Christology of the Old Testament: And a Commentary on the Messianic Predictions Volume Ii Part 15

and is used especially of the disciples of the Lord, those who go to His school, are instructed by Him; comp. chaps. viii. 16; liv. 13. A disciple's tongue is such as the disciples of the Lord possess. Its foundation is formed by the disciple's _ear_ mentioned at the close of the verse. He who hears the Lord's words, speaks also the Lord's words.

The signification, "learned," is not suitable in the last clause of the verse, and its reference to the first does not permit of our a.s.suming a different signification in either clause. Just as here the Servant of G.o.d traces back to G.o.d that which He speaks, so Jesus says, in John viii. 26: ???? ? ????sa pa?' a?t?? ta?ta ?a?? e?? t?? ??s??, comp.

iii. 34: ?? ??? ?p?ste??e? ? ?e?? t? ??ata t?? ?e?? ?a?e?. The verb ???, which occurs only here, means, according to the Arabic, "to help,"

"to support;" _Aquila_: ?p?st???sa?, Vulg. _sustentare_. Like other similar verbs, _e.g._, ???, in Gen. xxvii. 37, it is construed with a double accusative: "that I may help the weary, word," _i.e._, may support him by comforting words. The weary or fatigued are, like the bent reed, the faintly burning wick, in chap. xlii. 3; the blind, the prisoners sitting in darkness, _ibid._, ver. 7; the broken-hearted, chap. lxi. 1; them that mourn, _ibid._, ver. 2. Just as here the Servant of G.o.d represents the suffering and afflicted ones as the main objects of His mission, so Christ announces, that His mission is specially directed to these, comp. _e.g._, Matt. v. 4; xi. 28. In order to be able to fulfil this mission. He must be able to draw from the fulness of G.o.d, who looketh to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, chap. lxvi. 2, and who alone understands to heal the broken in heart, and to bind up their wounds, Ps. cxlvii. 3.--In the words: "He wakeneth, &c." we are told in what manner the Lord gives to His Servant the disciple's tongue. _To waken_ [Pg 252] _the ear_ is equivalent to: to make attentive, to make ready for the reception of the divine communications. The expression "morning by morning" indicates that the divine wakening is going on uninterruptedly, and that the Servant of G.o.d unreservedly surrenders himself to the influences which come from above, in which He has become an example to us.

Ver. 5. "_The Lord Jehovah hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, and have not turned back._"

The phrases "to open or uncover the ear" have always the signification, "to make known something to some one," "to reveal to him something."

"to inform him," both in ordinary circ.u.mstances (comp. 1 Sam. xx. 12; Ruth iv. 4), and on the religious territory, comp. 2 Sam. vii. 27: "For thou, Lord of Hosts, G.o.d of Israel, hast opened the ear of thy servant, saying: I will build thee an house;" Isa. xlviii. 8: "Thou heardest not, thou knewest not, nor was formerly thine ear opened;" chap. xlii.

20: "The ear was opened to him." According to this well established _usus loquendi_, "The Lord hath opened mine ear," can only mean: The Lord hath revealed to me, hath informed me inwardly; _Abenezra_: ???

???? ?? "He has made known to me His secret." What the Lord has made known to His Servant, we are not here expressly told; but it may be inferred from ver. 6, where the Servant declares that which, in consequence of the divine manifestation, He did, viz., that He should give His back to the smiters, &c. The words: "The Lord hath opened mine ear" here are connected with: "The Lord wakeneth mine ear, that I may hear," in the preceding verse: The Lord has specially made known to me that, in carrying out my vocation, I shall have to endure severe sufferings. _To this subject the Servant of G.o.d quickly pa.s.ses over, after having, in the introduction, described, by a few features, the vocation, in the carrying out of which these sufferings should befal Him._ As the authors of these sufferings, we must conceive of the party opposed to the weary, viz., the proud, secure, unbroken sinners. On "I was not rebellious," compare what, in Deut. xxi. 20, is written of the stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father; and farther, the words: p??? ??? ?? ??? ???? ???' ?? s?, Matt. xxvi.

