THE BOOK OF THE PROPHETISAIAH,ORIGINALLY
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Yeshayahu means "YHWH is salvation"--the same meaning as Yehoshua, but with the phrasing in the reverse order. And YHWH's salvation through the Messiah Yehoshua fills a major part of his prophecy. Yeshayahu was probably from the tribe of Yehudah. A contemporary of Micha and Hoshea, he prophesied more than 200 years after the division of Israel, beginning c. 740 B.C.E. (Just prior to King Uzziyahu's death in 739), or about 18 years prior to the fall of the Northern Kingdom. But he mainly addresses the southern kingdom of Yehudah, which was now in decline as well, following the same pattern of apostasy that Israel had taken. Since he records the death of Sennacheriv, it is estimated that he continued to prophesy for some 60 years, until about 680B.C.E., when by tradition he was executed by being sawn in two. As with all the prophets, his main theme is, "Come back to the Torah!"
Vision: oracle, prophecy received in an ecstatic state.
2. "Listen, O heavens, and cup your ear, O earth, because YHWH has spoken: `I have caused sons to grow and brought [them] up, but they have rebelled against Me!
Listen...Cup your ear: This is an allusion back to the song Moshe taught the descendants of Israel just prior to his death so that they would pass it down through all their generations. (D'varim/Deut. 32) The things Moshe warned about were coming to pass, and this was to be a vivid reminder of where the nation was headed.3. "`The ox can tell [who] his owner [is], and the donkey [recognizes] his master's feeding trough. Israel [on the other hand] does not acknowledge; My people have not shown themselves to be able to distinguish.
YHWH told Noach that in some sense the earth was no longer cursed after the Deluge, but mankind had not changed. (Gen. 8:21) Despite man's dominion over the animals, the latter appear to better understand the authority structures YHWH has set up. His people may have assumed that because YHWH kept feeding them, they could also obtain food elsewhere, but as with the kosher laws, YHWH has very specific things He wants us to partake of. Forming bonds with foreigners (forbidden in Ex. 23:32) is the first step toward idolatry.4. "`Alas, O sinful nation! O people weighed down with crookedness! O offspring of mischief-makers! Children who bring ruin! They have abandoned YHWH; they have despised the Holy One of Israel. They have gone back to being estranged!
Gone back to...: or "in the hereafter they will...". Being estranged: or, "belonging to a stranger".5. "`Why should you continue to be beaten down? You keep veering from the path! The whole head is diseased; the whole heart is unwell!
Head: Symbolic of the rulers who led Yehudah in the wrong direction. (v. 10) They are acting just like foreigners.6. "`From the sole of the foot all the way to the head, there is no soundness in it. Bruises, scars, and fresh open wounds! They have neither been closed up nor bandaged, nor soothed by ointment.
7. "`Your land is left desolate, your cities burned with fire! As for your farmland, strangers devour it right in front of you, and [it is] desolate as when overthrown by foreigners!
8. "`The daughter of Tzion, too, is left like a temporary shelter in a vineyard, like a lean-to in a cucumber garden, like a blockaded city.'
Grapes and cucumbers must be harvested quickly when they ripen, so it was common to build rudimentary huts to spend the night in so the harvester could maximize his time in the field. They lie abandoned after the harvest is over, then become overgrown by the vines. The builder no longer dwells within them. YHWH is saying that (as we see below) the structure of Yehudah's society is still intact, but His presence has been removed since He does not share His glory with another--and they do not even realize it! Blockaded: watched-over or guarded (from outside), as in a siege. (No one can enter it anymore.)9. "If YHWH of the Armies had not left us a surviving remnant--and very few[at that]--we would have become like S'dom, and resembled `Amorah!
10. "Listen to the word of YHWH, you dictators of S'dom; cup your ears to the instruction of our Elohim, you people of `Amorah!
11. "`What use to Me is the abundance of your slaughterings?' says YHWH. `I am overstuffed with the ascending [offerings] of rams and the fat of overfed beasts, and I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, sheep, or [prepared] he-goats.
He never did; His intent through them was always that we would know Him.12. "`When you come to appear before My face, who has required this from your hands--to trample down My courts?
Temple offerings are all going on, but He asks why they are even coming, since they also have idols in their homes. All they are doing, in His eyes, is tracking mud across His floor!
13. "`Do not bring any more empty tribute-offerings. And incense--it's disgusting to Me! [New] moon, Sabbath, [and] summoning of assemblies, I cannot endure! Even the festival assembly is a waste of breath.
He is so fed up with their outward worship that He simply says, "Stop profaning My extra-special days!" Yehudah is mixing the worship of YHWH with paganism, and He would rather they were either hot or cold. (Rev. 3:17ff) In reality they are wicked but pretending to be righteous. And there is very little difference between this and combining Biblical teaching with pagan festivals like Saturnalia (Dec. 25), Ishtar (at the vernal equinox), etc.14. "`My soul hates your [new] moons and appointed times. They are a burden to Me; I am tired of putting up with them.
Does this contradict the Torah, which commanded these feasts? No. The key is in the word "your". The way they are carrying out His feasts has turned them into a creation of their own hands.15. "`When you spread out your hands, I will conceal My face from you; also, when you increase the number of prayers, there will be no listening from Me. Your hands are full of blood!
Spread out your hands: in prayer. They may be satisfied with this arrangement, but He is not. All they are doing is murdering animals. Until they confess their guilt and repent, He will hide His face. (cf. Hos. 5:15)16. "`Wash off and make yourselves clean! Take away the evil quality of your practices from [being right] in front of My eyes! Stop doing injurious things;
Clean: in most biblical imagery, this is an idiom for selflessness. This is what determines whether a certain act is "of the flesh" or "of the spirit" if not specified in Torah.17. "`Learn to make [them] right: Demand justice, set the oppressor straight, vindicate the fatherless, contend for the case of the widow.
Learn: literally, be goaded. Demand: or "seek out" in the strongest sense in which it can be understood. Learning to discern requires a return to the Torah, which teaches us to make such distinctions. (Lev. 10:10) They have the infrastructure intact, but are perishing because they lack knowledge.
18. "`Walk, now, and let [your words] be proven', says YHWH. `If your sins are like scarlet, they can become as white as snow; if they are as red as crimson, they can become like wool.
Proven: or "corrected"; alt., "let us reason together". (You say you love Me; now show it by your actions! Keep My commandments!) Scarlet...white as snow: a reference to an annual occurrence in which, on Yom Kippur one part of a scarlet cord was tied to the horn of the "scapegoat" for Azazel and the other part hung on the Temple doors. After the goat was thrown off a cliff in the wilderness east of Yerushalayim, YHWH showed His acceptance of their atoning sacrifice by turning the cord bright white. The Talmud tells us that this stopped taking place 40 years before the destruction of the Temple--which would have been the year Yahshua died. In His mercy YHWH put up with Temple services that again were out of His prescribed order until Yahshua brought the fullest sacrifice, providing a permanent way out of sinful patterns for those who would accept it.19. "`If you consent and obey, you will eat the best of the Land.
Consent: not just "are willing", but a very strong term: to pant after, to want very badly. (Compare Gen. 24:8)20. "`But if you refuse and [remain] rebellious, you will make the sword eat, because the mouth of YHWH has spoken.'
A sword and mouth are again linked when Yahshua returns. (Rev. 19:15, 21)21. "How the reliable town has become an [unfaithful] prostitute! [She was] full of justice; righteousness stayed with her. But now--murderers!
22. "Your silver has turned into dross; your strong drink has been diluted with water.
23. "Your princes have backslidden, becoming companions of thieves! Every one loves a bribe, and is running after compensation. They do not vindicate the fatherless, nor does the widow's cause reach them.
Princes: sarim; backslidden: sorarim. It is a Hebrew word play. Running after: But do they ever catch it?24. "On account of this, the Master YHWH of Armies--the Mighty One of Israel--declares, `Woe [to you]! I will free Myself from My oppressors, and avenge Myself of My enemies.
Free Myself: ease or make Myself comfortable, i.e., not put up with this nuisance anymore.25. "`Then I will bring My hand back onto you, and purge away your dross as with alkali, and remove all your alloy.
Alkali: or lye or potash, materials used in smelting metal. Alloy: base metal, the part to be separated away.26. "`And I will restore your judges as at the first, and your advisors as at the beginning. After that, indeed, it will be proclaimed that you are `the city of righteousness', `the reliable town'.
Judges: or law-givers. The Torah lifestyle can only work properly when there is a wide consensus on obedience to His laws such as those of leaving fields fallow, releasing debts, etc. Not until the proper authority structures are restored can the fullest redemption be possible.27. "`Tzion will be ransomed with due process, and her returnees with ethical vindication.
28. "But the violent shattering of [both] trespassers and those who wander from the way will be brought to an end together with those who abandon YHWH,
Violent shattering: in context, their fragmenting of justice in the court system.29. "because they will be disappointed by the oaks that you have taken pleasure in, and ashamed of the gardens which you had chosen,
Oaks...gardens: places of pagan worship, usually for fertility rites.30. "because you will be like a terebinth whose leaf is drooping, and a garden in which there is no water,
31. "and the mighty [in wealth] will be like the tow [shaken from flax], and his deeds like a spark, and both of them shall burn together, and there will be no one to extinguish."
Compare 1 Cor. 3:14, 15.
2. and it will take place in the latter days: the mountain of YHWH's house will be established at the head of the mountains, and will be lifted up from [among] the hills, and all the nations will stream toward it.
Established: fixed securely, stable, enduring, determined. Head: from a root word meaning shaking, thus, "at the shaking of the mountains". Lifted up from among the hills: an idiom meaning it will be raised higher than all those out of which it came. This appears to have been how it was before the Noachian flood, since after the highest mountains are covered, other mountains are again mentioned. (Gen. 7:20)3. And many peoples will proceed and say, "Come on, [all of you], and let us ascend to YHWH's mountain--to the House of the Elohim of Yaaqov! And He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths!" Because from Tzion will proceed instruction, and the word of YHWH from Yerushalayim.
4. And He will judge between the nations, and will decide for many peoples. Then they will hammer their swords into plowshares, and their spear-shafts into pruning tools. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, nor shall they learn war anymore.
An agricultural lifestyle is being returned, because these cycles are the most ideal for comprehending His redemptive calendar. Decide for: or correct, rebuke, reprove, prove right, convince, convict.5. O House of Yaaqov! Come, let us walk in the light of YHWH!
6. Because You have abandoned your people, the House of Yaaqov, since they are filled up from the east, and conjure clouds like the Filistines, and cause [them] to splash [upon] the children of foreigners.
7. While his land is filled with silver and gold, and there is no end to their storehouses, and his land is well-armed with horses, and there is no end to his chariots,
His land: probably that of the foreigner mentioned in v. 6, but possibly referring to Yaaqov's land.8. still, his land is filled with worthless [images]; he prostrates himself to the work of his [own] hands--to what his own fingers have produced!
9. So mankind is bowed down, and a man [of importance] lowers himself, so don't You lift them up.
10. Enter into the rock, and hide yourself in the dust from the dread face of YHWH and from the splendor of His majesty!
They have "dug their own graves".11. The haughty eyes of mankind will be brought to humility, and the loftiness of mortal men will be brought low, and YHWH alone will be set on high in that day,
12. because the day for YHWH of [the] Armies is upon everyone [who is] triumphant and [who] lifts himself up, and he will be brought down--
13. and upon all the cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
Bashan: the present-day Golan Heights.14. and upon all the high mountains and upon all the upraised hills,
This is the type of place idols were most commonly worshiped.15. and upon every high tower, and upon every fortified wall,
Fortified: to the point of being insurmountable.16. and upon all the sailors of Tarshish, and upon every beloved flag
Beloved flag: or precious craft, palace, or desirable image--i.e., any outstanding superlative symbolizing human achievement. How can we help but recall the collapse of skyscrapers and the sinking of the Titanic that "even God could not sink", or the spacecraft that "challenged" YHWH?17. and the haughtiness of mankind will be humbled, and the loftiness of mortal men will be brought low, and YHWH alone will be set on high in that day
18. Then the worthless [images] will completely [and quickly] vanish,
19. and they will go into the caves of the rocky cliffs and the hollows of the dust, [away] from the dread face of YHWH and from the splendor of His majesty when He arrives on the scene to make the earth tremble!
20. In that day mankind will throw his worthless [images] of silver and his worthless [images] of gold (which they fashioned to bow down before) to the moles and the bats,
Yaaqov also hid idols in the earth under an oak tree. (Gen. 35:4; cf. Yesh. 1:29-30 above.)21. [as they] go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs and the clefts of the crags, [away] from the dread face of YHWH and from the splendor of His majesty when He arrives on the scene to make the earth tremble!
22. Forego mankind, whose breath is in his nostrils, because what does he count for?
Forego: leave behind, let go. Breath: or spirit. This has a special meaning in this day when the brave new humanistic world order is gaining ascendancy and humanity will actually worship a particular man. Nostrils: ancient images of idols often had a huge nose; because that is where the breath enters and leaves, it was considered the part of the body where the soul resides. But only "panting after" YHWH preserves us. (1:19)
Support and staff: what you rely on. He wants to be the only One to whom we look for sustenance.2. valiant one and man of war, judge and prophet, as well as diviner and elder,
3. the commander of fifty and the uplifted of face, the advisor, the skilled craftsman, and the expert conjurer!
Uplifted of face: i.e., one who is honored. Skilled craftsman: or "shrewd magician" (as one who deals in the secret arts). Expert conjurer: literally, "discreet whisperer".4. "Then I will permit youths [to be] their commanders, and capricious fools will exercise dominion over them,
Youths: those who are inexperienced and brash, like Rehav'am.5. "and the nation will be opporessed, man against man, each against his fellow man. The young will behave arrogantly against the old, and the lightweight against the important.
6. "When a man takes hold of his brother in his father's house ('A coat! Come, you can be a ruler for us, and this overthrown ruin can be under your hand!'),
7. "in that day he will raise [his hand to swear], saying, 'I'm not one to bandage up, and there's neither bread nor clothing in my house, so don't appoint me as the people's ruler!'
8. "Because Yerushalayim has stumbled, and Yehudah has fallen, because their tongue and their actions toward YHWH [are] to rebelliously provoke the fount of His weightiness.
9. "The appearance of their faces testifies against them, and, like S'dom, they have made their sin conspicuous; they have not concealed it. Woe to their appetites, because they have dealt out evil to themselves!
10. "Tell the righteous that it is well, because they will eat the fruit of their actions.
11. "Alas for those guilty of evildoing! Because what his hand has dealt out will be done to him.
12. "[As for] My people, fools are their taskmasters, and women rule over it! O people of Mine! Those who are leading you are causing you to go astray, and have swallowed up your lifestyle!"
Fools: those acting severely or people who play like children. Taskmasters: or oppressors. Lifestyle: literally, "way of your journeying-paths".13. YHWH is taking His position to bring forward His case, and is taking His stand to judge the nation.
14. YHWH will enter into litigation with the elders of His people, and its rulers: "You have consumed away the vineyard; what you have plundered from the poor is in your house!
15. "What is it to you? You are crushing My people and grinding the faces of the poor!" declares Adonai YHWH of Armies.
16. And YHWH has said, "On account of [the fact] that the daughters of Tzion are arrogant and walk with their necks held out, causing eyes to stare, and proceeding to walk with quick little steps, and with their legs making a noise [of the] rattling [of bangles],
17. "Adonai will cause the top of the daughters of Tzion's heads to scab over, and YHWH will uncover their secret openings.
Secret openings: or "hinges"; i.e., their private parts.18. "In that day Adonai will take away the glory of their anklets, headbands, and [crescent-moon] ornaments,
19. "the pendants, the bracelets, and the veils,
20. "the head-adornments, the jingling anklets, the sashes, the soul-houses, and the amulets,
21. "the rings and the nose-rings,
22. "the removable robes, the covering tunics, the spreading cloaks, and the purses,
23. "the mirrors, the fine linen outer garments, the turbans, and the large veils.
Mirrors: literally, "revealers".24. "Then what will happen is that instead of a sweet fragrance, there will be the stench of decay; instead of a belt, an encircling rope; instead of a well-set hairdo, baldness; instead of an expensive robe, tied-on burlap; and branding in the place of beauty.
Encircling rope: i.e., to be led away into slavery thereby. Burlap: or sack-cloth. Branding: another sign of ownershp by another.25. "Your people will fall by the sword, and your valiant ones in the battle,
26. "and her entrances will lament and mourn, and she who is cleaned out will remain for the land.
Cleaned out: desolate, cleared, even free.
In which day? The day of the calamities in chapter 3. Take hold of: or prevail upon, but it literally says, "seven women will make one man strong". Perhaps these are seven of the northern tribes, or perhaps they are the seven congregations of Rev. 1-2. The number "seven" in Hebrew is also the word for "oath" (cf. Gen. 21:30ff, when seven ewes were sacrificed to seal the oath). Thus they may simply be symbolic of the complete number of people who have made the oath of covenant with YHWH--the "7,000 in Israel who have no t bowed the knee to Baal". In any case, they are joining themselves to the Messiah from the tribe of Yehudah. In 3:7, no other men had bread or clothing left in their houses, just as no one else but Messiah is worthy to reign. (Rev. 5:4) But the bread and clothing were paralleled in 3:8 with Yerushalayim and Yehudah. Thus, eating their own food, in this context, relates to living in their own cities, and wearing their own clothing symbolizes keeping their own tribal identity. I.e., they are not trying to be Jews, but they know they must have connections with the Jewish Messiah. One man: or "a unified man"--the restoration of Adam toward which all of Scripture points, and which became possible only through the one Man, the Messiah, who then became the Head of the whole Body. Let us be called by your name: literally, "Let your name by proclaimed [or read] over us." Yirmiyahu (Jer.) 23:6 tells us that the Messiah will be called YHWH Tziqdenu (YHWH our righteousness), and Yirm. 33:16, using parallel phraseology, tells us that Yerushalayim (which we know from Rev. 21:2 is the Bride adorned for her husband) will be called by the very same Name. Our disgrace: not so much having had all their ornaments removed (ch. 3) as the fact that they had been adorned for themselves, not for their bridegroom. (After Aharon had some Israelites donate jewelry out of which to build the golden calf, YHWH said ornaments were no longer to be worn in His sanctuary.) Rabbinically, the name of YHWH is seen as a key that the high priests lifted up to open the heavenlies (Josephus) Once we again began using YHWH's name instead of substitutes, the shame that comes with association with the pagan titles we had used was also removed from our lips.2. "In that Day the offshoot of YHWH will be [raised to] honor and authority, and the fruit of the Land will be majestic and splendid for the [surviving] remnant of Israel,
In that day: while there is usually an immediate point of reference in the prophet's day, when this phrase is used by the prophets, it also has the specialized reference to the "Day of YHWH", for which all of the precursors were only "dress rehearsals". Those who enter the Messianic Kingdom are the ultimate "surviving remnant of Israel", including the righteous who died throughout all of history. Offshoot of YHWH: identified in Yirmiyahu (Jer.) 23:5; 33:15 as a righteous king from David's line; and Z'charyah 3:8 as YHWH's servant, which 52:13 below links clearly with the Messiah. Authority: or reputable dignity.3. "And [whatever is] spared in Tzion or remaining in Yerushalayim will be called "set apart", that is, all who are enrolled to live in Yerushalayim.
Enrolled: or inscribed, reminding us of the angelic scribe who, in an event that will be repeated (Rev. 7:3ff), was commanded to mark out those who would be preserved because they wept over the abominations carried out in the midst of Yerushalayim. (Y'hezeq'el/Ezek. 9) In that context, there is a very clear demarcation between those celebrating Passover and those celebrating what would later come to be called "Easter". In Rev. 3:5; 13:8ff; 20:15; 21:27 we see how the names are written in the Book of Life relate to the New Yerushalayim. Our citizenship is in heaven, from which Yahshua will come and bring us the rights this entails. (Phil. 3:15ff; cf. v. 1 above.)4. "When Adonai has washed off the excrement of the daughter of Tsion, and rinsed away Yerushalayim's blood from its innermost part by the wind of justice and the spirit of burning,
Note the mechanics of how YHWH cleanses us: wind is the same word as "spirit" in Hebrew. "Justice" means "right-ruling (correct verdict) in judgment" (which we cannot have without established rulers); it also bespeaks the fact that Yahshua ransomed us by a fully lawful means which the Adversary can never call into question. "Burning" here can mean "kindling a fire", which takes us to Yahshua's statement that he had a fire to kindle and wished he could do so right away, but had an "immersion" to undergo first. (Luk. 12:49, 50). Amos (5:18-20) reminds us that the Day of YHWH will not begin in a pleasant way so that we should look forward to it nonchalantly. It will be a time of burning away our impurities and consuming the wicked before the Kingdom is fully established.5. "then YHWH will form over every dwelling place of Mount Tsion and over her convocations a cloud and smoke in the daytime, and the brightness of a flaming fire at night, because over all [that is] honorable, [there is] a [wedding] canopy,
Every dwelling place: "each fixed site" or "the whole foundation". YHWH's presence will cover the whole city as He appeared over the Tabernacle. It also separated the nation from Pharaoh, and His presence will again separate us from all that Egypt represents in its paganism and enmity toward YHWH. The heavenly city that descends to earth after the Messianic Kingdom (Rev. 21) may be suspended above the earthly Yerushalayim during the Kingdom. In Rev. 3:12 Yahshua promises that the one who overcomes will be made a pillar in YHWH's Temple and he will have the name of the New Yerushalayim written on him.6. "and there will be a sukkah for shade from the parching heat in the daytime, and as a refuge and shelter from inundation [by a maelstrom] and what falls from the sky.
Sukkah: a booth or covering that provides temporary shelter, the prominent feature of the feast of Sukkoth, which is a foreshadowing of the Kingdom, which will begin with a time of intense calamity from which YHWH will shelter His people while the rest of the world feels His indignation. This will include "stars" falling from the sky (Rev. 9:1).
Uncle: or "Beloved", but a different word in Hebrew from that which precedes it, though they share a common root. Probably both refer to YHWH. Very fertile: literally, "son of fatness/oil". Spur: literally "horn", from a root meaning "to send forth rays". Yahshua carried the parable further. (Mark 12)2. "'And he dug [into] it and threw the stones out of it, and planted it with the choicest of vines, and built a watchtower inside it. He also hewed out a wine vat, and waited eagerly for it to produce grapes. But it produced wild, rotten fruit!'
Wine vat: traditionally built as close as possible to the vineyard so as little juice as possible is lost. The choicest of vines: California proved that the best land combined with the best vines produces the best wine. This is what YHWH expected. Rotten: includes the connotation of smelling foul.3. "'So now, inhabitants of Yerushalayim and men of Yehudah, please judge between Me and My vineyard!
4. "'What more could have been done for My vineyard that I did not do in it? When I was expecting it to produce grapes, why did it produce wild, rotten fruit?
5. "'So, now, I'll go ahead and make known to you what I will do with My vineyard: I'll take away its protective hedge, so it can be grazed in, and make breaches in its wall, so it can be trampled down.
YHWH had given Israel special protection and care, but since it flouted this in His face, He left it open to all the forces that affect all the other nations without His special attention.6. "'I'll let it waste away; it will not be pruned or hoed, and briers and thornbushes will come up. I will also command the clouds to keep from dropping rain on it',
Compare the forsaken sukkah in 1:8.7. "because the vineyard of YHWH of Armies is the House of Israel, and the man of Yehudah is the plant that he handles tenderly. And He looked expectantly for justice, but what [He found] was bloodshed! For ethical vindication, but what [He found] was a cry for help!
Justice...bloodshed; ethical vindication...a cry for help: Hebrew wordplays, juxtaposing "mishpat" with "mishpach" and "tz'daqah" with "tz'aqah".8. "Alas for those who make [one] house extend all the way to [the next] house, who cause [one] cultivated field to run up close to [another] field, until they run out of space and you are forced to dwell in your loneliness in the middle of the countryside!
Until they run out of space: or "until the Place comes to an end". "The Place" is often a euphemism for the Temple or the One who inhabits it. This is reminiscent of there being no room for Yahshua at his birth during Sukkoth, when the temporary shelters were packed so thick that he had to be born in one in the open country outside Beyth Lechem, at the Tower of the Flock. (Micha 4:8; 5:2) But each tribe was also to have its own "standard" (banner). We are to be set apart from other nations, but then Israel is not meant to be a homogeneous "melting pot"; holiness will not look the same for everyone. Tearing down walls is not the meaning of biblical unity; rather, each part of the Body needs to fulfill its function for the good of the whole. Where houses and fields are all flush with each other, there is no room for roads to lead to Yerushalayim. And this just may be the specific intent. Bavel's dream was to stay settled when YHWH says to be pilgrims.9. "In my ears, YHWH of Armies [has sworn], 'if most [of these] houses don't become desolate, and big, prosperous [ones] without inhabitant...!
10. "'Because the area ten yoke [of oxen could plow in a day] will produce [only] one bath, and a homer's [worth] of seed will yield [only] an eyfah!'
One bath...an eyfah: the equivalent volume in liquid and dry measure. A homer: Ten times the size of an ephah, so the yield would actually be only a tenth as much as what was planted. One would have to choose between eating and planting.11. "Woe to those who get up early to run after intoxicating beverage, hanging back in the twilight; wine causes them to hotly pursue.
12. "And there were lyre and harp, tambourine, flute, and wine in their drinking-parties, but they pay no attention to the things YHWH does, nor do they notice the works of His hands.
13. "For this reason My people have gone away into exile: due to lack of knowledge. Its important ones are persons of famine, and its boisterous crowds parched from thirst.
Gone away into exile: or "removed the covering". Remember that clothing can be a symbol of tribal affiliation (4:1), so being "unclothed" in exile means loss of identity. (Compare v.8 above.) Knowledge: as in chapter 3, the structure can be intact outwardly, but if there is no understanding of why we obey the Torah, it is easy for it to seem like a mere burdensome tradition. (Hos. 8:12)14. "Therefore She'ol has made its appetite grow wider, and gaped its mouth to the point of having no limit, and their adornment, roaring, tumult, and the triumphant person will descend into her.
She'ol: the underworld, or the place of the dead. Remember what happened to Qorach. (Num. 16)15. "Then humanity will be brought low and man set in a lower place, and the eyes of the haughty will be humbled,
The immediate context is Israel before her enemies crushed her, but this particular verse has a wider context in our day as "humanity" (Heb., "Adam"), rather than YHWH, is being made the measure of all things. Man: or "a man"--perhaps the counterfeit Messiah, who is also haughty. (Y'chezq'wl 29:3)16. "but YHWH of Armies will be exalted with justice, and the El who is set apart will be shown to be separate through righteousness.
Exalted with justice: raised to prominence in an appropriate, rightful, deserving manner, through due legal process, unlike those who since Nimrod's time have tried to make a name for themselves. There are again judges and authorities in place who do right. Shown to be separate: includes the sense of being treated accordingly as in a class of His own, and the way He distinguishes Himself as unique is that He does right. We also demonstrate His sole worthiness by doing right ourselves.17. "Then the lambs will graze as in their own pasture, while sojourners eat the places deserted by the fat ones.
Their own pasture: includes the sense of being accustomed to it, thus being at ease. Fat ones: at root, the term means "obliterators". In other words, the haughty (v. 15) who stepped on others to "get to the top" will leave their goods to the needy who come seeking temporary hospitality among YHWH's flock. But even the ones who were righteous, when satisfied with plenty, tend to forget YHWH. (Deut. 32:15; Prov. 30:9)18. "Woe [to] those who drag perversion along with worthless cords, and [pull their] sin as with a cart rope,
19. "who say, 'Let Him hurry and finish what He is making quickly, so we may see it! And let what the Holy One of Israel has been devising approach and enter, so we may become acquainted with it!'
Reminiscent, perhaps, of the way the men of S'dom responded to YHWH's messengers, this is a perverted curiosity--expecting YHWH's work to be only spectacular excitement but not a challenge to true holiness. Though we wish for Yahshua's Kingdom to come "in our lifetimes and in our days", the first part of YHWH's work to bring it about will not be "pretty" for those who are looking for novelty. (Amos 5:18-20)20. "Woe to those who avow that evil is good, and say good is evil, who put 'darkness' for light and 'light' for darkness, who define bitter as 'sweet' and sweet as 'bitter'.
Put...define: the same term in Hebrew; i.e., who change the definitions. Who has not likewise shuddered in our day to hear people raving about things they define as "wicked!" or "bad!"? But how much worse to call pagan holidays "blessed" or say that obeying the Torah is contrary to YHWH's will.21. "Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and holding up their own faces [conspicuously] as intelligent!
22. "Woe to those whose claim to fame is [how much] wine [they can] drink, and men whose [only area of] expertise is mixing intoxicating beverage,
23. "who vindicate the cause of the wicked for a bribe, and take the good legal standing of the just away from him!
24. "Therefore, as the fire's tongue devours the chaff, and the dry grass droops to the flame, their root will be like something rotten, and their flower will go up [in smoke] like a cloud of dust, because they have rejected the instruction of YHWH of Armies, and despised what the Holy One of Israel utters.
25. "This is why YHWH's breath has become hot upon His people, and He has stretched out His hand against it and punished it. Then the hills shook and their corpses like off-scouring in the middle of the streets. Despite all this, His anger is not turned back, and His arm is stretched out still.
Punished: literally, struck. Off-scouring: or "dung" (to be swept away).26. "Moreover, He will lift up a signal-flag to the distant nations, and will whistle for it [to come] from the ends of the earth, and indeed, it will come quickly [on] light [feet]!
27. "There is not a weary or feeble one among them; not one will be drowsy, and not one will fall asleep. The undergarment of its loins will not be loosened, nor will the thong of their sandals be undone,
Feeble: or "stumbling". Undergarment not loosened: i.e., they will not even stop to relieve themselves, so quickly will they come! Nor the thong...undone: he emphasizes that they will not stop to rest in any way!28. "whose arrows are sharp, and whose bows bent! Their horses' hoofs will be considered to be like flint, and their [chariot] wheels like a whirlwind!
Flint: i.e., very hard. Wheels...whirlwind: How reminiscent of Eliyahu's chariot ride to the heavens.29. "Its roaring is like a great lion, and it will roar like young lions; and it will growl and seize the prey and carry it away, and there is none to rescue.
30. "And in that day, it will roar over it like the roaring of the sea. When one considers the land, then behold! Darkness and distress, and the light is darkened by its haze."
Distress: a tight spot, oppression, or a "hard place".
Interpretation of this verse has often been clouded by the assumption that this “master” was YHWH because of the mention of YHWH in verse 3, but YHWH is not the only one in Scripture called “my master” (Adonai). An elevated throne was precisely where a king in the line of David would sit in the Temple courts. In fact, the king was the only one permitted to sit within the holy precinct. Yeshayahu calls him his master, for he worked at least in part directly for the king’s court. Uzziyahu had been held up as the paradigm of a righteous king. (2 Kings 15:34) He brought Israel great gains (2 Chron. 26), but let it go to his head; he overstepped his limits and usurped the role of the priests, ignoring their rebuke. He was struck with leprosy and quarantined until he died. (2 Chron. 26) His son began to reign in his stead while he was still alive. He was never allowed into the Temple again. Now that the king has paid the price for his sin, he appears in YHWH’s presence (v. 3) in the Temple made without hands, in the yet-unseen Kingdom in which David’s descendants are promised a reign without end.2. Burning [angels] took their positions above it--each one having six wings: with two [each] concealed his face, and with two he concealed his feet, and with two he flew.
Burning angels: Heb., s'rafim. Their six wings, or extremities, suggest what many call a “star of David”, but which in Hebrew is actually called a “shield of David” because of the shape, which later, when reconstructed, was found to be the most stable, best-supported design in shields, so this imagery would again confirm that it was a king in the line of David being depicted in his vision—and Uzziyahu himself was noted for providing shields for his army of 307,000 (2 Chron. 26:14).3. This one called out to that one and said, "Holy, holy, holy is YHWH of Armies! The whole earth is filled with His splendor!"
Holy: in a separate class of His own. (The famous complete Isaiah scroll found at Qumran says "Qadosh" (holy) only twice. This may be why it was found intact; if it was a copyist's error, it would have been "buried" in a geniza, or "graveyard" for scrolls that had YHWH's name on them. They would never be destroyed, but would not be used after a mistake was discovered, so this one would survive longer than one that had been worn out.)4. The supporting-posts of the threshold shook at the sound of the one who called out, and the House was filled with smoke.
Smoke in the Temple would come from the altar of incense, and the message to Yeshayahu was unmistakable: YHWH wanted to give him a place of authoritry in Yehudah, but there was a problem and this vision brought it to a head:
5. And I said, "Alas for me, because I am finished, since I myself am a man of impure lips, and I live among a nation of impure lips--since my eyes have seen the King, YHWH of Armies!"
Lips: or "language". His shortcoming is in the area of something he had said. Finished: brought to an end, undone, cut off--even "doomed". In common terms, "a goner". Impure: ritually unclean. Yaaqov (James) tells us the same mouth should not bless YHWH and curse those whom He has chosen.6. Then one of the burning [angels] flew toward me, with a live coal in his hand, taken with tongs from atop the altar,
Again, the only altar that was inside the Temple building was the altar of incense—the very place at which Uzziyahu had transgressed. It appears that Yeshayahu’s sin was to slander the king because of his mistake. He is not ready to do the job YHWH has in mind for him, because he dishonored his authority. Certainly the king had done wrong; he made too much of himself, but so would any of us in such a position. He was YHWH’s anointed, and David had shown us how hesitant one must be to harm such a person, yet it had become normal among this nation to “talk smack” about those in authority who fell short of perfect. Had he continued to carry the weight of profaning the name of one YHWH was still honoring, he never would have succeeded in his job. There were doors opne that had to be closed. Uzziyah had been a man of great merit, and unless Yeshayahu became fully straightened out, there would be no one left to keep this nation back from destruction. He needs to stabnd in the gap, but before this he was not ready. He now realizes his error, and may have asked to be silenced completely so he would never do this again. In his hand: The tongs were not due to its heat, but because he must not touch the altar directly.7. and he touched it to my mouth, and said, "Here, this has touched your lips, so your guilt is averted, and a covering has been effected over your sin."
Similarly, Yochanan the Immerser said Yahshua would bring a "baptism of fire".8. Then I heard the voice of YHWH saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" So I said, "Here I am! Send me!"
9. So He said, "Go, and tell this people, 'Listen, hearing, but do not distinguish! And look, seeing, but do not perceive!
Perceive: come to know or be intimately acquainted with. The indistinctness may be due to the Hebraic nature of the revelation, which we cannot fully understand in a translation. We must not forget that the existence of many languages came about as the result of a curse, and the fact that we do not understand Hebrew is a reminder of our continued exile.10. "Make the heart of this people fat, and their ears heavy, and smear its eyes over, lest it [should] see with its eyes or hear with its ears, and make a distinction with its heart, and repent, and someone [should] heal it."
Yahshua's parables had the same purpose (Mat. 13:13), since he had a work to do which he could not accomplish if Yehudah repented too soon. Paul quotes this verse in Romans 11:8, and relates it to Israel. In fact, this verse is quoted six more times in Scripture, meaning that it appears a total of seven times. But chapter 10 had asked how the scattered "lost sheep of Israel" would be able to hear unless someone was sent to teach them. These "smeared eyes" parallel the man Yahshua healed of blindness, but he viewed men as if they were trees. There were two stages of healing. He could see enough to avoid --much as the House of Israel has met Yahshua as Savior (thus having the most essential factor) yet missed the context in which He is best understood. When he was sent to the Pool of Shiloach ("sent") his vision was completely restored. Those sent to regather the rest of the House will see more than those who merely bask in what we have received, since the focus is no longer on self. (The context here mainly addresses Yehudah, but still applies to both houses, since Uzziyahu died before the Northern Kingdom was fully scattered.) Lest it should: what follows is the order of the journey back after this curse is rescinded, and that is the stage where we are today; we must follow these steps very carefully.11. So I said, "Until when, YHWH?" And He said, "Until the cities may crumble into ruins without inhabitant, and houses are without a human being, and the soil becomes a deserted wasteland.
12. "But when YHWH has removed the human [population] far away, and the abandonment of the land is abundant,
The human [population]: simply "the Adam" in Hebrew. Yeshayahu’s initial enthusiasm was probably based on the idea that he was going to bring a message that would make this people repent. He is clearly sobered by the message he is instead told to give. Not only will repentance not be seen in his lifetime; it will not come at all for the majority of his people for ages. Yet there is hope:13. "still, there will be a tithe within it, and it will come back, though it is consumed, like a terebinth or an oak that, even when felled, [still have a memorial] stump to them. The holy seed is its stump.
A tithe: a tenth, a remnant reserved for YHWH's special use, who would not be touched by this curse. Yaaqov promised that he would give YHWH a tenth of all that was his (Gen. 28:22), so a tenth of his descendants belong to YHWH in a special way. Holy seed: promised in Gen. 3:15 as being the seed of a woman--an anomaly in itself, and thus a signal of the deep significance this phrase holds. Though all humanity, and most specifically, Israel and the line of David in particular, were all gone astray and under a curse, still, true and complete life remained within this "stump", and could thus send forth a new shoot, and the nation could be revived. This king would look at the mistakes of his ancestors and learn not to make them again.
Achaz began his reign at age 20 in the seventeenth year of Peqach's reign. [c. 735 B.C.E.] So Peqach was substantially older. The story is detailed in 2 Kings 16. R'tzin means "firm", and Remalyahu, "wealth/abundance of YHWH".2. And the house of David was informed, "Aram is resting on Efrayim." Then his heart and the heart of his people wavered as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.
House of David: the current king of Yehudah, Achaz. "Resting on": an idiom for encamping on Efrayim (the Northern Kingdom)'s land, or being allied with them. Wavered: being double-minded with fear, they were" unstable in all their ways" (Yaaqov/James 1:8).3. But YHWH told Yeshayahu, "Go out now to meet Achaz--you and your son Sh'ar-Yashuv--to the end of the conduit of the upper pool of the launderers' field toward the highway,
Sh'ar-Yashuv means "a remnant will return". This is part of his message to the king. (See 8:18) Though he is about to prophesy the fall of the Northern Kingdom, he prefaces it, for those with ears to hear, with this promise that keeps the severity of the punishment in perspective. The upper pool: the same place the Assyrians would later meet King Hizqiyahu (36:2; 2 Kings 18:17) Launderers': or "fullers"--cleansing the fibers of cloth of their natural oils and bleaching them before dyeing them.Sometimes the dyeing was done by the same man.4. "and tell him, 'Make sure you stay calm. Don't be afraid, and don't let your heart go soft from these two stumps of smoking firebrands, because of the burning anger of Retzin, Aram, and the son of Remalyahu,
Nehemyah understood this principle better than Achaz. Stay calm: or "quiet"; keeping one's mouth shut is closely tied to being unafraid. By voicing "what if's", we erode the rock that YHWH sets us on, convince ourselves of the worst scenario, and get others thinking fearfully. This misdirected energy creates additional problems that were not really there to start with. Fear is an invitation to evil spirits, if not an actual act of worshipping them. Smoking firebrands: compare 65:5.5. "on account of the fact that Aram has given Efrayim and the son of Remalyahu evil advice, saying,
Efrayim (the scattered Northern Kingdom while it was out of fellowship with Yehudah) under Peqach (meaning "open") teamed up with Aram, the nation of Lavan ("the white one" and a "relative" of Israel, thus a picture of the institutional Gentile church) and together they persecuted the Jews, not realizing that they were closer relatives than the pagans who masquerade as friendly, but really seek only their own advantage. By being "open" to their influence, Israel came very close to destroying his true brothers.6. "'Let's go up against Yehudah and terrorize it, and cause a division in her for our own benefit, and set the son of Tav'el up to reign as king within her!'"
Terrorize: Heb., cause to feel a sickening dread. Tav'el: means "El has been beneficent", or "Elohim is pleasing"--a clue as to whose son the Counterfeit Messiah is seen as. ("The good Lord"?) But it is also a code name for Remalyahu through a form of Hebrew encryption in which one letter is substituted for another by substituting letters from the first half of the alphabet for those in the second half. (Missler) The last part of the word changes the encryption method to merely substituting El for Yah. They are actually deluded into thinking the Northern Kingdom will overtake and subject the southern!7. "Thus says the Master, YHWH: 'It will not stand; it's not going to happen,
8. "'because the capital of Aram is Dameseq, and the head of Dameseq is R'tzin, and within sixty-five years, Efrayim will be broken from [being] a people,
Dameseq was where Achaz went to meet the king of Ashur (Assyria), on whose help he called in this crisis. (2 Kings 16:7) But that king then attacked Israel, taking many captive. (2 Kings 15:27) Sixty-five years: long after the fall of the Northern Kingdom, which came only about 10 to 15 years after this prophecy. It seems YHWH had already determined that it would fall, but if repentance had come, the fall might have been substantially delayed.9. "'Moreover, the capital of Efrayim is Shomron, and the head of Shomron is Remalyahu's son; if you will not believe it, it is because you are not to be established.'"
Believe: or "stand firm". Shomron: Samaria. Not to be established: Because he turned out to call on the help of a human king, and ended up giving away the Temple treasury in order to pay him, rather than simply asking YHWH for help.10. Then YHWH spoke to Achaz yet again, saying,
11. "Ask for a sign for yourself from YHWH your Elohim; make the request [as] deep [as you wish], or make it from as high above [as you wish]!"
Sign: in Heb., "what distinguishes"--i.e., something clear-cut. This was a merciful offer to a king who lacked assurance of YHWH's good intentions toward Yehudah.12. But Achaz said, "[No], I won't ask; I don't [want to] put YHWH to the test."
Put to the test: or tempt. YHWH responded favorably to one of the greatest tests ever given Him, that of Eliyahu's soaked sacrifices on Mount Karmel. (1 Kings 18) Achaz had the opposite of this spirit of faith. Since he proved that he would not be established, Yeshayahu broadens the scope of his audience:13. So he [Yeshayahu] said, "Then listen, O house of David! Is it too small [a thing] for you to try the patience of mortal men? Must you try the patience of my Elohim too?
He had been commanded to ask; "to obey is better than sacrifice"! This was not true humility. Apparently it was mainly the prophet he did not trust, because he thought he knew these two armies well enough to predict what they would do.14. "Therefore, Adonai Himself will give you a sign: Behold! The young woman has conceived and is giving birth to a son, and she will call his name Immanu-El.
Young woman: of marriageable age, in the broadest sense of the term. It probably has an immediate point of reference to a particular young woman present to Yeshayahu and the king (especially in context of v. 16, perhaps even a betrothed of the king himself, who was quite young. But how would that be an unmistakable sign of something contrary to Achaz's expectations? What would be so special or miraculous about a young woman conceiving a son? The term is translated by the LXX (some 200 years prior to the birth of Yahshua and thus long before the controversy about the virgin birth) as parthenos, a term contrasted in 1 Cor. 7:28 with a married woman, hence, a virgin. Thus, perhaps there was even a virgin birth at the time of Achaz, because how would an event 700 years later serve as a sign to Achaz? The other signs Yahshua did had been done before by prophets, even raising the dead. Ecclesiastes says that "what has happened once will happen again." But prophecies usually have a two-pronged reference: a partial fulfillment in the prophet's own day, and a fuller one relating to the Messiah, which includes the same elements as the prior fulfillment, but more. Also, Matithyahu (1:23) takes the prophecy as relating to a virgin birth, as it is explicitly stated that Yoseyf did not have relations with Miryam until after Yahshua was born (1:25; cf. Luk. 1:27). He did not take this verse out of context, for the preservation of the royal Davidic line is also Matithyahu's theme. Immanu-El means "El [is] with us". This was meant to comfort the king, and is repeated in 8:10. Avi Ben Mordechai reports that El is a name sometimes correlated with YHWH's attribute of mercy or lovingkindness, and this is the aspect of His nature that He incarnated in Yahshua's first coming. (In contrast, for example, Elohim is a name that emphasizes YHWH's judgment.) Yahshua indeed said that whoever saw Him had seen the Father (Yochanan 14:9), though of course, no one has ever seen the Father Himself. (Yochanan 1:18; 6:46) So the entirety of YHWH was not present when Yahshua walked the earth. Indeed, He drew some clear distinctions between himself and the Father (e.g., Yochanan 14:28), probably to counter the deductions that would one day be made about his deity when the Gospels and Paul were interpreted through Gentile grids. Everything he did perfectly communicated exactly what the Father was like; if the Father Himself were to become visible, no one could have survived the intensity of His presence. So He sent us a Mediator, fleshing out His Word, which is Himself in a way, yet is a separate entity.15. "He will eat butter and honey, so he may learn to know [how] to refuse the evil and choose the good,
Butter and honey: in the context of the House of David (v. 13), it is interesting that some of the foods chosen to strengthen David's people when they were especially weary. (2 Shmuel 17:29) Yahshua, too, would strengthen the House of David, being the only way it is preserved from extinction. See also v. 22.16. "because before the lad knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the ground that you are dreading will be abandoned by both of her kings.
Both of her kings: Aram apparently was considered to own the Land due to a treaty.17. "YHWH will bring upon you and upon your people, as well as upon your father's house, days that have not come since the day that Efrayim departed from Yehudah--[namely] the king of Ashur [Assyria].
18. "Now what will happen in that day [is that] YHWH will whistle for the [stinging] fly that is at the farthest reaches of the rivers of Egypt, and the bee that is in the land of Ashur,
19. "and they will all come and lie down in the steep ravines and in the clefts of the crags, and among all the thornbushes and among all the pastures [with watering places].
YHWH is telling Achaz, "You do not have to worry about stopping these two kings; I already have someone else lined up to deal with them. You just learn from what is going to happen to the House of Israel."20. "In that day, with a razor hired beyond the river--the king of Ashur--YHWH will shave the head and the leg-hair, and it will also sweep away the beard.
Shave the head: normally not allowable, except in the cases of cleansed lepers, Nazirites terminating their period of being set apart by a vow; otherwise, only pagans did so. But it would serve as a sign of the humiliation coming for a people who had disregarded YHWH's Torah. In Hebrew, the term for "legs" is also used for the pilgrimage festivals YHWH prescribed. (E.g., Ex. 23:14) The Talmud explains that the beard is the glory of a male. "Glory" in Hebrew really has the sense of "weightiness", "importance", and thus "authority". So having the beard shaved symbolizes a loss of authority or self-rule, as well as the fact that they were no longer a set apart as a people, and that they were essentially becoming pagans. (Hoshea 7:8 vouches for this.)21. "And what will happen on that day is that a man will preserve a cow and two sheep alive,
On that day: a common idiom that shifts the frame of reference also to the Messianic Kingdom.22. "and because of the abundance of milk they produce, he will eat butter, because butter and honey [is what] all who are left in the midst of the Land will eat.
Left in the midst: who remain in the "inner part" alive after the "opening scene", and who are not among those in the "outer darkness", but are favored by YHWH to inhabit the Land of Israel.23. "And what will happen on that day [is that] every place where there are a thousand vines [worth] a thousand [pieces of] silver will turn into [a place] for briars and thornbushes.
A thousand vines: an allusion back to the parable in chapter 5.24. "He will come there with arrows and the bow, because the whole land will become briars and thornbushes,
I.e., it would be so overgrown that it would become a game-hunting ground.25. "and [as for] all the mountains that will be dug with a hoe, you will not come there for fear of briars and thorns; rather, it will be [a place] to send oxen out to pasture, and for flocks to trample down."
Compare Yahshua's parable of the thorns and weeds that choke out his words. (Mat. 13:22)
Maher-Shalal-Chash-Baz means "Plunder hurries, spoils come quickly". The context continues to be the overthrow of the Northern Kingdom and Aram by Ashur (Assyria).2. So I summoned to myself reliable witnesses, Uriyah the priest and Z'charyah the son of Y'verechyahu.
Uriyah means "YHWH is my light"; Z'charyah, "YHWH has remembered", and Y'verechyahu, "May YHWH bless".3. Then I approached the prophetess, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and YHWH told me, "Declare that his name is Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz,
4. "because before the lad knows how to cry, "My daddy!" or "My mommy!", the strength of Dameseq and the plunder of Shomron will be carried off in front of the king of Ashur."
My daddy...My mommy: Much easier to say in Hebrew than in English ("avi" and "imi"), thus the child would not need to be very old at all. They could very well be his forst words.5. And YHWH continued to tell me still more:
6. "On account of this people despising the waters of Shiloach which proceed gently, and being excited about R'tzin and Remalyahu's son,
7. "therefore, behold, YHWH is bringing up over them the waters of the River, strong and numerous--the king of Assyria, and al his glory! And he will go up over his channels, and proceed over all his banks,
His banks: the proper boundaries of his empire.8. "and he will trespass into Yehudah, and he will overflow and cross over. He will reach all the way to the neck, and when his wings are spread out they will fill the whole breadth of your Land, O Immanuel!"
Your Land: YHWH has deeded it specifically to him (Yahshua), but this also suggests that the immediate reference may be to someone in whose hands the Land would be in the immediate context--perhaps Hizqiyahu, the next king? In his days, the Assyrians did try to capture Yerushalayim. (2 Kings 18:13) Hizqiyahu means "YHWH is my Strength". His wings: compare 18:1.9. Break in pieces, O peoples, then be shattered! And cup your ear, all who are from the far-off parts of the earth. Equip yourselves, then be broken in pieces! Gird yourselves [for war], but you will be shattered!
10. Take counsel and [make your] plan, but it will be frustrated. Speak a word, but it shall not stand, because El is with us--
El is with us: Heb., Immanu-El.11. because this is what YHWH said to me with the strength of the hand, when correcting me from walking in the way of this nation:
12. "Do not say, 'A conspiracy!' for everything that this nation calls a conspiracy. Don't be afraid of what they are afraid of, and don't be terrified.
13. "YHWH of Armies--He is the One to treat as in a separate category. Let Him be the one you respect, and let Him be the One you makes you tremble with awe!
I.e., concentrate on Him, not on what men are doing. These things have to take place, much like the New World Order we see usurping our nations today, since a unified world is prophesied for the last days. He is still in control. The scattering of the Northern Kingdom was from Him (1 Kings 12:24)--part of an "expansion" that started when YHWH separated Chavvah from Adam, and continued through Bavel and Israel's dispersion until the "fullness of time", when Yahshua appeared (Gal. 4:4), and began to "let the rubber band snap back". He initiated the "restoration of all things" (Acts 3:21) by sending his apostles out to start regathering the "lost sheep of the House of Israel". After we have become a cohesive people, we will again be rejoined with Yehudah (Hos. 1:11), and keep continuing back through the repetition of what happened before (Eccles. 3:15; 6:10) in the "contraction" which will culminate in the "birthpangs" of one new Man (Eph. 4:13). History thus goes through a "mirror image" until Eden itself is restored. Paul speaks of seeing Yahshua as in a mirror and becoming like him. (2 Cor. 3:18; cf. 1 Yochanan 3:2) Yaaqov (James 1:23) says that mirror is the Torah, the perfect law of liberty, because Yahshua is the "word made flesh" and thus by reading YHWH's instruction, we see what He looked like and what we really are as well. Adam ("Man" in Hebrew) and Eden itself will be restored. When all is put under Messiah (the "Last Adam")'s feet, we will continue back even to the day when YHWH was "all in all" (1 Cor. 12:6; 15:28; Eph. 1:23). That is what He is doing in our day, and this is where we must put our energy, rather than focusing on the apparent physical threats.14. "And He shall become as a sanctuary, a stone to strike and a rock that causes stumbling for both Houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the one who dwells in Yerushalayim.
Sanctuary: a set-apart place. The teachings inherent in the Temple are the "snare" that YHWH promised to use to regather the Northern Kingdom and recapture our hearts (Y'hezq'el/Ezk. 43). It corresponds with Yahshua, our sanctuary, who is indeed described as "a stumbling-stone" (Luk. 2:34; Rom. 9:33; 1 Kefa/Peter 2:8)15. "And many among them will stumble and fall, and become crippled, entrapped, and captured."
16. Tie up the confirmation; fix a seal on instruction to the ones I have taught,
17. and I will wait for YHWH, who causes His face to be hidden from the House of Yaaqov, and I will watch for Him with eager expectation.
18. Indeed, I and the children YHWH has given me are [to serve] as distinguishing signs and tokens in Israel from YHWH of Armies, who dwells in Mount Tsion.
19. "And since they tell you, 'Consult those who invoke the dead or those who have familiar spirits, who chirp and mutter', shouldn't a nation consult its Elohim, rather than the living praying to the dead?
20. "To instruction and confirmation! If they do not speak in agreement with this, it is because there is no dawning in them!
Instruction: Heb., Torah. This is the way we must weight and test the words of any prophec, and any proper interpretation of the Renewed Covenant will only confirm what it already says. (Mat. 5:17-18; Rom. 3:31) Why look for new revelation, when He has already written His down? What He's told us before is the truth. The main point of any prophecy is to explain the Word that has already been given.21. "And they will pass through it, hard-pressed and hungry. And because they are hungry, what will happen is that he will work himself into a rage, and have contempt on his king and his Elohim, and turn his face upward.
22. "And they shall turn their attention toward the Land, and behold distress and darkness, and gloom from anguish, and they will be thrust into calamity.
Calamity: or "thick darkness", from a word meaning that the sun had set on something. Compare 9:1.23. "Yet the covering of darkness will not be what she had the distress about, like the first time He brought contempt on the land of Z'vulun and the land of Nafthali, as afterwards He will bring honor to the Way of the Sea beyond the Yarden--Galil of the Nations.
I.e., the distress would make things turn out well for those YHWH favored. (cf. Rom. 8:28) All through the epistles to the Thessalonians, Paul speaks of how the events that will come as a surprise to those who are in darkness will only benefit those who belong to the Light. Way of the Sea: a major trade route running from Mesopotamia, through the Yarden Valley, then through the Yezre'el Valley and past Megiddo, across the Karmel range, and down along the coast to Egypt. Galil of the Nations: west of Lake Kinnereth, a hilly region that by Yahshua's time had been under Gentile control, then resettled by both Jews and other Israelites, but had a strong Gentile influence. This makes it abundantly clear that these prophecies are Messianic. Galil, the tribal lands of Z'vulun and Nafthali, would be made very important because that is where Yahshua the Messiah would spend most of his life and public ministry. (Mat. 4:13-17) In some English Bibles this verse is 9:1.
