13Have you forgotten Yahweh your Maker, who stretched out the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth? Do you live in fear continually all day because of the fury of the oppressor, when he prepares to destroy? Where is the fury of the oppressor?
14The captive exile will speedily be freed. He will not die and go down into the pit. His bread won’t fail.
15For I am Yahweh your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar. Yahweh of Armies is his name.
13 Have you forgotten Yahweh your Maker, who stretched out the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth? Do you live in fear continually all day because of the fury of the oppressor, when he prepares to destroy? Where is the fury of the oppressor?
14 The captive exile will speedily be freed. He will not die and go down into the pit. His bread won’t fail.
15 For I am Yahweh your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar. Yahweh of Armies is his name.
KJVKing James Version
13 And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? and where is the fury of the oppressor?
14 The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail.
15 But I am the LORD thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The LORD of hosts is his name.
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JPSJPS Tanakh (1917)
13 And hast forgotten the LORD thy Maker, that stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and fearest continually all the day because of the fury of the oppressor, as he maketh ready to destroy? And where is the fury of the oppressor?
14 He that is bent down shall speedily be loosed; and he shall not go down dying into the pit, neither shall his bread fail.
15 For I am the LORD thy God, who stirreth up the sea, that the waves thereof roar; the LORD of hosts is His name.
Isaiah 48:20(v14)Leave Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! With a voice of singing announce this, tell it even to the end of the earth: say, “Yahweh has…
Zechariah 9:11(v14)As for you also, because of the blood of your covenant, I have set free your prisoners from the pit in which is no water.
Isaiah 52:2(v14)Shake yourself from the dust! Arise, sit up, Jerusalem! Release yourself from the bonds of your neck, captive daughter of Zion!
Jeremiah 31:35(v15)Yahweh, who gives the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, who stirs up the sea,…
Acts 12:7-8(v14)And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side, and woke him up, saying, “Stand…
Show all 62 cross-references
Isaiah 49:10(v14)They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun strike them: for he who has mercy on them will lead them. He will guide…
Isaiah 54:5(v15)For your Maker is your husband; Yahweh of Armies is his name. The Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer. He will be called the God of the…
Psalms 104:2(v13)He covers himself with light as with a garment. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain.
Isaiah 17:10(v13)For you have forgotten the God of your salvation, and have not remembered the rock of your strength. Therefore you plant pleasant plants,…
Isaiah 40:22(v13)It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,…
Isaiah 45:12(v13)I have made the earth, and created man on it. I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens. I have commanded all their army.
Ezra 1:5(v14)Then the heads of fathers’ households of Judah and Benjamin, the priests, and the Levites, all whose spirit God had stirred to go up rose…
Job 9:8(v13)He alone stretches out the heavens, and treads on the waves of the sea.
Isaiah 44:24(v13)Yahweh, your Redeemer, and he who formed you from the womb says: “I am Yahweh, who makes all things; who alone stretches out the heavens;…
Isaiah 48:13(v13)Yes, my hand has laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand has spread out the heavens. when I call to them, they stand up…
Jeremiah 38:6-13(v14)Then they took Jeremiah and threw him into the dungeon of Malchijah the king’s son, that was in the court of the guard. They let down…
Daniel 3:19(v13)Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the form of his appearance was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He spoke, and…
Amos 9:5-6(v15)For the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, is he who touches the land and it melts, and all who dwell in it will mourn; and it will rise up wholly…
1 Corinthians 1:20(v13)Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the lawyer of this world? Hasn’t God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
Psalms 74:13(v15)You divided the sea by your strength. You broke the heads of the sea monsters in the waters.
Psalms 114:3-5(v15)The sea saw it, and fled. The Jordan was driven back. The mountains skipped like rams, the little hills like lambs. What was it, you sea,…
Psalms 136:13(v15)to him who divided the Red Sea apart; for his loving kindness endures forever;
Isaiah 14:16-17(v13)Those who see you will stare at you. They will ponder you, saying, “Is this the man who made the earth to tremble, who shook kingdoms, who…
Isaiah 33:18-19(v13)Your heart will meditate on the terror. Where is he who counted? Where is he who weighed? Where is he who counted the towers? You will no…
Isaiah 42:5(v13)God Yahweh, he who created the heavens and stretched them out, he who spread out the earth and that which comes out of it, he who gives…
Isaiah 47:4(v15)Our Redeemer, Yahweh of Armies is his name, is the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 51:10(v15)Isn’t it you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep; who made the depths of the sea a way for the redeemed to pass over?
Jeremiah 2:32(v13)“Can a virgin forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? Yet my people have forgotten me for days without number.
Jeremiah 10:11-12(v13)“You shall say this to them: ‘The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth, and from under the…
Jeremiah 10:16(v15)The portion of Jacob is not like these; for he is the maker of all things; and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance: Yahweh of Armies is…
Jeremiah 37:16(v14)When Jeremiah had come into the dungeon house, and into the cells, and Jeremiah had remained there many days,
Jeremiah 51:15(v13)“He has made the earth by his power. He has established the world by his wisdom. By his understanding he has stretched out the heavens.
Lamentations 3:53-54(v14)They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and have cast a stone on me. Waters flowed over my head. I said, “I am cut off.”
Daniel 3:15(v13)Now if you are ready whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music to fall down and…
Daniel 4:32-33(v13)You shall be driven from men; and your dwelling shall be with the animals of the field. You shall be made to eat grass as oxen. Seven times…
Matthew 2:16-20(v13)Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were…
1 Corinthians 15:55(v13)“Death, where is your sting? Hades, where is your victory?”
Hebrews 1:9-12(v13)You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows.”…
Hebrews 11:15(v13)If indeed they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had enough time to return.
Revelation 19:20(v13)The beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked the signs in his sight, with which he deceived those who had received the…
Revelation 20:9(v13)They went up over the width of the earth, and surrounded the camp of the saints, and the beloved city. Fire came down out of heaven from…
Exodus 14:10-13(v13)When Pharaoh came near, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them; and they were very…
Exodus 15:9-10(v13)The enemy said, ‘I will pursue. I will overtake. I will divide the plunder. My desire will be satisfied on them. I will draw my sword. My…
Deuteronomy 32:18(v13)Of the Rock who became your father, you are unmindful, and have forgotten God who gave you birth.
Esther 5:14(v13)Then Zeresh his wife and all his friends said to him, “Let a gallows be made fifty cubits high, and in the morning speak to the king about…
Esther 7:10(v13)So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king’s wrath was pacified.
Job 20:5-9(v13)that the triumphing of the wicked is short, the joy of the godless but for a moment? Though his height mount up to the heavens, and his…
Job 26:12(v15)He stirs up the sea with his power, and by his understanding he strikes through Rahab.
Job 37:18(v13)Can you, with him, spread out the sky, which is strong as a cast metal mirror?
Psalms 9:6-7(v13)The enemy is overtaken by endless ruin. The very memory of the cities which you have overthrown has perished. But Yahweh reigns forever. He…
Psalms 37:35-36(v13)I have seen the wicked in great power, spreading himself like a green tree in its native soil. But he passed away, and behold, he was not.…
Psalms 76:10(v13)Surely the wrath of man praises you. The survivors of your wrath are restrained.
Psalms 102:25-26(v13)Of old, you laid the foundation of the earth. The heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will endure. Yes, all of…
Isaiah 7:4(v13)Tell him, ‘Be careful, and keep calm. Don’t be afraid, neither let your heart be faint because of these two tails of smoking torches, for…
Isaiah 8:12-13(v13)“Don’t say, ‘A conspiracy!’ concerning all about which this people say, ‘A conspiracy!’ neither fear their threats, nor be terrorized.…
Isaiah 10:29-34(v13)They have gone over the pass. They have taken up their lodging at Geba. Ramah trembles. Gibeah of Saul has fled. Cry aloud with your voice,…
Isaiah 16:4(v13)Let my outcasts dwell with you! As for Moab, be a hiding place for him from the face of the destroyer. For the extortionist is brought to…
Isaiah 37:36-38(v13)Then Yahweh’s angel went out and struck one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the camp of the Assyrians. When men arose early in the…
Isaiah 48:2(v15)for they call themselves citizens of the holy city, and rely on the God of Israel; Yahweh of Armies is his name.
Nehemiah 9:11(v15)You divided the sea before them, so that they went through the middle of the sea on the dry land; and you cast their pursuers into the…
Isaiah 57:11(v13)“Whom have you dreaded and feared, so that you lie, and have not remembered me, nor laid it to your heart? Haven’t I held my peace for a…
Acts 12:23(v13)Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he didn’t give God the glory. Then he was eaten by worms and died.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (18 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Geneva Bible translators1599 · Public DomainOn v14He comforteth them by the short time of their…
He comforteth them by the short time of their banishment: for in seventy years they were restored, and the greatest empire of the world destroyed.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp1656 · Public DomainOn vv13–15Isa 51:13 And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that…
Isa 51:13 And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? and where [is] the fury of the oppressor?
Ver. 13. And forgettest the Lord thy maker.] Thou considerest not wisely (1.) How fearfully and wonderfully thou art made; (2.) What a mighty power God put forth in the creation of the whole world; all which he will rather unmake again than thou shalt want seasonable help.
