The Mystery of Ephraim

“Ukraine has biological research facilities, which in fact we are now quite concerned Russian forces may be seeking to gain control of, so we are working with the Ukrainians on how they can prevent any of those research materials from falling into the hands of Russian forces should they approach,” said Victoria Nuland, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, during a Senate hearing on Ukraine; Mar 9, 2022

Tucker Carson on Fox News (Mar 10, 2022) / US Tried to Fund Bio Labs in Ukraine as Early as 2005, Records Show Sputnik International by Tim Korso (Mar 12, 2022)

Ukraine’s Far-Rights threatening to overthrow Government – BBC Newsnight (23/7/2015)

Isaiah 29

¹ “Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! Add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices. — Woe to Ariel, to Ariel; the name interpreted as “the lion of God” or “the hearth of God,” and belongs to the same poetic synonym the Valley of Vision (Psalm 22:1);

— so called because Jerusalem was the place in the observance of the feasts: of the Passover, Pentecost and Tabernacles; burnt-offering, or of the public worship of God; the place where the Sanctuary is, the Shekinah and fire is, as on a hearth, continually burned on the altar. 

² Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow; and it shall be unto Me as Ariel. — yet God will distress Ariel; or “straiten” it, by causing it to be besieged; and this he would do, notwithstanding their yearly sacrifices and their observance of their solemn feasts;

— and there shall be heaviness and sorrow; on account of the siege; by reason of the devastations of the enemy from outside, invading all the cities and towns in Judea round about; and because of the famine and bloodshed in the city;

— and it shall be unto me as Ariel; the whole city shall be as the altar, a sacrifice; as that was covered with the blood and carcasses of slain beasts, so this with the blood and carcasses of men;

— and so the Targum says, “and I will distress the city where the altar is, and it shall be desolate and empty; and it shall be surrounded before me with the blood of the slain, as the altar is surrounded with the blood of the holy sacrifices on a solemn feast day all around”

— this maybe where Judah shall bear his iniquity for forty days: I have appointed thee a day for a year. Ezekiel 4:4-6 Septuagint. — after the start of the 10 tribes house of Israel and last for 150 years, the house of Judah shall join in for 40 years.

³ And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mound, and I will raise forts against thee. — and God will camp against thee, that is, by those enemies whom God will assist and enable to take and destroy thee; this may refer to different sieges of Jerusalem, that of Sennacherib, that of the Chaldeans to that of the Romans, or even another one at the endtime?

⁴ And thou shalt be brought down and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust; and thy voice shall be as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.” — thou shalt be brought down; thy speech shall be low; thou, who now speaks loftily, shalt be humbled, and in a submissive manner, and with a low voice, shalt beg the favour of thine enemies as one that hath a familiar spirit out of the ground.

⁵ Moreover the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away; yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly. — moreover the multitude of thy enemies shall be like small dust, or fine dust that is easily dissipated by the wind;

— and the multitude of an invading, besieging army, the terrible ones shall be as chaff that are blown away: yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly; like the forces of Sennacherib were destroyed in a single night by the angel of the Lord.

⁶ Thou shalt be visited by the Lord of hosts with thunder and with earthquake and great noise, with storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire. — but thou, that is, Ariel, or Jerusalem, shalt be visited by the Lord of hosts with thunder and with earthquake and great noise, with storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire; revisiting of the days before Mount Sinai;

⁷ And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all that fight against her and her fortifications, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision. — and the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, a new revived “Roman army” which consisted of men of all nations, that fought against Jerusalem; the city in which was the altar;

— as the Targum paraphrases it: even all that fight against her and her munition and that distress her; that besieged it and endeavoured to demolish its walls, towns and fortifications as they did; shall quickly fall and pass away and come to nothing, like a dream in the night.

⁸ It shall even be as when a hungry man dreameth, and behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty. Or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and behold, he is faint and his soul hath appetite. So shall the multitude of all the nations be that fight against Mount Zion. — his soul is empty; his appetite or desire is unsatisfied. Or his stomach or body is empty;

— so shall all the multitude from all nations that fight against Mount Zion; either shall quickly perish; or having raised their expectations and pleased themselves with the booty they should obtain, of which they thought themselves sure, shall find themselves mistaken and all like an illusive dream.

