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Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 60:1

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Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

1. for thy light is come ] Cf. ch. Isa 58:8; Isa 58:10, Isa 59:9. It is the light of the promised salvation, so long looked for in vain. The perfect tenses are used from the ideal standpoint of the future.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

1 3. The image in these strikingly beautiful verses is that of a city glittering in the first rays of the morning sun. Zion is no doubt addressed in the feminine gender, but the personification is much less complete than in ch. Isa 49:18 ff., Isa 51:17 ff., Isa 52:1 ff., Isa 54:1 ff. The name “Jerusalem” is inserted by the LXX., Targ. and Vulg., but the addition is unnecessary (cf. Isa 54:1).

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Arise – This is evidently addressed to the church, or to Zion regarded as the seat of the church. It is represented as having been in a state of affliction and calamity (compare the notes at Isa 3:26; Isa 52:1-2). She is now called on to arise from the dust, and to impart to others the rich privileges which were conferred on her.

Shine – ( ‘ory). Lowth renders this, Be thou enlightened. Margin, Be enlightened, for thy light cometh. Noyes, Enjoy light. Septuagint Photizou photizou – Be enlightened; be enlightened, O Jerusalem. Herder renders it, Be light. Vitringa regards the expression as equivalent to this, pass into a state of light. That is, enjoy light thyself, and impart it freely to others, Gesenius renders it, Shine, be bright; that is, be surrounded and resplendent with light. The idea probably is this, rise now from a state of obscurity and darkness. Enter into light; enter into times of prosperity. It is not so much a command to impart light to others as it is to be encompassed with light and glory. It is the language of prophecy rather than of command; a call rather to participate in the light that was shining than to impart it to others. The Septuagint and the Chaldee here add the name Jerusalem, and regard it as addressed directly to her.

Thy light is come – On the word light, see the notes at Isa 58:8, Isa 58:10. The light here referred to is evidently that of the gospel; and when the prophet says that that light is come, he throws himself into future times, and sees in vision the Messiah as having already come, and as pouring the light of salvation on a darkened church and world (compare the notes at Isa 9:2).

And the glory of the Lord – There is refer once here, doubtless, to the Shechinah or visible splendor which usuallv accompanied the manifestations of God to his people (see the notes at Isa 4:5). As Yahweh manifested himself in visible glory to the Israelites during their journey to the promised land, so he would manifest himself in the times of the Messiah as the glorious protector and guide of his people. The divine character and perfections would be manifested like the sun rising over a darkened world.

Is risen upon thee – As the sun rises. The word used here ( zarach) is commonly applied to the rising of the sun Gen 32:31; Exo 22:2; 2Sa 23:4; Psa 104:22. The comparison of the gospel to the sun rising upon a dark world is exceedingly beautiful, and often occurs in the Bible (compare Mal 4:2; Luk 1:78, margin.)

Upon thee – Upon thee, in contradistinction from other nations and people. The gospel shed its first beams of glory on Jerusalem.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Isa 60:1-12

Arise, shine; for thy light is come

The glory of spiritual Israel

Having repeatedly and fully shown that the national pro-eminence of Israel was not to be perpetual, that the loss of it was the natural consequence and righteous retribution of iniquity, and that their loss did not involve the destruction of the true Church or spiritual Israel, the prophet now proceeds to show that, to the latter, the approaching change would be a glorious and blessed one.

(J. A. Alexander.)

Isa 60:1-22 is the spiritual counterpart of a typical Eastern day

Isa 60:1-22 is the spiritual counterpart of a typical Eastern day with the dust laid and the darts taken out of the sunbeams,–a typical Eastern day in the sudden splendour of its dawn, the completeness and apparent permanence of its noon, the spaciousness it reveals on sea and land, and the barbaric profusion of life, which its strong light is sufficient to flood with glory. (Prof. G. A. Smith, D. D.)

Sunrise in the East

In the East the sun does not rise; the word is weak for an arrival almost too sudden for twilight. In the East the sun leaps above the horizon. You do not feel that he is coming, but that he is come. This first verse is suggested by the swiftness with which he bursts upon an Eastern city, and the shrouded form does not, as in our twilight, slowly unwrap itself, but shines at once, all plates and points of glory. Then the figure yields: for Jerusalem is not merely one radiant point in a world equally lighted by the sun, but is herself Jehovahs unique luminary. (Ibid.)

Thy light is come

The perfect tenses are used from the ideal standpoint of the future. (Prof. J. Skinner, D,D.)

Light breaking on the mountains

Any one who has spent much time among mountains will appreciate the imagery. Around is absolute blackness; the valleys are in gloom; trees, rivers, towns have been obscured; nothing is visible but that dim shaft of granite rising into the silence of the sky. Suddenly we may imagine a spirits voice crying, The light has come. Instantly there is a glow on the mountain–trees, rivers, towns begin to take shape; the whole world has changed. The point to be observed here is that the light was from God. The city was exhorted to be in a condition in which the glory of God might be reflected from it. The chapter describes the degradation of the rest of the world, the effect of the light on other peoples, how they would be attracted toward it; and contains near the end this outburst of victorious joy: The Lord shall be unto thee an ever lasting light, and thy God thy glory. This prophecy, was never literally fulfilled, and yet hundreds of years later a light did pour itself upon Mount Zion; it shone on the thickest darkness of the nations, and unto it ever since the people have been attracted. That prophecy was fulfilled in Christ. He is the Light. (A. H. Bradford, D. D.)

The Gospel era

I. THE GOSPEL ERA IS DISTINGUISHED BY A SPECIAL REVELATION OF DIVINE GLORY. The light that has come to the world is the glory of the Lord. What is the glory of the Lord We take the answer which the Eternal gave to the request of Moses, I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory. The reply was not, I will show thee the infinitude of My possessions, the boundlessness of My, dominions, the almightiness of My power, the immeasurable depths of My wisdom, but, I will cause all My goodness to pass before thee. The Gospel is a wonderful revelation of Gods goodness, in the form of amazing mercy towards a guilty world.

1. The glory of His goodness is seen in the gift of His Son. He spared not His own Son, etc.

2. The glory of His goodness is seen in the entire history of His Son. All the compassion, the tender love and mercy, which Christ displayed when on earth, were the reflected rays of Infinite goodness.

II. THE GOSPEL ERA IMPOSES A SPECIAL OBLIGATION UPON THE WORLD. Arise, shine.

1. Arise. Do not sleep while the rays of Divine goodness are streaming on you. Arise to thought, to penitence, to gratitude, to worship. Arise, discharge the duties and enjoy the advantages of a day flooded with the sun of mercy.

2. Shine. Reflect the rays of this goodness. Let this love of God be so shed abroad in thy heart, that it stream forth its radiance in thy every action, and bless the circle in which thou livest. Do not be as an opaque body, obstructing the rays and throwing a shadow over thy sphere; but be a mirror, to reflect every falling beam. (Homilist.)

Christ the light of the world

The words of the text comprise an exhortation to arise and shine; and a reason to enforce it,–thy light is come, the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

I. THE REASON. There is such a connection between ignorance and darkness, that the one is constantly put for the other in Scripture. If ignorance is justly termed darkness, so knowledge is properly compared to light. At the dawn of day, the traveller takes fresh courage; he perceives the path in which he should go, and proceeds on it rejoicing. In the same manner religious knowledge enlightens a man as to his true business in this life, and sets him to work out His salvation. And Christ is the Sun which sends forth this religious knowledge.

1. The sun, when it rises in the morning, dispels all clouds and mists and clews, and shows every object in its true colours. So, without that light which Christ has furnished by His Gospel, we cannot perceive those truths which it is most needful we should perceive.

2. The sun, when it shines above us, does more than enlighten every object. It nourishes, it invigorates. Without it, the sickly plant droops and decays, and brings no fruit to perfection. And the effect of the sun upon outward nature is a striking emblem of the influence of Christ upon the heart. In Him is life, vigorous, spiritual life; and the life is the light of men.

II. THE EXHORTATION. Arise, shine.

1. When the sun rises, and scatters the mists of night, he gives a summons to mankind to rise also, and set themselves to the discharge of their various duties. In the same manner, the appearance of Christ in the world is a summons to all who hear of His revelation, to arise. To awake out of the sleep of ignorance, the sleep of thoughtlessness, the sleep of sin, which are, in truth, the sleep of death; and to apply themselves, before the night cometh in which no man can work, to the business which God has appointed them to perform both for themselves and for Him.

2. The text requires that you not only arise, but that you shine. That Christ has risen in the world is nothing, unless He illuminates your hearts also. When the sun is up, and shines brightly upon any object, that which before was dark shines too; receives a brilliancy not its own, not natural to it. So is it likewise, when Christ illuminates the heart. It takes a new colouring, a light which by nature it had not. Enlightened by the Gospel, the simple becomes wise, and acquires the knowledge which is most truly valuable–the knowledge of duty towards God and man. Enlightened by the Gospel, he who was selfish and covetous is made liberal, and abounds in the feelings of brotherly kindness, and in the works of charity. Enlightened by the Gospel, he who was sensual becomes temperate and pure, and lets his moderation be known unto all men. The lover of this world becomes a lover of God, and sets his affections on things above. In this way the light which has shone upon them is reflected in their conduct, and is visible in their whole character. The sun shines; but some objects still continue dark and gloomy. Between them and the suns light other objects interpose, and prevent his beams from shining upon them. And so it is in the world of grace. (J. B. Sumner, M. A.)

The dawning of Gods light and its awakening call

I. THE DAWNING OF THE LIGHT. Thy light is come. If the light is always near, but the darkness is in mans heart and the blindness in his soul, we have to ask how the darkness passes away, and to point out the manner in which the glory of God dawns upon it, in order that we may see why its dawning is a summons to arise and shine. There are three requisites for its dawning–three stages in the history of the souls enlightenment.

1. Spiritual penitence.

2. Spiritual penitence must pass into spiritual love.

3. Spiritual love necessitates spiritual prayer.

II. THE AWAKENING CALL. Arise, shine. That summons is the inevitable result of the dawning of the light. When God is felt to be near a man thus–in penitence, love, and prayer, that man is imperatively bound to reflectthe glory which has risen in his heart; to bear witness of the light which has pierced and transformed his soul. Let us again observe that this is also based on a great principle, viz the deepest emotion in a mans nature must reveal itself in his life. I proceed to show the way in which the glory of the Lord thus manifests itself in life.

1. In the majesty of holiness.

2. In the beauty of unselfishness.

3. In the earnestness of your efforts for men, (E. L. Hull, B. A.)

The everlasting light

I. THE VOICE SPEAKS TO INDIVIDUALS. How few even realize their possibilities. We have had religious training, we have been taught to consider all questions as they appear in relation to God, we have grown up in a religious atmosphere, and yet the consciousness that no man is a true man until he reflects Jesus Christ in words, business, pleasures and thoughts is dim, and not even desired. The light has come; what does it find? It finds men absorbed and heedless, thinking only of what they can keep for a little while at best; not caring for their fellow-men; selfish and as impervious to higher motives as a granite rock to sunshine. The true glory of a man is to reflect Christ.

II. THE VOICE OF THE PROPHET REACHES THE CHURCH, both local and universal. The Church realizes its true mission only as it reflects the Divine light, which means, simply, realizes the life which was in Jesus Christ.

1. The Church should reflect Jesus in its worship. With Him worship was something essential and vital. Before every great act of His career He went apart from men to pray. The sources of His life were in God. Worship and prayer are the conduits along which flow streams of spiritual vitality. Is the Church a praying Church? Then it is continuing Christs work.

2. The Church lives to repeat the teaching of Jesus.

3. In like manner the Church should reflect Jesus in the service of humanity. It lives to continue His ministry. The most hospitable place in every community ought to be the Church of Christ. Has any one a grief? Let him go to the Church. Are any lonely? Let them go to the Church. Have any disgraced themselves and their friends? Let them seek the Church and its help. But will all these various classes find there a welcome? Not only within its walls, but outside also the Church should serve humanity in the spirit of Christ.

III. THIS CRY OF THE PROPHET COMES TO NATIONS. Nations, as well as individuals and Churches, exist to continue the Incarnation. That nation has not begun to realize its possibilities which has not learned that its superlative privilege is the manifestation of Jesus Christ. What do I mean? That the function of government is not only the protection of the people, but the service of humanity. John Milton truly said that the State is only a huge man. In the vision of the prophet when the light broke upon the sides of Mount Zion the nations saw the glory and were attracted by it (verses 3, 14). The most beautiful thing in this world is the character of Jesus Christ; nothing else so wins men. (A. H. Bradford, D. D.)

Arise, shine!

I. TO WHOM THE CHARGE IS ADDRESSED. To the Church of Christ. This is evident from the context. Further, it appears from the nature of the charge that it can apply only to the Church. There is none else on earth capable of at once fulfilling the charge. The world cannot, for it is essentially dark–darkness covers the earth. The Church is compared to reflected and artificial lights. Christ enlightens the world through His Church.

II. THE CHARGE ITSELF. This is a twofold charge implying two distinct acts.

1. Arise. This implies that the Church is in the meantime in a prostrate condition; her place is in the dust. This may be partly in penitence. It may indicate a state of affliction and mourning; the Church may be sitting in sackcloth. But chiefly it implies a state of sloth, worldliness, carnality. Whatever be the cause of this prostration the Church is directed to rise from the dust now.

2. Shine. Christ shall give thee light for this very purpose; not merely to enlighten yourself, to impart life and joy to you, but that you may shine, give light to the world. And this applies both to the Church as a whole and to the members of the Church individually. There are two ways in which those who have been enlightened by Christ may give light. On the one hand, by simply shining, each one in his sphere, as a separate light, perhaps in the midst of darkness. On the other hand, by kindling other lights.

III. THE ARGUMENT BY WHICH IT IS ENFORCED. Thy light is come, etc. The Church has no independent light of her own, cannot shine of herself; and so, such an encouragement as this is needed. Thy light–this must mean Christ Himself, for He is the light of the Church. Is come – Christ did not come till seven or eight hundred years after this prophecy was delivered. But the prophet refers to Gospel times. Accordingly the Church did arise and shine at that time more brightly and auspiciously than she had ever done before. (C. G. Scott.)

An arousing call

There are some Christian men who have wasted a large part of their lives for want of somebody or something to wake them up. There is more evil wrought in the world by want of thought than by downright malice, and there is more good left undone through want of thought than through any aversion to the doing of good. Some Christians appear to have been born in the land of slumber, and they continually live in their native country of dreams. They rub their eyes occasionally, and suppose themselves to be wide awake; but they are in the Enchanted Ground, and, though they know it not, they are little better than sleep-walkers the most of their days. (C. H. Spurgeon.)

Shining Christians

I. To Gods own people this is my first message, REMEMBER YOUR PRIVILEGE. Your light has come.

1. Recollect out of what darkness that light has delivered you.

2. This light, which God has given you, is His own glory. And the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. Byron speaks of God S face being mirrored in the sea; but there is not space enough for the face of Deity to be fully reflected in the broad Atlantic, or in all the oceans put together. The image of God is to be fully seen in Jesus Christ, and nowhere else; for there you behold attributes which Creation cannot display.

3. There is also this blessed thing to be said about this light; you will never lose it (Isa 60:20).

II. I WANT TO ROUSE YOU TO SERVICE. Arise, shine; for, etc. Since your light has come, shine–

1. By holy cheerfulness.

2. By a gracious godliness.

3. By zealous earnestness.

4. By a secret bravery.

III. I WANT TO RALLY YOU TO THIS SHINING BY ONE OR TWO ARGUMENTS.

1. By the worlds great need (Isa 60:2).

2. Because of the great results that will surely come of it (Isa 60:3).

3. Because of the great blessing it will bring to the Church (Isa 60:13, etc.).

4. That I may be glorified (Isa 60:21). (C. H. Spurgeon.)

The Epiphany: Christ manifested

I. THE STATE OF THE WORLD BEFORE THE LIGHT OF THE GOSPEL AROSE.

II. THE OBJECT OF THE PRESENT DISPENSATION.

III. THE FUTURE CONSUMMATION. (G. Huntington, M. A.)

The God-lit Church

The old story is repeated; Zion sits in the light while Egypt cowers in gloom. The light which shines upon her is the glory of the Lord, the ancient brightness that dwelt between the cherubim within the veil in the secret place of the Most High, and is now come out in the open world to envelop the desolate captive. Thus touched by the light she becomes light, and in her turn is bidden to shine. There is a very remarkable correspondence reiterated in my text between the illuminating God and the illuminated Zion. The word for shine is connected with the word for light, and might fairly be rendered lighten or be light. Twice the phrase thy light is employed; once to mean the light which is thine because it shines on thee; once to mean the light which is thine because it shines from thee. The other word, three times repeated, for rising is the technical word which expresses the sunrise, and it is applied both to the flashing glory that falls upon Zion, and to the light that gleams from her. Touched by the sun she becomes a sun, and blazes in her heaven in a splendour that draws mens hearts.

I. AS TO THE FACT. Beneath the poetry of my text there lie very definite conceptions of a very solemn and grave character and these conceptions are the foundation of the ringing summons that follows and which reposes upon a double basis–viz. for thy light is come, and for darkness covers the earth. There is a double element in the representation. We have a darkened earth and a sunlit and a sun-like Church, and unless we hold these two convictions in firm grasp, and that not merely as convictions that influence our understanding, but as ever-present forces acting on our emotions, our consciences, our wills, we shall not do the work God has set us to do in the world. If we take the sulphurous and smoky pall that wraps the earth and analyze its contents, they are these: the darkness of ignorance, the darkness of sorrow, the darkness of sin. On the other side, remember the contrasted picture here of the sunlit and sunny Church. The incarnation of Jesus Christ is the fulfilment Of my text, We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. If you and I are Christians, we are bound to believe in Him as the exclusive source of certainty. We hear from Him no Peradventue, but His word is Verily verily, I say unto thee, and on that we rest all our knowledge of God, of duty, of man, and of the future. If we have the light we shall be light. That is but putting in a picturesque form the very central truth of Christianity. The last word of the Gospel is transformation. We become like Him if we live near to Him, and the end for which the Master became like unto us in His incarnation and passion, was that we might become like to Him by the reception of His very own life unto our souls. These two convictions of these two facts, the dark earth, the sunlit, sun-like Church, lie at the basis of an our missionary work.

II. WE HAVE BASED UPON THESE TWO FACTS THE SUMMONS TO THE CHURCH. Shine, for thy light is come. If we have light, we are light: if we are light, we shall shine; but the shining is not altogether spontaneous and effortless. Stars do not need to be bidden to shine, nor candles either; but we need the exhortation because there are many things that thwart the brilliance and the clearance of our minds. The command suggests effort, and the effort may be in the direction of the specific vocal proclamation of His name. If we are light, we shall be able to shine; if we are light, we are bound to shine; if we are light, we shall want to shine.

III. THE CONFIDENT PROMISE. The Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. If we have the light we shall be light; if we are light we shall shine, and if we shine we shall attract. A painter will fling upon his canvas a scene that you and I, with our purblind eyes, have looked at hundreds of times and seen no beauty in it, but when we gaze on the picture then we see how fair it is. There is an attractive power in the light of Christ shining from the face era man. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)

An imperial ministry

This is a great statesmans vision unveiling the moral and spiritual possibilities of a people. The prophet is primarily addressing his speech to an awakening nation. To direct a nations views is to shape its policies, and to determine the trend and colour of its life. What, then, shall be the elements of an efficient and fruitful ideal? The Lord shall arise upon thee, etc. (Isa 60:2-3). What are the constituent elements in the vision? Light and glory. A certain light, the element of illumination, charity, and simplicity of thought; a certain heat, the element of fervour, warm and expansive sympathies; a certain gravity, the element of impressiveness, weight and strength of moral principle. But the glory of the ideal is still further enriched and intensified. We cannot take Isaiahs ideal and employ it with Isaiahs limitation; we must carry over his vocabulary into the fuller day and let it receive enlargement in the life and mind of Christ. Light, interpreted by the character of the Master, means the absence of shady compromise, sunlit definiteness of purpose, the clear discernment of essentials. Heat, interpreted by the character of the Master, means, an ardent inclusiveness of sympathy, cosmopolitan in its pervasion. Gravity, glory, interpreted by the character of the Master, is significant of moral weight, incorruptible spiritual ambition, unconquerable virtue, whether illustrated in the light of a marriage-feast, or in the sombre experience of Pilates judgment-bar. Arise! , Stand erect and set thy face towards the burning vision, and thou shalt shine with reflected glory. By contemplating the Divine thou shalt incarnate the heart of thy contemplation. The Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee, and thy imperial treasure shall be found in thy shining notabilities, in the radiant motives and ambitions of thy common life. We have seen this transfiguring ministry at work in the life of the individual. But we may be more than a little doubtful as to whether the vision will also serve and ennoble the community. Well, where is the line of transition? Surely, even in the nation we have again and again witnessed the transforming influence of the grand ideal. It was even so with the later experiences of the eighteenth century. The breaking up of formality, the melting of callousness, the opening out of rivers of philanthropy, the enlarged and sweetened life of our people, the enlightened measure of emancipation, can be directly traced to a strange warming of the nations heart, resulting from a restored contemplation of the light and glory of God. The prophets vision reveals an imperial deal, and unveils the only permanent imperial treasure.

1. The imperial character is to be creative of imperial unity (verse 4). There is to be an enrichment of the home, a consolidation of the family, a knitting together of the finer fellowships of the nation. And mark how this statesman describes the large characteristics of the communion. Then shalt thou see and flow together. It is to be an open-eyed communion, an illumined, society, a fellowship of transparent aims and aspirations. Thine heart shall fear; the fellowship is not to be flippant, light-hearted, and vain; it is to be possessed by the pervasive influence of reverence, that saving element which preserves the sense of true perspective, and gives everything the setting of a just proportion. And be enlarged; the fellowship is not to be fixed and exclusive; its sympathies are to be elastic and expansive, reaching out in ever enlarging circles of interest and regard.

2. The imperial unity is to be the minister of a world-wide illumination. And nations shall come to thy light, etc. (verse 3). If this be the true portrayal of imperial welfare, may we not infer the consequent obligations which rest upon the leaders of the people? The first essential of efficient public ministry is a large and exalted aim. The true aim of every true leader is to build up the moral energy of the people. To give ourselves to the production of superior men–this is the aim which should possess the minds and hearts of all who exercise leadership among their fellow-men. An aim like this, definitely and personally expressed, and pursued with undeviating consistency, will preserve a man from those perils of benumbment which seem to attach themselves to every public ministry. (J. H.Jowett, M. A.)

The privilege and prerogative of the Christian Church

The Church is promised an extraordinary measure of light and glory; an immense increase in the number of her adherents, universal exaltation in the eyes of her enemies, and permanent safety and happiness.

I. THE DIVINE ILLUMINATION WHICH THE CHURCH RECEIVED. Thy light is come, etc. The text suggests–

1. The nature of this illumination. It embraces–

(1) The light of Divine revelation.

(2) The light of the Gospel dispensation.

(3) The light of the Holy Spirits teaching.

2. The necessity of this illumination. The Church existed in a dark age; intellectual, moral, and spiritual darkness prevailed everywhere. This was preeminently the case when Christ came. This was–

(1) The darkness of moral guilt.

(2) The darkness of religious error.

(3) The darkness of spiritual ignorance. This darkness was deep, profound, awful.

3. The beauty of this illumination. The glory of the Lord, etc. Allusion is probably made to the Shechinah. God manifested Himself to His people, and shone upon them in the glory of His grace and mercy.

4. The source of this illumination. Thy light is come, etc. It emanated from a Divine source. It was derived, not inherent. The Church is not the fountain of light, but the medium of it. It is called thy light because it was the exclusive or peculiar prerogative of the Church. It does not come from the Church, but is given to it, for its benefit and use.

II. THE PERMANENT OBLIGATION WHICH THE CHURCH INCURS IN RELATION TO IT. The Church is a Divine institution, raised up for a specific purpose. Its work is to teach men the truth of God and to testify of the grace of God. But she sometimes fails fully to realize her obligations, privileges, prerogatives, and responsibilities. Here she is enjoined–

1. To arise. She must arise from spiritual apathy, lethargy, and obscurity, take her legitimate position before the world, and faithfully discharge her obligations. Here is a loud call–

(1) To behold the light, and hail it with joy.

(2) To receive the light.

(3) To utilize the light.

2. To shine. Privilege confers responsibility. Every fresh accession of spiritual illumination or power increases her influence and responsibility. The Church is a luminous body, and must shine with heavenly lustre.

(1) For its own sake and benefit. It must gladly participate in the light that shines upon it from above, and be encompassed with light and glory. It should at all times be radiant with the beauty of holiness.

(2) For the sake and benefit of others. Not only is it to participate in the light, but to become the grand medium and means of imparting it. Like the reflector to the lamp, it is to collect, receive, and reflect its rays for the benefit of those needing its light. How is the Church to shine? By the beauty of her teaching. By the perfection of her example. By the purity of her doctrine. By the exemplification of her principles. By the grandeur of her life. By the vitality of her organizations. By the vigour of her activity. Like the light in the lighthouse, the light of the Church, in every age, is to shine conspicuously, constantly, cheerfully, and without fail.

III. THE GRAND PREDICTION WHICH THE CHURCH IS ULTIMATELY TO REALIZE. And the Gentiles, etc. This was partially accomplished soon after the rise of the Church, when thousands of the Gentiles walked in this light. When a few years elapsed, the Roman Emperor and many other kings ostensibly opened their eyes to the beams of light shed on the world by the Church. Large accessions are being made, and her power and influence are growing and will extend till the Gospel shall universally triumph over error, ignorance, and ungodliness. (J. S. Spilsbury.)

The Church: her functions and her blessedness

I. THE CHURCH HAS THE LARGEST SCOPE. Nations come to her light, kings to the brightness of her rising. She is world-wide and universal.

II. THE CHURCH BEARS THE CLEAREST WITNESS. She arises. She shines. When she pulses and palpitates with the life of God, how impressive is her trumpet-call! It penetrates far. It arouses multitudes.

III. THE CHURCH DOES THE MOST GLORIOUS WORK. Who are these that fly to her as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? Her Lord in her saves and edifies His sons and daughters, convinces and converts and comforts.

IV. THE CHURCH ENJOYS THE MOST LASTING BLESSEDNESS. In His favour her King has mercy on her. He never fails nor forsakes her. He leads her members just now in green pastures and by the waters of quietness. He will bring them by-and-by to the Lovely city in a lovely land. (A. Smellie, M. A.)

The true light of man

I. THE TRUE LIGHT OF MAN IS THE MEDIATORIAL REVELATION OF GOD (Isa 60:1).

II. THIS TRUE LIGHT OF MAN WILL ONE DAY BE UNIVERSALLY DIFFUSED (Isa 60:3).

III. THE UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION OF THIS LIGHT WILL EFFECT A WONDERFUL REVOLUTION IN THE WORLD (Isa 60:5-11).

IV. THE PEOPLE WHO, UNDER THIS LIGHT, WILL NOT SERVE THE TRUE GOD, MUST INEVITABLY BE RUINED (Isa 60:12). (Homilist.)

Christ our Light

Light makes many a surface on which it falls flash, but it is the rays which are not absorbed that are reflected in the optics of earth; but in this loftier region the deviation is not superficial but inward, and it is the light which is swallowed up within us that then comes forth from us. Christ will dwell in our hearts, and we shall be like some poor little diamond-shaped bit of glass in a cottage window which, when the sun smites it, is visible over miles of the plain. And if that sun falls upon us, its image will be mirrored in our hearts, and flashing in our lives. The clouds that lie over the sunset, though in themselves they be but poor, grey and moist vapour, when smitten by its beneficent radiance become not unworthy ministers and attendants upon its glory. So it may be with us, for Christ comes to be our light. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)

The shining of the common place

One summer day, when walking in Surrey, on the slope of a hill–the sun setting behind me–right away across the valley I espied a most remarkable light. It was more brilliant than electric light, and seemed to rise from the ground. At first I supposed that some one had lit a fire with resinous wood that sparkled and flashed, but there was evidently no smoke. It seemed as though some angel had dropped a brilliant star down there upon the ploughed field, and that it was burning itself out. Finally, on my reaching the spot, I discovered that an old piece of broken glass had caught the light of the setting sun, and was bathed in a supernatural glow. An old piece of bottle-glass–yet so brilliant–the bottle-glass not being visible, because of the light that shone on it! (Life of Faith.)

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

CHAPTER LX

The glorious prospect displayed in this chapter seems to have

elevated the prophet even above his usual majesty. The subject

is the very flourishing condition of the Church of Jesus Christ

at that period of the Gospel dispensation when both Jews and

Gentiles shall become one fold under one Shepherd. The imagery

employed is of the most consolatory and magnificent

description. This blessed state of the world shall follow a

time of gross darkness, 1, 2.

The universal diffusion of vital godliness beautifully set

forth by a great variety of images, 3-14.

The everlasting duration and spotless purity of this kingdom of

Christ, 15-21.

A time appointed in the counsels of Jehovah for the

commencement of this happy period; and when this time arrives,

the particulars of the prophecy shall have a speedy

accomplishment, 22.

The subject of this chapter is the great increase and flourishing state of the Church of God by the conversion and accession of the heathen nations to it, which is set forth in such ample and exalted terms, as plainly show that the full completion of this prophecy is reserved for future times. This subject is displayed in the most splendid colours under a great variety of images highly poetical, designed to give a general idea of the glories of that perfect state of the Church of God which we are taught to expect in the latter times; when the fulness of the Gentiles shall come in, and the Jews shall be converted and gathered from their dispersions, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ.

Of the use in prophecy of general or common poetical images, in setting forth the greatness and importance of a future event universally, without descending to particulars, or too minutely explaining circumstances, I have already pretty largely treated in the twentieth prelection on the Hebrew poetry; and have more than once observed in these notes that such images are not always to he applied particularly to persons and things, and were never intended to be minutely explained. I shall add here the opinion of a very learned and judicious person upon this subject: “It is, I think, a mark of right understanding in the language of prophecy, and in the design of prophecy too, to keep to what appears the design and meaning of the prophecy in general, and what the whole of it laid together points out to us, and not to suffer a warm imagination to mislead us from the real intention of the spirit of prophecy, by following uncertain applications of the parts of it.” Lowman on the Revelation, note on Re 19:21. – L. To this testimony I must add my own. This is one of the most glorious chapters in the whole of the Old Testament. The splendour, glory, and excellence of the Church of Christ are here pointed out in language which the Spirit of God alone is capable of using. But when shall this state of blessedness take place? Lord, thou only knowest.

