Isaiah, speaking within the prophetic book’s larger canonical witness.
The Lord Carries His People While Idols Must Be Carried
Isaiah 46 strengthens the argument that Babylon’s gods cannot save, while the Lord’s sovereign word guarantees the deliverance of His people.
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The living God does not need to be carried by His people; He carries them, rules history, and brings His salvation to Zion.
Isaiah 46 argues that the Lord alone is God because He alone bears His people, declares history before it unfolds, and accomplishes salvation by His own sovereign counsel.
Judah, later exilic and post-exilic hearers, and the covenant community tempted to fear Babylon’s power or envy Babylon’s gods.
Isaiah 46 belongs within Isaiah 40–55, where the Lord comforts His people in view of exile, exposes idolatry, announces Babylon’s fall, and declares His use of Cyrus as an instrument of deliverance.
Isaiah 46 strengthens the argument that Babylon’s gods cannot save, while the Lord’s sovereign word guarantees the deliverance of His people.
Isaiah, speaking within the prophetic book’s larger canonical witness.
Judah, later exilic and post-exilic hearers, and the covenant community tempted to fear Babylon’s power or envy Babylon’s gods.
Isaiah 46 belongs within Isaiah 40–55, where the Lord comforts His people in view of exile, exposes idolatry, announces Babylon’s fall, and declares His use of Cyrus as an instrument of deliverance.
- The people of God face the apparent dominance of imperial power, religious propaganda, and the temptation to think Babylon’s gods have won because Babylon’s empire appears strong.
Bel and Nebo were prominent Babylonian deities. Isaiah pictures them not as triumphant divine powers but as burdens loaded onto animals during collapse and defeat.
The chapter stands in the restoration section of Isaiah, after the announcement of comfort in Isaiah 40 and the identification of Cyrus in Isaiah 44:28–45:1. It prepares readers to see that the Lord’s redemptive plan is not threatened by exile, empire, or idols.
From the humiliation of Babylon’s gods, to the Lord’s lifelong care for Israel, to the exposure of idolatry’s irrationality, to the certainty of God’s declared purpose and near salvation.
Theological exposition and fulfillment
The chapter forms a people who stop carrying false gods and learn to be carried by the living God.
The gods of Babylon are exposed as powerless burdens.
The Lord is revealed as the one who bears His people rather than being borne by them.
Idolatry is shown to be spiritually irrational and savingly useless.
God calls rebels to remember His uniqueness, sovereignty, and accomplished counsel.
God announces that His righteousness and salvation are near for Zion.
- 46:1–2:
- 46:3–4:
- 46:5–7:
- 46:8–11:
- 46:12–13:
Theological Argument
Isaiah 46 argues that the Lord alone is God because He alone bears His people, declares history before it unfolds, and accomplishes salvation by His own sovereign counsel.
Idols are carried into captivity; the LORD carries his people into salvation.
- 1.Babylon’s gods are powerless.
- 2.The LORD’s covenant care is personal and enduring.
- 3.Idolatry is irrational because it worships what human hands produce and transport.
- 4.The LORD’s deity is proven by his sovereign knowledge and effective counsel.
- 5.God’s salvation is not delayed by human stubbornness or imperial strength.
Theological Focus
- The incomparability of God
- God as covenant bearer
- The futility of idolatry
- Sovereign providence
- Near righteousness and salvation
- Doctrine of God
- Providence
- Idolatry
- Covenant Faithfulness
- Salvation
- Human Rebellion
- Glory of God
Theological Themes
No idol, nation, ruler, or religious system can be compared to the Lord.
God bears His people from beginning to end, reversing the logic of idolatry.
Idols require human production, placement, transportation, and defense; they cannot save.
The Lord declares the end from the beginning and accomplishes His purpose in history.
God’s saving righteousness approaches Zion according to His promise.
Covenant Significance
Isaiah 46 reassures the covenant people that exile does not mean abandonment. The Lord’s faithfulness remains active even when His people are under discipline.
- Covenant identity - Israel is addressed as the house of Jacob and the remnant of Israel, emphasizing covenant continuity even under judgment.
- Covenant care - The Lord has carried His people from birth and will carry them to old age, presenting covenant care as lifelong and divine-initiated.
- Covenant correction - The people are rebuked as rebels and stubborn-hearted, showing that covenant comfort does not remove the need for repentance.
- Covenant hope - God’s salvation in Zion confirms that His covenant purpose moves toward restoration, not annihilation.
Canonical Connections
The living God does not need to be carried by His people; He carries them, rules history, and brings His salvation to Zion.
Cross References
Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no other God but one. For though there are things that are called “gods”, whether in the heavens or on earth;...
casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.
For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold, or silver, or stone, engraved by art and design of man. The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people...
him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him to an administration of the fullness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth,...
Be free from the love of money, content with such things as you have, for he has said, “I will in no way leave you, neither will I in any way forsake you.”
Let’s therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace for help in time of need.
I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father who has given them to me is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of my Father’s hand.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.
“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is...
and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, that which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith,
All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been killed.
For I am not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, because it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first, and also for the Greek. For in it is revealed God’s righteousness from faith to faith. As it is...
But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth, and in your heart;” that is, the word of faith which we preach: that if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the...
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose. For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn...
All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and no one can stop his hand, or ask him, “What are you doing?”
and in the wilderness where you have seen how that Yahweh your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went, until you came to this place.”
Yahweh your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your offspring, to love Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.
As an eagle that stirs up her nest, that flutters over her young, he spread abroad his wings, he took them, he bore them on his feathers. Yahweh alone led him. There was no foreign god with him.
For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves concede.
For Yahweh will judge his people, and have compassion on his servants, when he sees that their power is gone; that there is no one remaining, shut up or left at large.
Be very careful, for you saw no kind of form on the day that Yahweh spoke to you in Horeb out of the middle of the fire, lest you corrupt yourselves, and make yourself a carved image in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or...
‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to myself.
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to save many people alive, as is happening today.
“What value does the engraved image have, that its maker has engraved it; the molten image, even the teacher of lies, that he who fashions its form trusts in it, to make mute idols? Woe to him who says to the wood, ‘Awake!’ or to the mute...
To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to him?
Haven’t you known? Haven’t you heard? The everlasting God, Yahweh, the Creator of the ends of the earth, doesn’t faint. He isn’t weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has...
Who has raised up one from the east? Who called him to his foot in righteousness? He hands over nations to him and makes him rule over kings. He gives them like the dust to his sword, like the driven stubble to his bow.
Who has worked and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Yahweh, the first, and with the last, I am he.”
The gospel clarity of Isaiah 46 is seen in the Lord’s declaration that salvation is His work, not the work of idols or human effort. God brings righteousness near to stubborn-hearted people who are far from righteousness, showing that salvation depends on divine initiative and covenant mercy.
- Human need - The hearers are described as rebellious and far from righteousness.
- False saviors exposed - Bel and Nebo cannot rescue themselves or their worshipers.
- Divine initiative - The Lord says, 'I am bringing my righteousness near.'
- Saving purpose - God places salvation in Zion and glory for Israel.
- Canonical fulfillment - The God who brings righteousness near ultimately reveals saving righteousness through Christ’s death and resurrection.
Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no other God but one. For though there are things that are called “gods”, whether in the heavens or on earth;...
casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.
