The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 2 — Section 208

the false gods. As it wu, this was barely actual accomplishment. The mystery of possible. Mine idol , , , my molten image. "the Servant of the Lord," and of atone- It ho.a been already observed (see the com- ment and salvation through him, ha<l hither- ment on oh. :d. 18) that there wa.s o. strong to been hiJ away-" hid in God" (Eph. tendency to idolatry among the Jews, not iii. 9), and was now for the first time to only before, but during the Cnptivity. be made known to such as had " eyes to Ezekiel says that those among whom he see " and " ears to hear" by the teaching of lived were "polluted after the manner of the evangelical prophet. Even before the their fathers, and committed whoredom day when thou heardest them not; rather, after their abominations; made their sons and befOTe to-day thou heardest them not. pass through the fire, and polluted them- Whatever shadows of evangelic truth are selves with all their idols" (xx. 30, 31); discernible in the Law and in the earlier nay, went so fe.r e.s to declare boldly, "We psalms, they did not constitute a revelation will be e.s the heathen, e.e the inho.bitants of the way of salvation at all comparable to of the countries, to ser'lle wood and stom " that contained in Isaiah's later chapters. (xx. 32). The "prevailing tendency," as Lest thou shonldest say, Behold, I knew Delitzsch remarks, wa.s "to combine the them, If the "new things" of Isaiah's worship of Jehovah with heathenism, or prophecy had been revealed many cen- else to exchange the former altogether for turies before, they would not have impressed the latter." We cannot conclude anything the Jews of Isaiah's time, or even of the concerning the me.as of the community Captivity period, as they did by having from the character of those who returned. been reserved to a comparatively Ja.te date. Those who returned were the sincere wor- They would have seemed to most of them shippers of Jehovah-the irreligious did an old and trite story. not care to return. It is always to be borne Ver. 8.-Thou heardest not . . . thou in mind that it was "the great mass even knewest not. Again we seem to hear the of Judah," no less than of Israel, that voice of complaint, e.s in vers. 1, 2, 4. "remained behind" (Delitzsch) ; aud these Israel had not " ears to hear" to any pur- "became absorbed into the heathen, to pose such highly spiritual trnths as those whom they became more and more o.ssimi- of the coming section. They had not pro- lated" (ibid.). Rath commanded them; fited by what was taught concerning Christ i.e. "ho.th caused them (the events) to in the Law and the Psalms. From that take place" (comp. Ps. xxxiii. 9). time that thine ear was not opened; ro.ther, Ver. 6.-Thon ha.et heard, see all this; from that time thine ear hath not been open. rather, thou didst hear, (now) see it all ; i.e. " From that time " means " from of old," see all the prophecies now fulfilled, which or "from the beginning." thou heardcst in days gone by. Will ye Ver. 9.-For my Name's sake will I defer not declare it? Will ye not for very shame mine anger. Israel's insiucerity (ver. 1), mo.ke known genero.lly the o.ccordo.nce be- obstinacy (ver. 4), addicti"n to idols (vcr. tween the prophecies and the events, which 5), blindness (ver. 8), and genera.I resist- you cannot fo.il to see? Will ye not become ance to God's will (ver. 8), could not but "my witnesses" (eh. xlili. 10), and tum have provoked God's " anger." He will, away from your idols? I have showed thee; however, "defer" it, "refrain" himself, not ro.ther, I sltow thee; i.e. "I am about to "cut Israel off," "for his Name's sahe." show thee from this time new things, even God, having selected one nation out of flll hidden things, which thou knewest not"- the nations of the ea.rth to be his "pcculinr thiugs belonging to the new cycle of pro- people" (Deut. xiv. 2), and having declared phecy, not prtlviously announced, but re- this, and supported his people by miracles served for the present crisis (see the com- in their struggles with the other n,itions ment on ver. 3). On the whole, the lo.ngue.ge e.n<l peoples, was, so to speak, committed used seems most consonant with the view to protect and defend Isrncl "for his c'<amc's of Dr. Ko.y, that the "new things" are sake," lest his Ne.me should be blaspheme,! those o.bout to be revealed in the next among the Gentiles (sell Exod. xxxii. 12; section of the prophecy (eh. xlix.-liii.), Numb. xiv. 13; Deut. ix. 28; Ps. lxxix. things belonging to the coming of Christ, 10; cvi. 8, etc.). Ho was nlso bound by and the "new creation" which it will be the promises which he had mnde; and, the great object of his coming to bring still more, by tho position which Israel about. occupied in his scheme of salvation, to Ver. 7.-They 11re cre11ted now. The allow the nation still to exist, and thcrc- revelation to me.n of whe.t has le.in secret foro to condone its i11iquities ,u1tl rtstmin in God's counsels from all eternity is o. his nngc,r. But the dregs of tho cup of sort of crea.tion. As Nii.gelbach well says, vengcl\nco WP-re poured out at l!,st. it converts tho ;1.&-yos ivB,ci9nos into a. ;1.d-yos Ver. 10.-I havs rofined thee, but not ..-potflop11c&s, aud therefore is one step towe.rds , with silver; ro.ther, but not as sil~er (Cheyne),  216 THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. [on. nvut. 1-22.