NOTES ON CHAP. LX

Verse 1. Arise] Call upon God through Christ, for his salvation; and,

Shine] ori, be illuminated: for till thou arise and call upon God, thou wilt never receive true light.

For thy light is come] ki ba orech, for thy light cometh. The Messiah is at the door; who, while he is a light to lighten the Gentiles, will be the glory – the effulgence, of his people Israel.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

Arise; a word of encouragement accommodated to the Jewish or Hebrew style, wherein, as by lying down is described a servile and calamitous condition, Isa 47:1; so by rising, and standing up, a recovery out of it into a free and prosperous one, as may be seen frequently. Rouse up; intimating her deliverance to be at hand. And here under a type, or hieroglyphical description of Jerusalems restoration, is displayed the flourishing state of the Gentile church under the Messiah, and that in the greatness, for quality, and also the number of her proselytes; in the description whereof the evangelical prophet, whatever he doth in other parts of his prophecy, doth here most briskly sparkle forth in Divine eloquence. Shine; discover thyself as one breaking forth from a dark night; or, look out, as men do at sea, who use to look out sharp, to see what they can discover after a dark and stormy season; or, be enlightened with more knowledge; or, be thou filled with joy; a metaphorical metonymy of the efficient; as thou art about to change thy condition, change thy countenance; be cheerful in that light or salvation that is approaching. Thy light; either,

1. Thy flourishing and prosperous estate; an allusion to peoples rising, when after a dark night the light breaks forth. they begin to rise. Or,

2. The causer of thy light, the effect for the efficient, viz. thy God, or Christ, because the fountain of all happiness, as the sun and moon are called lights, because they give light, Gen 1:16. Thus Christ is called the true Light, Joh 1:9; and compare Joh 8:12, with Eph 5:14, and you will find these words quoted to that purpose. The glory of the Lord, i.e. the greatest glory, as the cedars of God, the mountains of God, &c.: compare Rev 21:11; or, the glorious Lord, or the Lord of glory, or Christ, who is the glory of the Father, is come unto thee; he is at hand to make himself glorious in some wonderful work for thy salvation, either in his doctrine, or miracles, or work of redemption, that his glory may rest upon thee, suitable to the psalmists prayer, Psa 85:6,7,9. Is risen; like as when the sun spreads itself into every place, leaving none dark: thus it refers to the glorious gospel, called such a glorious light, 2Co 4:4.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

1. Arisefrom the dust inwhich thou hast been sitting as a mourning female captive (Isa 3:26;Isa 52:1; Isa 52:2).

shineor, “beenlightened; for thy light cometh”; impart to others thespiritual light now given thee (Isa60:3). The Margin and GESENIUStranslate, “Be enlightened”; be resplendent with posterity;imperative for the future indicative, “Thou shalt beenlightened” (Isa 58:8;Isa 58:10; Eph 5:8;Eph 5:14).

glory of the Lordnotmerely the Shekinah, or cloud of glory, such as rested above the arkin the old dispensation, but the glory of the Lord in person (Jer 3:16;Jer 3:17).

is risenas the sun(Mal 4:2; Luk 1:78,Margin).

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Arise, shine,…. The Targum adds, “O Jerusalem”; and so the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Arabic versions; and no doubt but the church of God is here addressed: and by what follows it seems to be the Jewish church, as distinct from the Gentiles, since they are said to come to it, the Jews, now converted, and brought into a church state; and who are called upon to arise out of their low dejected state and condition, in which they have long lain, and “shine”: or to “awake”, as some p render it, out of that sleep and lethargy they have been so long in, and to shine forth in the exercise of grace and discharge of duty: or to be “enlightened” q; with the light of Christ and of the Gospel, now come unto them; and to diffuse this light to others, to hold it forth in profession and conversation; see Mt 5:16

for thy light is come: the Targum,

“for the time of thy redemption is come;”

meaning from the Babylonish captivity, which that paraphrase refers to: but this is not intended here, but the spiritual prosperity and happiness of the Jews in the latter day, at the time of their conversion; and the sense is, either that Christ, the Light of the world, was come unto them in a spiritual way; or that the glorious light of the Gospel of Christ was come unto them, and shone upon them; or the time was come that the blindness that had been so long upon them should be taken oft, and the veil be taken away they had been so long covered with, and they be turned to the Lord, the fulness of the Gentiles now being about to be brought in; see Ro 11:25:

and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee; or the glorious Lord; he, whose glory is to be seen, as the glory of the only begotten, who is the brightness of his Father’s glory, the sun of righteousness; who shall now, rise upon these, and, leave a glory upon them that shall be visible.

p “expergiscere”, Grotius. q “illuminare”, Pagninus, Montanus Piscator.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

It is still night. The inward and outward condition of the church is night; and if it is night followed by a morning, it is so only for those who “against hope believe in hope.” The reality which strikes the senses is the night of sin, of punishment, of suffering, and of mourning – a long night of nearly seventy years. In this night, the prophet, according to the command of God, has bee prophesying of the coming light. In his inward penetration of the substance of his own preaching, he has come close to the time when faith is to be turned to sight. And now in the strength of God, who has made him the mouthpiece of His own creative fiat, he exclaims to the church, Isa 60:1: “Arise, grow light; for thy light cometh, and the glory of Jehovah riseth upon thee.” The appeal so addressed to Zion-Jerusalem, which is regarded (as in Isa 49:18; Isa 50:1; Isa 52:1-2; Isa 54:1) as a woman, and indeed as the mother of Israel. Here, however, it is regarded as the church redeemed from banishment, and settled once more in the holy city and the holy land, the church of salvation, which is now about to become the church of glory. Zion lies prostrate on the ground, smitten down by the judgment of God, brought down to the ground by inward prostration, and partly overcome by the sleep of self-security. She now hears the cry, “Arise” ( qum ). This is not a mere admonition, but a word of power which puts new life into her limbs, so that she is able to rise from the ground, on which she has lain, as it were, under the ban. The night, which has brought her to the ground mourning, and faint, and intoxicated with sleep, is now at an end. The mighty word qum , “arise,” is supplemented by a second word: ‘or . What creative force there is in these two trochees , qum ‘or , which hold on, as it were, till what they express is accomplished; and what force of consolation in the two iambi, ki – bha ‘orekh , which affix, as it were, to the acts of Zion the seal of the divine act, and add to the (or elevation) its (or foundation)! Zion is to become light; it is to, because it can. But it cannot of itself, for in itself it has no light, because it has so absolutely given itself up to sin; but there is a light which will communicate itself to her, viz., the light which radiates from the holy nature of God Himself. And this light is salvation, because the Holy One loves Zion: it is also glory, because it not only dispels the darkness, but sets itself, all glorious as it is, in the place of the darkness. Zarach is the word commonly applied to the rising of the sun (Mal 4:2). The sun of suns is Jehovah (Psa 84:12), the God who is coming (Isa 59:20).

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

The Extension of the Church.

B. C. 706.

1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. 4 Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. 5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. 6 The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall show forth the praises of the LORD. 7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. 8 Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

It is here promised that the gospel temple shall be very lightsome and very large.

I. It shall be very lightsome: Thy light has come. When the Jews returned out of captivity they had light and gladness, and joy and honour; they then were made to know the Lord and to rejoice in his great goodness; and upon both accounts their light came. When the Redeemer came to Zion he brought light with him, he himself came to be a light. Now observe, 1. What this light is, and whence it springs: The Lord shall arise upon thee (v. 2), the glory of the Lord (v. 1) shall be seen upon thee. God is the father and fountain of lights, and it is in his light that we shall see light. As far as we have the knowledge of God in us, and the favour of God towards us, our light has come. When God appears to us, and we have the comfort of his favour, then the glory of the Lord rises upon us as the morning light; when he appears for us, and we have the credit of his favour, when he shows us some token for good and proclaims his favour to us, then his glory is seen upon us, as it was upon Israel in the pillar of cloud and fire. When Christ arose as the sun of righteousness, and in him the day-spring from on high visited us, then the glory of the Lord was seen upon us, the glory as of the first-begotten of the Father. 2. What a foil there shall be to this light: Darkness shall cover the earth; but, though it be gross darkness, darkness that might be felt, like that of Egypt, that shall overspread the people, yet the church, like Goshen, shall have light at the same time. When the case of the nations that have not the gospel shall be very melancholy, those dark corners of the earth being full of the habitations of cruelty to poor souls, the state of the church shall be very pleasant. 3. What is the duty which the rising of this light calls for: “Arise, shine; not only receive this light, and” (as the margin reads it) “be enlightened by it, but reflect this light; arise and shine with rays borrowed from it.” The children of light ought to shine as lights in the world. If God’s glory be seen upon us to our honour, we ought not only with our lips, but in our lives, to return the praise of it to his honour,Mat 5:16; Phi 2:15.

II. It shall be very large. When the Jews were settled again in their own land, after their captivity, many of the people of the land joined themselves to them; but it does not appear that there ever was any such numerous accession to them as would answer the fulness of this prophecy; and therefore we must conclude that this looks further, to the bringing of the Gentiles into the gospel church, not their flocking to one particular place, though under that type it is here described. There is no place now that is the centre of the church’s unity; but the promise respects their flocking to Christ, and coming by faith, and hope, and holy love, into that society which is incorporated by the charter of his gospel, and of the unity of which he only is the centre–that family which is named from him, Eph. iii. 15. The gospel church is expressly called Zion and Jerusalem, and under that notion all believers are said to come to it (Heb. xii. 22. You have come unto Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem), which serves for a key to this prophecy, Eph. ii. 19. Observe,

1. What shall invite such multitudes to the church: “They shall come to thy light and to the brightness of thy rising, v. 3. They shall be allured to join themselves to thee,” (1.) “By the light that shines upon thee,” the light of the glorious gospel, which the churches hold forth, in consequence of which they are called golden candlesticks. This light which discovers so much of God and his good will to man, by which life and immortality are brought to light, this shall invite all the serious well-affected part of mankind to come and join themselves to the church, that they may have the benefit of this light to inform them concerning truth and duty. (2.) “By the light with which thou shinest.” The purity and love of the primitive Christians, their heavenly-mindedness, contempt of the world, and patient sufferings, were the brightness of the church’s rising, which drew many into it. The beauty of holiness was the powerful attractive by which Christ had a willing people brought to him in the day of his power, Ps. cx. 3.

2. What multitudes shall come to the church. Great numbers shall come, Gentiles (or nations) of those that are saved, as it is expressed with allusion to this, Rev. xxi. 24. Nations shall be discipled (Matt. xxviii. 19), and even kings, men of figure, power, and influence, shall be added to the church. They come from all parts (v. 4): Lift up thy eyes round about, and see them coming, devout men out of every nation under heaven, Acts ii. 5. See how white the fields are already to the harvest, John iv. 35. See them coming in a body, as one man, and with one consent: They gather themselves together, that they may strengthen one another’s hands, and encourage one another. Come, and let us go, ch. ii. 3. “They come from the remotest parts: They come to thee from far, having heard the report of thee, as the queen of Sheba, or seen thy star in the east, as the wise men, and they will not be discouraged by the length of the journey from coming to thee. There shall come some of both sexes. Sons and daughters shall come in the most dutiful manner, as thy sons and thy daughters, resolved to be of thy family, to submit to the laws of thy family and put themselves under the tuition of it. They shall come to be nursed at thy side, to have their education with thee from their cradle.” The church’s children must be nursed at her side, not sent out to be nursed among strangers; there, where alone the unadulterated milk of the word is to be had, must the church’s new-born babes be nursed, that they may grow thereby,1Pe 2:1; 1Pe 2:2. Those that would enjoy the dignities and privileges of Christ’s family must submit to the discipline of it.

3. What they shall bring with them and what advantage shall accrue to the church by their accession to it. Those that are brought into the church by the grace of God will be sure to bring all they are worth in with them, which with themselves they will devote to the honour and service of God and do good with in their places. (1.) The merchants shall write holiness to the Lord upon their merchandise and their hire, as ch. xxiii. 18. “The abundance of the sea, either the wealth that is fetched out of the sea (the fish, the pearls) or that which is imported by sea, shall all be converted to thee and to thy use.” The wealth of the rich merchants shall be laid out in works of piety and charity. (2.) The mighty men of the nations shall employ their might in the service of the church: “The forces, or troops, of the Gentiles shall come unto thee, to guard thy coasts, strengthen thy interests, and, if occasion be, to fight thy battles.” The forces of the Gentiles had often been against the church, but now they shall be for it; for as God, when he pleases, can, and, when we please him, will, make even our enemies to be at peace with us (Prov. xvi. 7), so, when Christ overcomes the strong man armed, he divides his spoils, and makes that to serve his interests which had been used against them, Luke xi. 22. (3.) The wealth imported by land-carriage, as well as that by sea, shall be made use of in the service of God and the church (v. 6): The camels and dromedaries that bring gold and incense (gold to make the golden altar of and incense and sweet perfumes to burn upon it), those of Midian and Sheba, shall bring the richest commodities of their country, not to trade with, but to honour God with, and not in small quantities, but camel-loads of them. This was in part fulfilled when the wise men of the east (perhaps some of the countries here mentioned), drawn by the brightness of the star, came to Christ, and presented to him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, Matt. ii. 11. (4.) Great numbers of sacrifices shall be brought to God’s altar, acceptable sacrifices, and, though brought by Gentiles, they shall find acceptance, v. 7. Kedar was famous for flocks, and probably the fattest rams were those of Nebaioth; these shall come up with acceptance on God’s altar. God must be served and honoured with what we have, according as he has blessed us, and with the best we have. This was fulfilled when by the decree of Darius the governors beyond the rivers (perhaps of some of these countries) were ordered to furnish the temple at Jerusalem with bullocks, rams, and lambs, for the burnt-offering of the God of heaven, Ezra vi. 9. It had a further accomplishment, and we trust will have, in the bringing in of the fulness of the Gentiles to the church, which is called the sacrificing or offering up of the Gentiles unto God, Rom. xv. 16. The flocks and rams are precious souls; for they are said to minister to the church, and to come up as living sacrifices, presenting themselves to God by a reasonable service on his altar, Rom. xii. 1.

4. How God shall be honoured by the increase of the church and the accession of such numbers to it. (1.) They shall intend the honour of God’s name in it. When they bring their gold and incense it shall not be to show the riches of their country, nor to gain applause to themselves for piety and devotion, but to show forth the praises of the Lord, v. 6. Our greatest services and gifts to the church are not acceptable further than we have an eye to the glory of God in them. And this must be our business in our attendance on public ordinances, to give unto the Lord the glory due to his name; for therefore, as these here, we are called out of darkness into light, that we should show forth the praises of him that called us, 1 Pet. ii. 9. (2.) God will advance the honour of his own name by it; so he has said (v. 7): I will glorify the house of my glory. The church is the house of God’s glory, where he manifests his glory to his people and receives that homage by which they do honour to him. And it is for the glory of this house, and of him that keeps house there, both that the Gentiles shall bring their offerings to it and that they shall be accepted therein.

5. How the church shall herself be affected with this increase of her numbers, v. 5. (1.) She shall be in a transport of joy upon this account: “Thou shalt see and flow together” (or flow to and fro), “as in a pleasing agitation about it, surprised at it, but extremely glad of it.” (2.) There shall be a mixture of fear with this joy: “Thy heart shall fear, doubting whether it be lawful to go in to the uncircumcised and eat with them.” Peter was so impressed with this fear that he needed a vision and voice from heaven to help him over it, Acts x. 28. But, (3.) “When this fear is conquered thy heart shall be enlarged in holy love, so enlarged that thou shalt have room in it for all the Gentile converts; thou shalt not have such a narrow soul as thou hast had nor affections so confined within the Jewish pale.” When God intends the beauty and prosperity of his church he gives this largeness of heart and an extensive charity. (4.) These converts flocking to the church shall be greatly admired (v. 8): Who are these that fly as a cloud? Observe, [1.] How the conversion of souls is here described. It is flying to Christ and to his church, for thither we are directed; it is flying like a cloud, though in great multitudes, so as to overspread the heavens, yet with great unanimity, all as one cloud. They shall come with speed, as a cloud flying on the wings of the wind, and come openly, and in the view of all, their very enemies beholding them (Rev. xi. 12), and yet not able to hinder them. They shall fly as doves to their windows, in great flights, many together; they fly on the wings of the harmless dove, which flies low, denoting their innocency and humility. They fly to Christ, to the church, to the word and ordinances, as doves, by instinct, to their own windows, to their own home; thither they fly for refuge and shelter when they are pursued by the birds of prey, and thither they fly for rest when they have been wandering and are weary, as Noah’s dove to the ark. [2.] How the conversion of souls is here admired. It is spoken of with wonder and pleasure: Who are these? We have reason to wonder that so many flock to Christ: when we see them all together we shall wonder whence they all came. And we have reason to admire with pleasure and affection those that do flock to him: Who are these? How excellent, how amiable are they! What a pleasant sight is it to see poor souls hastening to Christ, with a full resolution to abide with him!

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

ISAIAH – CHAPTER 60

THE GLORY OF THE LORD IN ZION

Since it is impossible to ignore the similarities between this chapter and Revelation 21, 22, interpretation is not as simple as one might desire. Some things seem more appropriately applied to the nation; others to the church. Perhaps the most prudent course is to view the blessings portrayed in this passage as belonging to covenant-community of saints from ALL AGES and ALL NATIONS (all of them children of Abraham through a faith that obeys) – united in Christ (Eph 1:3-14), and exalted to share the eternal pleasures at His right hand.

As in this age the Lord’s church is the earthly manifestation of God’s fullness (Eph 1:20-23; Eph 3:19; Eph 4:13), and the reflector of His glory (2Co 3:18); so, in the millennial age, Israel – restored to fellowship with God – will reflect His glory to the ends of the earth. But again, I would submit that it is dangerous to over-simplify this prophecy, or to attempt too sharp a delineation between the peoples involved. Creaturely finiteness requires such humility before this glorious prophecy as faithfully awaits its full unveiling at the appearing and kingdom of our Lord Jesus, the Christ. This, obviously, involves the restoration of the Theocracy.

Vs. 1-3: THE GLORY DAWNS

1. Here is a call for the people of God to “Arise and Shine” -experiencing the fullness of a NEW LIFE in the kingdom of God, (Isa 52:1-2; comp. Col 1:12-13).

a. The Light of Israel has come, (Isa 58:8; Mal 4:2; comp. Isa 10:17).

b. The glory of the Lord has risen upon Zion, (Isa 24:23; Isa 35:2; Isa 58:8; comp. Rev 21:9-11). – the abode and representative of the elect covenant-community destined to share the divine fullness of Messiah’s millennial rule.

2. Though thick darkness has enveloped the earth (and all nations), His light and glory are seen shining upon His people, (vs. 2; comp. Isa 2:19; Isa 2:21; Isa 24:23; Isa 35:1-2; Isa 40:5; Mat 16:27; Mat 24:29-31; Mat 13:43; etc.).

3. Nations will come to walk in her light – kings desiring a share in her dawning radiance, (vs. 3; comp. Isa 2:3; Isa 45:14; Isa 45:22-25; Isa 49:23).

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

1. Arise, be bright. He now shows what is the efficacy of that word of which he formerly (150) spoke; for he raises up a prostrate and afflicted Church, and restores her to her brightness; and, because he represents the person of God, he now declares his authority. For this reason he employs the form of command, that the word spoken might be more efficacious; as if, in the exercise of absolute power, he put the Church in possession of that happier condition which he had promised. The amount of what is said is, that believers may know that he does not scatter his words in the air, but speaks with effect.

He bids her “arise,” because he formerly told her to “lie down;” and these two words stand in contrast with each other. Of Babylon he formerly said, “Come down, sit in the dust.” (Isa 47:1) Of the Jews themselves he said, “My people shall sit in the dust.” On the other hand, he says, “Arise, arise, put on the garments of thy beauty.” (Isa 52:1) Thus, by what may be called the stretching out of his hand, he lifts up the Church again, that she who had formerly been prostrated, and covered all over with filth and pollution, may regain her seat of honor.

For thy brightness is come. That the darkness of afflictions may not overwhelm the Jews with despair, he says that the light which had been hidden would soon afterwards arise, alluding to the alternation of day and night. As if he had said, “The Lord, having compassion upon thee, will rescue thee out of this darkness in which thou liest; thou hast been sufficiently punished; it is time that thy condition should begin to be improved.” By the word brightness, therefore, he metaphorically denotes salvation and prosperity, as by “darkness” he formerly denoted a calamitous state of the Church.

The glory of Jehovah. He mentions at the same that this light will arise from no other quarter than from God’s smiling countenance, when he shall be pleased to display his grace; for everything goes well when the Lord shines upon us by his light; and, when he turns away from us, nothing that can befall us is more wretched and unhappy.

(150) “ Au chapitre precedent.” “In the preceding chapter.”

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

THE DAWNING OF GODS LIGHT, AND ITS AWAKENING CALL

Isa. 60:1-6. Arise, shine, for thy light is come, &c.

We ourselves are a part fulfilment of this prophecy. It is Israels God we worship, &c. The Church of today is what it is through the fulfilment of this prophecy in part; the Church of the future will be what it shall become through its fulfilment in completeness. Dropping the special reference to Israel, and viewing the text in its universal bearings, we have

I. THE CHURCH ENLIGHTENED BY CHRISTS COMING. Christ rose upon His Church like a great sun, imparting life, reviving courage, diffusing gladness, making bright with glory (Mal. 4:2). Christ gives light

1. By imparting saving knowledge (see p. 569). He taught men of the Father. He showed the way of life. He put into the precepts of the law a depth of spiritual meaning never seen in them before. He could say of Himself (Joh. 8:12). He came with full knowledge of the Divine purpose. He spake with absolute authority.

2. By restoring the Church to power and influence. The godly in Israel were but a handful. They were down-trodden and despised. But Christ would reinstate it in power and influence among the nations; He would give it prosperity. This was bringing it light. Accordingly, a new spring-time came with the advent of the Saviour. He made His Church a power. Its power speedily became felt, and continues to this day. It is a permanent and influential factor in historya thing of might.

3. By conferring on the Church the beauty of holiness. This may answer to the glory which the prophet declares shall be seen upon it. Christ confers a glory on the Church by the spiritual gifts which He bestows, and by the graces which become visible in the character of His people through the operation of His Word and Spirit.

II. THE LIGHT OF THE CHURCH IN CONTRAST WITH THE SURROUNDING DARKNESS. The Churchbelievers, Christian nations, enlightened by Christ, stand in marked contrast with the darkness of the world around. The effect of the light is to make the darkness more visible. Contrast

1. The enlightenment of faith with the boasted enlightenment of reason (1Co. 1:21). The worlds cleverness did not lead it to the truth. It leads it often to reject the truth now that it has come. The boasted enlightenment of antiquity left it profoundly immoral. The theories, schemes, reasonings of our philosophers to-day leave the mind in just as great uncertainty on the chief questions of existence, and are powerless to effect moral regeneration.

2. The enlightenment of nations which have received the truth with the darkness of surrounding heathenism.

3. The enlightenment of individuals who have obeyed the truth with the darkness of those who are still in sin. The believer recognises in his own experience that, whereas he was once darkness, he is now light in the Lord. The change in his character manifests this to be true. The unbeliever, on the contrary, knows his state to be one of darkness, of moral evil, of unhappiness; through lack of true knowledge of God, of hopelessness as regards the future.

III. THE DUTY OF THE CHURCH TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AND TO DIFFUSE HER LIGHT (Isa. 60:1; Isa. 60:3). Missionary effort is of the essence of the Churchs calling (Mar. 16:16).The Homiletical Library, vol. ii. pp. 2527.

Isa. 60:1. This stirring appeal springs from a soul full of exultant joy. To understand the depth of that exultation, observe that the prophet spoke in a time of the deepest gloom. Chapter 59:depicts the state of cold formalism into which the nation had sunk. In the very heart of that gloom, Isaiah saw a distant light gathering round the vision of the future Saviour (chap. Isa. 59:20). He gazed on the dawning glory, and thence arose the cry, rousing as a trumpet call, Arise, shine, &c. Taking these words into the full illumination of Christianity, they express, very beautifully, the awakening of a man to his true work in the world. Paul has himself given them that interpretation (Eph. 5:14). Giving to the prophets words that Christian meaning, they present to us a truth of immense value respecting the Christians mission in the world. It is because the glory of the Lord has risen on him, that he is to reflect the light which has entered his soul.

I. THE DAWNING OF THE LIGHT. Man is not in a world of darkness, but blind in a world of light In the awakening hour we call conversion, God does seem to come nearer to the soul. The veil is lifted from the spirits eye, and His nearness, for the first time, is discovered. The glory of God in Christ is in close contact with every human heart. Our little life is enveloped by the spiritual world. Just as in the opening of the eyes of the man who was blind from his birth, there appeared to him to be created a world of trees and flowers, whose beauty no idea had ever picturedso in the solemn awakening hour of spiritual life, all the world of Gods glory breaks in like a new creation. There are three requisites for the dawning of the light.

1. Spiritual penitence. Spiritual, because there is a repentance which is by no means a rising of Gods light in the soul, but merely a transient motion. Mere regret and mere terror may be the beginning of the true, but it is not in itself true repentance. True repentance is the turning of the whole heart to God on the discovery of its own darkness and estrangement. Its chief cause is not so much the remembrance of guilty acts, as the feeling of a guilty heart.

2. Spiritual love. Spiritual, in contrast with that semi-pious emotion which is always convulsively striving to learn whether the soul loves God or not. Spiritual love is not so much the feeling of our love to God, as of His love to us. It is the love which has swept into the soul, subduing its whole being, and becoming its ruling emotion. This is requisite, because love is the insight of the soul. The man who has not this love is blind to the light of God.

3. Spiritual prayer. Spiritual, because living fellowship with the Father is meant. This is the full dawning of the light of God. He who lives in prayer, lives before the unveiled eternity. By penitence, therefore, the soul turns God-wards; by love its eye is opened; and by prayer it moves in the sunrise of the eternal light. This brings us to consider

II. THE AWAKENING CALL,Arise, shine. When God is felt to be near a man thusin penitence, love, and prayer, that man is imperatively bound to reflect the glory which has risen in his heart; to bear witness of the light which has pierced and transformed his soul. This is based on a great principle, viz., The deepest emotion in a mans nature must reveal itself in his life. There is no such thing as a life-long hypocrisy; sooner or later the master passion within will glow to a red heat, and the man will stand transparent before the eye of the world. In what way does the glory of the Lord thus manifest itself in life?

1. In the majesty of holiness. Holiness means, literally, separatenessseparateness from sin, by dedication to God. Remember, you are to shine with that light;you are to go bearing the glory of the Lord, and of the spiritual world, in your life.

2. In the beauty of unselfishness. The life of God is the life of the Cross in the heart. This is a manifestation of Gods light in the soul. Let that light dawn, and men will see the Cross-life there. This is the light which the world so much needs to-day.

3. In the earnestness of your efforts for men. If the light has risen, you know its power. If the glory has dawned, you feel the realities of life. In that illumination, who can be slothfully calm? There is a spirit of so-called refinement abroad now, which makes men afraid to speak of those things which lie deepest in the heart. Was it so with the great ones of old? Was Paul afraid to speak in the name of Christ before Agrippa? Did he shrink before the fiery scorn of Festus? Go, then, bear witness of the light. Live out your prayers in daily actions.E. L. Hull, B. A.: Sermons, First Series, pp. 6170.

I. THERE IS A DECLARATION OF FACT: Thy light is come. This prophecy was fulfilled when Christ was born. But we must pass beyond that fact, and recognise that there is a revelation to ourselves to-day as much as there was of yore. Thy light is come. What does it mean?

1. The revelation of God in Jesus Christ was a light to mankind, because it brought home distinctly as far as the mind could contemplate it the thought of God [1749]

2. The prophecy is fulfilled in revealing to mankind the dignity and the destiny of man. Before the keen logicians, the wonderful thinkers, of Greece and Rome, there is always hanging a great gulf of blank despair. With us, the poorest character that we meet in rags, we in some measure respect. Man is now seen in the light of the faith of Jesus, &c.

[1749] Even in the Old Testament that thought was most inaccurate. Even in the ancient nations that loved righteousness there was no entire conception of the nature and character of God. One cannot read the Republic of Plato, e.g., without being struck with the accuracy of the thoughts and the beauty of the pictures he brings out, with the power of the argument and the keenness of the criticism; and yet through it and above it all with the darkness, and sadness, and despair. God not known; no real grasp of the eternal goodness; no real thought of the eternal life. Christ came and taught men not only by His stately words, but by His loving life, that God is love. Surely when we feel that no rest can be found in a passing life unless we rest upon God, then we acknowledge the truth of the prophets saying, Thy light is come.

II. AN EXHORTATION TO DUTY: Arise and shine. Be in active operation with Divine force, and permit the light of God to shine through the soul and life. That applies to the Church. 1. The Church is a witness of Divine truth. The Church shines when she witnesses the truth. A modern idea is that the Church is not to be so bigoted as positively to assert the truth. Christ said, Go ye and teach all nations. When once the Church forgets her function of teaching the truth there will be heard the beating of the unseen feet, Christ coming in the clouds to judge and to condemn. May He give us grace to recollect and to contend for the faith once delivered to the saints.

2. The Church shines when she bears witness to the worship of Almighty God. The Church is the house of prayer, the home of Christian union, the school of souls in their constant intercourse with the Eternal God.

CONCLUSION.The same truth applies to souls. Shine with the light that has come, is a command for souls more than for the Church. How shall we do it?

