The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 2 — Section 18

his aotunl words received "a colouring" from doubt great numbers of the inferior idole, n lator writer, Hezoki11h's contemporaries, which were of wood, not even coated with it is said, Isoioh ond Mic1Lh, make no such meta.I-the i&o.va of the Greeks-were burnt. strong stotements of their belief in one only Jl'or they were 110 gods (comp. Jcr. ii. JI; v. God os this (Kuenen, Chcyn~)- Lut it is 7; xvi. 20, etc.). Isaiah's favourito word difficult to eco whe.t ce.n be e. clenrer revele.- for" idols" is elilim, which is, etymologically, tion of monotheism the.n eh. vi. 1-5, or whnt "not-gods" (eh. ii. 8, 18, 20; x. 10,11; xiK. truth more e.beolutely underlies the whole l, 3; xxxi. 7), The work of men's ha.nda of lsaie.h·e tee.cl,ing than tho unity of the (see eh. ii. 8; xl. rn; xii. 7, etc.). The Supreme Being. 'l'he some under-current is absurdity of men's worshipping as goda what observable in Micah (i. 2, 3; iv. 5; vi. their own hands had made is ever increas- 6-9; vii. 17, 18). Senne.cherib's belief, that ingly ridiculed by the religious ,Jews (comp. ea.eh country has its own god (eh. xxxvi. Pa. cxv. ~8; eh. xliv. 9-20; Jer. x. 3- 18-20), is not she.red by the religious Jen 15; 'Ep. of Jeremy,' 8-73). of his time. 'l'hcy e.re well a.ware the.t the Ver. 20.-Save us , , , that all the king- heathon gods are " vanity" ( eh. !xvi. 3; doms , , , may know, etc. God's true servants Hos. iv. 15; Amos i. 5; Jonah ii, 8), ''wind" desire deliverance and triumph over enemies, and ''confusion" (eh. xii. 29, etc.). Thou not alone for their own !!akes, not even for hast made heaven and earth (comp. Gen. the sake of the country or people whose fate is i. l ; Ps. cii. 25 ; eh. xl. 26-28 ; xiii. 5, bound up with their own, but for the glory etc.). of God, tbat hie honour may be vindicntcd Ver. 17.-Inoline thine ear .. . open thine in the eight of the world at large. It is eyes, This is a conscious pleading of the a large pa.rt of the satisfaction of Moses at promise me.de to Solomon (2 Chron. vii. 15), the passage of the Red Sea, that "the peoples Ver. 18.-0f a truth, Lord, the kings of would hear,., the dukes of Edom be ame.zerl Assyria have laid waste all the nations. This , .. the mighty men of Moab tremble," etc. was a stubborn fa.et, which it was impos- (Exod. xv. 14, 15). David would have his sible to deny, From the time of Asshur-izir- foes "consumed" in order that they might pal at any rate, about B.O. 880, Assyria. had know that "God ruled in Jacob, and unto pursued for nee.rly two centuries e. steady the ends of the earth" (Ps. !ix. 13), an,! ce.reer of conquest, reducing the nations again, in order "that men moy know that which were her neighbours, almost without thou, whose No.me alone is Jehovah, nrt the exception, and gradually spreading her Most High over all the earth " (Ps. Jx.xxiii. power from the tract immediately about 18). It bee been well so.id that "the object Nineveh to the Persion Gulf on the south, of all the judgments which the true prophet the gree.t plateau of Iron on the east, the desires is to bring e.ll no.tions into subjec- Armenie.n Mounto.ins (Niphates and 'fe.w·us) tion to God." on the north, e.nd on the west to Cilicie. e.nrl Ver. 21.-Then Isaiah , , , sent to Heze- the Mcditerro.neon. Her progress towo.rds kie.h, saying, It seems moat notural to ,m- the west a.lone is mnrked in Scripture, sinre derstand that the prophC:t was at once supcr- there alone she oe.me in oonte.ot with God's naturnlly informe<I of Hczekiah's prJ.yer, o.s people. Under Pul (a.bout B.O, 760) she 11t- Anouio.s was of Snul's (Acts ix. 11), anti t11cked Se.marin (2 Kings xv.19); under 'l'ig- im,tructed what reply to mo.ke to it. But lath-Pileser II. she carried off a portion of still, it is no doubt possible that some of the the ten tribes (2 Kings xv. 29); under the facts have been omitted for the snke of so.me monarch she subjuge.ted Dame.sous (2 brevity, Kings xvi. 9); under Sho.lmnneser she be- Ver. 22.-The virgin, the daughter of Zion; siel(ed (2 Kings xvii. 5), ond under Sargon i.e. Jerusolem (comp. eh. i. 8; x. 32; xn. 1; took, Samaria. (2 Kings xvii. 6); under lii. 2; !xii. 11). The expression, "virgin So.rgon e.lso she invaded Philistia and cap- doughier," is used e.lso l,y Isnia h of Zidon tured Ashdod (oh. xx. 1). Now she wns (eh. xxiii. 12) and of llabylon (eh. xlvii. !). bent on subduing Judreo., and so prepe.ring The personification here is very effective, the way for the reduction of Egypt. Hu- since it represents Jerusalem as a tender manly epeo.king, it wns most U111ikely that me.iden, weak nnd delicate, yet still bold the small e.nd wee.k state of Judma would enough to stnnd up ag11 inst Sennl\cherib and be able to resist her, But God was all- e.11 his host, and bid him clefinnce. Confident powerful, e.nd might be pleased to co.at in Jehovnh, her Protector, Hhe despises him, down, e.s he had been pleased to exalt ( eh. and le.nghs him to soorn; nay, "s!Je.kes her K, 5-19). Hence Hezekinh's e.ppeal. head at him," or rather, "after him," pur- Ver. 19.-And have oe.at their gods into suing him with scornful gestures ns he Lhe fire, The more valunble of the foreign retreats before her. (On shaking the hmcl idold were ue11111ly carried off by iho As- e.s a gesture of scorn, eee Ps. x.xii. 7 ; cb;. syriane, nnd placed in the shrines of their 25; Malt. xxvii. 39.) own gods e.s trophies of victory ; bu\ no Ver, 23.-ETcn agmst the Roly One ot  20 THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. [cu. xxxvu.1-88,