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And hast feared continually every day.] Peior est morte timor ipse mortis.
And where is the fury of the oppressor?] q.d., It is but fury, and not power, and that not illimited neither; for "in the thing wherein they deal proudly, I am above them." {Exo 18:11}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole1685 · Public DomainOn vv13–14And forgettest the Lord thy Maker; and dost not…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker; and dost not consider the infinite power of that God who made thee, and who will plead thy cause.
As if he were ready to destroy; as if it were in his power to destroy thee in a moment.
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Where is the fury of the oppressor? what is become of the power and rage of the Babylonians? Is it not all gone? Are not they broken, and thou delivered? He speaks of the thing as if it were already done, because it should certainly and suddenly be done. Where is it? It is no where, it is quite lost and gone, as this phrase is frequently used, as Psa 42:3; Zec 1:5; 1Co 15:55.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill1763 · Public DomainOn vv13–15And forgettest the Lord thy Maker,.... That he is…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker,.... That he is thy Maker, and therefore is able to protect and preserve thee; when the fear of man prevails God is forgotten, his power, his providence, his promises, and past instances of divine favour and goodness; were these more frequently recollected, considered, and thought of, they would prove an antidote against the fear of men; and especially when it is observed, that he that is our Maker is he
that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; these are amazing works of his hands; and what is it that he cannot do that has made these? these he upholds and maintains in being, and does all things in them as he pleases, and overrules all for his own glory and his people's good, and therefore they have nothing to fear from men; and yet they are afraid of them, such is their distrust and unbelief:
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and hast feared continually every day; not only at some certain times, when the enemy has appeared very formidable, and threatened with destruction, or some terrible rumour has been spread, but every day, every hour, and every moment; and to be always in a panic must be very uncomfortable living, as well as very dishonourable:
because of the fury of the oppressor; either the king of Babylon, or antichrist:
as if he were ready to destroy: had drawn his sword, and just going to give the fatal blow:
and where, or "but where",
is the fury of the oppressor? where's the fury of Pharaoh, that great oppressor of God's Israel formerly? it is gone and vanished like smoke: where's the fury of Sennacherib king of Assyria, and his army, that threatened Jerusalem with ruin? it was over in a short time, in one night the whole host, or the greater part of it, were destroyed by an angel: and where is, or will be, the fury of the king of Babylon? it will not last always; nor the fury of the antichristian oppressor.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley1765 · Public DomainOn v13Where is the fury - Is it not all…
Where is the fury - Is it not all gone? He speaks of the thing as if it were already done, because it should certainly and suddenly be done.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke1810 · Public DomainOn vv13–14Verse 13. Of the oppressor, as if he, c.]…
Verse 13. Of the oppressor, as if he, c.] "The כ caph in כאשר keasher seems clearly to have changed its situation from the end of the preceding word to the beginning of this or rather, to have been omitted by mistake there, because it was here. That it was there the Septuagint show by rendering המציקך hammetsikech θλιβοντος, of him that oppressed thee. And so they render this word in both its places in this verse. The Vulgate also has the pronoun in the first instance; furoris ejus qui te tribulabat." Dr. Jubb. The correction seems well founded; I have not conformed the translation to it, because it makes little difference in the sense.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson1811 · Public DomainOn v14Isa 51:14-16. The captive exile hasteneth that he may…
Isa 51:14-16. The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed — From his captivity, and may return to his own country from which he is banished. And that he should not die in the pit — Die a prisoner, through the inconveniences and hardships of his confinement; nor that his bread should fail — The bread or provision allowed to keep him alive in prison. The general sense of the verse is, God is not slack, as you think, but makes haste to fulfil his promise, and rescue his captive and oppressed people from all their oppressions and miseries. And I have put my words in thy mouth — These great and glorious promises, which are in thy mouth, are not the vain words of man, a weak, inconstant, and unfaithful creature, but the words of the almighty, unchangeable, and faithful God; and therefore they shall be infallibly accomplished. This is spoken by God to his church and people, whom he addresses, both in the foregoing and following verses. For God’s word is frequently said to be put into the mouths, not only of the prophets, but also of the people, as Isa 59:21; Deu 30:14. And have covered thee, &c. — Have protected thee by my almighty power. That I may plant the heavens — Bishop Lowth reads, To stretch out the heavens: and lay the foundations of the earth — I have given thee, O my church, these promises, and this protection in all thy calamities, to assure thee of my care and kindness to thee, and that I will reform thee in a most glorious manner, and bring thee unto that perfect and blessed estate which is reserved for the days of the Messiah, which, in the language of Scripture, is termed the making of new heavens and a new earth, Isa 65:17; and Isa 66:22. And say unto Zion, Thou art my people — That I may own thee for my people, in a more illustrious manner than I have done.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes1834 · Public DomainOn vv13–15And forgettest the Lord thy Maker - These verses…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker - These verses are designed to rebuke that state of the mind - alas! too common, even among the people of God - where they are intimidated by the number and strength of their foes, and forget their dependence on God, and his promises of aid. In such circumstances God reproves them for their want of confidence in him, and calls on them to remember that he has made the heavens, and has all power to save them.
That hath stretched forth the heavens - (See the notes at Isa 40:12, Isa 40:26).
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And hast feared continually every day - They had continually feared and trembled before their oppressors.
Because of the fury of the oppressor - Those who had oppressed them in Babylon.
As if he were ready to destroy - Margin, ‘Made himself ready,’ The idea is, that he was preparing to destroy the people - perhaps as a marksman is making ready his bow and arrows. The oppressor had been preparing to crush them in the dust, and they trembled, and did not remember that God was abundantly able to protect them.
And where is the fury of the oppressor? - What is there to dread? The idea is, that the enemies of the Jews would be cut off, and that they should therefore put their confidence in God, and rely on his promised aid.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary1859 · Public DomainOn vv13–14Oppressor. If thou hadst not abandoned God, thou wouldst…
Oppressor. If thou hadst not abandoned God, thou wouldst have had no reason to fear Nabuchodonosor; and his power is now gone.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown1871 · Public DomainOn vv13–15(Isa 40:12, Isa 40:26, Isa 40:28), the same argument…
(Isa 40:12, Isa 40:26, Isa 40:28), the same argument of comfort drawn from the omnipotence of the Creator.
as if . . . ready, &c.--literally, "when he directs," namely, his arrow, to destroy (Psa 21:12; Psa 7:13; Psa 11:2) [MAURER].
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon1874 · Public DomainOn v1414-16. The captive exile — One bowed down under…
14-16. The captive exile — One bowed down under the burden of captivity, which may be general, but more likely is here local, the captivity in Babylon.
Hasteneth… loosed — Set free. He is weary of the situation, Babylon is to him the pit, a prison. Possibly some were in a literal “pit,” the dungeon, its floor filled with spikes to pierce the “captive” when let into it. (See Barnes, in loco, quoting Paxton.) The exile longs not to die in the pit or of starvation. The promise affirms that of neither shall he die. The command is, Believe this — believe it on the ground of God’s almightiness.
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That divided the sea — The Red Sea. He led Israel through on dry ground.
The Lord of hosts — Leader of the armies of heaven — the angels of heaven.
I have put my words in thy mouth — Jehovah committed to Israel his servant, (or to his servant springing out of Israel,) his “law and judgment,” or the eternal principles of the true religion. See Isa_49:2, where it is said, He hath made his mouth a sharp sword, recalling Heb_4:12. For thoroughly preaching the cutting truths of God’s religion the wrath of man is aroused. But against this he says, I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand. He protects his truth by shielding Zion from harm, in order to plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth. That is, forming the moral heavens, etc., and giving to Zion the greatest spiritual scope and rule over the hearts of men.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges1878 · Public DomainOn vv13–1513. And forgettest the Lord] Not in the sense…
13. And forgettest the Lord] Not in the sense of apostatising from Him (as ch. Isa_17:10 and often), but of failing to realise His omnipotence as the Creator of all things (see ch. Isa_49:14).
that hath stretched forth the heavens &c.] Cf. Isa_40:22, Isa_42:5, Isa_44:24, Isa_45:12.
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and hast feared … day] Better as R.V. and fearest continually all the day. The oppressor is of course the Chaldæan Empire (see ch. Isa_47:6), a proof that this part of the book was not written after the fall of Babylon.
as if he were ready to destroy] R.V. when he maketh ready to destroy; lit. “aims (his arrow) to destroy,” the verb being used technically of an archer directing his arrow; so Psa_21:13, cf. Psa_7:13; Psa_11:2.
and where is the fury of the oppressor?] Cf. ch. Isa_33:18. The question gives a weak ending to the verse, and indeed both in this clause and the preceding the soundness of the text is doubtful.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers1878 · Public DomainOn vv13–15(13) As if he were ready.—Better, as he makes…
(13) As if he were ready.—Better, as he makes him ready to destroy. The Authorised version unduly minimises the amount of danger. In the case contemplated by the prophet, the oppressor was the Babylonian monarchy, which he sees as already belonging to the past; but the words have, of course, a far wider application.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary1880 · Public DomainOn vv13–15And forgettest the Lord thy Maker. It is not…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker. It is not so much apostasy as want of a lively and practical faith with which captive Israel is here reproached. They did not deny God they only left him out of sight, neglected him, forgot him. That hath stretched forth the heavens. (comp. Isa_40:22 Isa_42:5 Isa_44:24 Isa_45:12, etc.) And laid the foundations of the earth. (see Isa_48:13 Psa_102:25 Heb_1:10) And hast feared continually... because of the fury of the oppressor. (On the sufferings of the Israelites under their Babylonian oppressors, see the comment on Isa_42:22, and again on Isa_47:6) By the present passage it would appear that life itself was not safe from their cruel fury, when their victims had exasperated them. Where is the fury of the oppressor? All their violence and rage will come to nought, when they in their turn become subject to the conquering Persians.