1. By keeping steadily before us the severe lines of duty that God lays down for us, and trying to do our duty; seeking grace to do it, &c. We shine when we try to hold the true estimate of character. Unless we are true to ourselves, and true to God, we may make grave mistakes. We must know ourselves by self-examination, by severe and careful watchfulness. It is in penitence, and in the progress that comes from penitence, that the soul shines in the light of Christ. Let us each begin with ourselves and not be content with broad views of Christianity.Canon Knox-Little: Clerical World, vol. i., pp. 310312.

I. The deep darkness which envelops the world without the Gospel (Isa. 60:2). Gross darkness, a striking emblem of ignorance, error, sin, guilt, misery, danger.

1. The heathen world is in this darkness (Rom. 1:18-32).

2. In the midst of Christendom there is this darkness. Home heathenism. The condition, of the unregenerate.

II. The uprising of a glorious light for the transformation of the darkness. There is no redeeming principle in mans apostate nature. But for the prospect opened by the Gospel, there must be the darkness of final and absolute despair. Modern Materialism, &c., are as powerless as the ancient systems to reach the conscience and renew the heart (Isa. 38:17; Isa. 45:8, and others). But glorious is the view here presented, &c.

1. The Gospel is light, and this marks its divinity.
2. The Gospel is universally adapted
(1.) To every stage of human society.
(2.) To the common wants of maninstruction, comfort, &c.
(3.) To every order of mind.
(4.) To every possible condition. The Gospel offers pardon for the guilty, &c.

3. The Gospel is diffusive, penetrating. Its progress in Apostolic times, &c. (Isa. 60:3). Not a dead letter, but the power of God, &c. In how many dark places has light sprung up (Mat. 4:16). It will be diffused till the whole world is flooded with its glorious light.

Conclusion.Has the light risen upon your soul? Are you reflecting its radiance in your life, &c.? Are you doing what you can to communicate it to others! Every Christian is called upon not only to arise, but to shine (Eph. 5:4). In the radiance of this Divine light the Church is to stand up and show herself, and then the greatest and most blessed results will follow. If your soul is in darkness you need not despair, for LIGHT I. ALL AROUND YOU. A. Tucker.

Words full of inspiration and high hope. Day has dawned upon the world; light and life have come, the day of salvation for all people. Let us consider this new day of salvation in three aspects.
I. How has light arisen upon the world in Jesus Christ?
II. How does light arise upon the individual soul that comes to Christ?
III. How may the blessed light which has arisen within us, and which has made us children of the light, so be manifested by us in our life that it may run its widening way upon the earth?
The claims of foreign missions.The Homiletical Library, vol. ii. pp. 2735.

I. The auspicious fact. II. The reasonable command.J. Rawlinton.

Isa. 60:3. The Light. I. Revealed to the Jews. II. Extended to the Gentiles. III. Supreme above all authority and power.

Isa. 60:4-5. I. The gathering of the Gentiles to Zion. From every quarterfrom farfrom beyond the sea. With all their forces. II. Zions emotions. She sees and overflows with joy.

Isa. 60:6-7. The gathering of Zions children. I. They come from all quarters. II. Come full-handed. III. Come with thanksgiving and praise. IV. Come to offer themselves in the service of the Lord. V. Come to find acceptance. VI. Come to share in the manifestation of the Divine glory.J. Lyth, D.D.

Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell

IX. ZIONTHE ZENITH, CHAPTERS 60 66
A. REWARD OF ZION, WEALTH OF THE NATIONS
CHAPTER 60

1. GLORY

TEXT: Isa. 60:1-7

Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee.

For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples; but Jehovah will arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

And nations shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: they all gather themselves together, they come to thee; thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be carried in the arms.

Then thou shalt see and be radiant, and thy heart shall thrill and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned unto thee, the wealth of the nations shall come unto thee.

The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praises of Jehovah.

All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee; they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar; and I will glorify the house of my glory.

QUERIES

When does Zions light come?

How is the abundance of the sea turned to her?

Where is Nebaioth?

PARAPHRASE

Do not let the coming captivity prostrate you Zion. Stand up, be stedfast and faithful and begin to be a light to the dark world. The glorious light of God is shining on youthe grandeur, splendor and righteousness of Jehovah is being given to you. It is still night and darkness to the heathen nations around you, but you are going to be light for the whole world when Jehovah gives you His glory. You will become a reflection of Gods truth and love that will be seen by people from all over the world. The Gentiles will be attracted to your glory and come to it; great and famous rulers will humbly come to bask in the splendor of your majesty. Look around you, Zion, from all directions people of every nation and tribe and tongue are coming to you; they are all bringing others to you with the tenderness and compassion a foster-parent shows its adopted child. You will see all this and it will make you radiate joy and gratitude, Your heart will be thrilled and swell with excitement toward the Gentiles coming to you. This will be your attitude because you will recognize that God is giving you, in these who are coming, the true wealth of the islands and coastlandsbelievers! Multitudes of people will make their way to you, Zion; people from every direction will come bringing their most precious possessions as gifts and they will testify to the majesty and power of Jehovah. Even your inveterate enemies from Mesopotamia and Idumea will be accepted by Me and by you and they will join you in ministering and worshipping Me. The Lord will make His house more glorious than ever when He brings people from all over the world into it.

COMMENTS

Isa. 60:1-5 LIGHT: It has been our purpose to show the student of Isaiah the logical progression of the prophets message. In the first 35 chapters Isaiah has declared that Israels salvation is not in any human programs; neither self-righteousness nor idolatry nor military alliance with the heathen will save her. In chapters 3639 Isaiah inserts parenthetically a record of an historical event which demonstrates precisely what he is preaching; that Israel, Gods covenant people, can only be saved and reach her messianic destiny through faith in Jehovah by keeping covenant with Him. Finally, in chapters 4066, Isaiah will prophesy and typify the grand climax of Gods program for the redemption of the whole world through the Servant and Covenant relationship to Him. The last section, with which we now begin to deal, predicts the glorious consequence of Zions appropriation of the Servants work by Covenant-communion. Zion will enjoy Reward, Regeneration and Rest, among other blessings. Zion is going to be made whole (see our discussion of the word shalom/peace on Isa. 59:8) because she will have given to her a covenant of peace or wholeness (cf. Isa. 54:10) when the Servant becomes peace/ shalom for her (cf. Isa. 53:5).

In anticipation of this wholeness (peace) Zion is told to arise and shine. The future glory of Zion is so certain (although it is centuries away from accomplishment by the Messiah) Isaiah speaks of it as if it had already come. The remnant of Judah will be prostrated in exile along with the unbelievers of the nation. It will be a temptation for the remnant to despair and give up hope that God will ever keep His promises made to their forefathers (Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David). But Isaiah says, Stand up, stand fast in your witness as those who believe God will keep His covenant. Let your messianic light shine, for God has promised, and it will come to pass!

The light which comes upon Zion is the glory of Jehovah. That cannot be anything less than the Messiah. Christ was the effulgence of the glory of God and bore the very image of His substance (cf. Heb. 1:3). Jesus was the Word become flesh and men beheld His glory, glory as the only begotten from the Father (cf. Joh. 1:14). The Word was the life and the light of men (Joh. 1:4). The Hebrew word kevod is translated glory. The fundamental root meaning is probably weight or heaviness, conveying the idea of some external, physical manifestation of dignity or preeminence of majesty. But the word as it is most widely used means, the exhibition of the excellence of the subject to which it is ascribed. In other words, character is the chief element of glory. Concerning God it is the display of His divine attributes and perfections of righteousness, power, truthfulness, faithfulness, mercifulness, justice, compassion, love, etc. Some of the glory of God may be seen in a limited way in nature (cf. Rom. 1:18-23; Act. 14:15-18, etc.).

Zion is to have the excellence of the character of Jehovah rise upon her. The glory of God is to be imputed to Zion through the Servant and made available for appropriation through the New Covenant. Zion will not earn His glory. The Servant comes to earn Gods glory for Zion. Zion simply receives it by exercising faith through covenant conditions.

She is to reflect His glory. Darkness covers the earth. All nations (including Israel) fall short of the glory of God (cf. Rom. 3:9-26; esp. Rom. 3:23). But the people who walk in darkness will see a great light (cf. our comments Isa. 9:1-7). The Light of the World came to Zion and made her a kingdom of light (cf. Joh. 8:12-20; Joh. 12:46; Eph. 5:8; Col. 1:12-13; 1Th. 5:5; 1Pe. 2:9; Revelation 2-3). The letters of the apostle Paul to churches predominantly Gentile confirm the prediction of Isa. 60:3 that nations shall come to thy (Zions) light. Great and powerful rulers and men of renown were attracted to Zions glory (see comments Isa. 49:7).

The Hebrew word amanah is translated carried but means more literally, a foster-father or foster-nurse who has a child in safe keeping. What it means in verse four is that the Gentiles shall bring children safely to Zion (cf. comments on Isa. 49:22-23). Zion is exhorted to look even now in faith down through the centuries from Isaiahs day to the messianic glory and behold Gentiles coming to her from all directions of the earth. This vision compares to the one given the seven churches of Asia Minor by the apostle John when he recorded the spectacle of the redeemed which no man could number from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues standing before the throne (Rev. 7:9).

The Hebrew word nahare is translated radiant in verse five. It is from a root which means to flow, to run. Zions reaction to the Gentiles coming to her for the glory of Jehovah which she has will be that of effervescent joy. She will radiate a bubbling excitement because she sees the promises of God being fulfilled that in her seed shall all the nations be blessed. The word phakhad means to tremble with joy and is thus translated thrill. The picture Isaiah paints of Zion is of the messianic age when she has realized she has become the instrument of God for the salvation of the world and is one of excitement. Zions heart trembles, swells, pumps and jumps with excitement as she realizes she is engaged in divine, eternal, cosmic redemptive history as a colaborer of Almighty God (cf. Act. 11:18; Act. 15:3; Act. 19:10, etc.). Zion is caused to tremble with joy because she sees that there are Gentiles who are precious in character and that there are Gentiles worthy of becoming jewels in the crown of a Jewish apostle (cf. Php. 4:1; 1Th. 2:19). The abundance of the sea is the wealth of the islands and coastlands (Gentile territories). What is the wealth of a nation? It is its people, especially regenerated, redeemed people. These are the people who produce goodness, truth and beauty in any nation or society. These are the people who serve humanity without selfish motives. Zion sees that she possesses that which is the wealth of the world after allpeople being conformed to the image of Christ.

Isa. 60:6-7 LAUDATION: AS Keil and Delitzsch point out: The prophet, indeed cannot describe even what belongs to the New Testament in any other than Old Testament colors, because he is still within the Old Testament limits. In other words, Isaiah is depicting the spiritual prosperity of New Testament Zion (the church) in terminology of his own times. The picture Isaiah draws is that of multitudes of people from the fartherest reaches of civilization uniting in praise and honor to Jehovah. Midian was a son of Abraham from Keturah (Gen. 25:1-6) and Ephah was a son of Midian. Midian and his descendants claimed the land east of the Jordan river and the Dead Sea, southward through the Akabah and including the southern and eastern parts of the peninsula of Sinai. Sheba was the oldest son of Jokshan (Jokshan was also a son of Abraham by Keturah). His descendants probably became what is called the kingdom of Sheba or the Sabeans. The Queen of Sheba who visited Solomon was from this people. These far distant peoples shall contribute their wealth to Zion and they shall come to Zion and proclaim the praises of Jehovah. Kedar was the second son of Ishmael (a son of Abraham by Hagar, the handmaiden of Sarah), (cf. Gen. 25:13), whose descendants lived in the desert between Syria and Mesopotamia. Nebaioth is mentioned always in connection with Kedar or the descendants of Ishmael (Gen. 25:13; Gen. 28:9; 1Ch. 1:29) and is regarded by most as identical with the Nabataeans. It is interesting to note that all these are descendants of Abraham, but alien to the original covenant which was administered exclusively through the only son of Abraham by SarahIsaac. Yet, when the promise was given to Abraham, before Isaacs birth, it included blessedness to all nations through that singular seed (cf. Gal. 3:16). These Gentiles are going to be acceptable! Their offerings (worship) will be acceptable and their ministry will be acceptable. As Young says, The picture here given is that of Gentiles converted to Christ who bring all that they have and devote it to His service.

These desert nomads (Midian, Ephah, Sheba, Kedar, Nabataeans) were all enemies of the Jews for centuries. They are even today, racial, geographical and political enemies. The only way these people could ever become united in praising Jehovah and be accepted as worshippers and ministers of Jehovah is through the reconciliation that is in Christ Jesus (cf. Eph. 2:11-22; 2Co. 5:16-21, etc.).

These verses indicate that Jehovah is going to send His Light (the Messiah) to glorify Zion and make available to her the wealth of the world. In other words God is going to demonstrate, once and for all, that His redemptive people (the church) are the focal point of the cosmos. Everything in His creation is to glorify Zion. Sooner or later, ultimately, inevitably God will use everything He has created to serve for the glorification of the redeemed. The apostle Paul said as much in 1Co. 3:21-22 : . . . all things are yours . . . whether . . . the world or life or death or the present or the future . . . all are yours. Everything that is good and eternal and abiding of Gods is the birthright of His Son, and Christians are joint heirs with Him. The house of God is going to be made more beautiful than it has ever been when He adorns it with the wealth of the nations (Gentiles beautiful in character) (see comments Isa. 56:7).

QUIZ

Can you trace the logical progression of Isaiahs book and include this section?

Why does Isaiah see a necessity to exhort his people to Arise and shine?

What is the light or glory that is to come upon Zion?

What will be Zions reaction to nations coming to her light?

What is the wealth of the nations?

What would be necessary for the nations listed in verse six-seven to unite with Zion in praising the Lord.

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

LX.

(1) Arise, shine . . .The description of the redeemed Zioni.e., the new Jerusalemseen in the prophets vision as under the forms of the old. She has been prostrate, as in the darkness of Sheol (as in Isa. 51:23; Isa. 57:9). The word comes that bids her rise to a new life, radiant with the glory of the Lord. In Eph. 5:14 we have, perhaps, an echo, though not a quotation, of the prophets words.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

1. Arise The chapter opens with an animating address to the delivered children of God.

Shine The image is a sunrise scene. The night, long and dismal, has brooded, but now gradually ends.

Thy light is come The tops of the mountains (Isa 2:1-5; Mic 4:1) are gilded, and are seen by the prophet, though far back in time.

Glory of the Lord risen upon thee That is, upon Zion-Jerusalem. The light falls upon her, not for her sake alone, but for all man-kind. This vision is welcome recompense for the darkness hitherto. (See Isaiah 58, 59.) Zion is to have the first view of the new day.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

‘Arise, shine, for your light is come

And the glory of Yahweh is risen on you,

For behold darkness will cover the earth (or ‘land’),

And gross darkness the peoples,

But Yahweh will rise on you,

And his glory will be seen on you.’

We find here an echo of Isa 8:22 to Isa 9:2. Here we have a further description of the coming King. His light will descend on Zion (Isa 4:5). He will come like a shining light among His own. And those who are His will respond to His light. They will see the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2Co 4:6). The Servant will be a light to them prior to becoming a light to the Gentiles. Thus will Jacob respond to Him, and Israel be gathered to Him (Isa 49:6).

Then the people who walk in ‘darkness’, who are in gross darkness like the ‘darkness’ that covers the earth as described here, will see a great light, and the light will shine on them (Isa 9:2). It will be the light revealed by Yahweh’s true people resulting from His having shone upon them. It was ever to be the prayer of the priests of Israel, that Yahweh would make the light of His face shine on them (Num 6:25), something symbolised by the lampstand in the Temple. This is an awakening call (compare Isa 51:9; Isa 51:17; Isa 52:1). It will be similar for the people as it was for Isaiah in the Temple (Isa 6:1-7).

And those who are His chosen will respond. To men in darkness there is always the possibility of arising into His light, into spiritual understanding, into truth, into awareness of Him and His glory. The people who would be of Zion must therefore awaken because the light has now come, and that light is ‘the glory of Yahweh’ which has risen on them. The world will be in darkness, the peoples in gross darkness (Isa 8:22 to Isa 9:1), having the understanding darkened (Eph 4:18), being in the darkness of ignorance and despair, but on His own true people Yahweh will arise and His glory will be seen on them. And, as Isa 9:1-7 reveals, this light will come in the child Who will be born, in the Son Who will be given, who will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of peace. He Himself is the glory of Yahweh arising on His people (compare Mar 9:2-8; Joh 1:14-18). In Mat 4:16 the great light of Isaiah is applied to the fact that Jesus has come with the Good News. And constantly in John’s Gospel Jesus portrayed Himself in terms of a light having come (Joh 1:4; Joh 3:19-21; Joh 8:12; Joh 12:35; Joh 12:46).

Paul amplifies this in the New Testament when he declares, ‘if our good news is hidden, it is hidden to those who are lost, in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe, lest the light of the good news of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God, shine on them’ (2Co 4:4).

The constant use of ‘light’ in this way is typical of Isaiah. It is found but rarely in the other prophets.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

THE COMING OF THE DELIVERER AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ZION ( Isa 59:15 to Isa 62:12 ).

Isaiah wanted them to know that God sees their desperate condition and determines to act. He looks for a man, someone to stand in the gap, but there is none. So He Himself acts. He will step in on behalf of His people. He will bring them a Deliverer, a Redeemer, One Who is clothed in righteousness and salvation, and also One Who is clothed in vengeance and zealousness for God. He is concerned with redemption in righteousness, and judgment on unrighteousness. On the one hand He will deal with their enemies and on the other He will come as a Redeemer to Zion, to those who turn from transgression in Jacob, and put His Spirit on them and put His words in their mouths, in such a way that they will never again depart.

But note how in parallel with God rising to act, there will be those who are turning from transgression in Jacob (in sinful Israel). His action and His people’s repentance go together. There can be no deliverance that does not result in repentance. He will not deliver an unrepentant people.

In these chapters Isaiah rises to a new height in his conception of Zion. And we have to stop and consider what he means by Zion.

In Isaiah Zion is looked at from different aspects. On the one hand there is the mundane city of Jerusalem which is fallen and rejected, and symbolic of Israel as a whole, although enjoying a certain measure of protection ‘for David’s sake’. This will eventually be restored (Isa 1:1; Isa 1:8; Isa 2:1; Isa 3:1; Isa 3:8; Isa 3:16; Isa 7:1; Isa 10:12; Isa 10:24; Isa 10:32; Isa 14:32; Isa 16:1; Isa 22:10; Isa 31:4-5; Isa 31:9; Isa 33:14; Isa 36:2; Isa 36:7; Isa 36:20; Isa 37:10; Isa 37:22; Isa 37:32; Isa 40:9; Isa 41:27; Isa 49:14; Isa 52:7-9; Isa 64:10; Isa 66:8), as indeed it was. Then there is the Jerusalem/Zion which is almost synonymous with the people (‘we’ Isa 1:9; Isa 4:4; Isa 5:3; Isa 8:14; Isa 10:10-12; Isa 22:21; Isa 28:14; Isa 30:19; Isa 52:2; Isa 65:18-19). Here it is not the city which is important but the people. (Compare how in Zec 2:6-7 ‘Zion’ represents the exiles). And finally there is the Jerusalem/Zion from which will go God’s message to the world (Isa 2:4; Isa 62:6-7), the Jerusalem/Zion which is the city of God, the ‘earthly’ dwellingplace of Yahweh in which dwells His glory, with its central mount rising up to heaven (Isa 2:2), in contrast with the world city (often seen as Babylon) which is the seat of all evil, which will be toppled from its high place (Isa 26:5-6; compare Isa 24:21-22; Isa 25:2). Here Zion is the future glorious Jerusalem, which has eternal connections and will be part of the everlasting kingdom (Isa 1:27; Isa 4:3-5; Isa 12:6; Isa 18:7; Isa 24:23; Isa 26:1-4; Isa 28:16; Isa 30:19; Isa 33:5; Isa 33:20; Isa 35:10; Isa 46:13; Isa 51:3; Isa 51:11; Isa 51:16; Isa 52:1; Isa 59:20; Isa 60:14; Isa 61:3; Isa 62:1; Isa 62:11; Isa 65:18-19; Isa 66:10; Isa 66:13; Isa 66:20). It is more than a city. It represents the whole future of the people of God, including their hopes of living in His presence, and takes in all God’s people. It is this last view of Zion which is prominent in Isa 59:15 toIsa 62:12.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

The Millennial Reign of Christ The prophecy of Isa 60:1-22 is directed to the people of Israel. The Lord will arise over the Jewish people and His glory will be seen among them.

John Watts interprets this passage of Scripture as a prophecy of the time of Israel’s return from Babylonian Captivity, which the king of Persia will send Ezra back to Jerusalem with a great amount of wealth. [87] I believe Isa 60:1-22 refers to the Millennial Reign of Christ on earth as well as the eternal age of the new heaven and earth because of Isa 60:19-20, at which time Jesus will enter into an eternal reign beyond millennial reign and after the great judgment day. This description in the book of Isaiah of Jerusalem’s future glory is similar to Rev 22:1-5.

[87] John D. W. Watts, Isaiah 34-66, in Word Biblical Commentary: 58 Volumes on CD-Rom, vol. 25, eds. Bruce M. Metzger, David A. Hubbard and Glenn W. Barker (Dallas: Word Inc., 2002), in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 3.0b [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2004), notes on Scene 4: Zion’s Day Dawns (Isaiah 60:1-22).

Isa 60:19, “The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.”

Isa 60:1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

Isa 60:1 Comments – We find a similar statement in Isa 9:1-2, “Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.” Matthew will interpret Isa 9:1-2 as the arrival of Jesus’ public ministry on earth, saying “That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.” (Mat 4:14-16)

Isa 60:2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

Isa 60:2 Comments Even as we are approaching the Second Coming of the Lord, we see a world that is falling deeper into darkness, sin and fear. At the same time the Church is shining more glorious than in its history.

Isa 60:3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

Isa 60:3 Comments – The prophecy of Isa 60:3 has a two-fold meaning. It foretells events of Jesus’ birth (Mat 1:1-2) and of His reign as King of Kings in all of His Father’s glory.

Mat 2:1-2, “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.”

Isa 60:4 Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.

Isa 60:5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

Isa 60:5 “because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee” Comments – The “sea” represents the nations of the earth.

Isa 60:5 “the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee” Comments – The ASV reads, “the wealth of the nations shall come unto thee.” We see this take place at Jesus’ birth (Mat 2:11).

Mat 2:11, “And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.”

Isa 60:21 Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.

Isa 60:21 Comments – Mankind was created for God’s glory (Isa 43:7; Isa 43:12, Eph 1:13-14).

Isa 43:7, “Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.”

Isa 43:21, “This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.”

Eph 1:13-14, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

Israel’s Redemption – The chapters that follow the prophecy of Christ’s sufferings in Isa 53:1-12 tell the children of God to rejoice; for Christ has given them the victory over sin, death and the grave. However, these chapters speak of Christ’s redemption from the perspective of the nation of Israel rather than from the perspective of the Gentiles; for the book of Isaiah contains prophecies of the future destiny of Israel. Later in redemptive history, the Church will be grafted into these prophecies as members of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

The Sin of Zion (Isa 59:1-21

The Confession of Zion (Isa 59:9-15 b)

The Redemption of Zion (Isa 59:15 c-21)

The Glory of Zion (Isa 60:1-22)

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

The Glory of the Messiah upon the Gentiles

v. 1. Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

v. 2. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth and gross darkness the people, the expression referring to the murky darkness of a cloudy day; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. Here the evangelist of the Old Testament addresses himself to the congregation of believers, first of all among His own people, the faithful in Israel. It is a cry which goes forth, in undiminished power, to the Church of all times. As one who has been sluggish and asleep the Church is bidden, “Arise!” As one who has hidden her light from men she is commanded, “Shine,” he a light, show the power of a real light! The reason for this summons is the opening of the Messianic period: “For come is thy Light,” the Day-star from on high, the Messiah. In Him the glory of Jehovah has arisen upon the Church, like the sun arising in all his splendor and majesty. While the earth as a whole is covered by the darkness signifying the lack of the proper knowledge of God and a total abandonment to sin and iniquity, while a dark and cloudy thickness surrounds the people and lies like a pall upon them, the light which arose upon the Church, upon those who waited for the coming of the Messiah, stands out, by way of contrast, in all the greater beauty and glory, shining upon those who have waited for His coming during all the long centuries since the first Gospel-message was proclaimed.

v. 3. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light and kings to the brightness of thy rising, where the rays of the Sun of Righteousness were illuminating the world.

v. 4. Lift up thine eyes round about and see: All they gather themselves together, they come to thee; thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.

v. 5. Then thou shalt see and flow together, be bright with joy, shine with exultation, and thine heart shall fear and be enlarged, swell with delight, because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee, with all their wealth and power.

v. 6. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries, the young camels, of Midian and Ephah. All they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall show forth the praises of the Lord, blessing the name of Jehovah, setting forth His glory. Here the universal power and extent of Messiah’s reign is pictured. Although in His own person He was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, He was still the Salvation of all men to the ends of the earth. And His power was to be exerted through His Church as His agent and instrument, as the bearer and proclaimer of the Gospel-message. The Church, bearing the light of the Gospel, should know that Gentiles, a great multitude from the midst of the heathen world, would walk in this light, even kings, some of the mighty of the earth, in the brightness of her coming up, as she would shine forth like the sun in glory. Knowing this, the Church should use her eyes, should see the Gentiles gathering themselves from every part of the world. From afar off her new sons, born through the power of the Gospel, would come, and at her side, in her midst, her newly gained daughters would be nourished and brought up by the study of the Word. This fact should then again react upon the Church. It should arouse her to more fervent efforts, to shine with ever greater brightness, with awe and an enlarged heart. For the multitudes of the heathen along the shores of the Great Sea would be converted and join her forces, the flower and might of the Gentiles would enroll under Messiah’s banner. From Midian, in the far Southeast, from Ephah and Sheba in the Arabian wilderness, from the ends of the earth they would come, overcome by the might of the Messiah in His Word and gladly sacrificing of their earthly goods to Him, as they bless and extol the name of Jehovah. Cf Matthew 2.

v. 7. All the flocks of Kedar, in the south of Arabia Deserta, the chief possession of its inhabitants, shall be gathered together unto thee, as a gift of worship, the rams of Nebaioth, the most excellent of the flocks of the sons of Ishmael in Arabia Petraea, shall minister unto thee, be used as sacrificial animals; they shall come up with acceptance on Mine altar, as acceptable gifts, well-pleasing to the Lord, and I will glorify the house of My glory, the Temple where He lived in the fullness of His glory, as revealed to men. We have here a picture of the manner in which men from every part of the world are gained for the truth of the Gospel and thereupon honor the Lord with the gifts of their hands.

v. 8. Who are these that fly as a cloud? so the prophet asks in directing the eyes of the Church to the West, and as the doves to their windows? the mass of people seeking the Lord’s Sanctuary being represented as an almost numberless multitude. The answer is given in a beautiful verse:

v. 9. Surely the isles, the inhabitants of the coasts and islands of the Mediterranean Sea, shall wait for Me and the ships of Tarshish, here representing their owners, first, as the first among the Gentiles to acknowledge Jehovah, to bring thy Sons from far, in great haste, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord, thy God, in order to give Him honor and praise for the blessings of salvation vouchsafed them, and to the Holy One of Israel, whose zeal against all enemies has resulted in the highest benefit to them, because He hath glorified thee, making them partakers of His divine glory.

v. 10. And the sons of strangers, the Gentiles of whom the entire chapter is speaking, shall build up thy walls, so that Jerusalem may rise out of her ruins, a picture of the restoration of the Church, and their kings shall minister unto thee, many of the mighty ones of the earth bowing under the scepter of the Messiah and becoming affiliated with. His Church; for in My wrath I smote thee, in permitting the Chaldeans to lead Judah into captivity, but in My favor have I had mercy on thee. Isa 54:7-8.

v. 11. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually, they shall not be shut day nor night, since the gifts of God’s mercy are dispensed in the Church without ceasing, until the end of time, that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, large armies of heathen from every part of the world, and that their kings may be brought, as willing converts to Zion’s King. Cf Luk 14:23.

v. 12. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish, be utterly destroyed; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted, by the Lord’s judgment of punishment for their enmity against Him. In accordance with this prophecy the Lord visited His Church with the glory of His mercy and brought about the conversion of many Gentiles, all of whom place themselves with all their gifts in the service of the Church.

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

SECTION VII. THE GLORIES OF THE RESTORED JERUSALEM (Isa 60:1-22.).

EXPOSITION

Isa 60:1-22

A SONG OF TRIUMPH UPON GLORIFIED ZION. This is rather a detached poem than an integral portion of a book. It is complete in itself, and but slightly connected, either with what precedes or with what follows. Delitzsch and Mr. Cheyne regard it as a “counterpart” to the magnificent ode in Isa 47:1-15, which describes the fall and ruin of Babylon. It is composed of five stanzas, of nearly equal length:

(1) Isa 47:1-4;

(2) Isa 47:5-9;

(3) Isa 47:10-14;

(4) Isa 47:15 -18; and

(5) verses 19-22.

Isa 60:1-4

The first stanza. Zion’s brightness and numbers.

Isa 60:1

Arise, shine. The subject of the address does not distinctly appear until Isa 60:14, where it is found to be “the city of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” Zion has long been prostrate in the dust from the prophet’s standpoint, and covered with thick darkness. Now she is bidden to “arise” and “shine forth as the day.” For thy light is come. Zion cannot shine with her own light, for she has no light of her own, having preferred to “walk in darkness” (Isa 59:9). But she may reflect the radiance which streams from the Person of Jehovah, whose glory is risen upon her. “In thy light shall we see light” (Psa 36:9).

Isa 60:2

For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth. As in Egypt a “thick darkness” covered the whole land at the word of Moses (Exo 10:22), while still “the children of Israel had light in their dwellings,” so now the world and “the nations’ of the world lay in a deep obscurity, into which scarcely a ray of light penetrated, while on Israel there dawned a glory which streamed from the throne of God, and at once transfigured her, and gave her the appearance of an angel of the Most High. In the radiance of this light she was to stand up and show herself, and then great results would follow.

