Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 51:19
These two [things] are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort thee?
19. These two things ] (ch. Isa 47:9), i.e. two kinds of calamities; namely, devastation and destruction on land and city; famine and sword on the inhabitants.
who shall be sorry for thee ] Better who condoles with thee (Jer 15:5; Nah 3:7), i.e. “thou hast no sympathizers.” To “condole” is in Hebr. to shake the head (cf. Jer 16:5; Job 2:11; Job 42:11 &c.), a similar gesture, expressed by a different verb, denotes contempt (see on ch. Isa 37:22).
by whom shall I comfort thee? ] Rather: how (lit. who) shall I comfort thee? The idiom cannot be reproduced exactly; see Amo 7:2; Amo 7:5 and comp. Davidson’s Synt. 8 R. 1 (where it is suggested that the peculiar use of the pronoun may be provincial or colloquial). The Ancient Versions, however, read the third person, which is far easier; “who comforts thee?”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
These two things are come unto thee – Margin, Happened. That is, two sources of calamity have come upon thee; to wit, famine and the sword, producing desolation and destruction; or desolation by famine, and destruction by the sword (see Lowth on Hebrew Poetry, Lect. xix.) The idea here is, that far-spread destruction had occurred, caused by the two things, famine and the sword.
Who shall be sorry for thee? – That is, who shall be able so to pity thee as to furnish relief?
Desolation – By famine.
And destruction – Margin, as Hebrew, Breaking. refers to the calamities which would be inflicted by the sword. The land would be desolated, and famine would spread over it. This refers, doubtless, to the series of calamities that would come upon it in connection with the invasion of the Chaldeans.
By whom shall I comfort thee? – This intimates a desire on the part of Yahweh to give them consolation. But the idea is, that the land would be laid waste, and that they who would have been the natural comforters should be destroyed. There would be none left to whom a resort could be had for consolation.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 19. These two things – desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword] That is, desolation by famine, and destruction by the sword, taking the terms alternately: of which form of construction see other examples. De S. Poesi, Heb. Prael. xix., and Prelim. Dissert. p. xxx. The Chaldee paraphrast, not rightly understanding this, has had recourse to the following expedient: “Two afflictions are come upon thee, and when four shall come upon thee, depredation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword – ” Five MSS. haraab, without the conjunction vau; and so the Septuagint and Syriac.
By whom shall I comfort thee – “Who shall comfort thee”] A MS., the Septuagint, Syriac, Chaldee, and Vulgate have it in the third person, yenachamech, which is evidently right.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
These two things; either,
1. Those which were now mentioned:
1. That she was drunk with the cup of Gods wrath, Isa 51:17.
2. That she had none to support or comfort her in that condition, Or,
2. Those which here follow, which although they be expressed in four words, yet they may fitly be reduced to two things, the desolation or devastation of the land, and the destruction of the people, by famine and sword. So
famine and
sword are not named as new evils, but only as the particular ways or means of bringing the
destruction there mentioned; and the words may be thus rendered, desolation and destruction, even (this Hebrew particle being oft taken expositively, whereof many instances have been given) famine (or, by famine) and sword. Or two, nay be put indefinitely for many, as double is put for abundantly more, Job 11:6; Isa 40:2; 61:7; Zec 9:12, and elsewhere. By whom shall I comfort thee? I cannot find any man who is able to comfort and relieve thee.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
19. twoclasses of evils, forhe enumerates four, namely, desolation and destructionto the land and state; famine and the sword to thepeople.
who shall be sorry fortheeso as to give thee effectual relief: as the parallelclause, “By whom shall I comfort thee?” shows (La2:11-13).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
These two things are come unto thee,…. Affliction from the hand of God, though by means of enemies, and no friends to help, support, and comfort, as before hinted: or else this respects what follows, after it is said,
who shall be sorry for thee? lament or bemoan thee? they of the earth will rejoice and be glad, and others will not dare to show any concern outwardly, whatever inward grief may be in their breasts, Re 11:10,
desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword; which may be the two things before mentioned, for though there are four words, they are reducible to two things, desolation, which is the sword, and by it, and destruction, which is the famine, and comes by that, as Kimchi observes: or the words may be rendered thus, “desolation, and destruction, even the famine and the sword”; so that there is no need of making these things four, and of considering them as distinct from the other two, as the Targum makes them, which paraphrases the whole thus,
“two tribulations come upon thee, O Jerusalem, thou canst not arise; when four shall come upon thee, spoiling and breach, and the famine and the sword, there shall be none to comfort thee but I.”