The nervous temperament.
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"Hast feared continually every day." We are not all constituted alike. The instrumentalities by which the great soul within us does its work are diverse in quality. In a material sense we are but dust, yet the dust itself has more steel in it with some than with others. Many have iron nerves and hereditary health, which make them strangers to the trepidations of others. They never walk those caves of terrible gloom in which others often are doomed to wander, nor have they felt the sensitiveness which often turns the experiences of life into torture. We are to meditate now on the nervous temperament, and to study especially the relation which the gospel occupies in relation to it. There may be other anodynes of consolation, physical and mental; but my argument will be this that the religion of Christ stands in special relationship of solace and succour to those who feel with the psalmist, "I am feeble and sore broken, because of the disquietness of my heart." We cannot help being, in one sense, what we were born. The mimosa plant cannot avoid being a mimosa plant, and nothing else. The sensitiveness of a highly wrought nervous system is born with many, and, do what they will, they must carry it with them to the grave. Often misunderstood and misrepresented, often verging on despair, they are bowed down greatly, and go mourning all the day long. Much depends, of course, on the law of association, and on relationships of persons and things. Much, too, depends on religious ideas. There is, for instance, a form of piety sincere enough in itself which feeds perpetual introspection, and is ever tremulous concerning its own state. How different this from the rest which comes from entire trust in Christ! Then, again, there are human relationships which, instead of being ministrants of consolation, strain the heart and irritate the nerves. Oh, the depression that must come, the anxiety that will do its wear and tear, which is derived from alliance with unthankful and foreboding hearts, from fellowship with those who, if they do not consciously know the science of disheartenment, are at all events au fait at its practice! When Moses spake with Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, he had in his thought the carping spirit of those whose criticism suggests difficulty and danger too great to be overcome. Some men always see lions in the way, and do an anticipative roaring themselves. Thus he spoke of some who said," Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven." What an insight this gives on those whose imagination creates giants! Now though we may apply specially the words of our text to a nervous temperament they simply represent a special occasion of depression in the prophet"s life; they represent inward fears.
I THE TRUE PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE IS LIFE IN CHRIST. Not in self. Not in society. But in Christ. We must go out of ourselves, out of our "moods" and "feelings," that we may look unto Christ and be saved! I am speaking of those who are ever nervously anxious and sensitive. First of all about their salvation, which, alas! is like a "variable quantity" with them. But I wish, also, to apply the idea to human life. Christ is a perfect Brother as well as a perfect Saviour. Redemption is his. Yes; and so is common home-life; so is the gift of daily bread. The great realm of providence is under his sceptre.
1. Meditate well on this dual aspect of the subject. First of all, when you are tempted to be morbid analysts of your own spiritual state, to use the scales of weight and measurement for the depth of your love and the height of your faith. There can be no escape from trepidatory alarms so long as we apply aquafortis to the gold of our affection, so long as we microscopically survey the minutiae of our neglected duties and our multitudinous sins. We must ponder the consolatory words, "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life." And this argument applies as much to the ordinary life of every day. Do things happen to us, or are our times in God"s hands? Our dread of fatalism, with its results of inertia and indifference, has sometimes hindered that quiet trust in God which is the secret of all true strength. Events are in his hand. You cannot make one hair black or white, or add one cubit to your stature. You will become worn and weary by retrospective fears. And what power have you over the dark, deep waves of coming tribulation, or over the advent-hours of grief and death? Be wise. Resolve with promptitude. Persevere with energy. Rise early with alacrity for the service of the day, but cast all anxious thoughts of to-morrow on your Lord.
2. I do not say that so doing all your fears will cease. No act of faith is so complete as to shut out all weakness of the soul. But I do say this will be your most perfect anodyne. Other things will help. The bracing air, the oxygen and ozone of the sea-coast, may tone your nerves, but it cannot create new ones. The gospel (and do the most, but even that cannot reorganize the physical frame, so fearfully and wonderfully made; but its atmosphere is the best one for bracing the heart and soothing the tretted, irritated nerve.
II THERE IS CONTINUITY OF FEAR. We none of us know how frail we are till trial comes. The blooming maiden little thought that care would so soon write itself on her forehead, and that the silvery lines would so early be discovered in her hair. Yet so it is. A mother now, she has had to endure the anxieties of home and the agonies of bereavement. There are some constitutions that can brave much; they keep hale and well, with the pulse even and the eye bright, amid difficulties that would overwhelm. others. Let them thank God for the perfectness of the physical frame. But there are some that only look robust and bright, and when tribulation comes their strength gives way with marvellous rapidity. The physician says the vascular system is excellent, the muscles strong, the frame perfect, but the nervous system is fragility itself.
1. Advent-days of trouble do come. Even sin in its first consciousness overwhelms some with fear and trembling. A great horror overwhelms them. The invisible realm of the spirit is suddenly revealed to them, and where before they saw nothing hideous or evil, now reptiles crawl! Yes; there is a revelation of sin now as of old. We know what the first sight of accident or death is: how severely it shocks the senses of a child! So sin may, and does, come with an overwhelming consciousness of guilt on some minds. The old cry is heard, "Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" How terrible, then, it" such souls fall into the hands, not of wise physicians, but of unwise irritators of the evil! The nerves will break down, and have broken down in thousands of cases, and mania ensues. Study the history of monasteries and convents. Study the history of some revivals. The mediaevalists worked upon many delicate nervous systems by their hideous pictures of hell and by their fearful harangues concerning it. Nor has the modem Church escaped the danger. At once the anxious soul should be led to him who says," Daughter, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.
2. There are seasons when unforeseen calamity comes. No fleecy cloud presages the coming storm, no floating seaweed tells how near the vessel is to the rocks; but swift as the "bore" that rushes up the Hooghly from the Ganges, the water sweeps in with a swell, and engulfs the precious freights of unanchored vessels in its broadening wave. There are seasons when the nerves are made intensely sensitive. The heart is pierced by the coldness and neglect of some familiar friend. The spirit droops. Ingratitude has wounded, neglect has chilled, cruelty has crushed, and enmity has tried to slay reputation and renown. "The spirit of a man can sustain his infirmity, but a wounded spirit who can bear?" Who? Certainly not the anxious temperament. Surely at such times it is heart-rest to know the Brother born for adversity, the Friend that sticketh closer than a brother; then is the hour to feel the warm radiance of the love of Christ. One smile from the Saviour then is worth all the honour and flattery of a fickle world. Doubt simply means misery and darkness to the anxious temperament. And in such a world as this, where we never know what a day or an hour may bring forth, surely it is wise to obey the counsel concerning God, "Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace.
III THERE MAY BE MINISTRATIONS THAT ARE HUMAN AS WELL AS DIVINE. We can perform miracles of healing, not in the old sense, but wonders of restorative powers are within our reach. Is it a child that is nervous and sensitive? See to it, O parent, that you early discern the difference between that little trembling spirit and the stronger brother. Is it a life-companion? See that you do not treat this sensitiveness as a mere weakness to be cured by physical agencies alone the best curative will be a cheerful mind within, working outwards.
1. Settled melancholy is terrible, and it often prevails. Try and avert it by all ministries of hope and cheer and comfort that you can command. Try and do as Wilberforce is said to have done bring a ray of sunshine across every threshold you cross. We talk about courage, but we do not yet fully understand its true philosophy. It is altogether a related thing. If constitutionally brave that is not the highest courage. It is easy for some who are born strong to be physically brave; it is easy for some to be determined and defiant; it does not spoil their rest at night to fight battles for themselves or others. But with the nervous temperament to act out all the truth that is in them is a costly affair; it tears their strength to pieces. With them to bear the slight of neglect, or the wound of insult, is like a crown of thorns on the heart. With them happiness itself is as the life of a plant which has its nerve-centres in other hearts. The best medicine for many is to be understood and appreciated. You cannot talk down or laugh down nervousness. You cannot even argue down the sensitiveness that springs from it. You cannot do all you desire to do even; but you can do much; and the evening of life will bring you no sweeter reward than for your Lord"s sake to have fulfilled the scriptural command, "Bear ye one another"s burdens, and so fulfil the Law of Christ.