For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold, or silver, or stone, engraved by art and design of man. The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people...
him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him to an administration of the fullness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth,...
Be free from the love of money, content with such things as you have, for he has said, “I will in no way leave you, neither will I in any way forsake you.”
Let’s therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace for help in time of need.
I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father who has given them to me is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of my Father’s hand.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.
“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is...
and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, that which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith,
All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been killed.
For I am not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, because it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first, and also for the Greek. For in it is revealed God’s righteousness from faith to faith. As it is...
But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth, and in your heart;” that is, the word of faith which we preach: that if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the...
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose. For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn...
Primary Emphasis
Isaiah 46 contributes to Christ-centered canonical hope by revealing the Lord as the only Savior who brings righteousness near and places salvation in Zion. In the fullness of Scripture, this saving righteousness is fulfilled through Christ, who embodies God’s saving purpose and secures redemption for His people.
Chapter Contribution
Isaiah 46 argues that the Lord alone is God because He alone bears His people, declares history before it unfolds, and accomplishes salvation by His own sovereign counsel.
Canonical Trajectory
- The Lord alone saves, preparing the biblical logic that salvation belongs to God, not human strength or false gods.
- God’s righteousness comes near, anticipating the fuller revelation of God’s righteousness in the gospel.
- Zion becomes the place of salvation and glory, contributing to the biblical movement toward God’s final dwelling with His redeemed people.
Divine relationship extends from birth to old age.
The Lord sustains His people throughout their lives.
God grants glory to His people as a result of His saving work.
No created object or being equals the Lord.
God Himself brings near the righteousness required for salvation.
God’s counsel stands and is accomplished without failure.
The Lord declares future events with certainty.
Stubborn hearts remain distant from righteousness apart from grace.
Idols are human constructs lacking power and life.
False gods cannot save or sustain.
God raises instruments to execute His redemptive purposes.
Salvation originates in the Lord and is not delayed by human failure.
Worship must be directed toward the living and saving God.
God is incomparable, self-existent, sovereign, and unlike anything made by human hands.
God declares the end from the beginning and accomplishes His purpose in history.
Idolatry is exposed as trusting a powerless created object or substitute that cannot answer or save.
The Lord sustains His people across their whole life and preserves His redemptive purpose for Zion.
Salvation is brought near by God’s initiative and is located in His righteousness, not human achievement.
The chapter names the hearers as rebellious and stubborn-hearted, showing the moral resistance that must be confronted by God’s Word.
God’s saving work results in His glory being displayed in Israel.
Theological exposition and fulfillment
- The chapter forms a people who stop carrying false gods and learn to be carried by the living God.
Sense Bel, a title/name associated with a Babylonian deity.
Definition A chief Babylonian god, likely associated with Marduk.
References Isaiah 46:1
Lexicon Bel, a title/name associated with a Babylonian deity.
Why it matters Bel’s bowing shows that Babylon’s religious power is not divine power. The god Babylon trusts is pictured as collapsing.
Sense Nebo, a Babylonian deity.
Definition A Babylonian god associated with wisdom, writing, and royal ideology.
References Isaiah 46:1
Lexicon Nebo, a Babylonian deity.
Why it matters Nebo stooping alongside Bel exposes the failure of Babylon’s gods at the very point where imperial religion claimed strength.
Form in passage Qal · Perfect · 3rd Person · Masculine · Singular What is this?
Sense to bend, bow, crouch, collapse.
Definition To bend low or sink down.
References Isaiah 46:1
Lexicon to bend, bow, crouch, collapse.
Why it matters The verb reverses expected worship imagery. The idol does not receive victorious homage; it bows under judgment.
Sense to lift, carry, bear.
Definition To lift up or carry a burden.
References Isaiah 46:3–4
Lexicon to lift, carry, bear.
Why it matters This term sharpens the contrast between idols that must be carried and the Lord who carries His people.
Cross-language bridge 1 link · View in lexicon
Form in passage Piel · Infinitive construct What is this?
Sense to escape, deliver, rescue.
Definition To bring safely out of danger.
References Isaiah 46:2, 46:4
Lexicon to escape, deliver, rescue.
Why it matters The idols cannot rescue the burden, while the Lord promises to rescue His people.
Sense to be like, compare, resemble.
Definition To liken one thing to another.
References Isaiah 46:5
Lexicon to be like, compare, resemble.
Why it matters The Lord’s question attacks the root of idolatry: treating the Creator as comparable to created things.
Form in passage Qal · Sequential imperfect · 2nd Person · Masculine · Plural What is this?
Sense to remember, call to mind.
Definition To bring something to conscious attention.
References Isaiah 46:8–9
Lexicon to remember, call to mind.
Why it matters The chapter calls rebellious people to fight unbelief by remembering who God is and what He has done.
Sense God, mighty one.
Definition A term for God or a mighty being, used here in the LORD’s exclusive claim.
References Isaiah 46:9
Lexicon God, mighty one.
Why it matters The declaration 'I am God, and there is no other' is the theological center of the chapter.
Cross-language bridge 2 links · View in lexicon
Sense counsel, plan, purpose.
Definition A determined plan or counsel.
References Isaiah 46:10–11
Lexicon counsel, plan, purpose.
Why it matters God’s counsel stands, showing that His sovereignty is not mere foreknowledge but effective purpose.
Sense righteousness, justice, saving rightness.
Definition Right order, justice, or saving righteousness depending on context.
References Isaiah 46:13
Lexicon righteousness, justice, saving rightness.
Why it matters God brings righteousness near to those far from righteousness, highlighting salvation as divine initiative.
Form in passage Feminine · Singular · Absolute What is this?
Sense salvation, deliverance.
Definition Rescue or deliverance brought by God.
References Isaiah 46:13
Lexicon salvation, deliverance.
Why it matters The chapter ends not merely with idol exposure but with God placing salvation in Zion.
Sense beauty, glory, splendor.
Definition Splendor or glory displayed publicly.
References Isaiah 46:13
Lexicon beauty, glory, splendor.
Why it matters God’s salvation in Zion results in the display of His glory among His people.
Lexicon data: MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML (CC0) · Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (CC BY 4.0) · Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon (CC BY 4.0) · STEPBible Data (CC BY 4.0) · Full details
C.F. Keil & F. Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–91) — public domain
The chapter forms a people who stop carrying false gods and learn to be carried by the living God.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
- Remembering - Regularly rehearse God’s works, promises, and fulfilled words.
- Renouncing - Name and reject false supports that demand trust but cannot save.
- Resting - Entrust weakness, aging, uncertainty, and future outcomes to the Lord who carries His people.
- Listening - Receive God’s rebuke where stubbornness has kept the heart far from righteousness.
- Hoping - Anchor expectation in God’s near salvation, not visible imperial strength.
- The chapter warns against trusting what must be maintained, protected, transported, and explained by human hands.
- Do not mistake religious weight for divine power. - Bel and Nebo are heavy burdens, not living rescuers.
- Do not compare the Lord to anything created or manufactured. - The Lord asks, 'With whom will You compare me or count me equal?'
- Do not ignore God’s past faithfulness while facing present fear. - The people are commanded to remember the former things.
- Do not remain stubborn-hearted when God brings righteousness near. - The chapter directly addresses those far from righteousness.