Isa 60:3

The Gentiles shall come to thy light. Plunged in darkness themselves (Isa 60:2), the Gentiles shall be astonished and attracted by Israel’s radiance, and shall draw near to it and seek to partake of it. Among them shall come even their “kings,” drawn by the brightness of the glory (comp. Isa 49:23).

Isa 60:4

Lift up thine eyes (see Isa 49:18). Thy sons thy daughters. Not so much Jews of the dispersion, as Gentiles, who will become thy adopted “sons” and “daughters.” Shall be nursed at thy side; rather, shall be carried on thy side. Oriental mothers often carry a small child on their hip, with the ,arm round it to prevent its falling off.

Isa 60:5-9

The second stanza. Zion’s wealth.

Isa 60:5

Thine heart shall fear; rather, shall throb; “beat with excitement.” Because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee; i.e. the maritime commerce, which has hitherto enriched other nations, shall be turned thy way and be at thy disposal. The forces of the Gentiles; rather, the riches of the Gentilesas in Isa 8:4; Isa 10:14; Isa 30:6; Isa 61:6. Details of the riches fellow in Isa 61:6-9.

Isa 60:6

The multitude of camels; rather, a multitudea continual stream of caravans (Kay). These would be composed of merchants from Midian and Ephah, and would bring goods from Sheba. The Midianite caravans of camels are mentioned as early as the time of Jacob, when they carried “spicery and balm and myrrh” from the land of Gilead into Egypt (Gen 37:25, Gen 37:28, Gen 37:36). Ephah is a sub-tribe of Midian (Gen 25:4). These nomads would visit the distant Sheba, in Happy Arabia, for purposes of trade, and would procure there gold and incense, which they would convey to Palestine. The “Sheba” intended is doubtless that whose queen visited Solomon, and brought with her gold in abundance, and “of spices very great store, and precious stones” (1Ki 10:10). The Egyptians appear to have called the kingdom of the Shebaim (Sabaeans) “Punt,” and to have traded with it from a very early time, especially for frankincense. The dromedaries; rather, the young camels, or the camel colts. All they from Sheba shall come; rather, they (i.e. the camels of Midian and Ephah) shall come all together from Sheba.

Isa 60:7

Kedar Nebaioth. Arab tribes, like the Midianites and Sabaeans. (With respect to Kedar, see the comment on Isa 21:15.) “Nebaioth” stands for the tribe called by the Greeks and Romans the “Nabataeans,” and by the Assyrians the “Nabaiti,” who were one of the most powerful in the peninsula. About me. 645 Nathan, their king, warred with Asshur-bani-pal. During the Maccabee period we find the Nabataeans in alliance with the Jews, and giving them some valuable assistance (l Macc. 5:25; 9:35). The locality of the Nabataeans was northern Arabia, or the tract lying between the Elanitic Gulf and the Lower Euphrates. The wealth of the Nabataeans and the Kedarenes was in their flocks and herds; and this wealth, it is prophesied, they will place, at the disposal of Israel. Mine altar the house of my glory. The renovated Zion contains a glorious temple, and the temple has in it an altar, to which the sheep and rams are broughtnot, however, to be offered in sacrifice, but to be presented to God and become a part of the wealth of the Church.

Isa 60:8

Who are these, etc.? The prophet beholds the waters of the Mediterranean Sea covered with numerous ships, whose sails remind him of white clouds moving across the blue expanse of heaven, and again of doves wending their way homewards to their accustomed dove-cotes. The “windows” of the dove-cotes are the openings through which the birds pass into the towers where they breed.

Isa 60:9

Surely the isles shall wait for me. The “isles,” or maritime countries of the West, have long waited for a Redeemer (Isa 41:1; Isa 42:4; Isa 49:1; Isa 51:5, etc.). They shall send their sons, and their gifts, in ships, which will come from far, and cover the Mediterranean (see the preceding verse). The ships of Tarshish. Either ships belonging to the people of Tartessus, in Spain, who had a widely extended commerce in ancient times (Herod; 1.163; 4.152; 1Ki 10:22; Eze 27:12; Jon 1:3; etc.), or ships of a peculiar class, such as were considered suitable for the long and dangerous voyage to the distant Western port (see the comment on Isa 2:16). To bring thy sons from far (see the comment on Isa 60:4). Unto the Name of the Lord; i.e. “to the place where the Lord has set his Name” (comp. Isa 18:7).

Isa 60:10-14

The third stanza. Zion’s reconstruction.

Isa 60:10

The sons of strangers shall build up thy walls. Cyrus aided in the supply of timber for the construction of the second temple (Ezr 3:7). Artaxerxes Longimanus sanctioned the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem (Neh 1:3; Neh 2:5-8). The passage has, however, a meaning beyond the literal one. “Strangers” of all kinds, Greeks, and Romans, and Syrians, and Africans, and Cauls, and Spaniards, and others, assisted in building and enlarging the walls of the Church as it spread over the world, set up its bulwarks in the Creeds, and fenced it round about with various decrees and canons. Their kings shall minister unto thee (see the comment on verse 3). Among ministrant kings may be mentioned Cyrus, Darius the son of Hystaspes, Artaxerxes Longimanus, Alexander the Great, Constantine, Theodosius, Charlemagne, St. Louis, etc. I had mercy on thee. A preterit of prophetic certitude. Mr. Cheyne translates, “I will have compassion upon thee.”

Isa 60:11

Thy gates shall be open continually. That all who seek salvation may have free access at all times. There is no fear of enemies entering, since war has ceased (Isa 2:4; Isa 11:9, etc.). The forces of the Gentiles; rather, the wealth of the Gentiles, as in Isa 60:5. That their kings may be brought; i.e. forced to come by their subjects, who know that their own prosperity is involved in complete submission to the Church established in Zion, and therefore compel their kings to come and render their homage in person.

Isa 60:12

The nation that will not serve thee shall perish. God’s curse shall be upon them; they shall wither and decay for lack of the Divine favour and of the graces which God dispenses to mankind through his Church (comp. Zec 14:17-19).

Isa 60:13

The glory of Lebanon shall come (comp. Isa 35:2; Isa 41:19). Considered as imagery, the representation is that the barren hills which stand about Jerusalem shall, in the new state of things, be decked with tall and beautiful forest trees, all the sylvan scenery of Lebanon being transported to Southern Palestine, so as to encompass the city of God with a garden as delightful as that of Eden. The spiritual meaning is that graces of all kinds shall abound in and around the holy city, and shall make it beautiful and glorious. The fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together (comp. Isa 41:19, where the same words occur in the same order; and, for the trees intended, see the comment on that passage). To beautify the place of my sanctuary. Not with “avenues of cedars and plane trees leading up to it” (Delitzsch), which was a style of ornamentation quite unknown to the lie-brews; but with groves, and thickets, and sylvan glades, and wooded slopes all around it, as round the Syrian temples in the Lebanon. The place of my feet. The Jewish temple, as the special place of God’s presence upon earth, was frequently termed “God’s footstool” (1Ch 28:2; Psa 99:5; Psa 132:7; Lam 2:1). He that towers above the heavens had there set his foot. The metaphor is transferred to the renovated Zion.

Isa 60:14

The sons (i.e. descendants) also of them that afflicted thee; i.e. of the various nations that at different times oppressed and afflicted Israelas Egyptians, Canaanites, Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, Edomites, Moabites, Ammonites, etc. Shall come bending unto thee. Bowing themselves down to the new Israelthe Israel of Godas the eleven sheaves bowed themselves down to Joseph’s sheaf (Gen 37:7). At the soles of thy feet (comp. Isa 49:23). Shall call thee, The city of the Lord. Hitherto her enemies had bestowed on Jerusalem disparaging names, as “Forsaken,” or “Desolate” (Isa 62:4). Now they will substitute for such names titles of honour, such as “City of Jehovah,” “Zion of Israel’s Holy One.”

Isa 60:15-18

The fourth stanza, Zion’s prosperity.

Isa 60:15

Thou hast been forsaken and hated (comp. Isa 54:7; Isa 62:4). Zion has been a wife repudiated for her adulteries, “forsaken” by her husband, and the object of his just “hate.” So that no man went through thee. The mixed metaphor is awkward, but readily intelligible. Zion is at once a city and a wife. As a wife, she is “hated and forsaken,” as a city, no man goes through her. An eternal excellency (comp. Isa 59:21, and see the Homiletics on the passage).

Isa 60:16

Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles (comp. Deu 33:19). As a child at the mother’s breast, thou shall obtain kindly nourishment through the means of the Gentiles, who acknowledge thee for their superior, and place all their means at thy disposal (supra, Isa 60:5-11). Among these, the most liberal, and the most prompt to render aid, will be their kings (see the comment on Isa 60:10). Thou shall know that I the Lord am thy Saviour. This clause is repeated from Isa 49:26. It is a phrase containing in it a mysterious depth of promise.

Isa 60:17

For brass I will bring gold; rather, for copper. “Brass” was an alloy little known to the Oriental nations. The general idea is that the glorious age of Solomon would return (1Ki 10:21, 1Ki 10:27), and Zion be as resplendent and as wealthy as in his time. The material splendour is, no doubt, throughout the whole description, typical in the main of spiritual glories and excellences. I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness. “Peace” and “righteousness” are here personified; and the declaration is that they shall bear rule in the community whereof the prophet is speaking (comp, Isa 32:16, Isa 32:17).

Isa 60:18

Violence shall no more be heard in thy land (comp. Isa 2:4; Isa 11:6-9; Isa 35:9). The entire cessation of war and violence is one of the most characteristic features of the “last times,” when swords shall be beaten into ploughshares, and spears into pruning-hooks. “The Prince of Peace” shall ultimately establish peace. It is not surprising that men of earnest religious feeling should have thought, at various times, that they saw the actual commencement of the reign of peace upon earth, so distinctly promised, so earnestly longed for, so necessary for the happiness of mankind. But to a calm and dispassionate observer the nineteenth century seems scarcely more advanced upon the road which leads to this desirable end than the first. Thou shall call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The true wall of the city will be the “salvation” of which God assures it, and the true gates will be the “praise,” or renown, which it has among the nations of the earth (comp. Isa 26:1).

Isa 60:19-22

The fifth stanza. Zion’s crowning glories.

Isa 60:19

The sun shall be no more thy light by day. Here Isaiah anticipates one of the most sublime thoughts in the Revelation of St. John the Divine, viz. that the heavenly Jerusalem, illuminated perpetually by the radiance of the Divine Presence, shall need neither light of the sun by day, nor of the moon by night, but shall be sufficiently illumined by the direct and primary light which streams down upon it from God himself. Whether the sun and moon will continue to exist or not is beyond the prophet’s kenhe makes no announcement on the subject; sufficient for him that the redeemed bask perpetually in a Divine radiance shed upon them by the “Father of lights” (see Rev 21:23; Rev 22:5). The germ of the idea appears in the earlier prophecies (Isa 24:23). For brightness; rather, for illumination. The Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light. God is “the Father of lights” (Jas 1:17)”the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” (Joh 1:9). All other light is but his shadow and his reflexhis creature (Gen 1:3)therefore perishable, not to be reckoned on for continuance (Psa 102:26; Heb 1:11). But God abides; therefore his light will abide. He is “the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever” (Heb 13:8). And thy God thy glory (comp. Zec 2:5). God will not only be the Light of the Church, but her “Glory” and boast. As the Shechinah was the glory of the first, so “the eternal unchangeable light of Jehovah, with its peaceful gentleness and perfect purity” (Delitzsch), will be the glory of the final temple.

Isa 60:20

Thy sun thy moon. That which is to thee instead of sun and moonJehovah’s brightness. The days of thy mourning shall be ended. Till the new Jerusalem descends from heaven (Rev 21:2), and Christ reigns personally over his people (Rev 22:5), the Church is always, more or less, in a state of mourning. The Bridegroom is away (Mat 9:15); his light shines upon his Church only by snatches; his Church feels itself unworthy of himcold, unloving, stained with sin. Fasting, weeping, and mourning befit such a state of things. But in the final condition of the redeemed their mourning shall be ended, “sorrow and sighing shall have fled away” (Isa 35:10); God shall have “wiped away all tears from their eyes” (Rev 21:4); “There shall be no more death” (Rev 21:4); “no more curse” (Rev 22:3); “neither sorrow, nor crying; neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Rev 21:4). The days of mourning shall be ended.

Isa 60:21

Thy people also shall be all righteous. Here the prophet touches the root of the matter. Pain and sorrow are the fruit of sin. Once let sin disappear, and sorrow goes with it. It is the foundation of all the glory and all the happiness of the redeemed in their Lord’s final kingdom, that they are cleansed from all defilement of sin, and “are as the angels” (Mar 12:25). They shall inherit the land; rather, the earththe “new heavens and new earth” of Isaiah:17; Isa 66:22. The branch of my planting; rather, a sprout of my planting; i.e. a sprout which I have planted.

Isa 60:22

A little one; i.e. the “little flock” of our Lord’s own time on earth (Luk 12:32), will become a strong nationa countless multitude (Rev 7:9). In his time; rather, in its time, when the time fixed in God’s counsels for the final establishment of Christ’s kingdom arrives.

HOMILETICS

Isa 60:1-22

The characteristics of the final Church of the Redeemer.

Isaiah’s teaching on this subject divides itself under three heads.

I. THE CHURCH SHALL BE RADIANT WITH A LIGHT DERIVED FROM HER LORD. The radiance spoken of (verses 1-3) is a radiance of moral and spiritual goodness. The absolute moral perfection of the Son of man can, of course, be but faintly and feebly imitated by his followers. Still, they are bound to imitate him; for he “left them an example, that they should follow his steps” (1Pe 2:21). And they are helped in their imitation by their Lord himself, who infuses into them of his own righteousness, and gives them “grace for grace” (Joh 1:16). And the result is that ultimately they, even in this life, more or less bear his image and are made like to him. “We all,” says St. Paul, “with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2Co 3:18). And the resemblance will be greater hereafter. For in their final state they will be cleansed from all stain of sin.

II. THE CHURCH SHALL BE A GREAT NATION, A VAST COMMUNITY, WHICH SHALL FILL THE NEW EARTH AND NEW HEAVENS. The “little one” was to “become a thousand,” and the “small one a strong nation” (verse 22). The Gentiles from every quarter were to flock in (verses 3, 4, 14), and haste to the brightness of Zion’s rising. Distinctions of race were to be abolished, and Zion’s gates were to stand open always, to receive all comers (verse 11). The result was to be a vast influx; and in the ultimate kingdom of the Redeemer would be contained people from every nation under heaven. Besides the mystical hundred and forty-four thousand, representative of the twelve tribes of Israel, St. John saw in the apocalyptic vision “a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and peoples, and tongues, which stood before the throne, and before the Lamb” in the heavenly kingdom, “clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands” (Rev 7:9).

III. THE CHURCH SHALL CEASE TO HAVE ENEMIES OR SUFFER VIOLENCE, AND SHALL ENJOY EVERLASTING PEACE. When the pit has closed on the ungodly, and Satan has been bound and shut up, and her sins have not only been forgiven, but purged away (Isa 1:25), then the Church will find herself kept in perfect peace, with no trouble either from within or from without, with no enemy to vex her, with no faults to mourn (verse 20), with no temptations against which to struggle. Rest and peace are main objects of human desire; only the peace, to be satisfactory, must be a prolonged quiet energy, instinct with consciousness and life. Such an energy is the reverential and loving adoration which the blessed souls render continually to their present God, as they cast their crowns before his throne, and cry, “Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb” (Rev 7:10). The Divine presence will be a perpetually present joy, contenting those who live in it, and causing them to feel an eternal peaceful delight.

HOMILIES BY E. JOHNSON

Isa 60:1-14

The rebuilding of the temple.

I. THE DAWN OF THE NEW DAY. Zion, lying like a prostrate woman on the ground, is bidden to arise, because the glory of her God has dawned upon her. And this in contrast to the thick darkness enwrapping the earth in general. This darkness means alienation from God. As the Israelites had light in their dwellings when thick darkness was on the land of Egypt, so again now. Israel is the “central and mediatorial people.” Here a community of God; yonder a world exiled from God. The contrast continues, and ever must continue. “We are of God; the whole world lieth in the evil one.” The glory of the pure Church is nothing but a reflection from the Eternal. He is a Sun to enlighten the understanding, open the eyes of the mind, thrill the heart with love. When through the faithlessness of the Church that splendour fades from her, there are no conversions, there is little interest in religion. When it reappears, nations set forth to that light, kings to the brilliance of that dawn.

II. THE RETURN FROM EXILE AND INFLUX OF WEALTH. Here the prophet exults in the contemplation of Arabian wealth flowing into the holy city. Their gifts are viewed as religions, as sacrificial,consecrated to God. “The wealth of the heathen world shall be consecrated to the service of the Church. In part this has been the case. No small part of the great wealth of the Roman empire flowed into the Christian Church. The time will come when the wealth of India and China, and of Africa, and of the entire world, shall be devoted to the service of God.”

III. THE NEW JERUSALEM. The walls shall be raised by the willing hands of strangers, probably the converted heathen, whose kings shall become servants of Zion; an endless stream of caravans shall flow through the open gates. And “eager to minister to Israel, the far-off nations force their reluctant chiefs to join them.” For the very existence of these nations must depend on their organic connection with Israel. The Prophet Zechariah significantly declares that the nations who refuse to come up to Jerusalem to worship shall not enjoy the blessing of rain (Zec 14:17, Zec 14:18), which means they must perish, and their land become desolate. Whatever is said of the territory is said of the nation. To Zion, thus effulgent in her revived glory, shall be attracted also the beauty of natural productsthe splendour of the trees of Lebanon, that the courts of the temple and the whole city may be decorated in honour of Jehovah. The oppressors, once so hated and feared, will come in the attitude of crouching suppliants, and they will call the city, “City of Jehovah, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” This magnificent picture may be construed:

1. As a picture of the ideal Church in relation to mankind. True, in this imperfect state, the prophecy can be but imperfectly realized. The glorious Church, without spot or blemish, remains the dream of lofty prophets and apostles. But without such dreams religious life must become despondent and dreary, fiat and sad. While we listen to such oracles, translate them into song and set them to music, we purify and uplift our hearts. Sursum corda! We rise a little nearer to heaven, or bring heaven a little nearer to earth.

2. As a picture of heaven. There stands the heavenly temple; thither a vast multitude has congregated; and there a vast fund of spiritual riches has accumulated. Prophecy and religious poetry in general are but illusory enchantments unless they point to a reality in that state unseen.J.

Isa 60:15-22

The favour of Jehovah to his people.

Zion is again imagined as the bride of Jehovah. No more is she to be “hated,” i.e. neglected (Gen 29:31; Deu 21:15), like one less beloved. No more are her streets to be deserted of passengers. She is to be made an “everlasting pride, the delight of successive generations.” The kings of the earth are to be tender over her, and she is to be enriched by the resources of the nations.

I. JEHOVAH THE SAVIOUR AND THE RULER. (Repeated from Isa 49:26.) Happy the people whose God is Jehovah, the “Hero of Jacob”! Every image of temporal riches and prosperity, such as the gold of Solomon’s palace, or the silver common as stones, and the cedars as sycamores (1Ki 10:21, 1Ki 10:27), may but faintly shadow forth the splendour of the city under the true and eternal King. Better still, the politics will be those of peace. By a figure of speech, peace itself and righteousness are said to govern the city. And so spiritual shall be the sources of its strength, “it shall need no walls nor gates; for Jehovah shall be a constant source of salvation, and of a renown which shall keep all foes at a distance” (Isa 26:1; Isa 33:21). Nothing less than righteousness prevailing in every department of Church and state can satisfy that ideal which has been revealed to us, and which our souls thirst to see realized. Violence is to cease. “The pure gospel of the Redeemer has never originated a single war of invasion, nor produced a scene of bloodshed or prompted to strife. Let us look forward to a time when the mad passions of kings and nations will be subdued, and wars only be known among the sad and disgraceful records of the past.”

THE ETERNAL SPLENDOUR OF THE CITY OF GOD. Jehovah himself, and material luminaries, shall enlighten it (Isa 30:26; cf. Rev 21:23; Rev 22:5). All the wonders of the natural world must pale and turn lustreless before the effulgence of moral beauty. The glory of the Church is its great Headhis Name, attributes, laws, and protecting care. Not so much wealth, talent, numbers, influence, but the character of her sovereign Lord, is her boast. The Church shall enjoy a perpetual existence, living through all changes and surviving all revolutions. Discipline and sorrow shall one day have done their work, and the people shall “all be righteous.” They will possess the land, will inherit all that God has done for its welfare, will enter into all his plans and purposes, enjoy the fruit of his agelong spiritual husbandry. And from this state of things fresh lustre will ever be reflected upon his holy Name. There would be immense increase by accessions from the Gentile world. Nor will there be unnecessary delay. The lesson is to wait, pray, and toil until the day dawntill,

“Crowned with light, imperial Salem rise,
Exalt her towering head, and lift her eyes!”

“He that shall come will come, and will not tarry” (Heb 10:37). These inspired visions have deep relation to the truth; if they he not translated into fact in our time, we may be translated to the sphere where they are realities.J.

HOMILIES BY W.M. STATHAM

Isa 60:1

The blessed dawn.

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.” The original reads, “Be enlightened; for thy light cometh.” For it does not follow that all are enlightened to whom the light comes. There must be a receptive and a reflecting power in us.

I. OPPORTUNITIES ARE NOT ENOUGH. These come to nations and to men; but we must arise, and shake ourselves from slumber and indifference. Israel is to live as a witness for God. We are not to be as the vortex swallowing up all heavenly privileges; but a fountain, to send them abroad. A lighthouse is not for our own vessels, but for the merchandise of the world. The light shines there in Israel that the Gentiles may come to the brightness of its rising. Light is come. What an advent! How valueless is all else in creation without light!

1. The light of a new morning of national life.

2. The fight of an evangelical prophet, like Isaiah, who sees not only Israel’s ruin, but Israel’s remedy too.

II. HUMAN ENDEAVOURS ARE NOT ENOUGH. Isaiah does not say, “I have come.” He does not point to the medium, but to the light itself. “The glory of the Lord.” This is seen to be such:

1. By its unique character. There is no light like the light of inspiration.

2. By its glorious influence. It brings safe guidance, sure prosperity, and spiritual peace.W.M.S.

Isa 60:15

A promise to Israel.

“I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.” God’s estimate of honour is the only real and permanent one. Nations have sought other excellences. The Egyptians excelled in architecture; the Greeks in art and beauty; the Romans in government and military prowess. The Jew was to excel in righteousness and religion.

I. GOD‘S IDEAL IS IMMORTAL. “An eternal excellency.”

1. Military empire passes from kingdom to kingdom.

2. Taste changes alike in art and architecture. But the moral law is eternal.

II. THE CONTRAST IS COMPLETE. The “forsaken” shall have arise among them One who shall fulfil the words of the sixteenth verse, “Thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” The “hated” shall find and feel the tender love of God; for (verse 10) “In my favour have I had mercy on thee.” Scorn and contumely, what are they when the heart glows with the love of God, and the character wins his everlasting favour?W.M.S.

Isa 60:20

Eternal day.

“Thy sun shall no more go down,” etc. We are told in the preceding verse who this sun is. It is God. As the Light of the soul, he shall live for ever. We speak of sun and moon, not only as they exist in nature, but figuratively, as symbolic of joy and gladness to the human heart. Many things are in this sense lights to us here, but their glory is often dimmed, often eclipsed in darkness; but hereafter “the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting Light, and thy God thy Glory.” Night is indispensable to nature here. Its dews and darkness answer numberless purposes of good in the wide creation. And must we not say that the gloom and mystery of life have all a meaning, a Divine intent? and that the spirit of the probationer for eternity is perfected in it? To have all sunshine in a world so stained with sin would argue that God thinks lightly of evil. It is not so. This life of ours has much of gloom; but all its darkness, directly or indirectly, springs from sin. The eclipse is caused by the selfishness of man coming between God and the soul. Will God always cause us to endure so much of darkness? No. But we must wait his time. We must wait his place. We may put off our black dress and dress in bridal robes when, as our text says, “the days of our mourning shall be ended.” Light is beautiful. “Surely light is sweet.” Think how many golden harvest-fields the all-ripening sun has looked down upon; how many scenes of blest content its rays have rested on. Many of our frames of mind are materially affected by the merry sunshine. The sun not only ripens the corn, it gladdens the heart. But there is a sunshine of the soul not at all connected with this. There are joys which nothing outward can bestow or remove. Yes; there are many miserable hearts on the brightest days. The sunshine cannot replace the smile of a vanished face. Likewise there are many glad hearts on the gloomiest days. Nothing can steal from them the blessedness of being loved and doing good. I would remark, however, that

I. THE SUNSHINE OF LIFE IS UNCERTAIN. Do dark days come suddenly on mariners in distant seas, in other zones? So imperceptibly comes sorrow to human hearts. We have no control over the landscape and the heart. Its fairest scenes may be darkened in an hour! Imagine a belated traveller seeing the sun go down. This is so! What sad intelligence may come! What unbidden conjecture may arise! What surmise] What thought may come forth from the chambers of memory! What spoken wordswhat sad scenes may quench the light of joy and gladness in the human countenance! Yes; you have marked this; perhaps your own words may have produced it. How many can bear evidence of this! They will be ready to echo my words when I say, “Let us be very thankful for so much bright sunshine as we have, for the joys which are the rewards and accompaniments of Christian life.” Yes; “they will bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp, with the psaltery;” they will be glad, but they will rejoice with trembling, for they “know not what a day,” etc.

II. THE SUNSHINE OF LIFE IS MUCH DEPENDENT ON THE STATE OF OUR SOULS. We may be surrounded by the sweetest natural and the holiest moral associations, and yet sometimes be very sad. It may be at home, or even in the sanctuary of God. A little pebble placed near the eye will intercept the light of the sun; and a little object may keep away from us the smile of God and the sweet sanction of our own conscience. We feel discontented with ourselves, that, having a cross so near to go to, we should yet bear the burden of so many sins; that, having a Friend so near, we should let him share so few of our sorrows. But the cause of this is the explanation of our sadness: we so often love the sins we cherish; we so often forsake the Friend we should make our own. As it is with a sermon, so it is with all the aspects of life, so much hangs on the state of our own soul. But look up higher. The souls that listened where you do, trod the same earth, wept the same tears as you do,they are sad nevermore, for the state of their souls is purer than the purest lake which reflects the overhanging hills; so pure that they consciously and clearly bear the image of him who knew no sin.

III. THE SUNSHINE OF HEAVEN WILL BE SOFT AS WELL AS BRIGHT. It is likened to the moon as well as to the sun. Heaven is not only pictured to us by the symbols of the waving palms, and the majestic multitude, and the thrilling anthem, and the reverberating choir, and the glad hosannah! No; there will be soft moonlight as well as sunlight. Much and most of our happiness here is not of the outwardly buoyant and ecstatic character. It is calm and peaceful joy which you crave no vivid image for. This one suits it thoughthe moonlight. Yes; how many voyagers has it lent its soft light to guide amongst the breakers! How many travellers, imperilled by the way, has it kept in safety from the precipice and the watercourse! How many will sing of the beauty as well as the safety it gives] Never did the sleeping city stand out in such calm and stately grandeur. Never did the overhanging worlds glow with a serener or a steadier beauty. We cannot always bear the gaze of the sun; but ask the Indian missionary, and he will tell you the sweet loveliness of the moon. It is a type, then, as I think, of a calmer joy; the blessedness of a being who, no longer vexed with anger, hate, or jealousy, no more burdened with pride, or prejudice, or selfishness, sees and enjoys God in all around and all within him. Whowhat shall disturb this joy? “Neither shall thy moon withdraw itself.”

IV. THE SUNSHINE OF HEAVEN WILL BE COMMON TO ALL CHRISTIANS. Some of us here to-day may be for a time walking in darkness, whilst some are rejoicing in the light. There sits the sad widower, and there the joyful husband; there the pensive widow, there the glad wife; there the fatherless orphan, there the fond child. Yea, and deeper are the differences. There is one who, by the grace of God, has just conquered some besetting sin; beside him, one who stilt indulges it. There, one whose commerce with the court of heaven is small; and there, one who, like Enoch, walks with God. There, one who pitches his tabernacle with the open door towards the cross; there, one who has his tent open towards the world. Here are different phases of human experience, different states of physical health, and different degrees of the spiritual life. Consequently the sunshine of one is not the sunshine of all. In heaven it wilt be common. I do not say all will have the same degree of blessedness. I believe they will not. But all will be at rest. There will be no such difference as between sorrow and joy. All will be happy up to the measure of their being; all will participate in a joy of which the sublimest foretastings on earth are but the faintest shadows. Mark, then, the language. “Thy sun shall no more go down.” It belongs to thee. We are not of the night, as we are in the night.

V. THE SUNSHINE OF HEAVEN SHALL NEVER REST ON GRAVES. “The days of thy mourning shall be ended.” I have often thought on the brightest days of the many new tombs which the sun’s light falls on. But a few days since, closed eyes rejoiced in the light as well as mine. Ah! and there are eyes looking on the world which looked on it with them; scenes of sea and land, hill and vale, forest and flood, which photographed themselves on both hearts alike. One is now a clod of the valley. Much of the description of heaven, to inspirit our hearts, rests in what there is not there. And there are no more graves. There is no new tomb for Joseph in the garden of the better country. We shall hear no lamentation for the dead there”Rachel weeping for her children, because they are not.” We shall never, as did the disciples, stand with Jesus at the grave there. No voice will ever say, “Young man, I say unto thee, Arise!” “Lazarus, come forth!” No; there are no graves, neither in the sea nor in the rock; for “the days of thy mourning shall be ended.”W.M.S.

Isa 60:20

Departed grief.

“The days of thy mourning shall be ended.”. What a glorious perspective there is in these words! In the fairest skies we are accustomed to expect some clouds to start up from the bed of the sea, or to come suddenly across the blue firmament heralded by some fleecy outrider. Nor do we expect perpetuity of joy in human life. Life is ever the subject of risk and danger. We never part without uncertainty as to meeting again; we never know but our day of glory may set in tears. There comes, too, in time, to us all that “last glance of love which becomes the sharpest pang of sorrow.”