39.

[Pg 253]

Ver. 6. "_I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to the pluckers, I hid not my face from shame and spitting._"

The words express in an individualizing manner the thought, that the Servant of G.o.d, in His vocation as the Saviour of the _personae miserabiles_, would experience the most shameful and ignominious treatment, and would patiently bear it. In G.o.d's providence, part of the contents was literally fulfilled upon Christ. But the fact that this literal agreement is not the main point, but that it serves as a hint and indication only of the far more important _substantial_ conformity which would take place, although the hatred of the world against the Saviour of the poor and afflicted should have manifested itself in forms altogether different,--this fact is evident from the circ.u.mstance that regarding the fulfilment of the words: "and my cheeks to the pluckers"--plucking the cheeks, or plucking off of the beard being the greatest insult and disgrace in the East, comp. 2 Sam. x.

4--there is no mention in the New Testament history.

In vers. 7-9 we have the future glory, which makes it easy for the Servant of G.o.d to bear the sufferings of the Present. If G.o.d be for Him, who may be against Him?

Ver. 7. "_But the Lord Jehovah helpeth me, therefore I am not confounded, therefore I make my face like a flint, and I know that I am not put to shame._"

?????? refers to ????? in the preceding verse. He whom the Lord helps is not confounded or put to shame by all the ignominy which the world heaps upon him. The expression: "I make my face like a flint" denotes the "holy hardness of perseverance" (_Stier_); comp. Ezek. iii. 8. In that pa.s.sage it is especially the a.s.sailing hardness which comes into consideration; here, on the contrary, it is the suffering one. There is an allusion to the pa.s.sage before us, in Luke ix. 51: ????et? d? t?

s?p?????s?a? t?? ???a? t?? ??a???e?? a?t??, ?a? a?t?? t? p??s?p??

a?t?? ?st????e t?? p??e?es?a? e?? ?e???sa??.

Ver. 8. "_He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with one? Let us stand together; who has a right upon me, let him come near me._"

In the confidence and a.s.surance of Christ, His redeemed ones, too, partake,--those that hear the voice of the Servant of G.o.d, ver. 10, comp. Rom. viii. 33, 34, where this and the [Pg 254] following verse are intentionally alluded to. The justification is one by _deeds_. It took place and was fulfilled, in the first instance, in the resurrection and glorification of Christ, and, then, in the destruction of Jerusalem.--??? ????? literally, "the master of my right," _i.e._, he who according to his opinion or a.s.sertion which, by the issue is proved to be false, has a right over me, comp. the ?? ??? ??? ??e?

??d?? which, in John xiv. 30, the Lord says in reference to the chief of His enemies.

Ver. 9. "_Behold the Lord Jehovah will help me; who is he that shall condemn me? Lo, they shall wax old as a garment, the moth shall eat them._"

That which is said herein reference to the enemies of Christ is, in chap. li. 8, with a reference to our pa.s.sage, said of the opponents of those who know righteousness, and in whose heart is the law: "The moth shall eat them up like a garment." Enmity to Christ and His Church is, to those who entertain it, a prophecy of sure destruction. The words: "The moth shall eat them," are farther expanded in ver. 11, where it is described how the people who ventured to _condemn_ the Servant of G.o.d, become a prey to destruction.

The Servant of G.o.d closes with a double address; first, to the G.o.dly; and then, to the unG.o.dly.