Note all the imagery of the feast of Sukkoth (Booths) in this chapter: great lights, joy, harvest, release from oppression, the birth of Yahshua, and his Kingdom.2. You have greatly increased the nation. No, You have magnified the joy! They have rejoiced before You like the joy of harvest, like the gladness in distributing the plunder,
The joy of YHWH seems to transcend our limitations; growth is not always lateral. When He deepens our capacity, we still grow larger. But it is only so we can hold more of what He wants to pour out to others, like the widow who fed Eliyahu (1 Kings 17).3. because You have shattered the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder, and the scepter of the one who oppresses them [through tyranny], like the day of Midyan,
Day of Midyan: or "a day of strife".4. because every boot of a trampler is in commotion, and a garment is rolled in blood, and it will become fuel to keep a fire burning,
In commotion: or "skaing, quaking, trembling, confused noise". A garment rolled in blood: possibly a reference to the day of Yahshua's execution, when the earth quaked and the Adversary's yoke was thrown off anyone who joins the Second Adam's restored race.5. because a child is born to us! A son is given to us, and the dominion will be on his shoulder! And his name is proclaimed [to be] "Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty Prevailing Judge, Founder of [Eternal] Continuity, Prince of Peace.
Dominion: The position must belong to someone from the tribe of Yehudah and a descendant in particular of David. The word carries the connotation of having fought for it. This may refer to a physical end-time battle and/or Yahshua's having won back the dominion Adam had over the earth before he surrendered it to the taskmaster mentioned above. Yahshua removed haSatan's right to the earth by allowing haSatan to kill him unjustly. HaSatan had a right to kill anyone else, but became a murderer through Yahshua's death, since he had done nothing deserving of death. Shoulder: Heb. sh'chem, the name of the city Levi and Shim'on destroyed, which Yoseyf deeded to Yoseyf and where he is buried (Nablus today). It was also the city where Yahshua met the Samaritan woman at the well, beginning to take his bride from the lost sheep of the House of Israel, just as Moshe and Yaaqov had met their wives at wells. (Yochanan 4) Wonderful: This identifies Yahshua as the Messenger who brought the news of Shimshon (Samson)'s birth (Judges 13:18), since he said his name was "wonderful" (a related form of the word, which means "incomprehensible and hard to understand). Counselor: or advisor, consultant. Prevailing judge: indeed he defeated the Adversary, and the term for prevailing has the connotation of being herroic. The word "judge" is again El. The term ranges from human judges (Ps. 82:6) to angelic beings to YHWH Himself. Thoma recognized that Yahshua was this type of judge (Yochanan 20:28) after he proved his doubting to have been erroneous. As Yoseyf was given Pharaoh's signet ring and was for nearly all intents and purposes treated as if he were Pharaoh himself, this "son" would have a unique association with YHWH, which to some extent is "incomprehensible". He would be YHWH's deputy and representative, having been given all authority (Mat. 28:18) by the One greater than He. Continuity: from a word meaning "to advance onward", and Yahshua was the "founder" of this opportunity for Adam, the restored human race, to continue into eternity rather than be burned up like the garments and boots in v. 4. Peace: Yahshua's Kingdom will be the first time true peace is known on earth, and it will be enforced with a "rod of iron". But the word "shalom" means more--complete soundness, total well-being, security, and prosperity of every type.6. There is no end of the increase of his dominion and of peace, on the throne of David, and over his realm, to set it in order and to sustain it with a legal system and righteousness from now on and forever. Jealousy [for] YHWH of Armies will accomplish this.
Set it in order: build a "skeletal" framework on which righteousness can be fleshed out. We cannot keep the Torah in all its fullness until we have the community of Israel again, under Messiah. Though Yahshua initiated it and made it possible, YHWH cannot ratify the Renewed Covenant with the two houses of Israel (Yirmiyahu/Jer. 31:31) until there is again a House of Israel to cut the covenant with! When there is a throne established, Yahshua can take his rightful place. He is beginning to build this framework again, but we need to trust the leaders He is again setting in place as there were under Moshe. Sustain: or establish, support. Jealousy for YHWH: exemplified well through Pin'chas (Num. 25:7), the Maccabees, and Yahshua (Yochanan 2:15), who single-handedly took on large-scale opposition to YHWH while others stood idly by. This type of heroic choices will again be part of what establishes the coming Kingdom. Notice the connection with armies, as they may be utilized in setting up this Kingdom.7. Adonai sent a word into Yaaqov, and it has come down to Israel,
8. and they will know--all of them: Efrayim and the inhabitant of Shomron, in her arrogance and greatness of heart, saying,
9. "Bricks have fallen, but we will build with cut stones; sycamores are cut down, but we will replace them with cedars!"
In their arrogance, they did not recognize YHWH's punishment, and simply began to rebuild things in their own way, saying they could do even better this time. Cut stones: symbolizing being shaped by men's doctrines--the antithesis of the altars that could not have any human tool applied (Ex. 20:25), but had to be built with stones shaped only by running water, a symbol of YHWH's pure, unadulterated Word. Compare the Tower of Bavel, which also substituted humanly-processed materials for those in their natural form.10. But YHWH has raised up the oppressors of R'tzin against him, and his enemies--
11. Aram in front, Filistines behind--and they devour Israel with the whole mouth.
Israel: In this context, only the Northern Kingdom.12. Despite all this, His anger is not turned back, but His hand is still stretched out, yet the people are not returning to Him who is striking them, and they do not carefully seek out YHWH of Armies.
Despite all this...: This phrase is repeated twice below as a "refrain", showing more clearly how prophets usually sang out their messages. Returning to Him who is striking them: for "whom YHWH loves He disciplines" (Prov. 3:12). Here He seems surprised that they would not come back for more correction; it only shows that they do not wish to be the best they can be. Perhaps the concept of "turning the other cheek" relates to this context of submitting to further sharpening.13. So YHWH will cut off from Israel head and tail, frond and reed [in] one day.
14. An elder or honored one--he is the head, and the prophet who teaches falsehood, he is the tail,
Honored one: literally, "lifted of face".15. and this people's guides will be the ones who lead them astray, and the ones in it who are led along are swallowed up.
16. Therefore, Adonai will not rejoice over its young men, nor will He have compassion on their orphans or widows, for everyone is profane and an evildoer, and every mouth speaks foolishness. Despite all this, His anger is not turned back, but His hand is still stretched out,
Profane: or a hypocrite.17. for wickedness burns like a fire; it devours briars and thornbushes, and it sets the thickets of the forest ablaze, and they shall billow up like a column of smoke.
18. The Land is scorched by YHWH's outburst, and the people will become like the fire's fuel; no man will even spare his brother,
19. and he will cut off on the right hand, yet be hungry; he will eat on the left, yet they will not be satisfied. Each man will eat the flesh of his own arm.
Eat the flesh of his own arm: This may include the practice of transubstantiation, in which some claim to actually eat the body of the one called YHWH's "right arm". Having a distorted view of Him, they are still hungry, and cannibalize the Body they too are a part of, rather than asking YHWH Himself for added sustenance.20. Menashe [devours] Efrayim, and Efrayim, Menashe; together they [will come] against Yehudah. Despite all this, His anger is not turned back, but His hand is still stretched out.
Wearisome things that they have prescribed: Aramaic, "toilsome writs", i.e., "legalese" in which the fine print is burdensome to read and simple justice is encumbered by numerous manipulative clauses. According to Torah, Israel's justice system is not to work that way; YHWH has no fellowship with injustice. (Ps. 58; 94:20) This, more than the pagan worship that was also going on, was the main reason He was about to bring trouble upon Yehudah, as at the Flood of Noach and the destruction of S'dom.2. "to thrust the weak away from a just verdict, and by force take away the rights of the poor of My people, so that widows may be their prey, and they may plunder orphans!
Yahshua also rebuked religious leaders for "plundering widows' houses", when the Torah tells us to afford them special protection, and making up new instructions which placed heavier burdens on people than YHWH intended. (Mat. 23:14)3. "And what will you do for the day of reckoning, and for devastation? It comes from far away! To whom will you escape for help? And where will you abandon your reputation?
4. "Apart from Me, you would have bowed down under the prisoner, and they will fall under the slain. Despite all this, His anger is not turned back, but His hand is still stretched out.
Apart from Me...: The Aramaic targum interprets this as meaning, "Outside your Land, you will..."5. "Woe to Ashur, the rod of My anger, and My rage--it is the staff in their hand!
They were oppressing their own nearest kinsmen, so He sent distant cousins to punish them (for Ashur was the second son of Shem).6. "Against a hypocritical nation will I send him--against the people of My overflowing rage! I will commission him to take the plunder and seize the spoils, and to turn them into a trampling-place like the mud of the streets.
Hypocritical: or profaned, irreligious. He is speaking about Yehudah, who has turned away from YHWH.7. "Yet this is not his intent, nor is this what his heart is counting on, because [what is] in his heart is to annihilate and eliminate not a few nations,
8. "since he says, 'Aren't my chieftains just like kings?
He: Apparently a collective reference to a series of Assyrian kings. nnacheriv, who ruled Ashur from 705-681 B.C.E., attacked Yehudah in 701 B.C.E. (See the story in chapters 36-37) By most chronologies this should be 21 years after Shomron fell to his predecessor Shalmaneser (traditionally 722), but 2 Kings 18 states that Sennacheriv attacked Yehudah only six years after Shomron fell. (See also 2 Chron. 32) Thiele's reckoning of the chronology of kings taking into account that sometimes the same year was counted as the last year of one king's reign and the next king's first allows all the chronologies in Scripture to agree, but might thus place the fall of Shomron as late as 709 B.C.E. This might then push the date of the end of the Northern Kingdom's "not being a people" (a 2,730-year sentence) back to as late as A.D. 2019 rather than 2008. However, this time clock may have started 12 years earlier when the Kingdom first began being exiled by Ashur, rather than the year the capital finally fell.9. "'Isn't Kalno the same as Karchemish? Isn't Chamath the same as Arpad? Isn't Shomron just like Dameseq?
Kalno: Also called Kalneh, it was one of the cities that Nimrod founded (Gen.10:11), but was captured by Assyria during the 8th century B.C.E. Karchemish: the Hittite capital on the Ferath (Euphrates) River, until Assyria overtook it. Chamath: a major Syrian city in the Orontes Valley. Arpad: another major city in Syria. Shomron: Samaria, the capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. I.e., "Aren't they all the same to me?" This boast is also chronicled in 2 Kings 18:29-35. Hizqiyahu had the wisdom to tell the people to simply remain silent in the face of his taunts.10. "'Just as my hand has succeeded in acquiring the dominions of the imaginary gods whose engravings [were greater] than Yerushalayim or Shomron,
He is taking inventory of these cities that have maintained their prestige under subjection to him. Apparently they had remained prosperous, and he thought he was following the most successful method of conquest. Imaginary gods: literally, "nothings", "falsehoods", or "worthless things".11. "'won't I do the same to Yerushalayim and her images as I have done to Shomron and her worthless gods?'
His intention was only to conquer, not to carry out YHWH's justice on Israel and Yehudah, but to add to his own repertoire of victories. Images: "shapes that grieve", "formed shapes", or "copies"; since Israel was not to make images of YHWH, any graven images in Yerushalayim would be copies of those from other nations. Was he mistaken about there being images in Yerushalayim? Or is this an indication that idolatry (even if in the Name of YHWH) had crept in there too? Shomron:12. "So this is what will take place when Adonai will have accomplished all His business on Mount Tsion and Yerushalayim: I will call to account the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Ashur, and [bring the consequences] upon the splendor of his haughty looks,
13. "since he says, 'I have succeeded because of the strength of my hand and my wisdom, because I have the know-how! What's more, I have taken away the borders of nations, and plundered what they had made ready, and subdued their inhabitants like a mighty [man]!
Have the know-how: am intelligent, discerning, savvy. Taken away borders: just what every empire-builder wishes to do to others, adding them to his own territory. We hear the same calls today to unite all the nations of the world into one; the spirit of Bavel still remains.14. "'I have succeeded in acquiring the wealth of nations; I have collected the whole earth just as one collects eggs from an abandoned nest, and there was not one who fluttered a wing or opened the mouth or chirped!'
I.e., "It's been so easy; those other gods did nothing to stop me. They must be on my side! I must be doing something right! Yet remember that sometimes the wicked prosper by their own wickedness; if they are not receiving any correction from YHWH, it must mean He is paying them little attention (Prov. 3:12), having turned them over to their own foolishness. (Rom. 1:21ff) That He does acknowledge it even to this degree is His mercy, which we see in the account of Yonah, for he prophesied to the Assyrian capital, Nin'veh.15. "Shall the axe glorify itself over the one who cuts with it? [As] if a saw should promote itself above the one wielding it, like a rod brandishing itself against those who take it up, as [if in] lifting itself up, the staff [was] no [longer merely a piece of] wood!"
The last phrases in Aramaic read, "When one lifts the rod to strike, the rod does not strike, but he who strikes with it." He's only a tool, but he thinks the power is his. But, as with Pharaoh, YHWH was only using Ashur's innate pride serve His purposes.16. Therefore the Master YHWH of Armies will send scrawniness on His fat ones, and under His heaviness He will kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.
Yahshua said He had a fire to kindle after He underwent the "immersion" of His death. (Luk. 12:49; cf. 3:17) Scrawniness: Where is the Assyrian empire today?17. Then the Light of Israel will come to serve as a fire, and His Holy One as a flame, and it will burn and consume His thornbushes and briers in a single day,
The Light of Israel: YHWH. His Holy One: the Aramaic targum identifies this as His Memra (living Word), i.e., the Messiah.18. and it will finish off the abundance of His forest and His fruitful plantation, both soul and body, and it will be like when a sick person melts away,
Soul and body: or "life and flesh".19. and the trees that remain in His forest will be so [few in] number [that] even a boy can record their [tally].
Apparently there were far more thorns and briars than trees.20. And what will transpire in that Day is that those who remain of Israel and the remnant from the House of Yaaqov who are rescued will never again rely on the one who subjugated it, but rather will truly rely on YHWH, the Holy One of Israel [for support].
21. A remnant will return--the remnant of Yaaqov--to [the] Mighty Prevailing Judge!
A remnant will return: the meaning of the name of Yeshayahu's son, Sh'ar-Yashuv. Mighty Prevailing Judge: El-Gibbor, one of the names of the "child who is born, the Son who is given" (9:5), i.e., Yahshua. He is the one to whom a remnant will return.22. For though yor people Israel should become like the sand of the sea, [only] a remnant of it will return--a conclusion [that is] decreed, overflowing [with] righteousness,
Decisive...righteousness: or "a mutilating annihilation, washing in with right-rulings".23. because Adonai, YHWH of Armies, is bringing about a complete, decisive end within the whole Land.
24. Therefore, thus says Adonai, YHWH of Armies, "O people of Mine, who dwell in Tzion, do not be afraid of Ashur! With the rod he will strike you, and he will lift up his staff against you on the way to Egypt,
Rod and staff: YHWH's instruments of comfort, though they are severe. (Psalm 23) On the way to Egypt: It was due to Hizqiyahu's conspiring with Egypt against Ashur that the letter attacked them both, but the phrase could also mean, "the way Egypt did". Note that the message that they should not be afraid only those in Tsion, and only those who are truly YHWH's people--i.e., those loyal to Him. Many other cities in Yehudah were besieged and conquered by the Assyrians, most notably Lachish, for their sins. (Micha 1:13)25. "yet still in [only] a short while, indignation will come to an end, and My anger [will now be] in regard to their being used."
Or, "My anger in regard to them will be spent." Their: i.e., Israel and Yehudah's being "used up" by Ashur (Assyria).26. Then YHWH of Armies will stir up over him a whip like the wounding scourge of Midyan at the Rock of Orev, and as His rod was over the sea when he lifted it on the way [from] Egypt.
Rock of Orev: where Gid'on slew two Midyanite kings and their armies. (The story is in Judges 7 and 8.)27. And what will transpire on that Day is that his burden will be taken off of your shoulder, and his yoke [taken] off the back of your neck, and the yoke will be twisted [until it breaks] from the presence of [the] oil.
One yoke is traded in for another--an "easy yoke" (Mat. 11:29-30) because it is shared by "another called alongside to help" us, for oil is a symbol of the anointing of the Spirit of Holiness, especially upon Messiah (see 11:2 below). And that Spirit is upon His Body in a special way when we are assembled together.28. He has arrived at Ayath; he has crossed over at Migron, and has entrusted his equipment to Mikhmash!
29. They have crossed the ford! Geva was where they lodged. Ramah is trembling; Giv'ah of Sha'ul has taken flight!
Mikhmash, Geva, Ramah, Giv'ah, and Gallim (v. 30) are just north of Yerushalayim along the border between the Northern and Southern Kingdoms. There is a progression in these towns that depicts the army moving closer and closer to Yerushalayim.30. Let out a shrill scream of distress, O daughter of Gallim! Get their attention in Laish, O afflicted Anathoth!
Anathoth: a town just north of Yerushalayim from which the prophet Yirmiyahu came.31. Madmenah has fled; the inhabitants have taken refuge in the cisterns.
32. He has continued on and today has taken his stand at Nov; he brandishes his hand at the mountain of the daughter of Tsion, the hill of Yerushalayim.
Nov: a town on a hill overlooking Yerushalayim itself. Daughter of Tsion: one of the hills surrounding Yerushalayim, or the villages situated on them.33. Here YHWH of Armies allows the bough to be lopped off with an awful crash, the lofty ones of stature are cut down, and the haughty ones will be brought low!
2 Kings 19 describes how Sennacheriv came up to the walls of Yerushalayim but was kept from attacking the city. Compare the theme of branches being cut off in Judges 9 and Romans 11.34. And with iron He will cut all around the thickets of the forest, and the Levanon will fall by a majestic one!
The Levanon: a then-wooded mountain range north of Israel, snow-capped in winter, hence its name, which means "the very white". The Aramaic targum interprets all these trees to be Ashur's armies. The other biblical accounts refer only to Sennacheriv's coming from Lachish (the last of the cities fortified chiefly to defend Yerushalayim), but the Ascent of Beth-Horon (which passes the towns mentioned in vv. 28-32) would be the only major route by which a huge army could travel from Lachish to Yerushalayim due to the mountainous terrain between them.
Twig: The targum interprets this as "a king", and the "branch" specifically as the Messiah.2. and the Spirit of YHWH will alight upon Him--the spirit of wisdom and discernment, the spirit of counsel and bravery, the spirit of knowledge and the [reverential] fear of YHWH--
The Spirit...will alight upon Him: clearly, visibly fulfilled immediately after Yahshua's immersion by Yochanan. (Mat. 3:16; Mk. 1:10; Luk. 3:22) Seven spirits are mentioned here. (cf. Rev. 1:4; 3:1; 4:5; 5:6) In Hebrew, wisdom means "shrewd" and "able to put the pieces in place"; discernment means understanding and the ability to judge between one thing and another. Counsel means being able to both plan and give advice. Bravery means "strength" and "force". Knowledge means "intimate acquaintance" which leads to "certainty"; Yesh. 5:13 says the lack of this is why His people went into exile, so the way back out will be given through the recovery thereof. As His Body, none of us will have all of these in their completeness, but when we assemble together and all our gifts function as they are meant to, we will have an ample supply of all we need.3. and will make Him breathe in the fear of YHWH, and He will not decide a case by what His eyes see or convict by what His ears hear,
Breathe: from the same word as "spirit", it can also mean to "smell". Rabbinic scholars therefore say the Messiah will not judge by his eyes or ears, but by what He smells. But recall also when Yahshua breathed on the disciples and told them to receive the Spirit of Holiness (Yochanan 20:22), just as YHWH breathed the spirit of life into Adam, since Yahshua was GIVEN the power to have life in Himself like the Father already had. (Yoch. 5:26; compare "MAKE Him breathe" here.) His salient case was the woman taken in adultery (Yoch. 8), but He always spent nights in prayer and listened for His Father's will rather than bowing to the will of the people. (Luk. 4:42, 43; 6:12, 13)4. but He will judge the poor with righteousness, and decide with equity for the oppressed of the earth, and He will strike the earth with the scepter of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He will put the wicked to death.
Yahshua said His judgment was righteous, because He was not seeking His own will, but His Father's. (Yoch. 5:30) He did not entrust Himself to men, because he knew what was in their hearts. (Yoch. 2:23) Equity: from a word meaning "level", "straightforward", and "direct"; i.e., all parties are on a "level playing field" when tried: the rich are not given an unfair advantage, and neither are the poor. (Lev. 19:15) Breath of His lips: or "Spirit of His language". The wicked: the Aramaic interpolates "Romulus", one name for the counterfeit Messiah, the head of the nations that oppose Israel, as borne out in Rev. 19:15, 21.5. And righteousness shall become the innermost band encircling His waist, and trustworthiness the band around His loins.
6. Then the wolf will stay with the lamb, and the leopard will stretch out along with the kids, with the calf and the lion cub and the well-fed cattle all together, and a little lad leads them along.
The United Nations has made this their theme, but they are out of season. Notice it is "THEN"--after the Messiah sets up His Kingdom--that all this will take place. (The Aramaic targum specifies that this refers to "the days of Messiah".) To be specific, the wolf is linked with the tribe of Binyamin (Gen. 49:27), and part of the Temple complex, where lambs are brought for sacrifice, is in Binyamin's tribal land. The leopard is linked with the Kushite in Yirmiyahu (Jer.) 13:23, and Kush (below, v. 11) is one of the places from which YHWH will bring His scattered people back. In the same context, Efrayim is called a "calf" (Yirm. 31:18), and the lion has always been linked to Yehudah (Gen. 49:9; and especially the Messiah, Rev. 5:5). A "little lad" is specifically what David is called (several times in 1 Shmuel 17), and the Messiah is sometimes called David since he is David's son (Y'chezq'el/Ezk. 34:23; 37:25).7. The cow and the bear will [both] graze, and their offspring will stretch out together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox!
Seven animals are mentioned, just like the seven women in ch.4 , and the seven spirits in ch. 10.8. The nursing child will even play over the poisonous snake's den, and the weaned child over the viper's den.
9. They will neither cause injury nor destroy on any [part] of My holy Mountain, because the earth will be full of the knowledge of YHWH, just as the waters cover the sea!
Earth: or "Land". Cause injury: "break" or "do evil". Destroy: or "bring corruption", "ruin", or "pervert". Knowledge: because of Yahshua's rod of iron which does not bend, there will be absolute certainty about what YHWH is like and what he wants.10. And what will take place in that Day [is that] the Root of Yishai that stands as a rallying point for the peoples; to it will nations resort, and His rest will be splendid.
Rallying point: standard, banner, or signal--something very conspicuous. Resort: or seek out diligently. His rest: or resting-place--the Kingdom, of which we get a preview each week in the Sabbath day. Splendid: glorious, full of abundance, dignity, and having the reputation for being important. The Root of Yishai is also called Yishai's branch. (v. 1)11. And what will take place in that Day [is that] YHWH will again extend His hand the second [time] to acquire a remnant of His people that will be left--from Ashur, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Kush, from Eylam, from Shinar, from Chamath, and from the islands of the sea,
12. and He will lift up a signal for the nations, and gather in those driven out of Israel, and assemble the dispersed of Yehudah from the four extremities of the earth.
Signal: or signpost, insignia, banner, standard, rallying point. Gather in: or "collect back". Israel and Yehudah are distinguished. Of the first, the Northern Kingdom, YHWH promised that though He would sift the House of Israel among the nations as with a sieve, not one would be lost. (Amos 9:9)13. Then Efrayim's envy will be removed, and those of Yehudah who cause distress will be cut off; Efrayim will not envy Yehudah, and Yehudah will not cause Efrayim distress.
The targum clarifies that "the House of Efrayim" (not the man Efrayim, the son of Yoseyf) envies Yehu-dah's connection to her roots only while he does not have it; when he is reconnected, there is no reason to envy Yehudah anymore. The term for"cause distress" is a legal one, meaning "to bind". I.e., Yehudah oppresses Efrayim as we try to return, by saying we can only be part of Israel if we abide by their interpretations of how to "walk out" Torah, and by emphasizing the letter apart from its spirit, thus, as Yahshua said, placing an unbearable burden on him. (Mat. 23:4)14. Rather, they will fly on the shoulders of the Filistines toward the sea, and, united, plunder the sons of the east. Edom and Moav are where they stretch out their hand; the sons of Ammon will be their subjects,
Shoulders: or "mountain-slopes". Aramaic, "ally themselves shoulder to shoulder, to strike the Filistines who are in the west" (seaward from Israel). Filistines: means "immigrants" or "sojourners". The ancient Filistine territory had no mountains, but was all coastal plain; Filistines on mountain slopes are the Palestinians of today, by their own title for themselves. And indeed the term "Palestine" was probably an epithet the Romans placed on the Land to erase the memory of Yehudah and "honor" their ancient arch-enemy, the Filistines (though the etymology is now being disputed by serious scholars). "Fly on the shoulders" may mean to chase them to the sea--the very thing they have often threatened to do to Yehudah. Stretch out their hand: possibly"enlarge the borders of their tent" (54:2), since they will "possess the remnant of Edom" (Amos 9:12). Alt. Reading: "the ones to whom they stretch out their hand" as in giving orders, as in the parallel final phrase of this verse.15. and YHWH will completely destroy the tongue of the sea of Egypt, and He will wave His hand over the river with the heat of His breath, and strike it into seven stream beds, and tread it down with the shoes,
The River: usually refers to the Ferath (Euphrates). But since this event is to be even bigger than the original Exodus (Yirmiyahu/Jer. 16:14), and by Jewish tradition there were twelve paths through the Red Sea when Moshe led all of Israel across, this may refer to seven tribes coming across a whole ocean dryshod from the West...16. and there will be a highway for the remnant of His people that will be left from Ashur, just as it was for Israel in the day when he went up from the land of Egypt.
Highway: literally, a raised path. Left from Ashur: or possibly "left behind by Ashur". Steve Collins reports that only a small percentage of the Northern Kingdom were actually taken captive by Ashur; many were already abroad in colonies set up by the Phoenician alliance that included Israel as well as Tzur (Tyre) and Tsidon, and others fled by ship when the Assyrian army was approaching. Others escaped from bondage to Ashur but did not return to the Land (while a few did, some mingling with the Samaritans). But YHWH promises to bring the remnant back, which is why many of us have felt this strong pull back to Torah and the Land of Israel.
The imagery is of a parent comforting his child after punishing him.2. "Behold, El is my deliverance! I will have confidence and not be in dread, because 'YHWH is my strength and my song of Yah's praise, and He has become a deliverance for me.'"
El is: Aramaic, "In the Memra of [El]..." Everything after "because" is a quote from the Song of Moshe (Ex. 15:2) YHWH is my song of Yah's praise: This appears to be telling us to sing His own name back to Him. Become a deliverance: salvation or liberation; Aramaic, "He has spoken by His Memra, and become for me a Savior". How much more clearly could this refer to Yahshua? This is the traditional opening line for the liturgy for Havdallah [distinguishing], the time when the pressures of ordinary life rush back upon one after the Sabbath's respite.3. So you can [all] draw water with rejoicing from the wellsprings of deliverance!
This is a song traditionally sung at Sukkoth (just after harvest) as a prayer for rain for the next growing season.4. And in that Day you will say, "Give thanks to YHWH! Call on His Name! Among the peoples, make His dealings known! Cause it to be remembered that His Name is being set [inaccessibly] on high!
Call on His Name: The name specified just beforehand, not the names of the "bride's old boyfriends", is literally the one we are meant to call on. While He may listen to the ignorant and immature using the only names they have heard, once we know better, we have no excuse. The first of the "Ten Declarations" is "I am YHWH." That in itself should set our tone. Aramaic: "Pray in His Name."5. [Memorialize] YHWH with a musical instrument, because He has accomplished excellent [things]; this is known in the whole earth.
Excellent: in the literal sense--excelling, swelling up majestically, rising or growing like a column of smoke. Aramaic, "He does prodigious things."6. Squeal and let your shout ring out, O inhabitant of Tsion, because the Holy One of Israel is magnified in your innermost part!
Aramaic, "the great one has promised to rest His Sh'khinah in your midst, the Holy One of Israel".
Oracle: or burden; "that which is lifted up". The Aramaic targum adds "of a cup of cursing". Bavel: Babylon. Perceived: the term specifically pertains to his role as a seer.2. "Lift up a banner on a barren mountain! Make the voice grow louder for them! Wave a hand, that they may enter the doorways of the nobles.
Banner: in the rabbinical view, always a reference to the Messiah. Barren: or "wind-swept", "cleared off"--i.e., one from which a clear signal can be sent with nothing obstructing the view. But "mountain" often signals a reference to the Temple, and if its mountain is barren, it means the Muslim shrines the t now occupy it are gone. Voice: or the sound of a shofar. Wave a hand: i.e., get their attention! But the Messiah is also often called YHWH's "right hand". So all of this imagery points to Messiah's involvement in Babylon's fall.3. "I have given orders to My holy ones; I have also commissioned My valiant ones to [carry out] My anger--those who rejoice in My triumph.
Holy ones: or in this case, poerhaps, "special forces", set apart to a particular task. Valiant ones: LXX, "giants". The same thing that happened to Bavel that happened to Ashur, its predecessor. (Chapter 10) Like Pharaoh also, YHWH punishes an oppressor for carrying out His judgment because they enjoyed it. So YHWH's warriors will rejoice at Bavel's fall. "Rejoice" here more specifically means "jump for joy."4. "The sound of a commotion in the mountains, as of a multitude of people! The noise of an uproar of kingdoms of Gentiles assembled together! YHWH of Armies is mustering an army for the battle.
5. "YHWH and His instruments of wrath are coming from a distant Land on the horizon, to bring ruin to the whole Land.
Horizon: literally, end of the heavens. Ruin: or twisting destruction,or being tied up.6. "Wail, for the Day of YHWH is near! It will come as devastation from Shaddai.
Devastation: havoc or violent destruction. Shaddai is the name of YHWH in His nurturing aspect, since the word is rooted in "breast". So here He is like a mother bear attacking those who threaten her cubs.7. "Therefore, all hands will go slack, and every mortal man's heart will faint,
8. "and they have panicked; cramps and pangs will take hold of them. They will writhe like a woman in labor. Each will be astounded at his fellow; their faces [will be] a sight for [their] glittering!
Astounded: as confusion was brought on Bavel once before (Gen. 10), He will do so again. Glittering: LXX, "will change their countenances as a flame". Like a woman in labor: but they will not truly be a woman in labor. They "give birth only to wind" (or spirit, without substance, 26:18). The unified entity that Babyblon has always tried to build ends up being only an image of One New Man, haSatan's counterfeit, an idol which only seems real. 2 Kefa (Peter) chapter 2 details ways in which this system infiltrated YHWH's congregations through false prophets who were only out for material gain, entangling again those who had escaped its grip once before. Tsion gives birth to the real new Man. (66:7-8)9. "Indeed, the Day of YHWH, fierce and furious, and with burning nostril, to transform the Land into an appalling wasteland, and to annihilate the sinners [that are] in it,
An appalling wasteland: as in Mark Twain's 19th-century description of the Huley Valley in which "not even a chicken could scratch out a living". But the main reference point seems to be still to come.10. "because the stars of the sky and their constellations will not shine their light. The sun has been darkened, and the moon will not shine its light,
Constellations: or more specifically, Orion.11. "and I will bring punishment on the evil order, and visit the perversity of the guilty upon them, and I will put an end to the arrogance of the insolent, and bring down the swelling [pride] of tyrants!
Bring punishment on the evil order: or "visit the civilized world with trouble". Though it is not our assignment at present, as more people recognize that they are really Israelites, we will begin to bring this impact upon the Babylonian system by keeping the Sabbath (doing no commerce on that day) and abstaining from Christmas purchases, for both of these are what prop the economy up and keep it running.12. "I will make a mortal man more rare than refined gold, and humanity than the marked gold wedges of Ofir.
Aramaic, "I will love those who fear Me more than the gold in which the sons of men glory."13. "Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth will move out of its [proper] place during the enraged outburst of YHWH of Armies and on the day of His fierce anger.
Shake: or unsettle, perturb, disturb; LXX: "enrage". Move out of its place: LXX, "be shaken from its foundation". On the literal level, it appears there will be a change in the orbit of the earth--perhaps back to the 360-day years that existed prior to 701 B.C. (only a few years after this prophecy was given). Patten, Hatch, and Steinhauer trace it to a near passby of Mars, whose orbit used to cross earth's until the close encounter threw both into their current paths. On a deeper level, this verse is alluded to in Heb. 12:26-27, where it speaks of spiritual principles that hold men in bondage. We are seeing the beginning of this now as some of the doctrines held precious by Christianity are proving not to stand up to proper biblical interpretation.14. "Then it will become like a gazelle that is being hunted, and like a sheep that no one gathers up, every man will turn to face his people, and each will tak eflight to his [own] land.
15. "Everyone who is discovered will be shot, and everyone who is caught will fall by the sword.
Shot: or wounded by somehow being pierced through or run through.16. "Their nursing babies will be dashed to pieces before their [very] eyes, their houses plundered, and their wives raped.
17. "Indeed, I am stirring up Madai against them, who will not place any value on silver, and [as for] gold, they will have no interest in it.
Madai: the Medes, who took Babylon on the same night King Belshazzar had seen the "handwriting on the wall". (Daniel 5) Silver...gold: i.e., they will not accept these as a ransom.18. "But bows will dash young lads to pieces; they will not have pity on the fruit of the womb, nor spare children.
This has never yet happened, because the city was taken without a battle; the king and a few key rulers were killed, but most inhabitants of Babylon were unaware the next day that anything had taken place. It went as smoothly as any coup d'etat. So this prophecy remains to be fulfilled. Revelation 18 speaks of a larger "Babylon"--the system that had its origin in Bavel under Nimrod, but has spread into a whole "world order" (the "evil order" spoken of in v. 11, which now encompasses the entire civilized world through paganism, commerce, politics, and financial dependencies foisted upon the masses.)19. "And Bavel, the prominent one among kingdoms, the splendor of the majesty of the Khasdim, has become like Elohim's overthrow of S'dom and Amorrah:
Splendor of the majesty: Aram., "boast of the pride". Khasdim: Chaldeans (Mesopotamians).20. "It will endure, uninhabited; from generation to generation, no one will reside in it. Not even the Arabian will pitch a tent there, nor will shepherds [build a fold for] sheep to lie down there.
If it were not for the last portion of this verse, one might think that this prophecy had already been fulfilled, if the only analogy between S'dom and Bavel were that it would be uninhabited. But Saddam Hussein started rebuilding it and, even if it is not dwelt in as such, it is again becoming a focus of some attention, and it appears that one day it will become quite the hub of activity again, and a future, more complete destruction awaits it. (Yirmiyahu 50-51; Zech. 5:7ff)21. "Rather, the yelping wild beasts of the desert shall lie down there, and their houses will be full of wailing creatures; daughters of the owl shall settle there, and there hairy goats will skip about.
Hairy goats will skip about: Aramaic, "demons will play". Revelation 18 upholds this interpretation, saying that after Babylon's fall it will become a "abode of demons and the prison of every unclean spirit". (v. 2) I.e., the only thing that remains in the Babylonian system will be demons and the selfish (which ritual impurity depicts). That chapter warns us strongly to come out of that system (when it is time, and not let it rule our decisions while we still need to live within it), lest we inadvertantly become participants in the judgments that must come upon it for all its robberies and harlotries. All nations are participants, but the description in Revelation seems to clearly include the overt institutional church because of its many compromises with this system. "Hairy goat" is the meaning also of the mountains of Seir, which Esau inherited, and Edom (Esau's other name) is often identified with the church in many rabbinic writings.22. "Jackals will reply from their desolate houses, and dragons in their dainty palaces. Now her time is drawing near, and her days will not be postponed,
Jackals: or "wild island-beasts". All these terms and those in v. 21 can also refer to different types of demons in Hebrew. This is the most likely interpretation, in light of Zech. 5:5-11, where "Wickedness" personified is sent back to Shinar (where Bavel is) and a house is built for her there. Desolate houses: the same term in Hebrew as "widows". Postponed: or "drawn out", "deferred", "prolonged". I.e., it will be right on time, and we cannot fend it off with excuses.
Yahshua saw the multitudes and had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd (Mk. 6:34, an allusion to Y'hezq'el/Ezk. 34). Choose: The term connotes approving her after testing her by fire, and also delighting in her and preferring her over all else. Yet: or "again"--after treating her as less than significant, less than a nation, He will again turn special attention to her and focus especially on her. We are seeing this begin to take place. House of Yaaqov: the physical, natural side of the patriarch, as opposed to the spiritual, hence the more readily identifiable of the two kingdoms, Yehudah, in contrast to Israel, though the Aramaic substitutes "Israel" here (a common rabbinical tradition).2. "And the peoples will fetch them and bring them to their own place, and the House of Israel will themselves take possession of them on YHWH's soil as servants and handmaids; thus they will take their captors captive, and dominate their oppressors.
Servants: in Israel, servants have the full right of a member of a household, except for authority. I.e., they will be better off as slaves in Israel than freemen elsewhere, except that they will have no right to make rulings within Israel.3. "And it will come about on the day when YHWH gives you rest from your sorrow and your disquiet and the hard labor that was forced on you,
Sorrow: can also mean pain, or even an idol; YHWH will provide relief from these as well.4. "that you will take up this proverbial saying against the king of Bavel, saying, 'How the tyrant has come to an end, and the gold-gatherer ceased!'
Tyrant: LXX, "extortioner". Ceased: literally, "has taken a sabbath".5. "YHWH has shattered the staff of the wicked, and the scepter of dominators!
6. "The one who attacked the peoples with arrogance, with relentless blows--the one who subjugated the nations with anger--is being pursued, and there is no one to hold them back.
7. "The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they burst forth into resounding song!
Once the wars cease and we realize that the Kingdom is fully upon us, how can we help but break out into singing? YHWH loves such contrasts in our worship as quietness and exuberance.8. "The cypress trees and the cedars of Levanon rejoice over you: 'Since you have relaxed, no one will come up to cut us down!'
9. "The underworld from below is excited to welcome you at your arrival; for you it awakens those who have sunk down [into it]--all the rams of earth. It has caused all the kings of the nations to rise up from their thrones.
10. "They all testify and tell you, 'You too are made as weak as we are! You have become just like us!'
11. "'Your pomp has been brought down to the grave, along with the clamor of your musical instruments. The maggots make a bed under you, and the worms cover you!'
Maggots also appear in Scripture when enough manna was gathered for two days, but not on the day before the Sabbath. Those who did this were not trusting YHWH for daily bread, so they tried to forge their own security. Bavel, too, tried to do things their own way and in their own timing, so they receive the same curse.12. "How you have fallen from the heavens, O bright star, son of the dawn! You are chopped down to the ground, O disabler of nations!
O bright star: or, "Howl!" (Another root word can take the same form.) Aram., "shining star among the stars". It was translated "Lucifer" in Latin, and indeed this calumny of the king of Babylon can (like the king of Tsur/Tyre in Y'hezq'el 28) be carried further and seen as representing the arch-Adversary (haSatan). When we compare all the jewels that grace haSatan there with those on the New Yerushalayim that comes down from heaven (Rev. 21:19-20), it becomes clear that haSatan was once in the position of YHWH's bride. The word for "shining star" in Hebrew is Heylel, which is related to Hallel (brighten up, praise, and celebrate), so on a deeper level, when we say "HalleluYah", it can be broken down into "Hallel and Yah"--a wedding announcement. The infamous pride of Nevuchadnezzar (Dan. 4) is a microcosm of the pride--the downfall--of the former "anointed covering cheruv". So it is easy to see why the human race--and especially those of us who are in Messiah, and thus part of YHWH's new bride--are so hated by haSatan. Yahshua, too, is called the "bright and morning star" (Rev. 22:16). O disabler of nations: or "lying prostrate over nations".13. "And now you have said in your heart, 'I will supercede the heavens! Higher than the stars of El will I raise my throne, and I will sit on the Mount of the Appointment in the far reaches of the north!
The heavens: sometimes an idiom for YHWH Himself. Higher than the stars of El: The meaning the builders of Bavel probably intended by their name was "Gate of El". Their tower was intended to reach the heavens, and they never lost that idea. Mount of Appointment: HaSatan co-opted worship of many of YHWH's people by replacing His holidays with different ones that glorify "her". North: or "hidden place". HaSatan gains worship through the pagan holidays by hiding within them and controlling them from behind the scene.14. "'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be comparable to the Most High!'
This is the prospect haSatan in turn used to tempt Chavvah (Eve). But the Hebrew word for Most High is Elyon. YHWH promised Israel that if we would be obedient, He would make us "elyon" of the nations (Deut. 28:1) --i.e., not just LIKE Elyon, but actually "elyon". As His promise to make a name for Avram followed right after Bavel's attempt to make a name for themselves, His gifts are always superior to what we try to take from Him for ourselves. Similarly, we often heard the church called "spiritual Israel", but it only held many Israelites captive through looking LIKE Israel, or provided a temporary holding pattern until the time could come back around for Israel to be itself--a nation in covenant with YHWH--again.15. "Oh, really? Actually, you will be brought down to the underworld [instead]--to the extremities of the pit!
Underworld: Heb., She'ol. Aramaic, "pit of the place of perdition".16. "The ones who see you will gaze at you [in wonderment, trying] to figure out how this could be the man who disquieted the earth and made kingdoms shudder,
17. "who made the civilized world into uninhabited pastureland, tore down its cities, and did not open the house of his prisoners.
18. "All kings among the nations lie down in honor--every one of them--each in his own house,
19. "but you are flung from your grave like a detested weed, like the garments of those who are slain by being pierced with a sword, who go down into the stones of the pit, like a trampled corpse.
A detested weed: Aramaic, "a hidden miscarriage".20. "You will not be united with them in burial, because you have corrupted your land and murdered your own people! The descendants of evildoers will never be renowned!
Not be united: LXX, "As a garment defiled in blood cannot be clean, so neither shall you be pure." Renowned: or even "named". This wicked ruler's children would not even deserve the dignity of a decent burial. Descendants: literally "seed". Recall that, as He said He would have eternal enmity against Amaleq (Ex. 17:14-16), YHWH declared war from the start between the Seed of the Woman and the seed of the serpent. (Gen. 3:15) This gives us a clue as to what land He is talking about. As there is a "holy seed" carried on through many generations (6:13),there are lineages that YHWH wants blotted out forever. (E.g., Deut. 25:19)21. "'Make the slaughtering-place ready for his sons; in the guilt of their fathers, do not let them come on the scene and inherit the land or fill the face of the habitable territory with enemies!
22. "'Then I will rise up against them', declares YHWH of Armies, 'and cause the name and [any] remnant of progeny or posterity for Bavel to be cut off,' declares YHWH [by His prophet].
23. "'I will appoint it to be the inheritance of the hedgehog and watery marshes, and I will sweep it with the broom of annihilation,' declares YHWH of Armies.
24. "YHWH of Armies has taken an oath, saying, 'If it isn't [the case that] it indeed turns out just like the comparison I have made...! Now as I have planned, so will it be established
25. "'to break Ashur in My Land and on My mountains. I will trample it, then its yoke will have been removed from being upon them, and his load taken off their shoulders.'
Now the focus shifts from Bavel back to Ashur (Assyria), the nation that exiled the northern Kingdom (the ones YHWH said He would set back on His mountains, Yirm./ Jer. 31:5; Y'hezq'el/Ezk. 34:14), just as Bavel exiled the southern. But Bavel took over the Assyrian Empire, and thus probably left the Assyrian borders intact. Thus in overthrowing Bavel, He also overthrew Ashur's right to the Land. As for Ashur being destroyed on the mountains of Israel, compare what He will do to the men of Mt. Seir (the "hairy goat") inY'hezq'el 35 and Gog and Magog in Y'hezq'el 38-39.26. "This is the plan that has become firm the whole world over, and this is the hand that is extended over all the nations,
27. "because YHWH of Armies has planned it, and who can thwart [it]? His
hand is extended, and who can turn it back?"
28. This oracle came in the year of King Achaz's death:
This was the third year of Hoshea, the last king of the Northern Kingdom, about four years before the Assyrians began their final siege of the city of Shomron (its capital). Achaz's son Hizqiyahu, who is held up as a paradigm of what a good king should be (2 Kings 18:5), succeeded him to the throne.29. "O Pleshet, all of you, do not be glad over the breaking of the rod that struck you, because from the serpent's root will come forth a poisonous viper, and its fruit a fiery flying serpent!
Pleshet: Filistia, later known as Palestine. Though Ashur will fall, Babylon will arise, and after it the Medes and Persians, the Greeks, and Rome! They become harsher and more cruel; the metals in Nevuchadnezzar's image progress from superior to inferior. The Aramaic identifies the serpent as Yishai (Jesse) and the poisonous viper as the Messiah--for such He will be to the wicked. In that case, a "fiery flying serpent" might relate to Yahshua's likening Himself to the "fiery serpent" that was lifted up on a pole so that those who looked to it might be healed from the bites of the other "fiery serpents". (Num. 21)30. "While the firstborn of the poor graze [in the pasture], and the needy stretch out in safety, I will kill your root with famine, and it will kill off what is left of you.
Poor: or thin, frail. Needy: Aramaic adds "in his [i.e., Messiah's] days". You: i.e., Pleshet (perhaps the Palestinians).31. "Wail, O gate! Cry out, O city! You are dissolved, Pleshet--all of you! Because out of the north comes smoke, and there is no straggler in his ranks.
Wail: very similar to the word for "shining star" in v. 12.32. "What, then, shall the nation's messenger say in reply? That YHWH has made Tsion's foundation firm, and the afflicted of His people will find refuge in it."
Aramaic, "What will the messengers of the Gentiles announce as good news?" Indeed, when those who were scattered among the Gentiles and became Gentiles for a time, truly understand the Good News of the Kingdom, this is exactly what we will anounce. Make Tsion's foundation firm: Yirm. (Jer.) 33:2-18 gives many more details abnout how He will do this. Afflicted: or poor. Compare Bavel's penchant for commerce and exploitation with YHWH's invitation to come drink the water of life without cost. (55:1; Rev. 21:6.
2. "The household--Dibon, that is--goes up to the cultic platforms to weep; Moav shall wail over Nevo and over Meydeva. On all their heads [there is] baldness, and every beard is shaved off.
Dibon means "pining away", but also a city in the region of Moav (east of the Dead Sea). Nevo: the mountain where Moshe died after seeing the Promised Land. Meydeva: a major town near Mt. Nevo. Parallel passages are in Amos 2:1-3 and Yirmiyahu (Jer.) 48:36ff, where we see that having the hair and beard removed are symbols of the loss of wealth and wisdom (or loss of authority by being taken captive).3. "In its streets they will put on burlap; on its rooftops and in its open plazas everyone will wail, sinking down with tears.
Burlap: or "sack-cloth", a traditional symbol of deep mourning.4. "Heshbon and El'aleh cry out; their voice is heard as far as Yahatz! So Moav's armed warriors will give a cry of alarm; his life will be displeasing to him.
Heshbon is a largely-unexcavated tel today, but then was the capital of Moav and near its northern border; El'aleh is nearby. Yahatz: Close to 15 miles away.5. "My heart will cry out for Moav! Its fugitives get as far as Tsoar. A three-year-old heifer, because on the incline of Luhith they will go up weeping, because on the way to Horonayim they will raise an outcry of destruction,
Tsoar: the town to which Moav's parents, Lot and his daughter, fled when S'dom was being overthrown. It means "insignificance". Aramaic, "In their heart the Moavites hope to flee to Tsoar." Horonayim: "the twin caves".6. "because the pure waters will become appalling, because the herb is drying up, the vegetation is exhausted, and there will not be any greenery.
7. "Therefore, they have acquired the abundance, and what they had stored up, and will carry it over the willow brook,
8. "because the outcry has gone completely around the territory of Moav, its wailing as far as the two reservoirs, its howling to the Well of the Mighty Ones.
9. "For Dimon's waters are full of blood. Yet I will appoint even more [to come] upon Dimon: a lion for the Moavites who escape, and for what is left of the tillable soil."
All of these locations are in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan today.
Spread out a pasture: or, "Send a lamb", possibly a reference to the Messiah, for reasons that will become clearer below. At one time the king of Moav did send a tribute of rams to Israel. (2 Kings 3:4) Sela: the Hebrew name for the Edomite-Nabatean city of Petra. Both names mean "large rock", and indeed this "rose-red city half as old as time" as 19th-century poet John William Burgon described it, has its buildings and tombs carved right out of the sheer rock walls. Mountain of the Daughter of Tsion: perhaps not a suburb of Yerushalayim, but Mt. Sinai near Midyan, which is south of Petra in Saudi Arabia.2. "because what will take place is that at the fords of Arnon, the daughters of Moav will become like a fluttering bird that is pushed out of the nest.
Fords of Arnon: In the region of Moav, the Arnon river forms a canyon that resembles the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River. In the past it effectively formed a natural border between Moav and the Emorite territory. Even today there is only one bridge across it on the King's Highway. The scenario seems to be one of their seeing the Counterfeit Messiah's armies massed on the other edge of the sharp escarpment and having to either surrender Israel's refugees to them or depend on YHWH to rescue them as a mother eagle does when teaching its young to fly.3. "Gather for deliberation; make your decision. Make your shadow like night in the middle of the noonday. Carefully conceal those who have been banished; do not reveal [the hiding place] of the fugitive!
Decision: or assessment. This is reminiscent of Yahshua's parable about the king counting the cost of whether he can afford to do battle against an enemy with a large army. (Lk. 14:31) Moav is up against total destruction if they do not follow this advice to provide a refuge for those who are coming. But the only option YHWH seems to give is to do it willingly and be blessed, or have Him shelter them in their land and pay the price for their refusal.4. "My outcasts will dwell temporarily among you, Moav; become a [secret] shelter for them from the face of the [violent] despoiler, because the one who is pressing [them] has reached his limit; the wreaker of havoc is finished; the trampler has already [come] out from the Land.
Dwell temporarily: As a "pasture" (v. 1), Sela (Petra) is well-defended and may be the sheepfold-fortress referred to in 34:6; 63:1. (Heb., "Botzrah", also the name of a city not far north of Petra) Its only entrance is a narrow, mile-long passageway between high cliffs. It could harbor well over a million people. The desert area between there and Mt. Sinai could harbor mant more. This is probably the same incident referred to in Revelation 12 when Israel (or at least Yehudah) is given a place to flee in the wilderness, probably after the Abomination that Makes Desolate is set up in the rebuilt Temple. (Mk. 13:14) But the Hebrew term for "outcasts" (or refugees) here is used in Deut. 30:1-5 to denote any from Israel who have left YHWH's covenant and are being punished by being dispersed to every part of the world, hence the Northern Kingdom as well. (compare Neh. 1:8ff). In 2 Shmuel 14:13 YHWH says He will devise a way for the outcasts to be restored, and Yahshua is just that. Indeed, He devised ways to make the fufillment of Messianic prophecies appear less likely, so that when He brought it about nonetheless, His glory would be all the greater. One who is pressing them: The one place the Counterfeit Messiah will NOT have jurisdiction is the land of Jordan (the territory of Moav, Edom, and Ammon), though he enters the "beautiful, honored Land" of Israel. (Dan. 11:41) Thus this would be the ideal place for Israel to flee, being "next-door neighbors" who, at present, have a true peace treaty with Israel, unlike all other Arab neighbors. Reached his limit: perhaps being held off at the "grand canyon" of the Arnon River. (v. 2) Is finished: the Counterfeit Man's days are numbered, one more encouragement YHWH gives to nudge Moav toward the right decision of whom to side with.5. "But in mercy the throne has been established, and He will remain on it with stability in the Tent of David, executing judgment, investigating a case, then bringing justice promptly.
Perhaps this "sheepfold" is the gathering place where both houses of Israel together will have "David", the one shepherd, set over them (Hos. 1:11 or 2:2 in Heb.; Y'chezq'el/Ezek. 34:23; 37:24; Yochanan 10:16). After this, perhaps He, the antitype of the first Y'hoshua, will follow in Y'hoshua's footsteps from Mt. Sinai to Yerushalayim, minus the years of wandering in the wilderness.6. "We have heard of Moav's majesty (he is very proud), his haughtiness, his pomp, and his excessiveness, but this is not how his stragglers will be.
Stragglers: or lies. Apparently Moav reluctantly agreed to shelter the refugees after all, but then mocked them like the Filistines who asked David, "Why can't your Elohim protect you in your own Land? Why do you need to seek refuge from our gods?" So they will pay the price anyway.7. "Therefore Moav will wail for Moav; every one of them will howl. You will groan for the ruins of Qir-Chareseth; indeed, they will be broken down.
Qir-Chareseth means "wall of earthenware".8. "For the fields of Cheshbon have drooped, and [as for] the vine of Sibmah, the lords of the nations have beaten down their mother-vines. They have reached all the way to Ya'azer, and wander throughout the wilderness. Her shoots have been left fallow; they have reached the other side of the sea!
Sibmah: a region of Moav whose name means "fragrant". Mother-vines: the choicest, from which offshoots are taken to plant elsewhere. Ya'azer: a levitical city in Gil'ad, far north of Moav's northern border. Sea: here, the Dead Sea, which forms part of the western border of Moav (Jordan now as well).9. "Therefore I will mourn the vine of Sibmah with the wailing of Ya'azer; I will drench you with my tears, O Cheshbon and El'ale, because the cheering for your summer fruits and your harvest has fallen [silent].
10. "Moreover, gladness and rejoicing are gathered up out of the [fruitful] plantation; there will be no song ringing out or shouting [heard] in the vineyards. The treaders will tread out no wine in their wine-presses. I have put an end to their cheering.
Cheering: particularly used in Scripture of those treading out wine and of a battle cry. Compare 63:2, 3.11. "Therefore My internal organs will be stirred up like a harp for Moav, and My inward emotions for Qir-Chares[eth].
12. "But what will happen when it is seen that Moav has wearied himself on the worship-platform, that he will enter into his sanctuary to pray, but he will not prevail.
Not prevail: or "not be able to".13. "This is the word that YHWH has been speaking to Moav for some time,
14. "but now YHWH has spoken, saying, 'In three years, as a hired laborer [counts] years, the splendor of Moav, with all its great abundance will be despised, since what is left will be a trifling few and powerless.'"
