Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 33:13
Hear, ye [that are] far off, what I have done; and, ye [that are] near, acknowledge my might.
13. The signal deliverance of Jerusalem will be a great demonstration to all the world of the omnipotence of Israel’s God. The verse is usually taken, and perhaps rightly, as an introduction to the second half of the poem, which deals mainly with the consequences of the great act of judgment.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Hear, ye that are far off – This is an address of Yahweh, indicating that the destruction of the Assyrian army would be so signal that it would be known to distant nations, and would constitute an admonition to them.
Ye that are near – Ye Jews; or the nations immediately adjacent to Judea. The phrase far and near, is equivalent to all.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
My power and justice in destroying the Assyrians shall be so evident, that people, both far and near, shall be forced to acknowledge it.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
13. far offdistant nations.
nearthe Jews andadjoining peoples (Isa 49:1).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Hear, ye [that are] far off, what I have done,…. Not meaning the destruction of the Assyrian, as it is commonly interpreted; but the ruin of antichrist, the beast, and false prophet, and the burning of the city and whore of Rome; for, whoever will be the instruments, the work is the Lord’s, and therefore it will be done: “she shall be utterly burnt with fire, for strong is the Lord who judgeth her”, Re 18:8 and this shall be heard of far and near, who shall applaud the mighty work, and give God the glory of it,
Re 19:1:
and, ye [that are] near, acknowledge my might; even his omnipotence, which will be seen, observed, and owned by multitudes, who will say, “Allelujah, for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth”, Re 19:6 there will be some that will be nigh, that shall stand afar off, lamenting her case, and will not own the hand of God in it, Re 18:9 but others will.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
But the prophet, while addressing Asshur, does not overlook those sinners of his own nation who are deserving of punishment. The judgment upon Asshur is an alarming lesson, not only for the heathen, but for Israel also; for there is no respect of persons with Jehovah. “Hear, ye distant ones, what I have accomplished; and perceive, ye near ones, my omnipotence! The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling seizes the hypocrites: who of us can abide with devouring fire? who of us abide with everlasting burnings?” Even for the sinners in Jerusalem also there is no abiding in the presence of the Almighty and Just One, who has judged Asshur (the act of judgment is regarded by the prophet as having just occurred); they must either repent, or they cannot remain in His presence. Jehovah, so far as His wrath is concerned, is “a consuming fire” (Deu 4:24; Deu 9:3); and the fiery force of His anger is “everlasting burnings” ( mokede olam ), inasmuch as it consists of flames that are never extinguished, never burn themselves out. And this God had His fire and His furnace in Jerusalem (Isa 31:9), and had just shown what His fire could do, when once it burst forth. Therefore do the sinners inquire in their alarm, whilst confessing to one another ( lanu ; cf., Amo 9:1) that none of them can endure it, “Who can dwell with devouring fire?” etc. ( gur with the acc. loci, as in Psa 5:5).
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| The Forebodings of Hypocrites; Encouragement to God’s People. | B. C. 710. |
13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might. 14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? 15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil; 16 He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. 17 Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off. 18 Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers? 19 Thou shalt not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive; of a stammering tongue, that thou canst not understand. 20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken. 21 But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby. 22 For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us. 23 Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey. 24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.
Here is a preface that commands attention; and it is fit that all should attend, both near and afar off, to what God says and does (v. 13): Hear, you that are afar off, whether in place or time. Let distant regions and future ages hear what God has done. They do so; they will do so from the scripture, with as much assurance as those that were near, the neighbouring nations and those that lived at that time. But whoever hears what God has done, whether near or afar off, let them acknowledge his might, that it is irresistible, and that he can do every thing. Those are very stupid who hear what God has done and yet will not acknowledge his might. Now what is it that God has done which we must take notice of, and in which we must acknowledge his might?
I. He has struck a terror upon the sinners in Zion (v. 14): Fearfulness has surprised the hypocrites. There are sinners in Zion, hypocrites, that enjoy Zion’s privileges and concur in Zion’s services, but their hearts are not right in the sight of God; they keep up secret haunts of sin under the cloak of a visible profession, which convicts them of hypocrisy. Sinners in Zion will have a great deal to answer for above other sinners; and their place in Zion will be so far from being their security that it will aggravate both their sin and their punishment. Now those sinners in Zion, though always subject to secret frights and terrors, were struck with a more than ordinary consternation from the convictions of their own consciences. 1. When they saw the Assyrian army besieging Jerusalem, and ready to set fire to it and lay it in ashes, and burn the wasps in the nest. Finding they could not make their escape to Egypt, as some had done, and distrusting the promises God had made by his prophets that he would deliver them, they were at their wits’ end, and ran about like men distracted, crying, “Who among us shall dwell with devouring fire? Let us therefore abandon the city, and shift for ourselves elsewhere; one had as good live in everlasting burnings as live here.” Who will stand up for us against this devouring fire? so some read it. See here how the sinners in Zion are affected when the judgments of God are abroad; while they were only threatened they slighted them and made nothing of them; but, when they come to be executed, they run into the other extreme, then they magnify them, and make the worst of them; they call them devouring fire and everlasting burnings, and despair of relief and succour. Those that rebel against the commands of the word cannot take the comforts of it in a time of need. Or, rather, 2. When they saw the Assyrian army destroyed; for the destruction of that is the fire spoken of immediately before, Isa 33:11; Isa 33:12. When the sinners in Zion saw what dreadful execution the wrath of God made they were in a great fright, being conscious to themselves that they had provoked this God by their secretly worshipping other gods; and therefore they cry out, Who among us shall dwell with this devouring fire, before which so vast an army is as thorns? Who among us shall dwell with these everlasting burnings, which have made the Assyrians as the burnings of lime? v. 12. Thus they said, or should have said. Note, God’s judgments upon the enemies of Zion should strike a terror upon the sinners in Zion, nay, David himself trembles at them, Ps. cxix. 120. God himself is this devouring fire, Heb. xii. 29. Who is able to stand before him? 1 Sam. vi. 20. His wrath will burn those everlastingly that have made themselves fuel for it. It is a fire that shall never be quenched, nor will ever go out of itself; for it is the wrath of an everlasting God preying upon the conscience of an immortal soul. Nor can the most daring sinners bear up against it, so as to bear either the execution of it or the fearful expectation of it. Let this awaken us all to flee from the wrath to come, by fleeing to Christ as our refuge.
II. He has graciously provided for the security of his people that trust in him: Hear this, and acknowledge his power in making those that walk righteously, and speak uprightly, to dwell on high,Isa 33:15; Isa 33:16. We have here,
1. The good man’s character, which he preserves even in times of common iniquity, in divers instances. (1.) He walks righteously. In the whole course of his conversation he acts by rules of equity, and makes conscience of rendering to all their due, to God his due, as well as to men theirs. His walk is righteousness itself; he would not for a world wilfully do an unjust thing. (2.) He speaks uprightly, uprightnesses (so the word is); he speaks what is true and right, and with an honest intention. He cannot think one thing and speak another, nor look one way and row another. His word is to him as sacred as his oath, and is not yea and nay. (3.) He is so far from coveting ill-gotten gain that he despises it. He thinks it a mean and sordid thing, and unbecoming a man of honour, to enrich himself by any hardship put upon his neighbour. He scorns to do a wrong thing, nay, to do a severe thing, though he might get by it. He does not over-value gain itself, and therefore easily abhors the gain that is not honestly come by. (4.) If he have a bribe at any time thrust into his hand, to pervert justice, he shakes his hands from holding it, with the utmost detestation, taking it as an affront to have it offered him. (5.) He stops his ears from hearing any thing that tends to cruelty or bloodshed, or any suggestions stirring him up to revenge, Job xxxi. 31. He turns a deaf ear to those that delight in war and entice him to cast in his lot among them,Pro 1:14; Pro 1:16. (6.) He shuts his eyes from seeing evil. He has such an abhorrence of sin that he cannot bear to see others commit it, and does himself watch against all the occasions of it. Those that would preserve the purity of their souls must keep a strict guard upon the senses of their bodies, must stop their ears to temptations, and turn away their eyes from beholding vanity.
