 
Where  he  is  most  probably  right,  the  discovery  is  often  not 
due  to  himself,  but  to  one  or  another  learned  friend,  especially 
the  recently  deceased  Archbishop  Seeker.  His  emendations 
were  examined  more  or  less  successfully  by  David  Kocher  in 
a  small  volume  of  Vindicice  (Berne,  1786).  The  Bishop's 
notes  partly  justify  his  emendations,  partly  illustrate  the 
text  from  classical  poets  and  modern  travellers.  He  does 
not  go  deeply  into  the  fulfilment  of  the  prophecies,  but  in 
the  main  adopts  the  ordinary  Christian  view  without  dis- 
cussion. His  exposition  of  the  prophecy  of  Immanuel  is, 
however,  sufficiently  peculiar  to  deserve  quotation.  After 
stating  that  '  the  obvious  and  literal  meaning '  is  not  Messianic 
(he  explains  c  the  virgin '  to  mean  '  one  who  is  now  a  virgin '), 
he  continues : — 

4  But  the  prophecy  is  introduced  in  so  solemn  a  manner ; 
the  sign  is  so  marked,  as  a  sign  selected  and  given  by  God 
himself,  after  Ahaz  had  rejected  the  offer  of  any  sign  of  his 
own  choosing  out  of  the  whole  compass  of  nature  ;  the  terms 
of  the  prophecy  are  so  peculiar,  and  the  name  of  the  child  so 
expressive,  containing  in  them  much  more  than  the  circum- 
stances of  the  birth  of  a  common  child  required,  or  even 
admitted  ;  that  we  may  easily  suppose,  that,  in  minds  pre- 
pared by  the  general  expectation  of  a  great  Deliverer  to 
spring  from  the  house  of  David,  they  raised  hopes  far  beyond 
what  the  present  occasion  suggested  ;  especially  when  it  was 
found,  that  in  the  subsequent  prophecy,  delivered  immediately 

1  Dean  Milman  complains  of  the  Bishop  for  having  '  forgotten  that  he  was  trans- 
lating a  poet,'  and  having  'chilled  Isaiah  down  to  the  flattest — correct  perhaps— but 
unrelieved,  inharmonious  prose'  (Annals  of  St.  Paul's,  p.  468).  The  Dean  had 
evidently  not  read  the  '  preliminary  dissertation,'  in  which  the  translator  simply  claims 
the  merit  of  fidelity.  To  be  at  once  literal  and  elegant  or  harmonious  is  surely  im- 
possible. Gesenius,  with  whom  the  Dean  compares  Bishop  Lowth  unfavourably,  is 
certainly  not  'harmonious,'  but  he  has  this  great  advantage  over  the  Bishop,  that  his 
vocabulary  is  simple  and  natural.  The  Latinised  style  of  high  society  is  the  most 
unfitted  of  all  for  a  Hebrew  prophet. 


ESSAYS.  263 

afterwards,  this  child,  called  Immanuel,  is  treated  as  the  Lord 
and  Prince  of  the  land  of  Judah.  Who  could  this  be,  other 
than  the  Heir  of  the  throne  of  David  ;  under  which  character 
a  great  and  even  a  Divine  Person  had  been  promised.' 

Both  the  works  of  Bishop  Lowth  were  translated  into  Ger- 
man, and,  with  the  notes  of  Michaelis  and  Koppe,  were,  for 
good  or  for  evil,  among  the  revolutionary  influences  of  that 
unsettled  age  in  Germany.  The  words  of  Dean  Milman  are 
therefore  true  in  their  fullest  sense  of  the  great  critical  Bishop, 
that  his  inquiries  '  make  an  epoch  unperceived  perhaps  and 
unsuspected  by  their  author.'  * 

2. 

If  Calvin  is  the  predominant  figure  in  the  Old  Testament 
exegesis  of  early  Protestantism,  the  modern  period  may 
without  any  substantial  injustice  be  said  to  date  from 
GESENIUS  (1785-1842).  Himself  a  rationalist  of  the  old 
school,  and  a  zealous  promoter  of  the  rationalistic  movement 
in  his  university,  it  is  not  surprising  if  his  exegesis  fails  to 
satisfy  the  deeper  requirements  of  our  time.  He  honestly 
thought  that  to  allow  predictions  in  the  Old  Testament  was 
to  degrade  the  prophets  to  the  rank  of  soothsayers,  and  that 
a  '  Christian  interpretation '  was  only  attainable  by  doing 
violence  to  philology.  The  truth  is  that  he  was  more  of  a 
philologist  than  a  theologian  ;  a  susceptibility  for  religious 
ideas  was  still  dormant  in  his  nature.  In  two  respects,  how- 
ever, he  marks  an  advance  ;  he  absolutely  repudiates  the 
shallow  and  now  antiquated  aestheticising  of  the  disciples  of 
Herder,  and  the  extravagant  disintegrating  criticism  introduced 
by  Lowth's  editor,  Koppe,2  which,  *  whenever  the  prophet 
stopped  to  draw  breath,  and  the  discourse  surged  up  anew, 
fancied  it  discovered  the  patchwork  of  uncritical  collectors.' 
His  great  work  on  Isaiah  is  hardly  yet  superseded  ;  it  marks 
precisely  the  point  which  historical  and  archaeological  research 
had  attained  at  the  date  of  its  composition.  It  contains  also 
much  lexicographical  information,  and  if  it  entirely  neglects 
the  prophetic  teaching,  this  is  at  any  rate  better  than  mis- 
representing it.  The  dates  of  Gesenius'  chief  works  are : 

1  Annals  of  St.  Paul's,  2nd  ed.,  p.  467. 

2  E.g.  in  his  introduction  to  chap,  i.,  where  he  opposes  Koppe,  who  divided  the 
chapter  into  three  unconnected  pieces  on  the  ground  of  alleged  irreconcileable  differ- 
ences between  the  descriptions  of  the  internal  state  of  the  nation.     Lagarde,  it  may  be 
here  noticed,  in  his  note  on  chap.  i.  in  Semitica  \. ,  simply  follows  in  the  wake  of  Koppe, 
except  that  he  supposes  the  disintegrated  fragments  to  be  not  complete  in  themselves 
but  portions  of  longer  discourses  now  lost.     He  offers  no  discussion  of  the  historical 
backgrounds  proposed  for  the  chapter. 


264  ESSAYS. 

Hebrew  Grammar,  first  ed.   1813;  Isaiah,  1821;   Thesaurus 
vols.  i.-iii.  fasc.  i,  1835-42,  completion  by  Roediger,  1852-58. 

HlTZIG  (1807-1875)  resembles  Gesenius  in  his  rationalism 
(Paulus  and  Gesenius  were  his  earliest  academic  teachers), 
which  he  ever  expressed  with  the  most  fearless  sincerity. 
The  refined  monotheism  of  the  Old  Testament  was  discovered, 
according  to  him,  by  superior  intellectual  vigour  l  (durch  eine 
stdrkere  Denkkraff] ;  but  the  intellect  of  the  Israelites,  he 
thinks  with  Lassen  and  M.  Renan,  was  singularly  limited, 
and  Old  Testament  prophecy  is  an  illusion  produced  by  the 
objectifying  of  the  higher  self.2  In  exegesis,  however,  Hitzig 
displays  a  rare  grammatical  sense,  and  a  tact  for  eliciting  the 
connection,  though  his  explanations  are  sometimes  charge- 
able with  over-subtlety.  Of  reverence  there  is  of  course  no 
more  trace  than  in  Gesenius,  but  his  more  flexible  intellect 
enables  him  to  sympathise  more  keenly  with  transitions  of 
thought  and  feeling.  His  discussions  of  the  historical  back- 
ground of  the  prophecies  are  in  their,  way  equally  remarkable, 
and  his  acuteness  in  combination  extorts  admiration,  even 
where  it  fails  to  produce  conviction.  Criticism  to  him  is  no 
merely  destructive  power  (as  it  was  in  the  main  to  De  Wette). 
Both  in  the  criticism  of  the  text  and  in  that  of  history  he 
aimed  at  positive  results,  though  he  was  under  a  great  illusion 
as  to  the  invariable  trustworthiness  of  his  methods.  His 
faults  are,  however,  less  conspicuous  than  his  merits  in  his 
early  commentary  on  Isaiah  (1833),  dedicated  to  Heinrich 
Ewald,  his  still  youthful  teacher,  whose  grammatical  labours 
he  was  the  first  to  appreciate  and  to  utilise. 

EWALD'S  governing  idea  was  that  of  reconstruction.  It 
was  no  doubt  also  that  of  his  period  ;  we  find  it  in  Hitzig, 
but  not  so  strongly  developed  as  in  Ewald.  As  a  theologian, 
he  partook  (unlike  Hitzig)  in  that  yearning  for  a  deeper 
religion  which  accompanied  the  great  rising  of  the  German 
nation ;  but  he  never  succeeded  in  dissipating  a  certain 
luminous  haze  which  blurred  the  outlines  of  his  religious 
ideas.  As  a  philologist,  he  takes  the  highest  rank.  By  his 
Hebrew  grammar  he  earned  from  Hitzig  the  title  of 'second 
founder  of  a  science  of  the  Hebrew  language/  and  Professor 
Pusey  cordially  admits  the  '  philosophical  acuteness,'  whereby, 
as  he  says,  '  as  a  youth  of  nineteen  (?  24)  he  laid  the  founda- 
tion of  the  scientific  treatment  of  Hebrew  grammar.' 3  As  an 
interpreter  of  the  prophets  (it  would  take  too  long  even  to 

1   Geschichte  des  Volkes  Israel  (Leipz.  1869),  p.  82. 
*  Der  Prophet  Jesaja,  Allgemeine  Einleitung,  p.  24. 
5  The  Minor  Prophets  (Oxf.  1879),  p.  iii. 


ESSAYS.  265 

touch  upon  his  other  labours),  he  reminds  us  somewhat  of 
his  master  Eichhorn,  whose  poetic  enthusiasm  he  fully  shares, 
though  he  holds  it  in  check  by  a  strong  sense  of  the  pre- 
dominantly religious  character  of  the  prophetic  gifts.  His 
style  has  something  in  it  of  Orientalism,1  which  conveys  a 
deep  though  vague  impression  of  the  grandeur  and  beauty  of 
prophecy  ;  his  translation  of  the  prophets  has  a  rhythmic 
flow,  which,  though  at  the  cost  of  elegance,  gives  some  faint 
idea  of  the  movement  of  the  original.  His  distinctive  merits 
appear  to  be  threefold  : — i.  He  starts  with  a  conception  of 
prophecy  derived  from  the  prophets  themselves.  This  con- 
ception is  no  doubt  vague  and  indefinite,  for  he  totally  ignores 
the  New  Testament  ;  but  it  is  at  any  rate  free  from  the 
anti-dogmatic  theories  of  the  rationalists.  2.  He  has  the  eye 
of  a  historian,  and  treats  the  prophetic  literature  as  a  whole. 
No  critical  theory  (as  I  have  suggested  already)  can  be 
properly  estimated  until  we  see  how  it  dovetails  into  the 
author's  scheme  of  the  historical  development  of  the  Old 
Testament  literature.  3.  He  bestows  special  care  on  the 
connection  of  thought,  though  his  over-subtle  views  of 
Hebrew  syntax  may  have  sometimes  led  him  beyond  the 
borders  of  the  natural  and  the  probable.  I  might,  perhaps 
add  a  fourth  merit — his  conciseness.  He  spares  his  reader 
those  wearisome  discussions  of  rejected  opinions  which  render 
so  many  German  works  unreadable.  He  even  disdains  the 
help  of  archaeological  and  historical  illustrations,  and  confines 
himself  mainly  to  that  which  he  regards  as  essential,  viz.  the 
prophetic  ideas.  His  faults,  too  obvious  to  need  a  long  de- 
scription, are  an  overweening  self-confidence,  an  excessive 
predilection  for  minute  systematising,  and  a  lack  of  dialectic 
power  which  often  prevents  his  reader  from  discovering  the 
real  grounds  of  his  theory  (how  unlike,  in  this  latter  respect, 
one  of  his  most  influential  successors — the  author  of  the 
Religion  of  Israel].  The  following  are  the  dates  of  Ewald's 
chief  works  (a  complete  list  would  occupy  nearly  three 
pages) — Hebrew  Grammar,  first  ed.,  1827,  fifth  edition  re- 
cast, 1844,  Die  propJieten  des  alien  Bundes,  first  ed.,  2  vols., 
1840-41,  second  ed.,  3  vols.,  1867-68  ;  the  same  translated  in 
five  volumes,  1875-81. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  shallowness  of  Gesenius  and 

1  Karl  Hase,  himself  a  rationalist  of  a  more  cultured  school  than  Gesenius  and 
Hitzig,  has  given  one  of  his  medallion  portraits  of  Ewald.  '  Nach  Gesenius  hat 
Ewald  die  Geschichte  des  alttestamentlichen  Volkes  aufgerollt,  er  ein  riickschauender 
Prophet  mit  der  orientalischen  Zungengabe,  kiihn  und  zu  Opfern  bewahrt  fur  die  Frei- 
heit,  nur  durch  seine  sittliche  Emrlistung  gegen  jede  abweichende  Meinung  leieht 
verstort '  (Kirchengeschichfe,  p.  582). 


266 


ESSAYS. 


Hitzig,   and  the  vagueness  of  Evvald,  were  profoundly  ol 
noxious  to  those  who  resorted  to  the  Scriptures  for  supplies 
of  spiritual  life.     Even  had  the  new  exegesis  been  free  from 
theological  objection,  it  would  have  required  unusual  strength 
of  faith  to  admit  in  practice  (what  all  admit  in  words)  that 
our  knowledge  of  the  sense  of  revelation  is  progressive.     '  It 
is  not  every  interpreter  who  is  able,  like  Luther  and  Calvin, 
to  place  his  novel  views   in   a   light  which   shall   appeal  as 
strongly  to  the  religious  experience  of  the  Christian  as  to  the 
scholarly  instincts  of  the  learned.     The  rise  of  new  difficulties 
is  as  essential  to  the  progress  of  truth  as  the  removal  of  old 
puzzles ;   and    it   not   seldom   happens   that   the   defects   of 
current  opinions  as  to  the  sense  of  Scripture  are  most  palpable 
to  the  man  whose  spiritual  interest  in  Bible  truths  is  weak.  .  . 
Thus  the  natural  conservatism  of  those  who  study  the  Bible 
mainly  for  purposes  of  personal   edification  is  often  inten- 
sified by  suspicion  of  the  motives  of  innovating  interpreters  ; 
and  even  so  fruitful   an   idea  as  the  doctrine  of  a  gradual 
development  of  spiritual  truth  throughout  the  whole  course 
of  the  Bible  history  has  had  to  contend,  from  the  days  of 
Calvin  down  to  our  own  time,  with  an  obstinate  suspicion  that 
nothing  but  rationalism  can  make  a  man  unwilling  to  find 
the  maximum  of  developed  spiritual  truth  in  every  chapter 
of  Scripture.' l     Only  by  such  feelings  as  these  can  we  ac- 
count for  the  almost  unvarying  opposition  of  HENGSTENBERG 
(1802—69)  to  the  new  criticism  and  exegesis — an  opposition,  I 
must  add,  intensified  by  his   editorship  of  a  Church  news- 
paper,2 which  kept  him  in  a  continual  atmosphere  of  party  strife. 
Anxiety  for  his  personal  religion,  which  he  had  learned  in 
the  school  of  trial,  and  not  of  this  or  the  other  theologian, 
converted  the  youthful  Hengstenberg  into  an  ardent  cham- 
pion of  revelation,  and  a  certain    heaviness  of  the  intellect 
(which  no  English  reader  of  his  works  can  fail  to  observe)  made 
him  regard  any  attempt,  such  as  Bleek's,  at  a  via  media,  as 
sophistry  or  self-delusion.      Hengstenberg  had  no  historical 
gifts,  and  never  seems  to  have  really  assimilated  that  doctrine 
of  development  which,  though  rejected  by  Pietists  on  the  one 
hand  and  Tridentine  Romanists  on  the  other,  is  so  profoundly 
Christian.     He  was  therefore   indisposed    to   allow  the   hu- 
man element  in  inspiration,  denied  the  limited  nature  of  the 
Old    Testament    stage    of    revelation,   and    as    Dr.    Dorner 
has  pointed  out,3  made  prophecy  nothing  but  the  symbolic 

1  Mr.  Robertson  Smith,  British  and  Foreign   Evangelical   Review,  July  1876, 
P-  474- 

The  Evangelische  Kirchenzeiiung,  founded  1827. 
3  History  of  Protestant  Theology,  vol.  ii.  pp.  436-7. 


ESSAYS.  267 

covering. of  the  eternal  truths  of  Christianity.  These  seem 
to  Dr.  Dorner  grave  faults,  which  seriously  detract  from  the 
value  of  Hengstenberg's  exegesis.  And  yet  it  should  be 
borne  in  mind  that  the  rationalistic  exegesis  had  been  equally 
one-sided,  and  with  results  far  more  dangerous.  Even  from  a 
scientific  point  of  view,  it  was  desirable  that  the  old  cri- 
ticism and  exegesis  should  be  once  restated  in  a  modern 
dress,  lest  perchance  in  the  hot  haste  of  the  innovators  certain 
precious  elements  of  truth  should  be  lost.  I  do  not  think 
that  there  is  much  in  Hengstenberg  which  cannot  now  be 
found  in  a  more  acceptable  form  elsewhere ;  and  his  works 
are  but  ill  translated.  But  it  may  be  well  for  the  student 
at  least  to  dip  into  the  Christology  of  the  Old  Testament^ 
which  is  still  the  most  complete  expression  of  the  theory 
which  interprets  the  Old  Testament  solely  and  entirely  in  the 
light  of  the  New. 

Hengstenberg's  exegesis  of  Isaiah  was  confined  to  the 
Messianic  passages  :  but  a  devout  and  thoughtful  commen- 
tary on  the  whole  of  the  book  was  begun  in  the  same  spirit 
by  DRECHSLER,2  and,  on  his  death  in  1851,  completed  by 
August  Hahn,  with  an  important  appendix  by  Franz 
Delitzsch,  indicating  the  thread  of  thought  in  chaps,  xl.-lxvi., 
and  arguing  with  great  fulness  of  detail  for  the  Isaianic  author- 
ship of  the  disputed  prophecies.  Neither  Hengstenberg  nor 
Drechsler  are  strong  on  the  linguistic  side  ;  and  they  have 
another  unfortunate  resemblance  in  the  vehemence  with  which 
they  impute  motives  to  other  critics.  With  Drechsler  may  be 
coupled  RUDOLF  STIER,3  better  loved  perhaps  in  England 
than  in  his  own  country,  who  has  left  us  an  exposition  of 
chaps,  xl.-lxvi.,  of  real  value  for  its  spiritual  insight,  and  con- 
scientious endeavour  to  base  the  Christian  or  theological 
upon  the  philological  meaning.  Much  of  what  has  been  said 
above  of  Hengstenberg  is,  however,  applicable  to  Stier.  He 
is  vehement  and  incisive  in  his  language  (but  his  vehemence 
somehow  hurts  less  than  that  of  others),  has  no  historical 
sense,  and  is  not  a  sound  Hebrew  scholar,  being  (unlike 
Hengstenberg)  afraid  of  deriving  anything,  even  in  scholar- 
ship, from  a  rationalistic  source. 

We  are  in  a  very  different  atmosphere  as  we  read  the 
commentary  of  KNOBEL4  (died  1863).  A  model  of  conden- 

1  First  edition,  2vols.,  1829-35;  second,  4  vols. ,  1854-57  (recast).     Translated  in 
Clark's  Foreign  Theological  Library  (for  Isaiah,  see  vol.  ii.), 

2  Vol.  i.,  1845  I  vol.  ii-»  Part  *»  l849.   Part  2,    1854  (posthumous)  ;  vol.   iii.   (con- 
taining chaps,  xl.-lxvi.),  by  Hahn  and  Delitzsch,  1857. 

5  jfesaias,  nicht  Pseudo-Jesaias  (Barmen,  1850). 

4  First  ed.,  1843  !  fourth  (posthumous),  edited  by  Diestel,    1872.     (Picstel,  whose 


268  ESSAYS. 

sation,  it  well  deserves  its  name  of  '  exegetical  handbook.' 
Great  merit  is  due  to  it  for  its  linguistic  and  archaeological 
uKpiftsta,  but  the  author's  view  of  prophecy  is  low  (see  his 
Prophetismus,  Breslau,  1837),  and  in  the  latter -part  of  Isaiah 
his  excessive  realism  blinds  him  to  the  poetry  of  the  form — 
he  seems  to  expect  the  prophet  to  write  with  the  exactness 
of  a  bulletin.  One  of  the  most  useful  parts  of  Knobel's  work 
is  the  collection  of  stylistic  peculiarities  in  II.  Isaiah,  which, 
however,  requires  careful  sifting. 