I. NIGHT. On earth our experience is often that of mourning. We are sorrowful.

1. Over the ravages of sin in ourselves and in the world.

2. Over the contrast between our ideals and our imperfections.

3. Over the influences of mutability and mortality.

4. Over the weakness of our faith and the coldness of our love to Christ.

II. MORNING. “Ended.” Some things end for a time only. We are liable to them again. Fear returns. Disaffection of friends, awhile ago removed, recommences once more. Pain eased gives place to after-anguish. Friend after friend departs. After one victory over temptation comes another and a fiercer conflict. “Mourning ended.” Why? God is our everlasting “Light;” for:

1. We are all righteous. (Isa 60:21.) The new nature is perfected in those who have the new name; there is no sorrow where there is no sin.

2. We are all at home. “They shall inherit the land for ever.” At last the craving for rest is satisfied. At last what we have so long sought here we shall find there. All here mocks us with a sense of change, disruption, and death. There “thy sun shall no more go down.”W.M.S.

Isa 60:22

Multiplication.

“A little one shall become a thousand,” etc. This is a Divine rebuke of our estimates. We look at outward magnitudes; God looks at that which has inward extension in itself.

I. THIS IS TRUE HISTORICALLY. Israel found it so. The Pilgrim Fathers found it so. And many Churches have found it so, where there has been loving co-operation and personal consecration. Look how the despised mission work in India grew to a mighty force, despite the satirical review of Jefferies. Look how the native schools, with their slender beginnings, have grown to millions of disciples.

II. THIS IS TRUE CONDITIONALLY. God must be with us! “I the Lord will hasten it.” “It is to be in his time.” There is no promise to the “little one,” whatever skill, energy, or endeavour there may beonly God is with them. When we are on the side of truth, we are on the side of conquest. When we are waiting in disappointed moods, God is hastening on the sure foundation, which he is laying. When we are fascinated with the meretricious glory of the world, we see it laid low and Christ’s kingdom established on its ruins.W.M.S.

HOMILIES BY W. CLARKSON

Isa 60:1-22

The Church triumphant.

With other eyes than ours the Jews must have read these glowing words. They saw in them a fascinating picture of a triumphant people; they saw the Jerusalem of their knowledge and of their love made strong and glorious in some coming time. Their patriotic hopes were kindled and must have been raised to a white heat of intensity as they dwelt on the gladdening, transporting promise. In the midst of surrounding darkness covering the whole earth (Isa 60:2), Zion shines forth with a light which proceeds from nothing less than the Divine Presence itself (Isa 60:1, Isa 60:2). Attracted by its radiant beams, her exiled sons and daughters return from the strange lands whither they have gone into captivity, while from every quarter the wealth of Gentile nations flows to her feet. She trembles for very joy, her heart expands with the fulness of its emotion, as she welcomes her children to her heart, as she receives these treasures into her gates (Isa 60:4-6). The produce of other lands is laid on the altar of Jehovah, and brightens the lustre of that glorious house (Isa 60:7). Precious tribute is brought from distant coasts (Isa 60:9), and they who once contemptuously humiliated her, now build up the walls of her strength and find their safety in her service (Isa 60:10-12, Isa 60:14). In place of saddest desolation and signs of Divine departure shall be proofs of national supremacy and the recovered favour of the Lord (Isa 60:15, Isa 60:16). The excellences of earlier days will be eclipsed by the future splendour; the rude arm of force shall give place to the gentle hand of righteousness; the salvation of Jehovah shall surround the city; and songs of praise shall be on the lips of the citizens (Isa 60:17, Isa 60:18). The light of noon in all its radiance is but a picture of the glory which will rest upon her in the abiding presence of Jehovah; and joy, rectitude, and enlargement will be her blessed portion (Isa 60:20-22). There may be intervening days before this is realized; but when the hour is reached for it to come, the Lord will hasten its arrival. But “God fulfils himself in many ways;” he redeems his promises to us otherwise than we hope and even confidently expect. Jerusalem has never attained, and is not likely to realize, the prosperity and power here depicted; in some other way than that of national glory must we look for the fulfilment of this brilliant vision. We shall find it in the triumph of the Church of Christ, of the “Israel of God,” which the Divine Redeemer has lived and died to establish. The features of this “golden age,” as thus realized, are indicated in the text; they are

I. THE EXALTATION OF THE DIVINE. Its glory will be manifestly the “glory of the Lord” (Isa 60:1, Isa 60:2). And everything is to work for the exaltation of Christ (Isa 60:20, Isa 60:21). Whatever does not aim at this or make for this is alien, intrusive, harmful.

II. THE POSSESSION OF VITAL PRINCIPLES. (Isa 60:12.) All that opposes itself to those truths and principles of which the Church of Christ is the exponent and depository will fail and perish.

III. PERFECT ACCESSIBILITY. (Isa 60:11.) Its gates are never to be shut. The Church which is exclusive, the Christian society which is repelling, the minister or messenger of Christ who is forbidding, the message which does not welcome the wandering, bears on the face of it a decisive condemnation.

IV. TRIUMPH OVER ITS BITTEREST ENEMIES. (Isa 60:10, Isa 60:14, Isa 60:15.) Those who smote and scorned shall acknowledge its heavenly origin, and their lips shall utter the redeeming truth; their own hands shall build the walls of Zion.

V. THE INCOMING OF THE REMOTEST. (Isa 60:6, Isa 60:8, Isa 60:9.)

1. Those most distant in space. They shall seek entrance who come from furthest latitudes, whose language, laws, customs, are most strange.

2. Those most distant in spiritthey who have been farthest from God, dwelling in the thickest and grossest darkness with which the land has been covered (Isa 60:2).

VI. LAYING ALL THINGS UNDER TRIBUTE. NOt only the glory of nature (Isa 60:18), but also the greatness of mankind (Isa 60:16); fairest and finest fruits of the field, and the proudest products of society, shall minister to its strength and promote its cause.

VII. SPECIAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE KINGDOM AND GLORY OF CHRIST. (Isa 60:7.) As the flocks and herds of Kedar and Nabathea would add something, by their novelty and peculiarity, to the glories of the temple; so will the especial characteristics of Christian converts, of the Englishman, of the Italian, of the Indian, of the Chinaman, etc; contribute to the glories of the Church: so will “the imagination of the East, the passion of the South, the vigour of the North, and the enterprise of the West,” bring their own tribute to the glory of Christ.

VIII. THE PREVALENCE OF PEACE. (Isa 60:17, Isa 60:18.)

IX. THE REIGN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Isa 60:17, Isa 60:21.)

X. EVER–ENLARGING PROSPERITY. (Isa 60:17, Isa 60:22.)

The special lessons to be learnt from this description of the Church triumphant are:

1. That in all matters pertaining to the kingdom of God, it is his glory that should be sedulously kept in view.

2. That the Church of Christ must expect to prove an attractive power in the midst of encompassing evil.

3. That it must address itself to the restoration and acquisition of those that seem least likely to be gained.

4. That each community should consider what is the particular contribution it can bring to adorn the doctrine and strengthen the cause of its Master.

5. That the Church should be incessantly active in its holy mission.

6. That it should take care that moral Had spiritual excellency marks it course as well as numerical growth and the brilliancy of its conquests.

7. That it must maintain the attitude of devout expectancy and holy gratitude, remembering that all its strength and hope are in “the Lord, its Saviour and its Redeemer.”C.

HOMILIES BY R. TUCK

Isa 60:1

The call to shine if we have light: or, the duty of doing as well as knowing.

Our first response to God is the reception of his light; but the second is the giving forth of that light. We read this truth and duty in its Christian phases, and urge it by the use of Christian persuasions. Our Lord made very much of the connection between knowing and doing, profession and practice. His disciples must be salt, that savours something or somebody; light, that shines forth on somebody. See the parables of the ten talents, the husbandmen, the sower and the seed, and the barren fig-tree. God always looks for fitting signs and expressions wherever there is life. See the direct teachings of Christ. “He that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them;” “He that doeth the will the same is my brother;” “Yea, blessed are they that hear the Word, and do it.” This union of doing with professing is necessary:

1. To satisfy us of the reality of our own piety. Illustrate from the seedif there is life in it, that life will show itself to the light. Men expect to see religion influencing conduct. We expect this in others. Others expect it in us. They look for our shining if we profess to have received God’s light. No excellence of creed can excuse unsubdued tempers, unrestrained habits, indifference to the welfare of others, and silence concerning what we have tasted and handled and felt of the Word of life. We must test ourselves if we would be assured of our own vitality. No breath, no life. No shining, no light.

2. To prove the truth of Christianity. It makes great pretensions. How shall it support and prove them? Only by living examples. Experiment tests everything, and constantly fresh experiments are needed. After all argument and evidence are exhausted, we ought to be able to say, “See what Christianity has done: the demon-possessed, the blind, the lame, the drunken, the strong-tempered, the selfish, are changed, and now they shine.” Then, if we would offer to the men around us the best plea for Christianity, we must just shine. “Arise, shine; for thy light is come.”

3. To extend the work of the Light-bringer, the Redeemer. Christian living is the supreme persuasion. Men may resist eloquence, reasoning, force,they cannot resist the power of godliness; it is like the influence of leaven; it is like the testimony of the dawning day, which men must heed. Jerusalem of oldJerusalem spiritualized as the modern Churchmay well be bidden to “put on the beautiful garments” of godly living, and “arise and shine.”R.T.

Isa 60:7

God’s presence the glory of God’s house.

“I will glorify the house of my glory” (comp. Hag 2:7-8; Mal 3:1). Rendered literally, the sentence would read, “My house of beauty will I beautify.” Foreshadowings of this spiritual truth are found in God’s presence making the charm of the Eden-home; God’s presence abiding as a glory between the cherubim in the holy of holies; and God’s presence coming in the symbol of the descending cloud on Solomon’s temple. It was the great glory of Herod’s restored temple, that the God-Man walked and worshipped and taught within its courts. It is the exceeding great glory of the Church, the spiritual temple, that God the Spirit comes to it, dwells in it, is the inspiration of it, and glorifies it. There is no glory in a shrine without the Deity. The sunshine, streaming through the windows of the old cathedral, fills the whole place with wondrous and solemnizing lights and shades; and the sunshine of the Divine presence fills the heart and the sanctuary with the only true glory and beauty and joy. “The Church is the house of God’s glory, where he manifests his glory to his people, and receives that homage by which they do honour to him.”

I. WE OUGHT TO GLORIFY GOD‘S HOUSE. One idea of the text is that the restored temple at Jerusalem would be honoured by abundant supplies of sacrifices. That old way of worshipping has given place to spiritual forms, such as prayer and praise and instruction; then we should give the best possible attention to these, that in so doing we may honour God’s house. The best song, the best gifts, the best architecture, all should be devoted to the glorifying of God’s house. And the best, most regular, most reverent, attendance at public worship may be our way of honouring God. “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the Name of the Lord.” That is the way to glorify God for his goodness.

II. GOD ALONE CAN TRULY GLORIFY GOD‘S HOUSE. If he is not present, accepting the worship, inspiring the worship, and sanctifying the worship, then it is all vain show, empty form, deluding ceremony. Write up “Ichabod,” for the “glory is departed.” God’s presence is known in the enduement of his ministers with righteousness, and in the making of his chosen people joyful.R.T.

Isa 60:11

Open gospel-gates.

“Thy gates also shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night.” Compare the picture of the new Jerusalem, in Rev 21:25, “And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there): and they shall bring the glory and the honour of the nations into it.” The figure is taken from a country in which the cities were defended by walls and gates, and these gates were closed at night. Closed gates represented the old limitation and exclusiveness of Judaism. Open gates suggest the fulness and freeness of the gospel provision and the gospel offer. “Here the open gates have their special reason assignedto admit the ever in-streaming world, with its offerings and homage.” “The words of the text imply a state of peace, in which there would be no danger of attack; and the constant stream of pilgrims, with their offerings, entering by night as well as by day.”

I. OPEN GATES ARE A PROCLAMATION OF PEACE. The Church does not want to hurt anybody, so it feels no fear of anybody wanting to hurt it. Illustrate from the open country of America; it can keep its gates open, because it does not want to injure or take advantage of any other nation, and so it is unable to conceive of other nations wanting to injure it. George Macdonald has, in ‘Thomas Wingfold, Curate,’ a very curious, but very striking, conception of a heaven of sweetest peace, where there is no money to create greed, and where everybody wants to serve his neighbour, and nobody wants to injure his neighbour. That place can keep its gate open; and so can Christ’s Church. Even in some parts of our country, people’s doors are never locked. It is a delightful sign of peaceful living.

II. OPEN GATES ARE AN INVITATION TO ENTER. Illustrate by the silent, yet powerful, call of the open church doors on the sabbath day. We hear them singing to us and saying-

”Come in, come in,
Eternal glory thou may’st win!”

The gospel’s “whosoever will” is Divine persuasion. It gives us confidence; we all can come under that “whosoever.”

III. OPEN GATES ARE AN ASSURANCE OF WELCOME AND PROVISION. There is something inside the temple, inside the city, which thus boldly dares to open its doors. There must be a “feast of fat things, of wines on the lees well refined.” Illustrate from our Lord’s parable of the gospel-feast. He would not open thus wide his doors if the oxen were not killed and the fatlings ready. Unfold what precious and all-satisfying things for souls the Lord Jesus has provided, and plead that, whether it be morning-time of life, noontime, evening, or night, the gates are open, and we may enter now.R.T.

Isa 60:12

The condition of national prosperity.

“Every nation shall fall unless it serves the Lord, the righteous God, the God of Israel, through whom alone is salvation. The figure of serving Israel means serving the God of Israel” (Matthew Arnold). Foerster remarks that “the Roman pontiffs abuse this oracle of the prophet to establish their tyranny over monarchs. In particular, it is recorded of Pius IV; that at the time of his election he caused a coin to be struck, on one side of which was his own image, adorned with a triple crown, and on the other these words of the prophet were inscribed.” Barnes gives suggestions for the historical illustration of the passage: “The idea of the verse is that no nation can flourish and long continue that does not obey the Law of God, or where the true religion does not prevail, and the worship of the true God is not maintained. History is full of affecting illustrations of this. The ancient republics and kingdoms fell because they had not the true religion. The kingdoms of Babylon, Assyria, Macedonia, and Egypt; the Roman empire, and all the ancient monarchies and republics, soon fell to ruin because they had not the salutary restraints of the true religion, and because they lacked the protection of the true God. France cast off the government of God in the first Revolution, and was drenched in blood. It is a maxim of universal truth that the nation which does not admit the influence of the laws and the government of God must be destroyed. No empire is strong enough to wage successful war with the great Jehovah; and, sooner or later, notwithstanding all that human policy can do, corruption, sensuality, luxury, pride, and far-spreading vice will expose a nation to the displeasure of God, and bring down the heavy arm of his vengeance.” The precise form in which this subject is dealt with must depend on the standpoint of the preacher. It is better, therefore, only to give the lines in which thoughts, arguments, and persuasions may run. The conditions of national prosperity are

I. BELIEF IN GOD. Atheism never has built up, and never can build up, a stable nation. An atheistic nation is like a wall of loose stones. There is nothing to bind it into a unity of strength.

II. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF GOD. From different points of view the absolute necessity for some public and authorized testimony of the national faith may be urged.

III. OBEDIENCE TO GOD. By the recognition of his Law as the absolute standard of national righteousness, the final court of appeal.

IV. REFERENCE TO GOD. In all times of national perplexity or peril. “Righteousness exalteth a nation,” but righteousness is thistrying to know God’s will, and trying to do it.R.T.

Isa 60:13

Glorifying the second temple.

There are no records of such overwhelming manifestations of the Divine glory at the dedication of the second temple as were granted when Solomon consecrated the first. And yet its glory was to be higher than any reached in the experiences of Solomon’s temple. There was to be a spiritual presence of God, which was to be realized by the help of the human presence of Christ.

I. EVIDENCES OF THE FULFILMENT OF This PROMISE. Or signs of the spiritual presence and spiritual power of God in his Church.

1. Quickening of religious life; or conversions.

2. Renewals of religious life; or sanctification.

3. Enlargement of religious feelings. This, however, may be spurious, or it may be sound.

4. Reconsecration to religious work.

II. THE CONDITIONS ON WHICH THE FULFILMENTS OF THIS PROMISE DEPEND. Our moral attitudes. We must be set for the blessing. The Church that would have the spiritual presence of God must be

(1) maintaining the Christian spirit;

(2) living the Christian life;

(3) upholding the Christian worship;

(4) working the Christian work.

Then there is much preparing and fitting work for us to do, if God is to “make the place of his feet glorious” where we unite in his worship.R.T.

Isa 60:16

The Mighty One of Jacob.

“And thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour, and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” It is singular and significant that Jehovah should here be so closely identified with Jacob, and not, as usual, with the three great patriarchs. We are to get our ideas of him as a Saviour and Redeemer precisely from what he was to Jacob, and what he did for Jacob. Now, the striking thing in the life of Jacob is that he had much more trouble with himself than with his circumstances. The cursory view might make much of the changeableness and the hardships of Jacob’s checkered life; but he easily mastered his circumstances. The deeper view sees throughout the career a constant struggle with the bad self, which never gets more than a partial victory, until life draws near to its close, and then the hero of a thousand fights with the bad self is enabled to speak of “the angel that redeemed me from all evil.” That angel the prophet suggestively calls the “Mighty One of Jacob.” This, then, is our point. The glory of God our Redeemer is that he can redeem us from our bad selves. Show what is meant by and included in the “bad self.”

I. THE STRUGGLE WITH THE BAD SELF IS A SECRET STRUGGLE, We do not talk about it. We do not put forth any signs of it. Men think our earthly troubles are our great troubles, but the truth is that no cry goes forth from us with such intensity of passion as the cry which no fellow-creature hears, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” Nobody knows how hard we are trying to put away the “old man with his corruptions.”

II. THE STRUGGLE WITH THE BAD SELF IS A HOPELESS STRUGGLE. It is if we carry it on in our own strength. “Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?” What Jacob-like man or woman ever yet sang a victory-song over his own giant self, and praised the weapons and the skill that gained the triumph? Jacobs that try to get quit of the bad self in their own strength end in the dust, under giant Self’s foot.

III. THE STRUGGLE WITH THE BAD SELF IS JUST THE STRUGGLE IN WHICH WE MAY HAVE, AND SHOULD REJOICE TO HAVE, A DIVINE HELPER. He, the “Mighty One of Jacob,” has access to souls, and influence on souls. He “strengtheneth us with strength in the soul.” He will not cease his gracious working until his people are “all glorious within.” Of this we may be sure, in this we may have supreme consolation-over the secret inner strife of our souls, the Lord, the Saviour, the Redeemer, graciously presides.R.T.

Isa 60:19

Our everlasting Light.

Contrasts are suggested with brief days that darken into night, and cloudy days that hide the sunshining. It passes our comprehension, indeed, but it kindles our imagination, to conceive of a day that knows no ending, and a sunrising that never reaches its meridian. Yet we often feel as if we wanted life to be all sunshine; it shall be when we are altogether good. While we are encompassed with infirmities, and must be under discipline, God cannot be to us an “everlasting Light;” there must be clouds coming betwixt, Which our fearing, trembling souls fashion into his forms. In the white heavens, white souls need no sun and no moon to shine upon them, for the glory of God doth lighten them. But this is ideal glory, and the question for us isHow near can we get to it now?

I. FOR US GOD MAY BE THE LIGHT OF THE MATERIAL WORLD. To let ourselves be so engrossed with business affairs that there is no room for God in thought, or heart, or life, is to lose the everlasting lightto be unable to see God in common everyday things. It is hardly conceivable that any man could wish to have this fair earth with its vales and hills, without the gilding beautifying sunshine. O poor earth, dull and dead, like sunless winter in Arctic climes! And yet thousands are willing to have this earth of material relationships without the sunshine of God. Exactly what men want, but do not know that they want, is God their everlasting Light. Common life, with him, is lived in the sunshine.

II. FOR US GOD MAY BE THE LIGHT OF THE INTELLECTUAL WORLD. In our day he is only allowed to shine intermittently in this world, and there are many who would blot him out of this sky if they could. Others, who would not go so far as that, would gladly make a thick, foggy atmosphere of their own wisdom, through which he can only shine dimly. We shall never get the full glory of the treasures of the intellectual world until we let the revealing rays of the “everlasting light” fall everywhere upon them.

III. FOR US GOD MAY BE THE LIGHT OF THE SPIRITUAL WORLD. Indeed, there is no light at all in the spiritual world if he does not shine. And the one thing above all others which they crave after who dwell in that spiritual world is the full, constant, unshaded, glowing, life-renewing power of the everlasting Light.R.T.

Isa 60:21

The heaven of universal righteousness.

“Thy people also shall be all righteous.” “There are no people on earth that are all righteous; there is a mixture of some bad in the best societies on this side of heaven; but there are no mixtures there. They shall be ‘ all righteous,’ that is, they shall be entirely righteous; as there shall be none corrupt among them, so there shall be no corruption among them; the spirit of just men shall there be made perfect” (Matthew Henry). Universal righteousness includes the following things.

I. THAT EVERY MAN HAS WON HIS OWN WILL WHOLLY FOR GOD.

II. THAT EVERY MAN HAS WON HIS OWN LIFE AND CONDUCT FOR GOD.

III. THAT EVERY MANAS WON HIS OWN RELATIONSHIPS FOR GOD.

IV. THAT EVERY MAN HAS WON ALL HIS OWN SURROUNDINGS FOR GOD.

No picture of a material heaven can be so inspiring to us as this sublime picture of a moral state, in which everybody tries to do the right, and finds triumphant grace given to him for the doing.R.T.

Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary

Isa 60:1. Arise, shine “Arise from your state of darkness and mourning, and enter into a state of light and happiness; that thou mayest be able to enlighten others: shew thy native beauty; suffer thyself to be so strongly illuminated by the glory of the Lord, that thou mayest be a light to others.” For this is what is soon after added; and the Gentiles shall walk in thy light. See 1Pe 4:4. Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, is the author and procurer of all light, happiness, and salvation to his church.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

II.THE SECOND DISCOURSE

The Rising of the heavenly Sun of life upon Jerusalem, and the new personal and natural life conditioned thereby

Isaiah 60

The Prophet has returned from speaking of the present to treat of the last things. He sees a new Sun, the principle of new life, rise upon Jerusalem. Although this future, too, is depicted in colors belonging to the present time, yet we perceive from the matters which he specifies, that his discourse relates to the distant future. And, although the Prophet does not distinguish the times, we see that the fulfilment will take place gradually. We observe in respect to the influence of the Sun, which, according to Isa 60:1-2, is to rise upon Jerusalem, and advance from a glory which is more of a natural character to one which is more supernatural and heavenly. The chapter, however, does not divide itself into two, but into three sections, of which the first (Isa 60:1-9) has for its subject the gathering of all nations to the sun that rises upon Jerusalem; the second (Isa 60:10-17 a), the restoration of Jerusalem to outward glory; the third (Isa 60:17 b22), this new life in its relation to God, and in its moral and spiritual manifestation. [We do not like such a division of this grand prophetic picture. Its parts cannot well be thus separated.D. M.].

____________________
1. THE GATHERING OF THE NATIONS TO THE SUN THAT RISES UPON JERUSALEM. . Isa 60:19

1Arise, 1shine; for thy light is come;

And the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

2For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And gross darkness the people:
And the Lord shall arise upon thee,
And his glory shall be seen upon thee.

3And the Gentiles shall come to thy light,

And kings to the brightness of thy rising.

4Lift up thine eyes round about, and see:

All they gather themselves together, they come to thee:
Thy sons shall come from far,
And thy daughters shall be 2nursed at thy side.

55 Then thou shalt see, and 3flow together,

And thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged;
Because the 4abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee;

The 5forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

6 The multitude of camels shall cover thee,

The 6dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;

All they from Sheba shall come:
They shall bring gold and incense;
And they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord.

7All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee,

The rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee:
They shall come up with acceptance on mine altar,
And I will glorify the house of my glory.

8Who are these that fly as a cloud,

And as the doves to their7 windows?

9Surely the isles shall wait for me,

And the ships of Tarshish first,
To bring thy sons from far,
Their silver and their gold with them,
Unto the name of the Lord thy God,
And to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.

TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL

Isa 60:1, Delitzsch justly bids us mark that are Trochees, and are lambuses. Observe the change of vowels. All the Hebrew vowels are found in these five words in correspondence with the fulness of thoughts which these few words contain. How admirably is the language adapted to the subject! Does not this betoken that master of speech, Isaiah? [What power of creative might lies in these two Trochees, Kumi, ori, which are, as it were, prolonged till what they say is done; and what a power of consolation lies in the two Lambuses ki-ba orech, which, as it were, stamp upon the action of Zion the seal of the divine action, and fit to the (raising up) its (foundation)! Delitzsch.D. M.].

Isa 60:3. , ortus, is . . as an appellative. As a proper name it is of frequent occurrence.

Isa 60:4. . Observe that the nun has no dagesh forte. (Comp. Naegelsbachs Gr. 5, 6).

Isa 60:7. [The verbal form which is repeated in Isa 60:10, has an abbreviated suffix without the tone, as Isa 47:10. Delitzsch].

Isa 60:9. , with a rarer suffix form for . See a like form in Isa 54:6.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

1. The Prophet sees in the distant future the restoration of Jerusalem, and its exaltation to unparalleled, supermundane and everlasting glory. But he sees bonded together every thing that is in the future to produce this glory, from the first weak beginnings till the consummation in the heavenly Jerusalem. He sees at first night prevailing over the whole earth. But where Jerusalem is, he beholds a growing brightness as at the rising of the sun. He calls to Jerusalem to receive the glory which Jehovah is about to impart to her, and to let that glory unfold itself (Isa 60:1-2). Then he sees how this light emanating from Jerusalem attracts the Gentiles and their kings (Isa 60:3). He sees further how together with the heathen (and we may say, even in the heathen), Jerusalems own children try to reach the mother city, and are aided in this effort by the heathen (Isa 60:4). With joy Jerusalem beholds these multitudes stream to her, and rejoices the more, that they come not with empty hands, but bring with them the choicest products of land and sea (Isa 60:5). Troops of camels will carry the gold and incense of the East (Isa 60:6); the flocks of the eastern nomadic lands will be acceptable as offerings on the altar of Jehovah (Isa 60:7). On the other hand, ships come from the distant West, laden with the precious things of lands beyond the seas, and are with their sails like to bright clouds, or doves on the wing (Isa 60:9). It is obvious that here again the Prophet draws the picture of the future with the colors of the present.

2. Arise, shinecome unto thee.

Isa 60:1-5. The image before the mind of the Prophet is a sunrise scene. Far and wide night still reigns, but grandly above all other heights of the earth towers mount Zion, which here, in accordance with Isa 2:2; Mic 4:1, appears as established in the top of the mountains, and exalted above the hills. And the Prophet beholds this highest mountain of the earth irradiated by the rising sun. Its summit glitters as if covered with celestial light. From this the Prophet knows that the dawn of the day of salvation for Jerusalem has arrived. He calls therefore to her encouragingly, [In Eph 5:14 this first verse is combined in a paraphrastic form with Isa 51:17; Isa 52:1, 2, Kay]. Jerusalem has now to lift up her head, because her redemption is nigh (comp. Luk 21:28); she is to raise herself from the depression and prostration in which her situation has hitherto kept her. Jerusalem shall become light, shall shine (, the verb in Isaiah only here, Isa 60:19; Isa 27:11). But she is not to shine in her own light, but to let herself be enlightened by the higher light which rises on her. But this light is called thy light, because Jerusalem and this light are adapted the one to the other. What sort of a light it is which shall rise upon Jerusalem, is told us in Isa 60:1 b. It is the glory of Jehovah. This light shall rise as an everlasting sun upon Jerusalem (comp. Isa 60:20; is vox solennis of the rising of the sun, and occurs in Isaiah besides here only Isa 60:2 and 58:20). In Isa 60:2 the explanation is given why the sunrise referred to in Isa 60:1 b is a matter of such great importance, and why Jerusalem is so pressingly summoned to yield herself to the influence of this rising sun [Rather to shed forth the light which she has received from it. D. M.]. Jerusalem has herein the highest honor conferred on her that the Sun first rises upon her, that she is that point in the East from which the light is to spread over the countries shrouded in darkness. [The Sun of suns is Jahve (Psa 84:12), the God who comes, Isa 59:20…. When this Sun rises on Zion she becomes altogether light, but not for herself alone, but for all mankind. Delitzsch. D. M.]. is found only here in Isaiah. We see from Isa 60:3 that the nations still in darkness are not inaccessible to the light. They have a longing for the light, [This is not said], and a susceptibility of receiving it. Nations and princes come to the heavenly light. The brightness of thy rising is the brightness of that which rises upon Jerusalem, according to Isa 60:2, the brightness of Jehovah. [But Zion made light in the Lord is represented as herself shining as a light in the world. Her rising can be described as the brightness of the sun when he goeth forth in his might, Jdg 5:31; 2Sa 23:4. To regard the brightness of thy rising, as meaning the brightness of that which rises upon thee, is surely forced and unnatural, albeit the best interpreters acquiesce in this explanation. But the church, as irradiated by the divine glory, and reflecting it, has a light and brightness which is called her own, and which she sheds upon the world.D. M.]. Not only the nations and princes of the heathen world hasten to Jerusalem. Along with them are other visitants, who are no foreigners in Jerusalem, but are children of the house. The scattered members of the Israelitish kingdom, conducted and attended with all honors by the Gentiles, will return to the holy home (comp. Isa 11:11 sqq.; Isa 25:6 sqq.; Isa 26:2 sq.; Isa 27:13; Jer 3:18, see commentary on this place). [Those who confine these prophecies to the Babylonish exile understand this as describing the agency of heathen states and sovereigns in the restoration. But in this, as in the parallel passages [Isa 43:57; Isa 49:1823], there is, by a strange coincidence, no word or phrase implying restoration or return, but the image evidently is that of enlargement and accession; the children thus brought to Zion being not those whom she had lost, but such as she had never before known, as is evident from Isa 49:21. The event predicted is therefore neither the former restoration of the Jews, nor their future restoration. Alexander. D. M.]. The words ver, 4a, are repeated from Isa 49:18. The gathering together () refers not only to separate individuals but according to places such as Isa 11:12; Hos 2:2, [E. V. Hos 1:11] it refers especially to the reunion of Judah with Israel. Of the sons we are simply told that they come from a great distance, but the daughters are carefully carried. is not=on the side, i. e., on the one arm or on the one shoulder (Isa 49:22), but upon the hip; for it is still the custom in the Orient to carry the children astride on the hip. Such care as is bestowed on children, will be shown to the female members of the people (comp. Isa 66:12). is here as Isa 49:23 after the place in Num 11:12, used to denote the nursing and tending of a child. But Jerusalem shall not only see her children come, she shall have the joy of seeing them come with full hands, furnished with all the magnificence and glory of the world. In Isa 60:5 the words to are to be taken as a sentence denoting a circumstance, put as a parenthesis, which expresses the emotion with which Jerusalem will see what has been depicted. The sentence setting forth the object is, accordingly, dependent on , which, therefore, cannot possibly come from [But it is better, with the E.V., to take as causal.D. M.]. The verb is not here that which means to stream (Isa 2:2; Jer 31:12; Jer 51:44), and which comes from , a river. But it is a different word, related to , occurring as a verb besides only Psa 34:6, but forming the stem of the substantives (Job 3:4) and (Jdg 6:2). The signification is to shine, to brighten up (for joy). Joy makes the face shine, but the heart tremble ( in this sense besides only Jer 33:9). [Henderson renders this clause well: Thy heart shall throb and dilate. The idea of enlargement or expansion of the heart through joy is Semitic; but, as Delitzsch points out, we have the opposite idea in angor, angustia.D. M.]. The joy is called forth by Jerusalem seeing how the treasures of the sea ( as Psa 37:16; Jer 3:23 in the sense of swarm and abundance of the most manifold products, comp. also Isa 60:14), and the wealth of the nations come to her. [The abundance of the sea denotes all precious things which the islands and maritime countries possess. Delitzsch. D. M.]. stands after in the sense of (comp. on Isa 10:3).