- Treating Isaiah 46 as a generic encouragement detached from idolatry. - The comfort of being carried by God is set against the exposure of idols that must be carried.
- Using verses 3–4 only as sentimental comfort for aging without covenant context. - The promise includes God’s lifelong care, but it is addressed to the covenant remnant within a prophetic argument about salvation and idolatry.
- Assuming God’s sovereignty removes human responsibility. - The chapter commands the people to listen, remember, take the truth to heart, and turn from stubborn rebellion.
- Flattening Cyrus into the ultimate savior. - The one from the east is an instrument of God’s counsel, not the source of salvation.
- Reading Zion language as merely political nationalism. - Zion functions as the place where God displays salvation, righteousness, and glory according to His covenant purpose.
- What am I tempted to carry, defend, or maintain as though it could save me?
- Where have I forgotten that the Lord has carried me from the beginning?
- Am I trusting God’s declared purpose when present circumstances appear dominated by Babylon-like powers?
- What does stubbornness look like in my response to God’s Word right now?
- How should God’s near salvation reshape my fear, worship, and obedience?
- Preaching - Preach the contrast sharply: idols must be carried, but the Lord carries His people. This contrast gives the chapter its force.
- Counseling - Use the chapter to help weary believers distinguish between burdens they are trying to carry as saviors and the God who faithfully carries them.
- Discipleship - Train believers to identify functional idols not merely by what they admire, but by what they feel they cannot survive without.
- Leadership - Remind church leaders that God’s purpose stands. Ministry should be faithful and courageous, not frantic or image-driven.
- Comfort - Apply verses 3–4 to aging, weakness, and endurance, while keeping the comfort rooted in God’s covenant faithfulness and saving power.
- Evangelism - Show unbelievers that every substitute savior eventually becomes a burden, but the living God brings righteousness near.
- Preaching - Use the carried idols versus carrying God contrast as the central image.
- Preaching - Press the chapter toward repentance from functional idolatry and confidence in God’s sovereign salvation.
- Preaching - End with the nearness of God’s righteousness and salvation, not merely the exposure of false gods.
- Teaching - Explain Bel and Nebo briefly without letting historical background overtake the prophetic argument.
- Teaching - Show how Isaiah 46 fits between Isaiah 45’s Cyrus announcement and Isaiah 47’s Babylon judgment.
- Teaching - Trace the theme of God carrying His people from Exodus and Deuteronomy into Isaiah.
- Counseling - Help burdened believers distinguish between God-given responsibilities and false saviors they are trying to carry.
- Counseling - Use Isaiah 46:3–4 for aging, weakness, and fear, while keeping the focus on God’s covenant faithfulness.
- Counseling - Address stubborn resistance with the mercy of God bringing righteousness near.
- Discipleship - Invite believers to audit what they trust for security, identity, rescue, and future hope.
- Discipleship - Practice remembrance as spiritual warfare against fear and idolatry.
- Discipleship - Train confidence in God’s purpose when circumstances appear politically or personally unstable.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
God’s people must not live as though the Lord is another fragile religious object to be protected. He is the living Savior who carries, rules, speaks, and saves.
The Biblical World
Chapter At A Glance
Idols collapse, God carries, idolatry is exposed, God’s purpose stands, and salvation comes near to Zion.
Idols must be carried; the Lord carries His people.
The Lord alone is God and Savior.
Stop trusting burdens that cannot save. Remember the God who carries His people and accomplishes His purpose.
Focus Points
- The incomparability of God
- God as covenant bearer
- The futility of idolatry
- Sovereign providence
- Near righteousness and salvation
- Doctrine of God
- Providence
- Idolatry
- Covenant Faithfulness
- Salvation
- Human Rebellion
- Glory of God
Passages
Chapter opening: Isaiah 46:1-4
Isa 46:6-7 The negative answer to this question is the direct result of what precedes, but a still further proof is given in Isa 46:6, Isa 46:7. “They who pour gold out of the bag, and weigh silver with the balance, hire a goldsmith to make it into a god, that they may fall down, yea, throw themselves down. They lift it up, carry it away upon their shoulder, and set it down in its place: there it stands; from its place it does not move: men also cry to it, but it does not answer; it saves no one out of distress.
” There is no necessity for assuming that הזּלים is used in the place of the finite verb, as Hitzig imagines, or as equivalent to זלים הם, as Rosenmüller and Gesenius suppose; but up to ישׂכּרוּ the whole is subject, and therefore ישׁקלוּ is the point at which the change into the finite verb occurs (Ges. §131, 2). The point in hazzâlı̄m is not the extravagant expenditure, as Ewald thinks, but the mean origin of the god, which commences with the pouring out of gold from a purse ( zūl = zâlal , to shake, to pour out).
Qâneh is the lever of the scales (κανών). The metal weighed out is given to a goldsmith, who plates the idol with the gold, and makes the ornaments for it of silver. When it is finished, they lift it up, or shoulder it (ישּׂאהוּ with a distinctive Great Telisha), carry it home, and set it down in the place which it is to have under it (תּחתּיו). There it stands firm, immoveable, and also deaf and dumb, hearing no one, answering no one, and helping no one.
The subject to יצעק is any צעק. The first admonition closes here. The gods who are carried fall without being able to save themselves, whereas Israel’s God carries and saves His people; He, the Incomparable, more especially in contrast with the lifeless puppets of idols.
Isa 46:6-7 The negative answer to this question is the direct result of what precedes, but a still further proof is given in Isa 46:6, Isa 46:7. “They who pour gold out of the bag, and weigh silver with the balance, hire a goldsmith to make it into a god, that they may fall down, yea, throw themselves down. They lift it up, carry it away upon their shoulder, and set it down in its place: there it stands; from its place it does not move: men also cry to it, but it does not answer; it saves no one out of distress.
” There is no necessity for assuming that הזּלים is used in the place of the finite verb, as Hitzig imagines, or as equivalent to זלים הם, as Rosenmüller and Gesenius suppose; but up to ישׂכּרוּ the whole is subject, and therefore ישׁקלוּ is the point at which the change into the finite verb occurs (Ges. §131, 2). The point in hazzâlı̄m is not the extravagant expenditure, as Ewald thinks, but the mean origin of the god, which commences with the pouring out of gold from a purse ( zūl = zâlal , to shake, to pour out).
Qâneh is the lever of the scales (κανών). The metal weighed out is given to a goldsmith, who plates the idol with the gold, and makes the ornaments for it of silver. When it is finished, they lift it up, or shoulder it (ישּׂאהוּ with a distinctive Great Telisha), carry it home, and set it down in the place which it is to have under it (תּחתּיו). There it stands firm, immoveable, and also deaf and dumb, hearing no one, answering no one, and helping no one.
The subject to יצעק is any צעק. The first admonition closes here. The gods who are carried fall without being able to save themselves, whereas Israel’s God carries and saves His people; He, the Incomparable, more especially in contrast with the lifeless puppets of idols.
Isa 46:8-11 The second admonition is addressed to those who would imitate the heathen. “Remember this, and become firm, take it to heart, ye rebellious ones! Remember the beginning from the olden time, that I am God, and none else: Deity, and absolutely none like me: proclaiming the issue from the beginning, and from ancient times what has not yet taken place, saying, My counsel shall stand, and all my good pleasure I carry out: calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a distant land: not only have I spoken, I also bring it; I have purposed it, I also execute it.