Ver. 10. "_Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the word of His Servant? When he walketh in darkness, in which there is no light to him, let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his G.o.d._"

From the words: "Of mine hand," in ver. 11, it appears that the Servant of G.o.d is continuing the discourse. Hence "the voice of His Servant,"

_q.d._, the voice of me who am His Servant. By the words: "Among you,"

the address is directed to the whole of the people. In this two parties are distinguished. The first is formed by those who fear the Lord, and obey the voice of His Servant. Both of these things appear as indissolubly connected. The fear of G.o.d must necessarily prove itself in this, that He whom He has sent is obeyed. It is a mere imagination on the part of the people to think that they can fear G.o.d without obeying the voice of His Servant; comp. John v. 23. There is in this an allusion to the emphatic "Unto him ye shall hearken," which, in Deut.

xviii. 15, had been said in reference to _the_ Prophet. [Pg 255] From ver. 11 it appears that the darkness in which those walk who fear the Lord, is not to be understood of personal individual calamity which befals this or that G.o.dly one, nor of the sufferings which happen to the pious G.o.dly _party_, in contrast to the unG.o.dly wicked, but rather that we have before us the foresight of a dark period of sufferings which, after the appearance of the Servant of G.o.d, shall be inflicted upon the whole people; so that both of the parties,--that devoted to the Servant of G.o.d, and that opposed to Him,--are thereby affected, but with a different issue. For in ver. 11, it is described how the unG.o.dly, who likewise walk in darkness, endeavour to light up their darkness by a fire which they have kindled, but do so to their own destruction. Behind the exhortation: "Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his G.o.d," there is concealed the promise: he _may_ trust, his darkness shall be changed into light, his sorrow into joy.

When the destruction of Jerusalem approached, the cry came to believing Israel: "Lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh," Luke xxi. 28. In the destruction of apostate Israel, not obeying the Servant of G.o.d, but persecuting His faithful ones, they beheld the beginning of the victory of the true people of G.o.d over the world.

Ver. 11. "_Behold all ye that kindle a fire, that gird sparks,--walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. From mine hand is this to you; ye shall lie down in pain._"

The image begun in the preceding verse is continued. The pious walk in confidence and patience through the lightless darkness, until the Lord kindles a light to them. Those who do not hear the Lord, who do _not_ obey the voice of His Servant, kindle a fire which is to light up their darkness; but instead of that, they are consumed by the fire. Thus the Servant of G.o.d, who brings this destruction upon them, obtains His right upon them.--The _fire_ is often in Scripture the fire of war, chap. ix. 18; Jer. li. 5; Rev. viii. 7-10. According to several interpreters (_Hitzig_, _Ewald_, _k.n.o.bel_), it is a.s.sumed that the discourse is here not of "self-a.s.sistance by rebellion," but "of the attacks of the wicked upon the G.o.dly, and of the destruction, into which these attacks turn out for their authors." But this view is opposed by the circ.u.mstance that the darkness [Pg 256] is common to both parties; hence, it must come from some other quarter. The fire which the wicked kindle is destined to enlighten the darkness in which they also are, which is especially evident from the words: "Walk in the _light_ of your fire." They now have a light which enlightens their darkness; but this self-created light consumes them.--To _gird_ stands for, "to surround one's self with a girdle," "to put on a girdle." In substance it is equivalent "to provide one's self with it."--The ?pa?

?e??e??? ????? cannot with certainty be explained from the dialects.

The connection and parallelism are in favour of the signification "sparks," "flames," which is found as early as in the Septuagint (f???a), and Vulg. (_flammas_). In Syriac ???? has the signification "lightning." Those who explain it by "fiery darts" are not at liberty to refer it to the ???? in Prov. xxvi. 18. The signification "flames"

(not "sparks," as _Stier_ holds), is, in that pa.s.sage, quite suitable; simple arrows could there not be mentioned after the fiery darts without making the discourse feeble.--??? "walk ye," is equivalent to: "ye shall walk," yet with an intimation of the fact that this result, as we are immediately afterwards expressly told, proceeds from the speaker: _sic volo, sic jubeo._ The words: "From mine hand is this to you," are, by those who make the Prophet the subject of this prediction, supposed to be spoken by Jehovah. But throughout the whole section, the Lord is always only spoken of, and never appears as speaking. The words are in harmony with the exalted dignity which, elsewhere also, is attributed by the Prophet to the Servant of G.o.d who plants the heavens, and lays the foundation of the earth, chap. li. 16; whose mouth the Lord makes like a sharp sword, chap. xlix. 2; who is the personal salvation, the Saviour for the whole earth, chap. xlix. 6; and the embodied Covenant for the covenant-people, chaps. xlii. 6; xlix. 8. The last pa.s.sages, especially, are of no small importance. The saving and judging activity go hand in hand, and cannot be separated.