As a hired laborer counts years: i.e., not one day longer than three years, since that is all he is paid for. Of course, the one who hired them would not let them work a day less than three years. Thus this means exactly three years. That was the exact length of time the Temple altar remained in its desecrated state in the days of the Maccabees, as recounted at Hanukkah.
Dameseq (Damascus) is still the capital of Syria in our own day. So it is still here, and with the issue of the Golan Heights and Syria's support for Hizbullah terrorists, it is only adding to the reasons for the judgment described here. There is a word-play here: "From being a city" is me'ir in Hebrew, and "heap" is me'i. Compare Amos 1:3-5; Micha 1:6ff.2. "[The] cities of Aroer are abandoned; they will be [a place] for flocks. They will stretch themselves out, and there will be nothing to make them afraid.
Cities of Aroer: or "ruined cities". Several towns in the region bore this name, one in Moav and one in Yehudah, but in this case the most likely candidate was in the territory of the Ammonites (and later Gad), near the Yabboq River, east of the Yarden, as it is the closest of the three to Dameseq. Nothing to make them afraid: compare Micha 4:4.3. "There will also cease to be blockaded cities in Efrayim when the sovereignty of Dameseq and the remnant of Aram [comes to an end]; they will become comparable in splendor to the descendants of Israel", declares YHWH of Armies.
4. "And in that day what will take place is that the importance of Yaaqov will be lowered, and the robustness of his flesh will be rendered lean,
5. "and it will be like when the reaper of a harvest of grain harvests the ears with his arm, and it will be like the one who gathers up the heads of grain in the valley of Refayim,
Refayim: a region of Bashan that means "healing" or "invigorating", but it was also the name of a race of giants.6. "but the gleanings left in it will be like when one goes around an olive tree [and there are] two [or] three olives on the top of the uppermost branches, four [or] five on the most fruitful boughs", declares YHWH, Elohim of Israel.
7. "In that Day, mankind shall have regard for his Maker, and his eyes will look to the Holy One of Israel,
Mankind: literally, "the Adam", i.e., the "one new man" that bears the restored image of Elohim.8. "and he will not have regard for the altars, the craftsmanship of his [own] hands, nor will he look to what his fingers have made--that is, the asherim and sun-pillars.
Asherim: a grammatically improbable word in Hebrew. It is the masculine plural form of a word that is feminine in the singular (asherah, a fertility goddess). It thus signifies a male consort of this goddess, or a husband (Ba'al) for her, and hence an overtly sexual emphasis in its worship. The form it usually took was being a base so that the trees cut from the forest for this purpose could be stood upright again. This has its modern counterpart in the Christmas tree. In this light, it is especially significant that YHWH forbade any trees to be near His sanctuary. (Deut. 16:21) Sun-pillars: from a word for "heat", and this probably connected with these fornicatory rituals.9. "In that day his fortress cities will be like an abandoned forest, an uppermost branch that they have left [unharvested]; it will become a wasteland.
Forest: or bough, possibly relating to the imagery in v. 6.10. "Because you have forgotten the Elohim of your deliverance, and you did not call to mind the Rock of your strength, you will therefore plant pleasing pleasant plants, but sow it with foreign shoots.
Pleasing plants... foreign shoots: This may be the phrase on which Yahshua based His parable of the wheat and tares. (Mat. 13:25ff)11. "In the day in which you plant it, you carefully build a fence around it, and on the [next] morning you cause the bud to sprout. [But] what is harvested [will be] a heap in a day of sickness and incurable pain.
12. "Alas to the crowd of great nations, who make a commotion like the roaring of the seas, and who make a din like the rumbling of [the confluence of] many [powerful] waters!
18:1 shows that the context is the "birth pangs of the Messiah", so here Babylon is linked with not just the "motherland" of Bavel, but all the nations that have "been made drunk with the wine of her fornications"--i.e., the whole world system that unifies in opposition to YHWH when He has declared that His Anointed One is now to reign on the earth.13. "The [gathering] nations will rumble in like the rushing of abundant waters, but He has rebuked them, and they have fled far away, and have been chased before the wind like the chaff of the mountains, and like a tumbleweed before a windstorm.
Tumbleweed: or anything that rolls, or perhaps simply whirling dust.14. "Then indeed, toward eveningtime, calamity [comes]! Before morning arrives, there is nothing [left] of them! This is the portion of those who plunder us, and the lot of those who pillage us."
River of Kush: Nimrod was Kush's son, and he inhabited Shinar and founded Bavel. (Gen. 10:8ff) But it may be Africa that is referred to, as the remainder of Kush's descendants settled there.2. "that sends ambassadors by sea and in vessels of papyrus-reed upon the surface of the waters. Go, fleet [footed] messengers, to a nation tall and smooth, to a people who inspire dread, from [its inception] onward--a subjugating nation, measured out [with a cord], a land whose rivers have bisected it!
Ambassadors: the word can also mean "hinge" or "door pivot" (as a harbinger of a coming transition to something new), as well as "pangs" or distress". But its root word means "to cramp". So this cramping by a massive gathering of enemies, the minions of the Counterfeit Messiah, will be what YHWH uses to push the true New Man through the birth canal and bring about the Kingdom. But since the woe is to this place and he shifts the focus to another nation, it may be indicating that "cramped people" were sent by sea, which immediately reminds us of slave ships. Fleet-footed: or lightweight; i.e., swift. "Tall" here can also mean "postponed" or "deferred". Bavel's destruction was deferred until long after the city itself ceased to be anything significant, but its influence had to last until the end of days so that the battle between the only two actual ways of life (civilization based on rebellion against YHWH and the worldview of Israel) could come to its final head and the false system be completely obliterated. But it can also mean "scattered"; a scattered people whose kingdom is "set aside" until later would be Israel. Measured out: a reduplicated form of the word for "cord". Thus it may symbolize two cords. North America holds a proportionately high percentage of those scattered from the Northern Kingdom; indeed it seems to be a special gathering place for these three elements of Israel: those enslaved and brought here on "cramped" slave ships, the "tall and smooth" native Americans who had settled here earlier (some colonizing this land as early as King Shlomo's day), and finally those Europeans who indeed became mighty very early in the nation's history. This may be the "appointed" place to which many of YHWH's people would come for safety from oppression (cf. 2 Shmuel 10:7), yet which is not their final settling place (1 Chron. 17:9). The second cord is Yahshua. This nation was actually founded so that these oppressed ones could worship as they felt YHWH's word mandated. So Yahshua has always been a strong element of our national identity, though he was not known in His Hebraic context. Yet only "a threefold cord is not easily broken" (Eccles. 4:12) While there is a large percentage of Yehudah in North America as well, they know their identity yet have not embraced the open door to return to the Land YHWH gave to all Israel. The third cord that will lend this highest level of stability is the faithful of Yehudah, with whom these other two elements (the Kingdom of Israel and Yahshua its king) will yet be united.3. "All inhabitants of the civilized world, those of the land who have settled down: When [someone] lifts up a conspicuous signal on the mountains, you will take notice! And when he gives a blast on the shofar, you will listen!
Those of the land who have settled down: or "dwellers of the earth"--perhaps the dead who will rise at the shofar blast. (1 Thess. 4:16-17)4. "Because this is what YHWH said to me: 'I will settle down and focus My attention on My established Place, like a glowing heat above a light, like a cloud of mist in the heat of harvest,
Settle down: or "rest", "be quiet", "be at peace"--all indications that He is speaking of the Sabbath rest that comes in the Messianic Kingdom. My Established Place: the Land of Israel, Yerushalayim, and most specifically the Temple Mount. Mist: or dew, always a harbinger of good in Scriptrue, for it feeds tender plants that would be damaged by driving rains, causing them to bud in the morning (v. 5).5. "because before the harvest, when the flower has finished [blooming] and the sour grape will be ripening to a sparkle, He will both cut off the [excess] shoots with a pruning knife and take away and cut down the unfruitful tendrils.
Take away...the unfruitful tendrils: so that the other branches will bear more fruit or leave room for grafting. (Yochanan 15:1-2; Rom. 11:17-24)6. "[All of] them together will be left to the ravenous birds of the mountains and all the beasts of the earth. The birds of prey will spend the summer over them, and all the [other] beasts of the earth will spend the winter on them.
The same is said of Bavel (Babylon) in Rev. 18, where these "birds and beasts" are identified with demons. In any case, these birds always show up at the scene of destruction or war. (Yirmiyahu 7:33; 12:9, etc.)7. "At that time the homage-gift will be carried to YHWH of a people tall and smooth and a people from it who inspire dread, and [keep going] beyond--a subjugating nation [that is] measured out [with a cord], a land whose rivers have bisected it, to the Place of the Name of YHWH of Armies--Mount Tsion."
Though other nations will be required to do homage to Yahshua in the Kingdom (Zech. 14:16ff; Rev. 21:24), here the people brought back from this land are themselves the homage-gift to YHWH.
Egypt was a refuge that initially took Israel in during a time of need, then gave Israel authority, benefitting greatly because of this, but then it turned and enslaved Israel to its own agendas. As such, in addition to whatever literal fulfillment this prophecy will have, it is also a metaphor for the organized Church, which has done all the same. Now YHWH is again saying, "Let My people go", so they can fulfill their complete calling. When He shakes all things, He can sift Efrayim back out, and though Egypt's heart is melted, it can still be recast in the right mold if the people in the Church grasp the truth.2. "And I will incite Egyptian against Egyptian, and they will fight, each man against his brother, and each man against his neighbor, city against city and kingdom against kingdom.
This is another evidence that there is a deeper meaning than literal Egypt, for while Egypt was divided into several kingdoms long before Yeshayahu's day, it has been a unified land ever since. But Christianity has been divided over and over again.3. "Then Egypt's spirit will be emptied out within it, and I will swallow up its counsel. Then they will seek out the worthless images and the enchanters, the mediums, and the familiar spirits.
Spirit: not the truly Holy Spirit, but the spirit of the wicked shepherds who muddy the waters for the sheep. (Y'chezq'el/Ezek. 34:19) Enchanters: literally, "those who go softly".4. "But I have [hemmed them in and] delivered them over into the hand of a harsh master, and a fierce king will have dominion over them", declares the Master, YHWH of Armies.
Joseph Good sees Egypt prophetically as Europe in the last days, the first area to be ruled by the Counterfeit Messiah. He will probably also be associated with the visible Church at first, but will then turn on it, and at that point it will be too late to get out. He is calling us to become Israel now while there is still freedom to do so. In this light, compare Yahshua's statement that His "yoke is easy and [His] burden is light." (Matt. 11:30)5. "Then the waters will be dried up from the sea, and the river will be desolate and dried up.
6. "The rivers will be pushed aside, and the siege-moats will languish and be dried up; water-reeds and bulrushes will wither away.
Pushed aside: perhaps by a major cataclysm that changes all their courses when the mountains are lowered and the valleys lifted up. (40:4) Siege-moats: or canals, which depended on the Nile. When rivers change their course, stagnant "oxbow" lakes are left, and those who built fixed houses and depended on conditions remaining the same have no livelihood left. (v. 10) But Israel is called to "dwell in tents" as sojourners, so that we can move along with the water source. YHWH shifts it periodically so that we depend on Him, not on the patterns by which He has blessed us in the past. The Church once had the true water, but its candlestick has been taken away, and we need to follow YHWH's move.7. "There will be bare spots by the Nile, by the mouth of the Nile, and everything sown [by] the Nile will dry up, be driven away, and no longer exist.
Sown: a reminder of the Northern Kingdom, since Hoshea said Elohim would sow it into the whole world. (2:23) But the Nile, or Egypt, represents the world from which Israel is to be cut off. Anything that has not been harvested will be done away with.8. "The fishermen will also lament, and everyone who casts a hook into the Nile will mourn; those who spread out fishnets over the surface of the waters will grow feeble.
Grow feeble: or "be bereaved". Efrayim has "multiplied like fish" (Gen. 48:16), and Yahshua sent His envoys out to gather them. (Jer. 16:16; Mark 1:17) But once He has fished out the last that He wishes to restore to Israel, those who made money off the Gospel will have no more market. (v. 10) The day of fishing is over. For a long time it was allowable to randomly drop our nets, not being able to see what we were catching, but Yahshua's parable reminds us that we still have to sort out what is kosher and what is not. (Matt. 13:47ff) After the fishing, He says He will send out hunters (Yirmiyahu 16:16)--those who seek out specific individuals and follow them until they are captured.9. "Those who labor in combed flax will be ashamed, along with the weavers of white cloth.
Ashamed: or disconcerted, disappointed. They have been weaving their white cloth (in Scripture, a symbol of the works of the righteous) into more fishnets instead of garments. The goal is not to keep getting bigger, but to become holier, whichg in Scripture usually means to become smaller, as those who have the wrong motives are screened out and only what is pure remians; Yahshua said He came to seek and rescue what was lost (Luk. 19:10)--nothing else, unless others wish to become part of the Israel that was lost.10. "Her supports will be crushed; the souls of all who earn wages will become stagnant ponds.
Earn wages: i.e., who make their livelihood from the River. Living (running) water is meant to flow through us and on to others, but when we try to dam it up so that we can contain it as security for later, it becomes undrinkable. In Israel, this pattern began with Yaravam (Jeroboam), who wanted the tithe that belonged to the Levites as his own revenue, and offered a convenient alternative to what YHWH had commanded. The Church also keeps people from growing beyond a certain point by saying they have gone too far, lest they lose the tithe as well.11. "The rulers of Tsoan are certainly perverse, and the counsel of Pharaoh's wise advisors has been dulled. How can you say to Pharaoh, 'I am the son of the wise ones, the son of ancient kings?'
Tsoan: Tanis (modern-day San), on the eastern bank of a branch of the Nile. The capital of the Shepherd Dynasty (Hyksos), its name means "place of departure". How can we even explain to Church leaders, whose sense of what is biblical has been altered by centuries of the wrong focus, that we are indeed heirs to the covenants of Israel and should be living according to the ancient paths?12. "Where are your wise ones now? All right, let them inform you of what they know YHWH of Armies has planned in regard to Egypt!
13. "The rulers of Tsoan have become fools! The rulers of Nof are deceived; Egypt is misled by the cornerstone of its tribes.
Nof: Another name for Memphis, the capital city of Egypt.14. "YHWH has produced a distorted, mixed-up spirit in the heart of her, and they have misled Egypt in its every undertaking, as a drunkard staggers through his vomit.
YHWH has produced: Is He the author of confusion? No, but for those who do not love the truth, He sends a strong delusion so that they think they are on the right track, and thus provides a backdrop against which to contrast true righteousness. (2 Thess. 2:10-11; 1 Cor. 11:19)15. "Then Egypt will have no work that [either] head or tail, palm branch or bulrush [fiber] can do.
Head : 9:14 interprets this figuratively as "an elder or honored one", "and the prophet who teaches falsehood, he is the tail." Palm branch... bulrush fiber: also a metaphor for the highest and the lowliest. There will be no point in any of YHWH's people remaining there anymore.16. "In that day the Egyptians will be like women, and they will be terrified and shake from the presence of the wielding of the hand of YHWH of Armies, which He is brandishing against it.
17. "And the soil of Yehudah will become a cause of reeling to Egypt; everyone who brings it to mind will be in dread from the presence of the purpose which YHWH of hosts has devised in regard to it.
I.e., YHWH plans to make Israel "the head and not the tail". (Deut. 28:13) The land that now belongs to Yehudah, but is the inheritance of all Israel, will beckon many out of their bondage to the Church. The fertile soil of Hebraic understanding of Scripture is also robbing the Church and Babylon of their Christmas and Saturday shopping revenues, and Yerushalayim will only become more and more of a cup of trembling to the nations that come against it. (Zech. 12:12)18. "In that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt speaking the language of Kanaan and swearing to YHWH of Armies, and one will be called the City of Destruction.
City of Destruction: or overthrow. But this was a nickname for Auschwitz. Joseph Good sees "Egypt" as an end-time prophetic code-name for Europe. Several concentration camps were never dismantled and could be re-used. Verse 20 could lend credence to this. The five virgins in Yahshua's parable who missed the wedding feast (Matt. 25) may have a "second chance" to prove their true loyalty during the time of Yaaqov's trouble through the much suffering and martyrdom that we read of in the book of Revelation. The language of Kanaan seems to be a poetic way of saying "Hebrew" since it is YHWH by whom they are taking oaths. But Kanaan also means "merchant".19. "In that day there will be an altar to YHWH in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to YHWH near its border,
Some see both of these as describing the Great Pyramid, since two things are mentioned here, yet together they are spoken of in singular terms in v. 20. This pyramid is both at the center of an arc drawn along the Nile delta's coastline as well as at the dividing line between Upper and Lower Egypt. It is seen to have prophetic significance in its every measurement. Perhaps, however, all it is saying is that in the Messianic Kingdom, Egypt will only be worshipping YHWH. (Compare Zecharyah 14:18) In the days of Greek rule over Israel, the Tzadoq priesthood was ousted by whomever could pay for it or whomever the new rulers wished to appoint, and some of the true priests moved to Egypt and did build a Temple and altar there.20. "and it will become a distinguishing token and a testimony to YHWH of Armies in the land of Egypt, because they will cry out to YHWH for help from the presence of the oppressors, and He will send them a deliverer, and a great one at that, and he will rescue them.
Deliverer: the word has the same root as "Yahshua". Rescue: literally, "snatch them out". This seems to be a repetition of the history of the Exodus.21. "Then YHWH will be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will be familiar with YHWH in that day, and they will render slaughter and offering, and vow a vow to YHWH, and follow through on it.
22. "When YHWH strikes Egypt, He will be [both] striking and healing, and they will return all the way to YHWH, and He will allow them to bring Him their petition, and He will heal them.
23. "In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Ashur, and the Assyrian will enter into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Ashur, but Egypt will serve Ashur.
Compare 35:6ff.24. "In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Ashur, a blessing in the heart of the earth,
The third: i.e., in triangulation of power. If Egypt represents the Church, could Ashur represent the Islamic nations, who are also misled but full of zeal for what they think is right, and unwilling to be persuaded otherwise by Babylon? The predominant enemies of Israel may thus become her allies, being together the three strands of a cord, after they are purged of their impurities. (See the end of chapter 21) But we aim to be the firstfruits who do not miss the wedding feast either. Heart: literally, "nearest" or "innermost part".25. "whom YHWH of Armies has intensely blessed, saying, 'Blessed be My people Egypt, Ashur, the product of My hands, and Israel, My inheritance."
Tartawn: an Assyrian title for a field-marshal, general, or commander. Ashdod: near the coast of Judea south of present-day Tel Aviv, it was once a Filistine city where the captured Ark of the Covenant caused the inhabitants great distress. (1 Shmuel 5) When Assyrian King Sargon II replaced Ashdod's King Azuri with his brother, Ashdod rebelled, with this repercussion in 711 B.C., ten years before Sennacheriv attempted to besiege Yerushalayim, and possibly the same year Samaria (capital of the Northern Kingdom) was besieged.2. at that time YHWH spoke by the hand of Yeshayahu the son of Amotz, saying, "Go and loosen the burlap from off your waist, and take off your shoe from your foot." So he did just that, walking around naked and barefoot.
3. Then YHWH said, "Just as My servant Yeshayahu has walked around naked and barefoot for three years--a warning and sign about Egypt and Kush--
4. "in the same way the king of Ashur will conduct away captives from Egypt and exiles from Kush, young and old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks stripped bare, to Egypt's shame.
Exiles: itself based on a different word meaning "uncovered" or "laid bare", which slaves taken in battle often were. To Egypt's shame: or, "leaving Egypt vulnerable". Exodus 20:26 and Lev. 18, 20 forbid letting one's nakedness be seen, as it reveals our shame (47:3), so this was an extreme measure to get the point across to Yehudah that Egypt was in reality not something in which they could place confidence. "Naked" in Hebrew also means "undefended". Yeshayahu is to be commended for his confidence that this was really YHWH speaking!5. "So they will be shocked and embarrassed by Kush, on which they had pinned their expectations, and by Egypt, [whose adornment had been] their boast.
They: Apparently Yehudah.6. "Then in that day the inhabitant of this region will say, 'Look! This is what the object of our expectation is [really] like--[the one] to whom we had run for help to be rescued from before the king of Ashur. So how can we be saved?'"
This shows that they were indeed not trusting YHWH, and thus did feel naked before the world forces that were vying for prominence all around them.
Uninhabited land: wilderness or pasture-land, but possibly another reference to Bavel on the mystery level, referring prophetically to another nation that shares Babylon's characteristics and is decimated by the lands described below, yet is in the west, unlike literal Bavel. That western land was largely uninhabited in Yeshayahu's day. West: or "seaward". Fearsome: or "dreadful".2. "A severe vision is made known to me: the treacherous one deals treacherously, and the devastator devastates. Ascend, O Eylam! Begin a siege, O Madai! I have made all her groaning to cease.
Eylam: descendants of Shem's oldest son. Madai: the Medes, a Yafethite people who became, in league with the Persians, the next great regional empire after Babel. Under the rule of Zimri, the fifth king of Israel, the Northern Kingdom was allied with both Eylam and Madai. (Yirm. 25:25) Both of these lands are in present-day Iraq, east of what was then Ashur and Babylonia. Eylam had a substantial coastlien on the Persian Gulf. Prophecies about its downfall fill Yirmiyahu 49 and Y'hezq'el 32. Ascend...: in Yeshayahu 13:17, it is Babylon that Eylam and Madai are attacking.3. "This is why my abdomen is filled with pain. Pangs have taken hold of me, like the birthpangs of a woman in labor. I writhed when I heard it, and was alarmed when I saw it.
Abdomen: same word as "waist" in 20:2. Writhed: was bent over, distorted, or twisted. I.e., doubled over in initial shock. But may relate to Babylon's giving birth to wind, unexpectedly. (26:18; see note on 13:8)4. "My heart staggered; I was overtaken with trembling. He has turned the twilight of the thing I desired into anxious concern for me.
Twilight:or "festive evening"; from a root word meaning "blowing". The much sought-after lover has proven treacherous. (v. 2)5. "Set the table in order; keep watch in the watchtower! Eat, drink, rise up, princes, and anoint a shield,
In context, it seems that this refers to the night when King Belshazzar saw the handwriting on the wall. (Daniel 5) But the first 19 times this term "table" is used in Scripture (and every time it appears in the Torah) it refers to the Table of Showbread, which represents the unity of the 12 tribes of Israel. So this may be a command to put the twelve tribes back in their proper place, just as Yoseyf set his brothers in their birth order when he came to dine with them. Anoint: the word from which "Messiah" is derived. Since this is taking place with all twelve tribes present, it is probably in the set-apart place where Israel is hidden during the time of Yaaqov's Trouble. (16:1-5; Y'hezq'el 37:24) Shield: what YHWH said He would be to Avraham. (Gen. 15:1) It is often a symbol of YHWH's trustworthy protection of those He loves. Psalm 84:9 links the two again: "Behold our shield, O Elohim, and pay attention to Your anointed. There it is linked with ascending to the Temple. "Shield" is actually what the "star" of David is called in Hebrew. It is derived from the shape of the pomegranate blossom at the end of David's scepter, and hence is related to the Messianic throne.6. "because this is what YHWH has told me: 'Go, station a watchman; let him report what he sees!'
7. "Now [what] he sees [is] a chariot with a team of war-horses, a chariot of a donkey, a chariot of camels. So he listened carefully with intense attention,
8. "and he will proclaim, 'A lion! Adonai, I myself always stand at the lookout-post by day, and I am on duty at my post every night,
Lion: or "plucker", "gatherer". Babylon is likened to a winged lion in Daniel 7:4, and this was the insignia on Babylon's Ishtar gates.9. "'and here, indeed, comes a man's chariot [with] a pair of war-horses!' So he replied, saying, 'Babylon has fallen! It has fallen! And all the carved images of its mighty ones He has dashed to the earth!'
Yochanan echoes this and expands on it in Revelation chapters 17 and 18. So this vision is also for the end times. In a sense," Babylon" sums up the evils of all of the other nations mentioned here. (cf. Zech. 5:5-11)10. "O that which I have treaded out, and sons of My threshing-floor! What I have heard from YHWH of Armies, the Elohim of Israel [is what] I have made known to you."
Threshing-floor: where Boaz, a prototype of the Messiah, was winnowing barley the night Ruth, a picture of the returning tribes of Israel, presented herself to him. (Ruth 3:2) The site of the Temple Mount was also a threshing-floor before David bought it. (2 Shmuel 24:16ff; 1 Chron. 21) So these "sons of My threshing-floor" are "children of the Temple" and of the Messiah. There are many parallels to this passage. Yesh. 28:27-28 tells about how different plants are threshed, and this relates to the way grain is made into bread, a picture of how YHWH uses our different gifts to build up His Body (Eph. 4). Then, after being chastised for their sins and bound together, when the nations come against him, Efrayim will have become one that loves to read out grain. (Hos. 10:11) At the time of the Daughter of Tsion's birthpangs, she will be snatched back from Bavel, and the nations that are gathered against her to look upon her to defile her will themselves be threshed by the Daughter of Tsion. (Micha 4:9-13)11. The oracle [concerning] Dumah: "He calls to me from Seir, 'O watchman! What [is the news] of the night? O watchman! What [is the news] of the night?'
Dumah: a son of Yishmael. (Gen. 25:14) Watchman: or guard.12. "A watchman says, 'The morning is arriving, but also the night! If you will inquire, [then] inquire. Turn back! Come!'"
Morning...also night: Compare Zecharyah 14:7, where all nations gather against Yerushalayim on this unique day when it is neither day nor night, but it is dark at noon.13. The oracle on the Arab: "You shall spend the night in the forest in Arabia, O Dedanite caravans.
Dedan: one of Kush's sons. Dedan had a son named Ashurim, the plural form of Ashur, which is a Semitic race. This is a picture of how Hebraic truth may be imitated and even multiplied by the Bavel system. (Bavel was also founded by a Kushite, Nimrod.)14. "The inhabitants of the land of Theyma have brought water to the one who is thirsty; they met the fugitive with their bread,
Theyma: "desert"; possibly the same as Theyman, which is the Hebrew name for Yemen, and a grandson of Esau.(Gen. 36:11) Its people were known for their wisdom. (Yirm. 49:7) Again, perhaps this oracle indicates hope that a small remnant will be salvaged for YHWH even from the Muslim world.15. "because they were fleeing from the face of swords, from before drawn swords, and from the presence of the bow bent [by the feet], and from the presence of the weight of battle.
16. "Because this is what Adonai has told me: 'Still, within a year, according to the year of a hired worker, all the splendor of Qedar will come to an end,
Qedar: a son of Yishmael. The name means "dark". These people were known for their tents.17. "and the ones left of those who were counted archers--the mighty men of the sons of Qedar--will be few, because YHWH, the Elohim of Israel, has spoken."
Valley of Vision: possibly the Valley of Hinnom outside Yerushalayim, also called the Valley of Decision.2. "Rumblings fill a boisterous city, a rejoicing city. Your slain are not mortally wounded by the sword, nor have they died in battle.
3. "All of your commanders have retreated together, taken prisoner by a bow; all that are found within you are bound together, having fled from distant lands.
4. "Therefore I said, 'Look away from Me; I will be bitter with weeping. Do not feel pressured to console me, because of the devastation of the daughter of my people,
5. "because [it is] a day of turmoil, [desecration by] trampling down, and perplexity for the Master, YHWH of Armies, in the Valley of [Prophetic] Vision--of breaking down walls and crying to the mountains for help.
Crying to the mountains for help: compare Psalm 121. This is the same Hebrew term used for the Holocaust.6. "But Eylam carried the quiver on a chariot of human horsemen, and Qir unveiled the shield.
Eylam: sometimes a synonym for Persia. Qir: in Mesopotamia (Babylonia); its name means "wall".7. "And what will take place is that your choicest valleys have been filled with chariots, and the horsemen are indeed stationed at the gate,
8. "and He has removed Yehudah's covering, and in that day you will look to the weapons of the House of the Forest.
Yerushalayim realizes she needs to prepare for war. Their last resort is the House of the Forest of Levanon, where King Shlomo stored 300 shields, but still they feel confident that this will be enough. They are looking to their own resources for protection.9. "You have also noticed that the breaches in the City of David are many, and you will gather the waters of the lower pool,
10. "So you have taken account of the houses of Yerushalayim, and pulled down the houses to reinforce the wall.
They have promised the owners that they will rebuild their houses after they use their stones for defense. They see it only as a temporary setback.11. "Then you made a reservoir between both walls for the water of the old pool, but you have not looked to its Maker, nor paid attention to the one who originally formed it long ago.
Reservoir: Heb., /em>miqvah, the same word as for the ritual immersion pool. The word is based on the word for "hope". Old pool: probably the "upper pool" of 2 Kings 18. Compare Yirmiyahu/Jer. 17:13. They believe they are ready for war, but have left something out of the equation--YHWH!12. "For in that day YHWH of Armies will summon to weeping, to mourning, to baldness, and to putting on burlap,
Burlap: worn when mourning. Baldness: i.e., shaving of the head in mourning. He has set aside a time for these things: Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.13. "yet [what I find] here is joy and gladness, slaying oxen, slaughtering sheep, eating meat, and drinking wine: 'To eat and to drink, because tomorrow we will die!'
They are out of season, acting as if it were Purim when it is Yom Kippur. Instead of "afflicting their souls" (Lev. 16:29), they celebrate, feeling they have to resign themselves to their "fate", rather than humbling themselves and admitting they need His help.14. "Then YHWH of Armies was revealed in my ears: 'If this crookedness were to be covered over for you until you die...!', says YHWH of Armies.
"If...": i.e., they never will; this is one format of swearing an oath in Hebrew. Can these really be His people? Then they come under a stronger condemnation for having known better.15. "Thus says YHWH of Armies: 'Go ahead in to this steward, Shevna, who is in charge of the house, [and say],
Shevna (meaning "vigor") was King Hizqiyahu's secretary.16. "'"What belongs to you here? And who do you have here, that you have dug out a tomb for yourself here, hewing out his tomb in an elevated place, and cutting out a dwelling place for himself in a cliff?
Having some connection with royalty, he thought he deserved to be treated like a king himself. Thus he is a picture of the haSatan, and by extension, the Counterfeit Messiah, in contrast with Yahshua, who only borrowed someone else's tomb. Yet he is literally digging his own grave, and indeed he will need one!17. "'"Mark my words: YHWH will throw you with a great hurling, and will certainly cover you up.
Revelation 19:20 tells us that the Counterfeit Messiah and his false prophet will both be thrown alive into the Lake of Fire (probably the Dead Sea, which used to have bitumin seepage that was set ablaze by lightning until the fissures were sealed off by an earthquake; but the earthquake at Yahshua's return was probably open them back up again.18. "He will wind you together violently and whirl you like a ball into a country of broad hands. There you will die, and there are the chariots of your reputation, the disgrace of your master's house.
Of broad hands: i.e., liberal or vast.19. "Then I will drive you from your office, and he will pull you down from your position.
20. "And what will take place in that Day is that I will summon My servant, Elyaqim the son of Chilqiyahu,
Elyaqim means "Elohim raises [him] up." Chilqiyahu means "YHWH is my portion". He was a high priest. (2 Kings 22:8-10; 2 Chron. 34) YHWH's portion is a tithe of the tithe, which He then gives back to the priests for their sustenance.21. "and I have dressed him in your tunic and will strengthen him with your waistband, and I will commit your authority into his hand, and He will come to serve as a father to the inhabitants of Yerushalayim and to the House of Yehudah,
In contrast to the Counterfeit Messiah, YHWH will be in full support of the one He has raised up. It is becoming clearer that this is speaking of the true Messiah. Waistband: one of the priestly garments, and part of the description of the glorified Yahshua in Rev. 1:13. Thus He is King and Priest, after the order of Melchitzedeq.22. "and I will set the key of the House of David on his shoulder, so that what he opens no one is closing, and what he closes no one is opening.
Yahshua quotes this in Rev. 3:7, stating that he is the one to whom this is referring. I.e., H e will rule with a rod of iron; what He binds will not be loosed. "Key" also relates to music in Hebrew as in English, and specifically is used in relation to the music of the Temple.23. "And I will drive him [fast] like a nail into a sturdy place, and he will provide a throne of honor to his ancestor's household,
His ancestor: David. Sturdy: reliable; Yahshua's kingdom is stable and firmly established. (2:2; 16:5)24. "and they will hang on him all the honor of his ancestor's household--the offspring and the offshoots, the vessels for small matters, from ritual bowl-utensils to all the pitcher-utensils.
25. "'In that Day', declares YHWH of Armies, 'the nail that is driven into a sturdy place will give way, break off, and fall down, and the load that was on it will be cut off', because YHWH has spoken.
This verse seems to refer to Shevna, not Elyaqim, the one already in place and appearing firmly so, while in reality he is not.
Tzur: Tyre, whose king is likened to haSatan in Y'chezq'el 28, a passage that parallels chapter 14 above in regard to Bavel. But Babylon eventually destroyed Tzur, just as we see the Beast's system in Revelation turning on and destroying the harlot--which is exactly how Tzur is described below. Tzur's name means "rock", because it was built offshore for a better harbor. It was small, but became one of the most powerful seaports in the then-known world because of its willingness to transport other people's goods. This trade made them very wealthy. Kittim: meaning "bruisers", it refers specifically to one of the sons of Yawan, ancestor of the Greeks, but in particular Cyprus or other islands of the northern Mediterranean. Later it became a euphemism for Rome. (See v. 12) But the term is also sometimes associated with Rome in Jewish tradition. Tarshish: a Phoenician colony in the Western Mediterranean or perhaps further west.2. "Be silent, you island-dwellers; the traffickers of Tzidon who cross the sea have replenished you,
Island-dwellers: or "residents of the coastland". Tzidon: often called Sidon, on the levant of the Mediterranean north of Israel near Tzur. It was the hometown of Izabel (Jezebel), who acquired wealth for Israel's king, whom she married, but also dominated him. Compare the way Israel (Yehudah) today waits for permission from the United States tbefore making any major tactical decision. But the United States is also enslaved to the Babylon system which is unifying the world's economy, and if "Babylon" ever turns on her, our system, which, like Tzur's, is based on no substance of its own anymore, will have no foot to stand on. On the end-times prophetic level, this is probably (at least in part) what is being described here.3. "and by great waters, the seed of Shikhor, the harvest of the Nile, was her revenue, and she was a merchant of nations.
This is nearly identical to what is said of Babylon in Rev. 17, 18. Merchant: could also read "bazaar" or "mall". Shikhor means "darkness", and was the name of one of the branches or canals of the Nile. On one level, in our day, the United States of America are in the same position, seemingly undefeatable like a rock (Tzur) and both master of the seas and of trade.4. "Be ashamed, Tzidon, because a sea has answered the safe harbor of the sea, saying, 'I do not go into labor or give birth; neither do I cause young men to grow up, nor raise maidens.
The sea is often a picture of the Gentile nations, where Efrayim and Menashe, whom Yaaqov said would "multiply like fishes" (Gen. 48:16), have been hidden. Christianity's symbol has been a fish since Yahshua told His disciples to go like fishermen to find them (echoing Yirmiyahu 16:16). But it was in the midst of the Land (after they return) that they would become great, not in the sea; they are meant to be brought back to their land, because this "sea" does not bring Israel's children to maturity. She only derives revenue from them; they are not hers, and what she provides is empty.5. "Like the report to Egypt, they will also writhe in pain according to the report of Tzur.
Like the report: or possibly, "When the report reaches Egypt".6. "Pass over to Tarshish! Howl, island-dwellers!
7. "Is this your triumphant city, whose antiquity is from ancient days? Her own feet carry her far away to live as a sojourner.
As a sojourner: can connote "in fear". While prior to this she was a colonizer, she will now be a refugee. Feet: a term linked with the pilgrimage festivals in Hebrew, and indeed the festivals substituted for YHWH's have carried people far away from the truth--the reason Efrayim is in exile.8. "Who has devised this plan against Tzur, the bestower of crowns, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the honored ones of the earth?
9. "YHWH of Armies [is the one who] has devised it, to dishonor the pride of all glory, and to make of little account all the ones in the earth who are gaining glory.
10. "Pass through your land like a [mighty] river, O daughter of Tarshish; there is nothing left to hold it back.
11. "He stretched out his hand over the sea; He disturbed kingdoms. YHWH has given a command against Kanaan, to annihilate its safe harbors,
Kanaan: means "merchant", "trafficker", but also the region where Tzur and Tzidon lay.12. "and He has said, 'You will never again be triumphant, O maiden daughter of Tzidon who is pressed down! Rise up and cross over to Kittim, but there is no rest for you even there.'
Cross over to Kittim: Rome calls her "separated brethren" back to her, and some will indeed heed that call back to the "original church", and form one church again, but those who are true Israelites will find no satisfaction there. This is how YHWH will expose its emptiness, and many may realize that they truly belong to Israel instead, though but that time they will need to suffer much for having realized it so late.13. "Behold, the land of the Chasdim! This is the people who never existed! Ashur founded it for the desert-dwellers. They set up its watchtowers, and they have laid bare its palaces, and made it a ruin.
Chasdim: Chaldeans, an area that includes Babylon, the city that builds its system on a lie, and so is an "unreal" place. The American colonies, likewise, were originally founded for trade purposes, and were built out of fragments of many nations which were not a particular ethnic grouping prior to this. "Out of many, one" is her motto, but this means she is in a sense an "artificial nation". Its money now is not solid wealth, but nearly all computer software, thus with no real backing--based on the Law of Admiralty, which is the law of the sea, where much is based on credit rather than real wealth.14. "Wail, O shipmen of Tarshish, because your place of refuge is devastated!
15. "And what will take place in that Day [is that] Tzur will be forgotten for seventy years, like the days of one king; from the end of the seventy years it will be for Tzur like the song of a prostitute.
Days of one king: David lived seventy years. Song of a prostitute: the system that made her wealthy will turn and destroy her after she is "used up". (Rev. 17:16)16. "Take up a harp; walk around the city, you forgotten prostitute! Play the stringed instrument beautifully; enlarge your [repertoire of] songs, so that you may be remembered!
She needs to attract business in other ways than through her beauty, being old, unlike Sarah, the mother of Israel, who remained beautiful in old age.17. "Then what will happen at the end of the seventy years is that YHWH will punish Tzur, and she will return to her hire-price, and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the earth on the surface of the ground.
18. "But her profits and her hire-price will be set apart to YHWH; it will not be stored up or hoarded, because her profits will be for those who remain in the presence of YHWH, to eat to [their] satisfaction and for splendid covering."
She will again be a merchant, but the wealth of the wicked will be laid up for the righteous. When Bavel betrays Tzur, the profits go to Israel, her erstwhile ally. Splendid: durable, eminent, surpassing. Yet a harlot's hire could not be brought into the Temple, and no priest may marry one. (Lev. 21:14)
2. And the priest has come to be just like the people, the master just like the servant, the mistress just like the maidservant, the seller just like the buyer, the borrower just like the lender, and the debtor just like the creditor.
3. The land will be utterly emptied out and plundered, because YHWH has spoken this word.
The same is said of Bavel/Babylon. (Rev. 18:19)4. The Land has mourned and withered away; the civilized world has been exhausted and the people elevated [over all the others] are drooping.
5. Even the Land is profaned under its inhabitants, because they have crossed the line [in regard to] instructions and overstepped a limit, and violated an eternal covenant.
Eternal covenant: what YHWH said all His covenants with Israel were, which were sealed by Yahshua's blood. (Gen. 17:17; Psalm 105:10; Heb. 13:20)6. Therefore a curse has devoured the Land, and its inhabitants are [left] desolate. Therefore the inhabitants of the Land are scorched, and a trifling few are left [alive].
7. The new wine is mourning, the vine is drooping, and the joyful of heart are groaning.
8. The rejoicing of tambourines has stopped; the uproar of those who are triumphant has come to an end. The mirth of the harp has ceased.
9. With a song they will not drink wine; intoxicating drink will be bitter to its drinkers.
10. The city of unreality is wrecked; every house has been tightly shut so there can be no entering.
Unreality: emptiness, shame, formlessness, or confusion--which is what results from assimilating many peoples. On the largest scale, this is "Babylon", the counterfeit of Yerushalayim, which gains all its "reality" from being a mimicry of it. Wrecked: maimed or broken down.11. An outcry for wine is in the streets. All joy is mixed; the rejoicing of the land is removed.
Wine: a symbol of joy. Mixed: or darkened as at evening. Removed: or uncovered, rendered naked, shown to be without substance.12. What is left in the city is appalment and ruins; the gates are shattered,
Appalment: or desolation.13. because this is how it will come to be in the heart of the Land, among the peoples, like the shaking around an olive tree, and like the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is finished.
Shaking around an olive tree: i.e., that causes the last of the olives to drop off.14. They will lift up their voice; they will shout for joy at the majesty of YHWH. They will give a shrill cry from the sea.
Shrill cry: with the connotation of brightness, like the Song of Moshe and Miryam after coming from the Reed Sea. But "from the sea" here may also refer to the time after the Land is made desolate again when the Counterfeit Messiah takes it over and is conquered, many Israelites will come from outside the Land, praising YHWH for defeating the Babylonian system and re-peopling the Land with the truly obedient. (v. 16)15. So cause YHWH to be heavily honored in the light of fire, the name of YHWH the Elohim of Israel on the seacoasts!
Lights of fire: Urim, so possibly referring to the articles by which the High Priest discerns YHWH's will.16. From the corners of the earth, we have heard songs of praise: "Honor to the righteous!" But I said, "Leanness for me! Leanness for me! Woe to me! The treacherous have betrayed me with deceit! The treacherous have betrayed me!"
Corners: literally, "wings". Treacherous: the Counterfeit Messiah and his system.17. Terror, the pit, and a snare-trap are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth!
There is a word play here. In Hebrew, "Terror" is pachad, "pit" is pachath, and "snare-trap" is pach. They turn out to have the same effect. Inhabitant of the earth: perhaps those who call themselves "citizens of the world".18. Because those who escape from the noise of the terror will fall into the pit, and the one who climbs up from within the pit will be captured in the snare-trap, because the lattices from on high have been thrown open, and the foundations of the earth will shake!
Lattices: windows in the ceiling without glass to let smoke out or sluices to let rain in, but the word comes from "to lie in ambush", connoting a place from which a surprise attack can come. There is no way out.19. The earth has completely broken itself up! The earth is cracked all the way through! The earth is slipping and tottering!
Is...broken up: or "has become utterly evil".20. The earth will reel back and forth, staggering like a drunkard, and has been swaying like a hut! The punishment for its transgression will be heavy upon it. Then it will fall, and never rise again!
21. And what will take place on that day is that YHWH will muster the army of the heights on the heights and the kings of the earth on the ground for review,
22. and they have been gathered together as prisoners are gathered into a dungeon, and they have been locked up in the prison, and will be visited [with punishment] after many days.
Perhaps this correlates with haSatan being bound for 1,000 years. (Rev. 20)23. Then the moon will blush and the sun will be ashamed when YHWH of Armies reigns on Mount Tsion and in Yerushalayim, and His glorious elders in front [of Him].
The sun and the moon will diminish in importance. (Rev. 21:23) They have even been worshipped in the past, but will become "has-beens". If we stand in awe of anything besides YHWH, we are not truly standing in awe of Him. Yoseyf's dream linked the sun with his father and the moon with his mother. The mother of Yoseyf's children is now for the most part the Church, which will diminish greatly after its purpose of preserving Israel in exile has been served. These elders may be the 24 elders around His throne (Revelation 4, 5, 11, 19).
Long ago: or "far away". Reliability: firmly rooted, so that we need not waver or be "tossed around by every wind of doctrine".2. because You have made a heap of stones out of a city; a fortified town [You have made] into a fallen ruin; [You have taken] from a citadel of foreigners [the status of being] a city, never to be rebuilt forever.
Aramaic: "A temple of Gentiles will never be built in the city of Yerushalayim!"3. Therefore a fierce people will honor You; a town of the ruthless Gentiles will fear You,
4. because You have been a refuge for the poor, a place of protection for the needy when oppressed, a shelter from the storm, a source of shade from the dry heat, when the wind of the ruthless is like a storm [which beats against] a wall.
5. Like the heat in a parched land,You will bring down the roar of those alienated--[and bring relief in] dry heat by the shadow of a cloud; the song of the ruthless will be answered.
Like the heat in a parched land: actually two words that double as proper names, so this could read, "[It is] like Chorev [Mt. Sinai] in Tsion". Both are called "the mountain of Elohim/YHWH". (e.g., Ex. 3:1; Micha 4:2; Yoel 2:1) Mystically this is also borne out by the fact that the numeric value of "Sinai" in Hebrew is the same as "stairway"--what Yaaqov saw in his dream/vision on Mt. Moryah, which is physically connected to Mt. Tsion.6. Then YHWH of Armies will prepare for all the peoples a feast of the finest [foods], a feast of the dregs of wine--the finest [foods] full of marrow, [and] the dregs of refined wine.
Full of marrow: or "blotted out".7. And on this mountain He has engulfed the face of the covering that envelops all peoples, and the web that is woven over all nations.
Aramaic, "The face of the great one who is master over all peoples, the face of the king who rules all nations will be annihilated on this mountain." I.e., the Counterfeit Messiah will be destroyed on Mt. Tsion (v. 5). Web: or veil. Nations: or "Gentiles". On Mt. Moryah, which is connected to Tsion and thus considered one with it, Yahshua was crucified, and the veil of His flesh (Heb. 10:20) was torn, at which time Gentile soldiers became aware that He was Elohim's Son. (Matt. 27:51ff) Nearby, after His resurrection, it was a "face covering" that convinced His disciples that He had indeed risen from the dead. (Yochanan 20:7) Moshe had to put a veil over his face to hide the fact that the evidence of having been in YHWH's presence was fading away. (2 Cor. 3:11-14) Paul, who was blinded by a view of the unfading face of Yahshua, says the same type of veil remains over anyone who reads the Hebrew Scriptures until people turn to the Messiah. Another kind of eye-covering is to be removed when the Northern Kingdom returns to the covenant. (Rom. 11:25) He longs to reveal YHWH's presence to us, but this will not happen magically, just as when the veil in the Temple was torn, a way was opened into the Holy Place where we can serve YHWH, but we still have to enter in. Through Yahshua, we are free to look behind the veil at the treasures YHWH hid for kings to search out. We have been made kings and priests (Rev. 1:6), but most choose not to do so, because they do not wish to look into the depths of the Hebrew Scriptures or the Temple, which both give us multitudes of details about who He is (Luk. 24:44) and who we can now be through Him--one new man. We are called to be that man, and no longer walk like Gentiles who have a darkened understanding. (Eph. 4:17ff). Priests and kings in Israel are servants, not overlords.8. He has swallowed up death in everlasting victory! And Adonai YHWH will wipe away tears from off every face, and He will remove the reproach of His people from off all the earth, because YHWH has spoken.
Everlasting victory: endurance, perpetuity, or simply "everlastingness". Aramaic, "They will forget death forever." Paul describes this as being "further clothed" like having a tent enclosed by a building (2 Cor. 5:4)--the "sukkah" that is in the Holy of Holies. (Psalm 18:11) Scientists might describe it as taking on added dimensions of existence which are no longer mortal. Wipe away: or "obliterate".9. And in that Day [someone] will say, "Behold, this is our Elohim! We have lingered, waiting eagerly for Him, and He will deliver us! This is YHWH! We have lingered, waiting eagerly for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation!"
For Him: Aramaic, "for His Memra [living Word]".10. Because YHWH's hand will rest on this mountain, and Moav will be trodden down under Him just as straw is trampled into the water of the manure pile.
Hand will rest: Aramaic, "might will be revealed".11. And He has spread out His hands in its midst as the swimmer spreads out his hands to swim, and He has humbled its pride along with the tricks of their hands,
12. and the inaccessibility of the secure height of your walls He has caused to bow down, laid low, and caused to touch the ground until [they are] dust.
CHAPTER 26
1. In that Day this song will be sung in the Land of Yehudah: "We have a strong city! Salvation will constitute walls and ramparts!
2. "Open [the] gates, so a righteous nation that keeps faith may enter!"
A righteous nation: Rabbinical teaching identifies this as the "lost tribes" of the Northern Kingdom--once they again constitute a nation. That is the task for today. Keeps faith: or "gives heed to the truth", "treasures up faithfulness", "protects trust". We guard the faith by laying down our lives for one another. To be ready to go to war, one must first be able to trust the one who will be beside him in the foxhole. We must thus become trustworthy to one another.3. You will blockade in perfect soundness the mind that is rested upon You, because he has bold confidence in You.
Perfect soundness: both words are "shalom" in Hebrew. Mind that is rested upon You: literally, "framework [that is] supported [on] You." Aramaic, "on Your Memra", i.e., Yahshua, YHWH's "Word that was made flesh" . "Framework" is also the word for "inclination" and is used in Hebrew for our inclinations toward good or evil. We must "lean" both of them on Him--surrender to Him not just our propensity to do wrong, but our ideas of what is right. When Yeshayahu was commanded to walk naked to communicate a prophecy, it certainly went against his sense of what was right, yet YHWH had commanded it. When YHWH told Israel to destroy even the women and children of Kanaan, it would not seem right to the natural mind, but YHWH had His reason for it. Our own hearts are not trustworthy foundations on which to rest our inclinations. (Yirmiyahu 17:9)4. Have bold confidence in YHWH continuously forever, because in Yah YHWH is an eternal rock,
Rock: i.e., strength; a sure foundation.5. because He causes those who dwell [on] the heights to be bowed down; He will lay low the town that is set securely in an inaccessible place! He will cause it to be humbled [all the way] to the ground; He will cause it to hit the dust.
Set securely: with the connotation of smugness and hostility.6. The foot will trample it down--the foot of the afflicted, and the footfalls of the needy.
7. The pathway for the righteous is [one] of levelness. [O You who have been] upright, may You level out the track of the righteous!
Pathway: the picture is one of piers being built to support a highway. Levelness: uprightness, straightness, evenness, smoothness, equity, correctness. It gives us the sense of being balanced between all the virtues; if we have more of one than another, we become deformed. We all need each other to balance each other out, because none of us has all the characteristics of what YHWH wants in their fullness. Track: from a word for "round", thus hinting at the pathway around the year, through the festival calendar of appointments with YHWH.8. Oh, the pathway of Your legal proceedings, YHWH! We have been eagerly lingering in expectation of You! The longing of our soul is for Your Name and for what we remember of You!
Eagerly lingering: at root, the term means "binding together". The highway is built through our binding ourselves together on the basis of justice, judgment, and the order of authority that YHWH has established. What we remember of You: our longing is to be back in His presence--the essence of Eden.9. With my passion I have craved You by night; even more, with my spirit in my innermost being will I seek You earnestly, because when Your [just] legal proceedings [come] to the earth, those who remain of the civilized world will learn righteousness.
Earnestly: or early. Learn righteousness: it is not just something we inherit by virtue of being in Messiah, but something that one must learn (which in Hebrew means be prodded or goaded to do).10. The guilty one has been given grace; yet he has not learned righteousness. Even in a land where everything is the way it should be, he will [still] deviate, and will still not perceive the excellency of YHWH.
In a land where...: or "in a land of honesty", "rightness", "straightness". In Yahshua's Kingdom, where all is indeed put right, and there is no injustice or any reason to complain, there will still be some who test His resolve (Zech. 14:18) and who rebel at the end when haSatan is loosed and their true colors show up (Rev. 20:7ff), though suppressed for a thousand years!11. O YHWH, Your hand is lifted high, yet still they cannot perceive, but they will see and be ashamed of their jealous ardor against the people. In fact, the fire of Your oppressors will devour them.
12. O YHWH, You will set total well-being in place for us, because You have worked into us all our achievements as well.
The Renewed Covenant echoes this: Many people are familiar with the verses, "By [YHWH's] added provision we are rescued, through faith, and [even] that is not from ourselves; it is YHWH's gift, so that no one may boast", and rightly think that this excludes "works-salvation". But the following verse brings the balance: "...because we are His workmanship, created in Messiah unto [particular] good works, which YHWH has ordained in advance for us to walk in." (Eph. 2:10) Many think that if we do "good works" we must not have faith, but this is very unscriptural; it is only a matter of who receives the credit. "It is YHWH who is operative in you, both [making you] want to and [also] prove it by carrying out the good things that please Him." (Phil. 2:13) As His intent was for Pharaoh's heart to be hard in order to accomplish His purposes, He has put it within the hearts of the righteous to do what is right, so that He ultimately gets all the credit, being All in all. In other words, it is Yahshua in us who initiates and makes the works possible (as v. 13 echoes), and we only participate in them, but by all means YHWH desires the works!13. O YHWH, our Elohim, [other] masters besides You have lorded it over us, [but] only in You will we cause Your name to be remembered.
In the past we have used other names for YHWH as well, and many of them turn out to have been the names of pagan deities after all. Though our hearts were right, we were actually giving honor to others. But now we have only one Name for YHWH; we need not have any others on our lips. Cause...to be remembered: or "make mention of..."14. Being dead, they will never live; having sunk down, they will never arise, so You have mustered them for review, and will annihilate them, and cause all memory of them to vanish.
When the books are opened, by tradition, those who are in the "Book of the Wicked" will be blotted out of YHWH's memory--and if He has no memory of them, how can they exist at all? They were extra "stage props" created only to teach and sharpen the righteous and accomplish other purposes of YHWH's.15. You have added to the nation; You have gained honor! You have far extended all the borders of the Land.
You have added to: Aramaic, "You were revealed to gather the dispersed of..."16. O YHWH, in tight spots they [began to] miss You. They poured out a whisper; they had Your chastening.
Miss You: or "seek You in vain". Poured out a whisper: or "pressed out a whispered prayer".17. Just as a pregnant woman whose delivery is drawing near writhes in pain and cries for help, so have we become from before Your face, O YHWH.
The setting is clearly "the Birthpangs of the Messiah". We have become: Aramaic, "because we are sinners before You."18. We have conceived; we have been having birthpangs, as if we were giving birth to wind! We have not brought about any deliverance in the Land; the 'citizens of the world' have not fallen, either!