But  without  depreciating  his  predecessors,  apart  from 
whom  his  own  achievement  would  have  been  impossible,  it  is 
but  fair  to  admit  that  far  the  most  complete  and  equal 
commentary  is  that  of  Dr.  FRANZ  DELITZSCH.1  He  who 
will  patiently  read  and  digest  the  new  edition  of  this  masterly 
work  will  receive  a  training  both  for  head  and  heart  which 
he  will  never  regret.  I  think,  indeed,  that  the  learned  author 
is  now  and  then  over-subtle  in  his  grammatical  observations, 
and  too  positive  of  the  correctness  of  the  received  text  ;  and 
also  that,  in  spite  of  his  intention  to  be  strictly  philological, 
he  has  once  or  twice  unconsciously  wrested  language  in  the 
interests  of  theology  ;  and  I  know  that  in  the  judgment  of 
many  his  sentences  are  packed  so  full  of  meaning  as  to  have 
become  obscure.  But  these  are  but  spots  upon  the  sun ;  and 
I  heartily  take  for  my  own  a  sentence  from  a  writer  whom  I 
have  had  occasion  to  criticise  severely — Dr.  Klostermann  : — 
'  Delitzsch,  from  his  full  stores  of  knowledge,  with  his  open 
eye  for  all  that  is  irregular  and  uncommon,  his  delicate  ear 
for  all  shades  of  expression,  his  reverent  enthusiasm  for  the 
word  of  the  prophets,  his  unremitting  toil,  and  conscientious 
regard  to  minutiae,  has  provided  a  commentary,  with  which 
it  will  not  be  easy  for  another  successfully  to  compete.'2 
And  yet,  though  it  may  be  long  before  an  equally  finished 
work  is  produced,  there  is  still  so  much  obscurity,  so  much 
diversity  of  opinion,  that  we  cannot  regret  the  labour  which 
another  scholar  has  bestowed  from  the  same  point  of  view. 
NAEGELSBACH'S  recent  work  (1878)  is  fresh  and  independent 
even  to  a  fault.  Not  many,  I  fear,  of  its  new  interpretations 
are  likely  to  stand  ;  but  thoughtful  criticism  of  the  exegetical 
tradition  is  always  valuable,  and  the  book  has  in  some  pas- 
sages really  advanced  the  interpretation  of  Isaiah.  Perhaps 
its  special  characteristic  is  this  —  that  it  regards  the  Bible  as 
one  great  organism,  of  which  the  Book  of  Isaiah  is  a  part, 

university  lectures  on  Old  Testament  religion  were  of  so  high  an  order  as  to  deserve 
publication,  has  himself,  too  early  for  science,  since  passed  away). 

1  First  ed.,  1866  :  third,  1879.     (Clark's  translation  is  from  the  first.) 

3  Zeiischrift  fur  lutheriscke  Thcologie,  1876,  p.  16. 


ESSAYS.  269 

and  that  it  carries  out  this  principle  with  greater  fulness 
than  previous  writers.  The  abundance  of  well-chosen  parallel 
passages  is  a  boon  equally  to  the  pure  linguist  and  to  the 
exegete  ;  of  the  invaluable  collection  of  deutero-Isaianic  words 
at  the  end  of  the  book  I  have  spoken  already. 

But  to  come  nearer  home.  Is  it  not  a  strange  phe- 
nomenon that  our  English  and  American  theologians  should 
be  so  little  awake  to  the  importance  of  a  thorough  study  of 
the  prophets  ?  General  dissertations  on  prophecy  are  not, 
indeed,  entirely  wanting,  but  calm  and  candid,  self-denying 
and  theory-denying  exposition  of  the  sacred  texts  is  still 
sadly  in  arrears.  Putting  aside  the  modest,  but  very  useful, 
compilation  of  the  American  Albert  Barnes  (Glasgow,  1845), 
I  can  call  to  mind  but  four  professedly  independent  commen- 
taries on  the  whole  of  Isaiah1 — those  respectively  of  Drs. 
HENDERSON,  ALEXANDER,  and  KAY,  and  of  Professor  BIRKS. 
The  first  of  the  four  certainly  supplied  with  more  or  less 
ability  a  want  painfully  felt  in  our  exegetical  literature.  It 
is  unambitious  in  its  object,  and  confines  itself  mainly  to  the 
letter  of  the  sacred  text.  But  though  full  of  valuable  in- 
formation, it  is  an  unsafe  guide  even  in  its  chosen  field  of 
scholarship.  The  colour  of  its  exegesis  is  orthodox,  but  it 
stands  entirely  apart  from  every  form  of  scientific  theology. 
The  second  is  by  far  the  most  complete,  and  does  high 
honour  to  the  American  theology  of  its  date.  It  is  at  once 
full  (some  perhaps  will  say,  too  full)  and  accurate  ;  but  its 
point  of  view  is  that  of  Hengstenberg,  and  it  is  no  longer  at 
the  centre  of  the  exegetical  movement.  The  third,  from  its 
brevity,  would  seem  to  address  itself  to  the  class  for  whom 
the  Speaker's  Commentary  was  originally  intended — the  inquisi- 
tive but  much  occupied  laity,  and  the  practical  clergy.  In  spite 
of  its  incompleteness,  it  is  certainly  one  of  the  most  original 
contributions  to  Canon  Cook's  series.  Like  Ewald,  the  author 
puts  aside  mere  historical  and  archaeological  investigations  as 
not  touching  the  root  of  the  matter  :  the  text  itself,  both  in  its 
primary  grammatical  sense  and  in  its  spiritual  application, 
absorbs  the  energies  of  the  interpreter.  But  I  shall  best 
consult  the  interests  of  the  student  by  quoting  the  words  of  a 
courteous  and  fair  Continental  critic,  though  of  an  opposite 
school  to  the  author.  He  writes  thus,  in  reviewing,  with  that 
discriminating  tact  which  characterises  him,  the  two  exe- 
getical works  of  Dr.  Kay  on  the  Psalms  and  on  Isaiah  :— 
1  Dr.  Kay  is  one  whom  I  would  gladly  see  on  our  side.  He 

1  Henderson,  first  ed.  1840  ;  second,  1852.     Alexander,  edited  by  Eadie,  2  vols., 
Edinburgh,  1865.     Kay,  1875.     Birks,  first  ed.,  1871  ;  second,  1878. 


270 


ESSAYS. 


is  not  only  a  good  Hebrew  scholar  ;  not  only  very  well  read 
in  the  Old  Testament ;  but  also,  if  I  am  not  altogether  deceived, 
a  thoroughly  earnest  and  above  all  an  upright  man. l  The 
drawback  which  Dr.  Kuenen  finds  is  a  '  self-confidence '  which 
goes  hand  in  hand  with  '  very  subjective  and  fantastic  views, 
in  which  he  often  stands  entirely  alone,  or  which  at  least, 
have  hardly  an  adherent  besides  himself,  but  which  not- 
withstanding are  propounded  in  so  positive  a  tone  that  the 
unsuspicious  reader  may  well  be  taken  by  surprise.'2  I  have 
myself  been  often  struck  by  the  *  subjective '  character  of  Dr. 
Kay's  Hebrew  philology,  though  I  gladly  admit  that  one  may 
learn  much  from  his  rare  command  of  the  facts  of  the 
language.  His  theological  arguments  would,  I  venture  to 
think,  have  gained  considerably  both  in  intrinsic  value  and  in 
effectiveness,  if  he  had  been  able  to  recognise  the  elements  of 
good  in  those  who  are  still  struggling  towards  the  light.  In 
one  sense,  no  doubt,  *  the  true  light  now  shineth,'  and  I  at 
least  must  agree  with  Dr.  Kay,  as  against  Dr.  Kuenen  in  his 
review,  that  '  no  one  who  is  held  in  the  chains  of  naturalistic 
speculation  is  qualified  to  expound  the  writings  of  the 
prophets'  (p.  3).  But  this  general  principle  will  not,  I 
submit,  justify  the  learned  author  in  throwing  down  the 
gauntlet  (as  he  has  done)  to  all  critical  inquiry  into  the 
historic  and  prophetic  literature  of  the  Old  Testament.  If 
you  wish  to  overcome  heterodoxy,  you  must  surely  do  so 
from  within,  and  not  from  without.  Heterodoxy  is  a  product 
of  mixed  origin,  and  you  must  not  violate  charity  and  truth 
by  imputing  it  to  a  single  cause.  Are  you  sure  that  your 
own  form  of  *  supernaturalism '  is  adequate  to  all  the  facts  of 
the  Scriptures  (to  say  nothing  of  physical  science)  ?  Have 
you,  indeed,  already  discovered  all  those  facts,  so  that  you 
have  no  further  *  light '  to  wish  for  ?  Even  if  you  reply  in  the 
affirmative,  charity  and  truth  both  forbid  you  to  assume  that 
all  who  are  not  equally  confident  are  either  already  '  natu- 
ralists,' or  drifting  into  '  naturalism.'  Surely  it  is  as  plain 
as  the  day  that  there  is  a  growing  school  of  criticism  and 
exegesis,  neither  in  any  stiff  sense  orthodox,  nor  yet  ration- 
alistic, which  welcomes  and  assimilates  fragments  of  truth 
from  all  quarters.  Dr.  Kay  will,  I  trust,  listen  to  this  echo 
of  a  younger  and  more  hopeful  generation. 

Some  of  these  remarks  are  equally  applicable  to  Professor 
Birks,  who  is,  however,  without  the  counterbalancing  merit  of 
sound  Hebrew  scholarship.  Of  his  painfully  unphilological 

1  Theologiseh  Tijdschrift,  1871,  p.  367. 

2  Ibid,,  1875,  p.  569. 


ESSAYS.  271 

treatment  of  the  stylistic  peculiarities  of  II.  Isaiah  I  have 
spoken  elsewhere ;  his  historical  tact  may  be  estimated  by 
his  contemptuous  attitude  towards  *  the  boastful  bulletins  of 
idolatrous  kings'  (p.  376)—  i.e.  the  royal  Assyrian  inscrip- 
tions. Still  Professor  Birks  is  an  acute  and  generally  a 
sensible  writer ;  and  I  will  not  deny  that  some  germs  of 
thought  may  be  elicited  from  his  commentary.  But  I  admit 
that  I  am  much  more  favourably  impressed  by  the  open- 
minded  tone,  and  the  political,  and,  in  general,  the  historic 
insight  of  Sir  EDWARD  STRACHEY  in  his  '  inquiry  into 
the  historical  meaning  and  purpose  of  the  prophecies  of 
Isaiah.1  This  is  emphatically  a  popular  work  ;  it  seeks 
primarily  for  the  moral  and  political  lessons  of  the  great 
prophet,  and  treats  of  the  historic  background  in  complete 
subordination  to  these.  There  is  much,  therefore,  which 
strongly  attracts  the  cultivated  lay  reader  ;  it  is  only  critics  of 
the  new  historical  school  (of  the  existence  of  which  the  author 
is  evidently  unaware)  who  will  be  unpleasantly  impressed  by 
some  features  of  the  book.  Conservative  critics,  on  the  other 
hand,  will  have  their  tastes  gratified  by  the  attempt  (offered 
with  all  due  modesty)  to  discover  a  new  historical  argument 
for  the  unity  of  the  book,  by  the  aid  of  the  Assyrian  inscrip- 
tions. The  argument  applies  directly,  indeed,  only  to  chaps, 
xiii.,  xiv.,  xxi.  i-io,  and  xxxix.,  6  ;  but  it  has  evidently  a 
certain  indirect  bearing  on  the  authorship  of  chaps,  xl.-lxvi. 
I  have  independently,  but  on  similar  grounds,  arrived  at  the 
same  conclusion  as  Sir  Edward  Strachey  with  regard  to  the 
authorship  of  chap.  xxi.  i-io,  but  the  problems  of  chaps, 
xiii.,  xiv.,  xxxix.  6,  and  xl.— Ixvi.,  are  not  so  easily  solved  (see 
vol.  i.  pp.  8 1,  234),  and  must  still  be  left  to  what  is  perhaps 
invidiously  called  the  '  higher  criticism.'  It  is  with  regret 
that  one  notices  in  a  work  of  so  wholesome  a  tendency,  so 
many  uncalled-for  reflections  on  this  department  of  inquiry. 
The  author  seems  to  forget  that,  though  common  sense  has 
much  to  do  with  science,  it  is  a  trained  and  cultivated  common 
sense  which  is  required.  Many  as  are  the  faults  of  German 
writers  on  the  Bible,  a  disparagement  of  the  necessity  of 
philological  training  is  not  one  of  them.  But  I  cannot  allow 
myself  to  part  from  so  sympathetic  a  work  in  the  tone  of 
complaint.  Let  me  rather  quote  a  passage  with  which  I  am 
in  the  heartiest  agreement,  and  which  well  expresses  one  of 
the  primary  requisites  both  of  the  commentator  upon  Isaiah 
and  of  his  reader.  '  If  we  will  be  rational,  no  less  than  if  we 

1  This  is  the  second  title  of  his  work,  Jewish  History  and  Politics  in  the  Times  of 
S argon  and  Sennacherib.     Second  edition,  revised,  with  additions,  London,  1874. 


272 


ESSAYS. 


will  be  Christian,  we  must  steadily  recognise  the  reality — tl 
objective,  independent  reality — of  that  communication  whicl 
Isaiah  was  thus  qualified  to  become  the  recipient  of.  How 
this  could  be,  how  God  reveals  His  mind  and  will  to  men, 
how  the  poetic  or  other  human  faculty  gives  form  and  ex- 
pression to  truths  not  imagined  nor  discovered,  but  communi- 
cated from  on  high — this  can  never  be  explained :  an 
explanation  is  a  contradiction  in  terms,  an  assertion  that  the 
Infinite  is  definable,  that  the  Superhuman  is  subject  to  the 
laws,  and  expressible  in  terms,  of  the  human '  (pp.  87,  88). 


NOTE. 

Among  minor  exegetical  works  on  Isaiah,  both  Continental  and 
lish,  the  following  seem  to  have  a  claim  to  be  mentioned  : — 

E.  F.  K.  Rosenmiiller  :  Jesaice  vaticinia  annotatione  perpetud 
travit  E.  F.  C.  R.     3  vols.    Lips.     1811-20. 

T.  Roorda.  Annotations  ad  vaticinia  Jes.  i.-ix.  6,  in  Juynboll's 
Orientalia,  i.  67-174.  Amstel.  1840. 

C.  P.  Caspari.  Beitrdge  zttr  Einleitung  in  das  Buck  Jesaja,  Berlin, 
1848.  [Conservative:  thorough  to  a  fault.] 

-  Ueber  den  syrisch-ephraimitischen  Krieg  unter  Jotham  und 
Akaz  (1849). 

E.  Meier.  Der  Prophet  Jesaja.  Erste  Halfte  [cc.  i.-xxiii.].  Pforz- 
heim, 1850.  [School  of  Ewald.] 

S.  D.  Luzzatto  (died  1865).  77  Prof  eta  Isaia  volgarizzato  e  comme7itato 
ad  uso  degli  Israeliti.  Padova,  1855-67. 

[An  Italian  translation  with  a  Hebrew  commentary.  Acute  and  very 
suggestive.] 

L.  Reinke.  Die  messianischen  Weissagungen  bei  den  grossen  und 
kleinen  Propheten  des  Alten  Testaments.  Giessen,  1859-62.  [Roman 
Catholic  ;  learned  and  accurate.  Vols.  i.  and  ii.  refer  to  Isaiah.] 

V.  F.  Oehler.  Der  Knecht  Jehovds  im  Deuterojesaia.  Stuttgart, 
1865. 

\Not  by  the  author  of  the  well-known  Old  Testament  Theology,  but 
from  a  kindred  point  of  view.  Contains  a  commentary  on  all  the  pas- 
sages relative  to  the  '  Servant  of  Jehovah.'] 

L.  Seinecke.  Der  Evangelist  des  Alten  Testaments.  Leipzig,  1870. 
[Accepts  the  unity  of  chaps,  xl.-lxvi.,  but  dates  the  book  at  the  close  of  the 
Babylonian  Exile  ;  the  author,  however,  is  placed  in  Palestine.  A  sug- 
gestive commentary,  though  its  forte  is  not  in  philology.  Comp.  Riehm's 
review  in  Theologische  Studien  und  Kritiken,  1872,  pp.  553-578.] 

B.  Stade.  De  Isaice  Vaticiniis  j&thiopicis  Diatiibe.  Leipzig,  1873. 
[A  learned  philological  and  historical  commentary  on  chaps,  xvii.  12-14, 
xviii.,  and  xx.] 

A.  Hildebrandt.  Judds  Verhaltniss  zu  Assy  lien  in  Jesajds  Zeit 
nachKeilinschriftenundJesaianischenProphetieen.  Marburg,  1874.  [A 
suggestive  but  premature  illustration  of  Isaiah  from  the  Assyrian  in- 
scriptions.] 

Aug.  Klostermann.  'Jesaja  Cap.  xl.-lxvi.  Eine  Bitte  urn  Hiilfe  in 
grosser  Noth.'  Zeitschrift  fiir  lutherische  Theologie,  1876,  pp.  1-60. 


ESSAYS.  273 

Aug.  Klostermann.  Art.  *  Jesaja'  in  Herzog's  Real-encyclopadie,  vol.  vi. 
[Arbitrary,  but  suggestive.] 

H.  Oort.     'Jesaja  xl.'/  Theologisch  Tijdschrift,  1876,  p.  528,  &c. 

A.  Kohut.  '  Antiparsische  Ausspriiche  im  Deuterojesaias.'  Zeitschr. 
d.  d.  m.  Ges.  1876,  pp.  709-722.  [A  wild  attempt  to  show  that  II.  Isaiah 
is  pervaded  by  an  anti-Zoroastrian  tendency.  Answered  by  de  Harlez  in 
the  Revue  des  questions  historiques,  April  1877,  and  Matthes  in  the 
Theologisch  Tijdschrift,  Nov.  1877]. 

J.  H.  Scholten,  '  De  lijdende  knecht  Gods,  Jes.  liii.'  Theologisch  Tijd- 
schrift, 1878,  p.  117  &c. 

Ed.  Reuss.  Les  Prophetes,  2  vols.,  Paris,  1876.  [Arranged  chrono- 
logically with  introductions,  and  short,  very  clear  footnotes.  The  publi- 
cation was  postponed  by  the  Franco-Prussian  war.  From  a  '  liberal ' 
point  of  view.] 

Friedr.  Kostlin.  Jesaia  und  Jeremia.  Ihr  Leben  und  Wirken  aus 
ihren  Schriften  dargestellt.  Berlin,  1879.  [A  re-arrangement  of  the 
*  genuine '  prophecies,  with  historical  illustrations.] 

Lagarde's  Semitica  and  a  few  articles  in  journals  by  Kleinert  and 
others  have  been  referred  to  already. 

To  the  English  works  mentioned  above,  and  in  the  course  of  the 
commentary  (for  Perowne,  see  on  chap.  viii.  16;  Taylor,  on  viii.  21  ; 
Sayce,  onx.  5,  &c. ;  Urwick,  Neubauer  and  Driver,  on  Hi.  13,  &c.)  add : — 

G.  Vance  Smith.  The  Prophecies  Relating  to  Nineveh  and  the  Assy- 
rians. Lond.  1857.  [One  of  the  first  attempts  to  utilise  the  Assyrian 
monuments.] 

R.  Payne  Smith.  The  Authenticity  and  Messianic  Interpretation  of 
the  Prophecies  of  Isaiah  vindicated  in  a  Course  of  Sermons  -preached  before 
the  University  of  Oxford.  Oxford  and  London,  1862.  [A  useful  intro- 
duction to  the  Messianic  prophecies,  from  Hengstenberg's  point  of  view; 
the  lines  of  Jewish  interpretation  are  well  sketched.] 

J.  M'Gill.  'Critical  Remarks  on  Isa.  xviii.  I,  2,'  in  Journal  of  Sacred 
Literature,  1862,  pp.  310-324.  [The  work  of  an  eminent  Professor  of 
Oriental  Languages  at  St.  Andrew's  ;  retrograde  exegesis.] 

Rowland  Williams.  The  Hebrew  Prophets  translated  afresh  frojn  tJie 
original.  2  vols.  [each  containing  a  part  of  Isaiah].  Lond.  1866-71. 
[Very  complete  in  its  plan,  combining  as  it  does  the  literary,  historical, 
philological,  and  theological  points  of  view.  Its  chief  merits  are  analo- 
gous to  those  of  Sir  E.  Strachey's  book  noticed  above  ;  the  philology  is 
eccentric  and  unsound.  The  view  of  prophecy  resembles  in  its  vagueness 
that  held  by  Ewald.] 

Stanley  Leathes.  The  Witness  of  the  Old  Testament  to  Christ;  being 
the  Boyle  Lectures  for  1868.  Lond.  1868.  [An  appendix  on  the  argu- 
ment from  style,  which  betrays  a  grave  misconception  of  its  nature — see 
above,  p.  218— is  the  reason  for  mentioning  this  pleasingly  written  popu- 
lar work.] 

T.  K.  Cheyne.  Notes  and  Criticisms  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  Isaiah. 
Lond.  1868. 


C. 

1879,  PP- 

a  passive  condition  of  wonderment,'  on  account  of  the  following  clause  ; 
and  suggests  'so  shall  he  agast,  or  aghast,  many  nations,'  making 
n-y.*=ntn*;  comp.  Qnn,  Ivi.  10.  But  the  meaning  of  D^fl  is  doubtful, 
if  indeed  the  text  is  correct.] 

H.  Kriiger.     Essai sur  la  theologie  d^Esa'ie,  xl. -Ixvi.     Par.  1881.     [A 
VOL.  II.  T 


274 


ESSAYS. 


faithful  and  sympathetic  study  of  the  religious  ideas  of  II.  Isaiah,  well 
adapted  for  English  students.] 

W.  H.  Cobb.  'Two  Isaiahs  or  One?'  in  Bibliotheca  Sacra,  1881, 
p.  230,  &c. ;  1882,  p.  104,  &c.  [See  above,  p.  239,  note.  If  the  critical 
value  of  the  conclusions  is  but  slight,  the  tables  will  still  be  useful  com- 
panions to  the  student  of  the  text  of  '  Isaiah.'] 

W.  Robertson  Smith.  The  Prophets  of  Israel  and  their  Place  in 
History  to  the  close  of  the  Eighth  Century  B.  C.  Edinburgh  1882.  [Freshly 
written,  learned  and  suggestive.  The  author's  arrangement  of  the  pro- 
phecies of  Isaiah  differs  considerably  from  the  above,  owing  to  his  rejec- 
tion of  the  theory  of  an  invasion  of  Judah  by  Sargon.  See  above,  Essay  I.] 

S.  M.  Schiller-Szinessy.  An  Exposition  of  Isaiah  lii.  13,  14,  15,  and 
liii.  Cambridge,  1882.  [The  subject  of  the  prophecy,  Israel,  as  repre- 
sented by  the  pious  in  his  midst,  culminating  in  the  Messiah.] 