” The object to which “this” points back is the nothingness of idols and idolatry. The persons addressed are the פושׁעים (those apostatizing), but, as התאשׁשׁוּ shows, whether it mean ἀνδιρίζεσθε or κραταιοῦσθε (1Co 16:13), such as have not yet actually carried out their rebellion or apostasy, but waver between Jehovahism and heathenism, and are inclined to the latter.
התאשׁשׁו is hardly a denom. hithpalel of אישׁ in the sense of “man yourselves,” since אישׁ, whether it signifies a husband or a social being, or like אנושׁ, a frail or mortal being, is at any rate equivalent to אנשׁ, and therefore never shows the modification u. אשׁשׁ (אשׁה) signifies to be firm, strong, compact; in the piel (rabb.) , to be well-grounded; nithpael , to be fortified, established; here hithpoel , “show yourselves firm” (Targ.
, Jer. : fundamini ne rursum subitus idololatriae vos turbo subvertat ). That they may strengthen themselves in faith and fidelity, they are referred to the history of their nation; ראשׁנות are not prophecies given at an earlier time - a meaning which the priora only acquire in such a connection as Isa 43:9 - but former occurrences. They are to pass before their minds the earlier history, and indeed “from the olden time.
” “ Remember: ” zikhrū is connected with the accusative of the object of remembrance, and כּי points to its result. An earnest and thoughtful study of history would show them that Jehovah alone was El , the absolutely Mighty One, and 'Elōhı̄m , the Being who united in Himself all divine majesty by which reverence was evoked. The participles in Isa 46:10, Isa 46:11 are attached to the “I” of כּמוני.
It is Jehovah, the Incomparable, who has now, as at other times from the very commencement of the new turn in history, predicted the issue of which it would lead, and miqqedem , i. e. , long before, predicted things that have not yet occurred, and which therefore lit outside the sphere of human combination - another passage like Isa 41:26; Isa 45:21, etc. , in which what is predicted in these prophecies lays claim to the character of a prediction of long standing, and not of one merely uttered a few years before.
The ראשׁית, in which the ראשׁנות are already in progress (Isa 42:9), is to be regarded as the prophet’s ideal present; for Jehovah not only foretells before the appearance of Cyrus what is to be expected of him, but declares that His determination must be realized, that He will bring to pass everything upon which His will is set, and summons the man upon the stage of history as the instrument of its accomplishment, so that He knew Cyrus before he himself had either consciousness or being (Isa 45:4-5). The east is Persis (Isa 41:2); and the distant land, the northern part of Media (as in Isa 13:5).
Cyrus is called an eagle, or, strictly speaking, a bird of prey ( ‛ayit ), just as in Jer 49:22 and Eze 17:3 Nebuchadnezzar is called a nesher . According to Cyrop. vii. 1, 4, the campaign of Cyrus was ἀετὸς χρυσοῦς ἐπὶ δόρατος μακροῦ ἀνατεταμένος. Instead of עצתו אישׁ, the keri reads more clearly, though quite unnecessarily, (עצתי אישׁ (see e. g. , Isa 44:26).
The correlate אף ( Isa 46:11 ), which is only attached to the second verb the second time, affirms that Jehovah does not only the one, but the other also. His word is made by Him into a deed, His idea into a reality. יצר is a word used particularly by Isaiah, to denote the ideal preformation of the future in the mind of God (cf. , Isa 22:11; Isa 37:26). The feminine suffixes refer in a neuter sense to the theme of the prophecy - the overthrow of idolatrous Babel, upon which Cyrus comes down like an eagle, in the strength of Jehovah.
So far we have the nota bene for those who are inclined to apostasy. They are to lay to heart the nothingness of the heathen gods, and, on the other hand, the self-manifestation of Jehovah from the olden time, that is to say, of the One God who is now foretelling and carrying out the destruction of the imperial city through the eagle from the east.
Isa 46:8-11 The second admonition is addressed to those who would imitate the heathen. “Remember this, and become firm, take it to heart, ye rebellious ones! Remember the beginning from the olden time, that I am God, and none else: Deity, and absolutely none like me: proclaiming the issue from the beginning, and from ancient times what has not yet taken place, saying, My counsel shall stand, and all my good pleasure I carry out: calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a distant land: not only have I spoken, I also bring it; I have purposed it, I also execute it.
” The object to which “this” points back is the nothingness of idols and idolatry. The persons addressed are the פושׁעים (those apostatizing), but, as התאשׁשׁוּ shows, whether it mean ἀνδιρίζεσθε or κραταιοῦσθε (1Co 16:13), such as have not yet actually carried out their rebellion or apostasy, but waver between Jehovahism and heathenism, and are inclined to the latter.
התאשׁשׁו is hardly a denom. hithpalel of אישׁ in the sense of “man yourselves,” since אישׁ, whether it signifies a husband or a social being, or like אנושׁ, a frail or mortal being, is at any rate equivalent to אנשׁ, and therefore never shows the modification u. אשׁשׁ (אשׁה) signifies to be firm, strong, compact; in the piel (rabb.) , to be well-grounded; nithpael , to be fortified, established; here hithpoel , “show yourselves firm” (Targ.
, Jer. : fundamini ne rursum subitus idololatriae vos turbo subvertat ). That they may strengthen themselves in faith and fidelity, they are referred to the history of their nation; ראשׁנות are not prophecies given at an earlier time - a meaning which the priora only acquire in such a connection as Isa 43:9 - but former occurrences. They are to pass before their minds the earlier history, and indeed “from the olden time.
” “ Remember: ” zikhrū is connected with the accusative of the object of remembrance, and כּי points to its result. An earnest and thoughtful study of history would show them that Jehovah alone was El , the absolutely Mighty One, and 'Elōhı̄m , the Being who united in Himself all divine majesty by which reverence was evoked. The participles in Isa 46:10, Isa 46:11 are attached to the “I” of כּמוני.
It is Jehovah, the Incomparable, who has now, as at other times from the very commencement of the new turn in history, predicted the issue of which it would lead, and miqqedem , i. e. , long before, predicted things that have not yet occurred, and which therefore lit outside the sphere of human combination - another passage like Isa 41:26; Isa 45:21, etc. , in which what is predicted in these prophecies lays claim to the character of a prediction of long standing, and not of one merely uttered a few years before.
The ראשׁית, in which the ראשׁנות are already in progress (Isa 42:9), is to be regarded as the prophet’s ideal present; for Jehovah not only foretells before the appearance of Cyrus what is to be expected of him, but declares that His determination must be realized, that He will bring to pass everything upon which His will is set, and summons the man upon the stage of history as the instrument of its accomplishment, so that He knew Cyrus before he himself had either consciousness or being (Isa 45:4-5). The east is Persis (Isa 41:2); and the distant land, the northern part of Media (as in Isa 13:5).
Cyrus is called an eagle, or, strictly speaking, a bird of prey ( ‛ayit ), just as in Jer 49:22 and Eze 17:3 Nebuchadnezzar is called a nesher . According to Cyrop. vii. 1, 4, the campaign of Cyrus was ἀετὸς χρυσοῦς ἐπὶ δόρατος μακροῦ ἀνατεταμένος. Instead of עצתו אישׁ, the keri reads more clearly, though quite unnecessarily, (עצתי אישׁ (see e. g. , Isa 44:26).