3. The multitude of camelsglorified thee.

Isa 60:6-9. [A multitude of camels, without the definite article]. In these verses the Prophet describes how the treasures of the East (Isa 60:6-7) and of the West (Isa 60:8-9) are brought to Jerusalem. The eastern trading nations are indicated by a multitude of camels (, comp. Deu 33:19, in Isaiah only here) and young animals [ not dromedaries, which are not for carrying burdens, but for riding.D. M.], from Midian and Ephah, which bring from Sheba gold and incense, (comp. on Isa 43:23), the most valuable wares. Midian was a son of Abraham by Keturah, and the father of Ephah, Gen 25:2; Gen 25:4, comp. Gen 37:28; Gen 37:36; Judges 7 : is Arabia felix (comp. 1Ki 10:2; Jer 6:20; Job 6:19; only here in Isaiah). These merchants at other times sought gain; now they have a nobler aim. They wish to honor Jehovah; they bring Him presents. This they declare in songs of praise (both and are used by Isaiah only in chapters 4066). The eastern pastoral tribes join the eastern trading tribes. Respecting Kedar comp. on Isa 21:16 sqq.; Isa 42:11. Kedar was the second, Nebaioth the eldest son of Ishmael, Gen 25:13. It is disputed whether Nebaioth is the progenitor of the Nabataei, i. e., of the northern or north western Arabs (for Nabataea is the whole country between the Euphrates and the Red Sea). Comp. Delitzsch on this place, and Herzog, R.-Encycl., 1, p. 598, 2d Ed. is a word which is often used of the ministry rendered by the priests to Jehovah (Num 18:2; Deu 17:12; 1Sa 2:11; 1Sa 3:1 et saepe). The flocks of Kedar and the rams of Nebaioth will therefore as ascend the altar of Jehovah. [ is translated in E. V., and by Dr. Naegelsbach, with acceptance. But it signifies rather with pleasure, delight or good will, and is to be distinguished from the expression elsewhere used which means to (the divine) acceptance, or with acceptance. So Vitringa, Hitzig, Henderson, Delitzsch. On this representation of the victims offering themselves willingly Lowth remarks: This gives a very elegant and poetical turn to the image. It was a general notion, that prevailed with sacrificers among the heathen, that the victims being brought without reluctance to the altar was a good omen; and the contrary a bad one.D. M.]. The great number and excellence of these offerings will conduce to the honor of the temple of the Lord. In Isa 60:8-9 the West appears upon the scene. They that like a cloud, or as doves to their enclosure skim over the sea, are ships with expanded sails. The sails spread out resemble a cloud, the velocity is compared with the swift flight of the dove (comp. Hos 11:11. Bochart, Hieroz. 2. p. 540 sqq.). The feminine ending in is caused by the feminine . is opus reticulatum, net, interwoven work. The answer to the question, who are these, etc., is left to the reader. Every one perceives that it is ships that come from the west. But why those ships hasten with such speed to the holy land is explained in Isa 60:9. They are directed by inhabitants of the , which here as often (see the List), represent the islands and maritime countries of the west. These people hope in Jehovah. Among those ships the foremost ( comp. Num 10:14; 1Ki 20:17; 1Ch 11:6) are the ships of Tarshish (comp. Isa 2:16; Isa 23:1, 14). These, which are the largest, and come from the greatest distance, shall also be the first to bring Jerusalems sons with their silver and gold to the place where the Lord makes known His name, i. e., reveals His nature, and is therefore honored as the Holy One of Israel (see the List). Jerusalems glorification is also thereby intended. [The picture drawn in this section perplexes those who understand it of the literal restoration of the Jews, and of the future glory of the earthly Jerusalem. Hess, Baumgarten and others argue from Isa 60:7 for the restoration of animal sacrifices. But Delitzsch justly rejects this notion as utterly contrary to the Christian system. Animal sacrifice has been abolished by the Servant of Jehovah offering Himself once for all. The blood of the Crucified One has swept away the partition wall of particularism and of ceremonial shadows. But if the victims and the altar here spoken of are not to be taken literally, why should we look for a material temple or construe literally the other traits in the picture? The whole description represents not the material Jerusalem, but the Church of God under images, which, to be consistently interpreted, cannot be taken in a gross, literal sense. We, Christians, are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, etc., Heb 12:22.D. M.].

Footnotes:

[1]Or, be enlightened; for thy light cometh.

[2]a carried on the hip.

[3]brighten up.

[4]Or, noise of the sea shall be turned toward thee.

[5]Or, wealth.

[6]young camels.

[7]lattices.

2. The Restoration of Jerusalem to Outward Glory

Isa 60:1017 a

10And the 8sons of strangers shall build up thy walls,

And their kings shall minister unto thee:
For in my wrath I smote thee,
But in my favor have I had mercy on thee.

11Therefore thy gates shall be open continually;

They shall not be shut day nor night;
That men may bring unto thee the 9forces of the Gentiles,

And10 that their kings may be brought.

12For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish;

Yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

13The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee,

The 11fir tree, the 12pine tree, and the 13box together,

To beautify the place of my sanctuary;
And I will make the place of my feet glorious.

14The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee;

And all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet;
And they shall call thee, The city of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated,

So that no man went through thee,

I will make thee an eternal excellency,
A joy of many generations.

16Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles,

And shalt suck the breast of kings:
And thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour,

And thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

17aFor brass I will bring gold,

And for iron I will bring silver,
And for wood brass,
And for stones iron.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

1. In what follows the Prophet depicts the rebuilding of Jerusalem, and the commencement of a new glorious life in it. The foreign nations that destroyed the walls of the old Jerusalem, shall build the walls of the new (Isa 60:10). And its gates shall stand open day and night, for they are needed no more to keep off the enemy, but only to let in foes, if any there should be, as prisoners with their spoils (Isa 60:11). Should there be any nations who are not attracted by the light (Isa 60:3), but repelled by it, they will go to destruction (Isa 60:12). Jerusalem will then inwardly also be magnificently adorned, as it becomes the sanctuary of Jehovah (Isa 60:13). Then they whose fathers formerly oppressed Jerusalem, or who themselves had despised it, must humbly do it homage, and regard it as the city of God (Isa 60:14). Then will Jerusalem be no more forsaken, hated, and shunned; but it will shine in everlasting glory as the joy of all coming generations (Isa 60:15). All nations must bring their best and most precious things as tribute, as a sign that the God of Israel alone is the Almighty God who can help (Isa 60:16). And as a measure to estimate the future glory of Jerusalem, the Prophet further tells us that gold and silver will come in the place of brass and iron, and brass and iron in the place of wood and stone (Isa 60:17 a).

2. And the sons of strangers . . . and for stones iron (Isa 60:10-17 a). [The expression rendered in the E. V. Sons of strangers, is literally translated, Sons of strangeness or of a foreign country, i. e., foreigners, aliens.D. M.]. In this section, too, the Prophet still paints with the colors of the present. Foreigners shall build Jerusalems walls. Perhaps there is here a reminiscence of the time when Israel in Egypt had to erect buildings for Pharaoh (Exo 1:11). In the second part of Isa 60:10 the Prophet thinks of the terrible days when Jerusalems walls were destroyed by foreigners. This was done not only by Nebuchadnezzar, but at least partially by others also (comp. 2Ki 14:13 sq.; 1Ki 14:26). Great as was the wrath which destroyed Jerusalems walls by the hands of foreigners, so great will be the favor which causes foreigners to rebuild them stronger and more beautiful than ever. A further contrast to the former evil times will be this, that it will be no longer necessary to shut the gates of Jerusalem, for there is no longer an enemy to fear; and there is no more night, which favors the works of darkness (Isa 60:19-20, and Rev 21:25). On the contrary, the only concern now will be to admit the spoil taken from enemies, and their princes that are led captive. That is here to be taken in this sense is evident from a comparison of such places as 1Sa 30:2; 1Sa 30:20; Isa 20:4. [Delitzsch explains as applied to these kings, that they are led as captives by the church, irresistibly bound by her, i. e., inwardly subdued (comp. Isa 44:14, with Psa 149:8), and suffer themselves, as prisoners of the church and of her God, to be led into the holy city in solemn procession of honor.D. M.] Isa 60:12, , properly to dry up, stands regularly of cities and countries, but is also transferred to nations (Isa 37:18; Jer 50:21; Jer 50:27). [They who consider the literal Jerusalem to be the subject of this prophecy, and not the church of God, may ask themselves if utter destruction will really be the punishment of every nation and kingdom that will not serve the Jews. But it is not they that are born after the flesh that are heirs of these promises, but they who are Christs, and so the true seed of Abraham, the Israel of God. (Gal 3:28-29; Gal 4:26-31) The Gentile Christians are not doomed to bondage. In Christs church there is one flock and one Shepherd.D. M.] Is the building of the temple spoken of in Isa 60:13? The answer to this question will decide the point whether the trees mentioned in Isa 60:13 are to serve for the building of the sanctuary, or for ornament to the holy city. But in Isa 60:13 there is no mention of the temple, but only of the place of the sanctuary. [But this expression implies a sanctuary.D. M.] Further, we learn from Isa 66:13 that the new Jerusalem will have neither temple, nor the service that was performed in the temple (comp. Rev 21:23). [But vide contra, Isa 60:7; Isa 2:3.D. M.] Thirdly, it must appear strange that there is no mention of the cedars of Lebanon, which formed the chief material in the building of the old temple. [But the sherbin tree is a species of cedar growing on Lebanon.D. M.] The trees here named are cited from Isa 41:19, and, as there, are here mentioned only as representatives of magnificent vegetation. Hitzigs remark, too, is of weight, that according to Isa 60:17, wood will be excluded as building material. I therefore hold with Hitzig, Ewald, Knobel, Delitzsch, that Isa 60:13 is to be understood of the glorious ornamental living trees that will grace Jerusalem. The glory of Lebanon, which expression occurs besides only Isa 35:2, is probably of the same import as the choice and best of Lebanon (Eze 31:16). Luxuriant vegetation, glorious trees will beautify the place where the Lord, though He has no temple of stone there, has still the place of His gracious presence, and where His feet rest (elsewhere called , as which the earth, 66, or the sanctuary with the ark of the covenant, 1Ch 28:7; Psa 90:5, et saepe, is designated). [So, not withstanding the Lords declaration to the contrary, Jerusalem, artificially embellished, will still be the place where men ought to worship, though it shall have no material temple (Joh 4:20-24). In the dogmatical and ethical remarks on Isa 66:19 sqq., our author truly says that Isaiah teaches that instead of the local place of worship of the old covenant, the whole earth will be the temple of the Lord. We might quote Isaiah as teaching that there will be a temple and sacrifices, too, in the glorious Jerusalem of the future. See the mention of the going up of all nations to the house of the Lord in Isa 2:2, 3; see, too, in verse 7 of this chapter the mention of countless sacrifices ascending the altar of God. If, notwithstanding these statements, we are justified in holding, as Dr. Naegelsbach does, that there will in the Holy City of God be no external temple and no animal sacrifices, we may go further, and seek a spiritual sense for the description of the future outward glory of Jerusalem contained in this chapter. How natural it is to put Zion and Jerusalem for the church of God, whose centre Jerusalem was of old, is seen from the use of Rome for the Church of Rome, whose centre is in that city! We are never to forget that the Prophet paints the future with the colors of the present, and we should avoid playing fast and loose with symbolical language.D. M.] at the end of Isa 60:13, designedly corresponds to its initial word . As the picture mainly sets forth the contrasts between what once was and what shall be, we are told in verse 14 that the descendants of former oppressors and mockers will come submissively to do homage to Jerusalem. ( is infin. nominascens, and is to be taken as accus. modalis, or adverbialis (comp. Ewald, 279, Isa 1:2, 6). [The before is not simply equivalent to at, but expresses downward motion, and may be translated down to. The act described is the oriental prostration as a sign of the deepest reverence.Alexander. Comp. Rev 3:9.D. M.] When these worshippers at the same time call Jerusalem the City of Jehovah, Zion of the Holy One of Israel, they make thereby a confession of faith. They declare thereby that they hold the religious faith of Israel as the true one, They acknowledge, first, that the God of Israel justly bears the name ; that He is, therefore, the true God; and, secondly, that Jerusalem justly calls herself the City of Jehovah, i. e., the place where God reveals Himself and is worshipped. In the appellative signification of (, cippus, monumentum) comes to view. [? ] Jerusalem stands as the great, glorious monument which proclaims to the world the Godhead of Jehovah. A further contrast (Isa 60:15) refers to the relation of Jehovah as husband of Jerusalem. [But Jerusalem is not depicted in Isa 60:15 as a wife forsaken and hated and avoided by God.D. M.]. The Prophet in spirit sees Jerusalem so forsaken and desolate that she, as a deserted city, is trodden by no one, but avoided by all. . Comp. Isa 33:8; Isa 34:10; Jer 9:9; Jer 9:11; Eze 33:28 et saepe. [Whereas thou hast been, etc., is literally Instead of thy being, etc.,D. M.]. As the opposite of this, Jerusalem shall be an eternal glory (, in the objective sense, as Isa 2:10, 19, 21; Isa 4:2; Isa 13:19; Isa 23:9 et saepe), and joy of all coming generations (comp. Isa 24:11; Psa 48:3). The relation of child and servant is before the mind of the Prophet in Isa 60:16. Israel has in the present been obliged to be the illtreated, plundered servant. Foreign conquerors and tyrants have impoverished it, have sucked it out to the very blood. In opposition to this, the promise is now made that foreign kings must regard Jerusalem as a new born, carefully nursed, beloved child. This child will now suck their breasts. This is the explanation of the apparent incongruity of Jerusalem sucking the breasts of men, and not of women. [The language used forces us to interpret the whole prophecy allegorically.D. M.] There lies at the same time this in the image, that the kings themselves will not be illtreated slaves, but affectionate caretakers (Isa 49:23), He who causes this wonderful change is Jehovah, whom Israel will thereby know as Saviour and Redeemer by reason of His love, and as the mighty One of Jacob by reason of His power. The second part of verse 16 is almost a literal repetition from Isa 49:26. In Isa 60:17 a the Prophet has evidently before him what(1Ki 10:18-29) is related of Solomon. Mark especially verses 21 and 27 of the passage referred to, where it is said that silver was then nothing accounted of, that Solomon made it as stones. For brass, etc., i. e., instead of brass, etc. [The city will be massive, built entirely of metal, so that neither the elements nor enemies can destroy it. That the Prophet does not mean to be understood literally is apparent from the allegorical progress of the Prophecy.Delitzsch.D. M.]

Footnotes:

[8]Strangers.

[9]Or, wealth

[10]and their kings as captices.

[11]cypress

[12]plane-tree

[13]sherbin-tree

3. THE NEW LIFE OF JERUSALEM OF WHICH BOTH THE PEOPLE AND NATURE PARTAKE

Isa 60:17-22

17bI will also make 14thy officers peace,

And thine exactors righteousness.

18Violence shall no more be heard in thy land,

Wasting nor destruction within thy borders;
But thou shalt call thy walls Salvation,
And thy gates Praise.

19The sun shall be no more thy light by day;

Neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee:
But the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light,
And thy God thy glory.

20Thy sun shall no more go down;

Neither shall thy moon withdraw itself:
For the Lord shall be thine everlasting light,
And the days of thy mourning shall be ended.

21Thy people also shall be all righteous:

They shall inherit the land for ever,
The 15branch of my planting, the work of my hands,

That I may be glorified.

2216A little one shall become a thousand,

And 17a small one a strong nation:

I the Lord will hasten it in his time.

TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL

Isa 60:19. Although the Masoretes separate by means of zakeph gadol from what follows, and thereby intimate that they wish to be taken in the sense: as regards brightness, this construction seems to me needlessly difficult.

Isa 60:21. The reading of the Keri is to be preferred to that of the Kethib or , which is probably a mistake of the copyist.

Isa 60:22. The feminine suffix is here to be taken in the neuter sense (comp. Isa 59:8; Isa 22:11; Isa 27:4).

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

1. In this section the Prophet takes a loftier flight. The higher life which he promises is above all without sin, i. e., holy. Righteousness, peace and salvation will, therefore, characterize the life of the community (Isa 60:17 b, 18). But even the life of nature will receive a new, higher centre of life. For it will be no more the sun that sheds upon the earth light and heat, and thereby life, but God will Himself be the Sun that shines perpetually and unchangeably (Isa 60:19-20). And because the people, being born again of a divine seed, will sin no more, they will also never lose their country, but possess it to eternity (Isa 60:21). They will also partake of the theocratic blessing of a numerous posterity in the highest degree (Isa 60:22). In the two last verses [and all throughout the chapter, D. M.] we see again how the Prophet represents spiritual, heavenly things with earthly colors.

2. I will also makegates Praise.

Isa 60:17 b, 18. The Prophet, who had hitherto depicted chiefly the external glory of the future Jerusalem, now describes more its inward state. The might of sin will be broken. Its reign comes to an end. Peace and righteousness have dominion. We have to inquire whether we have to take and as the object or as the predicate. But more is contained in the declaration that peace and righteousness will bear rule than in the statement that the rulers will be peaceable and just people. For the latter might be substantially true, and yet much dissension and injustice be in the land. But when peace and righteousness are not only in the rulers but are themselves the rulers (Gesenius, Umbreit, Stier, Delitzsch, etc.), then everything that could disturb peace and impede justice, is excluded. We shall have to take the term peace in its most extensive and highest sense, as comprehending the harmony of man with God, with himself, and with his fellow creatures. Under righteousness we shall have to understand that complete righteousness which consists in the conformity of human willing and doing with the divine will. Righteousness and peace are related as cause and effect. For only when our willing is conformable to the divine, can the right harmony with God prevail in us and around us. We can recall here Psa 85:11, where for restored Israel the hope is expressed that will kiss each other in their land. Peace and righteousness are here poetically personified, which is a form of expression not rare in Isaiah (comp. Isa 22:18; Isa 32:16 sq.; Isa 45:8; Isa 59:14). [ properly means office, magistracy, government, here put for those who exercise it, like nobility, ministry and other terms in English. , which has commonly a bad sense, is here used for magistrates or rulers in general, for the purpose of suggesting that instead of tyrants or exactors they should now be under equitable government. Alexander. D. M.]. Where righteousness and peace rule, nothing more will be heard of violence and wild devastation ( as Isa 59:7; Isa 51:19). On the latter part of Isa 60:18 comp. the remarks on Isa 26:1, which place is related to the one before us. [The walls of the city of God will be impregnableSalvation itself. Her gates (unlike those, which lamented and mourned Isa 3:26) shall be filled with jubilant anthems; shall be mere Praise. Kay in the Bible Commentary. D. M.].

3. The sun shall bein his time.

Isa 60:19-22. Now we see clearly the meaning of that call, Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. The Lord shall he not only the Sun of the life of the spirit; He shall also be the Sun of the life of nature. The light of His divine will immediately shine through it. As moon and stars grow pale before the rising sun, so will the earthly sun grow pale (comp. Isa 24:23 with Commentary and the places of like purport Isa 4:5; Isa 30:26) before the original Fountain of all light, with whom is no variableness (Jam 1:17), when He rises as the sun. We need now the lights of heaven (Gen 1:14 sqq.), because the eternal Light is still hidden from us. We live here in faith, not in sight. The Apostle John employs this trait in the picture which he draws of the New Jerusalem, Rev 21:23; Rev 21:25; Rev 22:5. , Isa 60:19, corresponds to the preceding . In Isa 13:10; Joel 2:10; 4:15 is also used Of the brightness by night. Although there will be still a distinction in the times of the day, there will be no more darkness. As sun and moon will be no more the lights, but the Lord, the Prophet can also say to Jerusalem, Thy sun will set no more, thy moon will not wane ( of the drawing in, the withdrawal of the rays of light, whereby the waning and temporary disappearance of the moon are caused, comp, Isa 16:10; Joel 2:10; 4:15). When this alternation of light and darkness in the life of nature is past, history will consist no more of days of joy and days of mourning, The days of mourning are entirely past ( as 1Ki 7:51; comp. Gen 27:41; Deu 34:8). The mourning days of Israel consisted in this, that the people as a punishment for their sins were given into the hands of their enemies, and had their land taken from them. But when the people, through the unrestricted influence on their life of the new sun that has risen upon them, have become entirely holy and righteous, such judgments will never more be spoken of. They will possess their land for ever, like a garden of God, which contains no weeds to be rooted up, but only holy plants. [Some interpreters take in the sense of earth. Isa 49:8 favors this wider sense of . Here as in Isa 11:1 denotes a shoot rather than a branch. Observe, too, that is in the plural (Keri)my plantings=my creative acts of grace (Delitzsch). D. M.]. The work of my hands is an expression occurring Isa 19:25, where it is applied to the people of Assyria, when they shall be hereafter converted. Israel will therefore, as Assyria, be a people whose life is wrought by God, and will therefore conduce to the praise of God (Isa 61:3). [The dependence of Gods people on Himself for the origin and sustentation of their spiritual life is forcibly expressed by the figure of a plant which He has planted, and by that of a work which He has wrought. Eph 2:10. Alexander. D. M.]. Then too will that benedictio vere theocratica of a numerous progeny guaranteeing everlasting continuance be realized in the richest measure. The least one (the adjective with the article in the sense of the superlative), i. e., the one that is physically most insignificant, the weakest shall become a thousand, and the smallest one (the same in sense as a strong people (comp. Mic 4:7). We see in Isa 60:21-22, how the Prophet again paints the future with the colors of the present. In this Old Testament shell we can discern the New Testament kernel of the (Heb 9:15), and of the (Joh 3:15; Joh 3:36 et saepe). The Prophet has foretold in this chapter great, wonderful, incredible things. [The Lord, therefore, at the close, solemnly guarantees their fulfilment. The last words form the seal of the prophecy. His time is=its time, not the time of the Lord. Its time is the time which the Lord has appointed, and which is known only to Him. When that time has arrived, He will hastily accomplish what has been foretold (Isa 46:11; Isa 43:13; Isa 9:6).D. M.].

Footnotes:

[14]peace thy magistracy, and righteousness thy rulers

[15]The least

[16]The least

[17]The smallest

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. [Barnes in his Notes quotes Popes Messiah in which some of the ideas in this chapter, descriptive of the glorious times of the Gospel, have been beautifully versified. Cowper in the last book of The Task delightfully expatiates on the same fair theme. Justly does he exclaim regarding this prophetic picture:

O scenes surpassing fable, and yet true,
Scenes of accomplished bliss! which who can see,
Though but in distant prospect, and not feel
His soul refreshd with foretaste of the joy?D. M.]

2. On Isa 60:1. Surge! Illuminare! sunt imperativi evangelici, quibus includitur atque promittitur auxilium divinum praesens ad obsequendum. Seb. Schmid. He whose dicere is facere speaks these words, He who with the word and , , (Mar 5:41; Luk 7:14), raised up the dead girl, the deceased young man. Leigh.

3. The gracious light of Jehovah, which radiates gloriously in the manifestation of the Redeemer, fills, too, with the light of God the people among whom it shines. What once happened only to Moses upon the mount, when his face shone with heavenly splendor from his converse with the Lord, will now he imparted to the entire sanctified race. Axenfeld.

4. On Isa 60:1 sqq. The fulfilment of this prophecy takes place by successive stages. In the first place, it is manifest that the city of God here spoken of cannot be the earthly Jerusalem, which was doomed to destruction. But the prophecy has for its, object the , the Free, which is the mother of us all (Gal 4:26), which is elsewhere called the heavenly Jerusalem (Heb 12:22), or the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:2). The Lord and living centre of this heavenly Jerusalem appeared, indeed, in the earthly city, and made it the point whence the light emanated to enlighten the Gentiles. For in Jerusalem the Lord had to die (Luk 13:33) and to rise again; and from Jerusalem the preaching of repentance and forgiveness of pins in His name must begin (Luk 24:47). But after the destruction of the earthly Jerusalem, and during the time of the Gentiles, when the holy place is trodden down (Rev 11:2), there is no other Jerusalem on earth than the church of the Lord, a poor and only provisional form of His kingdom, which, for the period between the first and second act of the judgment of the world (Mat 24:29), i. e. between the destruction of Jerusalem, and the second coming of the Lord to effect the first resurrection (Rev 20:4 sqq.), has for its task in conflict with opposing forces, the calling, gathering and enlightening of the elect from all nations. But when the Lord shall have come again in visible glory, and shall have accomplished the first resurrection and the second act of the judgment of the world, then will those who are called hereto reign with Him a thousand years. During this time there will, according to Rev 20:9, be a holy city on earth which is called the beloved city. …. But when the third act of the judgment of the world, the second resurrection, and the general judgment shall be completed (Rev 20:11-15), then will the earth, with the heavenly bodies comprised in the system of which it forms a part, have become new (Rev 21:1), Then will the holy city, the new Jerusalem (ibid Isa 60:2), the prototype, descend upon the earth, and then will our prophecy obtain its complete fulfilment (Rev 21:10 sqq.).[If the church of the Lord is now, as our author holds, the only Jerusalem on earth; if it can now truly be said to stand for the Jerusalem of prophecy, it may pari ratione, as a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, represent Jerusalem in the future more glorious condition in which it is to appear according to prophecy. The church of the Lord as the heavenly Jerusalem will never be superseded by a material city. We Christians are come unto Mount Zion and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem (Heb 12:22). There is just as much reason to hold that there must now, in order to the fulfilment of prophecy, be a literal Jerusalem, the centre of attraction to Gods chosen people, as that there must be such a city in any future period. Our author in the foregoing remarks disparages unduly the present dispensation. The church of the Lord is now more than a poor and provisional form of His kingdom. See 2 Corinthians 3; Luk 7:28; Luk 10:23-24.D. M.]

5. On Isa 60:1016. Poor and unpretending as is the appearance of the church, like that of her Master when He was in the form of a Servant, yet is she constantly herein displaying her majesty that kings and nations must, when it is needful, serve her, whether willingly or reluctantly. The Roman emperors, after having for three centuries endeavored by every means to extirpate the church, must at last submit to her. But when people would not let the church advance, when they would injure her, or deprive her of her necessary freedom and independence, and make her serviceable to worldly aims, then they have inflicted the greatest harm on themselves. This is seen in the example of the Oriental church [and not in her alone] which, after she was made a dead state church, could no longer resist the onset of Islam. This is seen in modern times in many a State, in which unnatural fetters are laid upon the church, whereby her credit, reputation and efficiency are undermined to the great detriment of the people and of the State.

6. On Isa 60:12. The Roman pontiffs abuse this oracle of the Prophet to establish their tyranny over monarchs. In particular, it is recorded of Pius 4, that at the time of his election he caused a coin to be struck, on one side of which was his own image adorned with a triple crown, and on the other, these words of the Prophet were inscribed. Foerster. [The idea of Isa 60:12 is, that no nation can flourish and long continue that does not obey the law of God, or where the true religion does not prevail, and the worship of the true God is not maintained. History is full of affecting illustrations of this. The ancient republics and kingdoms fell because they had not the true religion. The kingdoms of Babylon, Assyria, Macedonia and Egypt; the Roman empire, and all the ancient monarchies and republics, soon fell to ruin because they had not the salutary restraints of the true religion, and because they lacked the protection of the true God. France cast off the government of God in the first Revolution, and was drenched in blood. It is a maxim of universal truth that the nation, which does not admit the influence of the laws and the government of God, must be destroyed. No empire is strong enough to wage successful war with the great Jehovah; and sooner or later, notwithstanding all that human policy can do, corruption, sensuality, luxury, pride and far spreading vice will expose a nation to the displeasure of God, and bring down the heavy arm of His vengeance. Barnes. D. M.].

7. On the whole chapter. We have, as the church of believers, the first fruits of this prophecy. But only in the holy people that has its centre in the new Jerusalem of the end [rather that forms the church of the future], shall we behold Gods work, His manifestation and its effect: on the nations in all its fulness. Let us rejoice over the first fruits, and regard them as a pledge of the complete fulfilment of the word of the Prophet. Weber.