2. The good man’s comfort, which he may preserve even in times of common calamity, v. 16. (1.) He shall be safe; he shall escape the devouring fire and the everlasting burnings; he shall have access to, and communion with, that God who is a devouring fire, but shall be to him a rejoicing light. And, as to present troubles, he shall dwell on high, out of the reach of them, nay, out of the hearing of the noise of them; he shall not be really harmed by them, nay, he shall not be greatly frightened at them: The floods of great waters shall not come nigh him; or, if they should attack him, his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks, strong and impregnable, fortified by nature as well as art. The divine power will keep him safe, and his faith in that power will keep him easy. God, the rock of ages, will be his high tower. (2.) He shall be supplied; he shall want nothing that is necessary for him: Bread shall be given him, even when the siege is straitest and provisions are cut off; and his waters shall be sure, that is, he shall be sure of the continuance of them, so that he shall not drink his water by measure and with astonishment. Those that fear the Lord shall not want any thing that is good for them.
III. He will protect Jerusalem, and deliver it out of the hands of the invaders. This storm that threatened them should blow over, and they should enjoy a prosperous state again. Many instances are here given of this prosperity.
1. Hezekiah shall put off his sackcloth and all the sadness of his countenance, and shall appear publicly in his beauty, in his royal robes and with a pleasing aspect (v. 17), to the great joy of all his loving subjects. Those that walk uprightly shall not only have bread given them, and their water sure, but they shall with an eye of faith see the King of kings in his beauty, the beauty of holiness, and that beauty shall be upon them.
2. The siege being raised, by which they were kept close within the walls of Jerusalem, they shall now be at liberty to go abroad upon business or pleasure without danger of falling into the enemies’ hand: They shall behold the land that is very far off; they shall visit the utmost corners of the nation, and take a prospect of the adjacent countries, which will be the more pleasant after so long a confinement. Thus believers behold the heavenly Canaan, that land that is very far off, and comfort themselves with the prospect of it in evil times.
3. The remembrance of the fright they were in shall add to the pleasure of their deliverance (v. 18): Thy heart shall meditate terror, meditate it with pleasure when it is over. Thou shalt think thou still hearest the alarm in thy ears, when all the cry was, “Arm, arm, arm! every man to his post. Where is the scribe or secretary of war? Let him appear to draw up the muster-roll. Where is the receiver and pay-master of the army? Let him see what he had in bank, to defray the charge of a defence. Where is he that counted the towers? Let him bring in the account of them, that care may be taken to put a competent number of men in each.” Or these words may be taken as Jerusalem’s triumph over the vanquished army of the Assyrians, and the rather because the apostle alludes to them in his triumphs over the learning of this world, when it was baffled by the gospel of Christ, 1 Cor. i. 20. The virgin, the daughter of Zion, despises all their military preparations. Where is the scribe or muster-master of the Assyrian army? Where is their weigher (or treasurer), and where are their engineers that counted the towers? They are all either dead or fled. There is an end of them.
4. They shall no more be terrified with the sight of the Assyrians, who were a fierce people naturally, and were particularly fierce against the people of the Jews, and were of a strange language, that could understand neither their petitions nor their complaints, and therefore had a pretence for being deaf to them, nor could themselves be understood: “They are of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive, which will make them the more formidable, v. 19. Thy eyes shall no more see them thus fierce, but their countenances changed when they shall all become dead corpses.”
5. They shall no more be under apprehensions of the danger of Jerusalem-Zion, and the temple there (v. 20): “Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities, the city where our solemn sacred feasts are kept, where we used to meet to worship God in religious assemblies.” The good people among them, in the time of their distress, were most in pain for Zion upon this account, that it was the city of their solemnities, that the conquerors would burn their temple and they should not have that to keep their solemn feasts in any more. In times of public danger our concern should be most about our religion, and the cities of our solemnities should be dearer to us than either our strong cities or our store-cities. It is with an eye to this that God will work deliverance for Jerusalem, because it is the city of religious solemnities: let those be conscientiously kept up, as the glory of a people, and we may depend upon God to create a defence upon that glory. Two things are here promised to Jerusalem:– (1.) A well-grounded security. It shall be a quiet habitation for the people of God; they shall not be molested and disturbed, as they have been, by the alarms of the sword either of war or persecution, ch. xxix. 20. It shall be a quiet habitation, as it is the city of our solemnities. It is desirable to be quiet in our own houses, but much more so to be quiet in God’s house and have none to make us afraid there. Thus it shall be with Jerusalem; and the eyes shall see it, which will be a great satisfaction to a good man, Psa 128:5; Psa 128:6. “Thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem, and peace upon Israel; thou shalt live to see it and share in it.” (2.) An unmoved stability. Jerusalem, the city of our solemnities, is indeed but a tabernacle, in comparison with the New Jerusalem. The present manifestations of the divine glory and grace are nothing in comparison with those that are reserved for the future state. But it is such a tabernacle as shall not be taken down. After this trouble is over Jerusalem shall long enjoy a confirmed peace; and her sacred privileges, which are the stakes and cords of her tabernacle, shall not be removed from her, nor any disturbance given to the course and circle of her religious services. God’s church on earth is a tabernacle, which, though it may be shifted from one place to another, shall not be taken down while the world stands; for in every age Christ will have a seed to serve him. The promises of the covenant are its stakes, which shall never be removed, and the ordinances and institutions of the gospel are its cords, which shall never be broken. They are things which cannot be shaken, though heaven and earth be, but shall remain.
6. God himself will be their protector and Saviour, Isa 33:21; Isa 33:22. This the principal ground of their confidence: “He that is himself the glorious Lord will display his glory for us and be a glory to us, such as shall eclipse the rival-glory of the enemy.” God, in being a gracious Lord, is a glorious Lord; for his goodness is his glory. God will be the Saviour of Jerusalem and her glorious Lord, (1.) As a guard against their adversaries abroad. He will be a place of broad rivers and streams. Jerusalem had no considerable river running by it, as most great cities have, nothing but the brook Kidron, and so wanted one of the best natural fortifications, as well as one of the greatest advantages for trade and commerce, and upon this account their enemies despised them and doubted not but to make an easy prey of them; but the presence and power of God are sufficient at any time to make up to us the deficiencies of the creature and of its strength and beauty. We have all in God, all we need or can desire. Many external advantages Jerusalem has not which other places have, but in God there is more than an equivalent. But, if there be broad rivers and streams about Jerusalem, may not these yield an easy access to the fleet of an invader? No; these are rivers and streams in which shall go no galley with oars, no man of war or gallant ship. If God himself be the river, it must needs be inaccessible to the enemy; they can neither find nor force their way by it. (2.) As a guide to their affairs at home: “For the Lord is our Judge, to whom we are accountable, to whose judgment we refer ourselves, by whose judgment we abide, and who therefore (we hope) will judge for us. He is our lawgiver; his word is a law to us, and to him every thought within us is brought into obedience. He is our King, to whom we pay homage and tribute, and an inviolable allegiance, and therefore he will save us.” For, as protection draws allegiance, so allegiance may expect protection, and shall have it with God. By faith we take Christ for our prince and Saviour, and as such depend upon him and devote ourselves to him. Observe with what an air of triumph, and with what an emphasis laid upon the glorious name of God, they comfort themselves with this: Jehovah is our Judge, Jehovah is our Lawgiver, Jehovah is our King, who, being self-existent, is self-sufficient, and all-sufficient to us.
