The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 1 — Section 473

groves. And brokt'n in pieooe the brazen eer- Underhand r,roceedings are at Rll times r,c,nt." because the people burnt incense to it suspicious, "l\len love darkness ratl1er thon (2 King11 xviii. 4). But her religion was " light, because their deeds 111·e evil." The very mf'Te lip-service, which God detested-it fact of concealment WRB an indication that wns onhrnrd, formal, hypocritical (comp. the works in whir.h the rulers were engRged C"h. i. 11-l'i). Jerusnlem, therefore, no less were evil, and thot they !mew them to 'be ihRn Samaria, deserved e.ud would receive iivil. They say, Who aeeth us I (comp. Ps. 11. severe ch1LBtisoment. But have removed lxxiii. 11, "Tnsh, th(ly any, How should their heart fa.r from me. Here lies the gist God perceive? Is there knowledge in the of 1he chnrge. It 'l\"ILS not that there was Most High?"). The wicked persuade them- too much outward religion, hut tha.t there selvos thnt God does not see their actions. 'l\·as no in ward religion corresponding t,o it. Ver. 16.--Surely your turning of things Lip-service without inward religion is a upside down shall be esteemed as . the mockery, though it is not alwRys felt as potter's ole.y; mther, 0 for your perr,erse- such. Their fear toward me is taught by ness ! Shall the potter be rcclcoMd aa clay f the precept of men. Mr. Cheyne conjec- They were so perverse and wrong-headed lnr<"!l the.t ritual books had been nlrca.<ly that they inverted the relation in which published by the authority of the priests, they stood to God and God to then:i, God e.nd that these were followed, on account we.s to be passive, or merely give oppor- of the huma.n Authority which had issued tunities of e.ction, and they were to mould them, without any reference to the Law. their own plans and carve out their own des• Thus ritual obedience became mere obe- tiuies. For she.II the work say, etc. ? rather, <liencc to "the precept of men." for the reor1' saith. Taking their destinies Ver. 14.-1 will proceed to do a marvel- into their own hands was equivalent to loua work. Commentators are not agreed saying that they were their own masters, what this "marvellous work" was. Some, which they could not be if God made them. with Delitzsch, consider it to be the harden- Shall the thing framed say, etc.? rather, ing of the hearts of the J ewe t,o such an yea, the thing formed hath said. • To refuse extent that even the appearance of wis- to take counsel of God, and direct . the dom and understanding, 'l\·hich the rulers national policy by the light of their own of the people had hitherto retained, would reason, was . t,o tax God with having no completely disappear. Others, with Mr. understanding. Cheyne, rego.rd it e.s the coming siege, Vere. 17-2-!.-A RENEWAL OF PROMISE: with those extreme sufferings and perils God's judgruent (ver. 1~), whatever it is; (vers. 3, 4) which the Jews would have t,o will pass. In e. little while there will be a 1rndergo--1Jllfferings e.nd perils barely con- sisl.ent with tlie previous covenant-promises great change. The lowly will be exalted, made to the nation. It is difficult to decide the proud ubased. From the " meek" and between these two views; but, on the whole, "poor" will be raised a body of true wor- Mr. Cheyne's view seems preferoble. A shippers, who will possess spiritual disce~, marvelloua work and a wonder; rather, a ment (ver. 18), while the oppressors' and marnell01U u,or7' and a marnel. The repeti- "roorners" will be brought to nought, tion is for the sake of emph1L8is. For the wisdom; mther, and the wisdom; Le. "when When Isaiah expected this change is un- I do my marvel, then the wisdom of the certain; but he holds out the hope of it wise men shall perish "-all their crafty here, as elsewhere so frequently (eh. i. 24~ designs e.nd plans shall be of no avail, but 31; ii. 2-5; iv. 2-6; v. 13, etc:), to keep come wholly to nought. The chief of these np the spirits of the people and preven~ designs was that alluded to in tho next verse. them from sinking into a ste.te of depression Ver.15.-Woe unto them that aeek deep and despair. to hide their counsel from the Lord. The Ver. 17.-Lebe.non shall be turned into a allusion is to the schemes which were afloat fruitful :6.eld. Lebanon, the wild forest, for calling in the aid of Egypt. As Isaiah shall become smiling garden-ground, while hnd long since denounced these schemes garden-1,rround sha.11 revert into wild un- i,s the height of folly (eh. xii. 11-17), cultivated forest. An inversion of the moral and prophesied their failure (eh. x.x. 5, 6), condition of Judea is shadowed forth _by every effort was made to conceal them from the metaphor. his knowledge and from the knowledge of Ver. 18.-In that day-i.e. when that all who were like-minded (comp. eh. xxx. time comes-shall the dee.f hear the word.a 1, 2). Steps were probably even now being of the book; the spiritually deaf shall have to.ken for the carryiug out of the schemee, their ears opened, many of them, and shall which were studiously concealed from the not only bear, but understand, the words of. propl,et. Their worb &re in the dark. Scripture addressed to them by God'11 me11- I 011, :nix. 1--24,] THE} BOOK OF' THE PROPHt'r lSAIAlt. 475