8. On the whole chapter. [Surely the strain of this evangelic prophecy rises higher than any temporal deliverance. Therefore we must rise to some more spiritual sense of it, not excluding the former. And that which some call divers senses of the same Scripture, is, indeed, but divers parts of one full sense. This Prophecy is, out of question, a most rich description of the kingdom of Christ under the Gospel. And in this sense, this invitation to arise and shine is mainly addressed to the mystical Jerusalem (comp. Eph 5:14), yet not without some privilege to the literal Jerusalem beyond other people. They are first invited to arise and shine, because the sun arose first in their horizon. Christ came of the Jews, and came first to them. The Redeemer shall come to Zion, says our Prophet in the former chapter. But miserable Jerusalem knew not the day of her visitation, nor the things that concerned her peace, and therefore are they now hid from her eyes. She delighted to deceive herself with fancies of I know not what imaginary grandeur and outward glory, to which the promised Messiah should exalt her, and did, in that kind particularly, abuse this very prophecy; so doting upon a sense grossly literal, she forfeited the enjoyment of those spiritual blessings that are described. Archbp. Leighton, who has two sermons (4 and 5) on Isa 40:1. D. M.].

HOMILETICAL HINTS

1. On Isa 60:16. In Christs appearing in our world there is a twofold call directed to us: 1) Arise; shine! 2) Lift up thine eyes to the Gentiles. Fr. E. Bauer. What a blessing the spread of the revealed word will bring to the heathen in respect to individuals, to families, to nations. Taube. Zion, the great mother of nations in the midst of her children. 1) With her abundant maternal joys; 2) with her weighty maternal cares; 3) with her holy maternal duties. Gerok. What should move us willingly and joyfully to obey the call addressed to the Christian church, Arise; shine? 1) There are millions still in darkness; 2) that so blessed a light has arisen on us; 3) that God has promised that our efforts for those benighted millions shall not be in vain. Walther of St. Louis. [It is through the church that God operates on a dark and sinful world. The church, in order to fulfil her calling to be a light to the Gentiles, must herself shine in the glory of the Lord. We will go with you; for we have heard that God is with you (Zec 8:23),this will hereafter be the language of them that are without to the people of God. The efficiency of the church depends on her holiness and spiritual prosperity. God blesses us to make us a blessing (Gen 12:2). See this thought set forth in the 67 Psalm.

Heaven does with us as we with torches do;
Not light them for themselves.

D.M.].

2. On Isa 60:1. [What is the shining of the true church? Doth not a church then shine when church service is raised from a decent and primitive simplicity, and decorated with pompous ceremonies, with rich furniture and gaudy vestments? Is not the church then beautiful? Yes, indeed; but all the question is, whether this be the proper, genuine beauty or not; whether this be not strange fire, as the fire that Aarons sons used, which became vain, and was taken as strange fire. Methinks it cannot be better decided than to refer it to St. John, in his book of the Revelation. We find there the description of two several women, the one riding in state, arrayed in purple, decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearl, chap. 17; the other, chap, 12, in rich attire too, but of another kind, clothed with the sun, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. The others decorament was all earthly; this womans is all celestial. What need has she to borrow light and beauty from precious stones, who is clothed with the sun, and crowned with stars? She wears no sublunary ornaments, but which is more noble, she treads upon them; the moon is under her feet. Now, if you know (as you do all, without doubt) which of these two is the spouse of Christ, you can easily resolve the question. The truth is, those things seem to deck religion, but they undo it. Observe where they are most used, and we shall find little or no substance of devotion under them; as we see in that apostate church of Rome. This painting is dishonorable for Christs spouse, and, besides, it spoils her natural complexion. The superstitious use of torches and lights in the church by day is a kind of shining, but surely not that which is commanded here. No; it is an affront done both to the sun in the heaven and to the Sun of righteousness in the church. Abp. Leighton.D. M.]

3. On Isa 60:1012. Since the kingdom of David was established on Mount Zion, and the Lord solemnly confirmed this choice (Psa 2:6), there is always, yea, there will be to eternity a holy Zion, or Jerusalem, as centre of the kingdom of God. But the Lord leads His Zion by strange ways. It passes through sin and death to sanctification and life. Let us consider the term Zion according to its earthly history. We distinguish a double form. We see the Old Testament Zion fall on account of its sins. The Lord smites it in His wrath. But it rises not in a material, but in a spiritual form, as the Christian church which serves God in spirit and in truth (Joh 4:20 sqq.), and comprehends all nations. This Zion builds itself from the Gentiles. Strangers build its walls (Isa 60:10). The gates of these walls are not shut for all who are not circumcised in the flesh. But these gates are open day and night for all who are willing to receive the grace of God in Christ and to serve Him (Isa 60:11). The nations, who serve God in Christ, will be greatly blessed even in respect to earthly greatness and prosperity. For the spirit of Christianity will permeate with its quickening influence all natural factors. But where Christianity is not received, or where it is suffered to die out, there moral corruption and decay are the necessary result (Isa 60:12).

4. On Isa 60:10. Gods love is not extinguished because His wrath burns. Has the fire of His anger produced its effect, then the Sun of His grace rises again; for, says the Lord, I kill, and I make alive; I wound and I heal (Deu 32:39); in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favor have I had mercy on thee.Thol.

5. On Isa 60:17-18; Isa 60:21. Above the voice, which tells us what we ought to be and are not, there sounds another in every human heart which gives a ray of hope that our iniquities shall not separate us from our God, and that we shall one day be what we ought to be. This foreboding voice of longing expectation, which, although weak and confused, sounds through the generations of men, has found in the Old Covenant its fulfilment. There clear, unmistakable voices speak of the time when a fountain shall be opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness (Zec 13:1); of a time when it shall be said of the city of God on earth: Thy people shall be all righteous, and shall inherit the earth forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands that I may be glorified.Tholuck.

6. On Isa 60:1822. It is a great comfort in the present time when darkness covers the earth and thick darkness the people, to know that it will not always remain so. We are now only in an intermediate state. A time of light will come when God alone will be Sun, and that 1) for the intellectual and spiritual life of men (Isa 60:18; Isa 60:21); 2) for the life of nature.

Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange

DISCOURSE: 999
OUR DUTY ARISING FROM THE ADVENT OF CHRIST

Isa 60:1.Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

THE prophetic style is wonderfully sublime: its figures are so bold, its transitions so quick, its descriptions so animated, that all the most admired compositions of Greece and Rome sink in our estimation when compared with the sacred oracles. The writings of Isaiah in particular justify this remark; and both the chapter, and the very words, before us, are worthy of notice in this view. The prophet had just foretold the advent of the Redeemer [Note: Isa 59:20. That the passage refers to Christ, and not merely to the deliverance of the Jews from Babylon, will be seen by comparing Isa 9:2. with Mat 4:16.]; and instantly, passing over an interval of seven or eight hundred years, he sees his prediction, as it were, accomplished; and calls upon the Church, in terms of joyful congratulation, to approve itself worthy of so great a blessing

In discoursing on his words we shall consider,

The tidings here announced

Christ is the fountain of light to the whole universe
[He is the Lord Jehovah, in whom dwells all the fulness of the Godhead. Though as the Son of man, he laboured under all the sinless infirmities of our nature; yet, as the Son of God, he was the brightness of his Fathers glory, and the express image of his person. From him proceeds a lustre, as from the sun in the firmament; but though he shines in the darkness, the darkness does not apprehend his light [Note: Joh 1:5.]. It is the Church alone that truly receives him. That, like Goshen in the midst of Egypt, is light, whilst all around it is in gross darkness [Note: Exo 9:26; Exo 10:21-23.]. If any have the Light of his word, they cannot profit by it, unless their eyes be opened by his good Spirit. Hence the prophet, speaking of him to the Church, says emphatically, Thy light is come.]

This light is risen upon the Church of God
[Under the Jewish dispensation the day began, as it were, to dawn; and in the hearts of some the day-star had arisen [Note: 2Pe 1:19.]. But at the incarnation of Christ, and in the days of his ministration upon earth, the sun arose above the horizon. In the apostolic age it shone in its meridian splendour; and, through the goodness of God, it has at last visited these distant regions [Note: Mal 4:2. Luk 1:78-79.]. In some respects it shines clearer upon us than even on the Apostles themselves; since they, for several years after our Lords ascension, did not see that the partition-wall between Jews and Gentiles was to be broken down: whereas we, who are Gentiles, not only know this truth, but are graffed on that stock, from which the Jews themselves have been broken off.]

These tidings are indeed joyful: but, that they are to have a practical effect upon us, we see by,

II.

The exhortation grounded upon them

In the margin of our Bibles the word shine is translated be enlightened. This translation suggests so important a thought, a thought so naturally arising from the tidings announced, that we may well give it a distinguished place in this part of our subject. The exhortation may then be considered as two-fold;

Arise, and be enlightened

[Notwithstanding the true light now shines, the greater part even of the Christian world are covered with gross darkness [Note: ver. 2.]. We set before them the light, but they love darkness rather than light, and desire that we would make the Holy One of Israel to cease from before them [Note: Joh 3:19. Isa 30:11.]. But we should come forth from our dungeons, and behold the Sun of Righteousness [Note: Isa 49:9.]. We should beg of God to bring us out of darkness into his marvellous light [Note: 1Pe 2:9.], and to shine into our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of his glory in the face of Jesus Christ [Note: 2Co 4:6.]. If we continue blind it is our own fault: we take part with Satan against Christ, and, as the recompense of our wickedness, the god of this world is permitted to blind us [Note: 2Co 4:4.], and we are given over to a delusion to believe a lie [Note: 2Th 2:11.]. Since then the day-spring from on high hath visited us, let us no longer sit in darkness and the shadow of death, but improve the mercies we enjoy, that our feet may be guided into the way of peace.]

Arise, and shine

[The sun in the firmament irradiates the stars, which shine with a lustre derived from him. Thus we are also to shine as lights in the world [Note: Php 2:15.], and, to reflect the light of the Sun of Righteousness. As the face of Moses, when come down from the mount, shone, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold him [Note: 2Co 3:13.], so should all of us, though with a less dazzling lustre, shine in our proper orbit. The stars indeed can shine only when the sun is withdrawn; but the brighter the Lord Jesus shines, the more shall we reflect his image. Let us then walk in the light as God is in the light [Note: 1Jn 1:7.]; and let our path be as the shining light, which shineth more and more unto the perfect day [Note: Pro 4:18.].]

Address
1.

Those who, though living in the midst of the light, have never yet seen it

[Such are without excuse. God would make the scales to fall from our eves, if we would but call upon him. But our rejection of the light will be the occasion of our more aggravated condemnation. If Christ had not come and spoken unto us we had not had sin; but now we have no cloak for our sin [Note: Joh 9:41; Joh 15:22.]. Let us then cry to him, like those of old, Lord, open my eyes. Then shall we no longer walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life [Note: Joh 8:12. Eph 5:14.].]

Those who, though they have had some views of Christ, are yet in darkness

[The sun in the heavens is sometimes obscured by intervening clouds: thus also the Sun of Righteousness is sometimes veiled; and we are left to walk many days without any cheering views of his countenance. If this be the case with us, let us tarry his leisure, and wait patiently for his return. Let us not say, My sun is set to rise no more; but rather, When I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light unto me [Note: Mic 7:7-9.]. Thus in his light you shall see light [Note: Psa 36:9.]; the light that is sown for you shall in due time spring up [Note: Psa 97:11.]; yea, your light shall rise in obscurity, and your darkness be as the noon-day [Note: Isa 58:10.].]

Those who are enjoying the light of the Redeemers countenance

[Jesus is the light and glory, not of the church militant only, but also of the church triumphant [Note: Rev 21:23-24.]: and to behold his glory as the glory of the only-begotten of the Father [Note: Joh 1:14.] is an anticipation and foretaste of heaven itself. In his favour is life; and his loving-kindness is better than life itself. Let the enjoyment then of so rich a mercy stir you up to glorify his name; that so, while you behold his glory, you yourselves may be changed into his image from glory to glory [Note: 2Co 3:18.], and, by making your light to shine before men, may stir up others to glorify him also [Note: Mat 5:16.].]

Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)

CONTENTS

God the Holy Ghost is here celebrating the glory and praise of Christ, and his Church in him; and showing what a vast accession of redeemed souls shall pour into the Redeemer’s kingdom in the latter-day glory.

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

I beg to be understood as speaking with all due humility, on a subject so infinitely sublime and glorious; and rather as asking than deciding upon it; but I venture to say, it strikes me that the person here spoken to, is Christ, the glorious Head of his Church, and not the Church herself, as hath been generally supposed. We find, by comparing scripture with scripture, that God the Father many times before addresses God the Son as Mediator, in the several parts of this same Prophet’s sermon. See Isa 42:6 , and Isa 49:1-9 . And there seems to be a blessed propriety in the glorious Head, and not the Church, being thus addressed, when the Gentiles are said to come to his light, and kings to the brightness of his rising. This was literally and truly done, when Jesus came as the light and the life of men; and hence the Evangelist recorded the truth, that the people saw a great light, Mat 4:12-16 . And John recorded also that his people were made kings and priests to God and his Father, Rev 1:6 . But Reader, do not forget one blessed truth contained in these verses, namely, that the glory here spoken of, is the glory of Jehovah. Christ and his salvation are uniformly said, in all the scripture, to be Jehovah’s glory: God the Father proclaimed this, Isa 49:6 , and God the Son, as Mediator, confirmed it when on earth, Joh 17:1-5 .

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

The ‘No Mores’ of Life

Isa 60

I. The tone is very wonderful. No more sun, no more moon, no more wasting, no more violence, no more earth, no more firmament heaven, but quite another heaven, which that great firmament has been trying, and trying in vain, to hint at all these countless thousands of ages. It is very curious to notice how many things you can part with without parting with yourself. It is astonishing how many things you could cut off your own self and leave yourself in all its superior faculties and capacities.

Now it is proposed, and given to us as a promise to be kept in the heart, that there shall be no more sun, no more moon, no more stars and planets and other fiery points. How foolish therefore we have been to have regarded all these things as of any importance beyond a very limited line! Yet how mightily we have been taken up with these things, and how forgetful we have been of prayer! Is it not like man, is it not a map of himself drawn by his own hand, that he should be so busy looking at things that were doomed before they ever came into existence?

II. What is the eternal in relation to this particular text and context? The words are beautiful: ‘Thy God thy glory’; that is to say, thy God thy sun, thy God thy moon, thy God thy morning. Find all things in God, all you want, all you need, all that can be dreamed by sanctified fancy. I saw no temple in that upper city, said the seer in his Sabbath vision. And why did he see no temple in that upper city? Because the city was all temple. People forget that. They say that institutionalism will be done away; I would rather say that institutionalism will be purified, ennobled, sanctified; for God has been aiming at something even through the blunders of religion and civilization. All things are moving forward even when they seem to be moving backward, and things are often moving backward when they seem to be moving forward. We did not start the action, and we cannot control it. When one poor wondering man said, How can this thing be? how can a little one become a thousand, how can a small one become a strong nation? the great religious triumphant answer was, ‘I the Lord will hasten it in His time’. So He orders out of His way all mean in a;ruptions and all the temporary substitutes for Himself.

III. Then think, looking at the text and the context, what a wonderful process, taking the Bible as a whole, there is going on under what may be called the category of the ‘no mores ‘of life. ‘No more sun, no more moon, no more sea, no more light, no more death, neither shall there be any more pain’ thus you can look at God cutting away the universe until He gets at its soul, meaning, personality, outliving matter and surviving it by countless ages of ages.

No more violence, no more destruction, no more wasting. All these things exhaust themselves. Whatever burns is burning itself out. But if we could get behind the burning and see the meaning, then we would know that burning of that sort such as Moses saw at Horeb is a self-renewing burning. So that we read further in the context that the sun shall be as it were restored with another significance. ‘Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for’ God will give them both a new handling, He will take them up into Himself ‘the Lord shall be thine everlasting life, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended’.

God has always been moving along the line of progress. This is His programme. ‘For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron;’ everything shall change places with everything else. The Lord’s providence is a great movement, a continual action and interplay, and no man can stay the action: it is God’s. O rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him, and He will give thee thine heart’s desire.

Joseph Parker, City Temple Pulpit, vol. v. p. 213.

Reference. LX. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xlviii. No. 2764.

Isa 60:1

It is recorded that in Athens there was a law according to which any man who had a lighted candle and refused to allow another to light his by its means, was to be punished by death. This kind of communication is illustrated even in connexion with physical light, since it spreads and imparts itself to some other thing without itself diminishing or losing anything; and still more it is the nature of spirit itself to remain in possession of what belongs to it, while giving another a share in what it possesses.

Hegel.

Isa 60:1

Mrs. H. B. Stowe, in her reminiscences of her grandmother, tells how ‘on one occasion, after her hearing had become slightly impaired, a wordy battle had been raging round her for some time, which, as she could not understand what we said, and as we seemed to be getting more and more earnest, moved her solicitude very deeply. At last she called one of my brothers to her, and said, “There, now, if you have talked long enough, I want you to read something to me,” and gave him that eloquent chapter in Isaiah which begins, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee”; and goes on to describe the day when the whole earth shall be full of the glory of the Lord. Her face, while he was reading, was like a transparency, luminous with internal light. At the close she said, “Bishop Heber tells in his memoirs how, off in India, there were four ministers of Christ met together, all of different denominations, and they read this chapter together, and found then there was one thing they all agreed in exactly”.’

References. LX. 1. E. L. Hull, Sermons, p. 71. A. F. Winnington Ingram, Banners of the Christian Faith, p. 197. J. M. Neale, Sermons on the Prophets, vol. i. p. 240. H. Scott Holland, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxxix. 1891, p. 24. A. H. Mortimer, The Church’s Lessons for the Christian Year, part i. p. 114. A. H. Bradford, Christian World Pulpit, vol. 1. 1896, p. 181. H. W. Webb-Peploe, Calls to Holiness, p. 175. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xlv. No. 2617. J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 69.

Light Obtained: Light Diffused (The Epiphany)

Isa 60:1-3

We ourselves are a part fulfilment of this prophecy. It is Israel’s God we worship, Israel’s faith that boats in our hearts, Israel’s hope we cherish, Israel’s Messiah in Whom we trust for salvation, Israel’s privilege to which we are admitted. The light is risen. It has spread to the dark places of the earth. Many out of every nation have come to its beams; they bask in its glory.

The Church of Today is what it is through the fulfilment of this prophecy in part; the Church of the future will be what it shall become through its fulfilment in completeness. God hath not cast off His people whom He foreknew. The Redeemer shall come to Zion (chap. 59:20; Rom 11:26 ). Israel shall be converted. Their conversion will have a powerful reactive effect on the Gentiles. ‘For,’ says St. Paul, ‘if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead?’ (Rom 11:11-16 ).

Dropping the special reference to Israel, and viewing the text in its universal bearings, we have

I. The Church Enlightened by Christ’s Coming. ‘Thy light is come…. The glory of the Lord is risen upon thee’ (v. 1). The reference is to the coming of Christ, the God-man Redeemer. Christ arose upon His Church like a great sun, imparting light, reviving courage, diffusing gladness, making bright with glory. ‘The Sun of Righteousness’ (Mal 4:2 ). Christ gives light

a. By imparting saving knowledge. He taught men of the Father. He showed the way of life. He put into the precepts of the law a depth of spiritual meaning never seen in them before. He could say of Himself, ‘I am the Light of the World’; ‘I am the Truth’ (St. Joh 8:12 ; Joh 14:6 ). Christ could give this light because He was Himself the sent of the Father for the salvation of the world. He came with full knowledge of the Divine purpose. He spake with absolute authority. There was nothing the world needed to know that Christ could not tell it

b. By restoring the Church to power and influence. The godly in Israel were but a handful. They were down-trodden and despised. The Church of the exile stood sadly in need of comfort. But Christ would lift up its head; He would reinstate it in power and influence among the nations; He would give it prosperity. This was bringing it light. Accordingly, a new springtime came with the advent of the Saviour. He made His Church a power. Its power speedily became felt, and continues to this day. Christ’s kingdom is at this hour the highest thing on earth It is a permanent and influential factor in history a thing of might.

c. By conferring on the Church the beauty of holiness. This may answer to the ‘glory’ which the Prophet declares ‘shall be seen upon it’ (v. 3). Christ confers a glory on the Church by the spiritual gifts which He bestows, and by the graces which become visible in the character of His people through the operation of His Word and Spirit.

II. The Light of the Church in Contrast with the Surrounding Darkness. ‘For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people,’ etc. (v. 2). The Church, believers, Christian nations, enlightened by Christ, stand in marked contrast with the darkness of the world around. The effect of the light is to make the darkness more visible. Contrast

a. The enlightenment of faith with the boasted enlightenment of reason. ‘The world by wisdom knew not God’ (1Co 1:21 ). The world’s cleverness did not lead it to the truth. It leads it often to reject the truth now that it has come. The boasted enlightenment of antiquity left it profoundly immoral. The theories, schemes, reasonings of our philosophers Today leave the mind in just as great; uncertainty on the chief questions of existence (God, the soul, future life, etc.); are often as hopelessly astray in their first principles (materialism, utilitarianism, etc.); and are as powerless as the ancient systems to reach the conscience and renew the heart

b. The enlightenment of nations which have received the truth with the darkness of surrounding heathenism. The nations which have the most; light of every kind on earth are the Christian nations The purer the gospel, the more advanced the peoples. Where this light has not penetrated, the darkness is gross and the peoples are stationary. Heathenism is sadly uniform in the spectacle it presents of idolatry, debasement, cruelty, gross moral corruption, hideous superstition, etc.

c. The enlightenment of individuals who have obeyed the truth with the darkness of those who are still in sin. The believer recognizes in his own experience that, whereas he was once darkness, he is; now light in the Lord. The change in his character manifests this to be true. The unbeliever, on the contrary, knows his state to be one of darkness, of moral evil, of unhappiness; through lack of true knowledge of God, of hopelessness as regards the future.

III. The Duty of the Church to take Advantage of and to Diffuse her Light. ‘Arise, shine’ (v. 1). ‘And the Gentiles shall come,’ etc. (v. 3).

a. The Church’s duty to take advantage of her light. Arise to welcome it Shine in the beauty of it. Reflect the glory of it. Shine (1) in the light of a fuller knowledge; (2) in the light of a more perfect sanctification; (3) in the light of a higher gladness (Phi 4:4 ). The light may shine on the sleeping or the dead, and no benefit be derived, no gladness communicated. ‘Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light’ (Eph. v. 14).

b. The Church’s duty to diffuse her light. She is to let her light shine that others may behold it She is to use active measures to spread it abroad. Here the figure fails. The sun shines by natural law; the gospel is not spread abroad save by human exertions. Missionary effort is of the essence of the Church’s calling (St. Mar 16:16 ).

References. LX. 1-3. A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture Isaiah XLIX.-LXVI. p. 176. J. H. Jowett, Christian World Pulpit, vol. lxii. 1902, p. 161. LX. 1 and 19- F. E. Paget, Helps and Hindrances to the Christian Life, vol. i. p. 52. LX. 3. W. H. Hutchings, Sermon-Sketches (2nd Series), p. 37. LX. 4-6. H. Scott Holland, Church Times, vol. liii. 1905, p. 123; see also Christian World Pulpit, vol. lxvii. 1905, p. 56.

Enlargement of Heart

Isa 60:5

The word ‘heart’ has a very wide meaning in the Scriptures of the Old Testament. It is used to express the whole inward nature of man. It is the seat of knowledge, it is the home of feeling, and it is the spring of action.

As to the word rendered ‘fear,’ it is not exactly fear itself which is meant, but the excitement, the exaltation, the throb which comes when a man trembles on the verge of action, that is meant by this word. It is the thrill which comes to a man as he girds himself up to a new departure.

I. ‘Thine heart shall throb with an emotion corresponding to the greatness of the situation.’ So it is in life at every great crisis of living. It is the way by which human nature is made, by which men attain to manhood, by which Christian men attain to Christian manhood.

The vision comes, and the response comes also, and the heart fears and is enlarged. Passing from the fact that this has been so in the case of all the great workers of the world, let us dwell for a little on the state of mind depicted here. Wide and deep feeling are needed in the making of man. Nor is deep feeling possible without the vision of the true, the beautiful, and the good. Feeling keeps pace with intelligence, and it responds to every enlargement of the vision. Feeling is needed to strengthen the vision, and the wider vision calls forth a deeper emotion, and these translate themselves into action.

II. There are those who fail to respond to the vision, and who thus lose the power of feeling that deep emotion which the Prophet here describes. There are those who respond to the vision at once, and having seen and felt the glory of it, desire to live always in the enjoyment of that exalted emotion. But the emotion passes, as the vision, or that form of the vision, becomes familiar. The great emotion was not meant to last, it was to accomplish something, and having done its work it passes away.

III. There is progress in the Christian life, and at each progressive stage there is the added vision and the responsive emotion.

Thus we ought not to seek to ask for a repetition of the former vision, or for a renewal of former experiences; there is some better thing in store for us. There is the fullness of Him in Whom there is all the fullness of God.

The text discloses the abiding interest of Christian life. It can never be without interest to Him who lives it, it can never be monotonous; for as it unfolds itself and becomes more fully conscious of its great meaning, it opens to itself fresh fields, higher intellectual, emotional, and volitional possibilities, and calls on us to make them actual.

J. Iverach, The Other Side of Greatness, p. 35.

References. LX. 7. Bishop Simpson Sermons, p. 209. LX. 8. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. ii. No. 63; vol. xlviii. No. 2764; vol. liii. No. 3051. T. De Witt Talmage, Sermons , p. 282. C. Perren, Revival Sermons in Outline, p. 337. J. M. Neale, Sermons on the Prophets, vol. i. p. 245.

Offerings for the Sanctuary

Isa 60:13

The earth is full of God’s wonderful works, do you say, and what are we to do with them? what to do with marbles and precious stones, gold and silver, and fine linen? Give them to God. Render them to Him from Whom, and through Whom, and to Whom are all things. This is their proper destination. Is it a better thing to dress up our sinful bodies in silk and jewels, or to ornament therewith God’s house and God’s ritual? Does anyone doubt what all these excellent things are meant for? or, at least, can he doubt what they are not meant for? not meant, surely, for sinners to make themselves fine withal. What presumption would that be, what senselessness! Does not the whole world speak in praise of God? Does not every star in the sky, every tree and flower upon earth, all that grows, all that endures, the leafy woods, the everlasting mountains, speak of God? Do not the pearls in the sea, and the jewels in the rocks, and the metals in the mine, and the marbles in the quarry do not all rich and beautiful substances everywhere witness of Him who made them? Are they not His work, His token, His glory? Are they not a portion of a vast natural temple, the heavens, earth, and sea, a vast cathedral for the Bishop of our souls, the All-sufficient Priest, who first created all things and then again, became, by purchase, their Possessor? Does it not strike you, then, as extreme presumption, and a port of sacrilege, to consecrate them to anyone’s glory but God’s.

J. H. Newman.

References. LX. 17. J. S. Maver, Christian World Pulpit, vol. liv. 1898, p. 302. J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 327. LX. 18. A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture Isaiah XLIX.-LXVI. p. 188. Bishop Simpson’s Sermons, p. 279.

Thy God Thy Glory

Isa 60:19

This is the end; this is the final meaning; this is the upshot. We wanted to know how things would terminate, and the Prophet tells us, and the Apostle tells us, and they both say, God shall be all in all. The Prophet saw it from afar. We need men who can see the morning; most of us can see and feel the night. There were men in the old, old time whose face was warmed by the morning beam. They persisted because God was with them. God said, Cry aloud, spare not, and tell the world that the morning is coming. We need these morning singers, people who have great sweet words to say when appearances are against them and all the heavens appear to crush them down. Some of us have moods, we see light now and then, we have good times; but the Prophet saw the morning afar off, and spake of it according to the Spirit of God.

The point that I wish to fix attention upon is, that the end of all things is God. We must end where we began; the last note and the first must melt into one burst of music. The Apostle says the end of all things is God; Isaiah says thy God shall be thy glory; and all through there is a feeling that Alpha is Omega, that Omega has in it Alpha, and the purposes of God are one.

I. ‘Thy God thy glory.’ It might have been so from the first; God meant it, but man turned away from God. Then came the promise, and from that point God has been working to bring man back again into His movement. Consider that things were not done Today and tomorrow; consider that God, having uttered a purpose and revealed a plan, will keep to it till the end. The centuries will die, and be as white ghosts on the fields of time, but God’s eternity quietly, calmly, majestically, goes on.

II. ‘Thy God thy glory.’ It might always have been so, but it was not so. What happened? Sin happened, and it will take God many a century to get sin out of the universe, but it shall go. God showed man the way back to Himself, but it is of grace, not of works, or discovery, or invention, or human plan; the way back to God is the very wonder of love.

III. ‘Thy God thy glory.’ He will never be less than God: He will be on the throne for ever and ever, and He will be the glory of man. What has God done to recover man’s apostasy, to bring him into right relation to himself? He has sent him a Saviour, Christ the Lord; that Saviour has come to seek you and me, to seek the whole human race. He speaks to every man in His own tongue wherein he was born. He adapts Himself, He reincarnates Himself, He will be to us what we can be to Him, that He may raise us up into His own personality and majesty. He is determined to win; there cannot be two Gods. He has set to His seal that the world is His, and He will redeem it, and has redeemed it with blood more precious than gold.

IV. ‘Thy God thy glory.’ Do not imagine that we can easily get to the end; through much tribulation we must enter every kingdom that is worth entering how much more in entering into the kingdom of God! And make of the passage what you like, degrade it, you cannot take all the poetry out of it ‘These are they which washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb’. That is a secret meaning, a sacred meaning, a practicable and intelligent meaning, and until we get at that meaning we have not yet begun the great Gospel way.