⁹ Stay yourselves, and wonder! Cry ye out, and cry! They are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. — stay yourselves and wonder, stop a while, pause a little; cry ye out and cry: they are drunk but not with wine; they stagger but not with strong drink; consider yourselves the case and circumstances of these people and wonder at their stupidity.

¹⁰ For the Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes; the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath He covered. — the Lord hath poured out upon them the spirit of deep sleep; of spiritual blindness, a reprobate mind, a mind void of sound judgement and sense by their shepherds and the seers;

— a hardness of heart and insensibility to dangers, by their rulers, magistrates and ministers and other chief of the people what we call a judicial blindness that they which see might be made blind against the light.

¹¹ And the vision of all has become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, “Read this, I pray thee”; and he saith, “I cannot, for it is sealed.” — and the vision of all; all the prophetic books, plus the book of Revelations, every vision by these writers; is unto you as the words of a book that is sealed;

— which no man can read while it is sealed up, being in the form of rolls, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, read this, but he replied, I cannot; for it is sealed. Ordinary human learning, without supernatural light, will not be to understand the word of God and things divine.

¹² And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, “Read this, I pray thee”; and he saith, “I am not learned.” — the Scriptures is a sealed book to every man, learned or unlearned; it is encrypted with signs and symbols, until he begins to study it with a simple heart and a teachable spirit, and only upon God’s spirits, that he may thence learn the truth and the will of God; otherwise he would be blinded.

¹³ Therefore the Lord said: “Inasmuch as this people draw near Me with their mouth and with their lips do honor Me, but have removed their heart far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the precept of men, — but there are many whose religion is lip-service only, they pretend to be speaking to God, they are pranks, they mix some truths with a thousand foolish things; honouring Astarte from the Egyptians and Mithra from the Persian as they worship the God of Israel according to their own devices.

¹⁴ therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder; for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.” — therefore, God will proceed to do a marvellous work among these people, perhaps referring to the captivity of Israel for 190 years and Judah 40; even an wonderful work and a wonder:

— for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden, because of their disobedience, idolatry and wickedness, their regard to men’s doctrines and commandments, and not to the will and word of God, therefore he determines “to deal marvellously and a wonder with this people.”

¹⁵ Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord and their works are in the dark, and they say, “Who seeth us?” and, “Who knoweth us?” — woe unto them, or “O ye” that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord; which though they consulted in private, and formed deep schemes, imagining they were not observed by the Lord, yet he that sits in the heaven saw them and laughed at their vain imaginations, Psalm 2:1;

— and their works are in the dark; in the dark night as if the darkness could conceal them from the all seeing eye of God; such works are truly works of darkness but cannot be hidden, though they flatter themselves they will;

— and they muse, Who see us? and who know us? as no man, they imagine, but not God himself could; into such atheism do wicked men sink when desirous of bringing their schemes into execution, they have taken great pains to form; and which they please themselves are so deeply laid as that they cannot fail of succeeding.

¹⁶ Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay; for shall the work say of him that made it, “He made me not”? Or shall the thing formed say of him that formed it, “He had no understanding”? — surely your turning of things upside down is a reinstatement of Isaiah 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter;

— thus reversing all principles of Godly morality; that is, that excuse the one and reproach the other; that put darkness for light and light for darkness, particularly in palliating the wickedness of sin, in representing avarice, luxury, the lust of the flesh as harmless; and pervert the order which God hath appointed; witness what LGBTQIA lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (or questioning), intersex, and asexual (or allies) has progressed!

— “He made me not”? shall the potter be counted as the clay? The words bring out the character of the perversity, the upside-downness of which the prophet denounces; the men whom he condemns were inverting the relations of the Creator and the creature, the potter and the clay, acting practically as arrogant atheists, denying that there was a Divine order of which they formed a part.

¹⁷ Is it not yet a very little while and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest? — Is it not yet a very little while; the projection in time is here foretold, when there would be a strange change and alteration made in the world, and by which it would appear, that the Lord not only knows, but foreknows, all things;

— when Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field; that is, that the Gentile world, which was like a forest uncultivated, and full of unfruitful trees, should through the preaching of the Gospel be manured, become God’s husbandry and be like a fruitful field, abounding with people and churches, fruitful and be part of the Kingdom of God.