We have here thus the Old Testament beginnings and preparation for the doctrine of the New Testament, that the Father has given all judgment to the Son, The Servant of G.o.d, in the highest sense, is Lord and judge of the fellow servants.--The ? in ?????? serves for designating the condition: so that you belong to pain, ??? occurs in [Pg 257] chap.

xliii. 17 of the Egyptians lying down; comp. Ps. xli. 9: "He that _lieth_ shall rise up no more." In the announcement that Israel's attempt to help themselves would turn out to their destruction, the Song of Solomon, in chap. iii. 1-3; v. 7, has preceded our Prophet: "The daughter of Zion, in her restlessness, endeavours to bring about, by worldly, rebellious doings, the Messianic salvation. It is in vain; what she is seeking she does not find, but the heavenly watchmen find her."

CHAPTER LI. 1-16.

Ver. 1. "_And I put my words in thy mouth, and cover thee in the shadow of mine hand, that thou mayest plant the heaven and lay the foundation of the earth, and say unto Zion: Thou art my people._"

The discourse in chap. li. to lii. 12 is not addressed to the whole of Israel, but to the _election_. They are, in chap. li. 1, called those that follow after righteousness, that seek the Lord; in ver. 7, those who know righteousness, in whose heart is the law of the Lord. These the Prophet seeks to comfort and strengthen by pointing to the future glorious mercies of the Lord.

The Section chap. li. 4-8 comforts the elect by the coming of the salvation, by the dominion of the people of G.o.d over the whole world; points to the foundation of these successes, viz., the eternity of the salvation and righteousness for the Church; and exhorts them that, having this eternal salvation before them, they might patiently bear the temporal reproach of the world given over to destruction.

In vers. 9-11, the Church calls upon the Lord to do as He had promised; and this prayer, founded upon His almighty love, which in times past had so gloriously manifested itself, pa.s.ses over, at the close, into hope and confidence.

In vers. 12-16 follows the answer of the Lord, who exhorts the Church to be stedfast, by reminding her that her opponents are weak mortals, while the omnipotent G.o.d is her protector; and announces that, with the same omnipotence which He manifests in nature, He would soon bring about her deliverance, [Pg 258] and that Ho would do so by His Servant, in whom all His promises should be Yea and Amen, and whom at the close Ho addresses, committing to Him the work of redemption. According to the current opinion, the discourse in ver. 16 is addressed to the people. But, in that case, we must also make up our minds to view the Infinitive with ? a Gerund, "planting," or "by planting,"--a supposition which is beset with great difficulties. It was only by an inconsistency that _Stier_, who, in chap. xlix. rejects this view, could here agree to it. And, farther, it is obvious that the words at the close: "Thou art my people," are the _words_ which, according to the commencement of the verse, are put into the mouth of the speaker, and that hence, the planting of heaven and earth, which prepares for this speaking, belongs to Him. If this be not supposed, one does not at all see to what the: "I put my words in thy mouth," is to refer. What farther militates against this explanation is the unmistakable relation of the pa.s.sage before us to chaps. xlix., l., which it is impossible to refer to the people. The same reason is also against the supposition of _Gesenius_ and _Umbreit_, that the discourse is addressed to the prophetical order. Nor is it defensible to explain: "to plant the heaven and lay the foundation of the earth," by: to establish the new state of Israel. To these arguments it may be added that, according to this explanation, the words: "Thou art my people," are unsuitable; for Israel was not the people of the Prophet, but the people of G.o.d and of His Servant. The discourse is addressed rather to the Messiah, compare the parallel pa.s.sages, chap. xlix., especially ver. 2, and chap. l., especially vers. 4 and 5. Considering the dramatic character of the whole section, the change of the person addressed is a circ.u.mstance of very little importance; and chap. lix. 21, where the word of G.o.d is put into the mouth of Jacob, is parallel in appearance only. Even _a priori_ we could not expect that, in this context, treating, as it does, of the personal Messiah, the whole section, chap. li. 1 to lii.