2. Christ"s spirit is little understood, and sometimes little honoured. You have but to study life to see how much h ardness and cruelty there is in it. Begin at the beginning. Take school life public school life! How are boys trained? Why, to admire the daring and defiant, to humiliate the weak, to laugh at sensibility as womanish, to deal with one another as brutes, where the strongest is lord. And it is said home-petting is cured by such means. Cured? I believe that Christ"s book of record will contain martyr-lives of school-days more terrible than the martyrdoms once and for ever made at the stake. Grown-up men do not like to talk of such things; but many look back with a creeping sense of horror at their school-time. The nervous and the sensitive have had their natures repressed and their hearts crushed, who entered public schools with beautiful, child-like, Christ-like spirits. Take a nation. Even when it is called Christian, how often is it braggart, defiant, imperious, proud of military strength! how little conciliation to smaller nations! that is thought to be unworthy of imperial greatness! We have to live and teach the cross, in its spirit as well as in its doctrine; in its beautiful revelation that he, the Highest and Strongest of all, suffered for us; that he was despised and rejected of men for us; that he gave himself for us. Remember, then, that you stand in Christian relationship to the timorous, the sensitive, and the anxious, and ever seek to manifest the spirit of him who would not break the bruised reed.
IV THERE MUST BE A STUDY OF THE DISEASE TO UNDERSTAND THE REMEDIES. That is why I ask you to meditate on the nervous temperament. How unreal are its images! How it trembles at the idea of solitude! How it fears to-morrow! How it bows in gloom before the advent of disease or death! You cannot see the delicate network of nerves; you cannot understand the mysterious functions of the brain. We are fearfully as well as wonderfully made; then let us remember how easily nervousness is promoted by self-indulgence and sloth, by morbid books, by strange tales told in childhood, by companionship with those who take foreboding views of life, and by the domination of "fixed ideas" so difficult to shake off. And all cannot afford change of scene and change of clime.
1. It is not in medicine to cure all this. It may alleviate, but it cannot recreate. Earthly appliances are wise in their own way; but the gospel of Christ is the relieving power that alone brings out fully the blessed revelation of the fatherhood of God. From the lips that cannot lie we hear the all-sustaining words, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father." Christ is the great Physician. He can cure the very leprosy of sin, and make the Gehazis whole, so that the trembling child of guilt, whose sin has been of deepest dye, may hear the consoling words, "Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee." Christ can say to the leper, "Be thou dean." He gave purity to the penitent"s heart, and peace to the publican with conscience distracted about ill-gotten gains; for he is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him.
2. Christ alone can interpret life in all its fulness and meaning. He knows how sad is hopelessness. He came not to save alone the hale, the righteous, the strong, He came also to take the lambs in his arms, and to carry them in his Bosom.:blessed Christ! Would he ever make amusement out of the nervous weaknesses of some? Would he ever say, "It cannot be helped; physical law is imperious, and must hold. on its way,"? Would he not rather comfort and hell the weak-hearted? Sometimes a sense of rectitude sustains us in trouble, for unquestionably the upright Corinthian column can bear a greater weight than the leaning one. That erect attitude of the soul which the Scriptures call" uprightness" will enable many a man to be strong. But this cannot do all. We have all sinned, and come short of the glory of God; and we have sinned against each other also. We want, above all else, a Saviour. Some suspect their own motives, and are questioners, not of their Lord"s Divinity, but of their own sincerity. Yea! and some are sensitively anxious concerning the very foundations of their first repentance towards God, and their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Study, then, Christ"s infinite compassion, his perfect knowledge of every human heart yes, of yours. "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee." Never rest in yourself alone. Wait and pray! Not for ever will you tremblingly bear the burden of nervous sensibility. Not for ever will the immortal spirit dwell in so frail a tabernacle. In God"s own good time, you will be clothed upon with your house from heaven. The day will come when the poor harp will be restrung, sorrow and sighing will be done away; and there shall be no night there. W.M.S.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator1887 · Public DomainOn v13And forgettest the Lord thy Maker
Isa_51:13
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker
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God the Creator
What is it to create the heavens and the earth?
Who has seen the process of creation? I see a man shape a piece of iron or of wood into a useful instrument, and the process seems simple enough. But here I see the hand that works and the material on which it works. But that is not creation--creation out of nothing. I see no hand shaping the trees and hills; I never see something rising out of nothing. I can watch the growth of a flower, as I can the building of a house. And I know that in the former case, as in the latter, there is some force in activity. But force is not God. Behind that force God is still hidden, and the mysterious question remains, Who is He! More mysterious still when I have to reflect that millions of flowers an the world over are being formed, and that a similar force is in operation through all the worlds of boundless space. And everywhere behind this force God is. God is my Maker too. I eat and drink, I live and grow, and feel the energy of life. And that, too, is God. So near to me--so immeasurably distant; and yet nowhere visible. How, then, shall I think of Him, and answer to my heart the question, Who is God? (S. Edger, B.A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary1892 · Public DomainOn v14Isa_51:14-15. The captive exile hasteneth, &c. [1581]
THE CAPTIVE SEEKING DELIVERANCE
Isa_51:14-15. The captive exile hasteneth, &c. [1581]
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[1581] Before developing either of the outlines here reproduced, attention should be given to Delitzsch’s translation of these verses.
I. A DESCRIPTION OF THE WRETCHED CONDITION OF THE SINNER—AN EXILE.
1. His captivity.
(1.) Judicial;
(2.) practical;
(3.) circumstantial.
2. His impending destruction.
II. THE EAGER DESIRE OF THE EXILE FOR DELIVERANCE.
(1.) He uses every probable means for it.
(2.) There appears to him a good prospect of deliverance.
III. THE PROVISION MADE FOR THE CAPTIVE EXILE.
(1.) The Gospel is a revelation of mercy.
(2.) A dispensation of power.
(3.) The effectual means of a sinner’s deliverance from sin.—T. Lessey.
The captive. I. His condition—captive—in the pit. II. His fears—destitution—destruction. III. His encouragement—deliverance is at hand. IV. His assurance—the Word—the power of God.—J. Lyth, D.D.: Homiletical Treasury, Isaiah, p. 70.
COMMISSIONED, ENDOWED, AND PRESERVED
(Wicklyffe Quincentenary.) [1584]
[1584] We find a signal verification of this promise in the career of John Wicklyffe, the quincentenary of whose death affords a fitting occasion for reverting to the times in which he lived, and the task he was selected to perform. He was employed in a work which may fitly be described as “planting the heavens.” The imagery is drawn from fixing the stakes of a tent, and we may well say that the Reformation supplied a new spiritual canopy to the world. Men’s outlook into the invisible became clearer; the heavens brightened overhead, as the clouds of ignorance, spiritual tyranny, and human mediation were dispersed, and the Sun of righteousness poured His unobstructed rays upon the earth. No less appropriately may we speak of the Reformation as “laying the foundations of the earth.” The Romish system had no firm basis; men were building on loose material, and the rubbish had to be swept away before a secure foundation could be obtained. The truth of the Gospel was overlaid with fictions and corruptions, till the Reformers dug through it to the solid rock. Wicklyffe was among the first to set to work with the pickaxe and spade. Again, of this Reformer we may say that “God put His words into his mouth.” This was the source and secret of his power. At Oxford he read and studied the Latin Bible, and, in later life, made the first complete translation of it into English. Very remarkable, too, is the way in which God preserved him through persecution and sickness till his work was completed. He was suffered to live to the end of his days, and after his death his spirit lived in his writings. He gave the Scriptures to the people in their mother tongue, and no earthly power could recall that precious gift.
Let us not forget that this promise belongs to all who love and serve the Lord. We have all a mission somewhere in helping forward the new creation. God hath put His words in your mouth—words of truth and power, of life and love. He has covered you in the shadow of His hand. You are secure in the discharge of your commission. What a wondrous purpose you are chosen to subserve! Who shall frustrate God’s work? Shall we not gladly yield ourselves as instruments in making this earth once more a paradise of beauty and holiness?—William Guthrie, M.A.
Isa_51:16. And I have put My words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee, &c.
Great words these, to be spoken by God to men! We need have no hesitation in appropriating for ourselves the comfort and encouragement they convey, for, though addressed to Israel and referring to the work to be accomplished by their Messiah, we have each a Divine mission to fulfil as servants and followers of Christ, and ours are the promises by which He was sustained.
God here declares what is His great design—“to plant,” &c. The language is clearly figurative, and denotes the new creation. At Isa_51:13 reference is made to the first creation, and this is used in the text as an image of the second—spiritual creation. There are many points of similarity between the two. Both alike are works of Divine power, wrought by the word of God’s mouth (Gen_1:3; Jas_1:18). In both there is the operation of the Holy Spirit (Gen_1:2; Joh_3:5). In the new creation the peace, holiness, and love, which were lost by the Fall, are restored, and the object of all God’s dealings with our sinful race through long centuries is to create them anew, and restore them to His favour and image. Like the first creation, the new is a gradual process, advancing from age to age.
1. In this work God employs His servants. When it is said “that I may plant,” &c., it is obvious that it is through Israel the work is to be done (1Co_3:9). What an honour that He should call us to His service, and use us as instruments in realising. His great designs. Here is a thought to make us brave and diligent. Let us make our work God’s and God’s work ours, devoting our energies to the furtherance of His kingdom. Every other aim that engages our time and talents is trifling compared with this. If a man feels that his uppermost wish is to promote the Redeemer’s reign, he is ennobled, sanctifying all his endeavours by throwing into them a lofty purpose, and making all his activities converge upon the advancement of the truth. No man will ever do anything great and enduring who does not thus ally himself with God. Let a man say,—“This work, at which I am toiling, is not after all my work but God’s,” and in that lies the secret of strenuous labour and patience amid discouragement. Oh the honour, the dignity, the peace of being consciously a worker together with God! That is to dwell in a region high above the fretting cares and sordid aims of the ordinary world. While others are wailing their hopeless dirges, you are singing your hymns of faith and hope.