¹⁸ And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness. — shall the deaf hear the words of the book; they who now have the Scriptures, its prophecies and concerning the coming of the Messiah; and do not understand it, the people who seem to be deaf to all that God says, shall hear and understand it;

— shall see out of obscurity; that is, their eyes closed and ignorant, the darkness being removed, they shall see clearly the truth of God, and discern and love its beauty. Their eyes are now blinded, but then they shall see clearly.

¹⁹ The meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. — the meek, rather, the afflicted, the idea is, virtuous suffering; poor among men, that is, the pious poor; rejoice when they see the Holy One of Israel.

²⁰ For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off — for the terrible one, the violent one, the oppressor, who had exercised cruelty over them, refers to those who held offices of power, and who abused them to oppress the poor and needy;

— and the scorner is consumed; shall be entirely destroyed; and all that watch for iniquity, that is, those who seek anxiously for opportunities to commit iniquity.

²¹ who make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought. — that make a man an offender, literally, ‘who cause a man to sin’ who hold a man to be guilty, or a criminal;

— the Targum says, they “that falsely pervert the judgement of the innocent” they that turn away their judgement, decline doing them justice, but condemn them on frivolous pretences.

²² Therefore thus saith the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: “Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale. — the One who redeemed Abraham; that is, who brought him out of a land of idolaters, and rescued him from the abominations of idolatry. The word ‘redeem,’ here properly denotes “to ransom, that is, to redeem a captive, or a prisoner with a price paid;

— so Jacob shall not be ashamed, that is, the posterity of Jacob, who had great cause to be ashamed for their infidelity, for their persecutions of God’s prophets and righteous servants, and for their rejection of their own Messiah, who also has redeemed them, shall, at last, be brought back unto the God of their fathers and be their Messiah.

²³ But when he seeth his children, the work of Mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify My name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel. — when he sees his children; when the believing seed of Jacob see those children, whom they have begotten to God by the preaching of the gospel, even the Gentiles, converted by their ministry;

— the work of mine hands; the children, not of the flesh, but of the promise, whom I, by my almighty power and grace, have created or regenerated, of stones raising up children to Abraham. In the midst of him; which Gentiles shall be incorporated with the Jews into one and the same body and Kingdom;

— they shall sanctify my name; the name Yehovah; they shall not despise and hate the Gentiles, but shall praise and glorify God with them and for them, as all the believing Jews and Gentiles would.

²⁴ They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.” — shall learn doctrine; the doctrine of the Messiah, the truth; they “shall receive discipline” or “instruction,” that is, come to understanding and learn true doctrines, the law, and true justice.

Isaiah 30

¹ “Woe to the rebellious children,” saith the Lord, “that take counsel, but not of Me, and that cover with a covering, but not of My Spirit, that they may add sin to sin; — woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, the house of Jacob, who were the “children” of God, but had turned their backs upon him, and departed from his worship and ordinances; and therefore a woe is pronounced against them;

— that take counsel, but not of me; they met and consulted together about their safety, when in danger, but did not ask counsel of the Lord; they did not consult his word, nor his prophets, nor by Urim and Thummim, as in case of whether to go to war;

— that they may add sin to sin; the sins of rebellion and apostasy: so wicked men, who are enemies in their minds, by wicked works, to God, and commit acts of hostility against him, and are in danger thereby of eternal ruin.

² that walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at My mouth, to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh and to trust in the shadow of Egypt! — they strengthen themselves with the might of Pharaoh, by forming an alliance with Pharaoh, that thus they hoped to repel the threatened invasion, putting their thrust in the emptiness of a shadow.

³ Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Egypt your confusion. — therefore they shall be disappointed of the help and assistance they expected from him, and be ashamed of their ally and the trust in the shadow of Egypt and their confusion; and be confounded.

⁴ For his princes were at Zoan, and his ambassadors came to Hanes. — for Pharaoh’s princes were at Zoan, known as “the royal city of the Pharaohs” which is the same as Tanis, the metropolis of one of the provinces of Egypt; and so the Targum renders it, “Tanes” and the Septuagint version, “Tanis.” The Jews say there is not a more excellent place in all Egypt than Zoan, because kings were brought up in it, as it is said here, “his princes were at Zoan.”