All this was literally true of Jerusalem, both at the destruction of it by the Chaldeans and by the Romans, and will be mystically true of the church at the slaying of the witnesses by the sword of antichrist; when there will be a famine, not of bread, nor of water, but of hearing the word of the Lord; and which will bring great devastation and desolation on the interest of Christ:
by whom shall I comfort thee? there being no ministry of the word, nor administration of the ordinances, the usual means of comfort, the witnesses being slain; see La 1:9.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
19. These two things have happened to thee. Nearly the same thing was already asserted concerning Babylon,
“
These two things shall befall thee suddenly in one day, childlessness and widowhood.” (Isa 47:9.)
But here Isaiah promises to the Church that there shall eventually be a different issue; for the Lord will rescue her from the deepest abyss. He threatens extreme wretchedness, that believers may gird themselves for patience, and not cease to send upwards prayers and supplications from the depth of their distresses. The general meaning is, that the Church shall be burdened with afflictions of every kind, so that she shall appear to be on the brink of utter ruin; because from without she shall endure very heavy calamities, and from within shall obtain no aid or sympathy from her own children. These are two very sore evils which the Prophet relates. But it appears as if the division were not quite appropriate; for, after having related one evil, that there is none to bewail her, he enumerates four kinds —
Desolation and destruction, and the sword and famine. Some explain it to mean that the Church is visited by famine within, and harassed by enemies without. But I interpret it differently, as I have already hinted; for it is very customary among Hebrew writers to put a question, when they wish absolutely to deny anything; and among them it is elegant, though in Greek or Latin authors it would be ungraceful. Isaiah therefore describes “two evils,” one external, for both by the devastations of “war” and by “famine” they will be brought to the verge of “destruction” and “desolation,” which he describes by these four classes; and another internal, because she is deprived of consolation, and “there is none to bewail her.” By putting the question, “Who shall bewail her?” he affirms that she shall have no consolation; and this verse agrees with the former, in which we have already explained the design which the Prophet has in view, in describing this highly calamitous and wretched condition of the Church.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(19) These two things . . .The two things are amplified into four: (1) the two effects, and (2) the two causes.
Who shall be sorry for thee?Better, Be sorry with thee, or who shall console thee? Even Jehovah is represented as failing, or seeming to fail, in finding a comforter for such affliction.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Isa 51:19 These two [things] are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort thee?
Ver. 19. These two things are come unto thee. ] As they seldom are separated; as some write of the asp, that he never wanders alone without his companion.
Who shall be sorry for thee?
Desolation and destruction, and the famine and the sword,
By whom shall I comfort thee?
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
two things: Isa 47:9, Eze 14:21
are come: Heb. happened
who shall: Job 2:11, Psa 69:20, Jer 9:17-21, Lam 1:9, Lam 1:12, Lam 1:17, Amo 7:2
destruction: Heb. breaking
by whom: Isa 22:4, Isa 61:2, Job 42:11, Ecc 4:1, Lam 1:16, Amo 7:2, 2Co 7:6, 2Co 7:7, 2Co 7:13, 2Th 2:16, 2Th 2:17
Reciprocal: Psa 107:12 – he brought Jer 15:5 – For who Jer 24:10 – General Lam 1:2 – none Lam 3:47 – Fear Nah 3:7 – who Joh 11:19 – to comfort
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
51:19 These two {q} [things] have come to thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort thee?
(q) Of which the one is outward as of the things that come to the body, as war, and famine and the other is inward, and belongs to the mind: that is, to be without comfort: therefore he says “How will you be comforted?”
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Widowhood and childlessness had befallen Israel (cf. Isa 47:9), and there were none to mourn for her. Furthermore, devastation, destruction, famine, and the sword had overtaken her. Since she deserved her punishment, the Lord could not comfort her as He could have if she had been an innocent victim.