2. For this work God arms His servants. “I have put My words in thy mouth.” This is the weapon which we are to wield (1Th_2:13). He is fully furnished into whose mouth God puts His word, who wields the sword of the Spirit. How feeble is man’s word, the word of even the mightiest of men. It falls as powerless as King Canute’s order to the flowing tide, bidding it retire from his royal feet as he sat upon the shore. But behind God’s word there is the omnipotence of Him whose word it is. Let us have faith in God’s words, in their power to subdue human hearts. It is because we often utter them as if they were our own words that they are robbed of their power. It is because we listen to them as man’s words that we despise them. This is all we need for the spiritual conquest of the world—to have God’s words put in our mouth. With this weapon wisely used we shall overcome the giants of ignorance, Superstition, and unbelief. The men of Reformation times were courageous, because they had a firm faith in God’s word, and what the Church needs to-day is a revival of that unquestioning faith in God’s message as a power to plant the spiritual heavens and lay anew the foundations of the earth, to carry peace to the troubled and comfort to the disconsolate, to disarm hostility, break down prejudices and bear down opposition, and guide the seeking soul to the Cross.
3. For this work and in it God preserves His servants. “I have covered thee in the shadow of Mine hand.” He who undertakes God’s work may expect to encounter opposition from the world, which is opposed to God’s loving purpose. Israel had a Divine mission to fulfil, and the nation is represented in Isa_51:12-13 as cowering before their oppressors. But what encouragement God gives them: “I, even I, am He that comforteth you,” &c. God overrules the doings and designs of evil men for the overwhelming of their own cause. With His protection there is no occasion for fear. Our mistake is that we “forget the Lord our Maker,” while we are surrounded by oppressors; like Peter sinking in fear, while he looks at the tossing waves and withdraws his eye from his Master’s form. Could we keep our eye steadily fixed on Him, no oppressor should alarm us. With Him as our Comforter, who shall be our tormentor? Moses was reluctant to undertake the task with which God charged him at the bush. But his excuses are overruled. “Certainly I will be with thee.” In carrying out his commission his life was frequently in danger, but “God covered him in the shadow of His hand” (Heb_11:27). “Man is immortal till his work is done.” Paul, too, was “in deaths oft,” but what says God to him in his extremity? (Act_18:9-10). So, too, with Martin Luther. What a marvellous history of preservation! But for the wars in which Charles V. was engaged the Reformer would have been crushed, and the Reformation, for a time at least, frustrated. Believer, you have a gracious and omnipotent Preserver. In contending for the truth, in encountering shame and reproach, in meeting hindrances in the way of your God-given task, remember that the shadow of God’s own hand is over you, and you shall not quail before your adversaries.—William Guthrie, M.A.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv13–14General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues speaking to the people of Israel.
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Why have you forgotten Yahweh ... earth?
Yahweh uses a question to emphasize that they should not forget Yahweh. This may be written as a statement. AT: "You should not have forgotten Yahweh ... earth." (See: Rhetorical Question)
Maker
See how you translated this name for Yahweh in Isaiah 17:7.
who stretched out the heavens
"who spread out the sky." This speaks of Yahweh having created the heavens as if he had stretched them out in the same way one would stretch out a large garment. AT: "who stretched out the heavens like a garment" (See: Metaphor)
the foundations of the earth
The word "foundation" normally refers to a stone structure that gives support to a building from underneath. Here it describes a similar structure that was thought to support and hold the earth in place. See how you translated this phrase in Isaiah 24:18.
the hot fury of the oppressor when he decides to destroy
"the oppressor's hot fury when he decides to cause destruction"
hot fury
Here the word "hot" means "strong" or "great." AT: "great fury" (See: Idiom)
Where is the fury of the oppressor?
Yahweh uses a question to emphasize that the people should not fear those who want to oppress them. Their oppressors are no longer a threat to them. This may be written as a statement. AT: "The fury of the oppressor is not a threat!" (See: Rhetorical Question)
Tyndale Open Study Notes2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv13–1551:13 you have forgotten the Lord: The Lord will…
51:13 you have forgotten the Lord: The Lord will never forget Israel (see 44:21; 49:15), so they should not forget him. • The Creator of the world also created the nation Israel.
GEBible — Godless Engineer's Bible App
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v14 He comforteth them by the short time of their…
He comforteth them by the short time of their banishment: for in seventy years they were restored, and the greatest empire of the world destroyed.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv13–15 Isa 51:13 And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that…
Isa 51:13 And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? and where [is] the fury of the oppressor?
Ver. 13. And forgettest the Lord thy maker.] Thou considerest not wisely (1.) How fearfully and wonderfully thou art made; (2.) What a mighty power God put forth in the creation of the whole world; all which he will rather unmake again than thou shalt want seasonable help.
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And hast feared continually every day.] Peior est morte timor ipse mortis.
And where is the fury of the oppressor?] q.d., It is but fury, and not power, and that not illimited neither; for "in the thing wherein they deal proudly, I am above them." {Exo 18:11}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv13–14 And forgettest the Lord thy Maker; and dost not…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker; and dost not consider the infinite power of that God who made thee, and who will plead thy cause.
As if he were ready to destroy; as if it were in his power to destroy thee in a moment.
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Where is the fury of the oppressor? what is become of the power and rage of the Babylonians? Is it not all gone? Are not they broken, and thou delivered? He speaks of the thing as if it were already done, because it should certainly and suddenly be done. Where is it? It is no where, it is quite lost and gone, as this phrase is frequently used, as Psa 42:3; Zec 1:5; 1Co 15:55.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv13–15 And forgettest the Lord thy Maker,.... That he is…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker,.... That he is thy Maker, and therefore is able to protect and preserve thee; when the fear of man prevails God is forgotten, his power, his providence, his promises, and past instances of divine favour and goodness; were these more frequently recollected, considered, and thought of, they would prove an antidote against the fear of men; and especially when it is observed, that he that is our Maker is he
that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; these are amazing works of his hands; and what is it that he cannot do that has made these? these he upholds and maintains in being, and does all things in them as he pleases, and overrules all for his own glory and his people's good, and therefore they have nothing to fear from men; and yet they are afraid of them, such is their distrust and unbelief:
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and hast feared continually every day; not only at some certain times, when the enemy has appeared very formidable, and threatened with destruction, or some terrible rumour has been spread, but every day, every hour, and every moment; and to be always in a panic must be very uncomfortable living, as well as very dishonourable:
because of the fury of the oppressor; either the king of Babylon, or antichrist:
as if he were ready to destroy: had drawn his sword, and just going to give the fatal blow:
and where, or "but where",
is the fury of the oppressor? where's the fury of Pharaoh, that great oppressor of God's Israel formerly? it is gone and vanished like smoke: where's the fury of Sennacherib king of Assyria, and his army, that threatened Jerusalem with ruin? it was over in a short time, in one night the whole host, or the greater part of it, were destroyed by an angel: and where is, or will be, the fury of the king of Babylon? it will not last always; nor the fury of the antichristian oppressor.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v13 Where is the fury - Is it not all…
Where is the fury - Is it not all gone? He speaks of the thing as if it were already done, because it should certainly and suddenly be done.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv13–14 Verse 13. Of the oppressor, as if he, c.]…
Verse 13. Of the oppressor, as if he, c.] "The כ caph in כאשר keasher seems clearly to have changed its situation from the end of the preceding word to the beginning of this or rather, to have been omitted by mistake there, because it was here. That it was there the Septuagint show by rendering המציקך hammetsikech θλιβοντος, of him that oppressed thee. And so they render this word in both its places in this verse. The Vulgate also has the pronoun in the first instance; furoris ejus qui te tribulabat." Dr. Jubb. The correction seems well founded; I have not conformed the translation to it, because it makes little difference in the sense.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v14 Isa 51:14-16. The captive exile hasteneth that he may…
Isa 51:14-16. The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed — From his captivity, and may return to his own country from which he is banished. And that he should not die in the pit — Die a prisoner, through the inconveniences and hardships of his confinement; nor that his bread should fail — The bread or provision allowed to keep him alive in prison. The general sense of the verse is, God is not slack, as you think, but makes haste to fulfil his promise, and rescue his captive and oppressed people from all their oppressions and miseries. And I have put my words in thy mouth — These great and glorious promises, which are in thy mouth, are not the vain words of man, a weak, inconstant, and unfaithful creature, but the words of the almighty, unchangeable, and faithful God; and therefore they shall be infallibly accomplished. This is spoken by God to his church and people, whom he addresses, both in the foregoing and following verses. For God’s word is frequently said to be put into the mouths, not only of the prophets, but also of the people, as Isa 59:21; Deu 30:14. And have covered thee, &c. — Have protected thee by my almighty power. That I may plant the heavens — Bishop Lowth reads, To stretch out the heavens: and lay the foundations of the earth — I have given thee, O my church, these promises, and this protection in all thy calamities, to assure thee of my care and kindness to thee, and that I will reform thee in a most glorious manner, and bring thee unto that perfect and blessed estate which is reserved for the days of the Messiah, which, in the language of Scripture, is termed the making of new heavens and a new earth, Isa 65:17; and Isa 66:22. And say unto Zion, Thou art my people — That I may own thee for my people, in a more illustrious manner than I have done.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv13–15 And forgettest the Lord thy Maker - These verses…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker - These verses are designed to rebuke that state of the mind - alas! too common, even among the people of God - where they are intimidated by the number and strength of their foes, and forget their dependence on God, and his promises of aid. In such circumstances God reproves them for their want of confidence in him, and calls on them to remember that he has made the heavens, and has all power to save them.