Wind: perhaps merely indigestion from eating non-kosher foods, an empty thing--or perhaps "spirit", as in the spirit of the Torah without the letter, without the actions. Aram., "whose time to deliver speeds as the wind". Deliverance: Heb., yeshuah. It seems as if our prayers and our efforts to become the people of Israel, united under one King, have been in vain, because the enemy (the one-world order) still presses in upon us and has hemmed us in!19. Your dying ones will be restored to life! My fallen ones will arise! Wake up and give an overcoming shout of joy, O you who are settling into the dust, because night mist is the daybreak of your dew, and the earth will cause the slackers to fall!
My fallen ones: those who have dropped, languished, drooped, withered, or faded. Dew: associated in Hebrew lore with the resurrection, based on this verse. Cause the slackers to fall: some render it, "cast out the dead". Aramaic, "They have not done wonders, nor will they be able to."20. Come, My people! Enter into your [innermost] chambers, and shut your doors behind you; withdraw [and keep yourself hidden] for just a moment until the Indignation has passed over,
Innermost chambers: Like the Holy of Holies, but this term has a special meaning in regard to the nuptial chamber of a bride and groom, for while YHWH's wrath overthrows the wicked, the Messiah, our bridegroom, will bring us into the wedding chamber He has built in His Father's house. (Yochanan 14:6) Shut your doors: Leave outside whatever is not holy unto YHWH, retiring further from the rest of the world to be closer to Him (Psalm 31:19), just as on the Sabbath we leave everything else undone. We affect the spirit realm by the doors we open or shut through our very words, speech, attitudes, and even thoughts. (Mat. 5:28) We are commanded to always be joyful (not happy) in YHWH at all times, so it is possible to decide what our attitude is going to be. The Indignation: a special term for YHWH's final overthrow of Babylon when the tables are turned to prepare for Yahshua's Kingdom. This appears to be just like the first Passover in Egypt, when YHWH hid Israel indoors--in Egypt--while He destroyed Egypt. (Compare Psalm 91:7-8) Only this time it will overshadow it in magnitude so greatly that Yirmiyahu 16:14 says we will no longer even remember the first one! We rehearse it now when we keep the feast, but we are preparing to be (corporately) a Holy of Holies in which He can dwell. As at the Temple, it is entered by putting off self and ascending to greater degrees of holiness.21. because here comes YHWH out from His place to punish the occupiers of the Land for their perversity, and the earth will lay bare her blood, and no longer conceal her slain.
The bloodguilt of millennia will all come to light, and those guilty will be summoned [another translation of "punish"] before the Kinsman Redeemer as He fulfills His other role--that of the avenger of blood for His murdered relatives. The scenario appears to be that the enemies have hemmed Israel in while we are again encamped in the wilderness with all tribes together, so all stand to be slaughtered at once. (v. 18) Then, having led them into a trap, YHWH's fire suddenly bursts forth from His tabernacle, a surprise attack that destroys them all. Yahshua's blood needs to be on our "lintel" to escape His judgment this time.
Fleeing serpent: like Hydra, the constellation that tells its story. (See also Revelation 12) Aramaic: "the king who exalts himself like Pharaoh the first king (cf. Y'hezq'el/Ez. 29:3), and the king who prides himself like Sennacheriv, the second", i.e., the Counterfeit Messiah. But the root word for Livyathan is "to join" or "unite", so we could call it "the Great Uniting", reminiscent of the early U.S. flag that said "Join or Die" and depicted fragments of a snake. Today Livyathan aims to join all nations together into one, hinted at by the description in Revelation 12, 13, and 17 where it has seven heads, not just one. Distorted serpent: the one who was once magnificent but became crooked, twisted, "bent out of shape". In contrast, His sword (His Word, Eph. 6:17) does not bend; it is straight and stiff, and severe to the one who does not measure up. (66:16)2. In that Day--a vineyard of pure, foamy red wine! Be busy for it!
Be busy for it! Or perhaps, "Sing to it!" The Aramaic targum identifies the vineyard as Israel. (Ch. 5)3. "I, YHWH, am watching over it. I will irrigate it moment by moment, lest anyone pay it attention. Night and day I will guard it.
Watching over it: guarding it, hedging it about. Pay it attention: seek it out (perhaps with the intent to damage it), come across it, or attend to it. (It is His and He is the shepherd; He will have no hireling do the job again.) Or, "number it" (i.e., count it as one of the nations, as if they owned it).4. "I have no fiery wrath; who would set briar of thornbush against Me in battle? I would march through them! I would set them all ablaze together!
He would like to just burn the whole field off since there are so many tares, but He has discovered a healthy vine in its midst, and will therefore pause to transplant it before carrying out His justice.5. "Or let him tightly take hold of my place of protection that He may make peace with Me; let him make peace with Me!"
He would prefer this outcome. "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live!" (Y'hezq'el 33:11) "Mercy triumphs against judgment", but there are conditions for this:6. Those who come in, He will cause to become the root of Yaaqov; Israel will blossom when it has sent out shoots, and it will fill the face of the inhabited world with [fruitful] increase.
Come in: i.e., surrender to His terms (v. 5). Those who were not Avraham's physical descendasnts can still be grafted into him, and become as much Israelites as any others. (See Yahshua's parable of the laborers in Matithyahu 20.) But this does not happen to Gentiles automatically, but by their own choice. Blossom: the word means to get others' attention, as a flower gets a bee's attention.7. Has He caused him to be beaten like the blows [given to] the one who was attacking him? Or has He been killed as His slain were killed?
I.e., did YHWH strike Israel as hard as He struck those who came against Israel? No, He showed Israel more pity.8. By measure, by sending away, will you contend with her; He will drive out His fierce wind in the day of the east wind.
By measure: i.e., according to the measure of her sin. Aramaic, "by the measure you were measuring with they will measure against you." (Compare Mark 4:24) By sending away: reminiscent of Hagar. East wind: or "confrontation".9. Therefore, this is how Yaaqov's guilt will be completely covered, and this is all the fruit to cause His sin to depart: in making all the altar-stones like pulverized limestone; neither consorting-groves for the goddess nor sun-pillars may remain,
There are steps Israel must take in order to be atoned for. The altar-stones spoken of here are not those of YHWH's altar, but of the pagan altars they have built to other idols.10. because the inaccessible city [will become] isolated, a meadow forsaken and left to become like a wilderness. There the calf will graze, and there he will stretch out and use up all its branches.
What happens to this city seems to parallel the judgment on Babylon (Rev. 18:2). It probably refers to the "united city" of v. 1. YHWH tells Israel, do not hesitate to destroy its images, because it is a has-been anyway. The calf: a description of the repentant Efrayim in Yirmiyahu 31:18.11. When its boughs dry up, they will be broken off; women come and light them [on fire], because it is a people with no discernment. Therefore He who made them will have no pity on them, and He who fashioned them will give them no grace.
Boughs...broken off: Paul appears to be alluding to this in Romans 11 when he says the grafted-in branches could yet be broken off. What has come to be known as the "Church" comprise the large part of the branches grafted in, but Paul warns that, if they bear no fruit, they have no more guarantee of remaining in YHWH's "tree" than those who were previously broken off for unbelief. A people of no discernment: describes Israel in 1:3; Deut. 32:28; Yirmiyahu 8:8; Hos. 4:6. Those who think their salvation is only about a "personal relationship" rather than something much larger--the whole house of Israel and YHWH's own benefit--will miss being treated with the mercy He promised to again have on Efrayim. But here perhaps the description of being is transferred to the "politically correct" of the New World Order (Livyathan) that avoids any hint of "discrimination" or any attempt to determine the truth because everyone's opinion must be represented. Once Israel was called "Lo-Ammi" (not My people) and "Lo-Ruhamah" (Not Pitied), but YHWH has reversed this (Hos. 1:10), and now it is the ones who counted on "grace" who will be "Lo Am-Binoth" and "Lo-y'Rahamenu"; He uses the same terminology, without the personal relationship.12. But what will take place in that Day is that YHWH will thresh from the flowing of the river to the wadi of Egypt, and you will be gathered up one by one, O descendants of Israel.
The flowing of the river: the Aramaic identifies it as the Ferath/Euphrates, which never dries up except once. These delineate the Land of Israel. (Gen. 15:18) Thresh...Gathered up: picked up as when gleaning, separating the wheat from the tares. Aramaic, "brought near". One by one: compare Yirm./Jer. 3:14.13. Then what will occur in that Day is that a great shofar will be blown, and those who [were] perishing in the land of Ashur will come along with those who [were] outcasts in the land of Egypt and prostrate themslves to YHWH on the Mountain of Holiness in Yerushalayim!
Great shofar: an element of Yom Kippur ceremonies. Perishing: or being exterminated. Outcasts: those thrust out, or those banished. From what follows, it is clear this is speaking about the Northern Kingdom.
Drunkards: LXX, hirelings. Head-plate: Aramaic, turban. Fading: or "drooping", "dropping down".2. Behold! Adonai has a strong and courageous one, like a hailstorm or a terror of destruction, like a flood of powerful, overflowing waters [that] He lets down onto the Land by hand.
Hailstorm: or perhaps a meteorite shower. Overflowing: or "washing off, rinsing", as in cleaning it up. The Aramaic targum's interpretation is that this refers to a Gentile army.3. The crown of pride of Efrayim's drunkards will be trampled underfoot,
4. along with the shining head-plate [that is] fading, the decoration of his rank which is on the head of the valley of fatness, like the firstfruit before the summer, which the inspector looks at; he swallows it while it is still in the palm of his hand.
5. In that Day YHWH of Armies will become the crown of decoration and the diadem of rank for the remnant of His people,
No one will boast about rank once He demonstrates His own power and authority.6. and a spirit of justice for the one who sits on the court of judgment, and bravery for those who turn back the battle at the gate.
At the gate: metaphorically, this also refers to the strength He gives us to battle temptation at our own "eye gate", "ears gate", etc. (Gen. 4:7)7. But even these have swerved into error through wine, and wandered off course due to intoxicating liquor. Cohen and prophet have swerved into error due to intoxicating liquor; they have been swallowed up because of wine. They have wandered off course due to strong drink. They meander in [their] prophetic vision; they stumble when reasoning out a verdict, This may be an allusion to the "wine mixed for Meni [fate]", and the next verse to the "table set for Gad [fortune]". (65:11) I.e., those who should have grown to maturity by being taught the Torah (v. 9) are being tossed about by every wind of pagan doctrine. Intoxicating beverage is not forbidden (Ps. 104:5; Prov. 31:6), but we need to weight he profit of using it, for it can deceive us. When we need to be clear-headed, not just for our own sakes, but for the sake of the people of Israel, it may not be wise. (Prov. 20:1; 23:31; 31:4) Interestingly, wine was not drunk in the wilderness, and YHWH tied that to knowing Him. (Deut. 29:5-6) Even the prophets are caught up in the paganism of this Bacchanalia and such paganism.
8. because every table is full of vomit and excrement, without a place.
LXX: "A curse will devour this counsel, since it is counsel for the sake of covetousness." A place: or standing-place, often an idiom for the Temple, where everyone stood while worshipping YHWH. The rabbis teach that a table is full of vomit if we eat at it without recognizing Him.9. To whom should He direct knowledge? And to whom should He explain the message? To those being weaned from milk, [who are] moving on from the breasts.
Direct: or teach, impart. Moving on: ready to advance beyond the basics--those who are grown up.10. Because [it is], "Tzav l'tzav, tzav l'tzav, qav l'qav, qav l'qav", a little there, a little [over] there,
Possibly, "order for order, order for order, line for line, line for line". The LXX has, "expect affliction upon affliction, hope upon hope". The targum goes into more detail about the concepts of "commands" and "hope". On the surface this may be so. But more likely, because none of them are mature enough to explain the Torah to the people, and are too drunk to listen, it sounds like babbling or baby-talk to them, when in fact it is "baby food"! (Heb. 5:12) It is the most basic knowledge one must have before he can move on to anything deeper. Paul's writings are meat, and cannot be properly understood without a strong foundation in the Torah. (2 Kefa/Peter 3:16). Meat needs to be left until we can digest it, and the "milk" of Torah makes that possible. The Holy Spirit can only bring to our remembrance (Yochanan 14:26) what we have already learned. Feeding a child too much meat too early will make him fat--which is what made Israel turn from YHWH (Deut. 32:15).11. because with mocking lips and a different language will this people be spoken to,
12. to whom He had said, "This is the restingplace; give rest to the weary! This is the refreshing!" But they were not willing to listen.
13. So YHWH's word to them was , "Tzav l'tzav, tzav l'tzav, qav l'qav, qav l'qav, a little there, a little [over] there", in order that they may proceed, then stumble backward, and be crippled, then ensnared, then captured.
I.e., YHWH will mock them back, confounding them with the languages of the peoples to whose lands they will be exiled, to see if they still think so smugly of themselves.14. So listen to what YHWH says, you arrogant scoffers who govern this people who are in Yerushalayim!
Now Judah is acting like the Northern Kingdom did.15. Because you have been saying, "We have made a covenant with death, and have cut a deal with the grave: when the overwhelming scourge passes by, it will not come upon us, because we have set up a lie as our shelter [something], and have hidded ourselves within what is fraudulent."
A lie: or "what will disappoint us". I.e., the enemy will not recognize us. This sounds like "selling onbe's soul to the devil" in exchange for great riches. But "death" here could also mean "the dead", and we can also see in it the Christian emphasis on Yahshua's death more than His resurrection (as seen in crucifixes, etc.) As well as the Rabbinic Jewish practice of praying at the graves of great men. They may only be making requests in the name of the merit of these great men, and there is Scriptural precedent for that, but some teach that even if there is a voice from heaven, the rabbis can overrule it. Egypt's focus was on death, while the Torah focuses on life, so much so that the High Priest may never touch any dead body.16. Therefore, this is what the Master YHWH says: "Here I am, laying as a foundation in Tsion a building stone--a stone [that has been] tested and proven, a cornerstone appraised at high value, a well-established foundation; whoever firmly trusts will not act [so] hastily.
The Aramaic targum says this "stone" is a "great, mighty, and terrifying king. Compare "The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone" (Ps. 118). It is the Messiah. Act hastily: Aramaic, "be shaken when distress comes".17. "Then I will appoint justice as the measuring line, and righteousness as the plumb-bob, and hail will sweep away the disappointing shelter, and the waters will wash away your hiding place.
As the measuring line: Heb., "l'qav", one of the phrases they used above in drunken mockery. Plumb-bob: righteousness thus "hangs" on justice, or a system of right ways to rule in court, based on Torah, which upholds it. Righteousness cannot be complete in isolation.18. "Then your covenant with death will be buried, and your deal cut with the grave will never be ratified. When the overwhelming scourge passes through, you will be directly in its path.
Buried: or "void". Ratified: or "established", but in this context it is somewhat sarcastically used, because the word is also commonly used for "resurrected". Directly in its path: literally, "the place for it to trample" or "stampede upon".19. Every time it passes through, it will take you, because morning after morning it will pass through, both by day and by night, and making the message understood will be pure horror,
Making the message understood: LXX, "Understanding this report". Aramaic, "Before the moment of the curse comes, you will consider the sayings of the prophets."20. because the bed is too short to stretch oneself on, and the cover is too narrow to wrap oneself in.
I.e., Egypt is inadequate; you will find no rest in her. If you are not listening to My word, you will remain cold. You will not have a covering (atonement), because faith without works is dead.21. For YHWH will rise up like Mount Pratzim, and he will be stirred up like the Valley of Giv'on to accomplish His work--His strange work--and to bring about His servitude--His foreign servitude.
Mt. Pratzim ["breaches"]: Possibly Baal-Pratzim, the scene of David's victory over the Filistines in the Valley of Refayim between Yerushalayim and Beyth Lechem. However, the targum identifies this as "the day the mountains shook when YHWH's glory was revealed in the days of Uzziyahu the king", which would be in the memory of those listening to Yeshayahu's prophecy. Valley of Giv'on: Giv'on is in the mountains, but was the place Y'hoshua told the sun to stand still while he was fighting in the Valley--of the Ayalon. The targum identifies this reference with that time "when YHWH listened to a man" (Y'shoshua 10:14).22. So now, do not show yourselves to be scorners, lest the bonds [of your chastening] be made severe, because a complete destruction and one that is decisive, is what I have heard from YHWH of Armies in regard to the whole Land.
I.e., "Your punishment is guaranteed to come, but it can be minimized. Do not prove to be unteachable."23. Cup your ear and listen to my voice! Pay attention, and listen to what I am saying!
24. Does the plowman plow all day in order to sow? Does he loosen and break the clods of his ground?
LXX: "Or will he prepare the seed beforehand, before he tills the soil?" The Aramaic targum identifies the plowman with the prophet and asked what could be done for sinners (the "clods") if they would only listen.25. When he has made its surface level, doesn't he scatter the black cummin abroad, then toss the cummin, then set the wheat in straight rows, and mark off the barley with spelt as its border?
Black cummin: a plant with small black, acrid seeds used as a spice. Aramaic: "If the House of Israel set their face to perform the Torah, would He not turn back and gather them from among the Gentiles, among whom they are scattered, as dill and cummin which are strewn?"26. He has even corrected it so it is fitting, as his Elohim directs him,
LXX: "So you will be chastened by your Elohim's judgment, and will rejoice." The Aramaic interpretation is similar: YHWH teaches them the correct way through judgment.27. because black cummin is not threshed with something sharp, nor is a cartwheel rolled over cummin, since black cummin is to be beaten out with a branch, and cummin with a club.
Threshing is part of the process of making bread, which Paul says we are becoming. (1 Cor. 10:17) The different ministry gifts (Eph. 4) parallel the process of turning grain into bread. But different types of grain are prepared in different ways, and likewise different congregations have different purposes, and different people must be brought to fruitfulness through different means and methods. YHWH has made us all unique, and we each have a unique part to play in His overall plan, but all must be working toward the same goals, as in Hebraic dance we have to lean so far in one direction as to be unbalanced alone, but we hold each other up. But some people are ideal for dealing with one type of problem, or one type of person, but not for another.28. Grain is crushed, yet one does not always trample on it to thresh it, but impels it forward with the wheel of his cart, but his horse-team does not pulverize it.
Discernment is a must. If you want the right result, you need to use more than just one tool. One is used to get the grain to the first stage, then another to deal with the next. You can thresh all day, but you will not have flour until it is also ground, roasted, etc. Preaching the Gospel over and over will not bring someone to maturity. We need everyone's giftings in place in order to build maturity, each in the right measure and at the right time. But unlike grain, a person has to also consent to be threshed.29. This, too, emanates from YHWH of Armies, who has brought an extraordinary plan into being, and caused sound knowledge to increase.
Ariel: "Lion of Elohim", another name for Yerushalayim, perhaps because the Temple appeared like a stylized lion from a distance, with its front facade higher than the rear part and the altar like its paws stretched in front of it. The Aramaic substitutes the word "altar". Run their circuit: i.e., one full year.2. Then I will press Ariel, and there will be mourning and lamentation, and it will be like Ariel to Me.
Compare how YHWH says He will be like a lion to both Efrayim and Yehudah until they repent. (Hos. 5:14; 13:8-9)3. So I will encamp like a circle over you, and impose a siege on you [with] entrenchment, and raise up ramparts against you.
Encamp: the same word as "abode" in v. 1. Ramparts: or battle-towers (the Assyrian style which were attached to battering rams).4. Then you will be brought down, and will speak out of the earth, and your voice will be muffled by the dust. Your voice will come from the ground like a spiritist, and your speech will whisper from the dust.
Muffled: or "humbled", "laid low", "reduced".5. And the great number of your enemies will be like fine dust, and the vast number of ruthless ones like the chaff that passes through, and it will come suddenly, as a surprise.
Enemies: literally, "strangers", "aliens"; the targum identifies them as "your dispersed".6. You will be visited by YHWH of Armies, with thunder, earthquake, and loud noise, whirlwind, storm, and a flame of devouring fire.
7. And the vast number of all the nations who fight against Ariel--those who swell up against her and her stronghold--will become like a prophetic dream and an oracular vision at night.
8. It will even be like when a hungry man dreams that he is eating, but then he wakes up and his appetite is in vain, or like when a thirsty man dreams that he is drinking, but then he wakes up and is fainting [from thirst] after all. This is how it will be for all the vast numbers of Gentiles who fight against Mount Tsion.
9. Linger and be dumbfounded! Smear your eyes shut and be blind! They are drunken, but it is not wine; they stagger, but it is not intoxicating beverage,
10. because YHWH has poured out upon you a spirit of deep sleep, and will cause your eyes to be tightly shut. He has caused the prophets and your heads, the seers, to be concealed.
Spirit of deep sleep: insensibility, intense shock, dulled senses; Aramaic, "deception". The original Hebrew uses the same word as for the "deep slumber" that YHWH brought over Adam when He wished to create Chavvah/Eve (Gen. 2:21); In Romans 11, Paul quotes this verse and explains how He again uses this method to produce a bride by "putting Israel to sleep"! Compare1 Sh'muel 26:12; Yochanan/John 11:11ff; 1 Thess. 4:14.11. So the whole vision has become for you like the words of a sealed book, which they give to one who is literate, saying, "Please read this", but he says, "I cannot, because it is sealed."
Is literate: Literally, "knows books". Only Yahshua can break the seal on a scroll in Revelation 5, which is probably the deed to the earth which Adam "sold". But it may also refer to the proper understanding of the Torah.12. Then the book is given to one who does not know book[s], saying, "Please read this", but he says, "I am illiterate."
I am illiterate: literally, "I do not know books": But perhaps in this case it is because the book is in Hebrew, and they have already begun to think like Gentiles.13. So YHWH says, "On account of the fact that this people has come close to Me with their mouth and honored Me with their lips, but have removed their heart far away from Me, and their respect for Me is drilled into them by the commandments of mortal men.
Yahshua quoted this in Matithyahu 15 in regard to the P'rushim (Pharisees). He quotes it as "teaching as doctrines the commandments of men" (quoting from the LXX, but in a slightly altered order). We have seen many other examples of that since, such as the Roman Catholic Church as well as the Jewish rabbis, who both say they can overrule the Scriptures for the sake of human traditions. (Mark 7:13) Hoshea was told that the remedy for this is to bring words back to YHWH as the sacrifice of our lips. (14:2)14. "So here I am, once more doing something hard to understand with this people--something hard to understand and extraordinary--because the wisdom of their learned men has been lost, and the discernment of those who have insight will hide itself.
Doing something hard: Aramaic, "striking with comprehensive strokes."15. Woe to those who go down to the depths to conceal their motives from YHWH, and have done their business in dark places, saying, "Who notices us?" or "Who [will] recognize us?"
Compare Psalm 94:7-15 and Y'hezq'el/Ezk. 8:12ff.16. Your turning things upside down will be considered like the potter's clay. For will the thing that is made say of its maker, "He did not make me"? Or will what is formed say of the one forming it, "He has no understanding"?
Or, "You are turning things upside down; will the clay be esteemed like the potter?" No understanding: the Aramaic targum adds, "of me".17. Isn't it only a very short while until Levanon returns to being an orchard, and the orchard will be counted as a forest?
Will be counted: Aramaic, "will cause many cities to be inhabited".18. And in that Day, the deaf will hear the words of a book, and out of unresponsiveness and darkness, the eyes of the blind, will see!
This is one of the verses Yahshua alluded to when Yochanan the Immerser asked Him (Luk. 7:19) whether He or another like Him was the one who is to come--i.e., if He was both the first and the second Messiah (i.e., "Son of Yoseyf", the suffering Servant, and the "Son of David", the conquering King). He answered by telling him of the miracles He was performing as signs, because they all foreshadowed the Kingdom when such healings would be the norm. Romans 11 tells us that the full understanding will not be restored to Israel until the "fullness of the Gentiles" (which is Efrayim's seed, Gen. 48:19) begins to return.19. Then in YHWH the afflicted will again end up having joy, and the abused of humanity will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel,
Abused of humanity: literally, the "poor/needy of Adam".20. because the ruthless has been brought to nothing, the boastful one has proven to be a failure, and all those who look for [opportunities to make] trouble have been cut off--
The boastful one: broadly, a generic term, but specifically the Counterfeit Messiah.21. those who induce a man to sin with a word, or lay a snare for one who convicts [them] in the gate, or cause the righteous to be turned aside by a fabrication.
Convicts: or reproves. In the gate: where the city's seat of judgment is, like a courtroom. Lay a snare: we saw the religious order trying over and over to do this to Yahshua. The righteous: Aramaic, "the innocent". Turned aside: either to change their minds about the verdict, or thrust aside, i.e., to have their case thrown out due to an "empty plea", defrauding them of their rights by "a meaningless argument", or literally, "that which is unreal".22. Therefore this is what YHWH--the One who redeemed Avraham--says to the House of Yaaqov: "Yaaqov will not be disappointed now, nor will his face grow pale now!
Be disappointed: or "blush from shame".23. "Because when he sees his children, the product of My hands, approaching him, they will be treating My Name as sacred, having come to regard the Holy One of Yaaqov as in a class of His own, and they will regard the Elohim of Israel with awe.
He will provide shepherds who do His will and truly feed His sheep. (Yirmiyahu 3:15-18) Efrayim will then say, "What do we have to do with idols?" (Hos. 14:8-9)24. "And those who go astray [in] spirit [will] have learned discernment by experience, and those who talk back will learn to take [control of their] words."
Take control of their words: or "accept instruction", "insight", "persuasiveness".
Insistent: "stubborn" or "rebellious". Pouring out a libation: possibly a customary part of making an alliance. But not of My spirit: Aram., "but do not ask of My prophets.2. who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking My advice, to be secure in Pharaoh's stronghold, and to seek refuge in the shadow of Egypt.
Seek refuge: from the threat of Sennacheriv of Assyria. It was all right for Yaaqov, Yaravam (Jeroboam), and even Yahshua's family to seek refuge there, since that was YHWH's will, but do not do so on your own. Egypt is often a picture of the church as sold out to the world system as opposed to being a continuum with the Temple. By doing so, it accepts rulers that are not of YHWH. Israel today is becoming more dependent on Christians and the United States, and therefore making compromises so as to survive economically and find ways around United Nations treaty "solutions".3. So Pharaoh's stronghold will become an embarrassment to you, and the refuge in Egypt's shadow, a disgrace,
4. because his princes were in Tsoan, and his messengers will reach Chanes.
Tsoan: Tanis, the capital of the Hyksos dynasty in Egypt. Chanes: possibly Tahpanhes, a fortified city on Egypt's eastern frontier.5. They were all dried up on account of a people who could not profit them--neither help nor profit--because [they brought] shame and even scorn.
6. A burden of beasts of [the] Negev is in the land of distress and pressure, a young lion and a crushing lion, a hissing snake and a fiery flying serpent. They will carry their wealth on the shoulders of donkey-colts, and their treasures on the humps of camels, to a people who will not benefit them--
Burden: "what they bear" (as the Aramaic takes it), but also perhaps "oracle", according to Yeshayahu's pattern (as the LXX renders it). Land of distress: Heb., tzarah, which forms part of the name of Egypt (Mitzrayim, or "two distresses", "two narrow places", perhaps referring to the two green strips between the Nile and the desert, but perhaps also alluding to two occasions when Israel was or will be in straits there).7. that is, Egypt: in vain and idly they will help. That is why I have called this proud bustling crowd [to] stop.
In vain: "like a vapor" or "breath"--the same as the name of Hevel, Adam and Chavvah's son. I have summoned this proud bustling crowd to cease: or, "I have cried out concerning this: their strength is to sit still!" I.e., as at the Red Sea, if they would only quiet down and watch, they would see YHWH's deliverance. (Compare v. 15) The word for "proud" or "strength" is Rahav, which is a legendary sea-monster associated with Egypt as well. In this context, it could read, "I have summoned this noisy Rahav to cessation." Or, "I called them Rahav". Stop: that is, abandon your trek to Egypt.8. Now come, write it on a slab near them and inscribe it in a book so that it may be for the lattermost day, so it continues to exist forever,
Forever: literally, "all the way up to the age", i.e., the Messianic Kingdom or the age to come following it.. So it continues to exist: Aramaic, "for a witness to me".9. because this is a rebellious people--deceptive sons, children who will not consent to listen to YHWH's instruction,
Instruction: Heb., torah.10. who tell the visionaries, "Do not have a vision!", and to the seers, "Do not have a straightforward perception for us; proclaim smooth things to us! Prophesy illusions!
Straightforward: or "correct". Smooth: slippery, flattering. Illusions: or "trifles", "deceit". In other words, present an unrealistic pipe dream, but give it the seal of authoritativeness by your office, so that we can imagine there is hope of it coming true. This sounds very much like today's "Visualize World Peace".11. "Turn aside from the path; stretch out from [that] way of life. Have the Holy One of Israel take a break from being in our face!"
12. Therefore, this is what the Holy One of Israel says: "On account of your rejecting this word, so that you may have bold confidence in extortion and devious ways, and may support yourselves on that,
13. "this is what will happen to you: this crookedness [will be] like a breach ready to fall, a bulge in a secure, high wall, whose crack comes upon [you] as a sudden surprise.
14. "And its rupture will be like a jar that the potters have broken in pieces. He will not have pity, so there will not be found among its fragments a shard [big enough] to snatch fire from a hearth or to skim water from a cistern."
15. For this is what Adonai YHWH, the Holy One of Israel, says: "By repenting and quieting down will you be delivered; your strength will be in being tranquil and trusting." But you were not willing,
Repenting: or "withdrawing", "turning back", i.e., from their journey from Egypt. It is not about how much noise we can make, but about returning to YHWH, and listening to Him. He doesn't need the press, but He will allow us to participate in His plan, on His terms.16. and you said, "No, we can flee on horseback!" So you will [indeed need to] flee. And [you said], "We will mount and ride the fleet-footed!" Therefore your pursuers will [also] be light-footed.
They want fleshly solutions, so they will have to test their natural strength against other natural powers that are superior to their own, and, as with Shimshon (Samson), their added supernatural strength would not be available once they decided to disobey.17. One thousand [will flee] from the presence of one's roar; you will flee from before the roar of five, until you have been left like a flagpole on the top of a mountain, or like a signpost on top of the hill.
One thousand will flee: compare Psalm 91. Flagpole: or "beacon". Signpost: or "rallying-point".18. YHWH will wait, longing to show you favor, and for this He will rise up to have mercy on you, because YHWH is an Elohim of justice; happy are those who wait for Him,
Gen. 49:17-18 contrasts the "snake" of Dan (a picture of the Counterfeit Messiah, whose ruse many will fall for) with waiting just a little longer for YHWH's true salvation (Heb., yeshuah).19. because the people in Tzion will dwell in Yerushalayim. You will no longer cry tears; He will indeed show you pity at the sound of your cry for help, and as [soon as] He hears, He will answer you.
20. Though Adonai has given you the bread of affliction and the waters of oppression, your teachers will no longer be hidden away in a corner; but instead your eyes will see your teachers,
Your teachers: Aramaic, "the Sh'kinah in the sanctuary".21. and your ears will hear a word from behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk on it", when you turn right or go left.
From behind: the direction from which a teacher goads one on. The way: the earliest disciples' name for the maner of "walking out the Torah" as taught by Yahshua.22. Then you will you will declare the metal plating of your silver engraved images and the decorative covering of your golden cast images to be defiled; you will throw them away like a menstruous cloth, and you will tell it, "Get out!"
This is the first thing He had told them upon entering the Land, but they went back and rebuilt them.23. Then He will [certainly] provide the rain [for] your seed, so you can sow the ground, and the bread of the yield of the ground, and it will be robust and plentiful. In that Day your cattle will graze spacious pastures!
24. Likewise, the oxen and young donkeys that work the soil will eat seasoned fodder that is winnowed with the shovel and the pitchfork.
I.e., they will not just eat the provender that humans would not eat, but choice grain will be plentiful enough for the animals to enjoy as well.25. Then on every high mountain and on every uplifted hill there will be [channeled] rivulets and [irrigated] streams of water in a day of abundant slaughter, when towers fall.
26. Then the light of the moon will be like the light of the hot sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times as [bright], like the light of the seven days, on the day when YHWH binds up the fracture of His people, and heals a severe wound [from] His blow.
Binds up the fracture: or "restrains the breach" (as in vv. 13-14).27. Behold, the Name of YHWH comes from far away; His anger has been kindled, and its burden is heavy. His lips are full of rage, and His tongue like a devouring fire!
Its burden is heavy: or "its uplift is vehement".28. His breath also is like a torrent that sweeps in up to the neck. He will divide nations to sift [them] in the sieve of worthlessness, and a halter in the jaws of peoples that leads them off course.
29. The song you will have will be like the night when a feast is consecrated, and gladness of heart like one who marches with a flute to the Mountain of YHWH, toward the Rock of Israel.
These are customs from the feast of Sukkoth.30. Then YHWH will make the majesty of His voice heard, and will make the lowering of His arm to be seen with [the] rage of [the] nostril, with the flame of a devouring fire, with cloudburst and flood and hailstone,
Hailstone: or a meteorite.31. for by the voice of YHWH the Assyrian who was attacking with a club will be shattered.
32. And every [time] the foundation-laying rod which YHWH will lay on it passes over, it will be with tambourines and harps, and with battles of brandishing He has waged war,
Tambourines: or any percussion instruments. Harps: any stringed instruments that "twang". Brandishing: the same word for "wave offerings". So a spiritual battle is carried out through music and worship. (Note the example of this in 2 Chron. 20.)33. because Tofeth is being prepared in advance; indeed, it is being made ready for the King! He has made it deep and broad; its burning-pyre [is] piled high with wood. [The blast of] YHWH's breath burns it up like a seam of brimstone!
Tofeth: the site of this future judgment at the confluence of the Hinnom Valley [Ge-henna] and the Qidron (known as the "Valley of the Shadow of Death").
A letter from Akizzi, prince of Qatna, Syria around 1350 B.C.E., says to the Pharaoh of his day, "I am your servant, and, my master, you must not let me go from your hand… I have put my trust in my master, his troops, and in his chariots." Though this was probably a common formula for "buttering up" one's suzerain, that the letter was apparently unanswered and the city was destroyed by Babylon. (Archaeology magazine, Jan./Feb. 2007) goes to prove Yeshayahu's point. Go down: Relying on anything less than YHWH is a descent. Hagar, Sarai's servant, went down to Egypt for help, but YHWH turned her back to the household where she now belonged. (Gen. 16) In the same way, YHWH's congregations have turned back to the Babylonian-Egyptian-Roman system, because there is power in numbers. When confronted with what Scripture really says, many say, "Let me ask my pastor about this." But pastors are often swayed by what will keep more sheep in the fold; it is YHWH whom we must seek instead. We must not even trust in any Israelite organizations, but only YHWH Himself.2. He, too, is shrewd, and will bring what is disagreeable, and has not retracted His words, but has taken His stand against the house of evildoers and against the one who helps those who do mischief.
LXX, "Therefore He is wise in bringing evils upon them, and His word will not be frustrated."3. Moreover, Egypt is human and not divine, and their horses are flesh and not spirit. When YHWH stretches out His hand, both the helper will stumble and the one who is helped will fall down, and they will all come to an end together,
Flesh and not spirit: This is the story of Yishmael, the child born when Avram tried to fulfill a vision YHWH had given, but by his own natural ingenuity. (Gen. 16)4. because this is what YHWH has said: "Just as the lion or young lion growls against its prey, and though a band of shepherds is called out against it, will not be discouraged by their voice or slowed down by the noise they [make], likewise YHWH of Armies will descend to wage war on account of Mount Tzion and its hill.
"Why do the nations rage, and the peoples imagine a vain thing?" (Psalm 2) Band: literally, "fullness". YHWH's intentions in regard to Israel will be opposed, and it is shepherds (pastors) who try to prevent Israel from being reunited, but that will not deter Him. (See Y'chezq'el/Ezek. 34) But we too, must keep our eye on the prize and ignore the threats. On account of Mount Tzion and its hill: or, "against Mount Tzion and its place of illicit worship".5. "Like flying birds is how YHWH will bring defensive cover over Yerushalayim. In shielding [it] He will also rescue it, and by passing over it, He will let it escape.
Shielding it: or "hedging it about" or "encompassing it", like a sheepfold. Becoming a dwelling place is our deliverance. Angus Wootten says this verse was in part fulfilled during World War I by British General Allenby, who sent airplanes over Yerushalayim, dropping leaflets in Arabic stating that it was time for the Arabs to surrender the city. It was taken without a battle because in Arabic his name appeared like "Allah's prophet" and there was an Arab prophecy that sais that the Muslims would occupy the city until the waters of Egypt were brought into Palestine. Allenby had done just that through a pipeline from the Gulf of Suez to Beersheva. Let it escape: or "cause it to give birth". Defensive cover: In the war on Afghanistan, it has already become evident that even with modern weaponry, cloud cover is a major deterrent to many military maneuvers, and if Israel is again protected by a cloud and fire as in the wilderness the first time, the unified world's army will be held at bay.6. "Turn back to Him [against whom] the sons of Israel have made a deep defection!
Defection: or "apostasy", "withdrawal", "revolt"--a deliberate rebellion, not just veering off course.7. "Because in that Day, each [one] will despise his worthless [images] of silver and his idols of gold, which your hands have made for yourselves--a missing of the target!
Worthless images: or "good-for-nothings", with the sense of not really existing. Modern examples might be things like artificial intelligence, credit cards, or virtual reality. Even our money is no longer really worth anything concrete. Mammon is always deceitful. Missing the target: or "sin", which is defined as breaking YHWH's law, so we might do better to think of it in terms of "crime". But despising the worthless things we have relied on is part of repentance and the road back to being counted guiltless. Of course it is better to never sin at all, but as long as we make the required restitution, Torah is upheld, and we can again, like many in the Hebrew Scriptures, be called "blameless"--and all the more so with the overwhelming atonement provided through Yahshua's blood. (Hebrews 10)8. "Then will Ashur fall, but not by a man's sword, and a sword not of humanity will devour it, and he will flee to Him from the presence of a sword, and its choice young men will become a gang of forced laborers.
Ashur: or "the Assyrian".9. "And it will cross over to its cliff [of safety] as a refugee, and its princes have become dismayed at the signal", declares YHWH, whose firelight is in Tzion and whose kindling-place is in Yerushalayim.
As a refugee: or "from terror", but with the sense of sojourning away from home. LXX: "They will be surrounded with rocks as with a trench, and shall be worsted." Signal: "rallying point", "banner", or "miraculous sign". Kindling-place: or "furnace", which finally burns off the dross and purifies us. It also recalls the torch and smoking furnace in Avram's covenant-vision, which was fulfilled in Yerushalayim.
Aramaic: "...and the righteous will be exalted to take a just retribution from the Gentiles."2. Then a man will become like a hiding place from the wind and a shelter from the storm, like rivulets of water in a dry place, like the shade of a heavy rock in a weary land.
A man: the king, specifically Yahshua. Will become a hiding place: LXX, "will hide his words". A dry place: Heb., Tzion, which is how the LXX takes it. A heavy rock: Such a rock cannot be taken away.3. And the eyes of those who see will not avert their gaze, and the ears of those who listen will incline [attentively],
LXX: "And they will no longer trust in men..."4. and the heart of the one who acts rashly will begin to understand how to discern, and the tongue of those who speak inarticulately will be quick to speak clearly.
5. The fool will no longer be called noble, nor the scoundrel said to be generous,
Be called noble: LXX, "be told to rule". Scoundrel: literally, "one who withholds"; there are numerous proverbs that parallel this. Yahshua also reminded the leaders in His Kingdom not to be like the rulers of the Gentiles who "lord it over" those who call them "benefactors" or "philanthropists". (Luke 22:25-26)6. because the fool will speak foolishness, and his mind will fashion mischief to carry out profane acts and to speak perverse things against YHWH, [with the effect of] keeping the hungry person's soul empty and cause the drinking vessel of the thirsty one to be lacking.
Foolishness: senselessness, disgrace, profane things. Soul: or appetite. If we twist YHWH's words, though we appear to be feeding someone, it is just "empty calories".7. The scoundrel's tools are evil; he invents wicked plots to bring the humble to ruin with deceptive promises, even when the needy says what is proper.
Says what is proper: or perhaps, "threatens justice".8. The generous person, on the other hand, invents noble things, and by his generosity he will be established.
Invents noble things: or "counsels giving". A Hebrew idiom for a generous person is that "He has a good eye." Yahshua said this was the key to one's whole life being full of light. (Luke 11:34) It goes far beyond money; sons of the Kingdom are not taxed. It applies with time, patience, edification, teaching, and giving of ourselves in general. It is a kingdom law to keep giving out what we receive, both so it can flow on to others and so we have room to receive the "more" that He wants to give us. Otherwise, we become like the Dead Sea, having no outlet and no life.9. Get up, [you] women who rest securely [in your arrogance]! Listen to My voice, complacent daughters; cup your ear to what I utter!
Women: Aramaic, "provinces". Securely: Security is the demon who perhaps receives more acclaim than any other today. But it turns out to be a cruel taskmaster that fattens us up like a calf for slaughter. YHWH has just told us (v. 8) where the real security is. We are free to choose into which our energy and resources will go. Security is no match for YHWH, unless we give it permission to be. Daughters: Aramaic, "fortresses". But Yehudah and Efrayim are also called YHWH's daughters by the prophets. Complacent: confident enough to be careless. What I utter: or "My speech"--an idiom also for the Torah.10. [For] days on a year will you be disquieted, O confident women, because the vintage has failed; the gathering [of the harvest] will not come.
Days on a year: LXX, "a full year", or possibly "[just a few] days over a year". We may seem to have it made, since if all else fails, the government usually picks up the basics for our survival. But this, too, will ultimately prove unreliable.11. Tremble, you women who rest securely; be disquieted, you confident women, to [the point of] stripping and lay yourselves bare, but cover your loins of delivery [with sackcloth],
12. mourning over the breasts, over the desirable fields, over the fruitful vine.
Breasts: i.e., that are now unused (v. 11); LXX, "beat on your breasts". Fields: from a word meaning "spread out", possibly alluding to the childbirth process. Vine: perhaps an idiom for the umbilical cord.13. Thorns and briers will spring up on My people's ground, because [they will be] upon all the houses of rejoicing in the triumphant city,
Thorns and briers: The same curse that followed Adam's sin in Eden.14. because [the] palace has been abandoned; the city's crowd has been deserted. The towers and lookout stations have instead become dens--[the] joy of wild donkeys, a feeding-place for flocks--for an age,
Palace has been abandoned. For an age: or "perpetually", but a time limit is set (v. 15); literally, "until an age". Wild donkeys: what Yishmael was called, so perhaps this refers to the fact that Yerushalayim was inhabited by his descendants for many centuries.15. until the spirit from on high will be poured out on us, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful plantation, and the orchard will be counted as a forest.
This curse is thawing out already in our day, as the spring of this spirit of repentance is beginning to come.16. Then justice will be at home in the wilderness, and righteousness will settle in the fruitful plantation,
Justice will be at home in the wilderness: there will be no more highway robbery, but the word for "justice" also means "a correct system of rulings", so this also refers to the time when both houses of Israel are back together under one king, and He puts in place or confirms a framework that is really viable.17. and the product of righteousness will be total well-being, and the effect of the righteousness, tranquility and security forever.
18. Then My people will remain in a peaceful home, in secure dwelling places and in quiet rest without a care,
19. though it hails when the forest is felled, and the city in the lowland sinks down.
LXX: "If the hail should come down, it will not come upon you, and they that dwell in the forests will be in confidence, like those in the open country." Aramaic, "Hail will come down and kill the armies of the Gentiles", reminiscent of Yehoshua chapter 10.20. You who sow beside any waters are blessed, you who send forth the feet of ox and donkey.
Sow beside waters: compare Psalm 1. Isaiah spent much time in the palace, which was quite close to the Temple, so he was very familiar with many psalms and proverbs, to which he often alludes. Send forth: the Aramaic adds "to gather". When crops are plentiful and abundant, the animals can be allowed to roam the fields and eat, with no substantial loss being felt by their owners. Ox and donkey are also sometimes metaphors for the two houses of Israel.
Woe...despoiled: LXX, "Woe to those who afflict you; but no one makes you miserable." Aramaic, "Woe to you who come to plunder; will they not plunder you?" When you complete...: LXX, "like a moth on a garment, so shall they be spoiled."2. O YHWH, look upon us with favor! We have waited expectantly for You! Be their arm in the mornings, our deliverance also when [we are] in straits.
Favor: or "grace"; LXX, "mercy". Arm: i.e., strength. For You: Aramaic, "for your Memra" (living Word). We have waited: compare Yaaqov's prophecy in regard to Dan in Gen. 49:16-18. It appears he is contrasting the Counterfeit Messiah, whom tradition says will come from the tribe of Dan, with the true Messiah, who will come only a short time afterward for those willing to persevere just a little while longer.3. At the sound of the roaring crowd, the peoples retreated; nations were scattered because You raised Yourself up.
Raised Yourself up: when He bursts forth from the Tabernacle upon the nations who are besieging Israel in the latter days, shocking them with the fact that He is indeed real--and on Israel's side--after all. (26:21)4. Your plunder will be gathered [like] the caterpillar gathers, running to and fro on it just as locusts run to and fro.
LXX, "...as if one could gather locusts; so shall they mock you." Aramaic, "Israel will gather the possessions of the Gentiles."5. YHWH is inaccesibly high, because He resides on the elevated place. He has filled Tzion with just rulings and righteousness,
He resides: Aramaic, "He causes His Sh'khinah to dwell..."6. and He has become the fixed point of your experiences--a treasure-store of deliverance, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of YHWH is His supply.
Fixed point of your experiences: Aramaic, "That which You promised, You will bring and establish in its time." A treasure-store...supply: LXX, "Salvation is our treasure. There are wisdom and knowledge and piety toward YHWH; these are the treasures of righteousness." The fear of YHWH: See Prov. 9:10.7. Behold, their valiant heroes are crying for help on the outside; the ambassadors of peace will shed bitter tears.
This is reminiscent of the legends of the people who knocked on the door of Noach's ark, and may be the "outer darkness" to which Yahshua refers. Ambassadors of peace: i.e., they are begging with tears for a truce so that their lives will at least be spared. Also, "peace" is the Counterfeit Messiah's deceitful tactic (Dan. 8:25), and we already see this concept of "peace ambassadors" and "peace-keeping forces". Aram., "Those who went to announce peace return to weeping in soulful bitterness."8. The highways have become deserted; [people] have stopped travelling the roads. He has violated the covenant. He has despised cities; he regards mortal man as of no account.
Travelling the roads": or "transgressing the way". Violated: Aramaic, "changed" (truly a characteristic of the counterfeit Messiah, Dan. 7:25); LXX: "The covenant with these is taken away, and you shall by no means deem them men." So while the "he" here is probably primarily speaking of the Counterfeit Messiah, the final instance may refer to YHWH. Just as some meats are not considered food for Israelites, when YHWH has decreed a particular group's destruction, they are no longer to be treated as "people".9. The land has been mourning and growing feeble; Levanon demonstrates shame and has decayed. Sharon is like a sparsely-vegetated plain; Bashan shakes off [its fruit] along with Karmel.
Sharon: the very fruitful coastal plain. Sparsely-vegetated plain: LXX, "marshes". Bashan: the Golan Heights where some of the best rainfall and runoff water is found in Israel. Karmel: a mountain range dividing the Yezreel Valley from the Sharon. I.e., even these have become drought-ridden because those who occupied the Land were earth-worshippers and thus the earth cannot be allowed to respond to them.10. "Now I will rise up", says YHWH. "Now I will be lifted up; now I will be exalted!
11. "You will conceive dry grass; you will give birth to stubble; your breath, like fire, will devour you.
Dry grass: Aramaic, "wicked conceptions". LXX: "...Now you will see; the strength of your breath will be vain."12. "The peoples will be the burnings of lime; like thorns that are cut off, they will be burned with fire.
Burnings of lime: Some plaster was made by burning bones.13. "You who are far off, listen to what I have done! And you who are nearby, acknowledge My mighty deed!"
Aramaic, "Hear, you righteous, who have kept My law from the beginning..., and you who have turned back to the law recently..."14. The offenders in Tzion have become terrified; trembling has seized the faithless: "Which of us can remain [with] a consuming fire? Which of us can live with them burning all the time?"
Faithless: irreligious, profane, or hypocritical. They no longer consider Yerushalayim a "nice place to live"! Or perhaps, "Who among us can survive this consuming fire...everlasting burning?", with the answer found in the next verse. Therefore these verses, while having primarily a frame of reference in the days still to come, have an immediacy for us now, who need to already be preparing to be those survivors.15. The one who walks righteously and speaks from uprightnesses, who despises unjust gain gotten through extortion, who signals with his hands that he will not take hold of a bribe, who stops his ears from consenting to bloodshed, who shuts his eyes so he will not see what is evil.
Unjust gain: Aram., "Mammon of deceit". Consenting to bloodshed includes gossip; the rabbis say unjustly bringing blood to one's face is equivalent to murder. (Mat. 5:22; Prov. 18:21; Yaqv./James 3:5-8)16. He [is the one who] will dwell on the heights; his secure refuge will be strongholds of rocks. His bread will be provided; his waters are guaranteed.
Heights: LXX, "high cave". Rocks: the plural form of the Hebrew name of the Nabatean fortress, Petra. Thus this appears to be the time when Israel is reunited and renews the covenant of "marriage" to YHWH (through His visible Messiah) in the wilderness (v. 17). Bread: Perhaps it will be manna again! Guaranteed: faithful, lasting, confirmed, reliable.17. Your eyes will behold the King in His pleasant appearance; they will perceive a land of far-off places.
18. Your heart will imagine a terror: "Now where is the one who does the counting? Where is the one who does the weighing out? Where is the one who takes account of the towers?"
Aramaic: "Your mind will reckon up great things... Let them come if they can reckon the number of the slain heads of the armies of the mighty ones." I.e., "towers" is an idiom for great leaders.19. You will not see a barbarous people--a people of deeper speech than you can understand, of a stammering tongue that there's no telling [what it means].
A barbarous people: Aram., "the mastery of a strong people". Deeper: i.e., unfathomable, unintelligible; Aramaic, "obscure". Stammering...means: or, "a mocking tongue that has no discernment" (as the Aramaic does interpret it). The LXX gives the sense of not counting the growing people with whom no counsel was taken. After YHWH roars forth, those who were provided for in the wilderness will start moving toward their home (v. 20), but will expect to encounter battle on the way, but instead they will find that YHWH has already brought about their defeat, and we only need to carry out the mop-up assignments.20. Behold Tzion, town of our appointed meetings! Your eyes will see Yerushalayim, a secure home, a tent that will not travel on; not one of its stakes will ever be pulled up, nor any of its cords ever snapped.
Secure home: a place of quietness where one can be at ease; the term "home" can mean "abode of shepherds" or "pasture", so it includes the idea of plentiful provision; LXX, "a rich city". Aramaic, "in its prosperity, in its contentedness". A tent: probably the Tabernacle, which has again been moving throughout the wilderness with His people, but now has reached its final resting-place.21. But though the majestic YHWH is for us a place of rivers with spacious channels in both directions, no galley with oars will ever travel in it, nor any gallant ship pass through it,
Directions: literally, "hands". Galley with oars: Aramaic, "fisherman's ship". Gallant ship: Aram., "sailboat". Perhaps merchant vessels, since there will no longer be merchants in His house in that Day (Zech. 14:21), or warships, since no one will destroy on His holy mountain anymore. (Yeshayahu 11:9) In any case, Yerushalaym will no longer depend on foreign trade, but will be brought tribute from every nation. (Rev. 21:24)22. because YHWH is our governing judge, YHWH is the one who enacts our decrees, YHWH is our King; He will give us the victory!
Victory: or "deliverance". (Heb., Yeshuah)23. Your tacklings have been allowed to go slack; they were too worn out to sustain their mast-pedestal. They could no longer spread out the sail. That is when the spoils of a tremendous plunder will be shared; the lame will seize the booty.
Your: Aramaic, "the Gentiles'". The lame: among the Israelites. (Aram.)24. No one who lives [there] will say, "I have become sick." The nation that settles there will have the guilt of their perversity forgiven.
Sick: The tree of life, on both sides of the river (v. 21, brings healing to the nations (Rev. 22:2). "Nations" can also mean "tribes", and this seems to fit, since each of the gates to the city is named after one of the tribes of Israel. The Aramaic interpretation of the final sentence says, "The people, the house of Israel, will be gathered and return to their place, forgiven of their sins."
2. because wrath belongs to YHWH; [it] is upon all the nations, and burning rage upon all their army. He has dedicated them to destruction; He has given them over to be slaughtered,
Army (singular): All the nations have become one army by this time, united against YHWH's last vestige of rule on earth.3. and their slain will be thrown out, and their stench will rise up from their corpses, until the mountains have melted away from their blood,
4. and the hosts of heaven have been consumed away, and the heavens rolled up like a scroll, and all their hosts will drop down as a leaf falls from a vine, and like what drops off a fig tree.
Hosts: LXX, "powers"; Aramaic, "forces". Though this may in some sense include the "stars" (i.e., meteorites, etc.), its primary meaning is probably the minions of the "Prince of the Power of the Air". Rolled up like a scroll: The "book" is closed on them.5. When My sword has become saturated in the sky, then indeed it will descend upon Edom, that is upon, the people that I have devoted to the execution of justice.
Saturated: or drunken. Edom: Where the unified world army will be besieging Israel at that time.6. YHWH has a sword; it is filled with blood. It has gorged itself with the choicest--the blood of plump lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams, because YHWH has a sacrifice [to offer] in Botzrah, and a massive slaughter in the land of Edom.
Botzrah: its name means "sheepfold", which fits with all of these clean animals mentioned here. But is also the name of a town north of Petra and south of the Dead Sea, where the world army (v. 1-2) will be assembled for the purpose of capturing Israel for its cause or else destroying it (ch. 16), but YHWH sees them as assembled for more efficient slaughter. The Aramaic targum indeed interprets these (clean) animals as representing kings and rulers (in v. 7 as well).7. With them the unicorns will descend, along with the bulls and the valiant ones, and their land is drenched with blood and their dust made prosperous with their fat,
Unicorns: or possibly some other extinct animal. Descend: LXX, "fall". Valiant: or obstinate. Perhaps "prosperous" here means "fertile" due to all this "organic material", but vv. 9-17 makes it appear that it will not be used for agriculture.8. because YHWH has a day of vengeance, a year of [complete] compensation for the dispute [over] Tzion.