To  these  must  be  added  the  primitive,  unconscious  commentators,  to 
whom  the  present  work  has  been  so  largely  indebted,  and  of  whom  we 
have  by  no  means  heard  the  last.  Three  deserve  to  be  mentioned  with 
special  honour,  though,  inasmuch  as  (like  most  of  the  Hebrew  chroniclers) 
they  wrote  anonymously,  they  can  only  be  entered  under  the  names  of 
their  translators. 

George  Smith.     The  Assyrian  Eponym  Canon.     Lond.  1875. 

History  of  Sennacherib;  translated  from  the  cuneiform  inscrip- 
tions. Edited  by  A.  H.  Sayce.  Lond.  1878. 

E.  A.  Budge.  History  of  Esar-Haddon;  from  the  cuneiform  inscrip- 
tions. Lond.  1880. 

(For  further  references,  see  the  present  work  passim.  The  time  has 
hardly  come  for  a  critical  conspectus  of  Assyriological  literature.) 


XL     II.  ISAIAH   AND   THE   INSCRIPTIONS. 
I. 

WE  have  now  traversed  most  of  the  subjects  directly  or 
indirectly  connected  with  the  interpretation  of  Isaiah,  and 
with  the  foregoing  rapid  survey  of  the  history  of  the  exegesis 
of  the  book  it  would  seem  as  if  we  had  reached  our  goal. 
All  that  remained  would  be  in  that  case  to  resume  the 
'  gathering  up '  of  the  '  fragments  '  which  might  have  escaped 
insertion  in  the  commentary.  But  before  taking  this  last 
step,  I  must  return  to  a  '  fragment '  of  more  than  ordinary 
significance,  which  has  already  found  a  place  at  the  end  of 
the  first  volume.  It  relates  to  a  discovery  which  not  only 
throws  great  light  on  some  of  those  passages  which  '  remain 
vague  and  obscure  till  we  know  the  circumstances  under 
which  they  were  written '  (p.  210),  but  also  has  a  special  bear- 
ing on  the  great  question  (too  great  to  be  entered  upon  here) 
of  the  limits  or  conditions  of  prophecy. 

The  remarkable  favour  shown  to  the  Jewish  exiles  by  Cyrus 
has  long  attracted  the  attention  of  students.     Was  it  dictated 


ESSAYS.  275 

by  political  motives  ?  such  is  the  first  possibility  which  pre- 
sents itself.  In  reply,  it  must  be  observed  that  if  gratitude 
had  any  influence  on  the  action  of  Cyrus,  it  can  only  have 
been  as  *  a  lively  sense  of  favours  to  come.'  The  statement  of 
the  prophet  in  xlv.  13  ('He  shall  build  my  city,  and  mine 
exiled  ones  shall  he  send  home,  not  for  price,  and  not  for 
reward')  precludes  us  from  supposing  that  his  countrymen 
were  conscious  of  having  placed  Cyrus  under  an  obligation. 
The  accuracy  of  the  prophet,  however,  is  not  in  the  least 
disparaged  by  the  hypothesis  that  one  of  the  secondary 
motives  of  the  Persian  was  the  belief  that  the  restored  Jews 
would  form  a  useful  outpost  in  a  distant  part  of  his  dominions. 
This  leaves  us  free  to  maintain,  with  the  prophet,  that  the 
determining  motives  of  Cyrus  were  religious  ones  ;  and  this 
view  of  the  case  has  appeared  to  be  confirmed  by  the  history 
of  Persian  religion.  The  description  of  Ormazd  in  such  an 
early  document  as  the  inscription  of  Darius  referred  to  in  the 
note  on  xlv.  7  might,  from  the  purity  of  its  monotheism,  have 
been  penned  by  a  Jewish  prophet  in  honour  of  Jehovah.  It 
would  have  been  quite  in  the  spirit  of  the  highest  Old  Testa- 
ment revelations  to  regard  such  homage  to  Ormazd  as  un- 
consciously offered  to  the  true  God  Jehovah  (vol.  i.,  p.  256), 
and  a  devout  monotheist  like  Cyrus  as  only  needing  some  one 
to  'teach  him  the  way  of  God  more  perfectly.'  Such  a 
friendly  guide  it  was  natural  to  discover  in  the  author  of  the 
prophetic  passages  relative  to  Cyrus,  which,  as  I  have  sug- 
gested elsewhere,  may  be  plausibly  viewed  as  an  apologia  for 
the  Jews  and  their  religion  addressed  to  their  conqueror.1 
The  prophet  himself  does  not  as  yet  look  upon  Cyrus  as  a 
full  adherent  of  the  true  religion,  but  he  cherishes  the  firm 
conviction  that  Cyrus  will  become  such  at  no  distant  day. 

But  now  comes  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson's  discovery  among 
the  latest  treasures  from  Babylon,  and  throws  the  gravest 
doubt  not  only  on  our,  but  on  what  we  have  supposed  to 
be  the  prophet's,  estimate  of  Cyrus.  It  represents  him  as  a 
complete  religious  indifferentist,  willing  to  go  through  any 
amount  of  ceremonies,  to  soothe  the  prejudices  of  a  susceptible 
population.  Fresh  from  the  pages  of  II.  Isaiah,  it  is  difficult 
to  realise  that  Cyrus  was  capable  of  this.  He  there  appears 
like  an  idealised  David,  a  *  man  after  God's  own  heart '  in  the 
fullest  sense  of  the  phrase.  His  conquest  of  Babylon  is  the 
signal  for  an  iconoclasm  which  marks  the  downfall  of  the  false 

1  See  below,  supplementary  notes.  The  view  is  equally  admissible,  whether  the 
standing-point  of  the  author  of  the  latter  chapters  be  actually,  or  only  ideally,  at  the 
close  of  the  Exile. 

T  2 


276 


ESSAYS. 


religions.  *  Bel  boweth  down,  Nebo  croucheth  ;  their  idols 
are  given  up  to  the  beasts  and  to  the  cattle'  (xlvi.  i) — such  is 
the  vision  before  the  prophet's  inner  eye.  Not  so,  says  the 
'  broad '  and  politic  Cyrus.  *  The  gods  dwelling  within  them 
to  their  places  I  restored  '  (Hi  asib  libisumi  ana  asrisunu  ulir)  ; 
1  daily  I  addressed  Bel  and  Nebo  that  the  length  of  my  days 
they  should  fulfil  ;  that  they  should  bless  the  decree  of  my 
fate,  and  to  Merodach  my  lord  should  say  that  Cyrus  the 
King  thy  worshipper  and  Cambyses  his  son  .  .  .'  (yomi  sam 
makhar  Bel  va  Nabu  sa  araku  yomiya  litamu  litibkaru  amata 
dunkiya  va  ana  Marduk  bilya  ligbu  sa  Kuras  sarru  palikhika 
va  Kambuziya  ablusu.  .  .  .  )  * 

The  authenticity  and  accuracy  of  the  newly-discovered 
inscription  are  self-evident.  The  concessions  of  Cyrus  to 
idolatrous  polytheism  are,  indeed,  just  what  might  have  been 
expected,  were  it  not  for  the  strong  language  of  the  prophet. 
They  are  but  typical  examples  of  the  practice  of  the  Persian 
rulers.  Cyrus  in  Babylonia  is  the  pattern  of  his  son  Cambyses2 
and  even  of  the  religious  Darius  in  Egypt.  But  we  cannot 
admit  the  accuracy  of  the  inscription  without  detracting 
somewhat  from  the  accuracy  of  the  inspired  prophet.  This 
is  no  doubt  painful  to  a  reverent  mind,  but  here,  as  ever, 
truth  is  the  healer  of  its  own  wounds.  Has  not  Wisdom 
already  been  justified  of  her  children  ?  Throughout  our  study 
of  Isaiah  have  we  not  noticed  *  a  gracious  proportion  between 
the  revelation  vouchsafed  and  the  mental  state  of  the  person 
receiving  it'?  There  is  no  defect  implied  in  the  revelation, 
but  only  in  the  receptiveness  of  the  human  organ.  The 
admission  of  this  relative  defect  involves  no  moral  disparage- 
ment of  the  latter.  In  the  case  before  us,  for  instance,  the 
prophet  overrates  Cyrus  just  because  he  is  so  completely  a 
prophet.  His  character  is  too  simple,  too  religious,  for  him 
to  realise  a  mental  state  so  mixed,  a  policy  so  complicated 
with  non-religious  considerations.  He  cannot  distinguish 
between  the  king  and  the  man,  between  a  public  and  private 
character.  He  cannot  form  a  conception  of  a  religious  indif- 
ferentist.  He  will  have  '  no  bowing  in  the  house  of  Rimmon.3 

1  These  are  the  last  connected  words  in  the  inscription.    I  here  follow  the  word-for- 
word  translation  of  Sir  H.  Rawlinson  ;  in  vol.  i.,  pp.  299,  300,  I  gave  his  more  readable 
alternative  version.     The  trans1  iteration  is  also  that  of  the  Nestor  of  Assyriologists  ; 
it  differs  in  many  technical  points  from  that  with  which  we  are  familiar.     See  Art.  II. 
in  Journal  of  Royal  Asiatic  Soc.,  Jan.  1880,  pp.  70-97. 

2  In  this  reference  to  the  religious  policy  of  Cambyses  I  follow  the  contemporary 
hieroglyphic  account,    which   differs   considerably   from    that    of   Herodotus.      See 
Brugsch,   History  of  Egypt,  ii.   297,  and   comp.   Dr.   Birch,    Rede  Lecture  (1879), 
p.  40. 

5  I  have  already  remarked  that  the  s'ight  inaccuracy  in  x.  10  (see  my  note)  is  a 
parallel  to  the  case  before  us.     See  also  on  xxxvi.  10. 


ESSAYS.  277 

It  is  unfortunate  that  the  cylinder-inscription  is  too  im- 
perfect to  clear  up  the  history  of  the  fall  of  Babylon  ;  but 
the  deficiency  is  supplied  by  another  cuneiform  text,  for  the 
decipherment  of  which  we  are  indebted  to  Mr.  T.  G.  Pinches.1 
The  text  is  arranged  in  the  form  of  annals,  and  covers,  includ- 
ing the  fragmentary  portions,  the  whole  of  the  reign  of  Nabu- 
nahid  or  Nabonidus,  the  last  of  the  Kings  of  Babylon.2  The 
chief  point  of  interest  in  it  is  that  it  shows  how  it  was  that 
Cyrus  found  Babylon  so  easy  to  conquer.  Nabonidus,  in 
fact,  spent  the  last  years  of  his  reign  idling  in  his  palace  near 
Babylon,  while  his  son  was  with  the  army  in  Accad  (the 
northern  part  of  Babylonia).  He  even  neglected  the  due 
worship  of  the  gods,  thereby  giving  great  dissatisfaction  to 
the  priests.  Not  until  his  seventeenth  year  did  he  rouse 
himself  from  his  inaction.  It  was  under  the  pressure  of  fear. 
There  had  been  a  revolt  among  the  people  of '  the  lower  sea ' 
(i.e.  the  Mediterranean).  Then  he  began  to  think  of  his 
neglected  gods,  for  the  text  records  that  *  the  god  Bel  came 
forth' — i.e.  probably  the  image  of  Merodach  was  carried 
round  in  procession  (see  on  xlvi.  i).  The  images  of  the  temples 
of  other  cities  were  also  brought,  especially  those  of  Accad, 
and  this  explains  the  statement  of  Cyrus  in  the  former  in- 
scription that  he  had  restored  the  gods  of  Sumir  and  Accad 
to  their  places.  Another  revolt,  which  occurred  in  the  last 
year  of  Nabonidus,  was  still  more  favourable  to  Cyrus  ;  it  was 
among  the  people  of  Accad.  Four  months  after  this,  Cyrus 
descended  to  Babylon,  and  took  it,  without,  as  it  would  seem, 
even  a  street-battle.3  He  then  began  that  policy  of  religious 
conciliation  which  is  to  readers  fresh  from  Isaiah  so  unavoid- 
able a  surprise. 

A  minor  point  which  is  finally  settled  by  the  cylinder- 
inscription  is  the  genealogy  of  Cyrus. 

The  line  of  descent  from  Achaemenes  to  Cyrus  is,  I. 
Achaemenes,  2.  Teispes,  3.  Cyrus,  4.  Cambyses,  and  5.  Cyrus. 
Teispes,  it  will  be  remembered,  is  also  mentioned  both  in 
Herodotus  (vii.  u)  and  in  the  Behistun  inscription  of  Darius4 
among  the  ancestors  of  the  latter  king. 

September  1880. 

1  Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.,  vol.  vii.  pp.  139-176. 

2  So  Mr.  Pinches,  in  opposition,  however,  to  Sir  H.  Rawlinson,  who  thinks  that  the 
years  belong  to  the  reign  of  Cyrus. 

3  It  was  on  the  i6th  of  the  Babylonian  month  Dumuzi  (Tammuz).     On  the  i5th, 
corresponding  to  Midsummer-day,  there  was  a  religious  festival,  of  the  nature  of  a 
marriage-feast,  and  probably  of  an  orgiastic  character  (comp.  Dan.  v.).     See  Mr.  Bos- 
ca wen's  letter  in  Athenteum,  July  9,  1881. 

4  Records  of  t lie  Past,  vii.  87. 


278 


ESSAYS. 


2. 

The  above  results  would  be  sufficiently  important,  were  it 
certain  (as  I  have  hitherto  assumed  it  to  be)  that  Cyrus  was 
a  Zoroastrian  believer ;  and  as  soon  as  we  have  put  aside  our 
preconceived  opinion  respecting  Cyrus,  we  can  see  that  they 
are  in  themselves  plausible.  Prof.  Sayce,  indeed,  appears  to 
think  that  the  theory  of  Cyrus's  indifferentism  is  excluded 
by  the  religious  veneration  with  which  he  speaks  of  the 
Babylonian  deities.  But  is  it  not  a  characteristic  of  primitive 
paganism,  as  opposed  to  the  full  Biblical  religion,  that  it 
permits  the  most  various  forms  of  belief  to  exist  peaceably 
side  by  side  ?  I  for  my  part  can  see  nothing  more  wonderful 
in  the  religious  tolerance  of  Cyrus  than  in  that  of  any  other 
primitive  pagan  monarch.  The  really  surprising  fact,  which  I 
have  not  here  to  consider,  is,  that  this  primitive  tolerance 
does  now  and  then  give  way  to  a  violent  spirit  of  religious 
centralisation  ;  e.g.  in  the  noted  case  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes. 
But  such  instances  belong  to  the  decline  of  a  civilisation.  And 
certainly  if  Darius,  who  makes  such  a  parade  of  his  Zoroas- 
trian faith,  adopted  the  policy  of  religious  indifferentism  in 
Egypt,  it  is  difficult  to  see  why  Cyrus  (even  though  a  less 
fervent  Zoroastrian)  should  not  have  done  so  in  Babylonia 
and  Palestine.  But  the  main  result  of  Prof.  Sayce's  recently 
published  study  on  the  inscription  1  is  independent  of  this 
incidental  expression  of  opinion ;  and,  startling  as  it  is,  it 
must,  I  am  sure,  meet  with  general  acceptance.  I  ought  to 
add  that  M.  Halevy  (so  well  known  in  connection  with  Semitic 
inscriptions)  has  simultaneously  come  to  virtually  the 
same  conclusion.2  The  point  is  this,  that  Cyrus,  though  of 
Aryan  origin,3  was  in  all  probability  not  a  Zoroastrian  at  all. 
Before,  by  his  victory  over  Astyages,  he  became  king  of  the 
Medes  and  Persians,  he  was,  in  right  of  his  birth,  king  of 
*  Anzan '  or  Susiana.  '  I  am  Cyrus,'  he  says,  '  son  of  Cam- 
buziya,  great  king,  king  of  Susiana,  grandson  of  Cyrus,  great 
king,  king  of  Susiana,  great-grandson  of  Teispes,  great  king, 
king  of  Susiana.'  Now,  Susiana  or  (speaking  loosely)  Elam, 
as  the  merest  tyro  in  Assyriology  knows  (witness  the  names 
Kudur-mabug,  Kudur-nankhundi,  and  the  annals  of  Assur- 
banipal),  was  peopled  by  a  non-Aryan  and  idolatrous  race.4 

1  Letter  in  the  Academy,  October  16,  1880,  pp.  276-7. 

2  '  Cyrus  et  le  retour  de  1'exil,"  in  Revue  des  ttudes  jiiives,  No.  i,  pp.  41-63. 

3  His  name,  however,  is  probably  non-Aryan  ;  see  below,  on  xliv.  28. 

4  Comp.  Mr.  Sayce's  paper  on  '  The  Languages  of  the  Cuneiform  Inscriptions  of 
Elam  and  Media,'  in  Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  iii.  465-485. 


ESSAYS.  279 

Teispes,  the  Achsemenian  (see  above)  was  no  doubt  a  Persian, 
and  therefore  an  Aryan,  but  he  and  his  band  of  fellow- Aryans 
found  for  themselves  a  new  home  among  a  non-Aryan  people. 
1  The  main  bulk  of  their  relatives/  as  Prof.  Sayce  remarks, 
'  seem  to  have  been  left  behind  in  Persis,  and  we  cannot 
wonder,  therefore,  that  the  invaders  of  Anzan  [the  native 
name  for  Elam]  should  have  intermarried  with  the  old  inha- 
bitants of  their  new  home,  and  adopted  their  religious  ideas 
and  art.'  This  is  not  a  mere  hypothesis.  It  is  expressly 
stated  by  Darius  in  the  famous  Behistun  inscription  that 
Gomates,  the  first  pseudo-Smerdis,  had  destroyed  the  Zoroas- 
trian  temples  {Records  of  the  Past,  vii.  91).  This,  as  Prof. 
Sayce  has  well  pointed  out,  would  have  been  an  absurd  act 
in  the  pretender,  if  Cyrus  and  his  sons  had  been  pure-blooded 
Zoroastrians.  Darius,  on  the  other  hand,  was  (to  use  his 
own  words) '  a  Persian,  son  of  a  Persian/  and  naturally  enough 
a  strong  Zoroastrian  both  in  belief  and  in  policy.  He  '  be- 
longed to  the  elder  branch  of  the  family  which  had  remained 
behind  in  Persis,  while  the  younger  branch  had  sought  a 
new  kingdom  among  the  non-Aryan  population  of  Elam.' 
Another  documentary  evidence  pointed  out  by  Prof.  Sayce, 
is  the  peculiar  expression  used  by  Darius  in  speaking  of 
Veisdates,  the  second  pseudo-Smerdis.  He  does  not  say  that 
Veisdates  was  a  Persian,  but  that  he  was  '  a  man  who  dwelt 
(in  a  certain  town)  in  Persia.'  His  followers,  too,  are  stated 
in  the  proto-Medic  text  to  have  been  not  Persians,  but  the 
old  '  families  of  Anzan  [Elam].' 

We  can  now  appreciate  the  force  of  the  strange  silence  of 
Cyrus  in  the  cylinder-inscription  with  regard  to  Ormazd,  the 
supreme  God  of  Zoroastrianism,  to  whom  Darius  so  constantly 
and  devoutly  refers.  The  cause  is  one  which  it  is  a  little 
painful  to  admit.  Cyrus,  on  whom  the  prophet  of  Jehovah 
lavishes  such  honourable  titles  ;  Cyrus,  who,  the  prophet  even 
appears  to  hope,  may  be  won  over  to  the  true  faith  ;  is  a 
polytheist  and  an  idolater.  Still  the  inscription,  when  rightly 
understood,  is  not  in  conflict  with  the  prophecy,  but  only  with 
a  gloss  upon  the  prophecy.  Nebuchadnezzar  is  called  in 
Jeremiah  (xxv.  9,  xxvii.  6,  xliii.  10)  *  My  Servant' ;  and  the 
conversion  of  idolaters  to  the  true  faith  is  the  standing 
hope  of  the  prophets.  The  peculiarity  of  II.  Isaiah  is  that  in 
it  the  conversion  of  an  individual  king  is  hoped  for,  whereas 
elsewhere  the  prophecy  of  conversion  is  vague  and  general. 
Yet  it  should  be  remembered  that  'the  conversion  of  Cyrus  is 
only  a  hope,  not  an  assured  certainty,  and  that  all  prophecy 
relative  to  events  in  the  spiritual  sphere  is  limited  by  the 


280 


ESSAYS. 


possibility  of  the  moral  resistance   of  the   persons    propl 


sied  of. 


painful 


said  befoi 


The  shock  may 

truth  heals  its  own  wounds.  Our  loss,  if  loss  it  be,  is  com- 
pensated by  a  greater  gain.  It  has  often  been  said  that  the 
Old  Testament  religion  has  been  deeply  influenced  by  Zoro- 
astrianism  ;  and  though  I  have  repeatedly  had  occasion  to 
combat  this  view  (see  notes  above  on  xxvi.  19,  xlv.  7  ;  also 
I.C.  A.,  p.  130),  I  could  not  anticipate  such  a  complete  docu- 
mentary refutation  of  it.  We  now  know  that  the  Aryan  and 
Zoroastrian  element  did  not  obtain  supremacy  in  the  Achae- 
menian  empire  till  the  accession  of  Darius,  too  late  to  exert 
any  marked  influence  on  Jewish  modes  of  thought.  M. 
Halevy  remarks  that  the  case  of  the  Persian  religion  is  ana- 
logous to  that  of  the  Persian  language,  which  had  no  political 
importance  in  the  empire  of  the '  great  king ' l  ;  and  further  that, 
1  in  spite  of  the  long  residence  of  a  Persian  dynasty  at  Susa, 
the  name  of  Ahuramazda  was  so  repugnant  to  the  Susians 
that  the  Susian  redactor  of  the  Behistun  Inscription  adds  the 
descriptive  term  "  God  of  the  Aryans." ' 

Of  direct,  circumstantial  illustrations  of  II.  Isaiah  from  the 
newly-found  inscriptions  I  am  not  able  to  indicate  many  (see 
notes  on  xiii.  17,  xlv.  2).  Knobel,  no  doubt,  would  have 
found  more  ;  and  M.  Halevy's  microscopic  eye  has  discovered 
points  of  contact  in  chaps,  xiii.-xiv.  23,  xlv.  I  7,  xlvi.,  from 
which  he  thinks  he  can  determine  the  date  of  those  prophetic 
passages.  I  venture  to  think  that  this  part  of  his  able  and 
stimulative  paper  does  not  show  much  evidence  of  sound 
judgment.  Why  not  be  content  with  the  one  great  result 
relative  to  the  religious  position  of  Cyrus  ? 2 

October  1880. 