12, should lack all reference to the Messiah. By the words: "I put my word in thy mouth," the Messiah is appointed to be, in the highest sense, the speaker of G.o.d; the realization of the divine counsels is committed to Him. For the fact that it is not mere words which are here treated of, but such as are living [Pg 259] and powerful, like those which G.o.d spoke at the creation, becomes evident by the circ.u.mstance that the planting of heaven and earth is attributed to the Servant of G.o.d as bearer of His words,--a thing which cannot be done by the ordinary word; comp. Isa. xl. 4, according to which the Messiah smites the earth with the rod of His mouth, and slays the wicked with the breath of His lips.--_I cover thee in the shadow of mine hand_, designates the divine protection and providence which are indispensable in order that the Servant of G.o.d may fulfil His vocation to be G.o.d's speaker. The words form an accessory thought only: I appoint thee my speaker whom, as such, I will keep and protect in order that thou, etc.;--for that which follows is that which the Servant of G.o.d is to _perform_ as His Speaker. By the word of Omnipotence committed to Him, He plants a new heaven, and lays the foundation of a new earth, and invests Zion with the dignity of the people of G.o.d.--To plant the heaven and lay the foundation of the earth, is equivalent to founding a _new_ heaven, a _new_ earth; comp. chaps. lxv. 17, lxvi. 22; Rev. xxii.

For, as long as the old heaven and the old earth exist, a planting and founding activity cannot take place in reference to heaven and earth.

All that is created, in so far as it opposes the Kingdom of G.o.d, is unfit for being an abode of the glorified Kingdom of G.o.d, and must be shaken and broken to pieces, in order that this Kingdom may enter into its natural conditions, and find a worthy abode. The activity of G.o.d and His Servant, necessary for this purpose, will most completely take place at the end of days, at the pa????e?es?a announced by the Lord, Matt. xix. 28; compare what is said in chap. xi., in reference to the entire change of the conditions of the earth. But in a preparatory manner, this activity pervades all history. The heaven, according to the _usus loquendi_ of Scripture, and also of Isaiah, is not only the natural heaven, but also the heaven of princes, the whole order of rulers and magistrates, (comp. my remarks on Rev. vi. 13), whose form and relation to the Kingdom of G.o.d underwent a great change, even at the first appearance of Christ.--The _saying_, according to the preceding: That thou mayest plant, &c., is not to be referred to the mere announcing; but, according to the frequent _usus loquendi_, it includes the performing also, just as _e.g._, in ver. 12, the [Pg 260]

comforting is effected by a discourse _in deeds_. The distinction between, and separation of word and deed belongs to human weakness. G.o.d speaks and it is done; and what holds true of His word, applies also to the word of His Servant, which he has put into His mouth.

CHAPTERS LII. 13-LIII. 12.

This section forms the climax of the prophecies of Isaiah, of prophetism in general, of the whole Old Testament, as appears even from the circ.u.mstance that the Lord and His Apostles refer to no part of the Old Testament so frequently and so emphatically as to this,--a section which, according to _Luther's_ demand, every Christian should have committed _verbatim_. Christ is here, with wonderful clearness, described to us in His highest work--His atoning suffering.