— and more on Zoan: today, Gypsies are known as Roma, but in Hebrew, their name is derived from the Egyptian city of Zoan, or Tanis, at one time the royal and capital of the country; and this is from Wikipedia (Romani people);

The English term Gypsy (or Gipsy) originates from the Middle English gypcian, short for Egipcien.

Hebrew: צוענים‎, romanized: Tzoanim. Derives either from the biblical Egyptian city of Zoan, or from the linguistic root צ־ע־נ‎, meaning “wander.”

— the other called “Hanes” is the same with Tahapanes in Jeremiah 2:16 and Tahpanhes, Jeremiah 43:7 and so the Targum here calls it; it is thought to be the same with Daphnae Pelusiae; here Pharaoh had a house or palace; see Jeremiah 43:9 and this is the reason of the ambassadors (the Jeremiah’s entourage and the king’s daughters, after escaping from Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, who smote Gedaliah the governor and who might also kill them) from the “children of God” had gone the;

Ezekiel 29:12 “and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and will disperse them through the countries.”

⁵ They were all ashamed of a people that could not profit them, nor be a help nor profit, but a shame and also a reproach.” — they (Judah’s princes that appeared in Zoan; and his ambassadors in Hanes) were all ashamed of a people (Pharaoh and his princes) that could not help them; the princes, the ambassadors that were sent unto them, and the king or people, or both, that sent them, who hoped for and expected great things from them, but being disappointed, were filled with shame;

— nor be an help, nor profit, but a shame, and also a reproach: so far from being of any advantage to them, by helping and assisting them against their enemy, wanting either inclination or capacity, or both, that it not only turned to their shame, but even was matter of reproach to them, that ever they made any application to them, or placed any confidence in them for help.

⁶ The burden of the beasts of the South: Into the land of trouble and anguish, from whence come the young and old lion, the viper and fiery flying serpent, they will carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses, and their treasures upon the humps of camels, to a people that shall not profit them. — the burden of the beasts of the south, the word ‘south’ here refers doubtless to the country to the south of Judea; and particularly to Egypt;

— from whence come the young and old lion, the viper, and fiery flying serpent; creatures with which Egypt abounded as historians relate and where some of them at least were worshipped and where also men dwelt comparable to these creatures as for craft and cruelty.

⁷ For the Egyptians shall help in vain and to no purpose; therefore have I cried to her concerning this, “Their strength is to sit still.” — for the Egyptians shall help in vain; that is, if they enter into the alliance, they shall not be able to defend you from the invader, though they may make a show of help and attempted to help them or seemed to do so, yet failed to do it;

— their strength is to sit still; either concerning this embassy, that it would be better for the ambassadors to have spared all their toil and labour and strength and have remained quiet and easy in their own country than going down to Egypt.

⁸ Now go, write it before them on a tablet and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever, — now go, write it before them; write this prophecy and warning, which Isaiah have now delivered, in their presence; in a table and in a book;

— so it was to be written twice over, once in a table, to be hung up in some public place, for the people then at that time might read it; and again in a book, that it might be kept for the use of posterity; that is to us at a latter day, because prophecies are often dual in purposes;

— that it may be for the time to come, as a witness for me and against them, that God have given them fair warning, and they have wilfully run upon their own ruin; so the Targum confirms, “and it shall be in the day of judgement for a witness before me for ever.”

⁹ that this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord, — that they are lying children, who tell lies as easily as one breaths; and lied and were guilty of lying, not only to God but to one another; they that will not hear the law of the Lord, the commands of God, either contained in the Scriptures, or delivered by the mouth of the prophets, whereby these warnings are expressly concerning them;

¹⁰ who say to the seers, “See not,” and to the prophets, “Prophesy not unto us right things; speak unto us smooth things; prophesy deceits. — speak unto us smooth things; that is, those things which are in accordance with our feelings, prejudices and desires; which assure us of prosperity and success and which will not disturb us with the apprehension of punishment;

— prophesy deceits, not that they would openly and avowedly demand to be deceived, but they demanded that which the prophet says would be deceits. No man “professedly” desires to be deceived; yet many a man is willing to put himself under that kind of teaching which is deceit and which he might know to be falsehood if he would examine it.

¹¹ Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.” — Get ye out of the way: turn aside out of the path; these two expressions mean one and the same thing; either that the prophets would go out of their usual way of threatening ruin and destruction;

— or that they would go out of the way of the people, and not stand in it to hinder them pursuing their own lusts and pleasures; or that they would go out of the right way, in their ways: cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us; do not so often make mention of his name, or come to us with a “thus saith the Lord”; let us hear no more of him; as the Targum says, “remove far from us the word of the Holy One of Israel.”