The correlate אף ( Isa 46:11 ), which is only attached to the second verb the second time, affirms that Jehovah does not only the one, but the other also. His word is made by Him into a deed, His idea into a reality. יצר is a word used particularly by Isaiah, to denote the ideal preformation of the future in the mind of God (cf. , Isa 22:11; Isa 37:26). The feminine suffixes refer in a neuter sense to the theme of the prophecy - the overthrow of idolatrous Babel, upon which Cyrus comes down like an eagle, in the strength of Jehovah.
So far we have the nota bene for those who are inclined to apostasy. They are to lay to heart the nothingness of the heathen gods, and, on the other hand, the self-manifestation of Jehovah from the olden time, that is to say, of the One God who is now foretelling and carrying out the destruction of the imperial city through the eagle from the east.
Isa 46:8-11 The second admonition is addressed to those who would imitate the heathen. “Remember this, and become firm, take it to heart, ye rebellious ones! Remember the beginning from the olden time, that I am God, and none else: Deity, and absolutely none like me: proclaiming the issue from the beginning, and from ancient times what has not yet taken place, saying, My counsel shall stand, and all my good pleasure I carry out: calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a distant land: not only have I spoken, I also bring it; I have purposed it, I also execute it.
” The object to which “this” points back is the nothingness of idols and idolatry. The persons addressed are the פושׁעים (those apostatizing), but, as התאשׁשׁוּ shows, whether it mean ἀνδιρίζεσθε or κραταιοῦσθε (1Co 16:13), such as have not yet actually carried out their rebellion or apostasy, but waver between Jehovahism and heathenism, and are inclined to the latter.
התאשׁשׁו is hardly a denom. hithpalel of אישׁ in the sense of “man yourselves,” since אישׁ, whether it signifies a husband or a social being, or like אנושׁ, a frail or mortal being, is at any rate equivalent to אנשׁ, and therefore never shows the modification u. אשׁשׁ (אשׁה) signifies to be firm, strong, compact; in the piel (rabb.) , to be well-grounded; nithpael , to be fortified, established; here hithpoel , “show yourselves firm” (Targ.
, Jer. : fundamini ne rursum subitus idololatriae vos turbo subvertat ). That they may strengthen themselves in faith and fidelity, they are referred to the history of their nation; ראשׁנות are not prophecies given at an earlier time - a meaning which the priora only acquire in such a connection as Isa 43:9 - but former occurrences. They are to pass before their minds the earlier history, and indeed “from the olden time.
” “ Remember: ” zikhrū is connected with the accusative of the object of remembrance, and כּי points to its result. An earnest and thoughtful study of history would show them that Jehovah alone was El , the absolutely Mighty One, and 'Elōhı̄m , the Being who united in Himself all divine majesty by which reverence was evoked. The participles in Isa 46:10, Isa 46:11 are attached to the “I” of כּמוני.
It is Jehovah, the Incomparable, who has now, as at other times from the very commencement of the new turn in history, predicted the issue of which it would lead, and miqqedem , i. e. , long before, predicted things that have not yet occurred, and which therefore lit outside the sphere of human combination - another passage like Isa 41:26; Isa 45:21, etc. , in which what is predicted in these prophecies lays claim to the character of a prediction of long standing, and not of one merely uttered a few years before.
The ראשׁית, in which the ראשׁנות are already in progress (Isa 42:9), is to be regarded as the prophet’s ideal present; for Jehovah not only foretells before the appearance of Cyrus what is to be expected of him, but declares that His determination must be realized, that He will bring to pass everything upon which His will is set, and summons the man upon the stage of history as the instrument of its accomplishment, so that He knew Cyrus before he himself had either consciousness or being (Isa 45:4-5). The east is Persis (Isa 41:2); and the distant land, the northern part of Media (as in Isa 13:5).
Cyrus is called an eagle, or, strictly speaking, a bird of prey ( ‛ayit ), just as in Jer 49:22 and Eze 17:3 Nebuchadnezzar is called a nesher . According to Cyrop. vii. 1, 4, the campaign of Cyrus was ἀετὸς χρυσοῦς ἐπὶ δόρατος μακροῦ ἀνατεταμένος. Instead of עצתו אישׁ, the keri reads more clearly, though quite unnecessarily, (עצתי אישׁ (see e. g. , Isa 44:26).
The correlate אף ( Isa 46:11 ), which is only attached to the second verb the second time, affirms that Jehovah does not only the one, but the other also. His word is made by Him into a deed, His idea into a reality. יצר is a word used particularly by Isaiah, to denote the ideal preformation of the future in the mind of God (cf. , Isa 22:11; Isa 37:26). The feminine suffixes refer in a neuter sense to the theme of the prophecy - the overthrow of idolatrous Babel, upon which Cyrus comes down like an eagle, in the strength of Jehovah.
So far we have the nota bene for those who are inclined to apostasy. They are to lay to heart the nothingness of the heathen gods, and, on the other hand, the self-manifestation of Jehovah from the olden time, that is to say, of the One God who is now foretelling and carrying out the destruction of the imperial city through the eagle from the east.
Isa 46:8-11 The second admonition is addressed to those who would imitate the heathen. “Remember this, and become firm, take it to heart, ye rebellious ones! Remember the beginning from the olden time, that I am God, and none else: Deity, and absolutely none like me: proclaiming the issue from the beginning, and from ancient times what has not yet taken place, saying, My counsel shall stand, and all my good pleasure I carry out: calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a distant land: not only have I spoken, I also bring it; I have purposed it, I also execute it.
” The object to which “this” points back is the nothingness of idols and idolatry. The persons addressed are the פושׁעים (those apostatizing), but, as התאשׁשׁוּ shows, whether it mean ἀνδιρίζεσθε or κραταιοῦσθε (1Co 16:13), such as have not yet actually carried out their rebellion or apostasy, but waver between Jehovahism and heathenism, and are inclined to the latter.
התאשׁשׁו is hardly a denom. hithpalel of אישׁ in the sense of “man yourselves,” since אישׁ, whether it signifies a husband or a social being, or like אנושׁ, a frail or mortal being, is at any rate equivalent to אנשׁ, and therefore never shows the modification u. אשׁשׁ (אשׁה) signifies to be firm, strong, compact; in the piel (rabb.) , to be well-grounded; nithpael , to be fortified, established; here hithpoel , “show yourselves firm” (Targ.
, Jer. : fundamini ne rursum subitus idololatriae vos turbo subvertat ). That they may strengthen themselves in faith and fidelity, they are referred to the history of their nation; ראשׁנות are not prophecies given at an earlier time - a meaning which the priora only acquire in such a connection as Isa 43:9 - but former occurrences. They are to pass before their minds the earlier history, and indeed “from the olden time.
” “ Remember: ” zikhrū is connected with the accusative of the object of remembrance, and כּי points to its result. An earnest and thoughtful study of history would show them that Jehovah alone was El , the absolutely Mighty One, and 'Elōhı̄m , the Being who united in Himself all divine majesty by which reverence was evoked. The participles in Isa 46:10, Isa 46:11 are attached to the “I” of כּמוני.