Aramaic: "to take just retribution for the mortification of Tzion". These nations, especially the Edomites (Y'chezq'el 36:5) will "divide His land" (Yoel 3:2)--which is not their right to do, this time. We see the incipient stages of this already.9. Then its rivers will be turned to tar, and its dust into brimstone, and its land will become burning asphalt.
Turned: or "overthrown", reminiscent of S'dom and Ghamorah. Brimstone: or sulfur.10. It will not be extinguished night or day; its smoke will ascend for a long time. From generation to generation it will be desolate; for enduring perpetuities no one will pass through it.
This is alluded to in Rev. 14:11 in relation to those who worship the Beast (the Babylonian system).11. But what will have inherited possession of it are a pelican and a hedgehog; an eared owl and a raven will inhabit it. Then He will hold out over it the measuring line of chaos and the [plummet] stones of emptiness.
Measuring line...plummet stones: contrast those used in Yerushalayim. (28:17) Chaos: Heb., tohu. Emptiness: or "waste"; Heb., bohu. These two terms were used of what the earth became (Gen. 1:2) after a cataclysmic judgment and just before being reconstituted for the use of humanity. Here, the scenario is again one of a complete purging by fire after a great battle so that something new may arise--the Kingdom (v. 12) of Messiah, which is also called "the time of the restoration of all things"--even, dare we say, Eden itself. These animals may represent people inhabited by demons, so what is given to them is fire and brimstone.12. Its nobles? There are none there! They will summon [them to a] royal office, but all her princes will have been brought to nothing.
Aramaic: "They were saying, 'We are free', and did not wish to accept a kingdom over them…"13. Rather, what will have come up in its palaces are thorns, and in its strongholds, stinging nettles and bramble-bushes. It will have become an abode of great reptiles, a haunt of daughters of the owl.
Great reptiles: perhaps typical desert lizards, but the word can even mean "dragons", always an idiom for demonic beings. Daughters of the owl: perhaps an ostrich, but in any case an unclean bird, as are all of the animals listed after verse 7.14. The wild yelping beasts of the desert will meet up with the howling beasts of the islands, and the shaggy goat will call out to its fellow. The screech owl will also repose there, and find a resting-place for herself.
Howling beasts of the islands: Aramaic, "cats"; LXX, "devils". Shaggy goats: LXX, "satyrs", another reference to demons (which is exactly how the Aramaic targum translated it.) Screech owl: Heb., Lilith, a term often used for a female goddess known to be a nocturnal demon, to which the owl is analogous; Aramaic, "night hags". Compare Rev. 16:13-14; 18:2.15. There the springing arrow snake will make her nest, lay [eggs] and hatch [them], and gather her brood under her [protective] shadow. There the birds of prey will also be assembled, each with her mate.
Birds of prey…assembled: Compare Mat. 24:28; Luk. 17:37, especially in the context of v. 3 above. LXX, "deer".16. Consult [what is] upon the Book of YHWH, and read: not one of these shall be lacking nor search in vain for her mate, because He has appointed my mouth, and His Spirit is what has assembled them,
Not one shall be lacking its mate: just as in Genesis 1-2, for this is the time of re-creation, but those who opposed YHWH--and their mates--are placed in a low position because that is what they chose. (33:14ff).17. and He has made the lot fall to them, and His hand has apportioned it to them with a measuring line. They will possess it until the age; to generation upon generation will they establish their dwelling therein.
Aravah: the steppe, a transitional zone of mixed desert and vegetation in the Great Rift Valley.2. It will break forth into bloom and rejoice--with oh, such joy and [exuberant] singing! The glory of Levanon will be given to her--the splendor of Karmel and Sharon! There they will see the glory of YHWH and the splendor of our Elohim.
Glory of Levanon: At this time, prior to 701 B.C. when there was a 6-degree shift in the earth's axis, Israel and Levanon had a climate much more like northern California's, rather than like southern California's as they do today, so the cedars of Levanon probably grew to be as large and lush as the Redwoods. The Aravah, where not irrigated, just grows small, sparse trees, but Sharon is a major orange-growing area from which large amounts are exported, and is very well-watered.3. Strengthen the slack hands and firm up the weak knees!
This is quoted in Hebrews 12:12 in relation to YHWH's discipline. One can respond with gloom and depression,yet never change, or with a resolve to correct the problem He was addressing so we will be what we were meant to be. Here, it is also a message to those in need of encouragement while being besieged, for soon they will have a massive cleanup and revitalization project to carry out, and will need all the energy they can get!4. Say to the anxious of heart, "Be strong; do not be afraid. Behold, your Elohim will come [with a] vengeance; [with] a full payback He will come and rescue you!
Anxious: impetuous, hurried, hasty, or nervous. The truth will set us free; the facts can make us confident even in threatening situations.5. Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Unstopped: thrown open or let loose. These are all signs of the coming of the Kingdom which Yahshua used to demonstrate His credentials as Messiah.6. At that time the limping man will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will give a resounding shout, when waters have burst forth in the wilderness, and torrents in the Aravah,
Leap like a deer: at first a deer's legs are wobbly, but within minutes of birth, it can walk with sure-footedness. A lame man who leaped was a sign to those in the Temple that Kefa (Peter) and Yochanan were carrying on Yahshua's work of proclaiming the Kingdom that many opted to defer (Acts 3:7-8), delaying it until there was another opening in our own day. Interestingly, Acts 3 specifically mentions that the man's feet and ankle bones were made firm. (Compare v. 3 above.)7. and the mirage has become a pond, and the parched ground a bubbling fountain of water; in the abode of great reptiles, a place of vegetation where reeds and bulrushes can spread.
Parched: literally, "thirsty". The desert lizards (34:13) will have to give way to marsh animals.8. And there will be a high road and a pathway there, and it will be called the "Way of Holiness", and the defiled will not travel on it, nor shall it be for them. Those who walk on the path, even [if they are] fools, will not go astray.
If "even a fool, if he keeps silent, will be considered wise" (Prov.17:28), then even those of minimal intelligence will stay on track if they stay within the guidelines YHWH has set up in His Torah--the "guard rails" and "lane markers" on this highway.9. There will be no lion there, nor will any violent beast ascend onto it; not one will be found. Rather, the redeemed will walk there.
10. And those ransomed by YHWH will return and come to Tzion with loud songs of joy, and everlasting cheer upon their heads. Gladness and rejoicing will overtake them, and grief and moaning will disappear.
Ransomed: or rescued, i.e., from all the enemies who only a short while ago were encroaching on them, threatening to destroy every remnant of the holy people. Grief…disappear: or "sorrow and sighing will flee away."
Hizqiyahu was the 12th king of Yehudah. Sennacheriv reigned from 705-681 B.C.E. Fortified: i.e., walled off.2. Then the King of Ashur sent Ravshaqeh, from Lakhish to King Hizqiyahu in Yerushalayim with a massive force while he was standing by the conduit of the upper pool of the launderers' field toward the highway.
Ravshaqeh: sounds like "chief cupbearer" in Hebrew, but may have a different meaning in Assyrian. Conduit: compare 7:3.3. Then Elyaqim, son of Chilqiyahu, who was over the House, and Shevna the scribe, and Yoach, son of Asaf, the chronicler.
Elyaqim means "Elohim raises [him] up." Chilqiyahu means "YHWH is my portion". Over the House: that is, the Temple. He was a high priest. (22:20; 2 Kings 22:8-10; 2 Chron. 34) Shevna means "growing vigorously", and Yoach, "Yahweh is a brother". Asaf means "gatherer".4. And Ravshaqeh said to them, "Please tell Hizqiyahu, 'This is what the great king, the King of Ashur, says: "What is this confidence [with] which you are [so] bold?
5. "'"Is what I have said [in regard to] advisement and strength for battle but words of the lips? On whom are you relying now, since you have revolted against me?
Aramaic: "I say indeed, as speech of lips, with strategy and power I will make war."6. "'"You are, after all, relying on the support of this broken stalk--on Egypt--which, if a man leans on it, it will go into his palm and poke a hole in it! That's what Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, is like for all who rely on him!
He assumed that since Chizqiyahu had rebelled against him, he must have been allied with the only other major power in the region. This was not necessarily true, as he would learn. But he was right in saying that Egypt was not ultimately reliable. But Chizqiyahu had a "secret weapon".7. "'"But if you tell me, 'It is YHWH, our Elohim, in whom we trust', isn't He the one whose cultic platforms and altars Hizqiyahu has abolished and told Yehudah and Yerushalayim, 'You must bow down before this altar'?
This sounds very much like the apparent contradiction the world perceives when they hear us say, "We no longer worship 'God' or 'Jesus'", or "We do not celebrate Christmas." They may think we are now allied with the "more tolerant" New Age Movement, or are simply atheists. But none of these are true. We, like Hizqiyahu, have simply tightened up our obedience to the one we knew in part but inaccurately. The Ravshaqeh wanted to use Hizqiyahu's "restrictions of their freedom" to his advantage the way people say we are now "under the Law" in order to keep us from being as set-apart as YHWH desires, for the one-world religion espouses the "mystery of lawlessness" so often warned about in the Renewed Covenant.8. "'"So now, please make a tradeoff with my master, the King of Ashur: I will give you two thousand horses if you are able on your part to put riders on them!
Make a tradeoff: literally, "exchange pledges". Aramaic, "a wager".9. "'"How could you even repulse the face of a captain--one of the least of my master's servants--when you put your trust in Egypt for chariots and warhorses?
10. "'"And now is it indeed apart from YHWH that I have come up against this land to destroy it? YHWH [is the very one who] told me to go up against this land and destroy it!"'"
Newly "Christian" Emperor Constantine said the same to the Jews: "[YHWH] is with us now, and He wants me to carry out vengeance upon you!"11. But Elyaqim, Shevna, and Yoach told Ravshaqeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, because we understand [it], and do not speak to us in the language of Yehudah, within earshot of the people on the wall."
They were concerned that those who were not leaders with the same resolve that they had would be disheartened, and the fear would spread and defeat them before there was even a fight. (Compare Deut. 20:5-7) This is why YHWH is re-establishing authorities in restored Israel today who are not motivated by fear and are strong enough to not let "just anyone" come in the door and start talking to the "sheep".12. But Ravshaqeh said, "Has my master sent me to speak these words to your master and to yourselves? Isn't it to the people who are sitting on the wall, [who are doomed] to eat their own feces and drink their own urine along with yourselves?"
Eat...feces and drink...urine: The terms he uses are the most vulgar ones. This is normally what a siege would bring people to do, usually being a last straw that makes them surrender. But this was mere verbal intimidation. The Ravshaqeh had done significant research about the people of Yerushalayim, but he did not have all the facts straight, and thus was overconfident. But he tailored his approach to what he knew would touch a nerve, just as our enemy does not waste his ammunition on our most strongly-defended areas. Nehemyah faced several similar challenges (chapters 3-6), and his responses are very instructive for us.13. And Ravshaqeh stood up and called out with a loud voice in the language of Yehudah, saying, "Heed the words of the great king, the King of Ashur!
Ravshaqeh was putting words in his master's mouth, based on his own reactions to the people. But he was authorized to do so by the laws of agency, since he knew it was consistent with the character of his master. Yahshua spoke for YHWH in the same way--knowledgably.14. "Thus says the king: 'Don't let Hizqiyahu deceive you, because he won't be able to rescue you!
15. "'Don't let Hizqiyahu make you feel safe, either, saying, "YHWH will certainly rescue us! This city will not be given over into the hand of the King of Ashur."'
16. "Don't listen to Hizqiyahu, because this is what the King of Ashur says: 'Do yourselves a favor and come out to me! Then each of you can eat of his own vine and his own fig tree, and each drink water from his own cistern
Do yourselves a favor: literally, "Deal a blessing." His offer was a mimicry of what YHWH promised for His Kingdom (Micha 4:4). This is the pattern haSatan used when tempting Yahshua.17. "'until I come and take you to a land like your own, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards!
Here the counterfeit shows up again: he offers a "reasonable facsimile" as a substitute. "It's just like your land!" The problem is, it still isn't our land. This was a common Assyrian tactic: in order to make his empire more homogeneous, Sennacheriv removed people from their land and thus ostensibly from their gods, assuming each had jurisdiction over only its own limited territory, so they would be easier to mold into people loyal to himself and less distinctive. He did not realize that YHWH had jurisdiction well beyond the Land He specially marked out as His own.18. "'Lest Hizqiyahu allure you, saying, "YHWH will rescue us", [I ask], has the mighty ones of any of the nations rescued his land from the hand of the King of Ashur?
One of the enemy's most common "divide and conquer" tactics is to make us distrust the leaders YHWH has set in place. (e.g., Numbers chapters 12 and 16.)19. "'Where are the mighty ones of Chamath and Arpad [now]? Where are the mighty ones of S'farvaim? And when did they ever deliver Shomron from my hand?
Chamath, Arpad, S'farvaim: other capital cities Sennacheriv had conquered. Shomron: Now he hits close to home, and as much as asks whether even YHWH bothered to spare His other nation from the Assyrians. But they had been captured because of their sin; Hizqiyahu was not deserving of the same end.20. "'Who among the migty ones of any of these lands has rescued their land from my hand, that YHWH should deliver Yerushalayim from my hand?'"
21. But they kept silent and did not answer him a word, because the king's command was, "Do not respond to him."
22. Then Elyaqim, son of Chilqiyahu, who was over the House, and Shevna the scribe, and Yoach the son of Asaf, the chronicler, came to Hizqiyahu with torn garments to inform him of the words of Ravshaqeh.
Torn garments: a sign of deeply serious concern or mourning.
2. And he sent Elyaqim, who was over the House, Shevna the scribe, and the elders among the cohanim, covered with burlap, to Yeshayahu the son of Amotz, the prophet,
3. and they told him, "This is what Hizqiyahu says: 'This day is a day of distress, reproof, and an occasion for contempt, because children have come to the place of breaking forth, but there is no strength to give birth!
An occasion for contempt: Aramaic, "disgrace". If we rely on our own strength, there is insufficient power. A baby would die quickly if stuck in the birth canal, so this is a matter of desperate urgency. But this is a foreshadowing of the "Birthpangs of the Messiah", when many antagonistic factors will cast doubt on the viable "birth" of the One New Man, the reunited Israel, the Messianic Kingdom. YHWH will bring us to the point where only He can deliver us, but the darkest backdrop is the place where His ability shines most brightly, just as the new moon comes right after the darkest time. When the baby is born, the pains are forgotten. (Yochanan 16:21)4. 'Maybe YHWH your Elohim will listen to the words of [the] Ravshaqeh, the one sent by his master, the King of Ashur, to defy the living Elohim, and may rebuke the words that YHWH your Elohim has heard. So will you lift up a prayer while a remnant can [still] be found?'"
Rebuke: Aramaic, "take retribution for".5. So King Hizqiyahu's servants came to Yeshayahu,
6. and Yeshayahu told them, "This is what you must tell your master: 'Thus says YHWH: "Do not be afraid because of the presence of the words with which the King of Ashur's young men have caused Me to be blasphemed.
7. "'I am here [and am] issuing a wind against him. Moreover, he has heard a report and [begun to] return to his own land, and there I will cause him to fall by the sword.'"
A wind: LXX, "a blast". Patten, Hatch, and Steinhauer suggest that it was of cataclysmic proportions, for the planet Mars used to have a different orbit that crossed earth's every 54 years, and kings would plan wars accordingly, counting on the huge earthquakes and other catastrophic phenomena that would accompany these flybys to do most of the work for them in weakening city walls, etc. Sennacheriv's astrologers had advised him that plunder would be especially easy in March of 701B.C., but he had to arrive by this particular day or they would miss their opportunity for assistance from Nergal (Mars). The death of Sennacheriv did not take place for another ten years after this, but he did not harass Yehudah anymore. (See also notes on v. 36 and 38:8.)8. So the Ravshaqeh went back and found the King of Ashur fighting against Livnah, because he had heard that he had moved on from Lakhish.
Livnah...Lakhish: fortress cities in the Sh'felah (foothills) specifically built to defend Yerushalayim from the coastal plain where the Way of the Sea (a trade route from Egypt to Assyria) ran. Sennacheriv had soundly defeated Lakhish since it had become a foot in the door for the same type of idolatry that had been practiced in the Northern Kingdom (Micha 1:13), but only after a three-year siege. Other examples of Assyrian psychological warfare include the fact that they would not just attack one city at a time, but would attack several adjacent cities simultaneously, so that reinforcements could not be called in from neighboring towns. They also impaled those they captured on sharp poles in order to demoralize the others within. Note the other example in 36:12. Most surrendered to them after a short time, but Yehudah would not.9. Then he had heard it said about Tirchaqah, the king of Kush, "He has come out to make war with you." When he heard this, he sent messengers to Hizqiyahu, saying,
10. "This is what they should tell Hizqiyahu, King of Yehudah: 'Do not let your Elohim in whom you are trusting deceive you if He says, "Yerushalayim will not be given over into the hand of the King of Ashur."
Yehudah: the Aramaic clarifies, "the tribe of the House of Yehudah", to remind readers that this is not all of Israel.11. "'You have indeed heard what the kings of Ashur have done to all the lands in order to bring them to destruction. And will you be rescued?
12. "'Have any of the gods of the nations whom my ancestors have laid waste rescued them? Gozan or Charan or Retzef or the sons of Eden who were in Telasar?
13. "'Where is the King of Chamath or the King of Arpad or the King of the City of S'farvayim, or Hena or Iwah?"
14. When Hizqiyahu received the letters from the messengers' hand and read it, he went up to the House of YHWH, and Hizqiyahu spread it out before YHWH.
15. Then Hizqiyahu prayed to YHWH, saying,
16. "O YHWH of Armies, Elohim of Israel, who inhabits the kh'ruvim, You are the one, the only Elohim to all the realms of the earth! You have made the [very] heavens and earth!
Kh'ruvim: the carved angelic beings flanking the seat atop the Ark of the Covenant.17. "Incline Your ear [downward], O YHWH, and listen! Open Your eye, O YHWH, and take notice, and listen to all the words of Sennacheriv, which he has sent to blaspheme the Living Elohim!
18. "It is true, O YHWH, that the kings of Ashur have brought every nation and its territory to ruin,
Every nation and its territory: or "all the lands and their land", "their" being that of the Northern Kingdom in particular, which Sennacheriv had previously included in his catalog of conquered lands.19. "and have given their mighty ones over to the fire, because they [were] not mighty ones [after all], since [they were only] the work of men's hands--wood and stones--thus they [could] destroy them.
20. "So now, YHWH our Elohim, let us be delivered from his hand, so that all the dominions of the earth may recognize that You are YHWH in Your uniqueness!"
21. Then Yeshayahu the son of Amotz sent word to Hizqiyahu: "This is what YHWH, Elohim of Israel, says: 'Inasmuch as you have interceded [for yourselves] to Me in regard to Sennacheriv, King of Ashur,
22. "'this is the word YHWH has spoken about him: "The virgin of the daughter of Tzion has [come to] hold you in contempt and ridicule you; the daughter of Yerushalayim has shaken [her] head behind you.
Virgin daughter: Aramaic, "the kingdom of the congregation". Daughter: Aram., "the people who are in…"23. "'"Whom have you taunted and blasphemed? And against whom have you raised your voice and lifted up your eyes on high? [It is] against the Holy One of Israel!
Lifted up your eyes: an idiom for arrogance. Holy: in this case the emphasis is on His being "the one who is in a class of His own"--not "one of the gods".24. "'"Through the hand of your servants you have taunted Adonai and said, 'With the abundance of my chariots I have ascended the height: mountains of the base of Levanon! And I will cut down the stature of its cedars, the choicest of its stately cypresses, then I will enter the height of its furthermost limit, the forest of His plantation!
Forest of His plantation: or "its thickest forest".25. "'"'I have dug for water and drunk it; with the spoons of my footsteps I have dried up the moats of all the siegeworks.'
I have dug for water: LXX, "I have made a bridge." Siegeworks: the word seems related to the name of Egypt; Aramaic, "deep streams".
The reservoir Hizqiyahu had dug in order to ride out this siege
26. "'"Haven't you heard from far away [that] I made it? Since ancient times, I had preordained it; now I have brought it about, and you have become the one to cause heavily-fortified cities to crash into ruinous heaps [until they] roll away.
Crash into ruinous heaps…: Aramaic, "as a tumult of waves that subside".27. "'"So their inhabitants were short-handed and went to pieces, disconcerted. They were grass of the field and green vegetation of a courtyard on the housetops: that is, scorched before it can grow up.
28. "'"But I am familiar with your sitting down, your going out, and your coming in, as well as your agitating yourself against Me.
29. "'"On account of the fact that your agitating yourself against Me and your complacency has ascended into My ears, I will also put My ring in your nose and My bit within your lips, and I will turn you back by the way that you came into it!
Ring in your nose: or hook, to connect a chain or bridle to. The same is said of Egypt and the Counterfeit Messiah in Y'chezq'el 29:4.30. "'"Now this will be the token [by which] you [will know I am telling the truth]: this year, eat what grows of itself, and in the second year, the volunteer grain. Then in the third year, sow and reap and plant vineyards, and eat of their fruit.
Volunteer grain: what shoots up by itself, from the previous year's natural seeding--analogous in some ways to manna--YHWH's special provision. This must have been the 49th year of the agricultural cycle, since there are two fallow years in a row. (Lev. 25:10-11)31. "'"The fugitives who remain of the house of Yehudah who have escaped will again take root downward and produce fruit upward,
Escaped from Yerushalayim: probably referring to the events of Zech. 13:9. (Compare Rev. 8:12; 9:15, 18.)32. "'"for something will remain to issue forth from Yerushalayim--indeed, the escaped remnant from Mount Tzion; the jealousy of YHWH of Armies will accomplish this."
Issue forth: like a shoot growing from a stump, but this also alludes to a siege, from which no one is able to exit the city.33. "So this is what YHWH says about the King of Ashur: 'He will not enter this city, nor will he point an arrow at it, nor confront it with a shield, nor pour out a siege-mound against it.
34. "'By the way that he entered, he will return, nor will he enter this city', declares YHWH,
35. "'because I will place a covering over this city in order to liberate it, for the sake of David My servant.'"
36. Then a messenger of YHWH went forth and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. When they arose early in the morning, lo and behold, they were all dead bodies!
Messenger: Not necessarily an angel or spiritual being; perhaps a thunderbolt (a huge electrical discharge or flux tube) from the planet Mars, which was amazingly close to earth at that time, which would kill via burns, a shock wave radiating out from it, and vaporization. Their iron armor and weaponry would act as a special attraction point for the "thunderbolt". (Donald Patten's Catastophism and the Old Testament describes the mechanics in great detail.) Patten writes, "Assyrian cuneiform indicates that Sennacheriv himself survived, though burned."37. So Sennacheriv, the King of Ashur, broke camp and departed, and went back and remained at Nin'veh.
Nin'veh: the capital of Ashur.38. And it turned out that while he was bowing down [in] the house of his god, Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Shar'etzer struck him down with the sword, and they were slipped away into the land of Ararat, and his son Esar-hadon became king in his place.
Adrammelech means "a king is honorable"! Shar'etzer means "prince of fire". Ararat: where Noach's ark had run aground. Aramaic, "Kurdistan". Esar-hadon may mean "Ashur has given a brother". The archaeological record upholds this. Engraved reliefs usually included bracelets and/or head ornaments bearing identifying seals when depicting kings. Sennacheriv's name was chiseled off all the reliefs depicting him, and the annals state that his sons did this just prior to killing him, to symbolize that the kingship no longer belonged to him.
2. Then Hizqiyahu turned his face toward the wall and prayed to YHWH [for himself],
Wall: the word specifically means an inner wall of a room or house.3. and said, "O YHWH, I beg You, please remember how I have walked around before You in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have carried out what was good in Your eyes." And Hizqiyahu wept bitterly with [loud] intense wailing.
4. Then the word of YHWH came to Yeshayahu, saying,
Word of YHWH: perhaps an embodiment of Yahshua.5. "Go and tell Hizqiyahu, 'Thus says YHWH, the Elohim of your ancestor David: "I have heard your intercession; I have seen your tears. I am indeed adding fifteen years to your days,
I am adding: Heb., yoseyf. Hizqiyahu was 39 years old at this time (2 Chron. 29:1), and this was the 14th year of his reign (2 Kings 18:13).6. "'"and I will rescue you out of the palm of the King of Ashur, and I will defend this city.
7. "'"Now this will be the sign for you from YHWH that YHWH will carry out this matter [of] which He has spoken:
8. "'"I will make the shadow of the degrees which has declined on the sundial of Akhaz [go in] reverse ten degrees!"'" And the sun went backward ten degrees on the dial which had declined.
This, too, was symbolic of resurrection and YHWH's restoration--time turned backward. Ten degrees: or ten hand-breadths, or about 7 feet, on the 90-foot-tall obelisk sundial patterned after that of the Egyptians (Patten); literally "ten steps". For this to happen, the earth either had to reverse its direction, or, far more likely, its polar spin axis had to precess (wobble) at one spot on the globe--specifically this one. (See 24:20.) On Mars' previous flyby, Nin'veh had experienced YHWH's reprieve as described in the record of the prophet Yonah, but caused the great earthquake in Uzziyahu's day, which damaged the Temple. (Amos 1:1; Zech. 14:5) Josephus describes it in more detail (Antiquities, book VIII, chapter 10). This time Mars came so close to earth that it was even closer than the moon (a scant 30,000 miles away), and the magnetic repulsion of the two planets pushed them both into new orbits. All around the world over the course of the next 22 years as Mars settled into its present orbit, there are records of nations struggling to adjust their calendars from 360 days to 365.25 days. As the polar axes shifted, Israel was moved 6 degrees further south of where it had been. This has been confirmed by the fact that Solomon's Temple faced 6 degrees off the present-day due east, toward which the Second Temple faced. (See notes on 37:7, 36)9. [This is] what Hizqiyahu, King of Yehudah, wrote when he had been sick and was beginning to recover from his illness:
10. "In the pausing of my days I said, 'I have begun to depart for the gates of the underworld; I am being made to miss the rest of my years!'
11. "I said, 'I will not see Yah in the land of the living; I will no longer look upon humanity, along with those who remain at rest.
I will not see: Aramaic, "I will not be seen by". Land of the living: the Aramaic links it with the Temple and Yerushalayim, the place that adds length of days.12. "My generation has been pulled up and removed from me lie a shepherd's tent. I have rolled up my life like a weaver; He was [preparing] to sever me like threads from a loom. From day to night You will make an end of me.
Generation: age, period in which he lived. Weaver: or braid; Aramaic, "a banked river". Sever: Aramaic, "exile".13. "I settled down until morning. Like a lion, indeed, He will shatter all my bones from day until night and make an end of me.
LXX: "In that day I was given up as to a lion until the morning."14. "Like [the] swooping of a swallow, [that's] how I chattered; I had begun to moan like a dove. My eyes look weakly to the heights. O YHWH, it is crushing me! Take up my cause!
Swooping of a swallow: or "horse" (and taken so in Aramaic), in which case "chattered" would read "whinnied". Take up my cause: Or "undertake for me", "join forces with me", "intermingle", i.e., Your power with mine so that I am "guaranteed" or "co-signed with". I.e., "make a trade".15. "What can I say when He speaks to me, and He has acted? I will slowly go over the bitterness of my soul all my years.
Say: or promise, especially in the context of the idea of a tradeoff in v. 14. Aramaic, "What praise can I speak?"16. "Master, on these [things] they will survive, and for everything in them is [the] reviving of my spirit, so may You restore me to health! Oh, bring me back to life!
These things: LXX, "It was told You concerning this." The Aramaic gives the sense of him being raised back to life long before the rest of the dead are raised. (See note on v. 19.)17. "To fulfill [the covenant of peace] was bitter to me--[so] bitter! But You attached [Yourself and pulled] my soul from the sinkhole of being used up; You have thrown all of my sins behind Your back,
Fulfill: make good on it, make full repayment, perhaps to totally surrender to YHWH's will, giving up all he was hanging onto. Attached: held onto, warmly embraced, in the same sense as in v. 14. LXX, "chose".18. "since the grave will not thank You, nor death rave about You; those who are sinking into the pit cannot wait expectantly for You to make them sturdy [again].
For You to make them sturdy: or simply, "for Your truth" or "Your faithfulness". Psalms that parallel this thought are 6:5; 30:9; 88:11; 115:17. That latter would have been being sung in the Temple while the Passover lambs were being slain at the very time Yahshua hung on the cross. He expressed a similar thought in Luke 20:38. There were signs in the sun and an earthquake on that occasion as well.19. "The living one! The one who is alive! He is the one who will give thanks to You as I [am doing] today! A father will make Your faithfulness known to his sons!
To his sons: This brings out the parallels between Hizqiyahu and Yahshua clearly. The immediate context of the king spoken of in chapters 7-9 seems to refer to Hizqiyahu (see note on 8:8), though its later, fuller reference is to the Messiah. But as Hizqiyahu seemed to be dying childless, so too did Yahshua, yet He was promised "descendants" that He would see. (53:10; compare the pouring out of His soul with v. 17 above). LXX, "From this day forward I will beget children who will declare Your righteousness!"20. "YHWH is [the One who served as] deliverer for me! So we will sing my songs of triumph to the tune of stringed instruments all the days of our lives at the House of YHWH!"
Songs of triumph: has the sense of "mocking" or "taunting", perhaps against the death that could not overpower YHWH. At the House: literally "upon the House", or perhaps "about" in the sense of it being the subject matter of the songs.21. Then Yeshayahu said, "Let them carry [in] a cake of [pressed] figs and lay it [as a compress] on the inflammation, and he will recover."
22. And Hizqiyahu said, "What is an [unmistakable] sign that I should go up to the House of YHWH?"
What is: in Aramaic, it is the same, but the LXX has it in the affirmative, "this is…"
Recover his strength: the same root word as the name Hizqiyahu (and Y'chezq'el/Ezekiel). Bavel: the quintessence of the Counterfeit Kingdom. It was a land of great liberty (including complete religious freedom) and a prosperous, up-and-coming power. Like the United States and Europe, it had a middle class as well--a rare thing in those days.2. And Hizqiyahu was cheered up because of them, and he let them see his treasury--the silver, the gold, the spices, the pleasant oil, the whole [store] house of his weapons, and all that had been acquired in his supply-houses. There was nothing that Hizqiyahu did not let them see.
Though Hizqiyahu is a clear type of Yahshua, no one who foreshadowed Him ever did so perfectly. 2 Chron. 32:27-31 gives more detail about this event, telling us all that he had amassed and that Elohim was testing him by leaving his response up to him to see what was in his heart. Hizqiyahu may have wanted to impress the Babylonians with the fact that he could be a powerful ally to them. Israel's willingness to do the United States' bidding today may be a close parallel. Also, in his excitement at being alive and well again, he became overconfident and failed to think long-range, forgetting already that there were threats, and perhaps feeling immortal and invincible since YHWH had come through for him. His recovery seems to have gone to his head, and he may have felt he was worthy of YHWH's favor and could continue to get whatever he wanted from Him. He may have failed to realize how covetous other nations could be; likewise, Israel today--never the aggressor--reaches out to many nations with offers of peace, when they truly want nothing of the sort. Now that he was still around, he neglected to "give orders concerning his household" (38:1), and "seven more demons" came in to fill the void. Contrast Avraham, who ruled his household well (Gen. 18:19).3. Then Yeshayahu the prophet came to King Hizqiyahu and said to him, "What did these men say to you? And from where have they come to you?" And Hizqiyahu said, "They came to me from a faraway land--from Bavel!"
A faraway land: i.e., not from among their traditional enemies nearby, but from a place ostensibly too far away to expect to hear much from anytime soon.4. And he said, "What have they seen in your household?" And Hizqiyahu said, "They have seen everything that is in my household! There was not a thing among my supply-houses that I did not let them see!"
Yeshayahu echoes Yaaqov's words when, speaking as Israel, the spiritual man, he asked why his sons had given too much information to the Egyptians. (Gen. 43:6) What YHWH has given us is precious, and may be doled out in small portions to those truly in need, but if it the doors are opened too wide, displaying the treasure to evildoers, they will find a way to plunder us.5. Then Yeshayahu told Hizqiyahu, "Hear the word of YHWH of Armies:
6. "'Behold, days are coming when everything that is in your household--[all] that your ancestors have saved [and stored] up--will be carried off by Bavel."
Your ancestors: This included the great treasures amassed by King Shlomo. What our natural forefathers have left us--our earthly pedigree--is of little value to YHWH, and sometimes stands in His way. (Yirmiyahu 16:19; Luke 3:8) Carried off by Bavel: In the same way, the church, raving about what Yahshua had done for us, failed to heed His advice about not casting our pearls before swine lest they turn and trample us under their feet (an idiom for festivals in Hebrew). Initially the giddy responses to the Renewed Covenant were tempting some like Hananyah and Safirah to take advantage of YHWH's grace, but this was cut off when they were struck dead and great fear came upon all the congregation. (Acts 5) But after several centuries of strength through self-sacrifice, we allowed the later version of Bavel (Rome) to co-opt the wonderful promises YHWH made available to the returning House of Israel, as if they were wide open for everyone to see rather than holy gifts to be treasured up and protected. Constantine appropriated them for the use of the other side, and we have had to suffer through another exile because of it.7. "'And they will take away some of your children who issue forth from you, whom you will father, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the King of Bavel.'"
Some of your children: Not all, in YHWH's mercy. Bavel usually spared royalty of the lands they captured, but they had to show them who was now in charge, and did not want them to have progeny who might rally loyalty in their former subjects. Eunuchs: often placed over the harem, for while they retained their manly strength, there was no danger of them raping the queen and the king's concubines.8. And Hizqiyahu told Yeshayahu, "The word [from] YHWH which you have spoken is agreeable", and he thought, "because there will be peace and stability in my days."
Agreeable: literally, "good"; i.e., he was admitting that it was only fair to expect suffering because of his foolish error, though he did not seem to consider it worthy of the same intercession that the threat of his death had produced, for it would not affect him personally.
Aramaic, "Prophets, prophesy consolations to My people…"2. "Speak to the heart of Yerushalayim, and proclaim to her that her [need to] go forth to war has been satisfied--that [the consequence for] her iniquity has been paid off--because she has received from YHWH's hand double on all her sins.
That her need...has been satisfied: Aramaic, "that she is about to be filled with people of her exiles". So even in Yahshua's day the expectation of the return was in the forefront of the interpreters' hearts. Double: from a word for "folding over", so she has come back to the starting point and can therefore start afresh. This is a reference to the sentence given in Yirmiyahu 16:18. The LXX says that it is the priests that YHWH is addressing here.3. "A voice calls out in the uninhabited land, 'Clear YHWH's path! Level off a highway for our Elohim in the Aravah!
This is a command, not a promise. The Aravah: the deep Yarden Valley that needs to be crossed in order for both houses of Israel to return from Mt. Sinai, Sela, and Botzrah to Yerushalayim. The escarpments on both of its sides have much steep and rough terrain. The Aravah is also exactly where Yochanan the Immerser preached repentance (Mat. 3:1-3), and this is the first step in repairing the road worthy of the return of the King.4. "'Every valley will be lifted up, and every mountain and hill will be humbled. The steep places will be made level, and the impasses broken through.
Steep places: Aram., "uneven ground". But this is also an allegory of the proud being brought low and the humble exalted. Yochanan was one instance of the Messenger YHWH sent before Yahshua's face (Mal. 3:1). Immersion pictures dying to self, which clears the way for His Kingdom. But there is a spirit of Eliyahu that precedes Messiah's second coming as well, and its purpose and message are the same. The more we die to self, the more quickly we can reopen the lines of communication in the spirit realm, pathways by which the messengers of Elohim can ascend and descend.5. "'Then YHWH's authority will be revealed, and all flesh will see it, joined together, because YHWH's mouth has spoken.'"
All flesh...together: or "all flesh in union". On one hand this can refer to those who have chosen the fleshly path, who at the end of this age will unify against the Messiah. They are already beginning to think they are immortal and gods in their own right. The following prophecy is tailored to them:6. A voice is saying, "Proclaim!" But he said, "What shall I proclaim?"
Flesh: the corruptible part of us, or anything mortal; Aramaic, "the wicked". Its goodness: Aram., "their strength" or "his conceptions".7. "Grass dries up; a flower droops when the breath of YHWH blows on it. Truly the people is grass!
Breath: or Spirit. The other side of this allegory is that when YHWH's Spirit moves, the fleshly part of us is killed off. When grass is green, it is not very strong, but when it dies it takes on strength that, when woven together with other pieces, can make a useful vessel for the Master's use, which in the long run is much more beneficial than a handful of grass. "He who loses His life for My sake will find it." (Mat. 10:39) But grass woven while still green will warp and buckle when it dries. This is why we need to die to self before a highway fit for YHWH can be built.8. "Grass dries up; a flower droops, but the word of our Elohim will be established forever.
Kefa (Peter) quotes this in reference to the Good News that has enabled us to be reborn of incorruptible seed which enables us to have a pure love for one another. (1 Kefa 1:22-25)9. "Get yourself up onto a high mountain, O Tzion, bearer of good news! Raise your voice powerfully, O Yerushalayim, bearer of good news! Raise it! Don't be afraid! Say to the cities of Yehudah, 'Here is your Elohim!'"
Here is your Elohim: Aramaic, "The Kingdom of your Elohim is revealed!"10. Indeed, the Master YHWH will come with strength, and His Arm will exercise dominion for Him. His wage is with Him, and His compensation is in front of His face.
His Arm: an idiom for the Messiah. (Compare Rev. 22:12.)11. He will lead His flock to pasture like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs together with His Arm and support them in His lap, and those who are nursing young He will lead [little by little to a place of rest where there is water].
Like a shepherd: compare Y'hezq'el 34. Gather: compare 11:12; Micha 2:12; Yirmiyahu 23:3; 31:10; Hoshea 8:10. Little by little: Yaaqov also said he would let his family travel at the pace of the smallest ones. (Gen. 33:13-14)12. Who has measured out the waters in the hollow of His hand, adjusted out the sky with a hand-breadth, contained the dust of the earth in a third-measure, weighed out the mountains in the balance, and the hills with scales?
13. Who has meted out the Spirit of YHWH, or made anything known to Him as a counselor?
The Talmud says it is the rabbis! But He precluded this argument far in advance.14. With whom has He consulted, and who can begin to understand His mind and train Him in the path of justice, teach Him a skill, or make known to Him the way of understanding?
The only answer to this is "wisdom" (Prov. 8:22-31), which 1 Cor. 1:30 tells us is personified in Yahshua, through whom all was created. (Yoch. 1:3)15. Indeed, nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as fine dust from a scale. Even islands are like a trifle for Him to pick up.
Compare Hebrews 1:10-12. 16. Even Levanon is not enough to burn, nor its living creatures adequate for a burnt offering.
Levanon: its trees, at that time, like a Redwood forest.17. Before Him, all the nations are as if they did not exist; they are counted as if they had [already] been brought to an end and laid waste.
18. So toward whom will you compare El? Or what will you bring forward as resembling Him?
Aramaic: "Why are you planning to contend before El?" I.e., do you think you can find someone else in His class who could make it an even match? The next verses are their response:19. A craftsman casts the molded image, and a smelter overlays it with gold, then refines the silver chains.
These idols are the only contender brought forward. The modern equivalent would not be so crude, but it is the same in YHWH's eyes. The "image of the Beast" will be its final smoke-and-mirrors attempt to conceal the fact that there is really nothing to it. Silver chains: to hang the image around one's neck? If so, what could it be but a crucifix? How dare we call that YHWH? In typical pagan fashion, to reduce a deity to an image is to diminish it and put it in a box so that human beings can control it.20. One who is [too] poor [to bring such] a contribution picks out a tree that will not rot. He looks for a skilled craftsman to prepare for him a carved image that will not totter.
Tree that will not rot: often an evergreen. When do we see evergreens cut from a forest (Yirmiyahu 10) and stabilized in stands so they will not fall over? In contrast, YHWH will not allow His Holy One (see below) to undergo decay. (Psalm 16:10)21. Haven't you known? Haven't you heard? Hasn't it been reported to you from the beginning? Didn't you explain the decrees that founded the earth?
Beginning: or "top"; literally, "head", i.e., Yahshua (Col. 2:19). Paralleling this are "the decrees" or building-blocks/blueprints "that founded the earth". In that context (2:8-23) it may be a contrast to the "elemental spirits of the world" from which He frees us. But in the Sabbath liturgy, we recite that the Sabbath was "last in creation, but first in YHWH's thought." Six equal circles placed in a circular pattern (which parallels the annual festival cycle as well as the weekly) create a seventh the same size, yet around which they revolve--like the Sabbath and what it foreshadows: the 6,000 years of history so full of evil have all been for the sake of the seventh Millennium, the Messianic Kingdom. Cyclical thought is Hebraic; Greek is only linear. Seven circles remind us of the lower seven s'firoth (spheres) of the "Ancient Adam" of Jewish mystical thought, which have as their counterpart three additional circles which together constitute the "Head". Thus Yahshua's Body, which complements Him, are the lower seven. We thus participate in building His Body and restoring the image of YHWH by "holding fast to the Head", not the natural earth, and participating in His sabbatical cycles, which are upward spirals.22. [It is] He who sits over the circle of the earth, while its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a thin curtain, and will spread them out like a tent to dwell in,
Circle of the earth: as drawn by a compass. He drew this over the surface of the scene of disaster at Creation. (Prov. 8:27) Grasshoppers: i.e., in comparison.23. who assigns weighty potentates to inconsequential [positions]; the judges of the earth He appoints to a wasteland.
Judges of the earth: perhaps "world-class judges" who were over the "world court".24. They're hardly even established! They're barely even sown; their stem has scarcely taken root in the earth, so as soon as He has blown on them, they will dry up. The whirlwind will carry them away like stubble.
25. "So to whom will you compare Me, or make My equal?", says the Holy One.
26. Lift your eyes [to the] heights and look: who has created these? [Who is] the one who brings out their host according to their number? By the abundance of His generative vigor and the strength of His power, He summons them all by name, and not one is left missing.
These: i.e., the heavenly bodies, the constellations. He can even muster them to battle on His side, as it was specifically said that He did once before: "They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera." (Judges 5:20) Not one: literally, "not a man".27. O Yaaqov, why do you think, and Israel, why do you say, "My way is hidden from YHWH, and I have been passed over by my Elohim in regard to justice"?
28. Haven't you known? Or haven't you heard? The eternal Elohim, the creator of the earth--all the way to its farthest edges--is YHWH. He will never faint or grow weary; His intelligence can never be thoroughly searched out!
29. He gives power to the weary, and to those who have no physical strength, He will increase firmness.
Compare the imagery of "running the good race". (1 Cor. 9:24; Heb. 12:1)30. Even young people may faint and grow weary, and select young men may stumble [to the point of] tottering,
31. but those who eagerly place their hope [in] YHWH will trade in their power for a fresh supply. They will take flight upward like eagles. They will run without being weary; they will walk and not faint!
Aramaic, "Those who wait for the salvation of YHWH will be gathered from among their exiles."
Silent: or speechless. Gathered peoples: these "united nations" of the last days who are bringing forward the Counterfeit Messiah as a serious contender against YHWH. Renew: the same word as "trade in for a fresh supply"(40:31).2. "Who stirred up the Righteous [one] from the sunrise and summoned him to his feet? [Who] grants that nations be delivered up before His face and will cause Him to take dominion over kings? He will yield them over to His sword like dust, and like driven stubble to His bow.
The righteous one: Aramaic, "Avraham, a select one of righteouesness". In this case, in the broader sense, it would refer to his progeny, Israel. But in a special sense it refers to the Messiah. The point of reference goes back and forth between both in the passage that follows.3. "He will pursue them and pass over safely; He will not go by the way his feet [are familiar with].
4. "Who has acted and carried it out, inviting the generations since the beginning? "I, YHWH--the first and with the very last--I am the one!"
Inviting : Aramaic, "ordering". In other words, He has been responsible for it all; do not give credit to anyone else. Yahshua, as the only complete image of the Father seen since Adam fell, calls Himself the "first and the last". (Rev. 1:11; 22:13)5. "The coastlands have seen it and have become afraid; they trembled all the way to the extremities of the earth. They came close [together] and have begun to arrive.
Have become afraid: They realize they aren't in charge after all, but their response (like that of Pharaoh and as repeated in the book of Revelation) is not to repent, but to strengthen their resolve:6. "Each one has begun assisting his fellow, and telling his brother, 'Be strong!'
They have the right idea, but the wrong context. They ignore the facts and think all they need to do is improve their technology in order to finish building the False Messiah. He has to have a platform of disruption upon which to rise up. He will have (temporary) answers and will seem to have a band-aid that will stop the mortal bleeding. People will feel that they have to believe in him because they cannot trust this Elohim who is bringing destruction. This attitude goes all the way back to an early Christian named Marcion, who said that the "God" of the Jews was violent, evil, and bloodthirsty, but the God of the Christians was loving. The Pope is even now saying that religion should never result in violence. But this is not Scriptural. YHWH will do what He needs to do to persuade His people to repent. At such a time, we should not try to protect them from His correction (e.g., 1 Cor. 5:5), for that would give them a false sense of security. If they feel the heat, perhaps they will repent, as was the case with the Corinthian offender. (2 Cor. 2)7. "So the craftsman strengthens the refiner, and the one who smoothes with a forge-hammer [strengthens] the one who strikes a blow, saying, 'It's good for soldering.' He will firm it up with nails so it will not be dislodged.
YHWH's enemies are upholding each other; we certainly do not need to do so by offering them any more compassion once they show their true colors by turning away from the obvious truth.8. "But you, O Israel, are My servant; Yaaqov, whom I have chosen, the descendants of Avraham, My dear friend,
9. "whom I have firmly taken hold of from the extremities of the earth and summoned you from its corners, telling you, 'You are My servant; I have chosen you and not despised you.
Israel's ingathering is simultaneous with the Counterfeit's unification.10. "'Do not be afraid, because I am with you; do not look around with anxiety, because I am your Elohim. I have strengthened you; I have even assisted you! What's more, I have upheld you with My righteous right hand.
11. "Indeed, all who were furious with you will be ashamed and humiliated; they will come to be as if they were not there, and men [who] quarrel with you will vanish.
Were not there: or "did not exist". Ultimately, any other mindset than YHWH's does not exist, and "the memory of the righteous is blessed, but the name of the wicked will perish." (Prov. 10:7)12. "You will look for them, but not find them. Those who struggled against you will come to be as if they were not there, and the men that war against you [will be] as if they had come to an end,
13. "because I, YHWH Your Elohim, am strengthening your right hand, telling you, 'Do not be afraid; I have been helping you.'
I, YHWH: Aramaic, "My Memra" (Living Word).14. "'Do not be afraid, you scarlet of Yaaqov; I have been helping you,' declares YHWH, your Kinsman Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
Scarlet: sometimes translated "worm" because of the source of the scarlet dye, but what is probably being alluded to is "though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow" (1:18). In other words, YHWH knows Efrayim will respond with repentance once he realizes what he has been doing. (Yirm./Jer. 31:19) He promises to redeem her, so she need not remain in her sin; He promises to make her new so she can be His instrument again:15. "'Indeed, I have appointed you as a sharp new threshing instrument, a master double-edged [teeth]; you will thresh the mountains and pulverize [them], and will transform the hills into chaff.
16. "'You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away, and the storm will cause them to be scattered. Then you will be glad in YHWH, and make your boast in the Holy One of Israel!
17. "'The poor and the needy are looking for water, but there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I, YHWH, will respond to them; I, the Elohim of Israel, will not abandon them.
Respond to them: Aramaic, "accept their prayer".18. "'I will let the rivers loose on the [bare] windswept heights, and springs in the middle of plains. I will transform the wilderness into a pool of water, and dry places into a water-source.
Aramaic, "I will bring their exiles near from among the Gentiles and lead them in a correct way…" Water-source: literally, "a place from which water issues forth".19. "'I will set cedar, acacia, myrtle, and oil trees in the wilderness, together with pine, elm, and cypress in the Aravah,
Oil trees: perhaps olive, from which the oil comes for Temple service. The first four in the list, then, are used for holy purposes in Scripture. The wilderness is both by definition away from the civilized order (called out) and by Hebrew etymology "a place of words". The commandments in Hebrew are simply called "words" or "declarations", and the wilderness is where they were given. Thus, in a sense, it is a holy place for Israel. YHWH will also meet with a reunited Israel in the wilderness in the very last years of this age. Aravah, on the other hand, means "mixing" or "transitional zone" between desert and arable land, thus possibly symbolizing the church, which has "decent wood" (the last three "ordinary" trees in the list), but has much paganism mixed in, and can only be counted as good when its people rejoin the Israel that their ancestors left behind. Trees often symbolize men in Scripture. There are all kinds of trees here, for which different types of soil are needed. But though there is one root and one sap, many types have been grafted back in. Note also that there are seven trees mentioned, and oil is the middle one in the list--arranged exactly like a menorah with its central, oil-filled "servant" trunk and six branches.20. "'so that [all of] them together may perceive, recognize, take note, and act wisely [upon the insight] that it is YHWH's hand that has accomplished this, and that the Holy One of Israel has brought it about.
Together: no "tree" by itself can have all of this. I cannot, but together we can. YHWH's hand: an idiom for the Messiah.21. "'Bring forward your case', YHWH says. 'Advance your [strongest] argument', says Yaaqov's King.
22. "'Let them approach and inform us of what will happen. Let them report on what the earliest things were, so that we may set our minds to figuring out their [ultimate] end. Or, let us hear about the [things that are] to take place.
Earliest: i.e., primeval, a former era probably prior to Adam.23. "'Reveal us the things to come [in the] hereafter, so that we may acknowledge that you are elohim. Go ahead, do [something] good or [something] bad, so that together we may look at it and perceive!
24. "'See? You're lacking after all, and your actions are worthless; whoever decides on you is disgusting!
Decides on you: YHWH has been running a contest, a court case (v. 21), between Himself and the pagan gods, as worshipped by the end-time coalition of all nations.25. "'I have inspired [someone] from the north, and he will consent [to come] from the rising of the sun. He will call on My Name, and will come upon [lower-level] officials as [upon] a heap [of dirt], and as a potter treads out clay.
Aramaic: "I will bring a king openly who is as strong as the north wind…He will come and trample the rulers of the Gentiles…" North: the word actually means "the hidden place" or "concealed treasure"; Yahshua is called an arrow hidden in YHWH's quiver (49:2). My Name: From practices mentioned in the Talmud, it appears that the last straw at Yahshua's trial was His use of YHWH's true Name. But though they thought He was defeated, when YHWH's champion returns, who will be able to contend with Him? They will not even know what hit them!26. "'Who has made [anything] known about the beginning, and from before [then], so that we may say, "He is right"? No, there isn't anyone who [can] make it known--no one at all who can let us hear! There isn't even anyone listening to what you are saying!
Not only can they not say anything of any value; no one is even listening anymore. (Dan. 7:23-27)27. "Look, the first to [arrive in] Tzion! Here they are! And I will employ someone to make Yerushalayim glad with good news!
28. "But I looked, and there wasn't a man, and from [among] these there was no counsel who could bring even a word of rebuttal if asked
29. "They are all trouble after all; their achievements have turned out to be futile. Their cast metal images [have turned out to be just] wind and [actually] formless.
CHAPTER 42
1. "'[But now] here is My Servant; Him I will uphold! The one I have chosen, whom My soul has found acceptable. I have bestowed My spirit upon Him; He will cause proper procedures to go out to the nations.
LXX: "Yaaqov is My servant; Israel is My chosen."2. "He will not clamor nor lift up or cause His voice to be heard outside.
Yochanan was the voice crying out in the wilderness; Yahshua was more low-key and even tried to keep His identity as the Messiah hidden until the right moment. He was not boisterous or media-seeking like His counterfeit. He does not need to "blow His own horn"; truth speaks for itself. He prefers that we speaks with a simple "yes" or "no". (Mat. 5:37)3. "He will not break a stalk that is being crushed, nor will He put out a wick that is growing dim; He will cause due process to become reliable.
He will not oppress those who are already downtrodden, but He will make it normal to be able to count on justice within the court system. But a "stalk that is being crushed" (or broken) is reminiscent of the hammered trunk of the holy menorah, and its flickering flame of the oil that appeared to be running out (as after the first "Abomination of Desolation" that foreshadowed the Counterfeit Messiah had been defeated). YHWH is rebuilding His menorah (note on 41:19). Yahshua comes not to destroy, but to reestablish Israel. (Compare Yochanan 12:47; Mat. 5:17)4. "He [Himself] will not grow dim or be crushed until He establishes proper execution of justice in the Land, and the [outlying] coastlands will wait expectantly for His instruction."
"From Tzion instruction will go forth…" (Micha 4:2) Yahshua uses the same description of Himself as in v. 3, thus identifying Himself with the menorah seemingly described there.5. Thus says the El, YHWH, Creator of the heavens, who stretches out the heavens and spreads out the land and what it produces, who gives inspiration to the people upon it, and breath to those who walk on it:
Inspiration: Heb., neshamah, a sort of "second soul" that supersedes both soul and spirit. Breath: or "spirit". Alt., "Who gives a supersoul to the People [Israel] who are above it, and spirit to those who walk on [the ground].6. "I, YHWH, have summoned you with what is proper, and will strengthen your hand, keep guard over you, and appoint you to be a covenant [for the] people, to [be an] illuminator of nations,
There was no mistake made in whom He has called to Himself. Strengthen: or "keep a firm hold on", "uphold".7. "to open blind eyes, to liberate the captives from the dungeon, those who sit in darkness from the house of confinement.
Aramaic, "to open the eyes of the House of Israel, who are as blind to the law, to bring out their exiles, who resemble prisoners, from among the Gentiles, to deliver them from the slavery of the kingdoms…"8. "I am YHWH; that is My Name. I will not yield My authority to another, or My renown to carved images.
That is My Name: Why, then, do we use so many substitutes? To another: Some rabbinic Jews say that this means YHWH will not give authority to Yahshua, but "another" here means "one of a different kind", whereas Yahshua is as like the Father as anyone can be; they are "unified". (Yochanan 10:30; 17:11) This very context is saying He is giving Yahshua authority, and it is only to the Father's glory that anyone bows in homage to this King or declares Him to be Master. (Phil. 2:10, 11) This counterfeit Messiah, however, is very unlike YHWH, being the "lawless one", or "without or against Torah". (2 Thess. 2:8)9. "The earliest things have been attained to, and I am announcing renewals; I am letting you hear about them before they are [in existence] yet."