¹² Therefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel: “Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stand thereon,

¹³ therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant. — therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, or “as a falling breach” contempt of the word of God, rejecting the counsel of God, these would be the cause of ruin; signified by the breach of a falling wall or by a breach in a wall, by reason of which it is in danger of falling and is just ready to fall.

¹⁴ And he shall break it as the breaking of the potter’s vessel that is broken in pieces; he shall not spare, so that there shall not be found in the bursting of it a shard to take fire from the hearth, or to take water out of the pit.” — that is broken in pieces; he shall not spare; or that is broken in pieces without mercy, as the Targum says; no pity shall be shown by the enemy nor mercy from the Lord.

¹⁵ For thus saith the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest shall ye be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength; but ye would not. — in returning and rest shall ye be saved; or “may be saved” namely, by “returning” from their evil ways and to his worship and ordinances; and so the Targum says, “if ye return to my law.”

¹⁶ But ye said, ‘No, for we will flee upon horses’; therefore shall ye flee! And, ‘We will ride upon the swift’; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift! — but ye said, No, for we will flee upon horses to get help and assistance; and then face the enemy;

— therefore shall they that pursue you be swift; yea, swifter than the horses and camels they rode on and overtake them and either put them to death or carry them captive.

¹⁷ One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee, till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain and as an ensign on a hill.” — at the rebuke of one, the number one here is put to denote a very small number; a number in the ordinary course of warfare entirely disproportionate to those who would be vanquished, which is a reference here to the prediction in Deuteronomy 32:30;

— and as an ensign on a hill; the idea is that those who should escape would be few in number, a remnant and would stand alone, as a beacon in view of all the nations, to admonish them of the justice of God and the truth of his threats, like an ensign floating on a hill that can be seen from afar.

¹⁸ And therefore will the Lord wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you. For the Lord is a God of judgement; blessed are all they that wait for Him. — His waiting is very patient; the divine husbandman waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient over it. How wonderful that in a very real sense He attends on our pleasure, as it were, and lets us determine His time to work.

¹⁹ For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem; thou shalt weep no more. He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when He shall hear it, He will answer thee. — for the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, or “for the people of Zion shall dwell in Jerusalem” those that belonged to the fort of Zion should dwell in Jerusalem, or “abide” there, both they and the inhabitants of it, at least many of them should quietly continue there, waiting the Lord’s time to appear for them;

— although the time is coming when the people shall be banished from Jerusalem and carried into captivity; yet after a set time they shall return and have a fixed and comfortable abode in Jerusalem, the seat of their religion, and metropolis of their Kingdom.

²⁰ And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teacher. — and though the Lord give you the bread of adversity; the bread that is eaten in a time of calamity; that is, he would bring upon them sore distress and wan; the water of affliction, ‘oppression.’ That is, water drank in times of affliction and oppression, or in the long and weary days of captivity;

— Rashi: your Teacher: The Holy One, blessed be He, who teaches you for your profit.

²¹ And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, “This is the way; walk ye in it,” when ye turn to the right hand and when ye turn to the left. — it seems best to understand the Scriptures of truth as the word of God, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it; it directs to the Messiah the way, and who is the only way of life and which is the right way; so the Targum paraphrases it, “this is the right way.”

²² Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver and the ornament of thy molten images of gold. Thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, “Get thee hence.” — ye shall show your contempt of it; defile the covering of thy graven images; the leaves or plates, wherewith their wooden images were frequently covered: and the ornament of thy molten images;

— or, thy coat, or covering; the ephod, a costly and glorious robe. The images also were of gold: for thou shalt cast them away; thou shalt so deeply abhor idolatry that thou shalt cast away, with indignation, “Get thee hence.”

²³ Then shall He give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the ground therewith, and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat and plenteous. In that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures. — then shall he give the rain of thy seed; that is, he shall send rain on the seed which is sown; and you will be allowed to cultivate the soil without molestation, and God will give you fruitful seasons and abundant harvests;

— the Targum interprets it thus, “and the righteous shall be nourished with their cattle at that time, with the fat of tender and fat things” as the earth would be fruitful, the cattle would be well fed; and so there would be plenty of provision for man and beast.