1  Aramaic  was  the  official,  as  well  as  the  commercial  language. 

2  Dr.  Kuenen  (Hibbert  Lectures,  1882,  pp.  135-6,  321-2)  disputes  the  soundness  of 
the  historical  results  assumed  above,  partly  on  a  priori  grounds,  and  partly  on  the 
authority  of  M.  Oppert,  who,  however,  is  too  fond  of  isolation  to  be  a  safe  guide. 
The  gloss  in  the  British  Museum  Corpus  of  Assyrian  Inscriptions  (ii.  47,  18),  peremp- 
torily declares  that  Anduan  (pronounced,  as  it  states,  Anzan)  signifies  Elamtuv,  i.e. 
Elam  (Sayce,  Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.,  1874,  p.  475). 


28l 


LAST  WORDS   ON    ISAIAH. 


Sumyayere  ra  TTcpKrcrtixravra  KXaoytaru,  Iva  p.rj  rt 
(Evang.  d.  Joann.  vi.  12.) 

Now  that  '•the  vintage  is  done]  the  c gleaning  grapes*  are  more  in 
number  than  might  have  been  anticipated.  But  the  printing  has  been 
long,  and  the  Book  of  Isaiah  is  so  many-sided  that  1  could  not  help 
obtaining  some  fresh  results  during  the  interval.  Nothing  surely  is 
trivial  which  helps  us  to  realise  any  portion  of  a  literature  so  peculiar 
from  every  point  of  view  as  the  prophetic.  The  contents  of  the  following 
supplementary  notes  relate  partly  to  the  exegesis  of  the  text,  partly  to  its 
illustration  from  other  sources.  I  trust  that  the  friendly  reader,  who  has 
accompanied  me  hitherto,  will  not  desert  me  before  the  end,  *  that  both 
he  that  soweth  and  he  which  reapeth  may  rejoice  together. ' 

On  i.  24  (vol.  i.  p.  9).  The  view  adopted  in  the  Appendix  to 
chap.  i.  that  Jehovah  Sabaoth  is  a  combination  of  two  proper  names 
has  been  sanctioned  in  the  Corpus  Inscr.  Semit.  (i.  33),  where  among 
other  parallels  Astar-Kemosh  is  cited  from  line  17  of  the  Moabite 
inscription  of  Mesha. 

On  ii.  6,  8  (vol.  i.  pp.  16,  17).  The  co-existence  of  idolatry  with 
the  spiritual  religion  of  the  prophets  and  their  disciples  is  a  fact 
which  must  be  accepted  even  if  it  cannot  be  explained.  A  fusion  of 
races  may  account  for  something,  but  rather  in  the  northern  section 
of  the  nation  than  in  the  southern.  For  although  Canaanitish  elements 
in  the  popular  religion  of  Judah  are  not  wanting  (Isa.  i.  29,  xvii.  8, 
10),  yet  'on  the  whole  it  is  probable  that  the  popular  religion  was 
not  so  largely  leavened  with  Canaanite  ideas  and  Canaanite  immor- 
ality as  in  the  North  ;  there  is  nothing  in  the  prophecies  of  Isaiah 
and  Micah  corresponding  to  the  picture  of  vile  licentiousness  under 
the  cloak  of  religion  [in  N.  Israel]  drawn  by  Amos  and  Hosea.' 
'  In  the  population  of  Judaea  the  fusion  of  Canaanite  and  Hebrew 
elements  was  not  so  great  as  in  Ephraim  and  Manasseh ' ;  and  for 
several  reasons  it  is  probable  that  S.  Israel  retained  more  super- 
stitions of  the  primitive  Hebrews,  such  as  are  probably  alluded  to 
in  Amos  ii.  4,  and  rather  fully  described  in  Ezek.  viii.  10,  &c.  (see 
below  on  Ixv.  4).  The  practice  of  divination,  too,  appears  to  have 


282 


LAST   WORDS    ON   ISAIAH. 


been  specially  strong  in  Judah,  and  there  had  been  no  Elijah  in  the 
southern  portion  of  the  country.  (The  Prophets  of  Israel,  1882,  pp. 
200-3.)^ 

On  iv.  2  (vol.  i.  p.  26).  Prof,  de  Lagarde's  note  on  this  passage 
in  his  Semitica  is  not  remarkably  lucid.  How  nin1'  J1DV  and  flKn  HS 
can  be  antithetical,  consistently  with  the  synonymous  predicates,  is 
more  than  I  can  understand.  Nor  does  the  learned  professor  attempt 
to  explain  the  nDIKn  n£¥  of  Gen.  xix.  24,  which  must  of  course  have 
included  the  fruits  of  cultivated  soil ;  and,  as  I  have  remarked  in  the 
commentary,  the  opposite  of  the  Talmudic  phrase  'field  of  Baal'  (see 
below)  is — not  'fruit  of  the  land ' — but  'field  of  fountains.'  Still,  as 
one  competent  reviewer  of  the  Semitica  !  has  been  attracted  by  Prof, 
de  Lagarde's  explanation,  I  will  quote  a  few  more  sentences,  and 
leave  the  reader  to  judge  for  himself.  '  nin*  f!D¥  and  ptfn  na  are 
evidently  opposed  ....  nD¥  is  that  which  grows  without  cultiva- 
tion ;  it  is  said  of  hair,  of  wood,  of  the  3B>¥  of  the  field,  Lev.  xiii.  37, 
Eccl.  ii.  6,  Gen.  ii.  5.  If  we  were  not  in  the  region  of  the  religion  of 
Jahwe,  a  formula  would  be  used  which  is  still  current  among  Semitic 
people,  in  order  to  define  the  word  P1D¥  still  more  distinctly  as  TO 
auro/xarws  </>veV.  ^yan  JT3  of  the  Gemoro  is  the  antithesis  to  PflfcfftJ  JV3 
of  the  Mishno  ( Moed katon,  ii.  ii,  i ;  comp.  Buxtorf,  2412.)  'Baal's 
land,'  according  to  Wetzstein  (Zeitschr.  d.  d.  m.  Ges.  xi.  489), 
means  in  Arabic  land  which  is  nourished,  not  by  springs,  but  by  the 
rain  of  heaven ;  '  Baal's  fruit,'  that  which  grows  on  such  land '  [comp. 
Lane,  Arabic  Lexicon,  s.v.  ba*luri\.  A  candid  admission  is  added 
that,  however  far  Isaiah  may  be  from  Christianity,  '  we  are  certainly 
here  on  the  road  to  the  Messiah.' 

On  iv.  5  (vol.  i.  p.  28).  Wellhausen  (Geschichte  Israels,  p.  350 
note)  doubts  the  genuineness  of  K"5^-1»  the  creative  activity  of  Jeho- 
vah being  a  subject  characteristic  of  the  writers  of  the  Exile.  No 
doubt  the  verse  is  imperfect,  if  not  corrupt,  at  the  end,  but  I  am  not 
so  clear  of  a  corruption  at  the  beginning.  Granting  that  K"Q  is  an 
Aramaism,  does  it  follow  that  every  Aramaism  in  Isaiah  is  a  corrup- 
tion ?  Ryssel  has  lately  pointed  out  again  how  growing  an  influence 
was  exerted  by  Aramaic  from  the  times  of  Ahaz  onwards  (De  Elohista 
Pentateuchi  sermone,  Lips.  1878,  p.  25),  and  the  period  of  Ahaz  is 
suitable  for  the  date  of  chap.  iv.  That  fcn'3  is  of  Aryan  origin  is  a 
hypothesis  of  Lagarde's  and  Wellhausen's  which  does  not  agree  with 
my  own  view  of  the  probable  affinities  of  Gen.  i. 

On  chap.  vi.  (vol.  i.  p.  37).  A  parallel  to  '  Holy,  holy,  holy,'  is 
suggested  by  Friedrich  Delitzsch  in  the  thrice-repeated  'gracious,' 
and  *  may  they  be  at  hand '  (assiir,  ligrubu)  uttered,  the  one  at  the 
beginning,  and  the  other  at  the  end,  of  Assyrian  intercessory  chants- 
(Wo  lag  das  Paradies  ?  p.  253.) 

1  Dr.  Eberhard  Nestle,  in  Schiirer's  Literaturzeitung. 


LAST   WORDS    ON    ISAIAH.  283 

On  chap.  vi.  (appendix).  The  kinship  of  the  seraphim  and 
cherubim  maintained  in  the  appendix  to  chap.  vi.  is  confirmed  by 
Ezekiel's  transference  of  an  important  detail  from  Isaiah's  picture  of 
the  seraphim  to  his  own  description  of  the  cherubim  (comp.  Isa.  vi. 
2,  Ezek.  i.  n),  and  also  by  the  fusion  of  the  two  figures  in  Rev.  iv.  8. 
It  has  been  illustrated  with  great  fulness  of  knowledge  by  the  Rev. 
H.  G.  Tomkins,  a  communication  from  whom  I  am  permitted  to 
publish  here.  The  reader  will  notice  the  interesting  confirmation 
(near  the  end  of  the  note)  of  my  own  and  M.  Lenormant's  theory  of 
the  connection  of  kirubu  (the  steer-god)  and  kurubu  ('the  circling 
bird').  Before  we  listen  to  Mr.  Tomkins,  however,  let  me  supple- 
ment the  appendix  to  chap.  vi.  in  a  few  particulars,  i.  I  have  there 
spoken  of  the  colossal  bulls  of  Assyria  as  having  the  special  function 
of  guardians  of  the  temples  and  palaces  ;  an  authority  seemed  to  be 
lacking  for  their  being  also  regarded  as  the  divine  throne-bearers. 
Friedrich  Delitzsch,  however,  points  out  ( Wo  lag  das  Paradiesl  p. 
182)  that  the  awful  'seven  spirits'  with  whom  George  Smith  has 
already  familiarised  us  *  actually  bear  this  name  in  the  inscriptions,2 
and  he  maintains  that  they  are  fundamentally  the  same  as  the  steer-gods. 

2.  I  have  designedly  abstained  hitherto  from  consulting  the  Egyptian 
mythology,  fearing  to  distract  the  reader's  attention  by  cross-lights. 
But,  as  Mr.  Tomkins  has  so  strikingly  illustrated  the  conception  of 
the  seraph  from  Egyptian  sources,  a  brief  reference  to  Egypt  for  the 
cherubim  may  not  be  out  of  place.     That  winged  figures,  reminding 
us  somewhat  of  the  cherubim,  were  common  in  Egyptian  temples, 
has   often   been   pointed   out.     Dr.   Lieblein   expresses   himself  as 
follows : — 

'  The  cherubim  of  the  Hebrews  are  perhaps  identical  with  the 
winged  genii  of  the  Egyptians  (see  Rosellini,  Monimenti,  plate  Iv.  2). 
Like  the  cherubim,  the  latter  are  always  in  couples,  and  they 
protect  and  defend,  repelling  the  enemy  with  their  extended  wings. 
....  Their  name  in  Egyptian  is  not  known  ;  but  there  is  a  Coptic 
word  (korb,  repellere,  abigere),  which  will  indicate  their  function,  and 
which  I  recognise,  both  as  to  sound  and  as  to  signification,  in  the 
Hebrew  Krubhun.  Possibly  too  the  Kerberos  of  the  Greeks  was 
derived  from  the  same  Egyptian  word  korb,  repellere,  abigere  > 
(Recherches  sur  la  chronologic  'egyptienne,  Christian ia,  1873,  p.  131). 

3.  It  should  also  be  mentioned  that  M.   Lenormant's  ground  for 
assuming  that  the  Hebrew  cherub  was  sometimes  popularly  regarded 
as  a  great  bird,  such  as  an  eagle,  is  not  Ps.  xviii.  1 1,  but  the  description 
of  the  cherubim  of  the  ark  in  Ex.  xxv.  18-22  : — 'c'etaient  des  kurubi 
plutot  que  des  kirubi,  c'est-a-dire  de  grands  oiseaux,  aigles  ou  vau- 

1  Chaldean  Genesis,  edited  by  Sayce,  p.  104. 

2  e.g.  in  the  Deluge-story,  col.  2,  line  44,  we  are  told  that,  together  with  the  gods 
Raman,   Nabu,   and  Ea,    'the  throne-bearers  went  over  the  mountain  and  plain* 
(Chald.  Gen.,  p.  283). 


284 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 


tours,  aux  ailes  £tendues  en  avant  et  ombrageant  le  convercle  ou 
propitiatoire '  (Les  origines  de  Vhistoire^  p.  128). 

Mr.  Tomkins  writes  as  follows  : — 

'  Perhaps  the  earliest  figure  that  may  illustrate  the  seraph  is  found 
in  Egypt,  and  seems  to  have  been  overlooked  in  this  relation.  I 

n v  ~« 
have  long  suspected  that  the     I  seref  (as   the  name  may  be 

read)  which  is  represented  at  Beni  Hassan  with  other  marvellous 
composite  creatures  of  the  time  of  the  i2th  dynasty  (Rosellini,  i.  pi. 
xxiii.)  indicates  the  conception  of  the  seraph,  and  is  connected  with 

j)          a  word  rendered  by  M.  Pierret  chaleur^  chauffer^  chaleur  vitale 

\Vocabulaire,  516). 

c  It  is  then  the  word  f]"TK>  of  the  Bible,  with  the  same  idea  of  the 
burning  one,  from  the  root  *pK>,  which  we  find  in  Assyrian  sarapu,  to 
burn,  and  surupu,  burnt  (Sayce,  513,  22 2  a).  The  creature  depicted 
at  Beni  Hassan  is  the  winged  hawk-headed  lion,  the  gryphon  in  fact, 
allowing  for  the  substitution  of  the  Egyptian  hawk  for  the  Eastern 
eagle.  Now  the  lion  and  eagle  symbolise  heat,  especially  that  of  the 
sun,  and  the  combination  is  most  ancient.  In  Egypt  we  have  besides 
this  sere/ the  gryphon,  akhekh^  a  name  which  with  another  determina- 
tive denotes  a  serpent  and  appears,  like  saraf,  to  be  derived  from 
the  idea  of  burning,  since  we  have  akht  a  holocaust,  a  brazier  for 
incense  (compare  riK,  akh>  a  brazier,  Jer.  xxxvii.  22,  and  the  root 
nnx  Gesenius),  and  akhu,  fever  ;  also  akhi>  a  kind  of  bird  (Pierret, 
Vocab.  78-79),  and  akh  (with  the  determinative  of  a  wing),  to  fly.  I 
mention  this  series  to  illustrate  the  connection  of  ideas  between  fire 
and  flight,  associated  in  the  dragon  or  the  gryphon. 
n  *  -• 

'The    I          seref  of  Beni  Hassan  is  illustrated  in  a  most  in- 

I     ^—^^^ 

teresting  way  by  the  colloquy  between  a  jackal  and  an  Ethiopian 
cat,  which  M.  Revillout  has  brought  before  the  readers  of  the  Revue 
egyptienne  from  a  demotic  papyrus  of  about  the  time  of  Augustus 
(1880,  58  ;  1881,  86).  Here  we  meet  with  a  graduated  scale  of 
destruction  from  the  smallest  insect  upwards,  and  at  the  head  of  all 
the  destroyers  we  find  the  seref^  which  M.  Revillout  regards  as  a 
monstrous  bird,  probably  the  rokh  of  the  Arabs,1  but  nevertheless 
identifies  as  the  creature  of  Beni  Hassan  \  and  indeed  the  detailed 
description  of  him  in  the  papyrus  gives  us  "  his  beak  as  of  an  eagle, 
his  eye  as  of  a  man,  his  strong  sides  as  of  a  lion,  his  scales  as  of  some 
creature  (abakh,  fish  or  turtle?)  of  the  sea,  his  venom  as  of  a  serpent"; 
and  "  he  seizes  [his  prey]  in  his  claws  in  an  instant,  and  takes  them 
above  the  top  of  the  clouds  of  heaven."2  But  below  this  supreme 

1  [Or,  at  any  rate,  of  the  Arabian  Nights."] 

y  [This  description  closely  resembles  that  of  the  divine  Zu  bird  in  the  primitive 
Babylonian  mythology,  '  the  cloud-  or  storm-bird,  the  flesh-eating  bird,  the  lion  or 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH.  285 

creature  we  find  another  gryphon  called  nur.  Now  ">U  in  Chaldee 
is  fire,  and  here  we  have,  it  seems,  one  more  witness  to  the  fiery  nature 
of  the  gryphon  under  whatever  name.  It  is  the  symbol  of  Menthu  and 
Seti  or  Ba'al,  and  seems  to  have  come  from  the  East  to  Egypt ;  and 
so,  indeed,  do  the  Egyptian  words  in  question. 

'  In  very  ancient  Babylonian  cylinders  a  god  stands  on  a  gryphon, 
or  a  gryphon  appears  as  guardian  attendant  on  a  god.  (Studies  on 
the  Times  of  Abraham,  pi.  iii.  A.  c.). 

'  The  brazen  "  seraph  "  of  the  wilderness,  the  seraphim  of  Isaiah's 
vision,  and  the  kerubim  of  the  ark  find  in  Egypt  some  analogous 
expressions  of  form  and  symbol. 

'  When  Isaiah  "  saw  the  Lord  (Adonai)  sitting  upon  a  high  and 
exalted  throne,"  "  seraphim  were  standing  above  Him."  This  suggests 
to  me  the  symbolic  uraei  or  royal  serpents  above  the  enthroned  god, 
and  the  figure  of  the  heaven  above  all,  in  Egyptian  scenes  of  worship. 
I  mean  only  to  refer  to  the  position,  not  to  the  form,  of  the  seraphim. 
The  beak  of  the  eagle,  the  sides  of  the  lion,  the  eye  of  the  man^  in  the 
Egyptian  seref,  are  not  the  only  points  by  which  the  seraphim  are 
brought  near  to  the  cherubim  of  Ezekiel's  vision,  and  the  Apocalypse 
joins  the  six  wings  and  the  adoring  cry  of  the  seraph  with  the  attri- 
butes of  the  cherub. 

'In  the  biblical  visions  everything  is  divinely  exalted  and  hallowed, 
however  the  leading  ideas  of  fire  and  flight,  of  royal  attendance  and 
ministry,  may  be  clad  in  ancient  form. 

1  The  seraphim  have  both  wings  and  hands.  So  also  is  Isis  repre- 
sented with  wings  below  her  arms.  In  the  stately  and  graceful  figure 
of  Nut  at  the  bottom  of  the  magnificent  sarcophagus  of  Seti  I.  (at 
the  Soane  Museum)  the  goddess  has  wings  (below  her  arms)  folded 
closely  round,  and  reaching  towards,  but  not  to,  her  feet.  The 
seraphim  reverently  "with  twain  covered  their  feet."  In  Isaiah's 
sublime  vision  there  is  nothing  indicated  of  a  form  that  might  not  be 
human,  except  the  wings.  The  purifying  coal  (stone  ?)  from  the  altar 
reminds  one  of  the  cognate  verb  cp¥  (tsaraf)  to  purge  by  fire,  as  in 
Assyrian  tsarapu,  purifier  (Sayce,  227). 

'  The  Abbe  Vigouroux,  who  has  treated  with  great  care  the  subject 
of  Ezekiel's  vision,  notices  that  some  of  the  nirgalli  the  winged  lions 
of  Assyrian  portals,  have  human  figures  to  the  waist  with  their 
shoulders,  arms,  and  hands,  free  above  their  wings.  (La  Bible^  &c., 
iv.  348). 

*  We  have  seen  the  way  in  which  the  idea  flits  from  bird  to  quad- 
ruped or  serpent  among  the  Egyptians ;  Mr.  Cheyne  has  noticed  the 

giant  bird,  the  bird  of  prey,  the  bird  with  sharp  beak.'  Both  these  mystic  birds  remind 
us  of  the  Chinese  storm-bird  and  the  rokh  of  the  Arabian  Nights.  See  Sayce,  in 
Smith's  The  Chaldean  Account  of  Genesis  (Lond.  1880),  p.  123.] 


286 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 


same  thing  among  the  Israelites  and  the  Assyrians  (Isaiah,  first  ed., 
ii.  273).  He  connects  kirubu,  the  steer-god,  with  kurubu,  "the 
circling  bird ;  "  indeed  the  kirubu  of  the  portal  of  Hades  is  addressed 
as  "the  bull  produced  by  the  god  Zu,"  but  the  god  Zu  is  identified 
with  the  vast  storm- bird.  (Lenormant,  Les  Origims,  &c.,  p.  116).  The 
same  association  seems  true  of  the  idea  of  the  seraph. 

'  The  visible  or  imaginable  expressions  served  as  symbols  of  ideas, 
rather  than  as  pictures  of  existing  forms,  and  like  the  kerublm  of  the 
ark,  and  the  brazen  serpent  (sdrdf)  in  the  wilderness  (Num.  xxi.  8), 
were  hallowed  and  claimed  for  the  service  of  the  true  God  as  a 
"shadow  of  heavenly  things."  In  Egypt  the  serpent  " shai"  as  M. 
Revillout  writes,  "  seems  to  symbolise  the  supreme  divinity,  or,  to 
express  myself  better,  the  divine  forces  of  nature." 

*  Above  the  Enthroned,  the  prophet  sees  revealed  "the  bright 
seraphim  in  burning  row,"  and  their  cry  is  in  his  ears  not  only  the 
shout  of  universal  homage  but  the  restitution  of  alienated  glory. ' 

On  chap.  vii.  (vol.  i.  pp.  40,  41).  Prof,  de  Lagarde  expresses 
with  great  cogency  the  view  that  this  chapter  is  the  work  of  a  later 
editor.  He  calls  it  'ein  cento  aus  echten,  aber  musterhaft  unge- 
schickt  zusammengeflickten,  ausspruchen  des  Isaias. '  Unfortunately, 
he  takes  the  opportunity  of  introducing  anew  his  extremely  con- 
temptuous opinions  of  prophecy  and  the  prophets  (Semitica,  i.  9-13). 