7. The enemies shall be quite infatuated, and all their powers and projects broken, like a ship at sea in stress of weather, that cannot ride out the storm, but having her tackle torn, her masts split, and nothing wherewith to repair them, is given up for a wreck, v. 23. The tacklings of the Assyrian are loosed; they are like a ship whose tacklings are loose, or forsaken by the ship’s crew, when they give it over for lost, finding that they cannot strengthen the mast, but it will come down. They thought themselves sure of Jerusalem; but when they were just entering the port as it were, and though all was their own, they were quite becalmed, and could not spread their sail, but lay wind-bound till God poured the fury of his wrath upon them. The enemies of God’s church are often disarmed and unrigged when they think they have almost gained their point.
8. The wealth of their camp shall be a rich booty for the Jews: Then is the prey of a great spoil divided. When the greater part were slain the rest fled in confusion, and with such precipitation that (like the Syrians) they left their tents as they were, so that all the treasure in them fell into the hands of the besieged; and even the lame take the prey. Those that tarried at home did divide the spoil. It was so easy to come at that not only the strong man might make himself master of it, but even the lame man, whose hands were lame, that he could not fight, and his feet, that he could not pursue. As the victory shall cost them no peril, so the prey shall cost them no toil. And there was such abundance of it that when those who were forward, and came first, had carried off as much as they would, even the lame, who came late, found sufficient. Thus God brought good out of evil, and not only delivered Jerusalem, but enriched it, and abundantly recompensed the losses they had sustained. Thus comfortably and well do the frights and distresses of the people of God often end.
9. Both sickness and sin shall be taken away; and then sickness is taken away in mercy when this is all the fruit of it, and the recovery from it, even the taking away of sin. (1.) The inhabitant shall not say, I am sick. As the lame shall take the prey, so shall the sick, notwithstanding their weakness, make a shift to get to the abandoned camp and seize something for themselves; or there shall be such a universal transport of joy upon this occasion that even the sick shall, for the present, forget their sickness and the sorrows of it, and join with the public in its rejoicings; the deliverance of their city shall be their cure. Or it intimates that, whereas infectious diseases are commonly the effect of long sieges, it shall not be so with Jerusalem, but the inhabitants of it with their victory and peace shall have health also, and there shall be no complaining upon the account of sickness within their gates. Or those that are sick shall bear their sickness without complaining as long as they see it goes well with Jerusalem. Our sense of private grievances should be drowned in our thanksgivings for public mercies. (2.) The people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity, not only the body of the nation forgiven their national guilt in the removing of the national judgment, but particular persons, that dwell therein, shall repent, and reform, and have their sins pardoned. And this is promised as that which is at the bottom of all other favours; he will do so and so for them, for he will be merciful to their unrighteousness, Heb. viii. 12. Sin is the sickness of the soul. When God pardons the sin he heals the disease; and, when the diseases of sin are healed by pardoning mercy, the sting of bodily sickness is taken out and the cause of it removed; so that either the inhabitant shall not be sick or at least shall not say, I am sick. If iniquity be taken away, we have little reason to complain of outward affliction. Son, be of good cheer; thy sins are forgiven thee.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Vs. 13-16: THE NAME OF JEHOVAH EXALTED IN JUDGMENT
1. The whole universe is called upon to acknowledge the might of the Lord, (VS. 13; Psa 48:10-14).
2. God becomes so real to Judah that they are suddenly startled by a consciousness of their sin and, in essence, inquire: “Who among us are fit for His presence?” (vs. 14; comp. Psa 15:1; Psa 24:3).
a. Such as are moved by sound, rather than sense, may assume that this “devouring fire” and “everlasting burnings” refer to hell; but, they have missed the point!
b. These terms, rather, refer TO GOD HIMSELF, as seen in his divine zeaf for holiness, and in the jealousy of His pure love, (Exo 15:11; Exo 24:16-18; Deu 4:24; Deu 9:3; Heb 12:29; Deu 6:15; 1Jn 4:16).
3. The answer to the question in verse 14 is found in verses 15 and 16, (comp. Psa 15:2-5; Psa 24:4-6).
a. A godly remnant of the covenant-nation will be divinely protected and nourished, (vs. 16; Isa 25:4; Isa 26:1; Isa 49:10; Isa 48:22; cf. Psalms 23).
b. A holy and loving God must have holy and loving companions, (Isa 26:7-10; Isa 32:1; Isa 32:16-17; 1Jn 1:5-6; Eph 5:2; 1Jn 4:8-10).
c. There is within’ the divine nature such an antagonism against evil as flames against it and strives to consume it, (Heb 10:26-27; 2Th 1:7-9).
d. Divine wrath is an essential element of divine love; God hates sin because He loves righteousness, (Psa 11:7; Psa 46:7; Heb 1:9).
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
13. Near, ye that are far off. Isaiah here makes a preface, as if he were about to speak on a very weighty subject; for he bids his hearers be attentive, which is commonly done when any important and remarkable subject is handled. He addresses both those who are near, who would be eyewitnesses of this event, and the most distant nations to whom the report would be communicated; as if he had said that the power of God will be such as to be perceived not only by a few persons, or by those who are at hand, but also by those who shall be at a very great distance. Thus he means that it will be a striking and extraordinary demonstration of the power of God, because wicked men, who formerly were careless and unconcerned, as if they had been free from all danger of distress or annoyance, shall be shaken with terror.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
4. SERENITY
TEXT: Isa. 33:13-24
13
Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
14
The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling hath seized the godless ones: Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire? who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?
15
He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from taking a bribe, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from looking upon evil:
16
he shall dwell on high; his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks; his bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.
17
Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold a land that reacheth afar.
18
Thy heart shall muse on the terror: where is he that counted, where is he that weighed the tribute? where is he that counted the towers?
19
Thou shalt not see the fierce people, a people of a deep speech that thou canst not comprehend, of a strange tongue that thou canst not understand.
20
Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tent that shall not be removed, the stakes whereof shall never be plucked up, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
21
But there Jehovah will be with us in majesty, a place of broad rivers and streams, wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.
22
For Jehovah is our judge, Jehovah is our lawgiver, Jehovah is our king; he will save us.
23
Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not strengthen the foot of their mast, they could not spread the sail: then was the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame took the prey.
24
And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.
QUERIES
a.
Who are the sinners in Zion?
b.
Who are the people of a strange tongue?
c.
When will the inhabitants not say, I am sick?
PARAPHRASE
Pay attention to what I, Jehovah, have done. Acknowledge My might, all you nations of the earth, both far and near. The sinners among My covenant nation are filled with fear, the godless are paralyzed with terror. Who can live here, they cry; Our God has become a consuming flame in bringing this judgment upon us. I will tell you who can live here: All who live honestly and speak truthfully, who abhor making profit by fraud, who wave aside the temptation to take a bribe, who refuse to even listen to plots for bloodshed, who refuse even to look at anything which appears to be evil. Such a man shall live above evil and its consequences. He will dwell securely like a fortress built upon a rocky mountain. He will be sustained with all the food and water he needs. Your eyes will see the king in his beauty. You will look out upon a land of far-away horizons where the land meets the sky, and think back to this time of terror, wondering, Where are those Assyrians who counted our people, estimated how much of our treasure they would plunder and analyzed our military fortifications. You will see no more of these violent and insolent people with their jabbering, incoherent language. Soon they will all be gone. Instead you will see Jerusalem, the festival city, at peace. It will be secure, like a tent that never has its stakes pulled up, its ropes broken and is never moved from place to place. Jehovah will dwell with us in all His majesty. The protection He shall give us will be greater than the wide rivers surrounding cities like Thebes. No ships of war shall sail across this river. The Lord Jehovah is our judge; the Lord Jehovah is our lawgiver; the Lord Jehovah is our king; He will save us! Right now the ship of Zions tackle is not shipshape. Everything is not taut and strong like it should be. The masthead wobbles on an unsure footing and the battle ensign is not hoisted. However, in a short time Zion will be dividing the treasure of its enemy in great abundance; even the lame will be in on the plundering of the enemy. Then those on board the ship Zion will not say, I am ill, for they will be healedtheir iniquity will have been forgiven.
