The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 1 — Section 431

there are etill "brillre and thorna" in it, and make peaoe wit.h him1 make peaoe-with him. them llNl still those belongin-g to it who The reiteration constitutes. l\ll :nppe11l of J,nve to •• make their pel\oe 'With Goo." The extreme earnestness nurl tentlornoss which prophet has oome baok f,•()m hie investigll- none oould reject but.the utterly inip~llitilnt. tione of tl,e remote fuh1re and the s11pr11- Ver. 6.-Ke shall oJu.se them th'at •oonie 9f mundanc sph<'re to ec-mF1thing which belongs come J'aoob to take root ; rnl.J11ir, in tl~ days· lo _Jaco1, sh~l/ st,·ike root. ~n!lob, lntiily to earth, Rnd perhapb not to a very distant tl!e vmc~·Rrd, 1s now compnrcd to I\ einglo period. His second "song of the vineyard" vme, winch becomes strong by strikin" its may well comfort the Church through all roots dePp into tho soil, and thon, ae a "con• her earthly struggles. sequ('llce, bloaeoma· and -buds,. and fills the Ver. 2.---Sing ye unto her. Our transla- faoe of the world witb fruit. So tho Isro.el tors have, str,mgely enough, inverted the of God, firmly robted in tho soil of-·Gtid's order of the two clauses, which stand thus flLvour, would blossom with graces of·· o:11 in the Hebrew : "A vineyard of red wine; of kinds, and b1-ing forth the abundant fruit good works, , sing ye unto it," or "sing ye o/ it." The "vineyard of red wine" is one thRt produces Vera. 7-lJ,-"THECo1111NG JUDGMENTllPO; abundanre of rfoh fruit. ,ToDAH A CIIASTISEMEN'l' IN WHIOH l\I~R~Y Yer. 3.-I the Lord do keep it; or, guar-d 18 BLENDrn WITII JllBT;c~. A ·coming it ( oomp. eh. u:vi. 8; xiii. 6: :r.lix. 8: judgment uponJuda.h-has_been one.o[ the Ps. cxxi. 5). Vineyards were considered to require special wakhing, since they were main subjects of Isaiah's prophooy· fr_om liable lo dRmsge both from thieves and the b,-ginning. It. has been .iMluded in foxes (CRnt. ii. 15). It was usnal to build the catalogue of "burdens" (see_ eh. xxii.). towers in them, from whioh a watch could It will have to be one of t_l;i~ propl:i.et'.s main be kept (eh. v. 2; Matt. ui. 38). I will subjt'Cts to the end of his." book" H~nc~ water it every moment (compare the he may a.t a:ny time recur to it, 1LS ho do~s- threat in eh. v. 6, "I will command my clouds that they rain no min upon it"). now, without epodnl reo.son or ex.cuse. , :k The Church needs and receives "the oon- this place the special aspect under: '!VliiR~ tinual dew of God's blessing." th,e j udgment presents itself. to: him is ~hat Yer. 4.-Fury is not in •me ; i.e. " I am o; its merciful character, {l) in dcg;·ee (v~ia_ not nl'w angered against my vineyard, as on 7, 8); :(~) in illten~ion (ver. 9). )Vhi~e the formf'l' ooossion (eh. v. 47); or at any noting thi11, he fe~ls, however,. bound to rate my anger now ie not fury." (Isaiah frequently ilscribes "fury" to God, ae in eh. note _also, that the j~tdgment. js, whi_le it x.uiv. 2; xiii 25: li. 17, 20, '22; lviii. 18: lasts, severe (vcr~- lp, 11),. .,. b:iii. 3, .5, 6 ; lxtl. 15.) Who would set the . Ver. 7.-Kat4 he ~tten hir,n, etc..? (.e, briar& and thorns age.inst me in battle ! "Has God smitten Juduh, iis· ho, (God) The "briars and thorns" are apparently emote Judah'e smilere?" 'Ji1dah's ~hi~f unrighteone members of the Cbtirch, who smiters were Assyria aud Babyion. The have fallen below tbeir pnti.leg1:s. God judgments upon them·w.ould be more eevero asks, "Who will set the briars .and the;rne than that npori Judah. They would be in arre.y age.inst me? "in a tone of cont.empt. destroyed; Judah, .wpuld be to.krn captivo, " Who wii! de.re to do battle age.inst me with an_d restored. Them. that 11,re slain by, him ; such weak material?" And· then he adds mthcr, t(iem that dew him (so Lowth, Ewald, a forecast of the result in 1J11eh a case: "I Knobel, and Mr. Cheyne). But, to obto.in would mo\'ll forward; I would burn them this meaning, the pointing of the present all together" ( comp. eh. i:. 17). text must be altered. The lawofpo.ralldis111 Ver. .5.-0r let him take hold of my seems, howevtJr, to require the alt.eratipn,. ltrength. There is another alternative, If Ver. 8.-Our tra.nslatQre ~ave entire!)'. the "thorns and the briars" are not pre- mistaken the meaning of this verse. . 'l'f,e pared to contend in battle against God, Jet proper rendering is, In measure; wlte11 •thou them adopt a different course. Let them puttest her a,cay, thou 1Dilt contend wit~ her ; •• lay bold of God's strength." place theJll- he sighed with his lcee11 breath. in' tl,;e day of sel ves under his prolkction, and make their tJ,e eo;it wind. " In measure.'' meaijs " with appeal to him, and see if they cannot" make forbearance and inoderation "-the puui~h- their peace with him." A truly ev»ngelieal ment being caref9lly adjusted to' th~ degree invitation! The enemies of God are err- of the off'enre. • Qod was about to ... put treated to cease from strivi.ng against him, Judah away "-to bsni~h her into o. fur and are 1:Aught that the door of repentance country; but still he would refrain hims~lf is still open to them. God is willing to b(,l -llc would "not suffer hie "1hble di~plcnsurp reconc,iled even to bill enemies. Let them to arise," o_r give ~r o,ver, wh?llJ to dest'1!o- ou. xxvu. 1-13.) THE BOOK OF THE PTIOPHET ISAJAIJ. i35