On  vii.  1 3  (vol.  i.  p.  46).  A  misunderstanding  in  a  very  suggestive 
article,  ascribed  to  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Simcox,  in  the  Church  Quarterly 
Review  (July  1880,  p.  433,  note),  suggests  to  me  to  sum  up  as  briefly 
as  possible  my  views  respecting  the  'house  of  David.'  I  venture  to 
hold  that  the  royal  princes  (not  the  '  princes '  of  the  Auth.  Vers.  of 
Jeremiah)  formed  a  kind  of  order,  distinct,  nominally  at  any  rate, 
from  the  D^E?,  that  they  held  high  positions  in  the  State,  and  in 
Jeremiah's  time  exercised  the  royal  function  of  judgment  (Jer.  xxi. 
ii,  12  ;  comp.  on  Isa.  i.  10).  Further,  that  during  the  reign  of 
Josiah,  the  0*16?  (a  term  which  probably  includes  representatives 
of  the  people),  and  the  royal  princes,  were  both  equally  chargeable 
with  grave  offences  prejudicial  to  the  State  (Zeph.  i.  8).  Here  was 
no  doubt  the  germ  of  a  possible  oligarchy.  It  appears  from  Brugsch's 
History  that  the  same  germ  existed  in  Egypt.  Normally,  this  royal 
order  would  supply  the  counsellors  and  officials  of  the  king  ;  abnor- 
mally, they  would  (allying  themselves  perhaps  with  the  DHfc?  of 
non-royal  origin)  convert  the  king  into  a  kind  of  maire  du  palais. 
It  has  been  objected  by  the  writer  mentioned  above  that  the  mas- 
sacres of  Jehoram,  Athaliah,  and  Jehu  would  have  left  but  few  royal 
princes  remaining.  But  is  this  so  certain  ?  *  David,  according  to 
2  Sam.  v.  14-16,  had  no  less  than  eleven  sons  born  in  Jerusalem ; 
and  in  Zech.  xii.  1 2  a  sort  of  secondary  royal  family  is  mentioned, 
co-ordinately  with  "  the  house  of  David/'  viz. ,  "  the  house  of  Nathan  " ' 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISATAH.  287 

(LC.A.  p.  88).  It  seems  to  me  that  if  all  the  legitimate  descendants 
of  all  the  kings  and  kings'  sons  be  included,  the  '  house  of  David  ' 
(which  ought  strictly  to  include  the  'house  of  Nathan,'  from  which 
the  recognised  Davidic  representative,  Zerubbabel,  was  descended, 
(Luke  iii.  27,  31)  would  be  too  numerous  and  widely-spread  to  be 
destroyed.  Besides,  the  descendants  of  the  long-lived  Uzziah  would 
have  grown  up  by  the  time  of  the  Syrian  war. 

On  vii.  9  (vol.  i.  p.  46,  see  end  of  note).  Friedrich  Delitzsch 
remarks  (Parodies,  p.  287)  :  *  The  name  [Samsi-muruna]  reminds  us 
of  that  of  the  Canaanitish  (Phoenician)  royal  city  Shhnron-meron, 
Josh.  xii.  20,  which  was  perhaps  miswritten  for  Shemesh-meron  ' 
(comp.  Halevy's  explanation  in  my  note).  Samsi-muruna  is  men- 
tioned by  Sennacherib,  together  with  Sidon,  Arados,  and  Byblos 
(Delitzsch,  op.  tit.  p.  272). 

On  vii.  13  (vol.  i.  p.  48).  In  the  foot-note  I  have  mentioned  one 
relic  of  the  primitive  custom  of  giving  authority  to  the  mother-in-law. 
Indian  zenana-life  might  also  have  been  referred  to  ;  and  perhaps 
Mic.  vii.  6  may  be  quoted  in  this  connection — 'A  daughter-in-law 
shall  rise  up  against  her  mother-in-law.' 

On  vii.  14  (vol.  i.  p.  49).  The  '  sign '  of  Immanuel.  Mr.  Robert- 
son Smith  adopts  the  explanation  of  Roorda  and  Kuenen,  '  that  a 
young  mother  who  shall  become  a  mother  within  a  year  may  name 
her  child  "  God  with  us  ; " '  and  he  remarks  elsewhere  that  viii.  3,  4 
is  a  parallel  prophecy,  with  '  a  similar  and  quite  unambiguous  sign ' 
(The  Prophets  of  Israel,  pp.  272,  425).  There  is,  of  course,  no  doubt 
that,  in  some  sense,  the  birth  of  Maher-shalal-hash-baz  may  be  called 
a  '  sign  '  (see  commentary,  ad  loc.)  ;  the  only  difference  between  my- 
self and  Mr.  Smith  is  as  to  whether  *  sign '  in  vii.  14  is  to  be  used  in 
a  different  sense  from  that  in  which  it  is  used  in  vii.  1 1  ;  whether  it 
is  probable  that  Isaiah  offered  Ahaz  a  wonderful  'sign,'  in  vii.  u,  and 
finally  gave  him  one  of  a  lower  and  quite  ordinary  kind.  I  cannot 
see  that  this  is  probable.  Mr.  R.  Smith  does  not  offer  an  explana- 
tion of '  thy  land,  O  Immanuel,'  in  viii.  8. 

On  ix.  6  (vol.  i.  p.  59).  Prof.  Franz  Delitzsch  (Academy,  April  10, 
1880)  supposes  me  to  hold  that  the  five  titles  of  the  Messiah  form  a 
complete  sentence,  and  remarks  that  the  oldest  Assyrian  name  which 
he  has  met  with  is  Abu-ina-ekalli-lilbur — '  May  the  father  become  old 
in  the  palace.'  I  am  grateful  for  the  reference,  but  the  complaint 
should  have  been  addressed  to  Luzzatto,  and  not  to  me  (see  my 
note).  Such  an  elaborate  sentence-name  as  Luzzatto  supposes,  would 
not  be  natural  in  Isaiah's  time,  though  it  might  be  in  that  of  the 
writer  of  Chronicles,  who  distributes  the  sentence — 'I  have  given 
great  and  high  help  ;  I  have  spoken  visions  in  abundance '  among 
*  the  imaginary  sons  of  Heman,'  giving  a  fragment  of  it  to  each 
(i  Chron.  xxvi.  4). 


288  LAST   WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 

On  x.  9  (vol.  i.  p.  70).  Kadesh,  on  the  Orontes,  the  southern 
capital  of  the  Hittites,  had  a  Semitic  name  ;  hence  a  slight  presump- 
tion that  the  northern  capital  had  one  too.  Friedrich  Delitzsch 
(Paradies,  p.  268)  thinks  that  Carchemish  is  of  Aramaic  origin  ;  he 
analyses  it,  after  G.  Hoffmann,  into  K"P  ip?  '  fortress  of  Mish,' 
on  the  ground  that  the  earlier  name  of  Oropos  (i.e.  Carchemish  ?) 
was  Telmessus  (or  Telmissus),  i.e.  D"D  ^n,  '  heap  of  Mish '  (the 
'fortress'  having  at  last  become  a  'ruinous  heap').  Both  this 
scholar  and  Mr.  Sayce  reject  Gesenius's  connection  of  the  word  with 
Chemosh. 

On  xi.  ii  (vol.  i.  p.  79).  'And  from  the  countries  of  the  sea.' 
I  would  not  under  any  circumstances  propose  to  remove  these  words 
from  the  text,  since,  whoever  wrote  them,  they  have  come  down  to 
us  with  the  highest  sanction,  and  both  Isaiah  and  the  Soferim  or 
Scripturists  (see  p.  214)  must  be  regarded  as  'men  of  the  Spirit' 
(Hos.  ix.  7,  Hebr.).  But  the  fact  that  D"K  and  DM  "K  are  specially 
characteristic  of  chaps.  xl.-lxvi.,  renders  it  a  little  doubtful  whether 
Isaiah  himself  wrote  the  latter  phrase  in  this  verse,  which,  indeed, 
seems  complete  without  it.  It  is  possibly  due  to  an  editor  of  Isaiah, 
a  deep  student  of  Scripture,  and  firmly  persuaded  of  the  truth  of  the 
promise  of  deliverance  from  the  D"K,  so  explicitly  given  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  Book  (Ix.  9).  The  earliest  absolutely  certain  occurrences 
of  D^K  are  in  Jer.  ii.  10,  xxxi.  10.  I  doubt  whether  Isaiah  would 
have  used  DTI  "K  as  a  technical  phrase  in  but  one  passage  of  his 
'  occasional  prophecies.' 

On  xiii.  6  (vol.  i.  p.  83).  The  explanation  of  '  the  day  of  Jehovah ' 
here  given  will  only  suit  an  advanced  period  of  prophetico-religious 
thought.  In  Amos  v.  18,  probably  the  earliest  passage  in  which  the 
phrase  occurs  (the  antiquity  of  Joel  being  very  uncertain),  the  '  day 
of  Jehovah,'  which  the  men  of  N.  Israel  '  long  for,'  must  have  been 
a  day  of  victory,  and  not  a  day  of  judicial  retribution  for  Jew  and 
Gentile.  It  is  possible  that  the  conception  of  these  Israelites  may 
have  been,  not  an  attenuation  of  a  larger  prophetic  one,  but  the 
primitive,  popular  germ  of  the  much  more  developed  conception  in- 
dicated in  Isa.  xiii.  6-n,  Joel  iii.  11-16.  This  is  the  view  proposed 
by  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  (The  Prophets  of  Israel,  p.  397),  who  remarks 
that  '  the  "  days  "  of  the  Arabs  often  derive  their  name  from  a  place, 
but  may  equally  be  named  from  the  combatants,  e.g.,  "  the  days  of 
Tamim  against  Bekr."'  Amos  was  probably  the  first  prophet  to  take 
up  this  popular  phrase,  the  import  of  which  he  deepened  by  including 
the  idea  that  '  the  day '  would  be  one  of  '  darkness  and  not  light,'  for 
the  sinners  of  Israel  as  well  as  of  the  nations. 

On  xiii.  10  (vol.  i.  p.  84).  M.  Lenormant  has  pointed  out  that, 
according  to  the  Assyrian  calendar,  k'sil  should  be  the  constellation 
of  the  month  kisiluv  (li?p?  Chisleu,  Auth.  Vers.  Zech.  vii.  i,  Neh.  i.  i) 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH.  289 

— />.,  the  sagittary  (Les  ongines  de  Vhistoire,  i.  247).  But  why  should 
there  not  have  been  more  than  one  brilliant  constellation  called  k'silt 
We  can  thus  give  a  natural  explanation  of  the  plural,  and  do  justice 
to  the  ancient  authorities  in  favour  of  Orion. 

On  xiii.  21  (vol.  i.  p.  86).  The  word  okhlm  ('  shriekers '?)  is  to 
be  connected  with  the  Assyrian  akhu,  which  corresponds  to  the  '  Ac- 
cadian '  lig-bar-ra,  i.e.,  'beast  (dog)  striped.'  The  identification  is 
due  to  Mr.  Houghton,  Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  v.  328.  On  ciyylm 
(rendered  *  wild  cats ')  see  my  Notes  and  Criticisms  on  the  Hebrew 
Text  of  Isaiah,  p.  23. 

On  xiv.  4-21  (vol.  i.  pp.  85-90).  Dr.  Budde  has  well  pointed 
out  how  completely  \heform  of  this  mdshdl  is  elegiac  (Zeitschrift  fur 
die  alttestamentliche  Wissenschaft,  1882,  pp.  12-14).  Its  resemblance 
to  the  first  four  Lamentations  is  all  the  more  remarkable,  as  the  pre- 
ceding discourse  (xiii.  i-xiv.  2)  and  the  prophetic  epilogue  (xiv.  22,  23) 
are  written  in  entirely  different  styles.  Dr.  Budde  has  proposed 
various  emendations  to  restore  symmetry  to  the  song,  the  most  im- 
portant of  which,  however,  has  already  been  made  by  Ewald  (see 
on  v.  20). 

On  xiv.  13,  14  (vol.  i.  pp.  89,  90).  The  similarity  and  the  con- 
trast of  the  general  Oriental  and  the  Israelitish  view  of  royalty  will 
be  manifest.  Some  Israelitish  kings  had  not  even  a  shadow  of  divinity 
(Hos.  viii.  4).  The  Davidic  king,  no  doubt,  approaches  the  honour 
accorded  to  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  kings  ;  he  is  called  Jehovah's 
son  (2  Sam.  vii.  14,  Ps.  Ixxxix.  27),  but  so  too  is  the  people  of  Israel 
(Ex.  iv.  22,  Jer.  xxxi.  9,  Hos.  xi.  i).  It  is  only  the  Messiah  who  is 
described  somewhat  as  the  neighbouring  peoples  would  describe  their 
kings — not  only  as  '  my  companion  and  the  man  who  is  my  neighbour  ' 
(Zech.  xiii.  7,  pronouncing  re'i),  but  even  'el gibbor  (ix.  7,  Hebr.  6). 
The  exaggerated  royalism  of  the  proto-Babylonians,  however,  led 
them,  in  some  of  the  inscriptions,  to  attach  the  determinative  prefix 
of  divinity  to  the  names  of  their  kings.  Two  examples  of.  this  are 
given  by  Prof.  Sayce,  Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  v.  442  ;  comp.  Lenor- 
mant,  Etude  sur  quelques  parties  des  syllabaires  cuneiformes,  p.  I4.1 

On  xiv.  23  (vol.  i.  p.  93).  The  bittern  is  probably  called  kippod 
from  its  habit  of  erecting  or  bristling  out  the  long  feathers  of  the  neck, 
reminding  one  of  the  spines  of  the  porcupine  or  hedgehog.  In  Arabic, 
Syriac,  and  Ethiopic,  the  cognates  of  kippod  actually  mean  the  hedge- 
hog ;  in  Talmudic  the  usage  is  uncertain.  The  variety  of  meaning 
reminds  one  of  the  variety  in  the  usage  of  rtm  (see  on  xxxiv.  7).  The 
bittern,  unlike  the  hedgehog,  abounds  in  the  marshy  grounds  of  Meso- 
potamia, and  its  '  strange  booming  note  '  (Tristram)  is  as  awesome  a 
sound  as  the  wail  of  the  hyaena. 

1  I  am  indebted  for  these  references  to  Mr.  H.  G.  Tomkins,  Studies  in  the  Time 
of  Abraham,  p.  34. 

VOL.  II.  U 


2CjO 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 


On  chaps,  xv.  xvi.  (vol.  i.  p.  96).  I  have  endeavoured  to 
justice  to  the  various  textual  phenomena.  Knobel's  statement, 
though  true  in  the  main,  is  a  little  too  unqualified — *  the  passage  is 
throughout  so  peculiar  that  it  must  be  the  only  work  of  its  author 
in  the  Old  Testament.'  To  counterbalance  my  own  argument, 
and  so  give  the  reader  every  opportunity  of  forming  an  unbiassed 
opinion,  I  quote  here  Dr.  Weir's  view  as  to  the  authorship  of  the 
prophecy,  from  the  manuscript  notes  lent  to  me.  On  xvi.  1-5,  he 
confirms  the  opinion  I  have  myself  expressed  ;  his  suggestion  in  the 
words  italicised  would,  I  think,  carry  more  weight  were  it  accom- 
panied by  a  literary  analysis.  But  from  this,  Dr.  Weir  prudently 
abstained. 

'Assuming,  therefore,  that  the  two  concluding  verses  of  this 
prophecy  are  from  Isaiah,  is  the  rest  of  it  also  originally  his,  or  is  it 
to  be  assigned  to  another  and  an  older  author  ?  The  majority  of 
modern  expositors  are  disposed  to  adopt  the  latter  alternative  ;  and 
Hitzig,  followed  by  Maurer,  had  made  an  elaborate  attempt  to  prove 
that  the  real  author  of  the  prophecy  is  Jonah,  and  that  we  have  a 
Scriptural  reference  to  it  in  2  Kings  xiv.  25.  The  style,  it  is  said, 
differs  considerably  from  that  of  Isaiah  ;  the  frequent  repetition  of 
*?  and  }3  !?y  has  been  specially  noted  ;  also  the  accumulation  of 
geographical  names.  No  trace  here,  it  has  been  said,  of  Isaiah's 
light  and  rapid  march — of  his  bold  transitions  and  combinations  ; 
the  stream  of  thought  flows  tediously  and  heavily  along,  and  cause 
and  consequence  are  marked  with  cumbrous  accuracy.  It  must  be 
allowed  that  these  remarks  are  not  altogether  groundless.  The  style 
of  the  prophecy  certainly  differs  in  some  parts  from  the  usual  style 
of  Isaiah's  compositions  ;  though  none  but  an  impatient  and  fastidious 
critic  would  pronounce  it  heavy  and  tedious.  To  account  for  this 
difference,  it  is  to  be  observed  that  there  is  in  this  prophecy  a  more 
copious  outflow  of  sympathetic  emotion  than  we  usually  find  in  the 
earlier  prophecies  of  Isaiah,  arising  probably  in  part  from  the  historical 
relationship  which  subsisted  between  Israel  and  Moab  ;  and  such 
emotion  is  quite  inconsistent  with  the  light  and  rapid  march  which 
some  critics  desiderate  here.  And  if  this  is  not  thought  to  furnish 
an  adequate  explanation  of  all  the  alleged  peculiarities,  there  is  no 
reason  why  we  should  refuse  to  avail  ourselves  of  the  hypothesis  that 
some  of  the  verses^  especially  in  the  fifteenth  chapter^  may  have  been 
quoted  from  an  earlier  prophecy.1 

'  Granting  this,  it  appears  to  me  very  certain  that  the  prophecy  is 
substantially  from  the  pen  of  Isaiah.  The  middle  stanza  (xvi.  1-5) 
is,  I  should  say,  unquestionably  Isaiah's.  In  the  last  stanza  the  de- 
scription of  the  vine  of  Sibmah  may  be  brought  into  comparison 
with  v.  1-6,  and  the  prominence  given  to  the  '  pride '  of  Moab  as  the 

1  The  italics  are  the  editor's. 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH.  2QI 

cause  of  Moab's  fall  is  just  what  we  should  expect  from  the  author 
of  chap.  ii.  In  the  first  stanza  (chap,  xv.)  also  there  are  indications, 
not  obscure,  of  the  hand  of  Isaiah,  as  in  the  latter  part  of  v.  6,  and 
in  the  closing  words  of  the  stanza  (ns^?$  in  the  construct  state 
being  found  only  in  Isaiah — comp.  iv.  2,  x.  20,  xxxvii.  3).' 

On  xv.  6  (vol.  i.  p.  96).  '  The  waters  of  Nimrim.'  Seetzen  had 
already  identified  Nimrim  with  the  lower  part  (still  called  Nahr 
Nimrin)  of  the  Wady  pointed  out  (see  note  in  vol.  i.)  by  Consul 
Wetzstein,  the  luxuriant  meadows  of  which  form  a  strong  contrast 
with  the  gloomy  scenery  of  the  Wady  en-Numeira.  As  to  the  mean- 
ing of  the  name  Nimrim,  it  is  rather  tempting  to  connect  it  with 
Arab,  namtr,  Assyr.  namri  '  transparent,'  and  to  suppose  that  Beth 
Nimra  derived  its  name  from  the  waters.  But  it  has  been  pointed 
out  that  there  are  other  places  with  names  from  the  same  root,  and 
that  in  olden  times  there  were  divisions  of  Arab  tribes  bearing  names 
(Namir,  Anmar,  Nomeyr)  strongly  suggestive  of  the  panther.  The 
Syriac  writer,  Jacob  of  Sarug,  also  speaks  of  bar  nemre,  '  the  son  of 
panthers,'  as  a  false  deity  of  Harran.  I  find  it  therefore  impossible 
to  resist  the  conclusion  that  in  Nimrim,  as  well  as  in  the  other  cases, 
there  is  a  reference  to  the  panther.  What  this  panther  is,  will  be 
clear  to  those  who  are  convinced  by  Mr.  M'Lennan's  evidence,  that 
in  widely  separated  countries  a  primitive  form  of  worship  prevailed 
called  totemism — i.e.  l  animals  were  worshipped  by  tribes  of  men  who 
were  named  after  them  and  believed  to  be  of  their  breed.'  It  is 
certain  that  the  ancient  Semitic  peoples  worshipped  many  animal 
gods,  and  the  most  reasonable  view  is  that  these  were  totems  or 
animal- fetishes.  Such  a  totem  to  some  of  the  Semitic  clans  of  Syria 
and  Arabia  was  apparently  the  panther,  and  from  this  panther  the 
places  called  Nimra,  Nimara,  &c.,  naturally  derived  their  names. 
(See  further  below,  on  Ixv.  4,  Ixvi.  3,  17.)  So  Mr.  Robertson  Smith, 
to  whose  important  paper  in  the  Journal  of  Philology  for  1880  I  refer 
the  reader.  I  do  not,  however,  see  that  there  is  a  radical  difference 
between  him  and  Graf  Baudissin  as  to  the  import  of  the  animal 
deities  of  the  Semites ;  for  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  planets 
were  regarded  by  primitive  man  (comp.  the  Accadian  term  for  the 
planets,  lubat — i.e.  'a  kind  of  carnivorous  quadruped,'  Lenormant) 
as  having  a  quasi-animal  existence. 

On  xvii.  2  (vol.  i.  p.  104).  The  Assyrian  inscriptions  speak  of  a 
place  called  Qarqara,  '  thrown  down,  dug  up,  burned  with  fire '  by 
Shalmaneser  II.,  and  again  'reduced  to  ashes'  by  Sargon.  (See 
Records  of  the  Past,  iii.  99,  ix.  6.)  Mr.  G.  Smith  identifies  this  place 
with  Aroer,  and  brings  the  latter  event  into  connection  with  Isa.  xvii. 
2  (Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.,  ii.  328).  For  the  interchange  of  sounds, 
comp.  Kjnx  and  Np"iS  in  Chaldee. 