COMMENTS
Isa. 33:13-16 PERSONAL: There is a serenity which is a result of righteous living. Isaiah promises that in these verses. First, the prophet describes the distress of the people. The whole world is called to attention to watch the change that is about to take place in Zion (Jerusalem). Presently she has a seizure of terror and shakes like a person in shock. The godless in Jerusalem who had taken so much comfort in believing Egypt would help against Assyria are horrified at what Assyria has done and is about to do! They have given up all hope of survival! They are finally at the point of asking God what can be done instead of telling Him! God speaks through His prophetrepent! Walking righteously might be defined as doing everything from the attitude of desiring it to be right, good, true, just. Speaking uprightly means to say what is true, honest, pure, upbuilding and helpful. Gain of oppressions is money or profit made through taking advantage of someone by force or fraud or some other injustice. Shaking hands from taking a bribe probably means waving aside any invitation or temptation to render an illegal or unjust judgment or transaction by receiving a bribe. And the last two, stopping the ears and shutting the eyes indicates the attitude mentioned in the New Testament, abhoring the very appearance of evil (Rom. 12:9; 1Th. 5:22; see also Psa. 15:1-5; Psa. 24:3-10). Such personal righteousness do not of themselves produce serenity, but they do make it possible for the Lord to enter into such a penitent heart and give it serenity. God cannot give the impenitent, rebellious sinner serenity simply because the sinner refuses to have it! He is determined to direct his own life and achieve serenity on his own. But the godly man who walks righteously dwells in the heights. The word munitions is from the Hebrew word metzouroh which literally means citadel. The godly man is like the man who has a safe refuge high in the inaccessible mountains, a fortress well stocked with all that is needed to sustain him against the siege of his enemy. He is secure and serene.
Isa. 33:17-22 PROVISIONAL: When man gets his life right with God then God has opportunity to provide what He wishes to provide always. God created man to live in perfect serenity, peace and harmony. God is able to provide that state for man but man is also created with the power to refuse such a state. When man trusts God enough to obey God, God provides it. The land of Judah had been almost totally occupied by Assyrians. Everywhere the people of Jerusalem looked their land no longer belonged to them. On every horizon there were Assyrians. But soon, because they now want Him, they shall see the King (Jehovah) in all His beauty. We think this refers to the manifestation of Gods majesty and beauty in the deliverance of Jerusalem from Sennacherib and not the Messiah because of Isa. 33:21-22. When Jehovah-King comes and the Assyrians retreat in disgrace, the people of Jerusalem will once again look upon a land belonging to them as far as the eye can seetheir horizons will once again extend to where the land meets the sky.
Not only that, but when the Lord drives the enemy from their land they will retrospectively give much time to wonder and amazement at the miraculous deliverance wrought for them. They will remember the great and ferocious army of the Assyrians camped for miles around their city. They will remember the magnificence and pompousness of the Rabshakeh. They will remember all the foreign officials of the Rabshakeh as they counted the Jews in Jerusalem, counted the treasure of the Jews, counted the fortifications of the city as if they were cooly estimating exactly the amount of plunder they would soon be taking. They will remember the utter horror they felt as they reminded one another of the coldblooded cruelty of the Assyrians. All this remembering will impress more intensely in the minds of the people of Zion the divine nature of their deliverance. They will know it was provided by Jehovah and not by their own schemes. They will look back and remember the ferocity and insolence of the enemy that had surrounded them and come into their city to negotiate with their king. Their appearance was barbaric; their language was completely foreign and non-understandable. This writer remembers serving with the occupation forces in Japan immediately after World War II and the fear and suspicion felt when listening to the Japanese speak or whisper in their tongue while looking at him. One usually suspects, in those circumstances, a plot against him or a slur upon his character. This occupation by hundreds of thousands of foreigners jabbering in incomprehensible tongues will have completely vanished and Isaiah says the people of Zion will remember and marvel at it.
The prophet continues his prediction of the serenity God is going to provide. He predicts the people of Jerusalem will soon see their city peaceful and stable. When God sends the Assyrian away peace will return to Jerusalem and her political stability will be restored. This is predicated upon the continued repentance of the people. No long treatise is needed here to establish the fact that Gods promises of blessing or judgment are always conditional. That is a doctrine made abundantly clear in the Bible. Isaiah uses times coloring figures of speech (terminology contemporary with his own culture) to describe the stability that will come to Zion with the peoples repentance. He describes it as a tent which is not moved. In the culture of the Hebrew nomadthe herder of sheep and goatsthey pulled up the stakes and untied the ropes and moved their tents from day to day. Jerusalems position was secure so long as its inhabitants trusted God. We know, from subsequent history (Micah, Zephaniah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel), her inhabitants did not continue to trust God. Jerusalem had her stakes pulled up and her ropes cut by Nebuchadnezzar and her inhabitants taken away to Babylon.
The prophet then turns to another figure of speech easily understood by his contemporaries. He likens Jerusalems security to a city surrounded by broad rivers which some ancient cities enjoyed as natural moats making them secure from attack by armies and, when attacked by navies, could be easily defended. The ancient cities of Thebes (Nah. 3:8; Eze. 30:16) and Tyre (Isa. 23:1 ff; Eze. 26:1 ff) were such cities. In Jerusalems case, the majestic power of Jehovah will be her moat.
Isa. 33:22-24 PERVASIVE: The serenity provided by God and appropriated by mans penitence pervades the whole experience of man. These verses show Jehovahs influence in every area of mans nature. Man needs an arbiter (judge) to tell him what is right and wrong; man needs a lawgiver to give him a divine codification of behavior; man needs a ruler to be sovereign over all his aspirations, choices and motives. Only then can man be saved from destroying himself. Jerusalem needed to recognize her tacklings were loosed and her mast was so insecure she could not set sail. The ship of Zion was unseaworthy (as an old salt would say). She needed a shake down cruise to make her a taut ship again. She was a sick and ailing ship. When repentance came, she would be fitted to sail the stormy seas of life again with her captain at the helm steering her to safe harbors. Repentance makes forgiveness possible and forgiveness produces serenity within even though the storms rage without. Jerusalem would enjoy this serenity. She was also promised victory over her enemies (Isa. 33:23). She would have complete victoryeven the lame would be able to join in the spoils of victory.
This serenity and victory apparently did come in the latter days of Hezekiahs reign when the rulers and the people finally turned to Jehovah instead of Egypt for help against their enemies. But it did not last long for they were soon led back into sin and rebellion by Manasseh (son of Hezekiah) and eventually into captivity in Babylon.
QUIZ
1.
What does personal righteousness have to do with bringing serenity?
2.
What does the trembling of the sinners in Zion indicate about their relationship to God?
3.
What are the munitions of rocks?
4.
Why would musing on the terror bring serenity?
5.
Why mention the strange tongue that would soon be gone from the land?
6.
Why liken Jehovah unto a broad river?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(13) Hear, ye that are far off . . .The fate of Assyria is proclaimed as a warning to other nations, and to Israel itself. For the sinners in Zion also there is the furnace of fire of the wrath of God. Who, they ask, can dwell with that consuming fire, those everlasting (onian?) burnings, which are one aspect of the righteousness of God?