That hath stretched forth the heavens - (See the notes at Isa 40:12, Isa 40:26).
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And hast feared continually every day - They had continually feared and trembled before their oppressors.
Because of the fury of the oppressor - Those who had oppressed them in Babylon.
As if he were ready to destroy - Margin, ‘Made himself ready,’ The idea is, that he was preparing to destroy the people - perhaps as a marksman is making ready his bow and arrows. The oppressor had been preparing to crush them in the dust, and they trembled, and did not remember that God was abundantly able to protect them.
And where is the fury of the oppressor? - What is there to dread? The idea is, that the enemies of the Jews would be cut off, and that they should therefore put their confidence in God, and rely on his promised aid.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv13–14 Oppressor. If thou hadst not abandoned God, thou wouldst…
Oppressor. If thou hadst not abandoned God, thou wouldst have had no reason to fear Nabuchodonosor; and his power is now gone.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv13–15 (Isa 40:12, Isa 40:26, Isa 40:28), the same argument…
(Isa 40:12, Isa 40:26, Isa 40:28), the same argument of comfort drawn from the omnipotence of the Creator.
as if . . . ready, &c.--literally, "when he directs," namely, his arrow, to destroy (Psa 21:12; Psa 7:13; Psa 11:2) [MAURER].
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v14 14-16. The captive exile — One bowed down under…
14-16. The captive exile — One bowed down under the burden of captivity, which may be general, but more likely is here local, the captivity in Babylon.
Hasteneth… loosed — Set free. He is weary of the situation, Babylon is to him the pit, a prison. Possibly some were in a literal “pit,” the dungeon, its floor filled with spikes to pierce the “captive” when let into it. (See Barnes, in loco, quoting Paxton.) The exile longs not to die in the pit or of starvation. The promise affirms that of neither shall he die. The command is, Believe this — believe it on the ground of God’s almightiness.
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That divided the sea — The Red Sea. He led Israel through on dry ground.
The Lord of hosts — Leader of the armies of heaven — the angels of heaven.
I have put my words in thy mouth — Jehovah committed to Israel his servant, (or to his servant springing out of Israel,) his “law and judgment,” or the eternal principles of the true religion. See Isa_49:2, where it is said, He hath made his mouth a sharp sword, recalling Heb_4:12. For thoroughly preaching the cutting truths of God’s religion the wrath of man is aroused. But against this he says, I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand. He protects his truth by shielding Zion from harm, in order to plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth. That is, forming the moral heavens, etc., and giving to Zion the greatest spiritual scope and rule over the hearts of men.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv13–15 13. And forgettest the Lord] Not in the sense…
13. And forgettest the Lord] Not in the sense of apostatising from Him (as ch. Isa_17:10 and often), but of failing to realise His omnipotence as the Creator of all things (see ch. Isa_49:14).
that hath stretched forth the heavens &c.] Cf. Isa_40:22, Isa_42:5, Isa_44:24, Isa_45:12.
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and hast feared … day] Better as R.V. and fearest continually all the day. The oppressor is of course the Chaldæan Empire (see ch. Isa_47:6), a proof that this part of the book was not written after the fall of Babylon.
as if he were ready to destroy] R.V. when he maketh ready to destroy; lit. “aims (his arrow) to destroy,” the verb being used technically of an archer directing his arrow; so Psa_21:13, cf. Psa_7:13; Psa_11:2.
and where is the fury of the oppressor?] Cf. ch. Isa_33:18. The question gives a weak ending to the verse, and indeed both in this clause and the preceding the soundness of the text is doubtful.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv13–15 (13) As if he were ready.—Better, as he makes…
(13) As if he were ready.—Better, as he makes him ready to destroy. The Authorised version unduly minimises the amount of danger. In the case contemplated by the prophet, the oppressor was the Babylonian monarchy, which he sees as already belonging to the past; but the words have, of course, a far wider application.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv13–15 And forgettest the Lord thy Maker. It is not…
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker. It is not so much apostasy as want of a lively and practical faith with which captive Israel is here reproached. They did not deny God they only left him out of sight, neglected him, forgot him. That hath stretched forth the heavens. (comp. Isa_40:22 Isa_42:5 Isa_44:24 Isa_45:12, etc.) And laid the foundations of the earth. (see Isa_48:13 Psa_102:25 Heb_1:10) And hast feared continually... because of the fury of the oppressor. (On the sufferings of the Israelites under their Babylonian oppressors, see the comment on Isa_42:22, and again on Isa_47:6) By the present passage it would appear that life itself was not safe from their cruel fury, when their victims had exasperated them. Where is the fury of the oppressor? All their violence and rage will come to nought, when they in their turn become subject to the conquering Persians.
The nervous temperament.
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"Hast feared continually every day." We are not all constituted alike. The instrumentalities by which the great soul within us does its work are diverse in quality. In a material sense we are but dust, yet the dust itself has more steel in it with some than with others. Many have iron nerves and hereditary health, which make them strangers to the trepidations of others. They never walk those caves of terrible gloom in which others often are doomed to wander, nor have they felt the sensitiveness which often turns the experiences of life into torture. We are to meditate now on the nervous temperament, and to study especially the relation which the gospel occupies in relation to it. There may be other anodynes of consolation, physical and mental; but my argument will be this that the religion of Christ stands in special relationship of solace and succour to those who feel with the psalmist, "I am feeble and sore broken, because of the disquietness of my heart." We cannot help being, in one sense, what we were born. The mimosa plant cannot avoid being a mimosa plant, and nothing else. The sensitiveness of a highly wrought nervous system is born with many, and, do what they will, they must carry it with them to the grave. Often misunderstood and misrepresented, often verging on despair, they are bowed down greatly, and go mourning all the day long. Much depends, of course, on the law of association, and on relationships of persons and things. Much, too, depends on religious ideas. There is, for instance, a form of piety sincere enough in itself which feeds perpetual introspection, and is ever tremulous concerning its own state. How different this from the rest which comes from entire trust in Christ! Then, again, there are human relationships which, instead of being ministrants of consolation, strain the heart and irritate the nerves. Oh, the depression that must come, the anxiety that will do its wear and tear, which is derived from alliance with unthankful and foreboding hearts, from fellowship with those who, if they do not consciously know the science of disheartenment, are at all events au fait at its practice! When Moses spake with Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, he had in his thought the carping spirit of those whose criticism suggests difficulty and danger too great to be overcome. Some men always see lions in the way, and do an anticipative roaring themselves. Thus he spoke of some who said," Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven." What an insight this gives on those whose imagination creates giants! Now though we may apply specially the words of our text to a nervous temperament they simply represent a special occasion of depression in the prophet"s life; they represent inward fears.
I THE TRUE PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE IS LIFE IN CHRIST. Not in self. Not in society. But in Christ. We must go out of ourselves, out of our "moods" and "feelings," that we may look unto Christ and be saved! I am speaking of those who are ever nervously anxious and sensitive. First of all about their salvation, which, alas! is like a "variable quantity" with them. But I wish, also, to apply the idea to human life. Christ is a perfect Brother as well as a perfect Saviour. Redemption is his. Yes; and so is common home-life; so is the gift of daily bread. The great realm of providence is under his sceptre.
1. Meditate well on this dual aspect of the subject. First of all, when you are tempted to be morbid analysts of your own spiritual state, to use the scales of weight and measurement for the depth of your love and the height of your faith. There can be no escape from trepidatory alarms so long as we apply aquafortis to the gold of our affection, so long as we microscopically survey the minutiae of our neglected duties and our multitudinous sins. We must ponder the consolatory words, "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life." And this argument applies as much to the ordinary life of every day. Do things happen to us, or are our times in God"s hands? Our dread of fatalism, with its results of inertia and indifference, has sometimes hindered that quiet trust in God which is the secret of all true strength. Events are in his hand. You cannot make one hair black or white, or add one cubit to your stature. You will become worn and weary by retrospective fears. And what power have you over the dark, deep waves of coming tribulation, or over the advent-hours of grief and death? Be wise. Resolve with promptitude. Persevere with energy. Rise early with alacrity for the service of the day, but cast all anxious thoughts of to-morrow on your Lord.
2. I do not say that so doing all your fears will cease. No act of faith is so complete as to shut out all weakness of the soul. But I do say this will be your most perfect anodyne. Other things will help. The bracing air, the oxygen and ozone of the sea-coast, may tone your nerves, but it cannot create new ones. The gospel (and do the most, but even that cannot reorganize the physical frame, so fearfully and wonderfully made; but its atmosphere is the best one for bracing the heart and soothing the tretted, irritated nerve.