In vers. 13-15 of chap. lii. Jehovah speaks. These verses contain a short summary of what is enlarged upon in chap. liii. The very deepest humiliation of the Servant of G.o.d shall be followed by His highest glorification. In consequence of the salvation wrought out and accomplished by Him, the nations of the earth and their kings shall reverently submit to Him. In chap. liii. 1-10, the Prophet utters the sentiments of the _elect_ in Israel. At first, in His humiliation, they had not recognized the Redeemer; but now they acknowledged Him as their Redeemer and Saviour, and saw that He had taken upon Him His sufferings for our salvation, and that they had a vicarious character. The commencement forms, in ver. 1, the lamentation that so many do not believe in the report of the Servant of G.o.d, that so many do not behold the glory of G.o.d manifested in Him. In vers. 2 and 3, we have the cause of this fact, viz., the appearance of the Divine, in the form of a Servant--the offence of the cross. In lowliness, without any outward splendour, the Servant of G.o.d shall go about. Sufferings, heavier than ever befel any man, shall be inflicted upon Him. In vers. 4-6, the vicarious import of these sufferings is pointed out. The people, seeing his sufferings, [Pg 261] and not knowing the cause of them, imagined that they were the well-merited punishment of His own transgressions and iniquities. But the Church, now brought to believe in Him, see that they were wrong in imagining thus. It was not His own transgressions and iniquities which were punished in Him, but ours. His sufferings were voluntarily undergone by Him, and for the salvation of mankind, which else would have been given up to destruction. G.o.d himself was anxious to re-unite to himself those who were separated from Him, and who walked in their own ways. To the vicarious import of the sufferings of the Servant of G.o.d corresponds, according to ver. 7, His conduct: He suffers quietly and patiently. In vers. 8-10 we have the reward which the Servant of G.o.d receives for His pa.s.sive obedience. G.o.d takes Him to himself, and He receives an unspeakably great generation, ver. 8, the ominous burial with the rich, ver. 9, numerous seed and long life, and that the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand; ver. 10. In vers. 11 and 12, the Lord again appears as speaking, and confirms that which has been declared by the faithful Church.

The two verses of the close, together with the exordium, chap. lii.

13-15, occupy five verses--five being the signature of the half and incomplete. The main body, ten verses, is divided into seven referring to the humiliation and suffering, and three referring to the exaltation of the Servant of G.o.d. The seven are, as usual, divided into three and four. In the three verses, the suffering of the Servant of G.o.d is exhibited; in the four, its cause and vicarious import.

By the "_Behold_," with which the prophecy opens, the Prophet intimates that we have here before us a vision beheld by him in the spirit. As the period in which the Prophet beholds the vision, we have to suppose the time between the suffering and the glorification of the Servant of G.o.d. The glorification is described chiefly by Futures, the suffering by Preterites; but, from the fact that this stand-point is not strictly adhered to, it is evident that we have to do with a stand-point which is purely ideal.

The section forms, in a formal and material point of view, a whole by itself; but, notwithstanding its absolute independence, it must stand in a certain connection with what precedes and what follows. Let us, therefore, now consider the relation [Pg 262] in which it stands to the portions surrounding it. Its relation to what goes before is thus strikingly designated by _Calvin_: "After Isaiah had spoken of the restoration of the Church, he pa.s.ses over to Christ, in whom all things are gathered together. He speaks of the prosperous success of the Church, at a time when it was least to be expected, which calls them back to their King, by whom all things are to be restored, and exhorts them to expect Him." The preceding section begins with chap. li. 1. We have already stated the contents up to li. 16. Vers. 17-23 are closely connected with the preceding, in which salvation and mercy were announced to the Church of G.o.d. This announcement is here continued in new forms. Chap. lii. 1-6: As the Lord had formerly delivered His people out of the hand of Egypt and a.s.shur, so, now too, He will deliver them. Zion appears under the image of a woman imprisoned, fettered, lying powerlessly in a miserable garment, on a dirty floor, and is called upon to arise, to strengthen herself, to throw off her bands, to put on festive garments, inasmuch as the time of her deliverance from the misery is at hand. Vers. 7-10: In the last words of ver. 6, the Lord had announced that He was already at hand for the redemption of His Church. This salvation now presents itself vividly to the spiritual eye of the Prophet, and is graphically described by him.