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
13-16. And then, as if this judgment were accomplished, the prophet turns to the sinners by whom himself, as counsellor to the pious king, has been so long baffled in Jerusalem. These he addresses as the near ones; those living to witness the power of the Almighty in breaking the Assyrian yoke. Hitherto they had scouted Isaiah’s theory of deliverance from such a source, and they sought aid from Egypt. The far-off peoples are also called to witness this almighty power in behalf of Israel. The sinners in Jerusalem are now struck dumb, and they are forced to say,
Who among us shall rather, can dwell with the devouring fire everlasting burnings That is, in such a fire as that which has so signally destroyed the Assyrian forces? The parallel member states the same thing, only with more intense emotion. The answer is, in substance, the same as Psalms 15. He that walketh righteously, etc., in all the relations of life; despiseth the gain of oppressions, hazarding every thing to be just, absolutely just, etc: only such can endure the presence and power of a just God, and they, seeking to be entirely righteous, shall, in all events, be secure. Spiritual plenty shall abound to them. Those who are of this character in Jerusalem now realize their own more exultant fortune over the sinners that have counselled opposition in civil affairs in Judah.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
God Is So Holy, Who Can Know Him? ( Isa 33:13-16 ).
What Yahweh has done in defeating Assyria and delivering Jerusalem leads on to His depiction of His holiness and power. He is above all and will bring about His will and none but those whom He has chosen and made fit may dwell with Him in His glory, amid the everlasting burnings.
Analysis.
a Hear, you who are far off, what I have done, and you who are near acknowledge my might (Isa 33:13).
b The sinners in Zion are afraid, trembling has surprised the godless ones, “Who among us will dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us will dwell with the everlasting burnings?” (Isa 33:14).
b He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly. He who despises the gain of oppressions, who shakes his hand from the holding of bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of blood, and shuts his eyes from looking on evil (Isa 33:15).
a He will dwell on high. His place of defence will be the strong places of the cliffs. His bread will be given to him. His waters will be sure (Isa 33:16).
In ‘a’ the call is by Yahweh to all who are for off or near, to consider what He has done and acknowledge His might, and in the parallel the one who responds rightly will dwell on high and be placed in a fully defensible position, protected from all enemies. In ‘b’ the question is put as to who can dwell with the awesome holiness of God, and in the parallel the reply is that it is the one whose life is pure, who walks righteously, speaks uprightly, despises dishonest gain, rejects bribes, shuns violence and closes his eye to evil.
Isa 33:13-14
‘Hear, you who are far off, what I have done.
And you who are near acknowledge my might.
The sinners in Zion are afraid.
Trembling has surprised the godless ones.
Who among us will dwell with the devouring fire?
Who among us will dwell with the everlasting burnings?’
The effect of His destruction of the army of Assyria now causes God to challenge the nations. Let all both far and near consider what He has done and acknowledge His power. For what He has done has even awakened the sinners and the godless in Zion to consider their position. It has made them aware of His holiness and power, and of what He essentially is, so that they cry out and ask who can possibly hope to dwell with One Who is so holy that He is like a devouring fire, One Who is like an everlastingly burning flame (compare Deu 4:11-12; Deu 4:33; Deu 4:36; Deu 5:24-25).
The word for dwell means ‘to dwell as an outsider, an alien’. They have therefore rightfully recognised that those who are strangers to Yahweh and what He is cannot hope to reside in His presence. And they compare themselves with those strangers. For they know that He is a consuming fire of holiness, that He is glorious in holiness, that He is the Holy One of Israel, and can only be truly known by those who have been made holy (compare Isa 4:3-4).
The experience described here is similar to that of Isaiah in chapter 6. There Isaiah himself had drawn back in shame and anguish in His awareness of the glory of God, and now the sinners in Zion and the godless ones, which in this context signifies God’s people as they are made aware of their extreme sinfulness, do the same.
But the reply comes that there are those who can survive and enjoy His presence, and live with His holiness, and of those we now learn. Compare for this Psalms 15.
Isa 33:15-16
‘He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly.
He who despises the gain of oppressions,
Who shakes his hand from the holding of bribes,
Who stops his ears from hearing of blood,
And shuts his eyes from looking on evil.
He will dwell on high.
His place of defence will be the strong places of the cliffs.
His bread will be given to him. His waters will be sure.’
This is the description of the one who can dwell with God’s holiness. It is the one who has responded to God and to His covenant, who walks in accordance with God’s requirements, and whose word is totally true, honest and reliable. He does not seek to obtain gain by the wrong use of power or influence. When any seek to bribe him, pushing something quietly into his hand, he shakes his hand free. If there is talk of injuring others he stops up his ears from involvement. He closes his eyes against all evil sights and refuses even to look at them.
Such a man can dwell on high spiritually with God (compare Isa 57:15), where he will be situated far out of reach of men in a place where he cannot be harmed. He will receive from God all the sustenance he needs, both spiritual bread and water. He will eat of the bread of life, and drink of the water of life (compare Psalms 1). The thought is of him being safe in an impregnable fortress, fully provisioned in every way with a totally safe water supply. He need fear nothing. Here we have the Old Testament equivalent of Paul’s ‘heavenly places’, the spiritual realm in which His people can live in close contact with Him (see Eph 1:3; Eph 2:6).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Sinners Alarmed, the Pious Comforted
v. 13. Hear, ye that are far off, v. 14. The sinners in Zion, v. 15. He that walketh righteously, v. 16. he shall dwell on high, v. 17. Thine eyes shall see the King in His beauty, v. 18. Thine heart, v. 19. Thou shalt not see a fierce people, v. 20. Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities, v. 21. But there the glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams, v. 22. For the Lord is our Judge, v. 23. Thy tacklings are loosed, v. 24. And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Isa 33:13-16. Hear, ye that are far off This period is immediately connected with that preceding; wherein the divine judgment just mentioned is celebrated, and its severity defended against those hypocrites who misinterpreted it. The prophet, using still the same figure, adapts words to God agreeable to the present circumstance. He supposes that God had now executed that judgment upon his enemies, which in the words preceding he had said that he would execute. Here, therefore, as the order required, he introduces God; first, as inviting the people near and afar off, Jews and Gentiles, wisely to consider this display of the divine judgment, that they might either be brought to a belief in the truth of God, or might be confirmed in that truth, and learn in future wholly to confide in it, Isa 33:13. And secondly, as defending this judgment against the murmurs and whispers of hypocrites who maliciously traduced it: Isa 33:14, &c. For they said, that these remarkable judgments afforded not an argument for men to desire communion with this God; but on the contrary deterred from such communion: for who could seek and love a God whose severity was so great, whose punishments so rigid? Who would not rather fly from and abhor him? for he was a devouring fire, whom it was not wise to approach, if we wished to avoid destruction. The prophet, in the name of God himself, to give the greater weight to his words, refutes these calumnies. He teaches, that God is not terrible but to the wicked, to men of corrupt minds and consciences; that he is thoroughly amiable to the just and good; for that he loves from his own nature truth and holiness and virtue, and will reward them most amply. Such men may pass unhurt in the nearest communion with God; they may be cherished, purified, inflamed by God, as a fire, to the love of his perfection, and be, as it were, changed into the substance of the like purity, and yet not consumed; nay, God is to them that seek him a rock of defence; he is their security and protection, as well as the gracious supplier of all necessaries, to their present being and comfort, and their future happiness. This is the sum of the present passage; which however, in a mystical sense, may undoubtedly refer to the terrors of that future and devouring fire prepared for the sinners and hypocrites in Sion; as may the 15th and 16th verses to the future blessedness of those who obey the commandments of their God.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
4. THE ALARM OF SINERS; THE COMFORT OF THE PIOUS
Isa 33:13-22
13Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done;
And, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
14The sinners in Zion are afraid;
Fearfulness hath surprised the 9 hypocrites.
Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire?
Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
15He that walketh 10 righteously, and speaketh 11 uprightly
He that despiseth the gain of 12 oppressions,
That shaketh his hands from holding of bribes,
That stoppeth his ears from hearing of 13blood,
And shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;
16He shall dwell on 14 high:
His place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks:
15 Bread shall be given him;
His waters shall be sure.
17Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty:
They shall behold 16 the land 17 that is very far off.
18Thine heart shall meditate terror.
Where is the scribe? where is the 18 receiver?
Where Isaiah 19 he that counted the towers?
19Thou shalt not see 20 a fierce people,
A people of deeper speech than thou canst perceive:
Of a 21 stammering tongue, that thou canst not understand.
20Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities:
Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation,
A tabernacle that 22 shall not be taken down;
Not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed,
Neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
21But there the glorious Lord will be unto us
23 A place 24 of broad rivers and streams;
Wherein shall go no galley with oars,
Neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.
22For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our 25 lawgiver,
The Lord is our king; he will save us.
TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL
Isa 33:14. only here in Isaiah. Comp. Psa 2:11; Psa 48:7; Job 4:14. with accus. loc. comp. Jdg 5:17; Psa 5:5; Psa 120:5. Elsewhere Isaiah construes with prepositions; Isa 11:6; Isa 16:4; Isa 54:15. is the so called dativus ethicus. Though elsewhere this dative refers to the actual subject (comp. Gen 21:16; Gen 31:41; Isa 2:22; Isa 31:8; Isa 36:9, etc.), according to which it would need to read here it is in this place related to the ideal subject, i.e., to the speakers, who properly affirm of themselves this inability to dwell with Jehovah. This dative everywhere represents a phrase that affirms an intensive relation to the interests of the speaker: in this place say: who will dwell (we say this in relation to ourselves, in our own interest) with devouring fire, etc.? again only Psa 102:4. is the beginning of Psalms 15. Moreover the words Isa 33:15 recall Psa 15:2.
Isa 33:15. The plural , juste facta occurs again in Isa 45:24; Isa 64:5. comp. Pro 23:16; the latter word again in Isa 26:7; Isa 45:19. (comp. Exo 18:21) again in Isa 56:11; Isa 57:17. What sort of is meant is explained by the addition (oppressiones, again only Pro 28:16). see Isa 33:9.The construction with is constr. prgnans. For the preposition depends on the notion of refraining ideally present in , to shake. comp. Psa 15:5; Isa 1:23; Isa 5:23; Isa 45:13. with following occurs Pro 21:13,comp. Pro 17:28. is bloodshed, murder, (comp. Exo 22:1; Isa 4:4). rhyming with , we find here in Kal. with the same meaning that it has in the Piel Isa 29:10. to look on evil with pleasure.
Isa 33:16. , plural, in Isaiah only here; comp. Jdg 5:18; Pro 8:2, etc. as st. constr. comp. 1Sa 24:1. , asylum, refuge, again only Isa 25:12.
Isa 33:17. The 2 pers. masc. suffix, as in Isa 33:6; Isa 33:20, refers to the nation regarded as a unit.
Isa 33:18. , to think, consider, meditari (Jos 1:8; Psa 1:2; Psa 2:1, etc.; Isa 59:13) may relate also to what is past., terror, only here in Isaiah. again Isa 36:3; Isa 37:2. as substantive only here in Isaiah; the verb to weigh out money Isa 46:6; Isa 55:2.
Isa 33:19. The two halves of this verse contain the antithesis of seeing and hearing. This proves that the explanation of = barbare loquens (Psa 114:1), does not agree with the context. That means mute beckoning according to the Arab. waasa (Hitzig) is disproved by Gesen. Thes. p. 607 sq. There remains thus the explanation that takes as part. Niph. from = (comp. and ,, and , and ) and that with the meaning hard, audacious, overweening conduct (Symm. , Vulg. impudens). The word, moreover, is . . and for this reason it may be possible that Isaiah hints at some Assyrian word at present unknown to us.
Isa 33:20. . . Arab. taana of the roaming of the nomads.
Isa 33:21. corresponds to the negations of Isa 33:21. in Isaiah again only Isa 10:34.Delitzsch after Luzzatto has proved that is not to be taken=loco, instead. The suffixes in and are manifestly to be referred to oar (comp. Eze 27:29 and Eze 27:6) is . . contracted from , cavum, rotundum aliquid, is a great bellied-out ship (Num 24:24; Eze 30:9; Psa 105:41).
Isa 33:22. Since it does not read (Isa 43:3; Isa 47:15, etc.), I would accord with Hitzig, who takes , ,, not as predicates but as apposition with , so that is the sole predicate of the foregoing three subjects which are comprehended emphatically in the .
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
1. Here we have the final and broadest circuit of waves before us. According to Isa 33:10, Jehovah was about to arise and come to the rescue. He has done so. The rescue is accomplished in an astounding fashion. The present passage belongs to time after the rescue. It presupposes it. For it contains glances into the future, that rest upon that deed as their foundation. First the Lord summons those far and near to give proper attention to what He does (Isa 33:13). Then the Prophet describes the effect of what has been done on the sinners in Jerusalem. They are terrified: they would flee the neighborhood of this mighty God, for they are ill-at-ease in it. Hence they ask: who can abide by this devouring fire? (Isa 33:14). To this is replied: this fire is harmless for the pious, the lovers of truth, the righteous (Isa 33:15), for such will dwell in Jerusalem in security and abundance (Isa 33:16); and will see the king of Israel sitting in might and glory at the head of a wide empire (Isa 33:17). As one thinks of something that has disappeared from memory, so shall men reflect on the time of wars distress (Isa 33:18), and of the terrific presence of the barbaric nation in the land (Isa 33:19). Zion will be a secure fortress, a quiet, abiding place of worship, and no more a shifting tabernacle as in the time of the journey through the wilderness (Isa 33:20). For Jehovah is there Himself in His majesty; protecting waters surround the place (Isa 33:21), and the Lord Himself as judge, law-giver and king is the deliverer of His people (Isa 33:22).
2. Hearmy might
Isa 33:13. The piece begins with the cry of a herald that makes known to the whole world the accomplished mighty act. For the perfect without doubt designates the act of rescue as accomplished, which verses 1, 3, 10 held in prospect; and we must regard (as often in the Books of Kings, where and continually stand parallel: 1Ki 15:23; 1Ki 16:27; 1Ki 22:46, etc.), in the concrete sense as a display of power, and, because of , as already come to pass. But the heralds cry would intimate that an event of vast and wide effect has happened, of concern to all men, even to those far remote. For they may know from this who is the true, and therefore also who is their God. For He that did what happened to the Assyrian host in the neighborhood of Jerusalem in Hezekiahs time must be God over all gods (comp. Isa 36:18-20; Isa 37:10-13) and Lord over all lords. Those near are plainly the Israelites, who had in great part been witnesses of the deed. These should acknowledge the demonstration of the Lords power. According to their inward condition they should draw from it comfort or warning.
3. The sinnersseeing evil.
Isa 33:14-15. The Prophet first presents that mighty deed as a warning to the wicked. Such were the idolaters who had no joy in a proof so irrefragable of the sole power and divinity of Jehovah. Therefore these sinners (Isa 1:28; Isa 13:9) and the unclean (Isa 9:16; Isa 10:6; Isa 32:6there lies in the word a hint at idolatry) in Zion are terrified. Devoid of the right knowledge of God, because they would not, not because they could not have it, the nearness of this almighty, and above all of this holy God is in the highest degree burdensome to these people. Living in Jerusalem where this God has His fire and His furnace (Isa 31:9) is painful to them. Hence they cry: who among us,etc. It is manifest that by the devouring fire they mean Jehovah. By the strages Assyriorum He had proved Himself to be such. And shall they ever remain near this power that is as irresistibly present as it is terrible? The expression is taken from Deu 4:24; Deu 9:3, comp. Isa 29:6; Isa 30:27; Isa 30:30. designates here the place where the fire burns, the hearth. By calling this everlasting they judge themselves: for they show by that a knowledge, that it is a veritable divine fire, that burns there, not an imaginary one. But just with this they will have nothing to do.