II THERE IS CONTINUITY OF FEAR. We none of us know how frail we are till trial comes. The blooming maiden little thought that care would so soon write itself on her forehead, and that the silvery lines would so early be discovered in her hair. Yet so it is. A mother now, she has had to endure the anxieties of home and the agonies of bereavement. There are some constitutions that can brave much; they keep hale and well, with the pulse even and the eye bright, amid difficulties that would overwhelm. others. Let them thank God for the perfectness of the physical frame. But there are some that only look robust and bright, and when tribulation comes their strength gives way with marvellous rapidity. The physician says the vascular system is excellent, the muscles strong, the frame perfect, but the nervous system is fragility itself.
1. Advent-days of trouble do come. Even sin in its first consciousness overwhelms some with fear and trembling. A great horror overwhelms them. The invisible realm of the spirit is suddenly revealed to them, and where before they saw nothing hideous or evil, now reptiles crawl! Yes; there is a revelation of sin now as of old. We know what the first sight of accident or death is: how severely it shocks the senses of a child! So sin may, and does, come with an overwhelming consciousness of guilt on some minds. The old cry is heard, "Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" How terrible, then, it" such souls fall into the hands, not of wise physicians, but of unwise irritators of the evil! The nerves will break down, and have broken down in thousands of cases, and mania ensues. Study the history of monasteries and convents. Study the history of some revivals. The mediaevalists worked upon many delicate nervous systems by their hideous pictures of hell and by their fearful harangues concerning it. Nor has the modem Church escaped the danger. At once the anxious soul should be led to him who says," Daughter, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.
2. There are seasons when unforeseen calamity comes. No fleecy cloud presages the coming storm, no floating seaweed tells how near the vessel is to the rocks; but swift as the "bore" that rushes up the Hooghly from the Ganges, the water sweeps in with a swell, and engulfs the precious freights of unanchored vessels in its broadening wave. There are seasons when the nerves are made intensely sensitive. The heart is pierced by the coldness and neglect of some familiar friend. The spirit droops. Ingratitude has wounded, neglect has chilled, cruelty has crushed, and enmity has tried to slay reputation and renown. "The spirit of a man can sustain his infirmity, but a wounded spirit who can bear?" Who? Certainly not the anxious temperament. Surely at such times it is heart-rest to know the Brother born for adversity, the Friend that sticketh closer than a brother; then is the hour to feel the warm radiance of the love of Christ. One smile from the Saviour then is worth all the honour and flattery of a fickle world. Doubt simply means misery and darkness to the anxious temperament. And in such a world as this, where we never know what a day or an hour may bring forth, surely it is wise to obey the counsel concerning God, "Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace.
III THERE MAY BE MINISTRATIONS THAT ARE HUMAN AS WELL AS DIVINE. We can perform miracles of healing, not in the old sense, but wonders of restorative powers are within our reach. Is it a child that is nervous and sensitive? See to it, O parent, that you early discern the difference between that little trembling spirit and the stronger brother. Is it a life-companion? See that you do not treat this sensitiveness as a mere weakness to be cured by physical agencies alone the best curative will be a cheerful mind within, working outwards.
1. Settled melancholy is terrible, and it often prevails. Try and avert it by all ministries of hope and cheer and comfort that you can command. Try and do as Wilberforce is said to have done bring a ray of sunshine across every threshold you cross. We talk about courage, but we do not yet fully understand its true philosophy. It is altogether a related thing. If constitutionally brave that is not the highest courage. It is easy for some who are born strong to be physically brave; it is easy for some to be determined and defiant; it does not spoil their rest at night to fight battles for themselves or others. But with the nervous temperament to act out all the truth that is in them is a costly affair; it tears their strength to pieces. With them to bear the slight of neglect, or the wound of insult, is like a crown of thorns on the heart. With them happiness itself is as the life of a plant which has its nerve-centres in other hearts. The best medicine for many is to be understood and appreciated. You cannot talk down or laugh down nervousness. You cannot even argue down the sensitiveness that springs from it. You cannot do all you desire to do even; but you can do much; and the evening of life will bring you no sweeter reward than for your Lord"s sake to have fulfilled the scriptural command, "Bear ye one another"s burdens, and so fulfil the Law of Christ.
2. Christ"s spirit is little understood, and sometimes little honoured. You have but to study life to see how much h ardness and cruelty there is in it. Begin at the beginning. Take school life public school life! How are boys trained? Why, to admire the daring and defiant, to humiliate the weak, to laugh at sensibility as womanish, to deal with one another as brutes, where the strongest is lord. And it is said home-petting is cured by such means. Cured? I believe that Christ"s book of record will contain martyr-lives of school-days more terrible than the martyrdoms once and for ever made at the stake. Grown-up men do not like to talk of such things; but many look back with a creeping sense of horror at their school-time. The nervous and the sensitive have had their natures repressed and their hearts crushed, who entered public schools with beautiful, child-like, Christ-like spirits. Take a nation. Even when it is called Christian, how often is it braggart, defiant, imperious, proud of military strength! how little conciliation to smaller nations! that is thought to be unworthy of imperial greatness! We have to live and teach the cross, in its spirit as well as in its doctrine; in its beautiful revelation that he, the Highest and Strongest of all, suffered for us; that he was despised and rejected of men for us; that he gave himself for us. Remember, then, that you stand in Christian relationship to the timorous, the sensitive, and the anxious, and ever seek to manifest the spirit of him who would not break the bruised reed.
IV THERE MUST BE A STUDY OF THE DISEASE TO UNDERSTAND THE REMEDIES. That is why I ask you to meditate on the nervous temperament. How unreal are its images! How it trembles at the idea of solitude! How it fears to-morrow! How it bows in gloom before the advent of disease or death! You cannot see the delicate network of nerves; you cannot understand the mysterious functions of the brain. We are fearfully as well as wonderfully made; then let us remember how easily nervousness is promoted by self-indulgence and sloth, by morbid books, by strange tales told in childhood, by companionship with those who take foreboding views of life, and by the domination of "fixed ideas" so difficult to shake off. And all cannot afford change of scene and change of clime.
1. It is not in medicine to cure all this. It may alleviate, but it cannot recreate. Earthly appliances are wise in their own way; but the gospel of Christ is the relieving power that alone brings out fully the blessed revelation of the fatherhood of God. From the lips that cannot lie we hear the all-sustaining words, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father." Christ is the great Physician. He can cure the very leprosy of sin, and make the Gehazis whole, so that the trembling child of guilt, whose sin has been of deepest dye, may hear the consoling words, "Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee." Christ can say to the leper, "Be thou dean." He gave purity to the penitent"s heart, and peace to the publican with conscience distracted about ill-gotten gains; for he is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him.
2. Christ alone can interpret life in all its fulness and meaning. He knows how sad is hopelessness. He came not to save alone the hale, the righteous, the strong, He came also to take the lambs in his arms, and to carry them in his Bosom.:blessed Christ! Would he ever make amusement out of the nervous weaknesses of some? Would he ever say, "It cannot be helped; physical law is imperious, and must hold. on its way,"? Would he not rather comfort and hell the weak-hearted? Sometimes a sense of rectitude sustains us in trouble, for unquestionably the upright Corinthian column can bear a greater weight than the leaning one. That erect attitude of the soul which the Scriptures call" uprightness" will enable many a man to be strong. But this cannot do all. We have all sinned, and come short of the glory of God; and we have sinned against each other also. We want, above all else, a Saviour. Some suspect their own motives, and are questioners, not of their Lord"s Divinity, but of their own sincerity. Yea! and some are sensitively anxious concerning the very foundations of their first repentance towards God, and their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Study, then, Christ"s infinite compassion, his perfect knowledge of every human heart yes, of yours. "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee." Never rest in yourself alone. Wait and pray! Not for ever will you tremblingly bear the burden of nervous sensibility. Not for ever will the immortal spirit dwell in so frail a tabernacle. In God"s own good time, you will be clothed upon with your house from heaven. The day will come when the poor harp will be restrung, sorrow and sighing will be done away; and there shall be no night there. W.M.S.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v13 And forgettest the Lord thy Maker
Isa_51:13
And forgettest the Lord thy Maker
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God the Creator
What is it to create the heavens and the earth?
Who has seen the process of creation? I see a man shape a piece of iron or of wood into a useful instrument, and the process seems simple enough. But here I see the hand that works and the material on which it works. But that is not creation--creation out of nothing. I see no hand shaping the trees and hills; I never see something rising out of nothing. I can watch the growth of a flower, as I can the building of a house. And I know that in the former case, as in the latter, there is some force in activity. But force is not God. Behind that force God is still hidden, and the mysterious question remains, Who is He! More mysterious still when I have to reflect that millions of flowers an the world over are being formed, and that a similar force is in operation through all the worlds of boundless space. And everywhere behind this force God is. God is my Maker too. I eat and drink, I live and grow, and feel the energy of life. And that, too, is God. So near to me--so immeasurably distant; and yet nowhere visible. How, then, shall I think of Him, and answer to my heart the question, Who is God? (S. Edger, B.A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v14 Isa_51:14-15. The captive exile hasteneth, &c. [1581]
THE CAPTIVE SEEKING DELIVERANCE
Isa_51:14-15. The captive exile hasteneth, &c. [1581]
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[1581] Before developing either of the outlines here reproduced, attention should be given to Delitzsch’s translation of these verses.