He beholds a messenger hastening with the glad tidings to Jerusalem; _watchmen_, who are standing on the ruins of Jerusalem in longing expectation, discover him at a distance, and exultingly call upon the ruins to shout aloud for joy.[1] "How beautiful"--so verse 7 runs--"upon the mountains the feet of the Messenger of joy, that announceth peace, that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion: Thy G.o.d reigneth." In Rom. x. 15, the Apostle refers this pa.s.sage to the preaching of the Gospel. That is more than mere application; it is real explanation. The deliverance from Babylon is only the first faint beginning of the salvation, which the Prophet has before his eye in its [Pg 263] whole extent. As the substance of the salvation, the circ.u.mstance that Zion's G.o.d reigneth, is intimated. There is, in this, an allusion to the formula which was used in proclaiming the ascension of earthly kings to the throne. Even this allusion shows that the point here in question is not the continuous government of the Lord, but a new, glorious manifestation of His government, as it were a new ascension to the throne. This "the Lord reigneth," found a faint beginning only of its confirmation and fulfilment in the destruction of Babylon, and the deliverance of Israel; but as to its full import, it is Messianic. In Christ, the Lord has truly a.s.sumed the government, and will still more gloriously reign in future.--Ver. 8: "The _voice_ of thy watchmen! they lift up the voice, they shout together; for they see eye to eye that the Lord returneth to Zion." The watchmen are ideal persons, representatives of the truth that the Lord is around His people, and that the circ.u.mstances of His Church are to Him a constant call to help; or they may be viewed as the holy angels who, as the servants of the watchmen of Israel, form the protecting power for the Church. These watchmen continue to stand even on the destroyed walls; for, even in her misery, the Lord is Zion's G.o.d. The anxious waiting eye of the watchmen, and the mercy-beaming eye of G.o.d returning to Zion meet one another. The returning here is opposed to the forsaking, over which Zion had lamented in chap. xlix. 14. Instead of the concealed presence of the Lord during the misery, which, to the feeling, so easily appears as entire absence, there comes the presence of G.o.d manifested in the salvation. This return of the Lord to Zion truly took place in Christ only, Luke i. 68.--Ver. 9: "Break forth into joy, shout together, ye ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord comforteth Jerusalem, redeemeth His people." This call goes far beyond the time of the restoration of Jerusalem after the exile; for, even at that time, the spiritual eye still beheld ruins, where the bodily eye saw firm, walled buildings.

The condition of the Kingdom of G.o.d was still miserable, the eye of the faithful remained still fixed, with hopes and longings, upon the Future which was to bring, and has brought, _true_ comfort and consolation.--Ver. 10: "The Lord maketh bare His Holy arm in the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth see the salvation of our G.o.d." The making bare of the arm of the Lord designates the manifestation, by deeds, of [Pg 264] the divine power and glory, such as took place by the sending of Christ, and by the wonderful elevation of the Church over the world,--an elevation which has it roots in Him; comp. chap. liii. 1. In vers. 11 and 12 there is still the exhortation to the Church of the Lord that, by true repentance, she should worthily prepare for the impending salvation.

After the Prophet has, in chap. li. 1 to lii. 12, described the transition of the Church of G.o.d from humiliation and sorrow to glorification, it is quite natural that he should now turn from the members to the Head, through whose mediation this transition was to be accomplished, after the same contrast had been exhibited in Himself There is the most intimate connection between the Church of G.o.d and His Servant; for, all that He does and suffers. He does and suffers for her; and all that befals her is prefigured by the way in which He has been led by the Lord.

With what follows, too, the section before us stands in a close relation. The glorification of the Servant of G.o.d described at the close of chap. liii., is, in Him, bestowed at the same time, upon the Church. Thus chap. liv., in which the Church is comforted by pointing to her future glorification, is connected with the preceding. The Church of the Lord appears here as a woman who, after having been put away by her husband, and after having, for a long time, lived in a childless, sorrowful solitude, is again received by him, and sees herself surrounded by numerous children. The time of punishment is now at an end, and the time of mercy is breaking.

Chap. lii. 13. "_Behold, my Servant shall act wisely, He shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high._"