On  xvii.  8  (vol.  i.  pp.  105-6).  Dr.  Stade  (Gesch.  des  Volkes  Israel, 

u  2 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 


1 88 1,  p.  184)  and  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  (The  Old  Testament  in  the 
Jewish  Church,  p.  226)  have  recently  revived  the  opinion  that  the 
word  Ashe'rah  is  not  the  name  of  a  goddess,  but  means  'a  pole,'  and 
that  this  pole  was  the  symbol  of  the  sacred  tree,  which  stood  on  or 
near  the  altars  of  the  'high  places.'    This  seems  to  be  opposed,  not 
only  by  the  occurrence  of  Asher  in  Hebrew  literature  (most  probably 
to  be  explained  on  the  analogy  of  Gad,  as  originally  a  divine  name), 
but  also  by  passages  of  the  Old  Testament  literature  (see  i  Kings 
xv.    13,  2  Chron.  xv.   16,  2  Kings  xxi.   7,  where  an  image  of  the 
Ashe'rah  is  spoken  of ;  2  Kings  xxiii.  4,  7,  where  we  find  vessels  and 
tents  for  the  Ashe'rah  ;  i  Kings  xviii.  19 — 'the  prophets  of  the  Baal  and 
the  prophets  of  the  Asherah '). !    The  truth  is  that  the  word  Ashe'rah  has 
a  twofold  value  in  the  Old  Testament,   i.  as  a  divine  title,  and  2.  as 
a  material  symbol  of  a  divinity.     The  feminine  termination  indicates 
that  the  divinity  was  a  goddess  ;  but  what  goddess  is  intended  ?    Dr. 
Franz  Delitzsch,  in  his  review  of  voL  L  conjectures  that  Asherah  was 
first  of  all  a  title  of  the  goddess  Ashtoreth,  which  among  the  Canaanites 
in  course  of  time  supplanted  her  proper  designation.     My  original 
view,  however,  remains  unrefuted     Compilers  were  prone  to  con- 
found names  (e.g.   Sargon  and  Sennacherib  in  Isaiah,  Cyrus  and 
Darius  in  Daniel),  and  when  the  worship  of  Asherah  had  passed 
away,  it  was  natural  to  identify  this  goddess  with  the  better  known 
Ashtoreth,  in  spite  of  the  difference  of  the  initial  guttural.     I  now 
suspect,  however,  that  the  truth  may  perhaps  unite  elements  both  of 
Dr.   Delitzsch's  and  of  my  former  view.     As  has  been  remarked 
already  (vol.  i.  p.  89),  there  was  a  masculine  as  well  as  a  feminine 
Ishtar  (Istar)  or  Venus  ;  king  Mesha,  for  example,  speaks  of  Astar- 
Kemosh  (Inscr.  1.  17).    May  not  the  Canaanitish  Asherah  correspond 
to  the  feminine  Ishtar  (identified  in  an  important  cuneiform  inscrip- 
tion with  Beltis),  who  represents  'the  luxuriously  sensual  goddess  of 
rest  in  the  arms  of  love '  (Friedr.  Delitzsch 2),  while  Ashtoreth,  or 
more  properly  Astart,  may  be  a  later  popular  derivative  of  Ishtar  or 
Ashtar,  the  stern  god  of  war  ?     M.   Pinches  has  already  remarked 
that  '  two  such  opposite  attributes  could  not  long  remain  the  charac- 
teristics of  one  goddess  [deity] ;  so,  gradually  becoming  distinct  in 
the  popular  mind,  they  became  the  attributes  of  two  distinct  goddesses 
[deities]  of  the  same  name  but  of  different  parentage.'3 

On  chap,  xviii.  In  an  essay  on  this  chapter  (Friends'  Quarterly 
Examiner,  Oct.  1881),  Mr.  Thomas  Hodgkin  has  attempted  a  new 
theory  of  the  meaning  of  this  chapter,  based  upon  a  careful  study 
of  Brugsch-Pasha's  History  of  Egypt.  He  concludes  'that  in  this 
chapter  the  prophet  warns  the  world-shadowing  kings  of  Ethiopia 

1  I  take  these  references  from  Graf  Baudissin's  very  complete  article  '  Aschera '  in 
Herzog's  Realencyclopddie,  2nd  ed.,  i.  719-25. 

2  George  Smi'th'  s  Chalddische  Genesis,  p.  272. 

3  Records  of  the  Past,  xi.  60. 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH.  293 

of  the  insecure  tenure  by  which  they  hold  their  empire.  They  may 
send  despatch-boat  after  despatch-boat  down  the  Nile  to  summon 
their  vassals  of  the  Delta  to  their  intended  campaign  against  Assyria, 
campaigns  which  are  to  be  commenced  at  least  upon  the  often- 
devastated  soil  of  Palestine.  All  will  not  avail  them  ....  Summer 
and  winter  will  pass  over  the  unburied  corpses  of  the  Ethiopians  and 
their  Egyptian  subjects  in  the  land  of  Israel.'  This  theory,  as  well 
as  the  older  one  that  the  Jews  are  the  nation  referred  to  in  vv.  2,  7, 
is  due  to  a  want  of  tact  in  dealing  with  the  peculiar  phraseology  of 
these  verses.  Mr.  Hodgkin's  *  land-mensuration  and  husbandry '  (in 
the  last  clause  but  one)  is  no  less  absurd  than  the  '  scattered  and 
peeled  '  which  he  rightly  rejects  in  a  previous  clause.  Mr.  Hodgkin 
also  misses  the  connection  between  chap,  xviii.  and  xvii.  12-14.  See 
also  vol.  i.  p.  109, 

On  xviii.  2  (vol.  i.  p.  no),  'vessels  of  papyrus/  Compare  Me- 
moires  du  due  de  Rovigo,  i.  94  :  '  On  donna  la  lettre  a  porter  a  un  fellah 
qui  ne  prit  pas  d'autre  moyen  pour  executer  sa  commission,  que  de 
lier  ensemble  deux  bottes  de  joncs,  sur  lesquelles  il  se  plaga  assis  a 
la  turque,  avec  sa  pipe  et  un  peu  de  dattes,  ne  prenant  que  sa  lance 
pour  se  defendre  contre  les  crocodiles,  et  une  petite  rame  pour  se 
diriger.  Place  ainsi  sur  cette  frele  embarcation,  il  s'abandonna  au 
cours  du  fleuve,  et  arriva  sans  accident.' 

On  xx.  6  (vol.  i.  p.  123).  Dr.  Kay  illustrates  the  historical  bear- 
ings of  this  prediction  (i)  by  Sennacherib's  expression  (xxxvi.  6), 
'this  bruised  reed,  Egypt,'  which  'looks  as  if  Egypt  had  suffered 
some  serious  reverse,'  and  (2)  by  Nahum's  prediction  (iii.  8-10)  of 
the  '  exile '  and  the  'captivity'  of  'No-Amon'  (the  Egyptian  Thebes). 
Both  references  are  in  point,  though  Dr.  Kay's  suggestion  that  it 
was  Sargon  who.  captured  '  No-Amon '  is  only  possible  through  his 
singular  heresy  relative  to  the  state  of  cuneiform  decipherment 
{Speaker's  Commentary,  vol.  v.  p.  143).  The  merest  tyro  in  Assyri- 
ology  knows  that  it  was  Assurbanipal  by  whom  the  Egyptian  Thebes 
was  captured  and  spoiled.  Sennacherib's  expression,  'this  bruised 
reed,'  doubtless  refers  to  the  crushing  defeat  which  Egypt  sustained 
at  Raphia,  and  which  was  perhaps  an  incipient  fulfilment  of  the 
prediction  in  xx.  6,  just  as  the  captivity  which  followed  on  the 
subsequent  conquest  of  Egypt  was  a  full  and  complete  one. 

On  xxi.  i  (vol.  i.  p.  125).  Another  explanation  is  tenable.  D*1  IIIE 
may  mean  either  'plain  country  of  the  sea'  or  'desert  of  the  sea.' 
The  writer  of  the  heading  may  have  designedly  chosen  an  ambiguous 
expression  (comp.  perhaps  v.  u);  Dr.  Delitzsch  compares  for  the 
former  meaning  mat  tihamtiv  '  land  of  the  sea,'  a  phrase  for  Baby- 
lonia in  the  cuneiform  inscriptions. 

On  xxi.  13  (vol.  i.  p.  128).  Prof.  H.  L.  Strack  criticizes  the  word 
'  superfluously ' ;  might  not  the  Dedanites  have  lived  outside  '  Arabia,' 


294  LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 

using  this  word  in  the  limited  sense  of  antiquity  ?  But  Dedan  appears, 
from  v.  1 6,  to  be  included  under  *  Kedar,'  and  Assurbanipal  expressly 
recognises  a  part,  at  least,  of  Kedar  as  Arabian  :  his  words  are,  *  and 
the  Kidrai  of  Vaiteh  son  of  Birvul  (?)  king  of  Aribi '  (G.  Smith,  Assur- 
banipal)  p.  271,  Records  of  the  Past,  i.  96).  Besides,  Aribi  is  a  fairly 
comprehensive  term,  though  not  nearly  so  wide  as  our  Arabia 
(Schrader,  K.  A.  T.,  p.  56). 

On  xxii.  13  (vol.  i.  p.  134).  They  are  sacrificial  feasts  which  are 
referred  to,  for  at  that  time  (as  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  points  out) 
sacrifice  and  feast  were  identical.  Thus  we  get  an  incidental  con- 
firmation of  the  date  assigned  in  vol.  i.  to  chap,  i.,  which  contains  so 
striking  a  description  (see  i.  n)  of  the  multiplied  sacrifices  called 
forth  by  the  danger  of  the  state. 

On  xxii.  17  (vol.  i.  p.  135).  The  view  of  1£|  as  a  vocative  (so 
Pesh.,  Ibn  Ezra,  Kimchi,  Hitz.,Ew.)  certainly  gives  more  force  to  the 
passage  than  any  other. 

The  omission  of  the  article  under  the  excitement  of  feeling  ought 
not  to  need  a  justification  (comp.  Isa.  i.  T,  Job  xvi.  18). 

On  xxiii.  3  (vol.  i.  p.  138).  Friedrich  Delitzsch  thinks  Shihor 
means  the  Pelusiac  arm  of  the  Nile,  comparing  Josh.  xiii.  3,  '  Shihor 
which  is  before  (i.e.  to  the  east  of)  Egypt' ;  he  doubts  the  connection 
with  "intf>  '  dark-grey '  (  Wo  lag  das  Paradies  ?  p.  311). 

On  xxvi.  8  (vol.  i.  p.  151).  The  Name,  or  Face,  of  Jehovah  seems 
an  approach  to  a  personal  mode  of  being  in  the  Godhead.  The 
Semitic  deities,  indeed,  were  not  triads  but  duads.  They  were 
originally  the  productive  powers  of  nature,  and  were  grouped  in 
couples  of  male  and  female  principles,  under  the  names  of  Baal  and 
Baalath  (or  Baaltis),  and  Ashtar  (or  Ashtor)  and  Ashtoreth,  or  by  a 
cross-division,  Baal  and  Ashtoreth.  In  Eshmunazar's  inscription 
(vii.  8,  9,  Schlottmann),  the  king  and  his  mother  say  that  they  have 
built  two  houses  or  temples,  the  one  '  to  the  Baal  of  Sidon,'  and  the 
other  'to  Ashtoreth  (or  Astarte),  the  Name  of  Baal.'  (Ewald's  ren- 
dering— 'To  Ashtoreth  of  the  name  of  Baal,'  and  Dillmann's  'To 
the  heavenly  Ashtoreth  (wife)  of  Baal,'  seem  to  me  unnatural,  and 
to  be  due  to  a  prejudice  against  the  androgynous  character  of  the 
Semitic  deity.)  It  is  remarkable  that  they  should  have  built  two 
temples.  This  shows  that  the  unity  of  the  Godhead  was  lost  sight  of 
by  the  Phoenicians,  at  any  rate  in  the  fourth  century  B.C.  The  com- 
piler of  the  Book  of  Kings,  however,  who  adheres  to  the  unity  of 
the  Godhead,  speaks  indifferently  of  '  the  house  of  Jehovah '  and  of 
'  a  house  (built)  unto  the  name  of  Jehovah '  (i  Kings  iii.  i,  2).  Com- 
pare Ginsburg's  note  on  the  Ashtar- Chemosh  of  the  Inscription  of 
Mesha  (The  Moabite  Stone,  1871,  p.  43). 

On  xxvii.  i  (vol.  i.  p.  155).  (Add  a  reference  to  Ezek.  xxi.  9  (14).) 
The  heavenly  sword  of  Jehovah  (comp.  xxxiv.  5),  reminds  us  of  the 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH*  295 

heavenly  bow.  For  the  '  bow  of  Jehovah  '  is  not  only  '  set  in  the 
(visible)  cloud'  (Gen.  ix.  13),  but  also  'round  about  the  Throne'  in 
heaven  (Rev.  iv.  3)  ;  and  the  *  bow '  like  the  '  sword '  has  its  Assyrian 
parallel,  viz.  the  '  bow '  of  Istar,  the  '  archer  of  the  gods,'  granted,  as 
was  believed,  to  her  devoted  servant  Assurbanipal  (Records  of  the 
Past,  ix.  49,  52). 

On  xxvii.  8  (vol.  i.  p.  158).  The  best  exegesis  of  this  passage  is 
given  by  Riehm,  Der  Begriff  der  Suhne  im  A.  T.,  pp.  12,  13,  note  2. 

On  xxviii.  10  (vol.  i.  p.  161).  With  'a  little  here,  a  little  there,' 
comp.  the  word  used  by  Micah's  opponents  in  Mic.  ii.  6  :  '  Do  not 
keep  dropping,'  i.e.,  constantly  finding  fault  (a  part,  at  least,  of  the 
meaning  of  the  Hebrew). 

On  xxviii.  18  (vol.  i.  p.  163).  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  takes  the 
'  covenant  with  Death  '  and  the  '  covenant  with  Shedl '  to  refer  to  an 
alliance  with  '  the  fatal  power  of  the  Assyrians '  (The  Prophets  of  Israel y 
1882,  p.  284). 

On  xxviii.  29  (vol.  i.  p.  165).  Besides  ix.  6,  referred  to  in  my 
note,  comp.  Job  xi.  6,  where  Mr.  Robertson  Smith  acutely  corrects 
IWinS  D^S  *O  'for  wonders  (belong)  to  (his)  wisdom'  (or,  his 
realising  power). 

On  xxx.  22  (vol.  i.  p.  174).  It  is  remarkable  and  instructive  that 
in  this  description  of  the  break  with  Israel's  past  which  must  precede 
the  conferring  of  God's  best  gifts,  nothing  is  said  of  the  destruction 
of  the  high  places.  It  is  only  by  inference  that  we  can  assume  the 
tacit  opposition  of  Isaiah  to  the  ancient  custom  of  worshipping  at 
the  local  sanctuaries — an  inference  drawn  partly  from  Isaiah's  stress 
on  the  supreme  importance  of  Mount  Zion  (ii.  2,  3,  xxviii.  16,  xxix.  8), 
and  partly  from  the  more  or  less  complete  temporary  abolition  of  the 
high  places  by  the  prophet's  royal  friend,  Hezekiah.  Considering 
Isaiah's  reserve,  is  it  not  more  than  probable  that  Dathe,  Roorda, 
and  Kuenen  are  right  in  reading  '  the  sin  (of  Judah) '  (khattath} 
instead  of  '  the  high  places '  (bamotK)  in  Mic.  i.  5  ?  They  have,  more- 
over, on  their  side  the  authority  of  the  three  most  ancient  versions — 
Sept.,  Pesh.,  and  Targ.  The  received  reading  is  an  altogether  un- 
paralleled expression,  and  brings  Micah,  the  peasant-prophet,  into 
opposition  to  his  leader  (as  we  may  fairly  regard  Isaiah),  the  most 
original  and  creative  of  all  the  prophets.  Bamoth  may  have  been 
originally  a  marginal  note,  intended  to  explain  in  what  the  sin  of 
Judah  consisted.  Even  the  abolition  of  idolatry  is  spoken  of  by 
Isaiah  as  something  still  future — a  proof  of  the  imperfect  character 
of  Hezekiah's  early  reformation. 

On  xxx.  29  (vol.  i.  p.  176).  Can  the  '  feast '  referred  to  have  been 
that  of  Booths  or  Tabernacles?  It  is  true,  Neh.  viii.  17  distinctly 
affirms  that  this  feast  had  not  been  observed  '  since  the  days  of  Jeshua 
the  son  of  Nun  unto  that  day '  ;  but  this  must  mean  *  not  observed 


296 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 


in  the  formal  way  prescribed  by  the  Law.'  For  the  Biblical  references 
compel  us  to  assume  that  some  kind  of  festival  was  kept  after  the 
autumn  ingathering,  during  which  men  lived  in  the  open  air  in 
booths  (Hos.  xii.  9) ;  and  though  the  feast  doubtless  had  what  may 
be  called  its  secular  side,  a  religious,  '  Jehovistic '  aspect  cannot  be 
ignored  (i  Kings  viii.  65  ;  *  the  feast '). 

On  xxxi.  i  (vol.  i.  p.  178).  The  reputation  of  the  Egyptian 
cavalry  is  forcibly  shown  by  a  passage  in  Sennacherib's  description 
of  the  battle  of  Altaku  : — '  The  kings  of  Egypt,  and  the  soldiers, 
archers,  chariots,  and  horses  of  Ethiopia,  forces  innumerable,  gathered 
together  and  came  to  their  assistance,'  &c.  (Records  of  the  Past,  i.  36). 
The  illustration  is  due  to  M.  Vigouroux. 

On  xxxvi.  2  (vol.  i.  p.  205).  'The  Rab-shakeh.'  This  hybrid 
formation  is  more  startling  to  us  than  it  was  to  the  Assyrians,  who 
had  fully  adopted  sak  c  captain '  into  their  vocabulary.  Such  for- 
mations were  not  altogether  uncommon.  M.  Lenormant  compares 
the  name  of  the  god  Papsukal,  the  messenger  of  the  gods,  from  the 
Accadian/tf/  and  the  Semitic  sukal. 

On  xxxvii.  24  (vol.  i.  p.  214).  The  Rev.  H.  G.  Tomkins  kindly 
supplements  my  note  thus  : — '  Comp.  further  the  mention  of  the 
felling  of  cedars,  &c.  in  Lebanon  and  Amanus  in  the  Assyrian  Annals, 
and  the  "Remenen  "  (Lebanon)  in  Egyptian  sculptures  in  relief,  with 
trees  felled.' 

On  xxxix.  7  (vol.  i.  p.  234).  Dr.  Delitzsch,  in  his  review  of  vol.  i., 
has  the  following  remark  :  '  The  parallel  from  Isaiah's  contemporary, 
Micah  ("  Thou  shalt  go  to  Babylon,"  iv.  8),  he  passes  over  very  lightly ; 
"Babylon  is  mentioned  there  only  as  a  part  of  the  Assyrian  empire." 
Certainly,  but  as  the  ruling  city  of  the  empire  of  the  world,  though 
that  empire  be  held  at  the  time  by  Assyria.'  But  how  is  it  possible 
for  Babylon  to  be  mentioned  as  at  the  same  time  a  part  of  the  Assyrian 
empire,  and  a  symbol  of  the  capital  of  the  imperial  power  ctTrXcos  ? 
The  two  significations  of  Babylon  cannot  surely  be  combined.  One 
is  also  entitled  to  ask  what  evidence  there  is  for  this  symbolic  use  of 
the  term  Babylon  at  so  early  a  date  ?  It  is  true  that  *  the  River ' — 
i.e.,  the  Euphrates — is  used  once  in  Isaiah  (viii.  7)  to  represent  the 
Assyrian  empire  ;  but  this  is  not  a  parallel  case,  the  expression  being 
chosen  simply  in  order  to  produce  a  striking  poetical  figure.  I  am 
now  able  to  refer  for  a  full  expression  of  my  views  on  Mic.  iv.  8,  to 
my  note  on  the  passage  in  the  Cambridge  School  edition  of  Micah, 
where  the  hypothesis  of  interpolation  is  advocated,  but  not  on  any 
arbitrary  ground. 

On  xliv.  28  (vol.  i.  p.  285).  Dr.  Kuenen  proposes  (Hibbert 
Lectures,  1882,  p.  132)  to  pronounce,  not  ro'i  'my  shepherd,'  but  re't 
( my  companion,'  comparing  Zech.  xiii.  7,  where,  as  he  truly  says, 
this  correction  is  required  to  match  the  parallel  line  ('  the  man  who 


is  my  neighbour  ').  The  mistake  would  be  a  natural  one  ;  in  Jer. 
iii.  i,  Sept.  and  Pesh.  misread  rd'tm  instead  of  re'tm.  But  the 
received  pronunciation  gives  a  good  sense  here  ('  my  shepherd  '= 
'the  shepherd  appointed  by  me,'  comp.  'his  king/  Ps.  xviii.  50,  Heb. 
51),  and  produces  a  parallelism  with  '  his  anointed  '  in  the  next  verse. 
If,  however,  we  accept  the  correction,  it  is  the  highest  title  which 
Cyrus  has  received  from  the  prophet;  see  above  on  xiv.  13,  14. 

On  xlv.  7  (vol.  i.  p.  289).  In  the  closing  words  of  this  striking 
declaration,  does  'all  these  things'  mean  'all  that  has  been  men- 
tioned,' or  'all  this  that  thou  seest'  (i.e.  the  universe,  comp.  Ixvi.  2)? 
Naeg.  is  nearly  solitary  among  the  moderns  in  preferring  the  latter 
view,  though  Rab  Chanina  in  the  third  century  A.D.  appears  to  have 
adopted  it.  '  Great  is  peace  '  (the  peaceable  character),  he  observed, 
'  for  it  is  made  equal  to  the  whole  creation  in  the  words  of  the  pro- 
phet.' It  was  the  same  Rabbi  who  said  that  he  had  learned  'much 
from  his  teachers,  more  from  his  school-fellows,  but  most  of  all  from 
his  pupils.' 