I. A DESCRIPTION OF THE WRETCHED CONDITION OF THE SINNER—AN EXILE.
1. His captivity.
(1.) Judicial;
(2.) practical;
(3.) circumstantial.
2. His impending destruction.
II. THE EAGER DESIRE OF THE EXILE FOR DELIVERANCE.
(1.) He uses every probable means for it.
(2.) There appears to him a good prospect of deliverance.
III. THE PROVISION MADE FOR THE CAPTIVE EXILE.
(1.) The Gospel is a revelation of mercy.
(2.) A dispensation of power.
(3.) The effectual means of a sinner’s deliverance from sin.—T. Lessey.
The captive. I. His condition—captive—in the pit. II. His fears—destitution—destruction. III. His encouragement—deliverance is at hand. IV. His assurance—the Word—the power of God.—J. Lyth, D.D.: Homiletical Treasury, Isaiah, p. 70.
COMMISSIONED, ENDOWED, AND PRESERVED
(Wicklyffe Quincentenary.) [1584]
[1584] We find a signal verification of this promise in the career of John Wicklyffe, the quincentenary of whose death affords a fitting occasion for reverting to the times in which he lived, and the task he was selected to perform. He was employed in a work which may fitly be described as “planting the heavens.” The imagery is drawn from fixing the stakes of a tent, and we may well say that the Reformation supplied a new spiritual canopy to the world. Men’s outlook into the invisible became clearer; the heavens brightened overhead, as the clouds of ignorance, spiritual tyranny, and human mediation were dispersed, and the Sun of righteousness poured His unobstructed rays upon the earth. No less appropriately may we speak of the Reformation as “laying the foundations of the earth.” The Romish system had no firm basis; men were building on loose material, and the rubbish had to be swept away before a secure foundation could be obtained. The truth of the Gospel was overlaid with fictions and corruptions, till the Reformers dug through it to the solid rock. Wicklyffe was among the first to set to work with the pickaxe and spade. Again, of this Reformer we may say that “God put His words into his mouth.” This was the source and secret of his power. At Oxford he read and studied the Latin Bible, and, in later life, made the first complete translation of it into English. Very remarkable, too, is the way in which God preserved him through persecution and sickness till his work was completed. He was suffered to live to the end of his days, and after his death his spirit lived in his writings. He gave the Scriptures to the people in their mother tongue, and no earthly power could recall that precious gift.
Let us not forget that this promise belongs to all who love and serve the Lord. We have all a mission somewhere in helping forward the new creation. God hath put His words in your mouth—words of truth and power, of life and love. He has covered you in the shadow of His hand. You are secure in the discharge of your commission. What a wondrous purpose you are chosen to subserve! Who shall frustrate God’s work? Shall we not gladly yield ourselves as instruments in making this earth once more a paradise of beauty and holiness?—William Guthrie, M.A.
Isa_51:16. And I have put My words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee, &c.
Great words these, to be spoken by God to men! We need have no hesitation in appropriating for ourselves the comfort and encouragement they convey, for, though addressed to Israel and referring to the work to be accomplished by their Messiah, we have each a Divine mission to fulfil as servants and followers of Christ, and ours are the promises by which He was sustained.
God here declares what is His great design—“to plant,” &c. The language is clearly figurative, and denotes the new creation. At Isa_51:13 reference is made to the first creation, and this is used in the text as an image of the second—spiritual creation. There are many points of similarity between the two. Both alike are works of Divine power, wrought by the word of God’s mouth (Gen_1:3; Jas_1:18). In both there is the operation of the Holy Spirit (Gen_1:2; Joh_3:5). In the new creation the peace, holiness, and love, which were lost by the Fall, are restored, and the object of all God’s dealings with our sinful race through long centuries is to create them anew, and restore them to His favour and image. Like the first creation, the new is a gradual process, advancing from age to age.
1. In this work God employs His servants. When it is said “that I may plant,” &c., it is obvious that it is through Israel the work is to be done (1Co_3:9). What an honour that He should call us to His service, and use us as instruments in realising. His great designs. Here is a thought to make us brave and diligent. Let us make our work God’s and God’s work ours, devoting our energies to the furtherance of His kingdom. Every other aim that engages our time and talents is trifling compared with this. If a man feels that his uppermost wish is to promote the Redeemer’s reign, he is ennobled, sanctifying all his endeavours by throwing into them a lofty purpose, and making all his activities converge upon the advancement of the truth. No man will ever do anything great and enduring who does not thus ally himself with God. Let a man say,—“This work, at which I am toiling, is not after all my work but God’s,” and in that lies the secret of strenuous labour and patience amid discouragement. Oh the honour, the dignity, the peace of being consciously a worker together with God! That is to dwell in a region high above the fretting cares and sordid aims of the ordinary world. While others are wailing their hopeless dirges, you are singing your hymns of faith and hope.
2. For this work God arms His servants. “I have put My words in thy mouth.” This is the weapon which we are to wield (1Th_2:13). He is fully furnished into whose mouth God puts His word, who wields the sword of the Spirit. How feeble is man’s word, the word of even the mightiest of men. It falls as powerless as King Canute’s order to the flowing tide, bidding it retire from his royal feet as he sat upon the shore. But behind God’s word there is the omnipotence of Him whose word it is. Let us have faith in God’s words, in their power to subdue human hearts. It is because we often utter them as if they were our own words that they are robbed of their power. It is because we listen to them as man’s words that we despise them. This is all we need for the spiritual conquest of the world—to have God’s words put in our mouth. With this weapon wisely used we shall overcome the giants of ignorance, Superstition, and unbelief. The men of Reformation times were courageous, because they had a firm faith in God’s word, and what the Church needs to-day is a revival of that unquestioning faith in God’s message as a power to plant the spiritual heavens and lay anew the foundations of the earth, to carry peace to the troubled and comfort to the disconsolate, to disarm hostility, break down prejudices and bear down opposition, and guide the seeking soul to the Cross.
3. For this work and in it God preserves His servants. “I have covered thee in the shadow of Mine hand.” He who undertakes God’s work may expect to encounter opposition from the world, which is opposed to God’s loving purpose. Israel had a Divine mission to fulfil, and the nation is represented in Isa_51:12-13 as cowering before their oppressors. But what encouragement God gives them: “I, even I, am He that comforteth you,” &c. God overrules the doings and designs of evil men for the overwhelming of their own cause. With His protection there is no occasion for fear. Our mistake is that we “forget the Lord our Maker,” while we are surrounded by oppressors; like Peter sinking in fear, while he looks at the tossing waves and withdraws his eye from his Master’s form. Could we keep our eye steadily fixed on Him, no oppressor should alarm us. With Him as our Comforter, who shall be our tormentor? Moses was reluctant to undertake the task with which God charged him at the bush. But his excuses are overruled. “Certainly I will be with thee.” In carrying out his commission his life was frequently in danger, but “God covered him in the shadow of His hand” (Heb_11:27). “Man is immortal till his work is done.” Paul, too, was “in deaths oft,” but what says God to him in his extremity? (Act_18:9-10). So, too, with Martin Luther. What a marvellous history of preservation! But for the wars in which Charles V. was engaged the Reformer would have been crushed, and the Reformation, for a time at least, frustrated. Believer, you have a gracious and omnipotent Preserver. In contending for the truth, in encountering shame and reproach, in meeting hindrances in the way of your God-given task, remember that the shadow of God’s own hand is over you, and you shall not quail before your adversaries.—William Guthrie, M.A.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv13–14 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues speaking to the people of Israel.
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Why have you forgotten Yahweh ... earth?
Yahweh uses a question to emphasize that they should not forget Yahweh. This may be written as a statement. AT: "You should not have forgotten Yahweh ... earth." (See: Rhetorical Question)
Maker
See how you translated this name for Yahweh in Isaiah 17:7.
who stretched out the heavens
"who spread out the sky." This speaks of Yahweh having created the heavens as if he had stretched them out in the same way one would stretch out a large garment. AT: "who stretched out the heavens like a garment" (See: Metaphor)
the foundations of the earth
The word "foundation" normally refers to a stone structure that gives support to a building from underneath. Here it describes a similar structure that was thought to support and hold the earth in place. See how you translated this phrase in Isaiah 24:18.
the hot fury of the oppressor when he decides to destroy
"the oppressor's hot fury when he decides to cause destruction"
hot fury
Here the word "hot" means "strong" or "great." AT: "great fury" (See: Idiom)
Where is the fury of the oppressor?
Yahweh uses a question to emphasize that the people should not fear those who want to oppress them. Their oppressors are no longer a threat to them. This may be written as a statement. AT: "The fury of the oppressor is not a threat!" (See: Rhetorical Question)
translationWords
Yahweh
heaven
found
earth
oppress
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv13–15 51:13 you have forgotten the Lord: The Lord will…
51:13 you have forgotten the Lord: The Lord will never forget Israel (see 44:21; 49:15), so they should not forget him. • The Creator of the world also created the nation Israel.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.