The Prophet (Isa 33:15) replies to their inquiry, that one may dwell very well by this burning fire. But with the Holy One, one must live holy. The image He proceeds to draw of a holy life is an Old Testament one. The traits of it are chiefly taken from passages in the Psalms (see Text. and Gram.). Shaking the hands, (thus refraining them) from taking a bribe, is a strong expression for striving to keep and prove the integrity of the hands.
4. He shall dwellwill save us.
Isa 33:16-22. This is the confirmation that one may dwell happily with the devouring fire. For these verses show what blessings they shall have who live agreeably to the holy being of God. And since there shall never be wanting such in Zion, the salvation and glory of Zion is assured for all time. Thus these verses contain the same thought uttered by the Prophet already Isa 28:16 sqq.; Isa 29:22 sqq.; Isa 30:15; Isaiah 19 sqq.; Isa 31:6 sq.; Isa 32:1 sqq., 15 sqq., that Israels deliverance depends on an upright and thorough conversion to the Lord; that on this condition, however, it is secure forever. what is certain, never deceives expectation, never fails (comp. Isa 33:6; Jer 15:18; Isa 22:23; Isa 22:25). As happened Isa 33:5-6, so here, for the Prophet the salvation of the near present merges into one with the great, final Messianic period. And so, influenced perhaps by the then oppressed look of the king of Judah, he contemplates the latter beaming with the joy of victory, and at the same time as the type of the Messiah, resplendent in the supremest beauty and glory, whose beauty the author of Psalms 45. (Isa 33:3) had also seen prefigured in the appearance of the bridegroom-king whom he celebrated. That the Prophets glance penetrates into the Messianic future appears from the expression the land that is very far off (Isa 8:9; Jer 8:19). The expression is too strong to be understood merely of free motion in the land in contrast with the confining siege, or of the normal extending of Israelitish territory according to Deu 1:7; Deu 11:24. As royal pomp and beauty adorns the person of the king, so immeasurable extent does his land. is thus not a far distant, but a wide extended land. It is the same thought that meets us Isa 2:2 sqq.; Isa 9:7; Isa 11:10; Isa 25:6 sqq.
The Prophet in Isa 33:18-19 connects his glorious image of the future with the mournful condition of the present. For he describes it as a chief blessing of that future, that the bad things of the present will be present to thoughtful contemplation as things that one rejoices to have overcome. Et hoc meminisse juvabit. In his graphic way the Prophet gives prominence to particular terrors that must have left a peculiarly deep impression. The , writer, and the , weigher, before whom one had to appear and pay tribute, and who then weighed the valuables received, and made a list of them, were certainly persons of terror from whose mouths they had often had experience of the Vae victis (Livy, 5, 48). [The Apostle Paul in 1Co 1:20, has a sentence so much like this, in the threefold repetition of the question where, and in the use of the word scribe, that it cannot be regarded as a mere fortuitous coincidence. It may be regarded as a mere imitation, as to form and diction, of the one before us.J. A. Alexander,in loc.]. Again it must have made a terrible impression, when from the walls they saw the enemy taking the first steps toward attacking the city by one of the leaders riding around the walls, regarding the towers, counting them and taking notes of his observations (comp. Psa 48:13). What happiness to be able to call out: where are they now those fearful men? They have disappeared forever! What felicity to be quit of the foreign, repulsive appearance of this enemy; no more to be compelled to see the overweening nation; no more to hear its barbarous sounds! The Israelites will no more hear the nation too deep of lip to be understood and stammering and jabbering with the tongue (comp. on Isa 28:11; Isa 37:22) without meaning.
The Prophet having enumerated the bad things, now directs attention to the good that is to be seen in and about Jerusalem. He first describes Zion as the religious centre of the nation. There is the temple; there Jehovah dwells (comp. on Isa 33:14); thither the people assemble to worship the Lord and keep His feasts. Thus He calls the city (comp. 14:13, comp. Isa 1:14). That he intends an antithesis to appears from Isa 33:15. Israel then has no more a tabernacle, a city for festival gathering (of the people with one another, and with Jehovah). As such Zion must be especially looked to. And if one looks more narrowly, then the meaning of this designation appears to be that Jerusalem will be a secure, quiet abode (Isa 32:18), of course still a tabernacle, but no longer so in the original, nomadic sense; not like the travelling tent of the wilderness, but one that does not move about. The Prophet signifies that there shall happen to it neither a voluntary nor a violent breaking up of the tabernacle ( means a violent rending, comp. Isa 5:27, not the usual striking of a tent). This permanent tabernacle shall be attended with a glorious rest for the people of God in the future that is described, that shall be founded on the presence in the midst of them of Jehovah, the highest Majesty. The Lord is called a place of rivers, of course in a figure. In all this figurative description lies the notion of defence, refuge. Hence a place of rivers may as appropriately be used of Jehovah, as rock, tower, shield, horn of salvation, (Psa 18:3). But commentators are right in saying that the Prophet has in mind cities like Babylon, Nineveh, No-Ammon (Nah 3:8), that were defended by great rivers and river canals. The present Jerusalem lacked such defences, but, such is the meaning, Jehovah Himself will be river-defences. may allude to the cities of Mesopotamia, and to the similarly located cities of Egypt; for is the Euphrates (Isa 8:7; Isa 11:15) and the Nile (Isa 19:7-8; Isa 23:10). Those streams and canals that recede right and left, and thus are very broad, are called (comp. Psa 104:25; Isa 22:18; Gen 34:21; Jdg 18:10; 1Ch 4:10; Neh 7:4). Neither oared-ship, nor sail-ship shall be able to pass these mighty waters. The Prophet ends with rhymes that make the conclusion sound like a hymn. Jehovah, Israels judge (Isa 2:4; Isa 11:3-4), lawgiver (comp. Deu 33:21), and king, is also its deliverer.
Footnotes:
[9]unclean.
[10]Heb. in righteousness.
[11]Heb. uprightness.
[12]Or, deceits.
[13]Heb. bloods.
[14]Heb. heights, or, high places.
[15]His bread.
[16]a wide extended land.
[17]Heb. of far distances.
[18]Heb. weigher.
[19]the inscriber of the towers.
[20]the audacious.
[21]Or, ridiculous.
[22]that does not wander.
[23]A place of streams, of rivers broad on either side.
[24]Heb. broad spaces, or hands.
[25]Heb. statutemaker.
Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange
If temporal judgments, like those which God wrought upon the Assyrian army, had such effect upon the sinners in Zion, what will be the terror and dismay of transgressors, in the prospect of the everlasting judgments of God? And, Reader, do not fail to remark, that these things are here said, not of sinners in general, but Zion’s sinners more especially; the Christ-despising sinners, who count the blood of the covenant an unholy thing. Jer 12:5 ; Heb 10:29 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Isa 33:13 Hear, ye [that are] far off, what I have done; and, ye [that are] near, acknowledge my might.
Ver. 13. Hear, ye that are afar off. ] Longinqui, propinqui. God’s great works are to be noted and noticed by all. The Egyptians heard of what God had done to the Assyrian army, and memorised it by a monument, as Herodotus a relateth.
a Herod., lib. ii.; Justin.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Isa 33:13-16
13You who are far away, hear what I have done;
And you who are near, acknowledge My might.