On  xlv.  8  (vol.  i.  p.  289).  The  mythic  form  of  speech  referred 
to  may  be  illustrated  by  the  Arabic  phrases  mentioned  above  on  iv.  2 
(Last  Words}.  See  also  Lagarde  on  Astarte,  Nachrichten  der  Getting. 
Ges.,  1881,  p.  398;  Robertson  Smith,  The  Prophets  of  Israel  (1882), 
pp.  172,  409. 

On  xlv.  14  (vol.  i.  p.  292).  This  voluntary  servitude  is  yet  not 
servile  ;  the  symbol  reminds  us  of  xliv.  5  (clauses  i  and  3).  '  Mystic 
union'  explains  it.  The  'higher  exegesis'  (if  I  may  repeat  the  phrase 
ventured  upon  above,  p.  192)  is  therefore  in  thorough  accord  with 
the  primary,  natural  meaning  of  the  passage.  St.  Athanasius  ex- 
presses it  thus,  '  Because  of  our  relationship  to  His  (Christ's)  body, 
we  too  have  become  God's  Temple,  and  in  consequence  are  made 
God's  sons,  so  that  even  in  us  the  Lord  is  worshipped,  and  beholders 
report,  as  the  Apostle  says,  that  God  is  in  them  of  a  truth  '  (Select 
Treatises,  Oxford  transl.,  Part  I.  p.  241).  The  direct  reference  of 
course  is  to  i  Cor.  xiv.  25,  where  St.  Athanasius  interprets  ev 


'  in  you,'  i.e.  in  mystic  union  with  you,  for  which  I  think  he  has  the 
analogy  of  this  passage  of  Isaiah  (Sept.  eV  <rot  6  ®eos).  St.  Paul, 
indeed,  is  not  improbably  alluding  to  the  prophecy  ;  he  says  that  the 
heathen  visitor  '  shall  worship  God,'  but  clearly  means  '  God  in  the 
Church,'  as  St.  Athanasius  explains  (comp.  my  note  on  Isa.  I.e.}. 

On  li.  6.  Prof.  H.  L.  Strack  remarks,  'Would  not  the  moth 
(W\))  be  a  more  likely  animal  to  select  for  an  image  of  perishability 
(comp.  Job  iv.  19,  xxvii.  18)?'  He  would  explain  as  Delitzsch. 
But  in  Job  xxvii.  18  we  should  rather  read  B»3Dy  'a  spider,'  with 
Sept.  (one  of  two  renderings),  Pesh.,  Merx,  and  Hitzig.  A  single 
passage  of  Job  does  not  outweigh  the  Semitic  parallels  cited  in  my 
note. 


298 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH. 


On  Hi.  13,  &c.  (The  portrait  of  the  Servant.)  A  combination  of 
influences,  both  Biblical  and  Platonic  (comp.  reference  above,  p.  182, 
note  *),  seems  to  have  produced  the  outer  form  of  a  remarkable  pas- 
sage in  the  Wisdom  of  Solomon  (ii.  12-21)  which  has  been  too  much 
overlooked,1  and  which  seems  to  be  a  link  between  the  Jewish  and 
the  Hellenic  world  analogous  to  that  supplied  in  another  section 
of  prophecy  by  the  Sibylline  Oracle  on  the  Koprj  and  her  royal  child 
(see  on  Isa.  xi.  vol.  i.  p.  75). 

On  liii.  10.  'It  pleased  Jehovah.'  A  poet's  words  often  have 
deep  and  true  meanings,  of  which  he  was  not  himself  conscious,  but 
which  he  would  certainly  not  have  disowned.  Such  a  meaning  of 
the  prophet's  expression  has  been  pointed  out  by  Dr.  Weir.  'Obs., 
it  is  not  God,  but  Jehovah.  We  thought  him  smitten  by  Elohim  (v. 
4) ;  but  no.  It  was  by  Israel's  God  and  for  Israel's  sake.' 

Wellhausen  denies  that  DK>K  in  this  passage  has  the  sense 

of  'guilt- offering.'2  As  a  commentator  on  Isaiah,  I  am  not  called 
upon  to  discuss  the  theory  which  lies  at  the  root  of  this  bold  negation. 
The  question  is  a  complicated  one  ;  but  I  may  venture  to  assert  thus 
much — that  the  position  of  Kalisch,3  that  the  laws  concerning  the 
sin-offerings  and  guilt-offerings  were  modified  or  amended  at  a  late 
period,  is  certainly  much  more  tenable  than  that  of  Wellhausen  (viz. 
that  'sin-offerings  and  'guilt -offerings'  were  absolutely  unknown 
prior  to  the  Babylonian  Captivity).  In  Isa.  i.  n  (comp.  Mic.  vi.  7) 
we  have  already  found  one  probable  allusion  to  the  l  guilt- offering,' 
and  Wellhausen  has  still  to  prove  that  the  rendering  '  guilt-offering ' 
is  unsuitable  for  DK>N  in  2  Kings  xii.  1 7,  Hos.  iv.  8.  Moreover,  in 
the  passage  quoted  from  the  exile-prophet  Ezekiel  (xl.  39)  there  is 
nothing,  as  Delitzsch  remarks,4  to  indicate  that  the  sin-offering  and 
the  guilt-offering  were  of  later  introduction  than  the  burnt-offering, 
in  combination  with  which  they  are  mentioned.  Nor  are  the  sup- 
posed novelties  referred  to  at  all  more  frequently  by  the  later  writers. 
Sin-offerings  are  mentioned  twice  (Neh.  x.  34,  2  Mace.  xii.  43)  ; 
guilt- offerings  only  once  (Delitzsch  says,  not  even  once  ;  but  in  Ezra 
x.  19  we  should  probably  point  DVpSpg  with  Gratz,  Gesch.  der  Juden, 
ii.  2,  p.  133). 

On  chap.  Ivi.  (Introduction).  The  remark  made  above  on  the 
growing  strictness  of  the  observance  of  the  Jewish  Sabbath  acquires 
special  importance  in  view  of  the  recent  discovery  of  an  Assyrian 
Sabbath — a  '  dies  nefastus,'  on  which  the  king  at  any  rate  was  closely 
restrained  from  almost  every  form  of  activity.  We  do  not  know  how 
far  this  severe  rule  extended  in  Assyria,  but  the  probability  is  that 

1  Not,  however,  I  observe,  by  Dr.  Mozley  (Essays,  ii.  224). 

2  Wellhausen,  Geschichte  Israels,  i.  76. 

3  Kalisch,  Leviticus,  i.  274. 

4  Delitzsch,    '  Pentateuch-kritische  Studien,1  i.  in  Zeitschrift  fur  kirchliche  Wis- 
senschaft  tind  kirchliches  Leben,  1880,  p.  8. 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISAIAH.  299 

the  sacerdotal  influence  was  more  extensive  there  than  either  in 
Israel  or  in  the  Judah  of  the  pre-Babylonian  periods.  In  the  time 
of  the  prophet  Hosea,  the  Sabbath  was,  at  any  rate  in  Israel,  a  bright 
and  cheerful  day  (Hos.  ii.  n).  On  the  Assyrian  and  Babylonian 
Sabbath,  see  Sayce  in  Records  of  the  Past,  i.  164,  vii.  157,  &c.,  where 
authority  is  produced  for  the  statement  that  the  word  sabbath  itself, 
under  the  form  sabattu,  was  not  unknown  to  the  Assyrians.  Compare 
also  Wellhausen,  Geschichte  Israels,  i.  118-9,  wno  omits  the  Baby- 
lonian parallel,  but  traces  the  development  of  the  Sabbath  with  great 
fulness,  and  calls  attention  to  a  point  which  has  an  important  bearing 
on  Isa.  Ivi.,  viz.  that  Hosea  (ii.  n)  and  even  the  principal  author  of 
Lamentations  (ii.  6)  presuppose  that,  so  far  from  its  being  a  bond  of 
union,  the  Sabbath  would  pass  away  of  itself  in  a  foreign  land. 

On  Ixiii.  6.  Two  of  the  oldest  St.  Petersburg  MSS.  (dated  916 
and  1009  respectively)  agree  with  the  ordinary  printed  text,  but  in 
the  former  D  has  been  altered  prima  manu  into  3.  See  Strack, 
Zeitschr.f.  luth.  Theol.  1877,  p.  51. 

On  Ixiii.  1 6,  'for  Abraham  taketh  no  notice  of  us.'  My  note 
requires  supplementing  in  two  points.  First,  granting  that  the 
speaker  does  not  intend  (as  Dr.  Weir  supposed)  to  deny  that  Abraham 
and  Jacob  can  *  take  notice '  of  their  descendants,  what  precisely  is 
his  meaning  ?  Calvin  supposes  the  argument  to  be  similar  to  that  in 
xlix.  15  ;  'potius  enim  naturae  jura  cessabunt,  quam  te  nobis  patrem 
non  praebeas,'  but  is  *D  ever  'though,'  unless  perhaps  when  its  clause 
stands  first  ?  It  is  better  to  follow  St.  Jerome,  and  ascribe  the  in- 
attention complained  of  on  the  part  of  the  patriarchs  to  the  degene- 
racy of  their  descendants  ;  to  apply  the  language  of  Deut.  xxxii.  5, 
the  Jews  of  the  Exile  were  'their  not-children ' — 1*02  &O — i.e.  the 
very  reverse  of  their  children.  The  next  question  is,  whether  the 
prophet  himself  is  to  be  supposed  to  endorse  the  words  which  he 
utters  in  the  name  of  the  people,  or  whether  he  simply  condescends 
to  the  popular  phraseology.  On  reconsidering  my  note  it  appears  to 
me  that  there  is  serious  difficulty  in  the  latter  view.  It  might  indeed 
be  justifiable  if  the  passage  stood  alone  ;  but  some  of  the  other  ex- 
pressions referred  to  in  my  note  can  hardly  be  thus  explained — they 
seem  clearly  to  show  that  the  Biblical  writers  themselves  believed  in 
the  continued  interest  of  the  'saints'  in  human  affairs.  The  fact  that 
this  was  generally  believed  in  by  the  Jews  of  later  times  (comp.  Matt., 
xxvii.  47,  49,  and  the  Talmudic  legends)  ought  not  to  blind  us  to  the 
evidence  of  the  antiquity  of  the  belief  (nor,  I  must  add,  to  the  en- 
dorsement of  it  by  our  Lord  and  by  the  New  Testament  writers — see 
Luke  xvi.  25-31,  ix.  30,  31,  John  viii.  56,  on  which  see  Godet,  Heb. 
xii.  i,  Rev.  vi.  9-11).  Nor  can  we  fairly  appeal  to  those  mythic 
expressions,  such  as  the  Face  and  the  Arm  of  Jehovah,  and  per- 
haps the  '  hewing  Rahab  in  pieces,'  which  are  symbols  of  truths  and 


300  LAST   WORDS   ON    ISAIAH. 

phenomena  not  to  be  adequately  expressed  in  human  language  ;  fc 
since  the  saints  are  still  literally  human  beings,  that  which  is  pi 
dicated  of  them  must  also  be  intended  literally.  This  belief  in  tl 
sympathy  of  the  '  saints '  corresponds  to  that  in  the  intercession  of 
angels,  which  we  have  found  already  in  li.  9,  Ixii.  6,  and  which  is  also 
presupposed  in  Job  v.  i  ('saints'  in  Auth.  Vers.  should  be  'holy 
ones,'  i.e.  angels),  xxxiii.  23  ('messenger'  should  be  'angel').  It  is 
true  that  these  beliefs  are  not  prominently  brought  forward  in  the 
Old  Testament  teaching ;  this,  however,  is  only  because  they  had 
not  yet  been  denied.  It  would  seem  that  the  progress  of  revelation 
had  brought  about  a  deeper  view  of  the  infinite  distinction  between 
God  and  man,  and  of  the  necessity  of  some  mediating  link  be- 
tween them — such  a  view  as  ultimately  issued  in  the  fully-developed 
doctrine  of  the  Memra  or  Logos.  [If  I  may  refer  to  Calvin  again, 
it  is  interesting  to  notice  how  the  honesty  of  the  man  conflicts  with 
his  anxiety  not  to  support  the  practice  of  invoking  the  saints.  He 
admits  that  our  passage  by  no  means  proves  that  the  faithful  de- 
parted have  no  more  interest  in  human  affairs,  but  he  thinks  it 
necessary  to  give  a  strong  practical  caution  against  invoking  them. 
Stier,  quoting  Calvin's  concession,  admits  with  equal  candour  that 
*  grade  das  Nicht-anerkennen  setzt  eher  ein  Kennen,  das  Nicht- 
fiirsorgen  doch  ein  etwelches  Wissen  um  die  Nachkommen  voraus,' 
and  continues  :  '  Wir  wollen  hier  nich  eingehen  in  die  Tiefen  des 
geheimnissvollen  Verhaltnisses  der  Todten  zu  den  Lebenden,'  sug- 
gesting, however,  that  from  New  Testament  passages  inferences  may 
be  deduced,  *  denen  weiter  nachzugehen  nicht  Jedermanns  Ding  ist.' 
Here  he  shows  a  calmer  judgment  than  the  great  Protestant 
champion. 

On  Ixiv.  ii.  '  Where  our  fathers  praised  thee ' — praise  including 
prayer  (Ps.  Ixv.  i,  2). 

On  Ixvi.  17,  *  after  One  in  the  midst.'  A  reference  to  the  worship 
of  Tammuz,  or  Adonis,  is  perfectly  consistent  with  the  composition 
of  the  prophecy  in  Palestine.  There  are  several  certain  or  highly 
probable  allusions  to  this  cultus  in  the  prophets.  Ezekiel  (viii.  14) 
expressly  refers  to  the  women  who  sat  at  the  gate  of  the  outer  court 
of  the  temple  l  weeping  for  the  Tammuz '  (i.e.  the  divinised  sun  of 
autumn).  The  refrain  of  the  Adonis-dirge  is  probably  preserved  in 
Jer.  xxii.  18  (where,  however,  'his  glory,'  parallel  to  'my  sister,'  can 
hardly  be  correct) ;  and,  in  Isa.  xvii.  10,  we  have  already  traced  an 
allusion  to  the  Adonis-gardens.  After  the  Restoration  of  the  Jews, 
we  find  the  name  Tammuz  given  to  the  fourth  Hebrew  month.  The 
cultus  of  Adonis  lingered  on  at  Bethlehem,  even  in  the  Christian 
period,  according  to  St.  Jerome.1  In  the  passage  before  us,  the 
prophet  says  nothing  of  the  '  weeping '  for  Adonis,  and  Ezekiel,  who 

1  Opera,  ed.  Ben.,  iv.  564  (ep.  xlix.  ad  Paul.). 


LAST    WORDS    ON    ISATAH.  30 1 

mentions  the  'weeping'  of  the  Hebrew  devotees,  is  silent  as  to  the 
procession. 

On  Ixvi.  19.  c  Put  and  Lud  that  draw  the  bow.'  The  points  of 
my  note  are  these  :  i.  that  Pul  (the  received  reading)  occurs  nowhere 
else  in  the  Old  Testament,  whereas  Put  (the  reading  of  the  Septuagint) 
does,  and  that  in  connection  with  Lud,  2.  that  Lud  being  a  N.- 
African people  (see  note),  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  nation 
coupled  with  it  is  also  N.- African.  From  the  extreme  south  of  Spain 
to  northern  Africa  is  an  easy  transition,  but  I  admit  that  Tubal  and 
Javan  do  not  follow  quite  naturally.  True,  the  names  of  places  are 
not  always  given  in  geographical  order.  But  it  is  quite  possible  that 
Wetzstein's  emendation  (palseographically  a  slight  one)  of  Pul  into 
Pun  (i.e.  Carthage)  is  correct.  From  Carthage  to  Asia  Minor  (assum- 
ing with  Wetzstein  that  Lud  means  Lydia)  is  a  natural  transition,  and 
Javan  and  the  maritime  countries  follow  then  as  a  matter  of  course. 
[My  friend,  Mr.  Sayce,  is  so  impressed  with  the  necessity  for  bringing 
these  geographical  references  into  a  natural  order  that  (in  a  private 
communication)  he  boldly  identifies  '  Pul '  with  the  '  Apuli '  of  Cen- 
tral Italy.  He  remarks,  *  I  do  not  admit  that  "  Lud  "  is  a  N. -African 
people  in  Ezek.  xxx.  5.  It  there  means  the  Lydian  soldiers  by  whose 
help  Psammetichus  made  Egypt  independent  of  Assyria,  and  his  suc- 
cessors maintained  their  power.  Lud/w,  Gen.  x.  13,  is  distinguished 
from  Lud  (Lydia)  in  v.  22.  These  Ludim  are  the  Lydian  soldiers 
by  whom  the  power  of  the  Saitic  dynasty  was  maintained.'  Dr.  Stade 
gets  rid  of  these  Ludim  in  Gen.  I.e.  and  Jer.  xlvi.  9,  by  emending  the 
word  into  Lubim  *  Libyans.'  (De  populo  Javan^  Giessen,  1880.)] 


INDEX. 


I.   GENERAL. 


ABE 


EGY 


AREN  EZRA,  see  IBN  EZRA 

Adonis,  myth  of,  i.  107  ;  ii.   114,   125, 

300 
Alexander,  Dr.  J.  A.,  i.  219  note* j  ii. 

269 
Alphabets,    various,    used   in    Hebrew 

writing,  ii.  221 
Amorites,  supposed  reference  to,  i.  106  ; 

ii.  142 

Anath,  Semitic  goddess,  i.  74  note l 
Anemone,  etymology  of,  i.  107 
Angels,  belief  in  guardian,  i.  145 
Animals,  figures  from,  i.  179-80 
Apologia,  Jewish,  in  II.  Isaiah,  i.  286  j 

ii.  275 

Apulians,  supposed  reference  to,  ii.  301 
Aramaic,  prevalence  of,  i.  161,  207 
Arnold,    Mr.    Matthew,    i.    153,   259 

note*  ;  ii.  195,  210 
Aroer,  ii.  291 
Ashdod,  siege  of,  i.  121 
Asherah  and  Ashtoreth,  worship  of,  i. 

10,  105  ;  ii.  292 
Assurbanipal,  Assyrian  king,  i.  211-12, 

286  ;  ii.  295 
Assyrian,  illustrations  from,  i.   12,  17, 

31,  40,  41,  45,  46,  69,  71,  et  passim 
Assyrian  kings,  their  boastfulness,  i.  214 
Astronomy,  Babylonian,  i.  303-5 
Athanasius,  St.,  ii.  297 
Atonement,  vicarious,  ii.  196-8 


BABYLON,  captures  of,  i.  124,  288,  ii. 

277 
Babylonians,  religious  sentiment  of,  i. 

3°4 

Belshazzar,  feast  of,  i.  126,  ii  277  note3 
Beltis,  supposed  mention  of,  i.  67  j  ii. 

138-9 
Birks,    Prof.,    i.     197,    222  ;    ii.    269, 

271 

Book  of  the  Dead,  quoted,  ii.  31 
Boscawen,  Mr.,  i.  230-1,  273  ;  ii.  126 
Bradley,  Dean,  ii.  213 
Bunsen,  Baron,  ii.  39  note 


CALVIN,  ii.  259,  299 

Cambyses,  religious  policy  of,  ii,  276 

Captivity,  Babylonian,  reference  to,  i. 

233-4 ;  ii.  296 
Carchemish,  site  and  importance  of,  i. 

70  ;  ii.  288   (also  Addenda  opposite 

i.  i) 

Chaldaeans,  origin  of,  i.  140 
Chateaubriand,  on  Job,  ii.  245 
Cherubim,  signification  of,  i.  37,  40-42, 

114,  212  ;  ii.  149,  283-6 
China,  Jesuit  missionaries  in,  ii.  22 
Conjecture,    conditions  of  critical,    in 

correction  of  text,  ii.  223-4 
Consciousness,  belief  in  double,  ii.  131 
Cook,  Canon,  i.  115-6 
Covenant,  religious  use  of  term,  i.  268  ; 

ii.  7,  58,  109 
Cox,  Rev.  S.,  ii.  223 
Crane,  character  of  its  note,  i.  225 
Cyrus,  genealogy  of,  ii.  277 
—  religious  policy  of,   i.   299-301  :   ii. 

274-280 


DARIUS,  religious  position  and  policy 

of,  ii.  276,  279 

David,  house  of,  i.  48,  75  ;  ii.  286 
Davidson,  Dr.  S.,  ii.  174,  244 
Davidson,  Prof.  A.  B.,  ii.  218 
De  Dieu,  sketch  of,  ii.  260 
Deity,  belief  in  manifoldness  of,  i.  175  J 

ii.  294 
Delitzsch,  his  criticisms  of  vol.  i.,   ii. 

287,  292,  296 

—  sketch  of,  ii.  268 

Delitzsch,  Friedr.,  i.  40-1,  211  ;  ii.  136, 

288,  &c. 

Drechsler,  sketch  of,  ii.  267 
Driver,  Rev.  S.   R.,  i.  209;  ii.  151-6, 
&c. 


EDERSHEIM,  Dr.,  ii.  215  note* 
Egypt,  Semitic  influence  on,  i   117 
Egyptian,  illustrations  from,  i.  61,  63, 


304 


INDEX. 


EGY 


LAG 


99,  1 12-117,  166,  173;  ii.  31,  120, 

el  passim 
Egyptians,  their  view  of  the  next  world, 

i.  88  note^  ;  ii.  130-131 
Eunuchs,  Israelitish,  ii.  63 
Evvald,  sketch  of,  ii.  264-5 
Ezekiel,  compared  with  II.   Isaiah,  ii. 

237-8 


FAMILY-IDEA,  the,  predominant  in  He- 
brew society,  i.  20,  21 
Fasting,  history  of,  ii.  77 
Felix,  Minucius,  ii.  220 
Forgiveness,  doctrine  of,  i.  158,  189 
Fulfilments,  circumstantial,  ii.  183,  &c. 