²⁴ The oxen likewise and the young asses that till the ground shall eat clean provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan. — the Septuagint renders it, “they shall eat chaff mixed with winnowed barley” but if they were to eat chaff with it, there would be no need to winnow it.

²⁵ And there shall be upon every high mountain and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. — in the day of the great slaughter; when the enemies of the people of God shall have been destroyed; probably in a time subsequent to the slaughter of the army of the Assyrians as a historical type, and so, perhaps, awaiting a prophetic one.

²⁶ Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breach of His people and healeth the stroke of their wound. — moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun; an hyperbolical expression, used to set forth the exceeding great light, comparable to the moon, immeasurable as the light of the sun exceeds the light of the moon;

— and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold; as if the light of seven days was collected together; or as if there were seven suns shining together. The Targum not only makes it to be seven times seven, that is, forty nine; but multiply forty nine by seven, and make it three hundred and forty three or as the light of so many days.

²⁷ Behold, the name of the Lord cometh from far, burning with His anger, and the burden thereof is heavy; His lips are full of indignation and His tongue as a devouring fire. — behold, the name of the Lord cometh from far, it is introduced with a “behold” as declaring something of importance worthy of attention, and even wonderful;

— burning with anger; against his army, the kings of the earth; his “eyes” shall be “as a flame of fire” and when he comes to judge the world, he will descend in “flaming fire”, Revelation 19:12 the day of the Lord will burn as an oven, Malachi 4:1.

²⁸ And His breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity; and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err. — the breath of his nostrils or the blast of the breath of his nostrils; in both instances it is a sign and effect of God’s anger and the cause of the destruction of those against whom it is directed;

— to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity; that is, the breath, wind or spirit of the Lord, compared to an overflowing stream should have this effect to sift the people of several nations so as to dash them one against another and utterly destroy them; for they were to be sifted, not with a good and profitable sieve, which retains the corn and shakes out the chaff or so as to have some taken out and spared; but with a sieve that lets all through and so be brought to nothing.

²⁹ Ye shall have a song as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept, and gladness of heart as when one goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the Lord, to the Mighty One of Israel. — ye shall have a song; that is, ye inhabitants of Jerusalem shall rejoice when the army of the Assyrian, or another prophetic one, is destroyed;

— as in the night when a solemnity is kept; the word ‘solemnity’ here (חג châg) denotes a festival, or feast; and refers by way of eminence to the Passover where the “death angels” passed, which is usually designated as “the feast” that is, the principal festival of God’s people.

³⁰ And the Lord shall cause His glorious voice to be heard, and shall show the lighting down of His arm, with the indignation of His anger and with the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering and tempest and hailstones. — His glorious voice; his thunder, which is Called God’s voice, and said to be full of majesty, Psalm 29:4. But then thunder is metaphorically taken for God’s judgement;

— and tempest and hailstones; it is rare that a storm of hail would be severe enough to destroy an army. But in this case, storms of hail are not unfrequently of sufficient violence to do it if the army were encamped in the open field something could fall from the heavens with a heavy splash; they were large balls of ice falling.

³¹ For through the voice of the Lord shall the Assyrian be beaten down, who smote with a rod. — which smote with a rod; who was accustomed to smite as with a rod; as an instrument in God’s hand; that is, his government was tyrannical and severe; as he had been accustomed to smite in that manner, so he would now meet the proper reward of his oppression of the nations.

³² And in every place where the grounded staff shall pass, which the Lord shall lay upon him, it shall be with taborets and harps; and in battles of weapon shaking will He fight with it. — it shall be with tabrets and harps; that is, at every stroke of God’s judgements upon God’s enemies, Israel should raise its song of triumph with the timbrels and harps.

³³ For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared. He hath made it deep and large; the pile thereof is fire and much wood. The breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it. —Tophet, literally, “A place of abomination” the valley of the sons of Hinnom, southeast of Jerusalem, where Israel offered human sacrifices to Moloch by fire; hence a place of burning;

— the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it; the pile of fire and wood; the Targum says, “the word of the Lord, like an overflowing torrent of brimstone, shall kindle it.”

~ by Joel Huan on March 12, 2022.

Posted in Isaiah