14Sinners in Zion are terrified;
Trembling has seized the godless.
Who among us can live with the consuming fire?
Who among us can live with continual burning?
15He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity,
He who rejects unjust gain
And shakes his hands so that they hold no bribe;
He who stops his ears from hearing about bloodshed
And shuts his eyes from looking upon evil;
16He will dwell on the heights,
His refuge will be the impregnable rock;
His bread will be given him,
His water will be sure.
Isa 33:13 You who are far away. . .you who are near In context, this refers to God’s people in exile in Assyria and to God’s people still in Judah (cf. Dan 9:7). However, seen in the wider context of the new age, it may be related to the Gentile and the Jewish people (cf. Isa 49:1; it is idiom for all, cf. Jer 25:26).
Isa 33:14 Sinners in Zion are terrified Again the reality of a mixture of the faithful and unfaithful within the people of God is acknowledged. Sinners
1. are terrified, BDB 808, KB 922, Qal PERFECT, cf. NOUN – Isa 2:10; Isa 2:19; Isa 2:21; Isa 24:17-18; VERB – Isa 12:2; Isa 19:16-17; Isa 44:8; Isa 44:11; Isa 51:13
2. trembling has seized the godless, BDB 28, KB 31, Qal PERFECT, cf. Isa 13:8; Isa 21:3
The godless (BDB 338) are described in Isa 32:6 as those who practice godlessness and speak error against the LORD (cf. Isa 9:17; Isa 10:6).
Who among us can live with the consuming fire?
Who among us can live with the continual burning This refers to God’s holiness as seen through the metaphor of fire connected with His righteousness and His judgment (cf. Deu 4:24; Deu 5:24; Isa 30:27; Isa 30:30).
For continual (lit. forever) see Special Topic: Forever (‘olam) .
Isa 33:15 This reflects the character of YHWH as seen in His people.
1. walks righteously
2. speaks with sincerity
3. rejects unjust gain
4. does not take a bribe
5. does not listen to evil plans (i.e., bloodshed)
6. does not look upon evil
Isa 33:16 The person who lives the life described in Isa 33:15
1. will dwell on the heights
2. will take refuge in the impregnable rock
3. will have an abundance of food
4. will have a sure water supply
This describes the new age person. The ideal of Deuteronomy is actualized!
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
ye: i.e. the heathen.
what I have done: i.e. in the destruction of Sennacherib’s army.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Isa 33:13-16
Isa 33:13-16
“Hear, ye that are afar off, what I have done; and ye that are near, acknowledge my might. The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling hath seized the godless ones; Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire? who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings. He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from taking a bribe, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from looking upon evil: he shall dwell on high; his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks; his bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.”
Isa 33:13 speaks of God’s mighty work in the miraculous deliverance of Jerusalem by the destruction of a whole army in a single night as an event already accomplished, a frequent phenomenon in prophecy.
Isa 33:14 notes that the sinners in Jerusalem itself are also extremely frightened by what happened to the Assyrians. Perhaps the sinners who had opposed trusting in God and preferred a foreign alliance with Egypt were led to wonder if God would also destroy them!
“Ye that are afar off …” (Isa 33:13). “This indicates that the destruction of the Assyrians would be such a signal event that it would be known to distant nations.
Isa 33:15 reveals six elements of righteousness, namely, (1) righteous conduct; (2) upright and honorable speech; (3) hatred of oppression; (4) refusal to take bribes; (5) rejection of all thoughts of murder; and (6) refusal to look upon shameful and evil things.
Isa 33:16 records God’s love for the righteous and his provision for their needs. Such promises as these do not apply solely to the righteous people of Isaiah’s times, but to the saved of all generations. Of course, as Rawlinson noted, “There are Messianic ideas mingled with these later verses (Isa 33:16-21).
Isa 33:13-16 PERSONAL: There is a serenity which is a result of righteous living. Isaiah promises that in these verses. First, the prophet describes the distress of the people. The whole world is called to attention to watch the change that is about to take place in Zion (Jerusalem). Presently she has a seizure of terror and shakes like a person in shock. The godless in Jerusalem who had taken so much comfort in believing Egypt would help against Assyria are horrified at what Assyria has done and is about to do! They have given up all hope of survival! They are finally at the point of asking God what can be done instead of telling Him! God speaks through His prophet-repent! Walking righteously might be defined as doing everything from the attitude of desiring it to be right, good, true, just. Speaking uprightly means to say what is true, honest, pure, upbuilding and helpful. Gain of oppressions is money or profit made through taking advantage of someone by force or fraud or some other injustice. Shaking hands from taking a bribe probably means waving aside any invitation or temptation to render an illegal or unjust judgment or transaction by receiving a bribe. And the last two, stopping the ears and shutting the eyes indicates the attitude mentioned in the New Testament, abhoring the very appearance of evil (Rom 12:9; 1Th 5:22; see also Psa 15:1-5; Psa 24:3-10). Such personal righteousness do not of themselves produce serenity, but they do make it possible for the Lord to enter into such a penitent heart and give it serenity. God cannot give the impenitent, rebellious sinner serenity simply because the sinner refuses to have it! He is determined to direct his own life and achieve serenity on his own. But the godly man who walks righteously dwells in the heights. The word munitions is from the Hebrew word metzouroh which literally means citadel. The godly man is like the man who has a safe refuge high in the inaccessible mountains, a fortress well stocked with all that is needed to sustain him against the siege of his enemy. He is secure and serene.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
the Reward of the Righteous
Isa 33:13-24
The devouring fire and everlasting burnings of Isa 33:14 are clearly the emblems of the divine presence. The righteous dwell in God as the bush which was baptized in the Shekinah-glory and was not consumed. The fire of His holy presence makes them holy at the same time that it protects them from their enemies. Compare with Psa 15:1-5. They are characterized by their walk, speech, the closed fist, the stopped ears, and the shut eyes. They dwell in heights which are inaccessible to the foe, and no oppressor can cut off their supplies of hidden manna or water of life. Hezekiah, Isaiah predicts in Isa 33:17, would soon put off his sackcloth, and the citizens would cease to be penned up in a beleaguered city. They should recall the terror of that hour as a bad dream, recalled to be dismissed and forgotten. Zion had no river, but God would be all that a river was to other cities, without the disadvantages of navigable water which might serve for the passage of a hostile fleet. Be sure to make God your judge, lawgiver, and king. Then, notwithstanding that you limp in weakness, you shall gather your share in the great spoils of victory.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
Hear: Isa 18:3, Isa 37:20, Isa 49:1, Isa 57:19, Exo 15:14, Jos 2:9-11, Jos 9:9, Jos 9:10, 1Sa 17:46, Psa 46:6-11, Psa 48:10, Psa 98:1, Psa 98:2, Dan 3:27-30, Dan 4:1-3, Dan 6:25-27, Act 2:5-11, Eph 2:11-18
ye that are near: Psa 97:8, Psa 99:2, Psa 99:3, Psa 147:12-14, Psa 148:14
Reciprocal: Isa 29:9 – and wonder Isa 34:1 – Come Nah 1:14 – given
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
33:13 Ye [that are] {r} far off, hear what I have done; and, ye [that are] near, acknowledge my might.
(r) His vengeance will be so great that all the world will talk of it.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
The people of Zion 33:13-16
Isaiah now turned to focus on one aspect of the future hope of the nation: Zion. It will consist of a people and a king. The prophet concentrated on the people first (Isa 33:13-16) and then their king (Isa 33:17-24).
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
God summoned, through His prophet, the entire earth, those far and near, to pay attention to what He had done to His people. It has worldwide significance. God’s powerful acts toward Israel in the past will cause the nations to stream to Zion in the future.