GAD,  traces  of  worship  of,  ii.  116 

Gesenius,  sketch  of,  ii.  263 

Glosses,  in  Hebrew  text,  i.  19,   20,  45, 

51,  52,  54,   167,   170;  ii.   105,   iio, 

145,  224 

Goldziher,  Dr.,  i.  93  ;  ii.  107 
Gratz,  Dr.,  ii.  142,  144,  &c. 
Grotius,  sketch  of,  ii.  259 


HALEVY,  M. ,  on  the  Cyrus-inscriptions, 
ii.  278-280 

Hardening,  judicial,  i.  39  ;  ii.  2 

'  Hebrew  Migration  from  Egypt,' 
quoted,  ii.  211  note1 

Heilprin,  Mr.,  i.  132 

Henderson,  Dr.,  ii.  269 

Hengstenberg,  sketch  of,  ii.  266-7 

Hezekiah,  is  he  chargeable  with  selfish- 
ness ?  i.  236 

—  Song  of,  its  relation  to  Job,  i.  222-3 

High  places,  i.  19,  103,  206 

Hincks,  Dr.,  i.  197 

Hitzig,  sketch  of,  ii.  264 

Hivites,  supposed  mention  of,  i.  106 ; 
ii.  142 

Hodgkin,  Mr.,  i.  109;  ii.  292 

Holiness,  conception  of,  i.  3,  27,  37, 
64 


IBN  EZRA,  sketch  of,  ii.  256 
Idolatry,  i.  17,  19,  71,   105-6 
Immanuel,  i.  49-50 
Immortality,  i.  148,  227 
Incarnations,  kings  regarded  as  divine, 

i.  89-90  ;  ii.  289 
Isaiah,  in  the  light  of  history,  ii.  165, 

&c. 
—  not    arranged     chronologically,    ii. 

167 


Isaiah,  partly  made  up  of  small  collec- 
tions of  prophecies,  ii.  175 

—  second  part  of,  its  arrangement,  ii. 
177,  &c. 

—  two  parts  of,   compared    philologi- 
cally,  ii.  230 

—  Palestinian  references  in  second  part 
of,  ii.  213-4 

—  second  part  of,  its  few  allusions  to 
Babylonian  circumstances,  ii.  217-8 

—  links    between    two    parts    of,    ii. 
231-3 


JASHER,  Book  of,  i.  278 

Javan,  ii.  128,  287 

Jehovah,  day  of,  i.  83  ;  ii.  288 

—  prophetic  interpretation  of  name, 
250 

—  God  of  the  world,  i.  23,  295 

—  meaning  of  his  return  to  Palestine, 
i.  239 

Jeremiah,  a  type  of  '  the  Servant,'  ii. 

26 

Jerome,  St.,  ii.  255 
'  Jewish  interpretation  of  prophecy, '  the 

phrase  criticised,  ii.  257 
Job,  date  of,  ii.  228  note 1 

—  its  affinities  with  Isaiah,  ii.   44,  45, 
131,  191  note  *,  228,  244-253 

Joel,  date  of,  ii.  228  note  > 
Jonah,  a  symbol  of  Israel,  ii.  26 
Judaism,  is  it  a  proselytising  religion  ? 

i.  279  note l 

Judges,  power  of,  in  Judah,  i.  5 
Judgment,  doctrine  of,  i.  10,  83,  141-2 
Justification,  meaning  of,  ii.  27,  52 
Justin  Martyr,  i.  50;  ii.  118,  154 


KAY,  Dr.,  sketch  of,  ii.  269-270 
Kimchi,  David,  ii.  257 
Kir,  locality  of,  i.  132 
Kleinert,  Dr.  Paul,  ii.  7,  219 
Klostermann,  Dr.,  ii.  69,   86,  94,  152, 

216  noie*,  224,  268 
Knobel,  sketch  of,  ii.  267-8 
Koppe,  ii.  263 
Koran,  referred  to,  i.  15,  18,  195,  238, 

250,    260,   289  note*;  ii.    75,    117, 

122 

Kuenen,   Dr.,  i.    122,    193,   198,  210, 

212  ;  ii.  145,  155,  179,  204,  269 
—  his  Hibbert  Lectures,  ii.  280,  296 


LAGARDE,  Prof,  de,  i.  66,  67,  76,  106, 
298;  ii.  126,  142,  154,  201,  223-6, 
282,  286 


INDEX. 


305 


LAN 

Land,  Dr.  ii.  4,  68 

Land-tenure,  Hebrew  law  of,  i.  30 

Lenormant,  M.,  i.  41,  201,  203,  ii.  283, 

288,  &c. 

Light,  prae-solar,  i.   154 
Lilith,  or  night-fairy,  i.  192 
Lowth,  Bishop,  sketch  of,  ii.  261-3 
Lydians,  supposed  mention  of,  ii.  127, 

301 
Lyra,  Nicolas  de,  ii.  255-6 


MCLENNAN,  MR.,  ii.  291 

Magic,  i.  16,  21,  47,  58,  303 

Martensen,  i.  9 

Martineau,  James,  ii.  249 

Maurice,  F.  D.,  ii.  183 

Medes,  use  of  term,  in  Isaiah,  i.  85 

Merit,  doctrine  of,  ii.  108 

Merodach,    Babylonian    god,    i.    155, 

296-7 

Merodach-Baladan,  i.  199,  229,  231 
Merx,  Dr.,  ii.  255,  257 
Messiah    and    Messianic,   meaning    of 

terms,  ii.  185-6 

M'ni,  traces  of  worship  of,  ii.  116 
Moabite   Stone,    referred   to,   i.   96-7, 

103,  206,  295  ;  ii.  142 
Moloch,  sacrifices  to,  i.  177  ;  ii.  69 
Mozley,  Dr.,  i.  225  ;  ii.  252-3,  297 
Musculus,  a  commentator,  ii.  258 
Myrtle,  late  references  to,  i.  253  ;  ii. 

212 

Mythology,  embodied  in  popular  reli- 
gious phrases,  i.  6,  9,  12,  22,  36,  55, 
84,  86,  94,  155,  175,  192,  227,  241, 
264,  289;  ii.  17,  31 


NABONIDUS,  fall  of,  ii.  277 
Naegelsbach,  sketch  of,  ii.  268 
Names,  symbolism  of,  i.  57,  165 
Nature,  regeneration  of,  i.  18,  77,  169, 

183;  ii.  118-9 

Nebo,  Babylonian  god,  i.  297 
Neubauer,  Dr.,  i.  54  ;  ii.  160,  248,  257 
Nisroch,  obscure  name  of  Assyrian  god, 

i.  219 


OLYMPUS,     Oriental     equivalents     of 

Mount,  i.  15,  90 
Onias,  temple  built  by,  i.   113 
Origen,  referred  to,  ii.  7,  215  note* 
Origenists,  doctrine  of,  on  evil  spirits, 

i.  146 
Osiris,    supposed   mention   of,    i.    67  ; 

ii.  138 
VOL.  II. 


SCR 

PARALLEL  PASSAGES,  critical  study  of, 
ii.  226,  &c. 

—  argument  from,  ii.  220 
Pauthier,  M.,  ii.  21,  22 

Payne  Smith,  Dr.,  ii.  69,  218,  237,  273 
Pellicanus,  a  commentator,  ii.  258 
Phoenician,    illustrations    from,    i.    92, 

103,  106,  138,  151;  ii.  68,  145 
Pillars,  erection  of,  to  Jehovah,  not  for- 
bidden, i.  119 
Predestination,   a  Semitic  doctrine,    i. 

27,  287  ;  ii.  II 
Prophecy,  i.  25,  35,  237  ;  ii.  276 

—  creative  and  self-fulfilling,  i.  64,  76, 
263  ;  ii.  3,  12,  165  n<te  * 

—  fictitious  Assyrian,  i.  286-7 
Prophetic  writers,  their  self-abnegation, 

ii.  227 

Psalms,   Christian  element  in  the,   ii. 
184,  &c. 

—  imprecatory,  ii.  189 
Punishment,    everlasting,    doctrine    of, 

ii.  131 

Pusey,  Dr.,  ii.  51  note  ',  129,  136,  155, 
157 


QUEEN-MOTHER,  rank  of,  i.  48 


RASHI,  ii.  256 

Rawlinson,  Sir  Henry,  i.  196,  299  ;  ii. 

275-6 

Remnant,  doctrine  of,  i.  10 ;  ii.  13 
Renouf,  Mr.  le  Page,  i.  116,  210 
Resurrection,  doctrines  of,  i.  154 
Righteousness,  meanings  of  term,  in  II. 

Isaiah,  i.  261,  289 ;  ii.  i,  8 
Rig-veda,  quoted,  i.  32 
Rochester,  Earl  ofj  ii.  195 
Roman  Catholic  exegesis,  ii.  257 
Row,  Prebendary,  ii.  99 
Riickert,  Frederick,  ii.  177 
Rutgers,  Dr.,  i.  194,  267,  269;  ii.  4 


SAADYAH,  ii.  39,  255 

Sabbath,  history  of,  ii.  62,  298-9 

Saints  and  angels,  doctrine  of,  ii.  31, 

107,  299 

Salvation,  meaning  of  term,  i.  80 
Samaria,  second  kingdom  of,  i.  46 
Sargon,  his  invasion  of  Judah,  i.  68-9, 

196,  &c. ;  ii.  169,  171-4 
Sayce,  Prof.,  i.  68,  197,  206-7 \  "•  128, 

278-9,  301,  &c. 

Schrader,  Dr.,  i.  n,  198-203,  &c. 
Schultens,  Albert,  ii.  260 
Scripturists,  see  Soferim 


306 


INDEX. 


SEN 


JOB 


Sennacherib,  his  invasion  of  Judah,  i. 

185,  196,  &c.  ;  ii.  171 
—  his  character,  i.  200 
Septuagint,  critical  value  of,  ii.  225 
Seraphim,  i.  36,  42  ;  ii.  283-6 
'Servant  of  Jehovah,'  special  meaning 

of  the  phrase,  ii.  204-210 
Sheol,  i.  31,  88-91,  224;  ii.  130-2 
Shiloh,  ii.  198,  &c. 
Sibylline  oracles,  i.  75  ;  ii.  298 
Siloam,  inscription  of,  i.  72  note 
Sinim,  land  of,  ii.  20-23 
Smerdis,  pseudo-,  ii.  279 
Smith,  Prof.  Robertson,  i.  83 ;  ii.  1 10, 

115,  122,  141,  146,  287-8,  291-7 
Soferim,  i.  20;  ii.  214-7 
Souls,  primitive  theory  concerning,  ii. 

130 

Spain,  Arab  poets  m,  ii.  212 
Spirit,  doctrine  of  the,  ii.  7,  104,  105 
Stanley,  Dean,  i.  29 ;  ii.  182 
Stars,  once  regarded  as  animated,  i.  12 
Steinthal,  Dr.,  ii.  31  note  * 
Stier,  sketch  of,  ii.  267 
Stones,  sacred,  i.  163;  ii.  70 
Strachey,  Sir  E.,  i.   122,  160,  232-4, 

250;  ii.  271-2 
Strack,  Dr.  H.  L.,  ii.  147,  226,  293, 

298-9 

Strauss,  D.  F.,  ii.  185,  204 
Stuart,  Dr.  Moody,  ii.  215,  231 
Style,   argument  from  diversity  of,  ii. 

218-9 

Swift,  character  ol  its  note,  i.  225 
Swine,  flesh  of,  why  forbidden,  ii.  1 14 
Sword,  mystic  Divine,  i.  155,  190;  ii. 

294 


TABERNACLES  (or  BOOTHS),  Feast  of, 

i.  176;  ii.  295 
Tattooing,  supposed  allusion  to,  i.  279 


Tertullian,  ii.  220 

Text,  relatively  weak  authority  of 
Hebrew,  ii.  222-3 

Thothmes  III.,  his  conquests  in  Pales- 
tine, i.  99 

Tiele,  Prof.,  i.  37,  41*  Io6>  J37. 

Tirhakah,  is  the  name  correct?  i.  109 

Toilette,  Hebrew  ladies',  i.  23 

Tomkins,  Rev.  H.  G.,  ii.  148,  284-6, 
296 

Torments,  nature  of  future,  ii.   I31-2.. 

Totem- worship,   relics    of  Semitic,    ii. 

I2I-2,  291 

Transcription,  sources  of  error  in,  11. 

222 

Trent,  Council  of,  ii.  258-9 
Types,  ii.  183 


UNION,  MYSTIC,  i.  8,  281,  292;  ii.  297 

VITRINGA,  sketch  of,  ii.  260-1 
Vogue,  M.  de,  ii.  221 


WELLHAUSEN,  DR.,  i.  166;  ii.  146, 

149,  172,  202,  298,  &c. 
Williams,  Dr.  Rowland,  i.  175,  233 
Wines,  Mesopotamian,  ii.  212  note  l 
Woman,  honour  paid  to,  in  Messianic 

descriptions,  i.  270  (col.  i.  top) 
Wordsworth,  Rev.  J.,  ii.  149 


ZECHARIAH,  date  of  latter  part  of,  ii. 

228  note  ',  230  note  * 
Zinzendorf,  Count,  ii.  208  note  l 
Zoroastrianism,  its  relation  to  Judaism, 

i.  76,  148,  154,  256,  289;  ii.  118, 

119,  124,  280 


II.    PASSAGES,  CHIEFLY  BIBLICAL,  ILLUSTRATED. 

»*,  The  first  numerals  refer  to  the  chapter  and  verse ;  the  second  to  the  volume 
and  page. 


Gen.  i.  2,  i.  143 

—  ix.  13,  ii.  295 

—  xlix.  10,  ii.  198-203 
Ex.  vi.  24,  25,  ii.  138 

—  xxxiii.  14,  ii.  105 
Deut.  xvi.  21,  22,  i.  119 
Judg.  x.  16,  ii.  103 

I  Sam.  xiv.  47,  ii.  57 

—  xxviii.  14,  i.  88 

i  Kings  ix.  (Jehu),      232 


1  Kings  ix.  13,  i.  17 

—  xviii.  5,  i.  17 

2  Kings  iii.  25,  i.  96 

2  Chron.  xxxvi.  22,  23,  i.  300 
Ezra  x.  19,  ii.  298 
Neh.  viii.  17,  ii.  295 
Job  xi,  6,  ii.  295 
-  xi.  7,  8,  i.  47 

—  xvi.  17,  ii.  49 

—  xvii.  1 6,  ii.  131 


INDEX. 


307 


JOB 

Job  xix.  25,  ii.  151 

-  xxvi.  12,  13,  i.  155 

—  xxvii.  1 8,  ii.  298 

—  xxxviii.  5,  i.  242 

—  xxxviii.  6,  i.  163 
Psalm  ii.,  ii.  186-7 

—  xvii.  15,  i.  6 

—  xviii.  ii.  188 

—  xviii.  10,  i.  40 

—  xviii.  36,  ii.  73 

—  xviii.  50,  ii.  186 

—  xxii.,  ii.  14,  15,  184  note*,  190-1 

—  xxii.  1 6,  ii.  185 

—  xxii.  26,  29,  i.  147 

—  xxxi.  (authorship),  ii.  180  note 2 

—  xxxiv.,  ii.  185  note  l 

—  xxxv.,  ii.  189-90 

—  xlv.  6,  i.  63  note  l 

—  xlvi.-xlviii.  (Isaianic  affinities  of),  ii. 
230 

—  xlvi.  4,  i.  54,  188 

—  xlviii.  ii.  190 

—  xlviii.  13,  i.  1 88 

-  Ii.  14,  ii.  75 

—  Iv.  2,  189-90 

—  Ixi.,  Ixiii.  (authorship  of), i. 253  note  l 

—  Ixxii.,  ii.  187 

—  Ixxviii.  25,  i.  72 

—  Ixxxii.  i.  145 

—  Ixxxiii.  8  (9),  i.  I2O 

—  Ixxxvii.,  ii.  188 

—  Ixxxix.,  ii.  60 

—  Ixxxix.  10,  ii.  31 

—  Ixxxix.  27,  ii.  40 

—  xci.  9,  i.  257 

—  cii.,  ii.  190 

—  cii.  28,  i.  250 

—  cvii.  3,  ii.  16,  154 

—  ex.  I,  i.  63,  ii.  187 

—  cxlvii.  4,  5,  i.  247 
Prov.  ix.  10,  i.  246 
Eccles.  xii.  5,  i.  135 
Jer.  ii.  31,  i.  294 

—  vi.  13,  ii.  74 

—  ix.  2,  ii.  1 80 

-  xv.  I,  ii.  197 

—  xxi.  n,  12,  i.  48 

—  xxvi.  21,  i.  21 


SOT 

Jer.  xlviii.  12,  13,  i.  103 

—  xlviii.  32,  33,  i.  102 
Lam.  v.  22,  ii.  55 
Ezek.  i.  10,  i.  41 

—  vi.  2,  3,  ii.  212 

—  viii.  10,  ii,  ii.  12 1 

—  x.  14,  i.  41 

—  xxviii.  13-16,  i.  40 

—  xxx.  17,  i.  118 

—  xxxii.  27,  i.  88 

—  xxxiii.  10,  ii.  no 

—  xxxiii.  24,  ii.  28-9 

—  xxxvii.  l-io,  i.  153-4 

—  xl.  39,  ii.  298 
Dan.  iv.  13,  ii.  97 

—  vii.  13,  ii.  187 
Bos.  vi.  2,  i.  153-4 
Joel  iii.  14,  i.  131 
Jonah  iv.  n,  i.  158 
Mic.  i.  5,  ii.  295 

—  iv.  I,  4,  i.  14 

—  iv.  5,  ii.  4 

—  iv.  10,  i.  234,  ii.  296 
Zech.  ix.  9,  ii.  209  note  l 

—  x.  n,  i.  74 

—  xiii.  7,  ii.  296 
Mai.  i.  n,  i.  119,  256 

—  iii.  i,  i.  261 
Matt.  viii.  n,  i.  147 

—  xxvi.  13,  ii.  64 
Mark  ii.  10,  n,  i.  189 
Luke  xiii.  33,  i.  131 

—  xvi.  24,  ii.  28 
John  xviii.  5,  6,  i.  250 

—  xviii.  37,  ii.  60 
Acts  viii.  27,  ii.  63  note l 
Kom.  xv.  1 6,  ii.  128 

I  Cor.  xiv.  25,  ii.  297 
Gal.  vi.  17,  i.  279 
Phil.  iv.  7,  i.  150 

1  Tim.  iv.  10,  i.  80 

2  Tim.  i.  10,  i.  223 
Heb.  iv.  12,  ii.  12 

—  xi.  12,  ii.  28 
Rev.  i.  5,  ii.  60 

—  iv.  3,  ii.  295 

—  vi.  1 6,  ii.  34 

—  xxi.  10,  i.  241 


APOCRYPHA,  ETC. 


I  Mace.  x.  51-66,  i.  113 
Sirach  xxxviii.  i,  ii.  57 

—  xxxix.  4,  ii.  248 

Wisd.  Sol.  ii.  12-31,  ii.  297 

—  xi.  20,  i.  243 
Baruch  iv.,  ii.  17 


Baruch  vi.  8,  i.    288 

Enoch  v.  9,  ii.  119 

Pirke  Abhoth  iii.  16,  i.  144  (twice) 

—  iv.  1 6,  i.  148 

Sota  ix.  14,  ii.  95 


308 


INDEX. 


III.  ILLUSTRATIONS  FROM  WESTERN  LITERATUR1 


Burns,  i.  35 

Calderon,  ii.  205 

Dante,  i.  24,  41,  72,  148,  242,  260;  ii. 

72,  100,  106,  205,  247 
Dryden,  i.  256 
Emerson,  i.  266 

Goethe,  i.  35,  53,  274;  ii.  247-8 
Hawthorne,  ii.  215 
Heine,  ii.  63 

Homer,  i.  34,  144,  178-9,  302 
Horace,  ii.  149 
Juvenal,  i.  61,  214 
Leopardi,  ii.  249 


Macaulay.i.  155 

Marlowe,  i.  12 

Milton,  i.  16,  61,  223,  242,  288 

Pascal,  i.  260 

Plato,  i.  107  ;  ii.  182 

Rovigo,  due  de,  ii.  293 

Seneca,  ii.  182,  220 

Shakspere,  i.  18;  ii.  17,  158,  220 

Spenser,  ii.  8 

Thucydides,  i.  251 

Virgil,  i.  54,  175,  188;  ii.  62,  83 

Wordsworth,  i.  12,  55 

Young,  i.  250 


IV.  ETYMOLOGIES,  ETC.  (Incomplete) 


Ariel,  i.  166 ;  ii.  146 
Asnapper,  ii.  136 
Caleb,  ii.  122 
Chisleu,  ii.  288 
Cyrus,  i.  285-6 
Esar-haddon,  i.  219 
Jeshurun,  i.  278 

Rab-saris,    i.    205,    and    Addenda    in 
vol.  ii. 


Rab-shakeh,  i.  205,  ii.  296 

Rahab,  i.  155;  ii.  31 

Sabaoth,  i.  5,  11-13;  »•  281 

Sargon,  i.  121 

Sennacherib,  i.  204 

Shaddai,  i.  83 ;  ii.  141 

Tartan,  i.  121,  and  Addenda  in  vol.  ii. 

Topheth,  ii.  148 


-in  ' 
nri 


ii.  289 
ii.  151,  288 
i.  262  note  ' 

i.  157 
ii.  155-6 
".  1  60-  1 

"IQ3  ii.  146 

.  41 

i.  260 
f  3D  i.  256  ;  ii.  144.5 

i-  495  ".  136,  181 


ii.  158 

ii.  289 
i.  191 

ii.  284 

2-lfc?  ii.  I5S 

i.  153 
i »  i  ij~i  *•  5 
Nifal  tohrativum,  ii.  156 
Suffix  e  or  Sm  3  s.  m.,  ii.  137,  157 
Vav  of  association,  ii.  134-6 


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I 


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\ 
I 

I 


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34 


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