It is Jehovah, the Incomparable, who has now, as at other times from the very commencement of the new turn in history, predicted the issue of which it would lead, and miqqedem , i. e. , long before, predicted things that have not yet occurred, and which therefore lit outside the sphere of human combination - another passage like Isa 41:26; Isa 45:21, etc. , in which what is predicted in these prophecies lays claim to the character of a prediction of long standing, and not of one merely uttered a few years before.
The ראשׁית, in which the ראשׁנות are already in progress (Isa 42:9), is to be regarded as the prophet’s ideal present; for Jehovah not only foretells before the appearance of Cyrus what is to be expected of him, but declares that His determination must be realized, that He will bring to pass everything upon which His will is set, and summons the man upon the stage of history as the instrument of its accomplishment, so that He knew Cyrus before he himself had either consciousness or being (Isa 45:4-5). The east is Persis (Isa 41:2); and the distant land, the northern part of Media (as in Isa 13:5).
Cyrus is called an eagle, or, strictly speaking, a bird of prey ( ‛ayit ), just as in Jer 49:22 and Eze 17:3 Nebuchadnezzar is called a nesher . According to Cyrop. vii. 1, 4, the campaign of Cyrus was ἀετὸς χρυσοῦς ἐπὶ δόρατος μακροῦ ἀνατεταμένος. Instead of עצתו אישׁ, the keri reads more clearly, though quite unnecessarily, (עצתי אישׁ (see e. g. , Isa 44:26).
The correlate אף ( Isa 46:11 ), which is only attached to the second verb the second time, affirms that Jehovah does not only the one, but the other also. His word is made by Him into a deed, His idea into a reality. יצר is a word used particularly by Isaiah, to denote the ideal preformation of the future in the mind of God (cf. , Isa 22:11; Isa 37:26). The feminine suffixes refer in a neuter sense to the theme of the prophecy - the overthrow of idolatrous Babel, upon which Cyrus comes down like an eagle, in the strength of Jehovah.
So far we have the nota bene for those who are inclined to apostasy. They are to lay to heart the nothingness of the heathen gods, and, on the other hand, the self-manifestation of Jehovah from the olden time, that is to say, of the One God who is now foretelling and carrying out the destruction of the imperial city through the eagle from the east.
Isa 46:12-13 A third admonition is addressed to the forts esprits in Isa 46:12, Isa 46:13. “Hearken to me, ye strong-hearted, that are far from righteousness! I have brought my righteousness near; it is not far off, and my salvation tarrieth not: and I give salvation in Zion, my glory to Israel. ” All that is called in Hellenic and Hellenistic νοῦς λόγος συνείδησις θυμός, is comprehended in καρδία; and everything by which bâsâr and nephesh are affected comes into the light of consciousness in the heart ( Psychol.
p. 251). According to this biblico-psychological idea, לב אבּיתי may signify either the courageous (Psa 76:6), or, as in this instance, the strong-minded; but as a synonym of לב סהזקי (Eze 2:4) and לב קשׁי (Eze 3:7), viz. , in the sense of those who resist the impressions of the work and grace of God in their consciousness of mental superiority to anything of the kind, and not in the sense of those who have great mental endowments.
These are “far from righteousness” ( tsedâqâh ), that is to say, they have despaired of the true, loving fidelity of Jehovah, and have no wish for any further knowledge of it. Therefore they shall hear, and possibly not without impression, that this loving fidelity is about to manifest itself, and salvation is about to be realized. Jehovah has given salvation in Zion, that is to say, is giving it even now, so that it will become once more the centre of the renovated nation, and impart its glory to this, so that it may shine in the splendour bestowed upon it by its God.
We have here the side of light and love, turned towards us by the two-faced tsedâqâh , as a parallel word to theshū‛âh , or salvation. With this admonition to the indifferent and careless, to whom the salvation of which they have given up all hope is proclaimed as at the door, this prophecy is brought to a close. In three distinct stages, commencing with “hearken,” “remember,” “hearken,” it has unfolded the spiritual influences which the fact declared in Isa 46:1, Isa 46:2 ought to have upon Israel, and resembles a pastoral sermon in its tone.
Isa 46:12-13 A third admonition is addressed to the forts esprits in Isa 46:12, Isa 46:13. “Hearken to me, ye strong-hearted, that are far from righteousness! I have brought my righteousness near; it is not far off, and my salvation tarrieth not: and I give salvation in Zion, my glory to Israel. ” All that is called in Hellenic and Hellenistic νοῦς λόγος συνείδησις θυμός, is comprehended in καρδία; and everything by which bâsâr and nephesh are affected comes into the light of consciousness in the heart ( Psychol.
p. 251). According to this biblico-psychological idea, לב אבּיתי may signify either the courageous (Psa 76:6), or, as in this instance, the strong-minded; but as a synonym of לב סהזקי (Eze 2:4) and לב קשׁי (Eze 3:7), viz. , in the sense of those who resist the impressions of the work and grace of God in their consciousness of mental superiority to anything of the kind, and not in the sense of those who have great mental endowments.
These are “far from righteousness” ( tsedâqâh ), that is to say, they have despaired of the true, loving fidelity of Jehovah, and have no wish for any further knowledge of it. Therefore they shall hear, and possibly not without impression, that this loving fidelity is about to manifest itself, and salvation is about to be realized. Jehovah has given salvation in Zion, that is to say, is giving it even now, so that it will become once more the centre of the renovated nation, and impart its glory to this, so that it may shine in the splendour bestowed upon it by its God.
We have here the side of light and love, turned towards us by the two-faced tsedâqâh , as a parallel word to theshū‛âh , or salvation. With this admonition to the indifferent and careless, to whom the salvation of which they have given up all hope is proclaimed as at the door, this prophecy is brought to a close. In three distinct stages, commencing with “hearken,” “remember,” “hearken,” it has unfolded the spiritual influences which the fact declared in Isa 46:1, Isa 46:2 ought to have upon Israel, and resembles a pastoral sermon in its tone.
Isa 47:1-4 From the gods of Babylon the proclamation of judgment passes onto Babylon itself. “Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter Babel; sit on the ground without a throne, O Chaldaeans-daughter! For men no longer call thee delicate and voluptuous. Take the mill, and grind meal: throw back they veil, lift up the train, uncover the thigh, wade through streams.
Let thy nakedness be uncovered, even let thy shame be seen; I shall take vengeance, and not spare men. Our Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts is His name, Holy One of Israel. ” This is the first strophe in the prophecy. As v. 36 clearly shows, what precedes is a penal sentence from Jehovah. Both בּת in relation to בּתוּלת (Isa 23:12; Isa 37:22), and בּבל and כּשׂדּים in relation to בּת, are appositional genitives; Babel and Chaldeans (כשׂדים as in Isa 48:20) are regarded as a woman, and that as one not yet dishonoured.
The unconquered oppressor is threatened with degradation from her proud eminence into shameful humiliation; sitting on the ground is used in the same sense as in Isa 3:26. Hitherto men have called her, with envious admiration, rakkâh va‛ânuggâh (from Deu 28:56), mollis et delicata , as having carefully kept everything disagreeable at a distance, and revelled in nothing but luxury (compare ‛ōneg , Isa 13:22).