Earliest things…attained to: the contraction back to the Garden of Eden, or at least the original intent for what Israel was to be, will at this point be complete. LXX: "The ancient things have come to pass; so will the new things I tell you."10. Sing to YHWH a new song! [Celebrate] His renown from the farthest extremities of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that fills it, the coastlands and their inhabitants.
Sing a new song: an idiom for "The Messianic Kingdom is here!" (Psalms 96, 98)11. Let a wilderness and its cities take [it] up, the villages that Qedar inhabits. Let those who are staying in Sela give a ringing cry of joy; let them shout from the tops of the mountains!
Qedar: a son of Yishmael. Its glory will have come to an end by this time. (21:16) Aramaic, "the Arabians". Those who are staying in Sela (Petra): at this time, probably Israel, whose final exile is just coming to an end. Alt., "the rock", the translation of Sela and Petra. The Aramaic takes it as tombs, which indeed many of the man-made caves in Petra were used as. Perhaps Israel will be living in buildings that were once tombs, then literally come out of them when it is time to return to the Land. (Stone cannot be rendered ritually unclean by what touches it.)12. Let them direct authority toward YHWH, and proclaim His renown in the coastlands!
13. YHWH will go forth like a mighty man, and stir up zeal like a man of battles. He will utter a shout of triumph; better, He will roar! He will prove to prevail over His enemies:
Roar: literally, "utter a shrill, clear sound".14. "For a [very] long time I have kept quiet. I was forcing Myself to remain silent. [Now] I will scream like a woman who is giving birth. I will pant and gasp at the same [time].
Kept quiet: Aramaic, "given them respite, that if they repented to the law…but they did not."15. "I will make mountains and hills desolate and dry up all their green plants; I will transform rivers into islands, and dry up the marshes.
I.e., there will be cataclysmic shifts in the topography of the earth.16. "I will cause the blind to walk on a road they have not been familiar with; I will cause them to tread paths they had not perceived. I will transform dark places into bright [ones] ahead of them, and crooked places into straight. These are the things I have prepared for them, and I have not neglected [to maintain] them.
Neglected: or abandoned.17. "Those who trust in the image have been driven back; those who say to the cast metal, "You are our god" are disappointed with the shameful thing!
18. "O deaf ones, listen! And look, you blind ones, so that you may see!
Look: or pay attention; if they begin trying to understand, they will find that they can. If they persist in the belief that they cannot, they will never find out.19. "Who is blind except My servant, or deaf like the messenger I will send? Who is blind like one who is paid off, or blind like the servant of YHWH?
My servant: Here, Israel in general, and in the immediate context, probably Hizqiyahu (Hezekiah) himself, considering that he is the one about whom the prophecies in 7:14-20 apply most directly, with a secondary reference to Yahshua as well. (Compare 2 Kings 16:6-9; 20:1-18) He is addressing those in his own day, though of course it has applications for every age. Aramaic, "If the wicked repent, will they not be called My servant?" Yet Yahshua says, "When the Son of Adam returns, will He find faith[fulness] on the earth?" (Lk. 18:8) Of what benefit is a blind or deaf servant?20. "You have seen great things, but you have not kept them [in mind]; [your] ears are open, but you have not begun to listen!"
So often YHWH reiterates the need to guard His words, but we did not consider them valuable enough, and forgot them.21. YHWH will be pleased, for the sake of His righteousness, to magnify the Torah and make it honorable.
Be pleased to: or "desires to". Aramaic, "pleased to justify Israel".22. But this is a people plundered and despoiled; they are all trapped in caves and have been forced to hide in houses of confinement. They were [taken] for booty, and there [was] no one to rescue--[as] prey, with no one to say, "Bring [them] back!"
Compare Avraham's response when Lot was captured. Bring them back: or "Restore!" We have been purchased (fully paid for, a possible alternate reading of "paid off" in v. 19) for the sake of magnifying the Torah, but since we did not care to do so, but let it be weakened instead, we became enslaved to the other "securities" we chose to worship. There is no other way it could be.23. Which of you will cup your ear [to] this? [Who] will pay attention and hear what is behind [it]?
24. Who allowed Yaaqov to be spoils and gave Israel to the plunderers? Wasn't it YHWH, the one against whom we have sinned? Neither were they willing to walk in His ways or heed His instructions.
25. So He has poured out on them the burning heat of His nostrils, and the fierceness of battle, and it has scorched him all around, yet he did not recognize [it], and it has started to burn within him, yet he has not begun to lay it on [his] heart.
This is the fire that Yahshua's had to wait ever so long to kindle. (Luk. 12:49) Since the church diminished the Torah, YHWH has to say, in effect, "I've paid for you, I've brought war against you, yet it's as if I've done nothing." Since we forgot we were Israel, we refused to believe we were in exile. So how could we even realize we had done wrong? But He does not leave us on this note…
Kinsman Redeemer: both to restore a relative to his or her lost inheritance and to be the avenger of blood.2. "When you pass through the waters, I am with you, and through the rivers, they will not sweep you away. When you walk through fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame catch fire on you.
Apparently these are the circumstances those returning to the Land in the latter days will be confronted with. After the events of Revelation, it is hard to imagine them being any different. But there are many applications for the present time as well. Water often symbolizes the Torah; Yahshua says His yoke is easy, and His burden is light. (Matt. 11: With His grace (supernatural empowering), obedience to YHWH's commands is no longer the formidable task it once seemed when we had no power and when we thought we would be obligated to all the rabbinical interpretations in addition to a straightforward reading of the text. Fire: compare the story of Hananyah, Misha'el, and Azaryah in Babylon's furnace (Dan. 3:25-27), in which not a hair of their head was scorched. Yahshua also said we would be hated and betrayed by relatives, and even put to death, yet not a hair of our heads would be permanently lost. (Luk. 21:16-18)3. "Because I am YHWH your Elohim, the Holy One of Israel, I gave up Egypt as your ransom-price, and [yielded up] Kush and Seva instead of you.
He traded all these nations for Israel. YHWH said He had set apart for Himself all the firstborn in Israel beginning at the time He killed all the firstborn in Egypt. (Num. 3:13)4. "Since you were highly valued in My eyes, you are [considered] important, and I have befriended you. So I will yield up humanity instead of you, and nations in exchange for your life.
Humanity: Hebrew, Adam. Nations: in this context, it appears to mean all of humanity except Israel, aside from those remnants that will be left of the nations that band together against her.5. "Do not be afraid, because I am with you. From the sunrise I will bring your descendants, and gather you from the sunset.
Gather you: Aramaic, "bring near your exiles".6. "I will tell the North, 'Yield [them up]!' and [say] to the South, 'Do not hold [them] back! Bring My sons from far away, and My daughters from [even] the extremities of the earth--
The North: This brings to mind the "Refuseniks", the Jews the Soviet Union would not allow to emigrate to Israel in the 1980s. But the "North" is also often a euphemism for Assyria, where the Northern Kingdom was originally exiled to a large extent. The South could even refer to Yehudah, the Southern Kingdom, who at present is the only human authority who can grant the House of Yoseyf the right of return. (See 26:2) Compare Psalm 107:1-13.7. "'everyone who is called by My Name and whom I have created for My glory. I have formed him; indeed, I have [even] made him!
Called by My Name: His bride. Compare Yirmiyahu 23:6 with 33:16.8. "'Bring out [those who are] blind, though they have eyes, and the deaf [one], though he has ears.
Yahshua addressed "those who have ears to hear", not just those who have ears, in His messages to the seven congregations. (Rev. 2-3)9. "'All nations alike have been assembled, and [though] the peoples may be gathered, who among them can expound on this or let us hear about the earliest matters? Let them bring forward their witnesses, so that they may be vindicated, or let them listen and affirm, "[It is] reliable".'
Many assertions are made today about the primeval earth, but who other than YHWH can give an account of what really went on with any certainty? But He has revealed much to those who will listen.10. "You are My witnesses", declares YHWH. "My servant, whom I have chosen to know Me and trust in Me, and discern that I am He. Before Me no El was formed, nor shall there be any after Me.
My servant: the Aramaic targum identifies Him as the Messiah. Here it also seems to refer to the whole nation of Israel, of which the Messiah is the Head and the microcosm.11. "I Myself am YHWH, and apart from Me there is no one to deliver.
Apart from Me: again, not "beside Me", because Yahshua is "another", yet reiterated over and over that He did nothing without first seeing the Father do it. (Yochanan 5:19, 30).12. "I have expounded and delivered and let you hear, when there was as yet no foreigner among you. You are My witnesses", declares YHWH, "and I am El.
When there was no foreigner: the Aramaic links this to the time Israel received the Torah at Mt. Sinai.13. "I am He from [that] day as well, and there is no one who snatches out of My hand. I will act, and who will revoke it?"
Compare Yahshua's claim about His Father in Yochanan 10:29. Revoke: or repulse, repel, hinder.14. This is what YHWH, your Kinsman Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, says: "For your sakes I have sent to Bavel and brought them all down as fugitives, even Chasdim in ships of their triumph-song.
As fugitives: Aramaic, "with rudders". Chasdim: the Chaldeans.15. "I am YHWH, your Holy One, Creator of Israel--your King!"
16. Thus says YHWH, who provides a way through the sea, and a path through fierce waters,
17. who brings out chariot and horse, the force and the [prevailing] power: "[All of] them alike will lie down and not get [back] up. They have been extinguished! They were put out like the wick!
The wick: perhaps the one mentioned above in 42:3. The Aramaic actual says "dimly burning wick".18. "Do not call to mind the earliest things or give your attention to things of old.
Things of old: Probably the events of the Exodus (v. 17), because YHWH promises to do something far greater that will so eclipse the Exodus that we will no longer even mention the earlier one. (Yirmiyahu 23:7ff).19. "Here I am, doing something new. [Only] now will it spring up, and won't you know about it? I will even make a pathway through the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
Something new: Don't use your old definitions of what is possible to try to guess what to expect from Him. We are also called to "put off the old man and put on the new." (Col. 3:9ff) When this "week" of 7,000 years is over and the "eighth day" begins, the former things will all pass away. (Rev. 21:4) Desert: Aramaic, "devastation". The wilderness reminds us of the Exodus but also the ministry of Yochanan the Immerser, whom Yahshua said was in some sense "Eliyahu". The spirit of Eliyahu is back again in our day, proclaiming that "Yahweh is Elohim", and his task is to "restore all things". (Matt. 17:11) Having "ears to hear" is part of this restoration.20. "The living things of the field will honor Me--dragons and ostriches--because I have provided water in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, in order to let My people, My chosen ones, [have something to] drink.
Dragons and ostriches (literally "daughters of the owl") are unclean animals. YHWH derives honor from them as well, even if they are not in agreement. (Ex. 14:18) In order to let My people drink: In the process of providing His Word to the people of Israel in exile, YHWH also let the "dogs" receive some "crumbs" from the table. (Mat. 15:26-27) This is one of the main reasons He scattered our ancestors. But during the Kingdom as well there will be people who can be tempted to rebel against Yahshua, the King, but until haSatan is loosed (Rev. 20), they will know they do not stand to overcome His rod of iron, so they will keep their mouths shut and at least appear wise. (Prov. 17:28)21. "This people, whom I fashioned for Myself, will recount My praiseworthy acts!
22. "Yet you have not called on Me, Yaaqov, because you have grown tired of Me, O Israel.
Even many who are "saved and are Spirit-filled" do not seem to have the perseverance to keep following Him into the most difficult areas.23. "You have not brought Me a lamb of ascending [offering]s; even your slaughters have not treated Me as important. I did not compel you to serve with a grain offering, or tire you out with frankincense.
Compel: or burden. Yahshua's yoke is easy.
24. "You haven't bought Me any aromatic reed with silver, nor have you filled Me with the best of what you have slaughtered. Rather, by your sins you made Me work, and tired Me out with your perversity.
Aromatic reed: Aram., "sweet cane". Nor given Me the best: This is directly against Torah.25. "I Myself am the one who obliterates your rebellion [from memory] for My own sake, nor will I call your sins to mind.
If He chose us before the foundation of the world, it cannot be because of anything we have done!26. "[But do] remind Me of this: let's plead our case together. Give an account of yourself, so that you may be vindicated.
He is willing to let us "reason together", though He does not have to.27. "Your first father sinned, and your scorners have rebelled against Me.
Your first father: Adam. But the sins of the forefathers are also cumulative in their practical effect. Scorners: or interpreters.28. "So I will treat the overseers of the sanctuary as common, and turn Yaaqov over for mutilation, and [yielded] Israel [over] to taunts.
He is speaking to his contemporary audience now.
2. This is what YHWH, Your Maker, says--the One who formed you from the womb, [who] will help you:
"Do not be afraid, My servant Yaaqov, or Yeshurun (I have chosen him),
Yeshurun: "the one who will be upright", a pet name YHWH had for Israel when all twelve tribes were together and united.3. "because I will pour out water on a thirsty [land], and floods over the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your seed, and My blessing upon your offspring,
4. "and they will spring up as from between the grass, like willows over the streams of water.
Spring up as from between grass: Aramaic, "be exalted, tender, and indulged as tufts of grass". Compare Psalm 1:3 and Yirmiyahu 17:8.5. "This one will say, 'I belong to YHWH', and that one will summon in the name of Yaaqov. Moreover, this one will write on his hand 'For YHWH', and take on the name of Israel."
For YHWH: or "belonging to YHWH". Take on: or "be entitled by", "cause to be nicknamed by". So even those who are not literally, physically Israel can adopt that as their additional name and make it their new identity.6. "Thus says YHWH, King of Israel, and His Kinsman Redeemer, YHWH of Armies: "I am first and I am last, and apart from Me there is no Elohim.
7. "So who is like Me? Let him declare it, announce it, and set [his] case forth for Me, since I established the people of antiquity. So let them expound on the things to come--yes, [tell about] what has yet to take place!
This is the test of a true prophet.8. "Do not tremble or be afraid; haven't I let you hear it since that time, and made it conspicuous? You are My witnesses: Is there an Elohim besides Me? Indeed, there is not a Rock that I have become aware of.
My witnesses: or My evidence. He created us. Rock: i.e., place of safety.9. "Those who fashion a carved image, they are all formless, and their desired [things] will not benefit [them]. They are their own witnesses; they neither see nor recognize, so that they might be ashamed
Note the irony of the contrast. Formless: what the earth was before Elohim reconstituted it for Adam.10. "who have fashioned an El, or cast an idol, [only] to [find that it] is of no benefit!
11. "Indeed, all of his companions will be embarrassed, and the artisans--they are from humanity! Let them all assemble together; let them take their stand. They are in dread; [all of] them alike feel ashamed.
Embarrassed: ashamed or disappointed. Humanity: Heb., Adam.12. "The engraver of iron works with a tool among the coals, forms it with hammers, and works it with the strength of his arm. Yet still he is hungry, and there is no power; he has not drunk water, and so becomes faint.
Strength of his arm: his natural, fleshly strength, not by the Arm of YHWH. Hungry: or debilitated, so that his strength fails. This might also be read as saying he keeps working straight on through rather than pausing to refresh himself.13. "The woodcarver stretches out a measuring cord; he outlines it with a marking tool. He prepares it with planing tools, then traces it out with a compass. Then he fashions it after the figure of a man, according to the splendor of humanity, to set in a house.
Planing tools: Aramaic, "a chisel". Figure: or pattern. Humanity…house: or "according to the glory of Adam to remain in a temple". Splendor of humanity: or "beauty of a man". This sounds much like a crucifix, but we know this is not the true Yahshua, since He has nothing particularly attractive about Him. (53:2) Emphasis on the perfect body and physical prowess is the Greek way, which spawned Humanism, the celebration of the magnificence of Man.14. "To his cut cedars, he takes cypress or oak, whichever he determines for himself among the trees of a forest. He has planted a laurel, and the rain will cause it to grow tall.
15. "Then it comes be for a man to burn, and he takes some of them and is warmed; he even kindles it and has baked bread. Furthermore, he makes a god and bows himself before it [in worship]; he makes a carved image and prostrates himself to it!
Man: here, Adam.16. "Half of it he has burned in a fire. Over half of it he will eat meat; he will roast a roast, and [eat] his fill. He is warmed indeed, and says, 'Ah! I am warm! I have seen the light!'
17. "Then the rest of it he fashions to be a god; as his idol he prostrates himself to it, worships it, and prays to it: 'Rescue me, because you are my god!'
They are now "creating elohiom in their own image", in a reversal of the roles in Gen. 1-2.18. "They do not recognize; they do not discern, because He has coated their eyes [to prevent them] from [being able] to see, and their hearts [to prevent them] from [being able] to have insight.
Have insight: or ponder, pay attention, act wisely. Paul, who had scales fall from his own eyes, elaborates on this in Romans 11:8ff, teaching that YHWH had a positive intention in Israel's being unable to see for a time. But thanks be to YHWH, it will not continue forever if we indeed repent. Now He has given us an open door.19. "So he does not come back to his senses or knowledge or discernment, [so as] to say, 'Half I have burned in a fire; indeed, I have baked bread over its embers. I have roasted meat and eaten it, and will I make the rest into [such] a disgusting thing? Shall I bow down to something made of wood?
Something made of wood: or "the product of a tree". Something made of wood: Aram., "useless wood".20. "Feeding on ashes, a badly deceived heart has influenced him, so that he cannot tear his soul away and say, 'Isn't this thing in my right hand a fraud?'
Ashes: a metaphor for something worthless, as opposed to real food. Deceived heart: compare Yirmiyahu 17:9. Thing in my right hand: perhaps the "mark of the Beast". (Rev. 13:16)21. "Remember these [things], O Yaaqov and Israel, because you are My servant. I formed you; a servant you are to Me, O Israel, and you will not be forgotten by Me.
Remember: since we are His, we are to have nothing to do with the others.22. "I have obliterated your steppings across the line like a thick cloud; your missings of the mark like a cloud-mass. Return to Me, because I have acted as your Kinsman Redeemer!"
23. Sing, O heavens, because YHWH has acted! Raise a shout of triumph, you lowest parts of the earth! Break forth into joyful singing, O mountains; O forest and every tree in it, because YHWH has redeemed Yaaqov, and will gain honor for Himself through Israel.
Acted: Aramaic, "accomplished the redemption of His people".24. Thus says YHWH, your Kinsman Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: "I Myself am YHWH, Maker of all, who stretches out the heavens [all] by Myself. Who was with Me, spreading out the earth,
By Myself: Aramaic, "by My Memra" (Living Word); this agrees with Yochanan 1:1-3.25. "rendering ineffective the distinguishing signs of those who invent [idle ideas of something different]? Indeed, He will make fools of diviners, turning shrewd [men] backward, and rendering their knowledge foolish.
Compare 1 Cor. 1:20; 3:18-19.26. "Making the word of His servants effective, He also brings the purposes of His messengers to completion. [As] the One who says to Yerushalayim, '[I] will cause you to be inhabited', and to the cities of Yehudah, 'You will be rebuilt!', I will indeed resurrect your ruins!
Effective: literally, "to stand".27. "[As] the One who says to the depths of the ocean, 'Be dried up!', I will also cause your rivers to go dry.
Dried up: or made desolate. Perhaps this will be to allow Israelites to cross from distant lands back to the Promised Land, or perhaps to provide more land for Israel to spread out upon.28. "[As] the One who calls Koresh "My shepherd", and He will bring to completion all that I desire, that is to tell Yerushalayim, 'You will be rebuilt', and [the] Temple, 'You will be established [on a firm foundation]!'"
My shepherd: LXX, "Who tells Koresh, 'Be wise'. Koresh is commonly known as Cyrus, the Persian king who conquered Babylon in 539 B.C. on the night Daniel interpreted the "handwriting on the wall"--many decades after Yeshayahu prophesied. (See note on 45:3.) All that I desire: Rebuilding Yerushalayim (building the New Yerushalayim, which is also His Bride) and providing a firm foundation for His Temple does indeed summarize well everything that YHWH is doing in this age.
His anointed: Heb., mashiach, so it has a secondary reference to Yahshua. Koresh means "the one who splits" (see v. 2). Yahshua indeed said He would split natural families in the process of building His new spiritual family. (Mat. 10:35)2. "I will go ahead of you and level off the rises; I will break down the bronze doors, and chop apart the iron bars.
Rises: or "swollen places", from a word meaning "proud", "pompous", or "unduly prominent"; Aramaic, "walls". Bronze is often symbolic of sin, and is related to the word for "serpent". Bars: or "runners". Comapre Psalm 107:14-16, which also speaks of exiles returning after being punished by YHWH for their rebellion.3. "I have also granted to you the storehouses that are obscure, and treasures concealed in secret places, so that you may know that I am YHWH, who calls you by your own name--the Elohim of Israel.
By your own name: Josephus writes that Koresh was made familiar with the already-antiquated manuscripts of Yeshayahu's prophecy that mentioned him by name, and he was so impressed by the power of YHWH to prophesy so specifically that "an earnest desire and ambition seized upon him to fulfill what was so written", that he granted them leave to return and rebuild the Temple. (Antiquities of the Jews, Book 11, chapter 11; compare 44:28; Ezra 6) In a similar fashion, for years we read many prophesies and thought they only applied to us in some spiritualized sense, but when we found out we were the descendants of Israel, they took on a new immediacy for us.4. "For the sake of My servant Yaaqov and Israel, My chosen one, I will even call you by name; I am giving you your title, though you have not been acquainted with Me.
5. "I am YHWH, and there is nothing more; [if you] take Me away, there is no Elohim. I will equip you, though you have not been acquainted with Me,
6. "so that from the rising [place] of the sun to [where] it sets, they may know that there is nothing apart from Me. I am YHWH, and there is no other
7. "who forms light and creates darkness, who makes peace or creates what is unpleasant; I, YHWH, [am the One who] does all these things.
Unpleasant: or evil (but not morally so, only to our experience). Even haSatan needs permission from YHWH to do anything. (Iyov/Job 1:12) Since "all things work together for good to those who love YHWH and are called according to His purposes" (Rom. 8:28), we can greet each moment with eagerness---not just the kind of moments we would prefer to have. We can give thanks in everything. Note that to anyone else, nothing good is guaranteed.8. "Let [it] drip down, O heavens, from above, and let the [dust] clouds cause righteousness to trickle down. Let the earth open up, and let prosperity bear fruit and let righteousness likewise spring up [abundantly]. I, YHWH, have brought it about."
Let the earth open up: the Aramaic adds, "that the dead may live". Prosperity: or "salvation".9. Woe to [anyone] who quarrels with the One who formed him! [Such] a piece of broken pottery [belongs] with the pieces of broken pottery [on] the ground! Would the clay say to the one who forms it, "What are you making?" Or [would] the thing you have made [dare say], "He has no hands"?
Paul explains in Romans 9:14-24 that it is YHWH's choice, and His alone, whom He uses as vessels of mercy and which are vessels of destruction.10. Woe to [anyone] who says to a father, "What have you begotten?" or to a woman, "[For] what are you writhing [in childbirth]?"
Father: or a master craftsman. For what…: Aramaic, "With what will you be pregnant?"11. Thus says YHWH, the Holy One of Israel and the One who is forming him: "Consult Me about the things to come! Will you give Me orders concerning My children and the products of My hands?
12. "I brought the earth into being, and created humanity upon it! I stretched out the sky [with] My hands, and I have set their hosts in order.
Set their hosts in order: or "been commander of their armies"; Aramaic, "founded all their forces".13. "I Myself have incited him with a just cause, and I have leveled off all his roads. He will build My cities, and send My exiled ones away without a reward and without a bribe", says YHWH of Armies.
Leveled...roads: or "directed all his travels". A bribe: Aramaic, "Mammon".14. This is what YHWH says: "What Egypt has worked hard for, and the profit Kush has gained from its trafficking and Saba'im, people of stature, will cross over to you and belong to you. They will walk behind you in fetters. They will come over and bow in homage to you, and beg from you." Indeed, El is upon you, and there is nothing more--[last of all] an Elohim!
Trafficking: itemized in Rev. 18:13, including "the souls of men". So Kush here is not Ethiopia, but the part that Nimrod, descendant of Kush, founded: Babylon. Saba'im: Sabeans. People of stature: those who the world respects are nothing special in YHWH's eyes (Luke 16:15), but He will cause them, too, to serve Israel or perish.15. Indeed, You are an El who conceals Yourself--the Elohim of Israel, the One who brings deliverance!
16. They have become ashamed and brought dishonor upon themselves--all of them alike. Those who carve images have gone into disgrace!
17. Israel has been liberated by YHWH [with] an eternal deliverance. You will never again be disappointed or humiliated forever,
18. because thus says YHWH, the Creator of the heavens (Elohim Himself, fashioner and maker of the earth, who did not set it up as a chaotic [place, but rather] created it to be inhabited): "I am YHWH, and there is nothing more.
Not...chaotic: this contradicts the traditional rendering of Gen. 1:2 ("and the earth was chaotic"), showing that it must be translated "and the earth became chaotic", suggesting an act of YHWH's judgment, probably that of Heylel (Lucifer) as seen in chapter 14. Aramaic, "He did not create it for nothing".19. "I have not spoken in secret, in [one of] earth's dark place[s]. I did not tell the seed of Yaaqov, 'Search diligently for Me' for nothing. I am YHWH, who says what is right, and [only] proclaims things that are straight.
Not spoken in secret: Yahshua repeated the same idea when he was being arrested. (Luke 22:53) For nothing: we will not be disappointed. The word is the same in Hebrew as "chaotic" in v. 18, which can mean "emptily" or "without form". Though He prohibits images to be made of Himself, He is not a nebulous, confusing thing of "unreality". Things that are straight: or "things of equity", i.e., He does not use double-talk or waste any words, nor does He deceive or the one who truly seeks Him or obscure His will with unnecessary clutter. He is straightforward in all that He does, unlike His competitors:20. "Gather yourselves and come; all of you together, approach one another, you who have escaped [from] the nations. Those who set up the wood of their carved images, who pray to a god who cannot deliver--they know nothing!
Escaped from the nations: perhaps with the connotation of "Gentiles who have escaped from being Gentiles". (Compare Eph. 2:11; 1 Cor. 12:2) Approach one another: We are not just to be gathered back to YHWH, but to one another as well, to form one body, a unified Bride for Him.21. "Announce it and have them approach; let them consult together with one another: Who has caused this to be heard from the earliest of times, and expounded [on it] ever since? Isn't it I, YHWH? And there is no other Elohim beside Me--a righteous El and a Deliverer; take Me away, and there is nothing.
22. "Turn toward Me and be delivered, all the extremities of the earth, because I am El, and there is nothing further.
Turn to Me: Aramaic, "Turn to My [Living Word]". Delivered: i.e., from slavery to these "other" mighty ones, which really have no might, but live off their worshippers like parasites, gaining only the authority that is offered to them.23. "I have sworn by Myself; the word has gone forth from My mouth with [perfect] appropriateness, and will not turn back, that to Me every knee will bow and every tongue will take an oath.
Compare Phil. 2:10-11, where the same claim is made about Yahshua, but to the Father's glory, not in opposition to Him, as all of these others are.24. "He will say, 'Only in YHWH do I have rights and boldness.'" He approaches him, and all who are furious with Him will be ashamed.
Rights: Aramaic, "virtues".25. In YHWH all of the seed of Israel will be justified and make their boast.
In YHWH: Aramaic, "In the Memra of YHWH." The seed of Israel: what is planted as Israel will bear the fruit of Israel, which is to be praisers of YHWH. Make their boast: Aramaic, "be glorified".
Bel: best translated "Lord", the chief Babylonian deity (known elsewhere as Ba'al). Nevo: a Babylonian deity who was thought to preside over learning and letters, corresponding to the Greek Hermes, Roman Mercury, and Egyptian Thoth. Bending down: or crouching; Aramaic, "hewn down". Belong to: Aram., "resemble". Living thing: or animal. The beast: i.e., the idols have been laid on a cart to be carried by the animals, but since "beast" is singular here, it may also be a reference to the Counterfeit Messiah as in the book of Revelation.2. They have likewise bent over; they have sunk [to their knees]. They were unable to deliver the burden, and have themselves gone into captivity.
They...likewise: i.e., the animals pulling the cart with the idols on it are in the same condition as the idols on it. LXX: "who will not be able to save themselves from war". Have themselves gone: literally, "their soul has gone".3. "Listen to Me, House of Yaaqov, and all who are left of the House of Israel, who are born from the womb, who out of compassion are carried.
Carried: may mean either sustained or taken away. LXX: "who are taught by Me from infancy"; Aramaic, "cherished more than all the kingdoms".4. "Even until your old age I am He, and to your gray hairs I will bear the load. I have made [you] and I will put up with [you]; I will plod along and I will deliver.
Put up…plod along…deliver: LXX, "I will relieve, I will take up, and save you"; Aram., "I will also forgive their sins and I will pardon." I will deliver: in contrast to the idols (vv. 1-2) who have fallen to their knees because they cannot go any further.5. "To whom will you compare Me or imagine to be My equal, and [to whom will you] liken Me or imagine that we are parallel?
What angers Him more than anything is to put something else in the same category as Himself. He cannot be boxed in; the name He revealed to Moshe is "I will be what I will be."6. "Those who pour gold lavishly out of the purse, and weigh out silver in the balances hire a refiner and he fashions a god. They begin to prostrate themselves and even bow down in worship.
Bow down: Aramaic, "are subjugated". Today, though actual graven images that are worshipped are rare, idolatry still has to do with creating wealth. Now that even silver and gold have been replaced with mere software, it is all the more like YHWH, because it is a "spirit" rather than something physical. "The Economy" is a many-tentacled monster in which even Israel trusts. Yet, though it is worshipped, it, too, has only been created by men. We keep feeding it and making it appear alive, yet YHWH sees it as just as much of a rival for our hearts. (Lk. 16:13) Any time someone feels that they "have to" work on the Sabbath, they are worshipping Mammon instead of YHWH.7. "They lift it up onto the shoulder and carry it. They set it in place, and [there] it remains; it will not leave. [Someone] may indeed call out to it, but it will not respond; it will not deliver him out of his distress.
Eliyahu mocked the prophets of Ba'al in the same way.8. "Remember this, and show yourselves [to be] men; bring it back to mind, O rebels!
Maturity is to recognize that our idols cannot deliver us, and that we are only men. (Psalm 9:20) What is there to praise them for? They have not done anything!9. "Remember the earlier things, from a time long past, because I Myself am El, and there is not another Elohim; there is nothing else like Me,
10. "who reports [about] the end [time] from the beginning, and from the ancient times, that which had not [yet] come about, saying, 'My plans will endure, and I will carry out what I please,
He proves His uniqueness by telling us what is for us yet to come, for He is not bound by time as we are. But He also had the power to set a pattern in motion from the beginning by one act and, from it, build all of what has taken place throughout history. Who else has that sort of control? By His mercy, though others may not be able to see them, He has revealed them to His people.11. "'calling a bird of prey from the sunrise, the man of My [common] purpose from a land far away. Yes indeed, I have spoken; yes indeed, I will bring it about. I have formulated the plan, and I will by all means carry it out.
A bird of prey: Aramaic, "the exiles". Man of My purpose: Aram., "the sons of Avraham, My chosen". Perhaps it means the Messiah, who is of common purpose with YHWH. (Yochanan 10:30) But in Deut. 28:49, YHWH promises to bring a nation against Israel like an eagle and without mercy if she is rebellious. Since the next chapter is about Bavel (Babylon), His instrument who did not carry out His plan with the right attitude, the bird of prey may mean Bavel.12. "Listen to Me, you obstinate of heart, who are far away from righteousness!
13. "I will make My righteousness approach; it will not [remain] far off, and My deliverance will not lag behind, and I have set in Tzion My [place of] deliverance for Israel, My beautiful adornment."
James tells us that if we draw near to YHWH, He will draw near to us as well. Compare Psalm 6.
Virgin daughter of Bavel: those who have retained some morality but are within the Babylonian system; Aramaic, "kingdom of the congregation of Babylon". Chasdim: Chaldeans, another way of describing Babylon. Delicate: LXX, "luxurious". Compare Lamentations 1:7-10, which speaks of how the nations violated the virgin daughter of Tzion.2. Fetch [a pair of] millstones and grind out flour. Remove your veil! Pull up a skirt; reveal a calf! Cross rivers!
Fetch millstones…grind…: Aram., "Accept illness … enter into slavery". Remove your veil: She now loses her virginity--i.e., is no longer an acceptable surrogate mother for His people, because she has sold herself to her seducers; Aram., "your rulers are shattered". LXX: "Remove your veil; uncover your white hairs."3. Your nakedness will be uncovered; your shame will be seen. I will take vengeance, and I will not encounter a man.
A man: Heb., Adam. She has forsaken the vision of being part of the "new man" that YHWH is creating through Yahshua and Israel. She has decided to "love this present age" instead, like Demas (2 Tim. 4:10), whose name means "governor of the people". Aramaic, "I will make your judgment different from that of the sons of men." Possible alternate reading: "I will not arbitrate with a man". If the "woman" turns out to be really a man when uncovered, then "her" shame is being uncircumcised--that is, a man without a covenant with YHWH. Yizavel (Jezebel) acts like a man but is not. Babylon is also the head of the "counterfeit Man". Since water(the rivers in v. 2) is an idiom for YHWH's word, it is Scripture that enables us to recognize the ruse. If we are righteous, the rivers represent our immersion into rebirth, and we will not need to be afraid of what will be exposed then.4. Our Kinsman Redeemer, YHWH of Armies is His Name, the Holy One of Israel!
The Holy One of Israel: or "the being holy of Israel". When Israel is holy, we are united with YHWH.5. Sit silent, and enter into darkness, O daughter of [the] Chasdim, because never again will they call you "Queen of Kingdoms".
Silent: LXX, "pierced with woe." Queen: or mistress, in the sense of being superior to others in the same class. But she has sealed her doom.6. I was in a rage over My people; I dishonored My possession, entrusting them into your hand, but you directed no compassion toward them: you made your yoke very heavy upon the elderly,
LXX: "I have been provoked with My people; you have defile My inheritance." Elderly: or "elders"; literally "bearded ones", so perhaps this refers to those who have been faithful to observe YHWH's commands regarding beards or have led Israel into faithfulness.7. and you said, "I will be a queen forever!" to the point that you no [longer] laid these on your heart, nor did you remember [how] it will end.
8. So now, hear this, O woman of pleasure, who sits confident [that she is secure], the one who says in her heart, "I am, and there is no longer anyone else; I will not sit as a widow, nor will I experience the loss of children!"
Woman of pleasure: Aram.,"indulged one". She is coddled by the unified kingdom of all nations. No longer anyone else: i.e., there is no one left to rival me, so what do I have to fear? Perhaps it is after this "mother of harlots" loses a huge number of her children once they realize they are really Israel, and she cracks down on allowing anyone to leave the church--or considers herself so attractive now that no one in their right mind would forsake the privileges she offers. But this is after she has "crossed over"(v. 2) irretrievably into compromise with the Beast's system. Compare Rev. 18:3-7.9. But both of these things will come upon you [in a] moment--in one day: loss of children and widowhood. They have come upon you in their completeness despite your sorceries, [even] while [you cast your] very strongest spells.
The Beast will worship a "god of forces" (Daniel 11:38), and his paramour, Bavel's once-virginal daughter, will lose her innocence to the occult arts.10. You also trusted in your mischief; you said, "There is no one who sees me." Your shrewdness and your experience enticed you away when you said in your heart, "I am, and there is no longer anyone else."
Shrewdness: LXX, "understanding of these things", that is, the forbidden arts. Experience: or "know-how", "awareness"; LXX: "harlotries". The church put too much stock in becoming worldly-wise--perhaps originally for the sake of communicating to her audience, being "all things to all men". But it lured her away and she became part of her audience, losing all sense of what she was to bring the world INTO, since she had entered into lawlessness through a false understanding of what "grace" means.11. So harm will come over you; you will not know from where it arises. And mischief will fall upon you; you will not be able to cover it up. Then devastation will come upon you suddenly without your recognizing it.
Cover it up: or ward it off, placate it, pacify it. Recognizing it: being aware of it, perceiving (what it was or where it came from). You will not know what hit you. This is how Babylon was taken the first time, when the Medo-Persians sneaked into the city by night and killed the king without a battle. The Day of YHWH, also, will come "like a thief in the night".12. Stand your ground, then, among your charms and with your many sorceries, in which you have labored since your youth. Maybe you will be able to have some effect; perhaps you may frighten it away!
13. You have exhausted yourself with so many plans. Let the astrologers, the stargazers, the prognosticators for the month stand up and save you from [the things] that are coming upon you!
Astrologers: literally, "dividers of the heavens"; Aramaic, "those who look at planets". Prognosticators for the month: that is, those who write the horoscopes, but this could also deal with things like the stock market trends; Aramaic, "those who predict the appointed times, misleading you, saying, 'This is what is about to happen to you New Moon by New Moon'." This could also, then, include those who still use the dates of festivals worked out centuries ago (when they were excusable) when now we have witnesses in Israel who can check on and announce the actual sightings of the new moon, which is how Scripture recognizes the actual new month.14. Look, they have become just like [kindling] stubble; the fire burns them [right up]! They will not [even] snatch themselves out of the flame's hand! There is no coal to warm them, firelight to sit in front of.
Not even snatch themselves: so how much less can they help you out of it? No coal…firelight…: Aramaic, "They have no remnant of a survivor, not even a place to be rescued in!"15. This is what those whom you worked hard [with] trafficking since your youth have become to you: each one has staggered away to his own side; there is no one to deliver you!
This appears to be the nation of Israel today, for they are mainly only Yehudah in reality, whereas the kingdom that retained the name Israel was the northern kingdom ("Ephrayim"). Yehudah is not truly Israel until reunited with the rest of the tribes.2. because they are summoned from the holy city while they support themselves upon the Holy One of Israel--YHWH of Armies is His Name:
Summoned: or "renowned as being from the holy city"; LXX, "maintaining the name of the holy city". Support themselves: Perhaps this means Yehudah makes their living off the tourism of those who come to see the "Holy Land".3. "From the time I announced the earliest things, and they went forth from My mouth and I made them well known. Suddenly I acted, and they came about!
4. "Because I knew that you are stubborn--your neck is sinew of iron, and your forehead is brazen--
5. "so I announced it to you back then, before it came about, and I let you hear [about it], so you could not say, 'My idol has accomplished them, and my carved or cast image has appointed them!'
My idol…my carved image: Is Yehudah's idol the safety of the modern land they see as created to be a refuge for them, rather than still being YHWH's Land as it was in ancient times? Is it "going down to Egypt for help" again, instead of relying on YHWH? The same type of claims are made in chapter 42, in the context of speaking about the Messiah, so perhaps Yehudah's idol (literally "something fashioned or shaped", which one worked hard at perfecting) is Judaism itself--a theology that dos not take Yahshua into account.6. "There it is; you have heard it all, so won't you acknowledge it? I have already now made you hear new things, even guarded secrets--[things] you did not recognize.
Guarded secrets: Aramaic, "Has what is revealed to you been revealed to any other people?" Things you did not recognize: Just as Yoseyf was not recognized by his brothers, so Yehudah today may not recognize the House of Yoseyf until we "appear suddenly" out of nowhere.7. "They were [just] created now, and not long ago; before today you did not hear about them, lest you should say, 'See? I knew about them!'
Long ago: literally, "from that time". You heard…you have not heard: This seems like a contradiction until we realize that Yehudah once knewabout the lost tribes, but then were blinded to who they are until they are ready to be rejoined (Romans 11:25), since they have not been one recognizable people since.8. "You neither heard about them nor knew about them, nor was your ear opened since that time, because I knew you would deal with deceitful treachery and would be renowned as a rebel from the womb!
Deal with deceitful treachery: as Yoseyf's brothers did to him, which is perhaps why he did not reveal himself to them at first. Any earlier, YHWH would have been "casting His pearls before swine". So He kept the truth about the return of the lost tribes of Israel well hidden until the time came when His people would again turn and desire to obey His covenant; that is when He let it become known.9. "For My reputation's sake I will put off My anger, and so that I may be glorified I will restrain Myself for you, so as not to cut you off [completely].
Put off: defer, or perhaps prolong. Indeed we are not worthy, but He has made promises, and will keep them10. "See? I have refined you, but not with silver; I chose you in the forge of affliction.
Silver: or money. Affliction: humbling, busyness, poverty,oppression, or misery.11. "For My sake--for My own sake--I will act, because how can [this] be desecrated? And I will not give My honor to [anyone] different!
I will act: I.e., "I will do it Myself". How can this be desecrated: "I cannot afford to let this work be done the wrong way." LXX, "because My name is profaned". Probably this is why He waited until this late in history to let the realization of His true Name "leak out" on a large scale. It was always known by some, but we have seen how men have desecrated even the pagan titles substituted for His true Name; why should He let them have access to the real thing, if that is how they treat the "test models"? Give My honor to any different: even Israel! But also, when we worship "the Lord", we are actually honoring Ba'al, whether we intend to or not; if we pray to "God", we are honoring the pagan deity of "Fortune"--something which "by nature is not Elohim". This is why He IS now revealing His true Name, because the glory due Him has been given instead to these others.12. "Listen to Me, O Yaaqov, and Israel, whom I have called! I am He! I am the first, and I am what came afterward as well!
What came afterward: Aramaic, "even the ages of the ages are mine".13. "It [was] even My hand that laid the foundation of the earth, and it is My right hand that stretched out the heavens. [When] I call for them, they [both] appear on the scene together."
My hand: an idiom for the Messiah. I.e., they show up and report for duty with equal promptness. Will we, His people, do as well?14. All of you, assemble yourselves and listen: Which of you has proclaimed these things? YHWH has befriended [such a one]! He will carry out His desire on Bavel, and His arm [on] the Chasdim.
These things: YHWH's supremacy, uniqueness, mercy, and special choice of Israel. Befriended: or "loved"; Aramaic, "had compassion on". His desire: the LXX sees it as YHWH carrying out Israel's desire.15. "I Myself have spoken; indeed I have called him and caused him to come, and he will make his journey successful.
Him: in the immediate context probably Babylon, who is His unwilling servant. But itr is also said of Yahshua that "the good pleasure of YHWH will prosper in His hand". (53:10)16. "Come close to Me; listen to this: not since the beginning have I spoken in secret; since the time it came into existence, I was there, and now the Master YHWH has sent Me, along with His spirit."
I: This is Yahshua speaking.17. This is what YHWH, your Kinsman Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, says: "I am YHWH your Elohim, who teaches you to ascend, who leads you in the direction you should walk.
To ascend: or to profit, to benefit, to take the high road.18. "Oh, if only you had paid attention to My orders! Then your welfare would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea,
If only: Yahshua is still the one speaking. (Compare His lament over Yerushalayim in Mat. 23:37 and Lk. 19:44.) The kingdom could have come earlier had Yehudah responded to Him. (Mat. 11:14) Like a river: where it is easy for a tree's roots to find water, even in times of drought. (Psalm 1:3; Jer. 17:8) The tree of life, restored after His kingdom, is planted by a river. (Rev. 22:2) Righteousness: Aramaic, "innocence".19. "and your seed would have been like the sand, and the offspring of your loins like its grains! His name would not have been cut off or annihilated from before My face.
Like the waves of the sea (v. 18): building up the sand layer upon layer, i.e., increasing Avraham's descendants instead of remaining few in number because so many had to be cut off and then replaced, so that there is little net growth. If both houses of Israel had remained united after the first century, there might never have been a holocaust. Grains: Aramaic, "pebbles". His name: Israel's. Would not have: LXX, "neither will it [happen] now".20. "'Come out of Bavel! Hurry away from the Chasdim!' Utter this loudly with a voice of joyful song! Let this be heard! Let it go out to the farthest edge of the earth. Say, 'YHWH has redeemed His servant Yaaqov!
Come out: Compare Rev. 18:4. From the Chasdim: i.e., from their land. Joyful: That we can escape from the Babylonian system is great news! And news that must be published widely. This is our job today, before that system congeals into total evil and clamps down on those who would wish to reject it after it is all but too late and it requires martyrdom to do so.21. "'And they were not thirsty when He had them walk through the wasteland. He has caused waters to flow from a rock for them, and He will split a rock open, and water will gush out.'"
This is a yet-to-come repetition of the prior exodus, when their shoes did not wear out. (Yirmiyahu 16:14-15) Much of the world will be a wasteland after the plagues of the book of Revelation. Only this time Israel will not ruin it by complaining. This time His soul will be satisfied, if we rise to the occasion.22. "There is no peace," says YHWH, "for the guilty ones."
Peace: safety or welfare. Guilty ones: or "the wicked". In contrast to Israel, no one else has any such promises or can rest in the thought that they will escape the coming devastation.
Coastlands: or islands. Called me from the womb: Yirmiyahu was told the same thing. (Yirm. 7:14) From my mother's inward parts, He mentioned my name: This was literally true of Yahshua. (Mat. 1:21)2. and He made my mouth like a sharp sword; He has drawn me back into the shadow of His hand. He has appointed me to be a polished arrow; He has concealed me within His quiver,
Mouth like a sharp sword: compare 11:4; Rev. 1:16; 2:16; 19:15, 21. Polished: or choice, select, pure, proven.3. and told me, "You are My servant, O Israel, in whom I will bring Myself glory."
The solution to the impasse in our "culture war" is Israel. When those with some semblance of righteousness seemed to be losing out to evil, YHWH pulled out His special forces who would be stricter than ever. When it seemed that compromise was winning out over the idea of one day in seven being holy, YHWH whipped out His secret, well-hidden weapon--the Sabbath! When "God's" name was all but trampled to death in the dust, YHWH revealed that His real name had not been besmirched, for it had been kept out of the limelight where it could not be profaned. The enemy, who thought he had won, was caught off guard, for the "biggest guns" had not been seen yet. (See also 51:1-2)4. But I said, "I have worked hard [with an] empty [result]; I have used up all my strength for nothing--in vain! Yet indeed the deciding of my case [lies] with YHWH, and my recompense is with my Elohim."
Nothing: Heb, tohu--the same as the "formlessness" or "chaos" of Gen. 1:2. In vain: literally, "for a vapor"; Heb., Hevel, the name of Adam's murdered son.5. So now, YHWH speaks--the One who formed Me from the womb to be a servant to Him--to cause Yaaqov to return to Him. (Though Israel may not be gathered back [into association], still I will be honored in the sight of YHWH, and My Elohim has become my strength.)
This shows that it is the Messiah who is speaking as the "microcosm" of the Israel of v. 3. On His first visit, Yehudah was not regathered (Mat. 23:37-39), but He began the process of regathering the Northern Kingdom.6. And He says, "It was too insignificant that you should be My servant to raise up the tribes of Yaaqov and the faithfully-guarded ones of Israel; I will also appoint you as a light to the Gentiles, to be My salvation all the way to the extremities of the earth."
Compare 42:6. Raise up: or resurrect, since as tribes per se they were indeed long dead. LXX: "to recover the dispersion of Israel". This also tells us that YHWH considered the "original plan"--the main point of what Messiah was to accomplish--to be bringing the scattered tribes of Israel back together. The rest is seen as somewhat of an afterthought. Yet so many have made the "bonus" He has earned into the main, or only consideration, and forgotten the original plan! Faithfully-guarded: or preserved. (The name of Yahshua's hometown of Natzereth derives from this word. This, along with v. 7, may be where Matithyahu obtained his quote in 2:23, "He shall be called a Natzarene.") YHWH promised to sift the House of Israel (the "lost" tribes of the Northern Kingdom), yet not one would fall to the ground. (Amos 9:9) YHWH would not lose track of a single one! Salvation: Heb., "Yeshuah", from which both Yahshua's and Yeshayahu's names are derived. They had mixed with the Gentiles (Hos. 7:8), so the process of regathering them made the knowledge of YHWH available to others around them as well, but this was not the main point. Shim'on, an elderly man who was "waiting for the consolation of Israel" (v. 13) prophesied over the infant Yahshua that He would lighten the Gentiles and be the glory of YHWH's people, Israel. (Lk. 2:32) If they do not respond to the light, they still dwell in darkness. They may not all be Avraham's seed genetically, but they must come out from being Gentiles and see themselves as part of Israel if the light is to have its full effect.7. This is what YHWH, the Kinsman Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, says to the one despised of soul, whom [the] people loathes [as] the subject of overlords: "Kings will see and rise up; princes will bow in homage for the sake of YHWH, who is faithful, and who chose you--the Holy One of Israel."
Despised: see 53:3, but the Aramaic also includes in this those who are out among the exiles. Subject of overlords: i.e., the House of Yehudah, who remained a "people" (nation) when the House of Israel no longer was, considered Yahshua to be simply the pawn of those occupiers of the Land or persecutors of the Jews who used Him for their own purposes.8. This is what YHWH says: "At an acceptable time I have responded to you; in a day of deliverance I have helped you, and I will guard you faithfully and appoint you as a covenant for the People, to establish the Land, to cause [them] to inherit the [now] deserted inheritances,
Acceptable: or pleasing. The people: in this case, the House of Israel, not a people at that time (7:8; Hos. 1:9-10), having deserted their inheritance. But the connection is to be re-established by our Kinsman Redeemer! Paul said that his own day was that acceptable time. (2 Cor. 6:2)9. "to say to those bound in prison, 'Come out!', to those who are in darkness, 'Show yourselves!' They will graze on the journeys, and their pastures will be on all the windswept heights.
Graze: or become companions. Journeys: or roads.10. "They will be neither hungry nor thirsty, nor will the scorching heat or the sun conquer them, because One who has compassion on them will lead them. He will even guide them to stopping-places by fountains of water.
Heat or sun: two different things here, so perhaps the "heat" refers to the fiery places through which they will need to walk (43:2) while the earth is being purified to make it ready for the Kingdom. Conquer them: or strike them, bring them down, harm them. Compare Psalm 23:2; 7:16.11. "I will also transform all My mountains into a pathway, and I will raise up My highways.
A pathway: Aramaic, "level". It appears that He will lead us along the top of a ridge. With all of the upheavals taking place on earth during the time of His Indignation, undoubtedly new ranges will be cast of as the topography changes radically. (40:4) Raise up My highways: LXX, "make every path a pasture".12. "Look! Here they come from far away! And here they come from the north and the west! And those, from the land of Sinim!
North and west: or "from the hidden places and the sea". Sinim: A Chamitic people, and today the word means China.13. "Sing out, O heavens, and be glad, O earth, and break forth into ringing cries of joy, O mountains! Because YHWH has consoled His people, and will have compassion on those whom He has afflicted."
Compare 51:3. This is the "consolation of Israel" that Shim'on spoke of in Luke 2:25.14. But Tzion said, "YHWH has abandoned me, and My Master has forgotten about Me!"
Tzion: means " adried-up place", but it also refers to a "dried-up" people. Abandoned: forsaken or neglected. Forgotten: or ceased to care about. But He promises to never break His covenant with Israel. (Judges 2:1; compare Heb. 13:5.)15. "Can a woman forget her nursing baby, or [stop] having tender affection for the son of her womb? Even they might forget, but I will never forget you.
16. "In fact, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are constantly right in front of Me.
The bride asks Him to set her as a seal on His heart. (Song of Songs 8:6) Just as we sometimes write ourselves notes on our hands, YHWH says He has done the same for Yerushalayim, so she is always in the forefront of His mind. But if you look at the inside of your fingers horizontally, you can see the 12 staggered "building stones" that form a "wall"! So He we too have a constant reminder of the walls of Yerushalayim on our hands.17. "Your children have [come] in a hurry; those who are tearing you down and laying you waste will depart from within you.
LXX, "You will soon be built by those by whom you were destroyed." This was indeed her children, because though they did not do the actual destroying, it was their sins that brought it on.18. "Lift up your eyes all around and see! They have all gathered themselves together and come to you! [I swear] by My life", declares YHWH, "that you will wear them all like an ornament, and tie them on [yourself] as a bride [does],
The city that the bride forms will wear the stones of the twelve tribes that were on the high priest's breastplate. (Rev. 21)19. "because your ruins and your deserted places as well as the land of your overthrow will be too narrow to [all] settle in, and those who are swallowing you down will be far away.
20. "The children of whom you [were] bereaved will yet say within your hearing, 'The place is too crowded for me; draw back and give me space to settle!'
Bereaved: Yaravam (Jeroboam) did this by depriving Yerushalayim of its right for worshippers to come there, when he built alternative worship sites at Dan and Bethel. (1 Kings 12:29) The place is too crowded: The Place is often a nickname for the Temple, and indeed, the Talmud says that though during the festivals there was often standing room only in the Temple, when it came time for everyone to prostrate themselves, there was miraculously still enough room to do so.21. "Then you will say in your heart, 'Who has brought these forth for me, since I am bereaved and [made] barren, an exile and brought to an end? So who has brought these [children] up? Behold, I was left alone; where [have] they [been]?'"
There are many more Israelites than those who live in Yerushalayim realize! They are just hidden in the deck to be played as a "wild card" when the right moment comes.22. This is what the Master YHWH says: "Indeed, I will lift up My hand toward Gentiles, and I will lift up My rallying-banner toward peoples, and they will bring your sons in their laps, and your daughters will be carried on their shoulder[s].
Rallying-banner: a title for the Messiah. This is more than just the Gentiles making possible the return of the Jews to their homeland in 1948. These are not foreigners bringing Israelites back, but "Gentile" parents bringing their own children, who have been raised as Israelites in this last generation, as these "former Gentiles" (Eph. 2:11) have realized that part of their ancestry is the Northern Kingdom that was "mixed with the Gentiles". (Hos. 7:8)23. "Then kings will come to be your foster fathers, and their princesses your nurses. They will bow to you, faces to the earth, and lick up the dust from your feet. Then you will know that I am YHWH, in whom those who place their expectation on Me will not be disappointed.
Place their expectation on Me…disappointed: or "band together in Me will not be put to shame." The promises are not chiefly to individuals, but to Israel as an entire, unified entity.24. "Will the plunder be taken away from the strong man, or the one lawfully taken captive [simply] escape?"
25. But yet this is what YHWH says: "Even the strong man's captive will be taken away, and those plundered by the [ruthless] terrifying ones will be delivered, and I will contend with the one who brings a case against you, and I will liberate your children.
Yahshua alluded to this verse in Mark 3:27, added that the strong man must first be bound. We were lawfully taken captive by haSatan since Adam forfeited his inheritance (and ours), but Yahshua retrieved it for us when haSatan killed Yahshua unlawfully, thus abdicating his rights.26. "And I will cause those who mistreat you to eat their own flesh, and they will become drunken with their own blood as with sweet wine. Then all flesh will know that I am YHWH, your Deliverer, and the Mighty One of Yaaqov, your Kinsman Redeemer.
Flesh: can also mean "Good News" ("Gospel") in Hebrew. Being forced to eat one's own Gospel would be like the plague of frogs on Egypt, a nation that worshipped frogs. The distorted Gospel in our own day emphasizes grace to such an extent that now homosexual pastors are even being tolerated since, if we are under grace, it really doesn't matter, does it? Yet it will cause their destruction.
Your mother: Aramaic, "your congregation". Sent away: Aram., "rejected". Rebellion: Aram., "apostasies". Yirmiyahu 3:8 says the same thing about "faithless Israel", referring specifically to the Northern Kingdom, because then it says Yehudah follows suit. Compare 54:5 and Hos. 4:5-6.2. "Who knows why I have come and no one is there? I called, but no one is responding. Has My hand really grown shorter, so that I cannot ransom? Or is there no power in Me to bring deliverance? Look, with My rebuke I can dry up the sea! I can turn rivers into a wilderness! Their fish will stink from lack of water, and they will die of thirst.
Who knows why…? Aram., "Why, when I sent My prophets, did they not repent?" Grown shorter? The answer is in 59:5. Dry up the sea…fish will stink: notice all the imagery from the events surrounding the Exodus.3. "I can clothe the skies [in] black, and make burlap their covering."
Black clothing and burlap (sackcloth) are both signs of mourning or humiliation. Compare Revelation 6:12.4. The Master YHWH has given me the tongue of those who are trained to know how to [hurry to] aid the weary one [with] a word. He wakes up--morning by morning He wakes up my ear so I can hear like the ones who are trained.
Trained: or learned, [well] taught. Aid the weary one with a word: LXX, "to know when it is fit to speak a word". Yahshua only spoke what He heard from His Father. (Yochanan 5:19, 30; 8:28, 38)5. The Master YHWH has opened [my] ear for me, and I was not disobedient, nor was I turned back.
Opened my ear: or freed my ear; Aramaic, "sent me to prophesy".6. I surrendered by back to those who beat, and my cheeks to those who made them bare; I did not hide my face from insult and spitting.
Those who beat: LXX, "scourges". Made them bare: either shaved off or pulled out his beard. This applied to some extent to Yeshayahu, but was also fulfilled during Yahshua's trial and crucifixion.7. But the Master YHWH will help me; therefore I have not been put to shame. That is why I have set my face like flint, and I know that I will not be disappointed.
8. The One who vindicates me is near; who can contend with me? Let us take our stand together. Who is the master of my sentence? Let him approach!
Take our stand: i.e., appear before the judge. Master [ba'al] of my sentence: the prosecutor or accuser; Aramaic, "my enemy".9. Behold, the Master YHWH will help me; who is he who can condemn me [as guilty]? Look! Like a garment they will all wear out; the moth will consume them!
Paul echoes this in Romans 8:33-34, asking who can condemn us or even accuse us if the judge Himself is on our side. Then we will no longer call Him "My ba'al" but "My man". (Hos. 2:16; Both terms can mean "husband", but the latter is a relationship of greater affection and intimacy.)10. Who among you fears YHWH, heeding the voice of His servant, who walks in dark places and there is no light for him? Let him trust in the name of YHWH, and lean on his Elohim [for support].
His Name itself has a special role in delivering us from darkness.11. "Look, all of you who start a fire, and who equip yourselves with flaming arrows! Walk in the light of your fire, and by the firebrands that you have set ablaze. You will have this from My hand: you will lie down [and die] in pain."
Fire is likened to wickedness in 9:18. Pain: or sorrow, grief, torture. Equip yourselves with flaming arrows: or "surround yourselves with firebrands"; LXX, "feed a flame". Aramaic, "grasp a sword". Yahshua said, "Those who live by the sword will die by the sword". (Mat. 26:52)
This tells us that those who pursue what is right are children of Avraham. And to take the next step into further righteousness, we need to live as Hebrews ("crossers-over") as he was.2. Pay attention to Avraham your father, and to Sarah, who was writhing in anguish to give you birth, because I called him [when he was only] one, and began to bless him and cause him to increase,
3. because YHWH has comforted Tzion; He has comforted all the parts of her that were laid waste, and will make her wilderness like Eden, and her [barren] steppes like the enclosed garden of YHWH. Joy and merriment will be found in her--thanksgiving and the voice of melodious singing!
4. "Listen to Me, My nation, and bend your ear toward Me, My [gathered] people! Because instruction will go forth from Me, and I will make My legal procedure bring about settledness as a light to nations.
Instruction: Hebrew, torah. Gathered people: Aramaic, "congregation".5. "My vindication is near; My deliverance has gone forth, and My Arm will judge nations. Coastlands will direct their eager hope toward Me, and place their expectation on My Arm.
My Arm: Aramaic, "My Memra (lilving Word)."6. "Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and take into consideration the earth beneath, because skies wil [certainly] be dissipated like smoke, and the earth will be completely worn out like a garment, and those who dwell in it will die in the same way. Yet My deliverance will last forever, and My vindication will never be checked.
Checked: or abolished.7. "Listen to Me, you who know righteousness [by experience]--the people [who have] My Torah on their hearts! Do not be afraid of men's scorn, or go to pieces because of their taunts,
The way to become intimately familiar with righteousness is to have the Torah on our hearts. (cf. Yirmiyahu 31:33) This certainly means that they understand the spirit behind the letter, but they do not therefore forsake the letter, the very vehicle which brought them to understand what was behind it. If something is "on our hearts", it means we are all but obsessed with it. Taunts: Aramaic, "self-exaltation"; it is unrealistic. (v. 13)8. "because a [mere] moth will devour them like [it does] the garment, and the moth-larva will eat them like wool, but My righteousness will last forever, and My deliverance to a generation of generations."
Moth-larva will eat: Aramaic, "rot attacks".9. Rouse yourself! Wake up! Clothe yourself with prevailing strength, O Arm of YHWH! Rouse yourself as [in] the days of old, in the ages long ago! Wasn't it you who were cutting Rahav, the profane sea-serpent, into pieces?
Wasn't it you…? : Aramaic, "Wasn't it for your sake, O Israel, that I…?" Rahav: often considered a symbol of Egypt. (Compare Y'chezq'el 29:3.)10. Wasn't it you who were making the sea--the waters of the great abyss--dry up, who transformed the depths of the sea into a pathway for the ransomed to cross over [by]?
As with the exodus from Egypt, we need another deliverance from the bondage we again entered into because of necessity. Salvation will come by returning to Tzion, from whence the Torah emanates.11. And those ransomed by YHWH will return and come to Tzion with loud songs of joy, and everlasting cheer upon their heads. Gladness and rejoicing will overtake them, and grief and moaning will disappear.
This verse is an exact repetition of 35:10, evidence of the fact that prophets used to sing out their prophecies, each in their own distinctive style. This is also a strong argument for there being only one author of the book of Yeshayahu (a fact much disputed in the last century), since chapter 35 is in the earlier portion of the book, before the "break" some posit between the two segments. Return: or repent. Cheer: part of our repentance is choosing to be joyful instead of fearful…12. "I Myself am the one who is consoling you; who are you, that you should be afraid of frail man [who is] is mortal, or the son of humanity, [who is] given over [to be] grass,
13. "and forget YHWH your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth firmly? Yet you are always in such dread of the fury of the oppressor, all day long, as if he were prepared to bring destruction! Yet where is the oppressor's fury now?
Dread: or alarm. As if he were prepared: but in reality he is not. (14:16) The truer perspective is the one Elisha asked that his servant be allowed to see, in which the heavenly hosts are mightier. (2 Kings 6:17)14. "Stooping over, he hurries to be let loose, so that he might not die for the pit, nor be lacking for bread.
Stooping over: or cowering (compare Rev. 20:2-3); Alt., "the captive exile will soon be set free".15. "But I am YHWH your Elohim, who stirs up the sea so that its waves may rage; YHWH of Armies is His Name.
Stirs up…rage: He is the one in control of the changes that have to come about in order to set things straight; LXX, "who divided the sea whose waves roared"--apparently taking this as an allusion to the parting of the Red Sea.16. "And I will put My words in your mouth, and with the shadow of My hand I have covered you, in order to establish the heavens and lay the foundation of the earth, and tell Tzion, 'You are My people!'
While He sets things back in order, there will be upheavals, but if we are in the shade of His hand, there is nothing to fear. Compare 26:20. "You are My people": the reversal of the curse of being called "not My people" in Hoshea 1.17. "Rouse yourself to triumphant excitement! Rise up, O Yerushalayim, who has drunk the cup of fury from Yahweh's hand. You have drunk the dregs of the cup of reeling; you have [completely] drained it.
18. "She has no one to guide [her] from among all the sons to whom she has given birth, and from all the sons she has raised, not one takes her by the hand.
No one…from all her sons: Yerushalayim is called the mother of those who, like Yitzhaq, are born according to the promise rather than the flesh. (Gal. 4:26) But those who emphasize this "grace" are not willing to go the full distance of what it means to be her children. Instead, they have ignored the holiness that she stands for, and abandoned her, making their own way instead. Yerushalayim is not just a physical place, but a high plane in the spirit realm, to which we must go before the Temple--and Eden from before it--can be rebuilt on their former site. We have to learn to ascend in order to get there, and this is not possible apart from the Sabbath or Yahshua.19. "Both of those things are [now] happening to you; who can be sorry for you? Havoc and destruction, the famine and the sword! [By] whom can I console you?
Both: these two things paralleled in the couplets here. By whom can I console?: I.e., who is left after all that has come to pass on the earth?20. "Your sons have been covered up; they have been lain down at the head of every street. Like an antelope in a snare, they are full of the rage of YHWH, the reproof of your Elohim.
Been covered up: by this hunter's snare. Antelope: an animal that knows how to climb hills--to ascend, as to the holy city--but we are stuck, wrapped up in the snares of our own ways, and thus, by the inherent consequences He has built into them, held back from going the full distance.21. "So now, listen to this, you who are humiliated and drunken, but not with wine!
Drunken, but not with wine: compare Ephesians 5:18.22. "Thus says your Master YHWH and your Elohim, who will plead the case for His people: 'See? I have taken the cup of reeling out of your hand, the dregs of the cup of My fury; there will never again be [occasion] for you to drink it.
Plead the case: i.e., be His people's defense attorney, as indeed Yahshua does. (Rom. 8:33ff; Heb. 7:25)23. "Rather, I will put it into the hand of those who are causing you grief, who have said to your soul, 'Lie flat so that we can cross over, and make your back like the ground and like the street for those who cross over.'"
YHWH says He will make Yerusahalyim herself a cup of reeling to all who besiege it. (Zech. 12:2) Who say…: I.e., those who "walk all over you." And Israel "went the other mile", yet these opportunists simply used them and left them behind.
This and verse 2 are part of the liturgy for welcoming the Sabbath. Garments of splendor: or gleaming garments--the light that Adam was clothed in before he was covered with skin. The New Yerushalayim's walls and gates also gleam, and that is what we are being built into. (Both Adam and the New City replaced the splendor of Heylel/Lucifer.) Alt., garments [worthy] of your splendor. Garments also bespeak our works all through Scripture. We are to put off the old, selfish man and put on the new one, of which Yahshua is the Head. (Col. 3:10; Eph. 2:15; 4:24). Unclean: There is parallelism here: We need garments that are undefiled. (Rev. 3:4) A parallel passage to this is Yirmiyahu 31:18-25, in which Efrayim realizes the condition he is in, but then accepts YHWH's assessment that he can be cleansed and used again as YHWH's vessel, rather than continuing to wallow in the mud.2. Shake the dust off yourself; get up and be seated, O Yerushalayim. Free yourself from the bands on [the back of] your neck, O captive [of the] daughter of Tzion!
Dust: a reference back to the state the City is in (51:20-23); the Sabbath liturgy continues, "Too long have you dwelt in the valley of tears; He will show you abounding mercy!" Tzion has been walked over, especially as Yahshua's command was taken out of its context of learning from those who strike us and made to advocate becoming pushovers whom everyone takes advantage of--the world's whore; now she is called to take the offensive. (v. 1) This attitude adjustment needs to take place every day, as YHWH's mercies are new every morning. (Lam. 3:22-23) Be seated: take your rightful position; be established on your throne. This is where our walking stops. Captive: or exile; if we are exiles we are indeed captives, even in "free countries". YHWH will grant us another exodus; we need to refuse to be re-enslaved this time.3. For this is what YHWH says: "You have been sold for nothing, and you will be redeemed without money."
Been sold for nothing: or, sold yourselves for no reason. Money: literally, silver. 1 Peter 1:18-19 reiterates that it was neither with gold nor silver that we were redeemed, but with Yahshua's precious blood. Yahweh did not sell us; He was never paid, so we do not belong to another. He had no creditors (50:1)4. Because this is what the Master YHWH says: "First My people went down [to] Egypt to sojourn, but Ashur ended up exploiting them without cause.
Exploiting them: They had gone into Egypt out of necessity; that was understandable. But Ashur (Assyria) took our ancestors captive because we had already sold ourselves. Even in Egypt, the book of Yasher says that little by little the Israelites had sold themselves into slavery by buying into the Egyptian system rather than remaining a separate people. We do the same in many ways today. Yahshua's "called-out" congregation let ourselves be lured in by feeling that we could be "part of things", when in fact we are not meant to be counted among the nations of the world. "Ashur" does not care about us; they only want our resources to be used toward their own ends.5. "So now, what is there for Me here? For," declares YHWH, "My nation is taken captive for no reason. Those who exercise dominion over it will howl," declares YHWH, "and constantly, all day long, My Name is being spurned.
Spurned: despised or blasphemed, treated contemptibly, as when Pharaoh said, "Who is YHWH, that I should obey His voice and set Israel free?" (Ex. 5:2) But it has also been despised by not being used, and being replaced by the pagan names some prefer to substitute for His. YHWH said He would blot out the Name of Amaleq; we dare not do the same to His Name.6. "Therefore, My people will know My Name; this being so, in that Day they will know that I am the one making the promise. Behold, here I am!"
The one making the promise: or "the one speaking" (in intensive form). I.e., knowing His Name is tied intimately with Israel's coming out of Assyria, redemption from the slavery we have entangled ourselves with, and return to the Land. And by His Name, YHWH (not "the Lord" or "God" or any such generic substitute that anyone can use), we will be able to tell that it is really He who is delivering us. And this is exactly what is taking place in our very own day!7. How fitting upon the mountains are the feet of the one bringing good news, who proclaims peace, who gladdens [us] with tidings of [what is truly] good, who causes "deliverance" to be heard, who tells Tzion, "Your Elohim has begun to reign!"
Fitting: appropriate, beautiful, "at home". The Greek word used to translate this in the Septuagint (LXX) means "in season" or "on the hour", i.e., right on schedule. Feet: or footsteps, also an idiom in Scripture for the pilgrimage festivals. (Ex. 23:14) Peace: i.e., reconciliation with YHWH, total well-being, and also national unity (the reunification of the two houses of Israel). Deliverance: Heb., yeshuah. Of course, Yahshua is an essential ingredient of our peace and good news, because He was the Kinsman Redeemer from Yehudah who made it possible for the other tribes to come back into fellowship. Begun to reign: thus this is His coronation. Yet even now we are on the threshold of His Kingdom and thus need to live according to the sanctity of the age to come (Heb. 6:5), just as the gate to each never court in the Temple bore the same level of holiness as the court it led into.8. The voice of those keeping watch! They have lifted up their voice; in unison they will give a ringing cry, because they will see eye to eye when YHWH restores Tzion.
Keeping watch: includes leaning forward or looking around a corner, "sticking one's neck out", but also seeing what is coming but is not visible to those still behind the wall whom you are protecting. This person is most exposed of all, so he must have good vision! I.e., together they must all focus on what YHWH finds most important, and where He is headed in making us a selfless community.9. Break out together into intense songs of joy, O ruins of Yerushalayim, because YHWH has consoled His people; He has redeemed [and avenged] Yerushalayim!
Break out: They will cry out in joy (v. 8), but YHWH tells us to in faith consider it done and start living in it and singing of our deliverance and unity even before we see the full results. Ruins of Yerushalayim: those that are yet to come, described in Zech. 14:2.10. YHWH has uncovered the Arm of His holiness for the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the deliverance of our Elohim.
Uncovered: or laid bare, as Yahshua, His Arm, His deliverance (yeshuah) was while He was being crucified. But this also refers to letting His strength be seen by all the nations that are united against Israel and have laid Yerushalayim waste.11. Turn away! Leave! Get out of there! Don't touch anything ritually impure! Get out from her midst; purify yourselves, you who bear YHWH's vessels!
There are three steps to our redemption: repenting, coming out, and then "taking the Egypt out of ourselves". It was Israel's outcry of dissatisfaction with Egypt that led YHWH to begin to act. Anything ritually impure: the dead bodies, or "the unclean thing" in particular: the Abomination of Desolation (Dan. 11:31), which will have to be removed from the Temple before the holy vessels can be brought back in. Babylon stole YHWH's holy vessels from the Temple, but was not destroyed until she appropriated them for her own feast. The spirit of Babylon has done so again, and there will come a "last straw" for it as well. From her midst: from between the halves of the divided animals, that is, out of any covenant with Babylon. Too many vessels that are prepared for His Temple have been filled with pride instead and become useless to Him. We need to remove the contents of the vessels that are in His way so that He can fill us with what He wishes to use them for. There is never room in His vessels for our own agendas. "Vessels" can also be translated "weapons". How can we use YHWH's weapons for another army? Dare we use them to advance the cause of Babylon?12. For you must not proceed with hurried trepidation; you will not walk [as] when fleeing, because YHWH will go before you; the Elohim of Israel will be your rear guard.
Not… with hurried trepidation: alt., in haste, but not as a fugitive. Rear guard: one who gathers as when driving a flock from behind.13. "Behold, My Servant will bring correct understanding; He will be raised up. He has been supported and lifted to an exceedingly great height.
My servant: the Aramaic quite unabashedly adds, "the Messiah". Bring correct understanding: or act wisely, teach [others] to act prudently. Because He was faithful (53:12; Rev. 5:9-12), He was raised up by YHWH--even from the dead--and "highly exalted, given a name above every name" to which YHWH will require every knee to bow in obeisance. (Phil. 2:5-11) Physically, at this point he will become King over all the earth.14. "To the same extent that many were appalled over you (His appearance was so disfigured more than any man, and His shape more than any of the sons of Adam),
Appalled: stunned, horrified, awestruck. Disfigured more than any man: or "His appearance was so changed from looking like a man", including having His cheeks made bald (like a woman) when His beard was torn out (50:6), gouged by a crown of thorns that was pounded into His head. His shape: His skin would have been torn to shreds and His organs exposed by the scourging whip. Psalm 22:6 describes Him as a "scarlet-worm and not a man", i.e., so bloodied that He did not look human. Rev.5:6 describes Him, even in the heavenlies, as looking like a lamb that had been butchered--that is, cut open, with His inward parts exposed, though, like the Passover lamb, not a bone was to be broken. (Ex. 12:46; Yochanan 19:36) Instead, He is depicted as looking like Antiochus Epiphanes, who put his face on the statues of Zeus made in his day and who has 39 points of congruency with the image on the Shroud of Turin, much more than are needed to establish legal identity. The Sunday School pictures of "Jesus" bear the same image.15. "even so He will startle many Gentiles. Over Him, kings will stop their mouths, because they will see [something] that had never been recounted to them, and what they had never heard of, they have begun to diligently consider.
Startle: or "sprinkle", as the blood of the Yom Kippur goat was sprinkled on the Tabernacle veil for atonement, and on one being ritually purified from leprosy (a picture of having one's selfishness pardoned and removed). While many of "his own" looked on in scorn, the Gentile centurion who crucified Yahshua marveled at who He was when He saw the earthquake and how Yahshua died. (Mat. 27:54) These nations and kings had never imagined anything like what they saw in Yahshua's death, and it left an indelible impression on them. Even though they did not get the context straight, still they could not ignore Him. Yet Yehudah tried to! So Paul turned to the "Gentiles"--chiefly the Northern Kingdom who had decided they would rather be Gentiles than Hebrews, and generations later had forgotten who they were and had not heard of YHWH or His covenant that their ancestors had left. Yet Yahshua made it possible for them to return, and YHWH's spirit was already drawing them back to the synagogues, which is where Paul went to declare the message in each Gentile city. But "kings" are also those who seek out what YHWH has hidden (Prov. 25:2). And what Yahshua would accomplish is all right here for those who will seek it out without prejudice.
Uncovered: or revealed. It was meant to have been to all nations. (52:10) Yet while Gentiles marveled at it, many in Yehudah itself faltered over whether it was trustworthy. (Yochn 12:38-39)2. Indeed, He will spring up before His face like a tender sapling, like a root out of dry ground. He has no [particular] appearance nor anything special about Him that would make us gaze on Him, nor anything spectacular that would lead us to find Him desirable.
LXX: "We brought a report as of a child before Him."3. He is held in contempt and rejected by men--a Man of sorrows and familiar with grief. It was as if we were hiding our faces from Him. He is despised, and we did not take Him into consideration.
LXX: "His form was ignoble and inferior to that of the children of men." Grief: or weakness, sickness.4. But indeed it was our sickness that He carried; it was our sorrows with which He was burdened, while we thought He was being struck [down] by Elohim, and put down.
Carried: or "carried away". Put down: as a proud one is humbled by Elohim. (Yaaqov 4:6)5. Yet it was on account of our rebellious acts that He was pierced through; it was because of our crookednesses that He was [so harshly] beaten. The discipline [that would bring] our welfare [came] upon Him, and by His bruises we were healed!
Rebellious acts: or transgressions, going "out of bounds". Aramaic, "He will [re]build the sanctuary which was profaned for our sins, handed over for our iniquities." What iniquities? Specifically those by which we violated the first covenant, necessitating a renewal of it through His blood. The context (ch. 52) is that of the restoration of Israel. Though it has many other "side benefits", at the most basic level, what constitutes our salvation is a return to the covenant and the rebuilding of a dwelling place for YHWH in Yerushalayim. His bruises (detailed in Yochanan 19): specifically in relation to the sins of the royal line of David (Psalm 89:30ff), in order to restore that covenant, which does benefit all of Israel.6. All of us had wandered off like the animals of the flock; we had each turned away toward his own direction, so YHWH let the punishment for all of our guilt fall on Him.
YHWH…on Him: LXX, "YHWH gave Him up for our sins." Each turned…toward his own direction: the condition when there is no king in Israel. (Judges 21:25) This is why He needed to be bruised--so that there could again be a king in Israel. (See note on v. 5.) It was not enough to be merely King of the Jews. (Yoch. 18:33); He had to restore the Kingdom to Israel as well. (Acts 1:6, based on 49:6 above)7. He was driven hard and He [of all people] is bowed down, yet He will not [even begin to] open His mouth. He was conducted along like a lamb to the slaughter, and just as a ewe is put to silence before her shearers, He too will not open His mouth.
Though Yahshua constantly spoke in ways that made people upset, there is a time for everything to be a delight to Heaven. (Eccles. 3) This was the time to remain silent. (3:7)8. He was taken away from restraint and from due process, and who can ponder His generation? Because He was severed from the land of life; the striking [came] to Him because of the rebellion of My people.
Restraint: or prison, but there is a record only of Yahshua's arrest. Due process: or rights, justice, judgment. Generation: or recurring cycle; i.e., He would have no children to speak of--by all appearances. Aramaic, "From bonds and retribution he will bring our exiles near; the wonders which will be done for us in his days, who will be able to recount?" Rebellion: or transgression. My people: those of the House of Israel who had left the Covenant.9. And He began to appoint His burial to be with the criminals, and with the violent in His death, although He had done nothing wrong, nor was there [any] deceit in His mouth.
Began to appoint: though He was expected to be buried perhaps in a common grave with the others crucified beside Him, this was changed at the last minute by an influential man. Criminals: thieves, and possibly revolutionaries against the Romans. Violent: proud; alt., wealthy or influential, but this seems backwards, since it was His burial that was with the wealthy. Some manuscripts, however, including the Dead Sea Isaiah Scroll, have one additional letter that changes "wealthy" (ashir) to "evildoers" (osey-ra), and this seems to fit the parallelism better.10. Yet YHWH chose to crush Him; He made Him sore [with wounds]. If He will make Himself into a sin offering, He will see posterity; He will lengthen days, and that which YHWH delights in will advance in His hand.
Chose: was pleased to, or "inclined to", as in a difficult choice in which the scales were tilted by one factor--the results this pain would have for others. Crush: as there are shouts of joy when crushing grapes. Though there is no record of Yahshua's being physically crushed, in the place known indeed as Gat Shmaney (wine press for oils), Yahshua's soul was crushed to the point of His blood vessels bursting by the weight of the prospect of being forsaken by His Father. (Luk. 22:44) See posterity: or descendants; literally, seed. Lengthen days: not just His own, but through His influence He would keep the world from having to be destroyed again as soon, and would ultimately bring Eden back to the earth after a 1,000-year-long reign. Advance: be brought successfully, prosper, progress.11. He will see [what comes] of the struggle of His soul; He will be fully satisfied. By His know-how will a righteous one, My Servant, bring justice for the many, and bear the brunt of the punishment for their guilt.
Struggle: wearisome labor, trouble, grief, misery. Fully satisfied: or fulfilled. For the many: the exact same term refers to the people of Israel in Daniel 9:27, and indeed Yahshua would "justify" or "bring righteousness" for the many, setting them straight again and making them what they were meant to be.12. Therefore I will allot Him a share among the great, and He will divide the plunder with the strong, whereas He had poured out His soul unto death, and was considered to be among the rebels. He also carried away the sin of many, and will interpose for the rebels.
Whereas: or "because", which lines up well with Phil. 2:5-11 and Rev. 5:9. Poured out: or exposed. Rebels: revolters or transgressors; those who cross a line. Considered to be among the rebels: by telling His disciples to take swords along into Gat Shmaney (Luk. 22:36-37) and also by the fact that He was crucified with two revolutionaries (Mk. 15:28), probably on the same post where they could all speak with one another while very short of breath, due to the position crucifixion put one in.
Sterile woman: this brings to mind Sarah, Rachel, Hannah, and Elisheva before the miraculous births of their sons. Desolate woman: a widow (v. 4) or a divorcee--the Northern Kingdom (50:1; Hos. 2:2). Galatians 4 links the "bondwoman" to those who think the Torah alone can justify them (rather than leading them to Yahshua), and the"free woman" to Sarah and the Yerushalayim that is above, i.e., the dwelling place for YHWH that is being built of "living stones". (1 Kefa/ Peter 2:5) Rev. 12 and 17 describe two women also--one a fugitive and the other a harlot, who is cock-sure that she will never be left as a widow (so she is married, though promiscuous).2. "Broaden the place of your tent, and extend the drapes of your dwelling places! Don't hold back! Continue to make your cords longer, and make your stakes firm!
Dwelling places: the same word as "tabernacle", which had drapes all around its outer boundaries.3. "Because to the right and to the left you will exceed the boundaries, and your offspring will dispossess the nations and cause the ravaged cities to be inhabited.
4. "Do not be afraid, because you will not be disappointed. And do not become disconcerted, because you will not be ashamed, for you will forget the embarrassment of your youthful vigor, and you will no longer bring to mind the reproach of your widowhood.
LXX: "Fear not because you have been put to shame, nor be confounded because you were reproached…" Youthful vigor: from a root meaning "concealed"; i.e., his "sowing of wild oats".5. "Because your Husband is your Maker: YHWH of Armies is His Name. Also, your Kinsman Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called Elohim of all the earth--
Husband: Heb., Ba'al, giving the sense of "master" as well. Of all the earth: LXX, "by all the earth", i.e., the world calls Yahshua "Elohim" in the sense of "God", as well as in the sense of feeling judged by Him (as "elohim" can also mean a human judge), but at one point, we will no longer see Him as an overlord, but only as our beloved. (Hos. 2:16ff)6. "because YHWH has invited you as a woman abandoned and tortured in spirit, like a wife from [one's] youth when she had been rejected," says your Elohim.
Rejected: or loosened, a legal term meaning "let go". YHWH divorced Israel, the Northern Kingdom, but not Yehudah. (50:8; Yirmiyahu 3:8) Yet here we see Him take her back. The Torah allows a divorced woman to be married again by the same husband only if she has not married someone else in the meantime. (Deut. 24:1-4) Hoshea's wife is the picture of what actually happened: the Northern Kingdom left her husband and went after many lovers (who abandoned and rejected her), but never married them, and she could thus be taken back. But for a time she was not lived with as a wife again until much later. Yahshua brought us back into the household, but one day He will woo us when we are out in the wilderness again (Rev. 12; Hosea 2:14) and there finalize the new/renewed covenant that He initiated at His last Passover.7. "For an insignificantly short moment did I leave you behind, but with intense compassion will I gather you [back] out.
Even 2,730 years (the 390 years of Y'chezq'el 4 multiplied seven times, Lev. 26:28) is a mere drop in the bucket compared to eternity! Compassion: Heb., Ruhamah, a reversal of YHWH's declaration that for a time He would have no mercy. (Hos. 1:6; 2:1)8. "In an overflow of anger I caused My face to be hidden from you for a moment, but with lovingkindness that lasts forever will I love you [so] deeply," says YHWH, your Kinsman Redeemer,
Compare Psalm 102:2. Love you so deeply: the word is one of intense, gut-felt emotion that ranges everywhere from compassion to affection to tenderness.9. "because this is the waters of Noach to Me: just as I foreswore the waters of Noach from crossing over [their limit] onto the land, in the same way I have foresworn [Myself] from being furious at you and from scolding you.
10. "Because though the mountains may be pushed away or the hills be dislodged, still My lovingkindness will never be pushed away from being with you, nor will the covenant of My peace be dislodged," says YHWH, the one who has pity on you.
11. "O [woman who is] afflicted, storm-tossed, and never comforted, behold! I Myself am laying your stones amid the antimony, and establish your foundations among sapphires.
Amid the antimony: or stibium, a black stone ground for mortar (used as a border between building stones), but also made into pigment and used by women as eye-liner to enlarge the appearance of their eyes; LXX, carbuncle. Sapphires: from a root word meaning counting, recounting, or taking into account. Compare the precious stones that embellish the bride, the holy city of Renewed Yerushalayim (Rev. 21:9ff)12. "I have also constituted your battlements of ruby, your gates of glowing stones, and all your borders of pleasant stones,
Battlements: possibly pinnacles; LXX, buttresses. Ruby: or agate. Glowing stones: or carbuncle; LXX, crystal; Rev. 21:21 says each gate of the Renewed Yerushalayim is a pearl. All your borders: taken by some to mean "your whole wall".13. "and all your children are taught by YHWH, and abundant is the prosperity of your children.
Taught by: or accustomed to. Abundant is the prosperity: or "great is the well-being". This is quoted in regard to the Father's revealing who Yahshua is. (Yochanan 6:44-45)14. "By righteousness you will establish yourself. Distance yourself from gain by extortion, because you will not be in dread, and from [the] fear [of having your goods snatched away], because [this terror] will not come near you.
Distance yourself…dread: LXX, "abstain from injustice, and you will not be afraid."15. "Oh, they will indeed remain for a time, but it will no longer be from Me. Whoever stirs up trouble for you will [meet their] downfall on your account.
16. "Indeed, I Myself have created the craftsman who blows on the coals in the fire, and who brings out a tool for his work; I have also created the spoiler to bring destruction.
Both building up and tearing down are in His hands.17. "Every weapon that will be fashioned against you will be unsuccessful, and every tongue that will rise against you for litigation, you will bring to condemnation. This is the portion the servants of YHWH [will] inherit, and their vindication comes from Me," declares YHWH.
Vindication: or "righteousness", which indeed is not something that comes from our natural selves, but is provided through Yahshua so we can overcome our natural shortcomings. (1 Cor. 1:30) But part of the righteousness He supplies is the gift of being able to prove wrong those who bring accusations against us. (See Rom. 8:33.)
Who is thirsty: Aramaic, "who wishes to learn". Without price: This reminds us that ultimately we will be freed from the curse placed on Adam and Chavvah, but in the meantime it teaches us not to commercialize the message of truth, making it part of and subservient to Babylon's system. When that system reaches its critical mass, it will not allow anyone who is not part of it to buy or sell, but Israel is not to be counted among the nations of the world. (Numbers 23:9) But YHWH will provide for those who obey and trust Him.2. Why do you spend money on what is not bread, and your hard work for what does not satisfy? Listen to Me carefully, and eat what is good, and your soul will take exquisite delight in how robust it is!
Me: Aramaic, My Memra [Living Word].3. Incline your ear and come to Me! Obey, and your soul will thrive, and I will cut an eternal covenant with you, the kindnesses of David being upheld.
4. Look! I have set him forth as evidence for nations; I appointed him as a ruler and one who gives orders to peoples.
Him: David, and by extension, the Messiah, his descendant, who is thus the continuation of David.5. Indeed, you will call for a nation that you are not familiar with, and a nation that is not familiar to you will rush to you for the sake of YHWH your Elohim, and to the Holy One of Israel.
6. Consult YHWH while He may be found; call to Him while He is [still] nearby!
There is an open window now for us to return to YHWH and repent. But a grace period, by definition, does not last forever.7. Let the wicked forsake his ways, and the mischievous man his schemes, and let him turn back toward YHWH, so that He may have mercy on him, and toward our Elohim, because He will cause forgiveness to abound,
8. for YHWH has let it be declared: "My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,
9. "because as the skies are higher than the land, even so My ways are higher than your ways, and My thought than your thoughts.
Aramaic, "…so are the ways of My goodness more correct than your ways, and My thoughts prove to be better planned than your thoughts."10. "For just as the rain or snow comes down from the sky, and does not return there unless it has watered the earth, made it bring forth and grow, and given seed to the sower and bread to the one who eats,
11. "it will be the same [with] My word that goes forth from My mouth: it will not return to Me empty--without having accomplished what I have intended and brought success [in] that for which I have sent it.
Will not return: Aramaic, "it is not possible for it to return".12. "When you go out with cheerfulness and are given safe conduct, the mountains and the hills will break out before you [into] shouts of joy, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands!
Go out: perhaps depart from the lands of our exile again. Safe conduct: or peace. The Aramaic targum adds, "to your land". As cosmic-scale cataclysmic changes take place in the earth's topography, perhaps brought about by the gravitation of another heavenly body as in the deluge, S'dom and 'Amorah overthrow, exodus, etc., those who are following YHWH and the leaders He appoints like Moshe will find that these radical ruptures even in mountain ranges will be for their benefit, not for their harm.13. "In place of the thornbush, the cypress tree will grow; and the myrtle tree instead of the brier, and it will give YHWH a reputation and serve as a distinguishing mark that will not be cut off forever."
Cypress and myrtle: especially beautiful trees. Thorns and briers: Again, this is a prime example of the reversal of the curse which Adam's sin brought on creation. Compare 3:24, which gives the opposite picture when they entered into captivity.
As special preparations had to be made before receiving the Torah at Mt. Sinai (Ex. 19:15), a foundation must be laid in advance for the coming King to take over. (Psalm 2:6-12) Guard just legal procedures: or "enforce legal standards". Without this, there can be no such thing as mercy. We cannot fully do what is right until there is a framework for doing so. How could we uphold the seven-year agricultural cycles or the Levitical administration of charity for the needy unless the infrastructure is back in place? Deut. 16:18-20 tells us what constitutes such justice: a hierarchy of judges, tribe by tribe. Having men set over us is a risky way to operate, as history has shown, but it is the Israelite way. It failed before, but we have to start again if we want the restoration of the previous chapter to last, and there is no way around these rulings if we want it to begin in our day. Israelite leaders lead by example rather than from a safe distance, nor do they "lord it over" the flocks, but are true "public servants" instead. (Luk. 22:25ff)2. "The mortal one who does this is on the right track, and [so is] the son of Adam who holds onto it, who keeps from defiling the Sabbath and restrains his hand from carrying out anything evil.
Notice how evildoing and profaning the Sabbath are given equal weight. In Christian terms this would be considered an unfair comparison, but here it is in YHWH's word.3. "The son of a foreigner who has joined himself to YHWH should not say, 'I'm sure YHWH makes a distinction between His people and me', nor should the eunuch say, 'Look, I am a dried-up stick!'
Foreigner: Aramaic, a son of the Gentiles who has been added to the people of YHWH. A eunuch is nfot normally allowed into YHWH's congregation. (Deut. 23:1) Had our ancestors been obedient, these not-quite-ideal allowances would not have had to be made, but since those who were invited to the banquet turned out to be far less trustworthy than we had thought, the outcasts are invited in to fill their places. (Mat. 22:10; Luk. 14:23) These others are now Israel rather than the first. A dried-up stick: i.e., fruitless.4. "Because this is what YHWH says to the eunuchs who will keep My Sabbaths, choose that which I have delighted in, and uphold My covenant:
Uphold: take hold of, support, or strengthen.5. "'I will even grant them in My house and within My walls a hand and the Name better than sons and daughters: an eternal name will I give to him which will not be cut off.
Hand: symbolic of a memorial. A hand and the name: renown; LXX, "an honorable place"; Heb., Yad vashem, the name of the holocaust memorial in Yerushalayim. Him: the plural "them" becomes singular, because it is "the" name now, not "names". "They" have become part of the "one new man" spoken of in Ephesians 2:15. Spiritual relationships rather than fleshly children are what really matters to YHWH. (Mat. 12:48-49) But a name could also mean progeny who carry on the name. It could be that this means there will be an actual restoration of the member that was cut off, for the Hebrew word for hand can indeed have that meaning. (See 57:8)6. "'And [to] the children of the foreigner who join themselves to YHWH in order to wait on Him, and who love the Name of YHWH, to become bondservants to Him--everyone who keeps from defiling My Sabbath and who upholds My covenant:
Notice how important YHWH's name and the Sabbath are to foreigners being joined to Him. Join here means "be twined together" and become dependent upon. I.e., they become disciples. Upholding His covenant means not only having standards, but enforcing them as with a rod of iron, giving no leaveway for evil to enter, rather than loosening them.7. "'I have even brought them to the Mountain of My holiness and made them intensely joyful in My house of prayer. Their ascendings and their slaughter-offerings are accepted on My altar, because My house will be called a house of prayer for all peoples',
Accepted: literally, for favor. Called: or appointed, proclaimed.8. "declares the Master YHWH, who is causing the outcasts of Israel to be gathered together. Yet again will I gather over [and above] those of his who are assembled."
Is causing: Aramaic, is about to gather. LXX, "I will gather to Him a congregation." He will gather the rest of the tribes to Yehudah, but also add more of the dispersed than are already gathered.9. All [you] living beings of the field! Come [here] to eat, all [you] living beings of the forest!
The field represents the world (Mat. 13:38), the undomesticated area outside of what is holy. The forest is a gathering of trees, which represent people, and Israel in particular. (e.g., 9:13ff) Living beings, i.e., those who have not died to themselves, are abundant in Israel also.10. His watchmen are blind; they are all ignorant. They are all muted dogs; they cannot bark. Dozing off, lying down, they love to slumber.
Blind: they cannot see the true danger or sound a warning. In some cases, it is because they are considering the wrong people to be enemies, and missing the real ones, having been kept ignorant by those who hired them. Exodus 23:8 tells us that it is bribes that blind them.11. And the dogs are strong of appetite, and do not know [what it means to be] satisfied, yet they [of all people] are shepherds! They do not know how to provide understanding. They are all turning their faces toward their own direction, each for his own profit from his own separate quarter:
As shepherds, they are supposed to be the best-informed, but they have no clue how to teach others to discern or make distinctions (as in Lev. 10:10) But, like Esau, they are unqualified for the task, serving their bellies instead of the flock, and subordinating the kingdom to Mammon.12. "Come [here], let me get some wine, and we will guzzle intoxicating liquor, and tomorrow will be like this day--loud [and] overflowing with abundance!"
Instead, they should say, "If YHWH wills it…" (Yaaqov 4:15; Daniel 5; Luk. 12:20) Like this day: Aramaic, better than this day's.
Since the watchmen are blind (56:10), they hardly notice if those who are truly merciful--those who love their neighbors enough to warn them of impending judgment--are removed from them. They can't worry about that; they have their own Easter pageants to prepare for. They cannot accept the fact that it is because of their own wickedness that the righteous are taken out from among them. They only protest when they lose the ear-ticklers. But the wicked and righteous will be separated. (Mat. 13:40ff; Luk. 17:30ff) Vanished: LXX, perished; the Aramaic targum also interprets it as the righteous dying before an evil time comes on the earth, and thus escape it. Evil: LXX, injustice.2. "He will enter into peace; those who walk straight will have rest when they lie down.
LXX, His burial shall be in peace; he has been removed out of the way.3. "But you, O sons of the conjurer, offspring of the adulterer and the whore, approach this place.
Adulterer: the Beast's system, Babylon, or Egypt, which is eclectic in its worship. Whore: The part of the church that compromises with Babylon. (Rev. 17) These are the ones who are gathered for destruction. As at S'dom, the armies of the wicked will be drawn out by the prospect of doing battle against Israel, but will actually be being lured to a place where they can be conveniently done away with all at once. But this group he addresses may be those who were once Israel, for the Aramaic targum adds, "whose plant was from a holy plant". The rest of the chapter seems to bear this out.4. "At whose [expense] are you gaining your pleasure? About whom are you widening your mouth, sticking out the tongue? Aren't you the children of rebellion, the seed of fraudulent dealings,
I.e., what right do you--illegitimate children, no less--have to make fun of My people?5. "who arouse yourselves [to passion] with gods under every flourishing tree, slaughtering the children in the wadis beneath the branches on the cliffs?
This is similar to the practice of passing babies through the fire to Molekh. Clay pots have been found in the Hinnom Valley with babies' skeletons in them, marked "to Molekh". Abortion is the modern equivalent of what went on literally back then. Flourishing tree: LXX, leafy tree, or green tree. This suggests the evergreen trees used in the pagan rites carried on as Christmas. When the righteous have been taken away, those who are left will try every form of religion except lovingkindness and obedience to YHWH because that would require dying to self..6. "Among the slippery smooth [stones] of the stream is your share; they--they [indeed]--are your allotted reward, since you have, after all, poured out drink offerings to them, and caused offerings to ascend. Shouldn't I be compensated for these?
I.e., any children they would have had to care for them, they have killed; they have dedicated themselves to idols, so since that was their choice, that is all they will be left with. But YHWH also deserves to be avenged for the blood of those they destroyed.7. "You have set your bed on a high and lofty mountain; you also went up there to slaughter a sacrifice,
8. "and behind the door and the gateposts you have set up your memorial, because, [departing] from being with Me, you have revealed your nakedness and gone up, widened your bedroom, and cut [a covenant] for yourself from them. You had an appetite for their bed, where with ecstasy you beheld a stretched-out body member.
Set up your memorial: or perhaps, left a reminder (of your deeds). From being with Me: or, to someone other than Me. Stretched-out member: i.e., someone ready for a promiscuous act; literally, a hand, but it can have a wider reference. Aramaic, you have chosen a place. Figuratively, this is the church opening itself up to whatever religious practices gain more tithing members, rather than sticking with YHWH's commands.9. "Then you sauntered on to the king with ointment, perfumed yourself lavishly, and sent your envoys far away, and caused yourself to be debased all the way to the grave.
Sent your envoys: or flung your door hinges wide open. All the way to the grave: or to the lowest levels (of degradation).10. "You grew weary from the length of your journey, [yet] you did not say, "It is hopeless!" You found a revival of your power; therefore, you did not feel weak.
I.e., you "caught a second wind". LXX, "You have not said, 'I will cease to strengthen myself.'"11. "But whom have you dreaded or feared, that you have been so deceitful and not remembered Me or laid it on your heart? Haven't I remained still for the longest time, while you have shown Me no respect?
Still: inactive, not reacting in haste, but waiting patiently for her to return.12. "I will make your righteous acts and achievements public, but they will not get you anywhere.
Aramaic, "I have told you that good deeds are virtues for you, but you increased for yourself evil deeds that will not profit you."13. "When you cry for help, let your collection rescue you! But the wind will carry them all off; a mere puff will take them away, while those who run to Me for refuge will inherit the Land and take possession of My holy Mountain.
Your collection: of idols. He leaves them to their own resources against the cataclysms that are coming upon the earth. The wind will carry them all off, like chaff; the useful part of the grain falls back to the earth. When we "meet the Master in the air", the righteous will be brought back to earth to participate in the kingdom. Run to Me for refuge: perhaps when we see the Abomination of Desolation set up in the Temple. (Mark 13:14)14. "Then [they] will say, 'Raise up, raise up [a highway]! Clear the path! Take out of the way anything that would make My people stumble!'
The idols mentioned above are one obstacle; the lack of a system of justice set up the way Israel's is meant to work (56:1) is another. YHWH will send His Son back only when He sees that all things are ready for Him.15. "Because thus says the Exalted and Lofty One, who inhabits eternity, and whose Name is in a class of its own: 'I will inhabit the elevated and the set-apart, that is, with the contrite and humble of spirit, in order to revive the spirit of the humble ones, and to bring to life the the heart of the contrite ones.
Contrite: from a word for "crushed". Humble: or lowered. He identifies them with those who are elevated, because those who choose to humble themselves will be exalted. (Luk. 14:11; 18:14) He does not intend for us to stay in the place of crushing, but to have the oil pressed out of us like an olive so we can be useful; an olive eaten directly from the tree is only bitter. Olive oil is used for anointing (and Messiah means "anointed one", so it is all for Him that our flesh is crushed).16. "'Because I will not always scold, because the spirit and the souls that I have made would faint in My presence.
I.e., if He kept scolding us for our wrongdoing, we might lose all hope of ever attaining the heights for which we were created. The crushing is only so that our iniquities will be subdued and we will be brought to repentance. At a certain point YHWH will cast our sins into the sea and give mercy to Yaaqov. (Micha 7) This point seems to have been reached, because He is now giving us the realization that we are Israel and are meant to again be a people. Souls: or breaths, but this term has a special meaning of being the "higher soul" which is given to the faithful on the Sabbath, but to which he can aspire all the time. Aramaic, "I am about to restore the spirits of the dead…"17. "'I was angry with the perversity of his unjust gain, so I struck him; I hid and was in a rage, but he kept turning back into the way of his [own] heart.
Unjust gain: or crooked profit: perverting the truth by using what belongs to Him to serve our desire for Mammon, and enslaving those who belong to Him in order to gain wealth for ourselves. I hid… heart: LXX, "I turned away My face from him, and he was grieved, and went on sorrowful in his ways." Aramaic, "I removed My dwelling presence from them and cast them out; I scattered their exiles because they went astray after the fantasy of their heart."18. "'I have seen his ways, but I will heal him, and will guide him and restore compassions to him and his mourners,
Aramaic, "The way of their reoentance is disclosed before Me, and I will forgive them.," That way is Yahshua, the kinsman-redeemer who went out seeking the lost sheep of the House of Israel.19. "'creating the fruitfulness of his lips. Peace [upon] peace, to [those who are] far away and [those who are] near'", says YHWH, "'and I will heal him.'
Creating the fruit of his lips: LXX, "giving him true comfort". Far away: Paul tells us how this was accomplished in Eph. 2:13. "You who were once far off have been made near [and given access to Yahweh's presence] through the blood of Messiah Yahshua." In 2:10, he had just spoken of the good works that YHWH had prepared beforehand for us to walk in. (Cf. Phil. 2:13) Daniel (9:7ff) defines "those who are far off" as the House of Israel (the Northern Kingdom) and "those who are near" as Yehudah (the Jews). Aramaic, "the righteous, who have kept My law from the beginning, and … the penitent, who have repented to My law only recently." (Compare Mat. 20:6-9) In Yehezqel (Ezekiel) 11:14ff we see Yehudah telling Israel to get away, but YHWH says He will be a sanctuary to those who are cast far away, then He will regather us and give us a new, unified heart. Paul was certainly thinking of this passage when He wrote Ephesians 2, for there he also speaks of us having been called Gentiles by "those who were near". Yahshua's blood abolished the ordinances (of the rabbis) that were against us, one of which stated that the Northern Kingdom could no longer be considered part of Israel, but had to be counted as Gentiles. But YHWH says we are no longer Gentiles. The King of the Jews has married the House of Israel, so the Kingdom is united again. (Compare Hoshea 11 as well.)20. " But the wicked are like the turbulent sea when it cannot be quieted; its waters cast up mud and mire.
Mire: or damp dirt, a "sticky mess", something needing to be swept away; this water also provides nothing to drink.21. "There is no peace", says My Elohim, "for the wicked."
Call out: the Aramaic targum says this is addressed to the prophet, who is told to call with his throat. Like a shofar: Rosh haShanah, the Day of the Alarm (awakening trumpet-blast) lets us know that the Day of Atonements is fast approaching, and it is high time to repent. Rebellion: or treason, not necessarily malice, but thinking only of what is best for the individual, not the people as a whole.2. Yet they consult me daily, and delight to know my ways, as [if they were] a nation that did righteousness, and did not forsake the ordinance of their Elohim: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in "approaching Elohim".
Consult me: Aramaic, seek teaching from Me. Forsake: to loosen, i.e., consider them unimportant. They keep the fast strictly on Yom Kippur. Yet there is something wrong:3. "Why have we fasted", they say, and You do not see? "Why have we afflicted our soul, and You take no knowledge?" Behold, in the day of your fast you find pleasure, and make heavy demands on all your laborers.
Here we see fasting linked to afflicting one's soul, which validates the current Jewish interpretation of Lev. 23:27. Yet here the fasting is a farce, because they are not truly acting as a nation (v. 3), but are trying to get an upper hand with YHWH at someone else's expense. They feel that if they fast, YHWH has no choice but to do what they want. By not letting your laborers have a holy day also, you exploit them. And they compare their piety with that of others. Yahshua says that those who fast to be noticed by men have all the reward they will ever receive. (Mat. 6:16ff; Luke 18)4. Behold, you fast for strife and debate, and to strike with the fist of wickedness: you shall not fast as [you do this] day, to make your voice to be heard on high.
The way they practice the fast ends up involving clashes between those who should all be participating in the day together, so He is not listening.5. [Do you think] I can accept this kind of fast? [Isn't it supposed to be] a day for a man to afflict his soul? [Isn't it] to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and an acceptable day to YHWH?
Isn't it: or Is it? The prescribed actions are merely a fleshing out of something symbolic of a much deeper point.6. Isn't this the [kind of] fast that I have selected--that you loose the bands of wickedness, undo the heavy burdens, let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke?
Yom Kippur is a day to repent (turn around 180 degrees) and break the bonds of sin in our lives, and then to bring the same freedom to others. "Yoke" comes from the word for "wavering", and we want to end this as well. Yom Kippur is called the day of the closing of the gates, and it is a time to make choices and build walls between ourselves and the alternatives so that we will put our hand to the plow and not look back.7. Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring the poor who are refugees into your house? When you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh?
Bread: yet this is a fast, so how can we share food with anyone on this day? One may fast so he has something left to give to the needy. But in a deeper way, bread is symbolic of the community which is meant to be one loaf (1 Cor. 10:17); bread is also symbolic of Yahshua's body which was broken for us. "Share" here literally means "divide", so it is meant to offer the needy a piece of the true solution, the bread from heaven that gives life to the world. (Yochanan 6:33) When we start sharing our limited bread, Yahshua multiplies it and makes it enough for all--and more. How does the fast get to be what it is meant to be? By learning from the hunger we feel that as long as there is anyone hungry in Israel, the whole nation is still truly hungry. We are all in the same boat, and YHWH sees us as a whole, just like a body. We are meant to feel what others are feeling, and then respond by sharing what we have. We depend on each other. Learning to live as a single community overcomes our treason against our "own flesh". Poor: the needy, but also the busy and preoccupied, like Martha was (Luk. 10:41ff). He gives us rest. Many in the church are kept so busy with activities that they never get an opportunity to rest and sit at his feet, as Martha's sister Miryam did. They are not even given a sabbath, let alone a Yom Kippur, which is even more of a ceasing from activity than the sabbath is. They are like refugees (wandering from place to place), but He wants to bring them into His sheepfold. Cover him: place something full and truly concealing over him. But the word is related to the word for a full moon, as well, and this is the goal of Yom Kippur: to be ready for Sukkoth, which comes at the full moon. Flesh: or body, but the word also means "good news" or "gospel", which is that YHWH is all in all, that Yahshua made possible the reuniting of all of Israel, and that His cycles of these festivals frees us from the world's never-ending cycles of "vanity of vanities".8. Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your health will spring forth speedily: and your righteousness will precede you; the weightiness of YHWH shall be your rearguard.
Then: and not until then.9. Then when you call, YHWH will answer; when you cry out for help, He will say, "Here I am." If you take away the yoke from among yourselves, the pointing of the finger, and mischievous conversation,
The pointing of the finger: Compare Mat. 7:1-5.10. and if you extend your soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then your light will rise in darkness, and your gloom will be as the noonday:
Afflicted: or humbled, depressed. This is how a strong community--the bride of YHWH--is formed. Each of us is hungry in one way or another, and He has put in each congregation those capable of meeting each other's needs. Taking care of one another is what He is trying to teach us through His Torah and His festivals.11. And YHWH will guide you continually, and cause your soul to be satisfied during a drought, and invigorate your bones: and you shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.
Invigorate your bones: brace them up, make them strong, "arm" them. This holds a clear connection to Yom Kippur as a "day of bones" (Lev. 23:30) and the bones of Yoseyf that assemble into a mighty army (Y'chezqel 37). Drought: or "a scorched region", perhaps when all of Israel is regathered in the desert near Mount Sinai.12. Then [some] from [among] you will rebuild the ancient ruins: you shall raise up the foundations of generation upon generation; and you will be called the one who closes up the breach, the one who brings back well-worn pathways [and causes them] to remain.