Debauchery with its attendant rioting (Isa 14:11; Isa 25:5), and the Mylitta worship with its licensed prostitution (Herod. i. 199), were current there; but now all this was at an end. תוסיפי, according to the Masora, has only one pashta both here and in Isa 47:5, and so has the tone upon the last syllable, and accordingly metheg in the antepenult . Isaiah’s artistic style may be readily perceived both in the three clauses of Isa 47:1 that are comparable to a long trumpet-blast (compare Isa 40:9 and Isa 16:1), and also in the short, rugged, involuntarily excited clauses that follow.
The mistress becomes the maid, and has to perform the low, menial service of those who, as Homer says in Od. vii. 104, ἀλετρεύουσι μύλης ἔπι μήλοπα καρπόν (grind at the mill the quince-coloured fruit; compare at Job 31:10). She has to leave her palace as a prisoner of war, and, laying aside all feminine modesty, to wade through the rivers upon which she borders.
Chespı̄ has ĕ instead of ĭ , and, as in other cases where a sibilant precedes, the mute p instead of f (compare 'ispı̄ , Jer 10:17). Both the prosopopeia and the parallel, “thy shame shall be seen,” require that the expression “thy nakedness shall be uncovered” should not be understood literally. The shame of Babel is her shameful conduct, which is not to be exhibited in its true colours, inasmuch as a stronger one is coming upon it to rob it of its might and honour.
This stronger one, apart from the instrument employed, is Jehovah: vindictam sumam, non parcam homini . Stier gives a different rendering here, namely, “I will run upon no man, i. e. , so as to make him give way;” Hahn, “I will not meet with a man,” so destitute of population will Babylon be; and Ruetschi, “I will not step in as a man. ” Gesenius and Rosenmüller are nearer to the mark when they suggest non pangam ( paciscar ) cum homine ; but this would require at any rate את־אדם, even if the verb פּגע really had the meaning to strike a treaty.
It means rather to strike against a person, to assault any one, then to meet or come in an opposite direction, and that not only in a hostile sense, but, as in this instance, and also in Isa 64:4, in a friendly sense as well. Hence, “I shall not receive any man, or pardon any man” (Hitzig, Ewald, etc.) According to an old method of writing the passage, there is a pause here.
But Isa 47:4 is still connected with what goes before. As Jehovah is speaking in Isa 47:5, but Israel in Isa 47:4, and as Isa 47:4 is unsuitable to form the basis of the words of Jehovah, it must be regarded as the antiphone to Isa 47:1-3 (cf. , Isa 45:15). Our Redeemer, exclaims the church in joyfully exalted self-consciousness, He is Jehovah of Hosts, the Holy One of Israel!
The one name affirms that He possesses the all-conquering might; the other that He possesses the will to carry on the work of redemption - a will influenced and constrained by both love and wrath.
Isa 47:1-4 From the gods of Babylon the proclamation of judgment passes onto Babylon itself. “Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter Babel; sit on the ground without a throne, O Chaldaeans-daughter! For men no longer call thee delicate and voluptuous. Take the mill, and grind meal: throw back they veil, lift up the train, uncover the thigh, wade through streams.
Let thy nakedness be uncovered, even let thy shame be seen; I shall take vengeance, and not spare men. Our Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts is His name, Holy One of Israel. ” This is the first strophe in the prophecy. As v. 36 clearly shows, what precedes is a penal sentence from Jehovah. Both בּת in relation to בּתוּלת (Isa 23:12; Isa 37:22), and בּבל and כּשׂדּים in relation to בּת, are appositional genitives; Babel and Chaldeans (כשׂדים as in Isa 48:20) are regarded as a woman, and that as one not yet dishonoured.
The unconquered oppressor is threatened with degradation from her proud eminence into shameful humiliation; sitting on the ground is used in the same sense as in Isa 3:26. Hitherto men have called her, with envious admiration, rakkâh va‛ânuggâh (from Deu 28:56), mollis et delicata , as having carefully kept everything disagreeable at a distance, and revelled in nothing but luxury (compare ‛ōneg , Isa 13:22).
Debauchery with its attendant rioting (Isa 14:11; Isa 25:5), and the Mylitta worship with its licensed prostitution (Herod. i. 199), were current there; but now all this was at an end. תוסיפי, according to the Masora, has only one pashta both here and in Isa 47:5, and so has the tone upon the last syllable, and accordingly metheg in the antepenult . Isaiah’s artistic style may be readily perceived both in the three clauses of Isa 47:1 that are comparable to a long trumpet-blast (compare Isa 40:9 and Isa 16:1), and also in the short, rugged, involuntarily excited clauses that follow.
The mistress becomes the maid, and has to perform the low, menial service of those who, as Homer says in Od. vii. 104, ἀλετρεύουσι μύλης ἔπι μήλοπα καρπόν (grind at the mill the quince-coloured fruit; compare at Job 31:10). She has to leave her palace as a prisoner of war, and, laying aside all feminine modesty, to wade through the rivers upon which she borders.
Chespı̄ has ĕ instead of ĭ , and, as in other cases where a sibilant precedes, the mute p instead of f (compare 'ispı̄ , Jer 10:17). Both the prosopopeia and the parallel, “thy shame shall be seen,” require that the expression “thy nakedness shall be uncovered” should not be understood literally. The shame of Babel is her shameful conduct, which is not to be exhibited in its true colours, inasmuch as a stronger one is coming upon it to rob it of its might and honour.
This stronger one, apart from the instrument employed, is Jehovah: vindictam sumam, non parcam homini . Stier gives a different rendering here, namely, “I will run upon no man, i. e. , so as to make him give way;” Hahn, “I will not meet with a man,” so destitute of population will Babylon be; and Ruetschi, “I will not step in as a man. ” Gesenius and Rosenmüller are nearer to the mark when they suggest non pangam ( paciscar ) cum homine ; but this would require at any rate את־אדם, even if the verb פּגע really had the meaning to strike a treaty.
It means rather to strike against a person, to assault any one, then to meet or come in an opposite direction, and that not only in a hostile sense, but, as in this instance, and also in Isa 64:4, in a friendly sense as well. Hence, “I shall not receive any man, or pardon any man” (Hitzig, Ewald, etc.) According to an old method of writing the passage, there is a pause here.
But Isa 47:4 is still connected with what goes before. As Jehovah is speaking in Isa 47:5, but Israel in Isa 47:4, and as Isa 47:4 is unsuitable to form the basis of the words of Jehovah, it must be regarded as the antiphone to Isa 47:1-3 (cf. , Isa 45:15). Our Redeemer, exclaims the church in joyfully exalted self-consciousness, He is Jehovah of Hosts, the Holy One of Israel!
The one name affirms that He possesses the all-conquering might; the other that He possesses the will to carry on the work of redemption - a will influenced and constrained by both love and wrath.
Isa 47:1-4 From the gods of Babylon the proclamation of judgment passes onto Babylon itself. “Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter Babel; sit on the ground without a throne, O Chaldaeans-daughter! For men no longer call thee delicate and voluptuous. Take the mill, and grind meal: throw back they veil, lift up the train, uncover the thigh, wade through streams.
Let thy nakedness be uncovered, even let thy shame be seen; I shall take vengeance, and not spare men. Our Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts is His name, Holy One of Israel. ” This is the first strophe in the prophecy. As v. 36 clearly shows, what precedes is a penal sentence from Jehovah. Both בּת in relation to בּתוּלת (Isa 23:12; Isa 37:22), and בּבל and כּשׂדּים in relation to בּת, are appositional genitives; Babel and Chaldeans (כשׂדים as in Isa 48:20) are regarded as a woman, and that as one not yet dishonoured.