Ancient ruins: or waster places, not only physically, but also ancient ways of interpreting and navigating our way through the Torah. Closes up the breach: in a wall, hedging it about or enclosing the city, so that there can be holiness again, and the unclean cannot freely trample His courts with no price to pay for doing so. This is the task of the house of Yoseyf, the northern kingdom that is being recalled in this day to our previously-unknown heritage of "the ancient paths". (Micha 7:18-20; Yirmeyahu/Jeremiah 6:16)13. If you restrain your foot because [it is] the Sabbath (turn away from doing whatever you please on my holy day) and call the Sabbath a delight, YHWH's holiness something to be honored; and shalt honor him, not engaging your own affairs, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words:
Even when repairing the breach, we must still pause when He says to pause. Your foot: the three pilgrim festivals are literally called "feet" in Hebrew (shalosh regalim, Ex. 23:14). But our choice of festivals (most of which were borrowed and adapted from pagan sources) has obscured His. Man-made festivals claimed to replace the Sabbath, but He wants us to turn back (repent) to the calendar He Himself set up. To be honored: or important. Your own: We can only receive when we give back to Him what He has given us by turning it over to the welfare of all Israel.14. Then you will take exquisite delight in YHWH; and I will cause you to [mount and] ride upon the Land's ridges, and feed you with the heritage of Yaaqov [Jacob] your father: for the mouth of YHWH has spoken it.
The Land's ridges: the areas claimed by the Palestinians now. (Yehezqel 36:2) Aramaic: strongholds of the earth, places of safety and having an upper hand, and from which we can see an enemy coming. Literally, high places, where pagans usually put their temples. He Himself will feed us with the words of His mouth. This provides a link to Psalm 81, which was written most particularly for the season of repentance prior to Yom Kippur.
Too short: or cut short, harvested, reminding us of the parts of a field meant to be left for the needy, in parallel with the previous chapter.2. still your crooked ways have caused a rift between you and your Elohim, and your sins have caused His face to be concealed from you, so that He no longer hears.
Crooked ways…casued His face to be concealed: How can we see Him if we are not in a direct line with where He is? This is a direct answer to 58:3.3. Because the palms of your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with perversity. Your lips have made deceitful promises, and your tongue has muttered injustice.
4. There is no one calling for righteousness, nor anyone firmly rendering judgment. [Rather, they are] trusting in what is unreal, and, making worthless promises, they conceive mischief and give birth to trouble.
Firmly rendering judgment: as Paul did in 1 Corinthians when someone was deliberately violating YHWH's standards. He put the man outside the camp, where, as in the wilderness, he would be a sitting duck for Amaleq, who attacks the stragglers of Israel. (This does not mean the weak, who cannot keep up, for Paul commands us to give special consideration to the truly weaker brothers, but rather those who choose not to, waiting until it is convenient for them to try to catch up. By that time the camp is too far ahead.) Trusting in what is unreal: misinterpretations, empty clichés, or even such a throwback to paganism as depending on an equinox to tell us when YHWH's festivals are, when it is not a visible sign like the phases of the moon or the ripening of the barley, as He prescribed.5. They hatch the eggs of a poisonous snake, and weave the web of a spider. Whoever eats their eggs will die, and [the one] that is crushed hatches into a hissing snake.
Hissing snake: LXX, basilisk. No matter which course of action they take, the consequences of their deeds will catch up with them.6. Their webs will not serve as clothing, nor will they [be able to] cover themselves up with their deeds; their deeds are works of perversity, and an act of violence is on their palms.
Their deeds: Spiders do not weave the white linen garments that bespeak works of righteousness. (Rev. 19:8) Violence: Hebrew, hamas.7. Their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed innocent blood. Their plans are unjust inventions; havoc and destruction are [left] in their tracks.
8. They have not become acquainted with the peaceful lifestyle, so there is no due process in their entrenchments. They have made crooked pathways for themselves; anyone who walks it has not become familiar with complete soundness.
Peaceful lifestyle: the true peace is brought about by justice and the firmness in judgment mentioned in v. 4. We cannot do justice if we do not understand what it is all about. If one knew what really brought peace, he would know better than to search down that road, knowing where it leads to. Entrenchments: or circular tracks--going around in circles, like the 40 years in the wilderness, when most fought against proper authority instead of following the straight "path of peace" directly into the Promised Land by obeying YHWH through Moshe, His appointed.9. On account of this, due process is far from us, and righteousness cannot catch up with us. We eagerly hope for light, but behold [only] darkness [instead]; for brightness, but we walk in gloom.
Many use the excuse that they do not wish to judge lest judgment also be turned back on them. (Mat. 7:1ff) But we are meant to judge both ourselves and others, because no one, especially the community as a whole, needs either the plank or the speck of dust in one's eyes. Because we avoid this, we are the blind leading the blind…
10. We grope for a wall like a blind man, and we feel for it as if we had no eyes. We stumble [as much] at noontime as at twilight in desolate places like the dead.
Grope: trusting what one feels. Ninety percent of the time this is wrong!11. We all growl like bears and groan mournfully like doves. We eagerly hope for justice, but there is none, and for deliverance; it is far from us,
12. because we have conspicuously crossed the line on multiple [occasions] right in front of You, and our missteps testify against us when our trespassings are with us and we recognize our faults:
13. crossing the line, acting deceptively against YHWH, and no longer following after our Elohim, threatening extortion and defection, devising and having fraudulent words uttered from the heart.
14. So due process is driven back and justice stands afar off, because truth has stumbled in the public square and straightness is not able to enter.
Straightness: as contrasted with our crookednesses. Public square: plaza or wide open street. LXX: truth is consumed in their ways, and they could not pass by a straight path.15. It has turned out that reliability is lacking, and the one who avoids evil makes himself a prey. But YHWH notices, and it grieves Him that there is no justice.
Makes himself a prey: or makes himself seem foolish. Both are true, for once we turn away from partaking of the Babylon system, we become targets.16. When He sees that there is no man, and is appalled that there is no one interposing, then His arm will bring deliverance for Him, and His righteousness is what has upheld Him,
Appalled: or stunned. Interposing: interceding, standing as a mediator; LXX, helping. After all He has done for us, no one is standing up for Him. No one is "pestering" Him for this peace and justice. His arm: one title for the Messiah, whose name means, "YHWH delivers". He sends His own son, because He knows He can handle it, having been equipped with all He needed:17. because He will put on righteousness as body armor, and a helmet of salvation on His head. He will also put on garments of vengeance as [His] clothing and will wrap Himself in ardent jealousy as a cloak.
Ardent jealousy: or zeal (for His Father's house, Yochanan 2:17). Body armor: LXX, a breastplate. This makes it obvious that Paul was thinking of this passage when He wrote about "the whole armor of Elohim". (Eph. 6) Since this has been provided for us, too, we must be willing to lay down our lives for Israel, and not "stun" YHWH again (v. 16).18. According to their dealings, so He will repay: burning rage to those who cramp Him, recompense to His enemies; He will repay the dealings of the coastlands.
Repay the dealings: or make good on the reward. How can anyone cramp YHWH? By doing it to the least of Yahshua's brothers. (Mat. 25:40)19. Then from the setting of the sun they will revere YHWH's Name, and His authority from the rising of the sun. "When the oppressor comes in like a flood, a wind [from] YHWH will drive against it,
Flood: Aramaic, the overflowing of the Ferath [Euphrates] River. Wind: or spirit; Aramaic, by the Memra [living Word] of YHWH they will be plundered.20. "and the Kinsman-Redeemer has come to Tzion and to those who turn away [from] rebellion", declares YHWH.
To those who turn: Aramaic, to return the rebels of the House of Yehudah to the Torah. LXX, And the deliverer shall come for Tzion's sake, and shall turn irreverence away from Yaaqov. (Paul quoted this in Rom. 11:26, in the context of the blindness that would come over Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles--the House of Efrayim, according to Gen. 48:19--comes back in. Yahshua is indeed a Kinsman Redeemer, who accomplished this redemption at Tzion. But in order to be redeemed, we must turn away from the way of our ancestors who rebelled and left the covenant.)21. "As for Me, this is My covenant with them," says YHWH. "My Spirit which is upon you and My words which I have put in your mouth will not be removed from your mouth or from the mouth of your descendants, or from the mouth of the descendants of your descendants", says YHWH, "from now on into eternity."
My words: the Torah, which is to be continually in our mouths (Ex. 13:9; Deut. 30:14; Yehoshua 1:8).
Become bright: LXX, be enlightened; it and the Aramaic targum both add, "O Yerushalayim". Your light: Aramaic, the time of your salvation.2. Indeed, the darkness will cover the earth, and thick, dark clouds [will cover] the nations, but over you, YHWH will break forth, and His dignity will be seen upon you.
Break forth: or appear over you. This is an allusion to the exemption of the land of Goshen from the plagues (especially the thick darkness) that came over Egypt just before the Exodus, and the pillar of fire that appeared over the camp of Israel, and again it harbingers YHWH's deliverance which will overshadow even that Exodus. (Yirmiyahu 16:14-15)3. Then Gentiles have come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
The Queen of Sheva's fascination with King Shlomo's wisdom was a foreshadowing of this.4. Lift up your eyes and see: they have all gathered together! They have come to you! Your sons will come from far away, and your daughters will be supported on the side.
5. Then you will be filled with respect and flow together, and your innermost being will stand in awe and be widened, because the boisterous abundance of the sea will be turned over to you, and the power of the Gentiles will come to you.
Power: ability, efficiency, wealth, or armies. I.e., Israel will be able to accomplish what we could not accomplish previously.6. A great quantity of camels will overrun you--the dromedaries of Midyan and Eyfah; all of the ones from Sheva will come. They will be carrying gold and frankincense, and they will gladly proclaim the praises of YHWH.
Camels: from a root word meaning to ripen, be mature or weaned, and deal bountifully, so He will grant us many people of these sorts as well as mere camels. Dromedaries: or firstborn. Gold and frankincense: no myrrh this time, because the Messiah will not die this time, but He will reign.7. All the flocks of Qedar will be gathered to you; rams of N'vayoth will serve you. Upon being accepted, they will ascend My altar, and I will beautify the House of My renown.
Midyan…Efyah…Sheva…Qedar…N'vayoth: all descendants of Avraham's other children. He gave them all gifts (Gen. 25:5-6), but he also said he had given everything he woned to Yitzhaq, so at this time the gifts will all be returned to Yitzhaq's house from the other children's households.8. Who are these? Like a cloud-mass they will fly, and among the doves, to [alight] in their cotes,
In their cotes: i.e., the place where they belong, as homing pigeons. Perhaps this is how YHWH will return all of Israel to our homeland from every corner of the earth--either by planeloads or by "catching us up into the clouds". (1 Thess. 4:17)9. because the coastlands will wait for Me with eager expectation, with the shipmen of Tarshish at their lead, to bring your children from far away--their silver and gold with them--for the renown of YHWH their Elohim, and for the Holy One of Israel, because He has made you glorious!
Tarshish: a Phoenician colony far in the west; some identify it with Britain, and indeed the first wave of Jews to resettle Israel came in ships under British auspices. Renown: literally, Name. Holy One of Israel: the Messiah.10. Then the sons of the foreigner will rebuild your walls, and their kings will wait on you, because in My severe anger I caused you to be attacked, but with great delight I have had deep compassion on you.
Rebuild: after the events of Zecharyah 12-14, after attacks and major topographical changes, the present-day walls will not suffice, even if they remain intact. Wait on you: the form of the word in Hebrew is intense.11. So your gates will always be kept open; they will not be shut either day or night, so that [they may] bring the wealth of the Gentiles to you, and their kings may be led in,
Led in: or driven in, as captives taken as plunder.12. because the nation or the realm that will not serve you will be broken; indeed, the nations will be completely drained dry.
Drained dry: both by being plundered, and by receiving no rain (if they refuse to come up to Yerushalayim for YHWH's feasts, Zech. 14:16-17).13. The importance of Levanon will come to you: the stately tree, the hardwood, and the tree that stands straight alike will adorn the place of My sanctuary; indeed, I will make the place where My feet [will stand] honorable.
The importance [or glory] of Levanon: perhaps cedars the size of Redwoods will grow there again after the earth's axis shifts back to where it was prior to 701 B.C. and Israel's climate is restored so it again becomes a "land flowing with milk and honey". No grove of trees of any kind is to be planted near an altar to YHWH (Deut. 16:21), but as the first time, wood from these trees can be used to help build His Temple. Since trees also represent people, perhaps this refers to the city of Yerushalayim in general, or on another level, mainly to various types of people who will stand at the Temple during His "feet"--His pilgrimage festivals. (Ex. 23:14)14. The sons of those who afflict you will walk toward you, bowing, and all those who treat you with contempt will prostrate themselves upon the soles of your feet. Then they will call you, "City of YHWH", "Tzion of the Holy One of Israel".
Afflict: or humble. Bowing: as Yoseyf's brothers did when he was exalted and they were humbled. It is His people who make up His city. Though at one time Yerushalayim refused to be gathered together under Yahshua's "wings" (the corners of His garments, where there is healing), and the Temple that had leprous stones had to be torn down, He said He would rebuild it in three days. After three "days" (3,000 years), after His Kingdom is complete, a New Yerushayalim is seen coming down from heaven. (Rev. 21-22)15. Instead of being forsaken and hated, with no one passing through you, I will appoint you to everlasting majesty [and to] rejoicing [for] generation upon generation.
16. And you will nurse on the milk of Gentiles, and suck the breast of kings. Then you will know that I am YHWH, who gives you victory and redeems you--the Mighty One of Yaaqov.
Suck the breast: partake of their richest, most nourishing resources, for they will see themselves as responsible to care for you as a mother does her infant.17. In place of the brass, I will cause gold to come; in place of the iron, I will bring silver. In place of wood, bronze, and in place of the stones, iron. And I will transform your overseers [into] peace, and your taskmasters [into] justice.
LXX: I will make your princes peaceable, and your overseers righteous.18. Never again will violence be heard of within your Land, [nor] devastation or destruction within your borders; rather, you will name your walls "Deliverance" and your gates, "Adoration".
Violence: Hebrew, hamas, the acronym for a terrorist organization today as well. Deliverance: Heb., Yeshuah. Adoration: LXX, sculptured work.19. You will no longer have the sun for light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon give you light; rather, YHWH will be a light for you forever, and your Elohim will be your finery.
This scenario is reiterated in Rev. 21:23, which places it in the "eighth day"--the new beginning after the Messiah's thousand-year-long reign, when there is a New heaven, New Earth, and New Yerushalayim.20. Your sun will never again set, nor will your moon ever be gathered away, because YHWH will become for you an everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will be over.
Your sun: Aramaic, your kingdom. Gathered away: i.e., removed little by little (waning) as it is now. Over: brought to completion; also includes the idea of being repaid.21. Then every one of your people will be righteous; they will possess the Land forever--a green shoot that I have planted, a product of My hands, so that I may be glorified.
22. The smallest will come to be a thousand, and the least significant, a great nation. I, YHWH, will bring it speedily in its proper season.
Thousand: or clan. Speedily: until that time the fulfillment will seem to be creeping toward us if moving at all, but when it begins (as it already has), the "rapid succession" (Rev. 1:1) with which it comes will make our heads spin. So start "dwelling in tents" now, for His camp is moving. Things will change too fast to live in a settled place, and those who try will only lag behind and be attacked by Amaleq.
Untying: Aramaic, being revealed to the light.2. to proclaim the year of YHWH's favorable acceptance, the Day of our Elohim's vengeance, to bring intense comfort to all who mourn,
The year of YHWH's favorable acceptance: the Yovel or Jubilee. Yahshua read this when called to the reader's stand in the synagogue at Kfar Nahum, and proclaimed that He was fulfilling this prophecy, but stopped after "acceptance" (Luke 4:18), for the rest remains to be fulfilled at His second coming. His vengeance will bring a full sense of satisfaction to all who have been unjustly bereaved.3. to extend [compassion] to those who mourn in Tzion, to bestow on them adornment in place of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning [garb], the enwrapment of praise in lieu of a weakened spirit, and they have been named noble trees of righteousness that YHWH has planted for His own glory.
Though there are times when YHWH takes us through dark times, it does not mean we should have a morbid preference for them, even though He does reveal Himself to us in special ways during them. Joy is much better, and He wants the story to end that way. Weakened: or dimmed, much as Yitzhaq's spirit was at the time he favored Esau over Yaaqov. (Gen. 27-28) Noble trees: or pillars, strong supports.4. Moreover, they have rebuilt the ancient ruins, and will raise up what was deserted in the earliest times. They have brought renewal to the desolate cities, which were deserted generation upon generation.
Ancient ruins: compare 58:12. What was deserted in the earliest times: all the way back to the Garden of Eden.5. Those who are estranged have presented themselves as servants to pasture your flocks, and the children of foreigners are working your land and tending your vineyards.
Working your land: with the connotation of not owning any of it.6. But you will be called priests of YHWH, and spoken of as those who wait on our Elohim. You will consume the wealth of nations, and enter into the reputation they [once boasted of].
Priests of YHWH: in comparison to the other nations, all Israelites are to be priests. In fact, Israel is called "a kingdom of priests". (Ex. 19:6) Enter into: with the sense of exchanging places. Enter into the reputation: LXX, be admired because of their wealth; Aramaic, in their glory you shall be indulged.7. [You will receive] double for your shame, and [in place of] dishonor, they will shout for joy over the share they are granted as an inheritance, as they take possession of their land a second time. They will have everlasting joy,
Double for your shame: Aramaic, two for one the benefits I promised you I will bring to you, and the Gentiles will be ashamed who were boasting in their lot.8. because I, YHWH, love proper legal proceedings; I hate plunder on the ascent. Moreover, I will faithfully issue their wages, and cut for them an eternal covenant.
Plunder on the ascent: robbery in burnt offerings, or "stepping on others as we climb the ladder to get to the top". Faithfully issue their wages: LXX, give their labor to the just. The wealth of the wicked is only being assembled for the righteous to ultimately use. (Prov. 13:22; 21:18)9. And their descendants will be known among the nations, and their offspring among the insiders of the peoples. All who see them will recognize that they are the race whom YHWH has blessed.
Race: literally, seed--specifically a reference to Yitzhaq's and Yaaqov's line. Yahshua says the useful seed that He, the Son of Adam, sows is the sons of the kingdom. (Mat. 13:38) Recognize: LXX, take notice. This is the parallel (haftarah) passage for Deut. 29:10-30:20, used to teach that portion when the reading of the Torah was forbidden. In it YHWH reviews all the blessings He has given, charges the people to choose this way over the alternatives, but promises that even when His people choose the alternatives, He will bring their descendants back to His covenant.10. I will rejoice in YHWH with a display of gladness! My soul will be exuberant in my Elohim, because He has caused me to be arrayed [with the] clothing of salvation; He has covered me with the outer garments of righteousness as a bridegroom officiates with his glorious adornment, and as the bride puts on her accessories.
This is the response of those whom YHWH has so blessed (v. 9) after He has done so. Clothing of salvation: compare Rom. 13:14 and Eph. 6:14. As a bridegroom officiates: Aramaic, like the bridegroom who prospers in his canopy, and like the high priest who is prepared in his garments. The Hebrew word for "officiates" is the root for cohen (priest). Yahshua is called our Bridegroom, so this verse also gives Him the authority to be our High Priest as well. But here His people are dressed as both bride and bridegroom, indicating the return to being Adam before Chavvah was separated from him. They, too, were clothed in the glorious adornment of light.11. Because as the earth causes her buds to sprout forth, and as the orchard causes the things sown in it to grow, even so Adonai YHWH will cause righteousness and adoration to spring up before all the Gentiles.
Earth: Aramaic, a channeled garden. Causes to grow: Aramaic, increases. Again, here is a picture of a return to Eden, for orchard is based on the word for garden as in Genesis. This feeding and clothing are also the evidence that YHWH has fulfilled the conditions of Yaaqov's vow in Gen. 28:20ff, when he, too, was on a journey to find a bride.
For Tzion's sake: While the world talks about making Yerushalayim the Palestinian capital or even an international city, we need to remain as jealous over it as YHWH is, because it is not man's right to do anything with a city that is His special possession. But there will be usurpers in it when Yahshua returns (Zech. 12-14; Luke 21:24; Rev. 11:2), just as there were when the Qumran community wrote in the Dead Sea Scrolls about the battle between the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness. This did not take place in their day, but it will when He returns. Gleam: shining, brightness, or perhaps dawning.2. Then nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your splendor, and you will [indeed] be called by a new name that the mouth of YHWH will designate.
Aramaic, the new name which YHWH by His Memra will make clear. Compare Rev. 2:17.3. Then you will become a crown of honor in YHWH's hand and a turban of royalty in the palm of your Elohim.
4. You will no longer be spoken of as abandoned, nor will your Land be spoken of as deserted, because you will be called "My delight is in her", and your Land, "possessed by a husband", because YHWH delights in you, and your Land will be married,
Spoken of as abandoned: as Israel has been described by the church for centuries. My delight is in her: Heb., heftzi-bah. Possessed by a husband: Heb., be'ulah. Notice it does not say "You will be possessed by a husband", because this term is based on ba'al, and is appropriate only for property or chattel, not a beloved wife. (Hos. 2:16)5. because just as a young man marries a virgin, that is how your sons will marry you, and as a bridegroom rejoices over a bride, that is how your Elohim will rejoice over you.
Marry: LXX, dwell with. The last two phrases are part of the liturgy for the welcoming of the Sabbath. Yet there is to be no Sabbath for YHWH until He fulfills this promise. (vv. 6-7) Virgin: not the parallel word for the word used here for"young man". It was mandatory for a priest to marry a virgin.6. On your walls, O Yerushalayim, I have stationed watchmen all day [long] and all night [long]; they will not remain silent perpetually. You who remind YHWH, do not let yourselves rest,
Aramaic: Behold, the deeds of your fathers, the righteous… are prepared and watched before Me. Though the priestly Essene community moved down to Qumran to get away from the corruption that had overrun the Temple complex, they still left some people living just outside Yerushalayim as watchmen to make sure it did not get completely blasphemous. Remind: or remember, memorialize. YHWH told Moshe He wanted to be remembered by the Name of YHWH. (Ex. 3:15) We who have remembered His Name after it was in disuse for so long have a special responsibility to be part of this "pestering" Him:7. and give Him no rest until He establishes and transforms Yerushalayim into a song of praise in the Land!
Shim'on was waiting expectantly for the fulfillment of these promises(Luke 2:25ff), and he blessed Yahshua with a prophecy to this effect. Yahshua grew up with the strong sense of wanting to gather Yerushalayim back (Luke 13:34) and of having a fire to kindle, and He felt no rest until that should take place. (Luke 12:49)8. YHWH has sworn with His right hand and by the Arm of His strength, "If I ever again give your grain to your enemies for food, or if the sons of a foreigner drink the freshly-pressed wine for which you have worked [so] hard.
Worked so hard: The first time He brought Israel into the Land, it came easily, but we abused the Land and took her lightly. Now He wants us to beg to have her back. Like a spoiled rich child whose father sends to work so he appreciates what he has, we are commanded to seek our inheritance diligently and fight to find His heart so that we will feel how awesome a gift it is.9. Because the very ones who gather it will eat it and praise YHWH, and those who collect it will drink it in My holy enclosures."
Praise: in a raving manner. Enclosures: from a root meaning "trumpeting".10. Pass through! Pass through the gates! Clear the People's path! Raise up, raise up the highway! Throw away the stones from off it! Have a signpost erected for the people.
Pass through: from the same root as "Hebrew" (crosser-over). The Aramaic indicates that the prophets are the ones being addressed here, telling them to turn the hearts of the people to the correct way. Clear: or resurface. This is again the highway that will conduct the reunited nation of Israel back into its Land. Raise up: from the same root word as the "stairway" Yaaqov saw at the Temple Mount. The stones: Aramaic, the impulsive fantasy that is like a stone of stumbling. Yaaqov moved a stone that he found there and established it as a place for not only himself but for YHWH to "lay His head". The people: LXX, the Gentiles.11. Indeed, YHWH has caused it to be heard to the extremity of the earth: tell the daughter of Tzion, "Behold, your deliverance is coming!" His reward is with Him indeed, and His recompense is in the presence [of] His [face]!
Daughter: Aramaic, congregation.12. Then they will call them the Set-Apart People, those whom YHWH has redeemed, and you will be billed as a resort rather than a city [that is] abandoned.
Set-Apart People: or the nation in a class of its own. You: Yerushalayim. A resort: a place frequented by many feet, sought out, much in demand, well cared for.
Aramaic: He is about to bring a stroke upon Edom. Botzrah: means "a sheepfold", but is also a city in Edom, north of Petra, a place which is itself like a sheepfold, with one narrow entrance and surrounded by "walls" of cliffs. But Edom is also often likened to Rome, and by extension, the church. Yahshua is the door for the sheep, but countless robbers have entered without coming in by the proper entrance, and have turned the sheep against the shepherd. They have stolen the sheep and eaten them. Here they are being recompensed for this. His array: or His prepared one (i.e., His bride).2. [Who knows] why your apparel is red, and your garments like one who treads out the winevat?
Aramaic: Why will mountains be red from the blood of those killed, and valleys gush forth like wine? Compare Rev. 14:20, which describes this as extending 1,600 furlongs (about 181 miles), which would be from Petra all the way to Megiddo (Armageddon) or from Mt. Sinai in Arabia (near Midyan) to just outside of Yerushalayim.3. "I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples there was no man with Me. I will tread them in My anger, and trample them in My hot displeasure, and their enduring [color] will be spattered on My garments, and I have stained all My clothing,
In My anger: literally, with My nose. Their enduring color: Aramaic, their wise ones.4. "because the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the day of My redeemed ones has arrived.
The Temple was cleansed the day after the Sabbath each week. The rest of the week, the barefoot priests had to walk over blood and small pieces of meat. By the end of the sixth day (which represents the time when this judgment will take place, at the end of 6,000 years), their white garments would be quite spattered. Tzefanyah 2:19 shows that YHWH is not slow about avenging His chosen ones; He is only awaiting the moment when His anger is filled up, and when all the nations that oppose Israel all gathered together, so He can destroy them all at once.5. "But when I look, there is no one helping, and I am stunned! But there is no one to lean against for support, so My own arm brought Me victory, and My fury is what sustained Me,
6. "and I will trample down the peoples in My anger, and make them intoxicated with My venomous rage. Then I will bring their enduring [ones] down to the earth."
Enduring ones: those who remain of them, or enduring color (as in v. 3), an idiom for juice or, by analogy, blood (taken so by the translators of the LXX).7. I will bring to remembrance the mercies of YHWH; I will mention YHWH's praise-worthy acts, as befits everything in which YHWH has bountifully recompensed us and the great prosperity for the House of Israel which He has bestowed on them according to His tender mercies and in accordance with the multitude of His lovingkindnesses!
Us: the House of Yehudah, since he distinguishes himself from the House of Israel.8. Moreover, He said, "They are My people indeed--children who will never deal in trickery!" So He has become a Savior to them.
My people: in context of the House of Israel (v. 7), this is the rescinding of the curse in Hos. 1:9. Who will never deal in trickery: Yahshua alluded to this when He met Nathan'el (Yochanan 1:47), indicating that he was part of this group.9. In all of their distress, He was not [the] oppressor, but the messenger of His face delivered them; in His love and in His pity He acted as their Kinsman-Redeemer, and had picked them up and continued to carry them all the days of antiquity.
He was not the oppressor: or He [Himself] was distressed; LXX, not an ambassador, not a messenger… Messenger of His face: Yahshua said "He who has seen Me has seen the Father". (Yochanan 14:9) He gave a face to YHWH, whom no one can ever see. (Yoch. 1:18) Kinsman-Redeemer: one of his functions was to be the avenger of blood.10. But they rebelled and intensely grieved the spirit of His holiness, so He was turned against them [as] their enemy; He fought against them!
Any time we are selfish, He has to oppose us, like a parent who must stand against his children when they harden their hearts.11. Then His people remembered the days of antiquity--of Moshe: "Where is He now--the one who brought them up from the sea with the one who pastures His flock? Where is He now--the one who put His Holy Spirit right within their innermost part,
They knew Him then as a "Man of War". What has happened to this reputation? "Jesus" certainly does not seem like that. But if we seek to know Him as He really is, we will find Him.12. "leading them with Moshe's right hand by the arm of His glory, dividing the water in front of them to make an everlasting reputation for Himself?
13. "[While He was] leading them among the abysses of the sea, like a horse in the wilderness they did not stumble.
This will take place again in a far greater way. (Yirmiyahu 16:16)14. "As a beast descends onto the level plain, YHWH's Spirit causing him to remain calm, that is how You conducted them along, to make a glorious reputation for Yourself.
15. "Pay attention from Heaven, and look [down] from the lofty abode of Your holiness and splendor! Where are your zeal and valor now? The abundance of Your deep affections and Your compassions toward me--have they held themselves back?
Zeal: ardor or jealousy.16. "Because You are our Father! Even if Avraham has not been acquainted with us, and Israel may not acknowledge us, You, YHWH, are our Father, our Kinsman-Redeemer; Your Name has endured since antiquity.
Israel: i.e., Yaaqov. Even if Avraham…: Aramaic, Avraham did not take us up from Egypt and Israel did not do wonders for us in the wilderness.17. "O YHWH, why do You let us wander from Your ways? [Why do] You let our heart become stubborn [and stray] from reverence for You? For Your servants' sake, bring back the tribes [to] Your inherited property!
Aramaic: Why will You despise us…as the Gentiles who have no portion in the teaching of Your law?18. "Your holy people have possessed it [only] for a little [while]; our oppressors have trampled down [and desecrated] Your sanctuary!
Little while: the glory of David and Shlomo's united kingdom was short-lived; LXX: that we may inherit a small part of Your holy mountain.19. "We were [there] in antiquity; You never had dominion over them. They were never called by Your Name!"
We were there: in the Land; today's usurpers have no claim to His Land since they do not know Him by His proper Name, but worship Al-illah, a Saudi Arabian moon god whom they have exalted above all and who . LXX: We have become as at the beginning, when You did not rule over us, and Your Name was not called upon us.
Torn the skies and come down: Aram., inclined the heavens and revealed Yourself.2. "just as fire kindles the brushwood, [and] fire causes water to boil, to make Your name known to Your foes; Gentiles would quake from Your presence!
Causes water to boil: Aramaic, licked the waters, an allusion to Eliyahu's triumph over the priests of Ba'al.3. "When You did awesome things which we were not expecting, mountains shook from Your presence!
Shook: or, became insignificant.4. "And since ancient times, they have not heard nor perceived with the ear; eye has not seen an Elohim other than You who acts on behalf of those who long for Him.
Israel is asking that YHWH repeat what He did in the past, so there will be no doubt among her enemies about whose side He is on. But Paul quoted this verse (in slightly-modified form) in 1 Cor. 2:9, and in that context, he says that natural men cannot understand spiritual principles, so, as in Yahshua's parable, even if someone came back from the dead to tell them, they would not believe it if they are not already disposed to do so. (Lk. 16:31) Long for Him: the phrase includes the sense of digging in and entrenching oneself, not being passive. (Compare Psalm 27:4; 37:9, 34; 52:9; Hos. 12:2ff)5. "You intervene for those who rejoice and carry out righteousness, who will remember You in Your ways. Indeed, You are provoked to anger, as we have been sinning; in them there is eternity, and we can be delivered.
Intervene for: or, meet with. In them: that is, in His ways. Eternity: or continuity, but the root word means "concealment"; in His ways and in doing righteousness, our sins can become concealed from His face (Psalm 103:12). In them there is eternity: Aramaic, by the deeds of our righteous fathers who were of old, we were spared. Sinning: literally, missing the mark. What mark? Paul often expresses the goal as being of one mind and doing nothing from selfish ambition. (e.g., Phil. 2:1-11) Tradition says that the second Temple was destroyed because of a lack of such like-mindedness among the Jews, and the Flood came mainly because men were violent toward one another without cause. Therefore YHWH's anger (rage) was released.6. "But we have all become like something ritually unclean; all our best deeds are like a menstruous garment, and we are all withering like a leaf, and our perversities, like the wind, will carry us away.
Menstruous garment: This verse is often used to prove that we cannot keep the Torah and so should not even try. However, it seems it is an outer garment being described here, and thus not one defiled by blood, but one marking the fact that this woman is off-limits during that time, and every man should avoid touching her, since she is set apart to YHWH. But here Israel is saying this to YHWH! She is not separating herself unto Him, but unto herself. She feels like she has things under control. Israel in exile "had Jesus" and stayed away from YHWH Himself since we were "covered by this outer clothing". Our hearts are still filthy; the Torah is not. (Rom. 6-8)7. "There is no one who calls on Your Name, no one stirring himself up to prevail upon You, because You have hidden Your face from us, and have caused us to melt in the hands of our perversities.
No one who calls on Your Name: This sounds like it is saying there is no one who is religious anymore. But on the contrary, there are many who pray, but few who address Him by His true Name. This again shows the lack of intimacy with Him; stirring oneself up can mean getting out of bed and prevailing on can mean taking hold of. This is the spiritual equivalent of the excuse, "I have a headache." If we get too close to Him, we feel, He might see what we look like without our makeup on, so the indirect relationship through Messiah is as close as we get. Melt: or dissipate; Aramaic, handed us over.8. "But after all, O YHWH, You are our Father! We are the clay, and You are the one who forms us; we are all the workmanship of Your hand.
Our Father: the Aramaic interprets this as emphasizing His mercy. Clay: The best was dug from the part of the Hinnom Valley into which Yerushalayim's sewer systems ran out; thus it was full of impurities that had to be removed and/or burned away. Elsewhere the word symbolizes the whole earth, and indeed we have been removed from there and no longer belong to it. The potter has a very intimate relationship with the clay, being skilled with a flimsy substance that reminds us of our flesh. (2 Cor. 4:7) But once crushed into dust, even an uncooperative lump can become useful again if the right amount of water (a symbol of the Word of YHWH) is added.. 2 Tim. 2:20 tells us we can have some part in the decision of whether the vessels He makes us will be put to noble or ignoble use, by how willing we are to cleanse ourselves from impurities.9. "Do not be angry, O YHWH, to the point of excess, and do not remember guilt forever. Look, please take into consideration [the fact] that we are all Your people!
People: a collective term. As individuals we are not, but together we are. Every morning pious Israelites pray that YHWH will bring all of the tribes back together in their lifetimes.10. "Your holy cities have become a wilderness! Tzion is an uninhabited place; Yerushalayim has become a place of devastation!
Place of devastation: LXX, a curse. Rachel was Yaaqov's treasure, yet she was barren. (Gen. 29) And the place He had propvided as His dwelling place has come to fit the same description as Babylon (13:6, 20; 21:1, 2), for she has taken on the traditions of the nations. Yet after the other wives all bore their children, Rachel's womb was opened, and this is a plea that the same be done for the city and people she represents.11. "Our holy and splendid house, in which our ancestors made their boast in You, has been thoroughly burned with fire, and all the things we highly valued have been laid waste!
Things we took pleasure in: Hebrew, Mahammad. Perhaps there is thus a prophecy on a deeper level of Muslim sites in the Land also being destroyed.12. In light of all these things, can You restrain Yourself, O YHWH? Can You remain passive and let us be humiliated so badly?"
Remain passive: Aramaic, give respite to the wicked. So badly: or, beyond measure. This is a cry of desperation: we have confessed the same sins over and over; how can we expect to be forgiven yet again? Yet our spirit keeps us crying out nonetheless, since we have no one else to turn to.
Thus begins YHWH's response. Who did not ask… did not seek: even some from among the Gentiles. But, a nation: only one, not many, so it refers to the Northern Kingdom of Israel.2. "All day [long] I have spread My hands wide toward a people who are stubborn, who walk a road that is not beneficial, following after their own inventions,
Spread My hands: Aramaic, sent My prophets. Stubborn: or rebellious; LXX, disobedient and gainsaying.3. "the nation that constantly provokes Me to anger, to My face; who slaughter [sacrifices] in gardens and burn incense upon the bricks;
Upon the bricks: probably a reference to altars. The Greek LXX adds "to devils, which do not exist."4. "who sit among the tombs and spend the night in the blockades; who eat the flesh of the pig, with broken pieces of foul things [as] their utensils;
Among the tombs: where too many churches are built, as well as figuratively focusing more on the cross than the resurrection. Blockades: or possibly, watch towers; LXX, in the caves for the sake of dreams; Aramaic, the houses they build from the dust of tombs. Foul: abominable, stinking; the Aramaic targum suggests that they may be pieces of dead human bodies. (Perhaps a prophecy of the Catholic eucharist?) As their utensils: or, in their vessels. This is a people that, having done away with the Torah, consideranything and everything to be holy, but YHWH tells it like it is.5. "who say, 'Keep yourself away; do not come close to me, because I am holier than you!' These are smoke in My nose, a fire that keeps burning all day.
Holier than you: or, holy to you, i.e., off limits to you. (See 64:6) Fire that keeps burning: see 66:24.6. "Behold, it is inscribed before Me: 'I will not remain still, except to pay back; indeed, I will repay [them] in their [very] laps!'
Repay them in their laps: Aramaic, hand over their bodies to the second death. (Also in v. 15; compare Rev. 2:11; 20:6)7. "Your perversities and the perversities of your fathers together", says YHWH, "who burned incense upon the mountains and defied Me upon the hills, so I have measured out their earliest recompense into their lap."
8. This is what YHWH says: "Just as new wine is found in a cluster, and [one] says, 'Do not let it be spoiled, because there is a blessing in it', I will do the same for the sake of My servants, in order to avoid destroying them all.
New wine: LXX, a grapestone. The Aramaic targum interprets this mystically as referring to Noach being found innocent in the generation of the flood, and therefore being spared.9. "So I will bring forth a descendant of Yaaqov, and from Yehudah, one to repossess My mountains, and My chosen one will take possession of it, so My servants can settle there.
10. "Then the Sharon will become an abode of flocks, and the Valley of Akhor a place for the herds of My people who seek Me out to lie down
Seek Me out: the root word means "to tread out", as with the grapes in v. 8.11. "But you are those who desert YHWH, who forget My holy mountain--who set a table for Fortune, and who fill [an offering of] mixed wine to Destiny.
Fortune: or luck; LXX, the devil, who is indeed called Lucifer; Heb., Gad, pronounced just like "God", and YHWH says we are not to have the names of pagan deities in our mouths. (Ex. 23:13) This would be reason enough not to call YHWH "God", even if it were a mere translation. But it is not; "God" was a localized Norse-Germanic deity, so we must not substitute YHWH's true name with his. Destiny: or fate, based on the word for a number, hinting at the concept of gambling, and relating to the word-play on "counting" ("assign" is the root word for destiny) in v. 12. The concepts of luck and destiny also reflect a belief in chance and happenstance, which is diametrically opposed to those who trust YHWH to keep His promises. We must never give them the least bit of credit. Moreover, the feast days for these two deities were December 24 and 25, so we must do all we can to avoid making these into any type of special days unto YHWH, so there is no association in anyone's minds.12. "So I will assign you to the sword, and all of you will bend over to be slaughtered, because I called and you did not answer Me; I spoke and you did not listen, but did what was evil in My eyes, and chose what I did not take any pleasure in."
Assign you to: or number you for. I spoke: the Aramaic has "sent My prophets". We, too, are the voices by which He is speaking today, calling people away from the celebration of Christmas, etc., and back to the days He has commanded.13. Therefore, this is what Adonai YHWH says: "My servants will eat, but you will be hungry; behold, My servants will drink [as at a banquet], but you will be thirsty; My servants will be glad, but you will be ashamed.
14. "Indeed, My servants will give a ringing shout of joy because of the prosperity of [their] heart, but you will cry out for help from anguish of heart, and wail because of your broken dreams.
Dreams: literally, spirit.15. "Yet you will leave your name to My chosen [to use] as a swear-word, because Adonai YHWH will put you to death, and He will call His servants by another name,
Swear-word: LXX, a loathing. Another: includes the concept of going yet further. We will no longer wish to be called Christians because of the bad name they have given themselves in departing from YHWH's commands; rather, we will delight to again be called Israel.16. "[so that anyone] in the Land who blesses himself will bless himself by the Elohim of trustworthiness, and whoever takes an oath in the Land will swear by the Elohim of trustworthiness, because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hidden from My eyes.
Former troubles… hideen from My eyes: After YHWH fulfilled His promise to multiply Israel's punishment seven times (Lev. 26:18), He could put it all behind His back and accept our repentance as a people in a way He could not, though as individuals we turned back to Him for mercy through Yahshua. (Hoshea 1) For the Northern Kingdom this takes place sometime between 1996 and 2008 (having begun c. 736-722 B.C.; compare with Yehezqel 4:5), so if we will accept it, we are well on our way to being a nation again and reuniting with Yehudah.17. "because here I am, creating fresh heavens and a fresh earth, and the previous ones will not be remembered, nor will [they] be brought to mind.
Be brought to mind: literally, ascend upon the heart.18. "Instead, show your gladness and tremble with joy into perpetuity [over] what I am creating, because here I am, fashioning Yerushalayim into [a circle of] rejoicing and [making] her people a [reason for] gladness.
19. "Then I will tremble with joy in Yerushalayim and display joy among My people, and there will no longer be heard in her a sound of weeping or a cry of distress.
20. "There will come to no longer be a nursing infant [who lives but a few] days or an old man who will not thoroughly complete his days, because [any] youth who dies [will be] a hundred years old, but the hundred-year-old sinner will be counted as insignificant.
Counted as insignificant: or treated lightly, cursed. I.e., there will be different laws in effect for the righteous and sinners, probably because the latter will still be living according to the old ways of the present age, while the former will live by YHWH's instruction and be constantly rejuvenated.21. "And they will build houses and inhabit [them]; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22. "They will not build [what] another will live in, nor plant [what] someone else will eat, because the days of My people will be like the days of the tree, and they will use to the fullest what their hands have made.
The tree: in particular, the tree of life, from which they will again eat. Use to the fullest: use up, use until worn out, or enjoy for a very long time.23. "They will not work hard for nothing, nor bear children unto sudden alarm, because they are the seed of those who are blessed by YHWH, and their offspring with them,
24. "and it will come about that before they call, I will respond, and while they are still speaking, I will listen.
Before they call: In the Garden of Eden, Adam chose to become an independent moral agent, having the ability in himself to determine right from wrong rather than continuing to go to YHWH with his questions. What if YHWH did not show up one evening? He thought he had to have some security. But men then found it necessary to construct counterfeit "walled gardens" (v. 4). But beginning to call on Him again is a reversal of this self-imposed curse. And if anyone lacks wisdom, he is invited to simply ask. (Yaaqov/James 1:5)25. "The wolf and the lamb alike will feed on grass, and the lion will eat straw like the bull, but the serpent's food will be dust. They will not cause injury or ruin on any of My holy mountain", says YHWH.
Dust: The curse will be lifted from mankind, but not from the serpent. This is one reason he envies us so deeply.
My footstool: or, place for My feet, asin Eden and the camp of Israel, where He walked. (Gen. 3:8; ) Aramaic, like a highway before Me. Where? Gen. 28:22 answeres the question.2. "My own hand has made all these things; that [is how] all these things have come into existence!" declares YHWH. But this is the one to whom I will pay attention: the humble and afflicted of spirit, who even trembles when I speak.
3. "The one who slaughters an ox [is like one who] strikes down a man; whoever sacrifices a flock animal [as one who] breaks a dog's neck. The one who brings up a tribute offering [is like him who offers] swine's blood, and whoever [brings] a memorial [offering] of frankincense [is the same to Me as the one who] kneels to a wicked [thing]. They have also chosen their own paths, and their soul takes pleasure in their detestable things.
The one: from among those who think there is intrinsic value in the actions themselves rather than the attitudes they reflect (v. 2). Wicked thing: probably refers to an idol; Aramaic, as a gift of oppression. Breaks a dog's neck: YHWH does not accept this as He does the redemption of a donkey. (Ex. 13:13) Thus it represents the fact that not all people are redeemable. Pharaoh was a "vessel for destruction". (Ex. 9:16; Rom. 9:15-18)4. "I, too, will choose [to punish] their childish ways, and bring them what they dread, since I called but no one answered; I spoke, but they did not listen, but did what was evil in My eyes and opted for that which I did not take pleasure in."
5. Listen to the word of YHWH, O you who tremble at His word: "Your relatives who hate you, who make you outcasts for My Name's sake, have said, 'May YHWH be honored!' But He will make Himself seen in your joy, and they will be put to shame.
6. "An uproarious noise from the City--a sounding from the Temple, the voice of YHWH completely repaying those who are hostile to Him as they deserve.
7. "Before she writhed [in labor], she brought forth a child; before the birthpangs came, she delivered a male [child].
Since the fall of Adam, Yahweh has been in the business of restoring the true image of Elohim. She delivered a male child: Aramaic, her king will be revealed. So this speaks of Yahshua, who was born long before the time known as "the Birthpangs of the Messiah", which usher in His physical Kingdom, which did not belong to the age in which He was condemned to die. (Yoch. 18:36) There was a declaration by the World Council of Rabbis that the Birthpangs had officially begun on Yom Truah (Rosh haShanah) 2000, when the Intifada began. But there is another aspect of this birth:8. "Who has heard [anything] like this? Who has seen [things] like these? Can the Land be made to give birth in one day? Can a nation be born in one step? For as soon as Tzion travailed, she bore her children!
Step: or stroke, beat, one occurrence out of a series. We actually see two steps here. (See below.) Bore her children: Aramaic, is about to be filled with the people of her exiles. So this "child" is also a nation whose "mother" is Zion. The Messiah Yahshua is born in a "daughter of Zion" (Micah 4:8). With His birth, the exiled House of Israel could begin to return. (Micha 5:3) He is the Head of that restored image. In Hebrew, "head" is related to "first", because the head is the part of the body born first. With Yahshua's resurrection on the feast of First Fruits, Yahweh made a down-payment guaranteeing that the rest of the "new Adam" would indeed be born. The "body" of this new man must "hold fast to the head" (Col. 2:19) in order to finish rebuilding the lost image of Elohim. Paul calls the Galatians "my little children, of whom I labor in childbirth again until Messiah is formed in you..." (4:19) Another allegory was lived out by Rachel, the ancestress of the Northern Kingdom: "Now they pulled up from Beyth-El, and while there was still a considerable stretch of land to go before they came to Efrath, Rachel went into labor, and had great difficulty in the delivery of her baby... When her labor became most difficult, the midwife told her, "Don't be afraid, because this child is also a son for you!" (Gen. 35:16-17) Efrath means "fruitfulness". So the labor begins while Israel's fruitfulness is still a long way off. The Messiah was the man-child brought forth long ago. But the birthpangs are also yet to come. The apostles were already working to reunite the northern and southern kingdoms. But Constantine seduced the church into resuscitating the pagan empire by granting Gentile believers a legitimacy of their own, and the Kingdom was divided once again. When the rest of the body is born, then Yehudah will be reconciled to Israel, being Yahshua's brothers. (Micha 5:3) The first step (v. 7) before the birthpangs, and the second here, as soon as they have come. There are two harvests on the Biblical calendar from which firstfruits are brought to the Temple. Just before the declaration that the Birthpangs had begun, the restoration of the Northern Kingdom began. Its unleavened firstfruits (the barley harvest) are His Bride. There is another flock of Yahshua's that are still blind to who they are. If they remain resistant to the Torah when YHWH calls in the barley harvest, they can only be part of the second harvest, that of the wheat, whose firstfruits are only waved before YHWH at Shavuot because they are leavened and cannot be brought up onto His altar built of stones unshaped by men's hands. They can become the Temple, built of stones that will need to be shaped by those of the first harvest. They correlate with the five virgins who miss the wedding feast, not being ready, but still can be part of the Kingdom, though with lower positions. (Mat. 5:19)9. "Shall I bring to the point of breaking forth, but not bring about the birth?", says YHWH. "Will I beget a child yet hold it back [from being born]?", says your Elohim.
As the time draws near for the two houses of Israel to reunite into "one new man" (Ephesians 2:15), the counterfeit is keeping pace. The Gospel has been co-opted by Babylon. The Holy Roman Empire was one of the many attempts to rebuild Babel. Many who no longer know Scripture well enough to see any reason for the continued rift are now heeding Rome's invitation to take advantage of her amnesty and rejoin the "mother church". This "fourth kingdom" (Daniel 2:40) correlates with the fourth beast (Dan. 7:7), who shows up again in Revelation 13. Its true colors show up when Yahweh starts to apply pressure. It turns on the part of the "church" that prostitutes itself with it. (Rev. 17:16) Then it will so hem in the true Man that it appears that it has all been in vain: "The children have been brought to birth, but there is no strength to bring forth!" (Yesh. 37:3) This is the stage in a woman's labor where she feels like it is impossible to go on. We are called to walk by faith, though everything visible seems to say that the restoration of Israel, the "new Adam", is just a pipe dream. Revelation 12:1 depicts a woman clothed with the sun and a crown of 12 stars. Genesis 37:9-10 identifies the 12 stars as Jacob's 12 sons. So this woman is reunited Israel when she is reunited. After her birthpangs, the dragon tries to destroy her child. Verse 17 says her seed are those who "keep the commandments of Elohim and have the testimony of Yahshua the Messiah." It is at this time, when Israel is back in the wilderness as one united people, that the throne will be established. (16:4-5) Both Houses of Israel together will have one shepherd, [the son of] David. (Ezek. 34:23; 37:24) The new man will be complete!10. Be joyful with Yerushalayim, and be glad in her, all you who love her! Rejoice with her through demonstrations of joy, all of you who lament over her [within yourselves],
We already see Yerushalayim becoming a "cup of trembling to all nations" (Zech. 12:2), and undoubtedly we will be saddened by many of the events that must take place during the birthpangs. But as Yahshua said, "A woman in birthpangs has sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world." (Yochn. 16:21)11. in order that you may suckle and drink your fill from the breasts of her consolations --so that you may milk [to the fullest] and be pampered by the conspicuousness of her reputation.
Milk: or drain out. Conspicuousness: or liveliness, abundance, fullness. Reputation: importance, honor, weightiness, or glory.12. Because this is what YHWH says: "Here I am, holding out to her the offer of total well-being like a river, and the honor of the nations like an overflowing torrent. And you will nurse, you will be carried on the hip, and you will be cuddled upon the knees.
River: the targum specifies the Ferath (Euphrates). Honor of the nations: or the most important from among the nations, i.e., the seed He had once scattered there through dispersing Israel among them and the fruit it has borne.13. Like a man whom his mother comforts, in the same way I will comfort you, and in Yerushalayim you will be comforted!
14. You will indeed see [it], and your [collective] heart will rejoice, and your bones will flourish like the green vegetation! Then YHWH's hand will be made known to His servants, but His indignation to those hostile to Him,
Bones: or various members of one and the same body. Flourish: or sprout forth, i.e., gain new strength and durability.15. because YHWH will indeed come with fire, with His chariots like a storm-wind, to bring back His wrath with vehemence, and His rebuke with flashes of fire,
His chariots like a storm-wind: an allusion to Eliyahu (2 Kings 2:11), who will come (at least in spirit) before the Great and Terrifying Day of YHWH. (Mal. 4:5)16. because with fire and with His sword YHWH will judge all flesh, and those mortally pierced by YHWH will be many.
17. "Those who dedicate themselves [to] and make themselves ceremonially clean for the gardens, following after one in the midst, who eat the flesh of swine, the detestable thing, and the mouse, will [all] be brought to an end just the same," declares YHWH.
Gardens: as seen in 65:3-4. One in the midst: in the context of a garden, this would refer to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Mouse: Heb., akbar, which is pronounced just like what Muslims so often say Allah is!18. "For I Myself [know] their works and their plans; it comes to gather all the nations and the tongues, and they will come and recognize My authority.
Compare Rev. 2:2, 9, 13, 19; 3:1, 8, 15.19. "And I have set a sign among them, and have sent those of them who have survived to the nations of Tarshish, Pul, and Lud; those who draw back the bow [to] Thuval and Yawan, the faraway coastlands who have not heard reports about Me or perceived My authority, and they will inform those among the nations of My authority.
Survived: or escaped as fugitives or refugees. This may be those of the first harvest. Inform: publish, declare, announce, make known the accomplished fact of YHWH's Kingdom to those who are now its subjects and vassals.20. "Then they will bring all of your brothers out of all the nations [as] a tribute to YHWH--on the horses and in the chariot or in covered wagons or on mules or on dromedaries [up] onto My holy mountain, Yerushalayim," says YHWH, "just as the sons of Israel bring the grain offering to the House of YHWH in a ritually pure vessel.
They: the fore-runners who go back and bring others, or those among the nations who have been ordered to do so. Tribute: the same word as grain offering later in the verse. They will all become "one bread" (1 Cor. 10:17), being brothers, and therefore all descendants of the House of Israel. On dromedaries: or, with whirling dances--possibly a better reading, since they are likened to pure vessels, but dromedaries (a type of camel) are not clean beasts, nor are horses or mules; the Aramaic substitutes "songs" for dromedaries. "Horses" actually means, at root, swift things (alternately meaning swallows, which are swift birds), and "mules" , separated or divided things. Wagons: Aramaic, ewes.21. "And I will even select some of them to be priests and as Levites," says YHWH,
Levites were once substituted for the firstborn of other families of Israel, so if the firstborn are better qualified to serve, having studied more intently and demonstrated their love for YHWH, they may be restored to that right. This probably correlates with the 144,000 (12,000 from each tribe of Israel, except that Dan is replaced by the double-portion of Yoseyf, Rev. 7).22. "because just as the fresh heavens and fresh earth that I am making will remain established in My presence," declares YHWH, "in the same way your seed and your name will remain established.
23. "Then what will come to take place [is that] as often as new moon [follows] new moon, and as often as Sabbath [follows] Sabbath, all flesh will come to bow down before Me," says YHWH,
The new moon is rarely celebrated even by Jews, except the most Orthodox. But a rabbinical tradition says it will be restored by the House of Yoseyf, and indeed this is taking place in our own day.24. "and they will go out and stare at the corpses of the people who have rebelled against Me, because their [scarlet] worm will not die, nor will their fire be extinguished, and they will be repulsive to all flesh.
This will probably again take place in the deep Valley of Hinnom, south and west of the city of Yerushalayim, during the pilgrimages up to the Temple. (cf. Zech. 14:16-19) The Aramaic targum upholds this interpretation. Worm: Recall that those who did not obey the order regarding the manna found worms in it the next day, but those who anticipated the fact that this would not be the case on the Sabbath were upheld by YHWH (Ex. 16:20ff), and at that point He gave the first actual command in regard to keeping the Sabbath, which is at issue here.
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