The unconquered oppressor is threatened with degradation from her proud eminence into shameful humiliation; sitting on the ground is used in the same sense as in Isa 3:26. Hitherto men have called her, with envious admiration, rakkâh va‛ânuggâh (from Deu 28:56), mollis et delicata , as having carefully kept everything disagreeable at a distance, and revelled in nothing but luxury (compare ‛ōneg , Isa 13:22).
Debauchery with its attendant rioting (Isa 14:11; Isa 25:5), and the Mylitta worship with its licensed prostitution (Herod. i. 199), were current there; but now all this was at an end. תוסיפי, according to the Masora, has only one pashta both here and in Isa 47:5, and so has the tone upon the last syllable, and accordingly metheg in the antepenult . Isaiah’s artistic style may be readily perceived both in the three clauses of Isa 47:1 that are comparable to a long trumpet-blast (compare Isa 40:9 and Isa 16:1), and also in the short, rugged, involuntarily excited clauses that follow.
The mistress becomes the maid, and has to perform the low, menial service of those who, as Homer says in Od. vii. 104, ἀλετρεύουσι μύλης ἔπι μήλοπα καρπόν (grind at the mill the quince-coloured fruit; compare at Job 31:10). She has to leave her palace as a prisoner of war, and, laying aside all feminine modesty, to wade through the rivers upon which she borders.
Chespı̄ has ĕ instead of ĭ , and, as in other cases where a sibilant precedes, the mute p instead of f (compare 'ispı̄ , Jer 10:17). Both the prosopopeia and the parallel, “thy shame shall be seen,” require that the expression “thy nakedness shall be uncovered” should not be understood literally. The shame of Babel is her shameful conduct, which is not to be exhibited in its true colours, inasmuch as a stronger one is coming upon it to rob it of its might and honour.
This stronger one, apart from the instrument employed, is Jehovah: vindictam sumam, non parcam homini . Stier gives a different rendering here, namely, “I will run upon no man, i. e. , so as to make him give way;” Hahn, “I will not meet with a man,” so destitute of population will Babylon be; and Ruetschi, “I will not step in as a man. ” Gesenius and Rosenmüller are nearer to the mark when they suggest non pangam ( paciscar ) cum homine ; but this would require at any rate את־אדם, even if the verb פּגע really had the meaning to strike a treaty.
It means rather to strike against a person, to assault any one, then to meet or come in an opposite direction, and that not only in a hostile sense, but, as in this instance, and also in Isa 64:4, in a friendly sense as well. Hence, “I shall not receive any man, or pardon any man” (Hitzig, Ewald, etc.) According to an old method of writing the passage, there is a pause here.
But Isa 47:4 is still connected with what goes before. As Jehovah is speaking in Isa 47:5, but Israel in Isa 47:4, and as Isa 47:4 is unsuitable to form the basis of the words of Jehovah, it must be regarded as the antiphone to Isa 47:1-3 (cf. , Isa 45:15). Our Redeemer, exclaims the church in joyfully exalted self-consciousness, He is Jehovah of Hosts, the Holy One of Israel!
The one name affirms that He possesses the all-conquering might; the other that He possesses the will to carry on the work of redemption - a will influenced and constrained by both love and wrath.
Isa 47:1-4 From the gods of Babylon the proclamation of judgment passes onto Babylon itself. “Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter Babel; sit on the ground without a throne, O Chaldaeans-daughter! For men no longer call thee delicate and voluptuous. Take the mill, and grind meal: throw back they veil, lift up the train, uncover the thigh, wade through streams.
Let thy nakedness be uncovered, even let thy shame be seen; I shall take vengeance, and not spare men. Our Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts is His name, Holy One of Israel. ” This is the first strophe in the prophecy. As v. 36 clearly shows, what precedes is a penal sentence from Jehovah. Both בּת in relation to בּתוּלת (Isa 23:12; Isa 37:22), and בּבל and כּשׂדּים in relation to בּת, are appositional genitives; Babel and Chaldeans (כשׂדים as in Isa 48:20) are regarded as a woman, and that as one not yet dishonoured.
The unconquered oppressor is threatened with degradation from her proud eminence into shameful humiliation; sitting on the ground is used in the same sense as in Isa 3:26. Hitherto men have called her, with envious admiration, rakkâh va‛ânuggâh (from Deu 28:56), mollis et delicata , as having carefully kept everything disagreeable at a distance, and revelled in nothing but luxury (compare ‛ōneg , Isa 13:22).
Debauchery with its attendant rioting (Isa 14:11; Isa 25:5), and the Mylitta worship with its licensed prostitution (Herod. i. 199), were current there; but now all this was at an end. תוסיפי, according to the Masora, has only one pashta both here and in Isa 47:5, and so has the tone upon the last syllable, and accordingly metheg in the antepenult . Isaiah’s artistic style may be readily perceived both in the three clauses of Isa 47:1 that are comparable to a long trumpet-blast (compare Isa 40:9 and Isa 16:1), and also in the short, rugged, involuntarily excited clauses that follow.
The mistress becomes the maid, and has to perform the low, menial service of those who, as Homer says in Od. vii. 104, ἀλετρεύουσι μύλης ἔπι μήλοπα καρπόν (grind at the mill the quince-coloured fruit; compare at Job 31:10). She has to leave her palace as a prisoner of war, and, laying aside all feminine modesty, to wade through the rivers upon which she borders.
Chespı̄ has ĕ instead of ĭ , and, as in other cases where a sibilant precedes, the mute p instead of f (compare 'ispı̄ , Jer 10:17). Both the prosopopeia and the parallel, “thy shame shall be seen,” require that the expression “thy nakedness shall be uncovered” should not be understood literally. The shame of Babel is her shameful conduct, which is not to be exhibited in its true colours, inasmuch as a stronger one is coming upon it to rob it of its might and honour.
This stronger one, apart from the instrument employed, is Jehovah: vindictam sumam, non parcam homini . Stier gives a different rendering here, namely, “I will run upon no man, i. e. , so as to make him give way;” Hahn, “I will not meet with a man,” so destitute of population will Babylon be; and Ruetschi, “I will not step in as a man. ” Gesenius and Rosenmüller are nearer to the mark when they suggest non pangam ( paciscar ) cum homine ; but this would require at any rate את־אדם, even if the verb פּגע really had the meaning to strike a treaty.
It means rather to strike against a person, to assault any one, then to meet or come in an opposite direction, and that not only in a hostile sense, but, as in this instance, and also in Isa 64:4, in a friendly sense as well. Hence, “I shall not receive any man, or pardon any man” (Hitzig, Ewald, etc.) According to an old method of writing the passage, there is a pause here.
But Isa 47:4 is still connected with what goes before. As Jehovah is speaking in Isa 47:5, but Israel in Isa 47:4, and as Isa 47:4 is unsuitable to form the basis of the words of Jehovah, it must be regarded as the antiphone to Isa 47:1-3 (cf. , Isa 45:15). Our Redeemer, exclaims the church in joyfully exalted self-consciousness, He is Jehovah of Hosts, the Holy One of Israel!
The one name affirms that He possesses the all-conquering might; the other that He possesses the will to carry on the work of redemption - a will influenced and constrained by both love and wrath.