We have not given God field enough; we should have given Him more elbow-room. He will take it, and not until we see things from that point of view shall we be able to believe that His will will be done on earth as it is in heaven. ‘Thy God thy glory’ a recovered God, a reconciled God, a reconciled man, all things tending to unity, radiance, music; then God shall say, ‘It is finished!’

Joseph Parker, City Temple Pulpit, vol. vi. p. 204.

References. LX. 20. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xx. No. 1176. T. Gasquoine, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxxvii. 1890, p. 330. J. Page Hopps, Sermons of Sympathy, p. 93. LX. 22. G. Matheson, Christian World Pulpit, vol. lv. 1899, p. 36. P. T. Forsyth, ibid. vol. lvii. 1900, p. 305. J. Percival, Some Helps for School Life, p. 264. J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 299.

Fuente: Expositor’s Dictionary of Text by Robertson

XXVII

THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST IN ISAIAH

The relation between the New Testament Christ and prophecy is that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. To him give all the prophets witness. All the scriptures, the law, the prophets, and the psalms, testify of him. And we are fools, and slow of heart to credit adequate testimony when we distrust any part of the inspired evidence.

Of the ancient prophets Isaiah was perhaps the most notable witness of the coming Messiah. An orderly combination of his many messianic utterances amounts to more than a mere sketch, indeed, rather to a series of almost life-sized portraits. As a striking background for these successive portraits the prophet discloses the world’s need of a Saviour, and across this horrible background of gloom the prophet sketches in startling strokes of light the image of a coming Redeemer.

In Isa 2:2-4 we have the first picture of him in Isaiah, that of the effect of his work, rather than of the Messiah himself. This is the establishment of the mountain of the Lord’s house on the top of the mountains, the coming of the nations to it and the resultant millennial glory.

In Isa 4:2-6 is another gleam from the messianic age in which the person of the Messiah comes more into view in the figure of a branch of Jehovah, beautiful and glorious. In sketching the effects of his work here the prophet adds a few strokes of millennial glory as a consummation of his ministry.

In Isa 7:14 he delineates him as a little child born of a virgin, whose coming is the light of the world. He is outlined on the canvas in lowest humanity and highest divinity, “God with us.” In this incarnation he is the seed of the woman and not of the man.

The prophet sees him as a child upon whom the government shall rest and whose name is “Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isa 9:6 ). This passage shows the divinity of Christ and the universal peace he is to bring to the world. In these names we have the divine wisdom, the divine power, the divine fatherhood, and the divine peace.

In Isa 11:1-9 the prophet sees the Messiah as a shoot out of the stock of Jesse, i.e., of lowly origin, but possessing the Holy Spirit without measure who equips him for his work, and his administration wrought with skill and justice, the result of which is the introduction of universal and perfect peace. Here the child is presented as a teacher. And such a teacher! On him rests the seven spirits of God. The spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge, and the fear of the Lord. He judges not according to appearances and reproves not according to rumors. With righteousness he judges the poor and reproves with equality in behalf of the meek. His words smite a guilty world like thunderbolts and his very breath slays iniquity. Righteousness and faithfulness are his girdle. He uplifts an infallible standard of morals.

In Isa 40:3-8 appears John the Baptist, whom Isaiah saw as a voice crying in the wilderness, preparing the way for the coming King.

In Isa 11:2 ; Isa 42:1 ; Isa 61:1-3 the prophet saw the Messiah as a worker in the power of the Spirit, in whom he was anointed at his baptism. This was the beginning of his ministry which was wrought through the power of the Holy Spirit. At no time in his ministry did our Lord claim that he wrought except in the power of the Holy Spirit who was given to him without measure.

In Isa 35:1-10 the Messiah is described as a miracle worker. In his presence the desert blossoms as a rose and springs burst out of dry ground. The banks of the Jordan rejoice. The lame man leaps like a hart, the dumb sing and the blind behold visions. The New Testament abounds in illustrations of fulfilment. These signs Christ presented to John the Baptist as his messianic credentials (Mat 11:1-4 ).

The passage (Isa 42:1-4 ) gives us a flashlight on the character of the Messiah. In the New Testament it is expressly applied to Christ whom the prophet sees as the meek and lowly Saviour, dealing gently with the blacksliding child of his grace. In Isa 22:22 we have him presented as bearing the key of the house of David, with full power to open and shut. This refers to his authority over all things in heaven and upon earth. By this authority he gave the keys of the kingdom to Peter one for the Jews and the other for the Gentiles who used one on the day of Pentecost and the other at the house of Cornelius, declaring in each case the terms of entrance into the kingdom of God. This authority of the Messiah is referred to again in Revelation:

And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as one dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying. Fear not: I am the first and the last, and the Living one; and I was dead, and behold I am alive for evermore and I have the keys of death and of Hades. Rev 7:17

And to the angel of the church in Philadelphis write: These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth and none shall shut, and shutteth and none openeth. Rev 3:7

In Isa 32:1-8 we have a great messianic passage portraying the work of Christ as a king ruling in righteousness, in whom men find a hiding place from the wind and the tempest. He is a stream in a dry place and the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

In Isa 28:14-18 the Messiah is presented to w as a foundation stone in a threefold idea:

1. A tried foundation stone. This is the work of the master mason and indicates the preparation of the atone for its particular function.

2. An elect or precious foundation stone. This indicates that the stone was selected and appointed. It was not self-appointed but divinely appointed and is therefore safe.

3. A cornerstone, or sure foundation stone. Here it is a foundation of salvation, as presented in Mat 16:18 . It is Christ the Rock, and not Peter. See Paul’s foundation in 1 Corinthians:

According to the grace of God which was given unto me; as a wise masterbuilder I laid a foundation; and another buildeth thereon. But let each man take heed how he buildeth thereon. For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 1Co 3:10-11 .

In Isa 49:1-6 he is presented as a polished shaft, kept close in the quiver. The idea is that he is a mighty sword. In Revelation, Christ is presented to John as having a sharp, twoedged sword proceeding out of his mouth.

In Isa 50:2 ; Isa 52:9 f.; Isa 59:16-21 ; Isa 62:11 we have the idea of the salvation of Jehovah. The idea is that salvation originated with God and that man in his impotency could neither devise the plan of salvation nor aid in securing it. These passages are expressions of the pity with which God looks down on a lost world. The redemption, or salvation, here means both temporal and spiritual salvation salvation from enemies and salvation from sin.

In Isa 9:1 f. we have him presented as a great light to the people of Zebulun and Naphtali. In Isa 49:6 we have him presented as a light to the Gentiles and salvation to the end of the earth: “Yea, he saith, It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.”

In Isa 8:14-15 Isaiah presents him as a stone of stumbling: “And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many shall stumble thereon, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.”

The prophet’s vision of his maltreatment and rejection are found in Isa 50:4-9 ; Isa 52:13-53:12 . In this we have the vision of him giving his “back to the smiters, and his cheeks to them that plucked off the hair.” We see a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. His visage is so marred it startled all nations. He is a vicarious sacrifice. The chastisement of the peace of others is on him. The iniquity of others is put on him. It pleases the Father to bruise him until he has poured out his soul unto death as an offering for sin.

The teaching of Isaiah on the election of the Jews is his teaching concerning the “holy remnant,” a favorite expression of the prophet. See Isa 1:9 ; Isa 10:20-22 ; Isa 11:11 ; Isa 11:16 ; Isa 37:4 ; Isa 37:31-32 ; Isa 46:3 . This coincides with Paul’s teaching in Romans 9-11.

In Isa 32:15 we find Isaiah’s teaching on the pouring out of the Holy Spirit: “Until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness become a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be esteemed as a forest,” and in Isa 44:3 : “For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and streams upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring.”

In Isa 11:10 he is said to be the ensign of the nations: “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, that standeth for an ensign of the peoples unto him shall the nations seek; and his resting place shall be glorious.”

Isa 19:18-25 ; Isa 54:1-3 ; Isa 60:1-22 teach the enlargement of the church. The great invitation and promise are found in Isa 55 .

The Messiah in judgments is found in Isa 63:1-6 . Here we behold an avenger. He comes up out of Edom with dyed garments from Bozra. All his raiment is stained with the blood of his enemies whom he has trampled in his vengeance as grapes are crushed in the winevat and the restoration of the Jews is set forth in Isa 11:11-12 ; Isa 60:9-15 ; Isa 66:20 . Under the prophet’s graphic pencil or glowing brush we behold the establishment and growth of his kingdom unlike all other kingdoms, a kingdom within men, a kingdom whose principles are justice, righteousness, and equity and whose graces are faith, hope, love, and joy, an undying and ever-growing kingdom. Its prevalence is like the rising waters of Noah’s flood; “And the waters prevailed and increased mightily upon the earth. And the water prevailed mightily, mightily upon the earth; and all the high mountains, that are under the whole heavens, were covered.”

So this kingdom grows under the brush of the prophetic limner until its shores are illimitable. War ceases. Gannenta rolled in the blood of battle become fuel for fire. Conflagration is quenched. Famine outlawed. Pestilence banished. None are left to molest or make afraid. Peace flows like a river. The wolf dwells with the lamb. The leopard lies down with the kid. The calf and the young lion walk forth together and a little child is leading them. The cow and the bear feed in one pasture and their young ones are bedfellows. The sucking child safely plays over the hole of the asp, and weaned children put their hands in the adder’s den. In all the holy realms none hurt nor destroy, because the earth is as full of the knowledge of the Lord as the fathomless ocean is full of water. Rapturous vision! Sublime and ineffable consummation! Was it only a dream?

In many passages the prophet turns in the gleams from the millennial age, but one of the clearest and best on the millennium, which is in line with the preceding paragraph, Isa 11:6-9 : “And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together: and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea.”

The prophet’s vision of the destruction of death is given in Isa 25:8 : “He hath swallowed up death for ever; and the Lord Jehovah will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the reproach of his people will he take away from all the earth: for Jehovah hath spoken it,” and in Isa 26:19 : “Thy dead shall live; my dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast forth the dead.”

The clearest outlines of the prophet’s vision of “Paradise Regained” are to be found in Isa 25:8 , and in two passages in chapter Isa 66 : Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn over her; that ye may suck and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. For thus saith Jehovah, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream: and ye shall suck thereof; ye shall be borne upon the side, and shall be dandled upon the knees, as one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. And ye shall see it, and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like the tender grass: and the hands of Jehovah shall be known toward his servants ; and he will have indignation against his enemies. Isa 66:10-14

For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make shall remain before me, saith Jehovah, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith Jehovah. Isa 66:22-23

QUESTIONS

1. What is the relation between the New Testament Christ and prophecy?

2. What can you say of Isaiah as a witness of the Messiah?

3. What can you say of Isaiah’s pictures of the Messiah and their background?

4. Following in the order of Christ’s manifestation, what is the first picture of him in Isaiah?

5. What is the second messianic glimpse in Isaiah?

6. What is Isaiah’s picture of the incarnation?

7. What is Isaiah’s picture of the divine child?

8. What is Isaiah’s vision of his descent, his relation to the Holy Spirit, his administration of justice, and the results of his reign?

9. What is Isaiah’s vision of the Messiah’s herald?

10. What is the prophet’s vision of his anointing?

11. What is the prophet’s vision of him as a miracle worker?

12. What is the prophet’s vision of the character of the Messiah?

13. What is the prophet’s vision of him as the key bearer?

14. What is the prophet’s vision of him as a king and a hiding place?

15. What is the prophet’s vision of the Messiah as a foundation stone?

16. What is the prophet’s vision of him as a polished shaft?

17. In what passages do we find the idea of the salvation of Jehovah, and what the significance of the idea?

18. What is Isaiah’s vision of the Messiah as a light?

19. Where does Isaiah present him as a stone of stumbling?

20. What is the prophet’s vision of his maltreatment and rejection?

21. What is the teaching of Isaiah on the election of the Jews?

22. Where do we find Isaiah’s teaching on the pouring out of the Holy Spirit?

23. Where is he said to be the ensign of the nations?

24. What passages teach the enlargement of the church?

25. Where is the great invitation and promise?

26. Where is the Messiah in judgment?

27. What passages show the restoration of the Jews?

28. What is the prophet’s vision of the Messiah’s kingdom?

29. What is the prophet’s vision of the millennium?

30. What is the prophet’s vision of the destruction of death?

31. What is the prophet’s vision of “Paradise Regained?”

Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible

XXIV

THE BOOK OF ISAIAH PART 16

Isaiah 58-60

This division (Isaiah 58-66) is eschatological and consists of promises and warnings for the future. The special theme of Isaiah 58-60 is Israel’s sin, Jehovah’s salvation, and Zion’s glory. Israel’s sin, as stated in Isa 58 , was a heartless ritualism.

The prophet’s special commission in Isa 58:1 was to cry aloud, to sound forth like a trumpet against the transgressions and sin of Jacob.

The people complained (Isa 58:2-7 ) that Jehovah had not regarded their religious services; that he had not dealt with them in righteous judgments. To this Jehovah replied that their fasting was nothing more than a form; that while they fasted they, at the same time, did their own pleasure and oppressed all their laborers; that while they fasted they also fought and did not fast so as to be heard when they prayed; that fasting was not merely bowing the head like a bulrush and sitting in sackcloth and ashes; that such fasting was not regarded by Jehovah at all, but rather the fasting that put away wickedness, set the captives free, fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and aided their own countrymen generally.

The promises to Jacob in this connection and the conditions upon which they were made are as follows:

1. On the condition that they fast in reality, as Just described, he promised that light should break forth upon them; that they should be healed speedily; that righteousness should be in front of them and the glory of Jehovah should be their reward; and then their cries to Jehovah should be answered by him.

2. On the condition that they take away oppression, scorning, wicked speaking, feed and sympathize with the hungry and afflicted, he promised that their light should become as bright as the noonday; that Jehovah would guide them; that they should be like a watered garden; and that the land should be restored to its former blessings.

3. On the condition that they keep his holy sabbath, doing the Lord’s pleasure therein, he promised that they should have delight in Jehovah and he would exalt them in the high places of the earth and would supply their every need.

This chapter has for its historical background the great atonement day, the only time when Israel was required to fast as herein pictured. The voice of the prophet here corresponds to the trumpet which announced the atonement day. His announcing their transgressions, sins, and iniquities, all of which cluster about this day corresponds to the reminding of their sins on the atonement day, on which also was announced the Jubilee, when there was the breaking of all yokes, and ita provisions for those who had come to be broken down and oppressed. But they had only kept the outward form of this ritual and had not observed it in heart. So the prophet issues a call to repentance, very much like that of John the Baptist before he announced the Lamb of God that took away the sin of the world. The great atonement was just ahead and it was necessary that they be afflicted in their souls on account of their sins.

This thought is carried on in the next chapter (Isa 58:1-8 ). Here the sins are pointed out more particularly. The prophet begins by announcing that the difficulty is not with Jehovah but with the people. Their sins had separated between them and God. The sins here recited cover the whole catalogue. Their hands, their fingers, their lips, their tongues, their feet, and their minds were all involved. Their state was most despicable and called for the severest Judgments. They were all gone out of the way.

There follows (Isa 58:9-14 a) a most wonderful confession of sin. In this confession they state their awful condition and lament their sins and hopelessness. This is very much like the condition of Israel when John the Baptist lifted his voice in the wilderness of Judea at which they repented confessing their sins.

But relief comes in this state of hopelessness and despair. Jehovah intervened in the power of his grace and wrought out their salvation (Isa 59:15-21 ). When Jehovah looked on he saw that there was no justice; that there was not a righteous man; that there was no one, like Moses or Aaron, to intercede. Just such a condition existed when our Lord came. There was none good, no, not one. So he was moved with compassion and stretched forth his arm and brought deliverance to his people.

When he came to contend like a mighty warrior for his people he put on righteousness as a breastplate, salvation for a helmet upon his head, garments of vengeance for clothing, and zeal as a mantle. Thus panoplied he waged a spiritual conflict with his adversaries and he recompensed to his enemies their dues.

The marginal reading of Isa 59:19 is to be preferred for this verse: “So shall they fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for when the adversary shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of Jehovah will lift up a standard against him.” The first part of this verse teaches us that the true religion will be spread over the whole earth. The latter part seems to have its analogue in the past deliverance of Israel, as in the case with Sennacherib, but it connects directly here with the Messiah who is the standard which Jehovah has set up against the adversary, and for the whole world. He is the ensign for all peoples.

The Redeemer in Isa 59:20-21 is unmistakably the Messiah. This passage is highly messianic and reveals the salvation of Christ. The covenant here is the new covenant, or the covenant of grace, so much amplified in the New Testament. The Spirit here is the Holy Spirit who inspired the prophet and inspired the New Testament writers giving them words that would never depart from the mouths of God’s people. This is a promise of inspiration for all the word of God and that there will always be a seed who will contend for that inspiration. As surely as the church of Jesus Christ, which is the habitat of the ‘Spirit, shall be perpetuated, just that surely there will always be a contention in that church for the word which was inspired by that same Spirit. A good sign of apostasy upon the part of a church is for it to deny the inspiration of the word of God. This is exactly in line with the New Testament teaching on the Holy Spirit. The new covenant herein spoken of involves the giving of God’s Holy Spirit to his people (Joe 2:28 and Act 2 ), and this Spirit was promised by Christ as the Paraclete of the church forever. He shall not depart from God’s people while time endures, and his office work in the hearts of men and women will continue until the Lord, for whom he must bear witness, shall come back to this earth without a sin offering unto salvation.

The theme of Isa 60 is the transcendent glory of Zion and it is in the nature of a song of triumph, a poem which is the counterpart, perhaps, of Isa 47 , describing the fall and ruin of Babylon. The theme of this song appears in verse Isa 60:14 : “The city of Jehovah, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”

The connection between Isa 60 and Isa 59 is very close. They are closely bound together, the relation between them being, for the most part, that of contrast. There are five of these points of contrast as follows:

1. In Isa 59 the people were waiting in “dark places for the light”; now the “light” has come.

2. In Isa 59 “righteousness and peace” stood at a distance; now they govern the Holy City.

3. In Isa 59 “salvation” was far off; now the walls of the city are called salvation.

4. In Isa 59 reverence for the “name of Jehovah” and “his glory” was promised; now it is realized.

5. In Isaiah 59 a “redeemer” was foreseen; now his work is accomplished.

The imagery of this poem seems to be borrowed from the account of the visit of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon, found in 1Ki 10:1-10 . This song consists of five stanzas, of nearly equal length, as follows:

1.Isa 60:1-4 , Zion’s light and inhabitants

2.Isa 60:5-9 , Zion’s wealth

3.Isa 60:10-14 , Zion’s reconstruction

4.Isa 60:15-18 , Zion’s prosperity

5.Isa 60:19-22 , Zion’s crowning glories

The light of Zion is the reflected light of the glory of Jehovah, just as the light of the disciples of Jesus was his reflected light. He is the “Sun of Righteousness” and “the Light of the World”; primarily, while his disciples are “suns of righteousness” and “the light of the world,” secondarily. Here Zion is exhorted to arise and shine, just as Christ said to his disciples, “Ye are the light of the world . . . let your light so shine, etc.” The “promise” is that, notwithstanding gross darkness should cover the earth and its peoples, Zion should have the light of Jehovah, and it should be so attractive that the nations of the earth and the kings of the world should come to her brightness.

The inhabitants of Zion shall come from far, i.e., from all parts of the world, as Jesus said, “They shall come from the east, and from the west; from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of God.” They shall be Jews and Gentiles, Greek and Roman, Chinese and Japanese, Malayan and Australian, Indian and African, European and American. Yea they shall be Oriental, Occidental, Septentrional, and Austral, but all radiant with one life, one light, and one love.

The very best of everything in the material world is here mentioned as coming to Zion, illustrating both the temporal and spiritual blessings of Zion, the temporal being used to transport Zion’s sons and daughters, i.e., for missionary purposes. This is literally fulfilled in every material thing that is consecrated to the service of the king of this splendid city. The ships, the lower animals) the gold and the silver the best of it all has been made to serve the purposes of Christianity from the time of Paul to the present day.

The reconstructors of this city are here called foreigners which may refer primarily to Cyrus and Artaxerxes Longimanus but the passage has a meaning far beyond the literal one. “Strangers” of all kinds, Greeks, Romans, Africans, Gauls, Spaniards, and others, are building the walls of Zion today. The promises here remind us of those concerning the New Jerusalem of Revelation. The gates are open continually, and kings and conquerors bring their trophies into it. The nation that will not serve this one shall perish. Many of them have come and gone according to this promise. The final and complete victory of this glorious institution over its enemies is one of the most encouraging promises of this passage.

But what of her prosperity? Whereas Zion has been down and trodden under foot, now she stands erect with an eternal excellency, and becomes the joy of many generations. Her nourishment comes through the means of the Gentiles. Righteousness and peace shall be its rulers, and no more violence shall be heard in the land. The entire cessation of war and violence is one of the most characteristic features of the “last times,” when swords shall be beaten into ploughshares, and spears into pruning hooks. The Prince of Peace shall ultimately establish peace. Many men of earnest religious feeling have thought, at various times, that they saw the actual commencement of the reign of peace upon the earth, so distinctly promised, so earnestly longed for, and so necessary for the happiness of mankind. But a calm dispassionate observer of the twentieth century is shaken from every confidence of its approach when he witnesses such disastrous wars as the recent terrific struggles for the championship of the world. Yet just such conflicts as these must precede the coming in of the reign of peace and who can tell but that these are the last great struggles which shall introduce this blessed reign of the Prince of Peace? (See the author’s discussion of this in his Interpretation of Revelation, pp. 225-267.)

This description (Isa 60:19-22 ) of the crowning glories of this city of Jehovah parallels John’s description of the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven as a bride adorned for her husband. Here the redeemed are basking in a light whose radiance eclipses the light of the sun and moon, which streams down upon them from God the Father of lights in whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. This light shall be everlasting and there shall be no mourning. All her people shall be righteous and the saying shall come to pass that “the meek shall inherit the earth.” The little flock shall become the strong nation, the multitude that no man can number. All this must come in its own time, the time fixed in God’s counsels for the final and glorious triumph of his everlasting kingdom.

QUESTIONS

1. What is the theme of Isaiah 58-66?

2. What is the special theme of Isaiah 58-60?

3. What, in general, was Israel’s sin, as stated in Isa 58 ?

4. What is the prophet’s special commission in Isa 58:1 ?

5. What complaint do the people of Jacob make against Jehovah and what his reply?

6. What are the promises of Jacob in this connection and upon what conditions?

7. What the historical background of this chapter and what time in the history of Israel does it foreshadow?

8. How is this thought carried on in the next chapter?

9. What the effect of this cry of the prophet against their sin?

10. What relief comes in this state of hopelessness and despair?

11. When Jehovah looked on what did he see and how did it affect him?

12. What were his weapons for this mighty conflict?

13. What is the meaning of Isa 59:19 ?

14. Who is the Redeemer, what the covenant and what the mission of the Holy Spirit as set forth in Isa 59:20-21 ?

15. What is the special theme and what the nature of Isa 60 ?

16. Where in this chapter do we find the subject, or theme, of this address?

17. What is the connection between this chapter and the preceding chapter?

18. What is the imagery of this poem and where found?

19. Give an analysis of this song, showing its parts and their several

20. What is the light of Zion and what the promise concerning it (Isa 60:1-22 ?

21. Who are to be the inhabitants of Zion?

22. What shall be the wealth of this glorious city and what use shall be made of it?

23. Who the reconstructors of this city and what the promises connected with the reconstruction?

24. What of her prosperity?

25. Describe the crowning glories of this city of Jehovah, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible

Isa 60:1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

Ver. 1. Arise. ] Thou, O my Church, that now liest in pulvere vastitatis, as a forlorn captive, rouse up thyself, change both thy countenance and condition; Tanquam libera ac laeta ad novum nuncium; up, and look up, I have joyful tidings for thee.

For thy light is come. ] Christ, who is – light essential. Joh 12:46

And, the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. ] The glorious gospel of grace. 2Co 3:7 ; 2Co 4:4

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

Isaiah Chapter 60

As we have had the failure and guilt of Israel in idolatry and the rejection of the Messiah traced down to their reception of “the king” as well as of idols in the last days, so now we have not a pledge or promise of covenanted blessing under the Redeemer King, but the scene of joy and blessing and honour for Zion, when the hour arrives for His glory to be revealed here below. There is no ground for doubting that, as before we had the dark picture of God’s earthly people, so here we are permitted to behold the sure anticipation of the brightness in store for them. The church is not here in question.

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee. For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples: but Jehovah will arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And nations shall walk in thy light, and kings in the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons come from far, and thy daughters are nursed upon the side. Then thou shalt see and be brightened, and thy heart shall throb and be enlarged; for the abundance of the sea shall be turned unto thee, the wealth of the nations shall come unto thee. A multitude of camels shall cover thee, dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense, and they shall show forth the praises of Jehovah. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall serve thee; they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will beautify the house of my magnificence” (vv. 1-7).

But there is another picture which sets out the change among men by divine goodness. The ships of the Gentiles play their part now in serving Israel’s sons with honour. “Who [are] these [that] fly as a cloud, and as doves to their dovecotes? Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of Jehovah thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, for he hath glorified thee. And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually (they shall not be shut day nor night); that [men] may bring unto thee the wealth of the nations, and [that] their kings [may be] brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, [those] nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the cypress, the pine (or, plane), and the box-tree together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of Jehovah, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel” (vv. 8-14).

There is no thought here of God’s glory revealed in the face of Christ on high and made known by the Spirit to the heart (2Co 4:6 ); the earth itself is the theatre of this divine display. Another point to be noticed is that, immediately before the time arrives, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples. Plainly therefore it is a false interpretation of prophecy that light is to be diffused universally when the time of earthly glory for Israel, as well as the heavenly glory of the church, dawns on the world. Zion is to be visited in the mercy of God when the Gentile lands are enveloped in the grossest ignorance of God. So the apostle predicts the apostasy before that day (2Th 2 ).

Again, in ver. 3 there is a point of striking contradistinction to the present dealings of God. For now the fall of the Jews has been the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles (Rom 11:12 ); but here all is in contrast: the Gentiles are blessed after Israel is restored to Jehovah’s favour, so indeed Rom 11:15 teaches us that their reception shall be to the world life from the dead. Hence, when Jehovah’s glory shall be seen on Zion, the nations shall come to that light and kings to the brightness of its rising.

The gospel now goes out freely and its light is diffused far and wide, though only as a testimony; for it admits not of the power which binds Satan and changes the face of creation. But in our chapter Jerusalem has its proper central place, as the metropolis of the earth when all shall be settled and governed according to God. Nor is it only sons and daughters that thus come to Zion from far, but strangers too. For there is then to be no such state of things on earth as the church of God, one body, Christ’s body. On the contrary Gentiles and Israel, though both blessed by Jehovah, will be distinct and kept so, however harmonious in their relations. So too it is the day when outward things are to be no unmeet offering to Jehovah: camels and dromedaries, flocks and herds, land and sea, shall pour their tribute before His feet. To think now of serving God thus would be to go back to beggarly elements from the revelation of heavenly and eternal things in Christ; whereas gold and incense will be in season, and sacrifices will be then acceptable for His altar and the house of His glory. But no such joy shall be for the isles and the nations and creation generally, till the Holy One of Israel glorifies Zion, rescuing her from the stranger that now treads her down to her sorrow and his own loss. But He shall arise and have mercy on that royal hill, and His servants take pleasure in her stones and favour her dust. Not till then shall the heathen fear His name, and the kings of the earth His glory, as is here described so variously.

But when Jehovah builds up Zion, all shall be turned to Him. God will make this favour to Jerusalem felt universally in due time, after punishing those who think to gain all by the overthrow of His people. All nature will join to adorn the sanctuary of Jehovah; and those who by-and-by represent the nations that once afflicted Israel will then be abject in their homage and prostration when Zion is exalted. Many images here used to mark the glory of the earthly Jerusalem are employed in a more glorious way for the new Jerusalem of Rev. 21-22. But the attentive reader will not fail to mark the essential differences also. Take this one in particular. The nation and kingdom that will not serve the restored earthly Jerusalem shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted (ver. 12). The glorified church, the heavenly Jerusalem, on the contrary, is true to her mission of grace even in the day of glory. For as to her not only is there no word of this judicial character, but there is the witness of beneficent and unfailing grace. The tree of life is there, on either side of the river of life. No other tree is seen to threaten death. But the tree of life, while it bears its full and varied yet constant fruits for those within, affords its gracious succour also to the need of those without: its leaves are for the healing of the nations (Rev 22:2 ).

For anything like such heavenly grace as this, Babylon (proud, corrupt, cruel) had no eyes, ears, or heart; she, the false church, did and does arrogate the claims which are alone true of Jerusalem by-and-by. She even ignored and hated the reality of grace which the bride of Christ is called to show. And no wonder; for she is a harlot, and detests Him that is Holy, Him that is True, indulging in lusts and lies and blood, till divine judgement fall.

But the prophet says of Zion, “Instead of thy being forsaken and hated, so that no man went through [thee], I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the nations, and shalt suck the breast of kings; and thou shalt know that I Jehovah [am] thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. For bronze I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood bronze, and for stones iron; I will also make thine officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee; but Jehovah shall be unto thee an everlasting light; and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for Jehovah shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended” (vv. 15-20).

Here is evidence overwhelming, were more wanted, that the church on earth or in heaven is not represented here, but the ancient people of God blessed according to His promise and prophecy. For righteousness dealing according to an earthly measure is the rule; and it is the day also not for an elect witness, but “thy people also [shall be] all righteous,” and this in prosperous power, instead of knowing the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings, being made conformable to His death. “They shall possess the land for ever – the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. The little one shall become a thousand, and the smallest a strong nation: I Jehovah will hasten it in its time” (vv. 21, 22).

The main source of erroneous interpretation among the orthodox is the obliteration of Israel to bring the church into their place of promised earthly glory. Therefore minds at all spiritual revolted from these visions of worldly honour, material prosperity, long life, and the like, and sought to make them figures of higher things. But the Christian and the church have their spiritual blessings in heavenly places, as is distinctly set forth in the New Testament; while the Old Testament predicts these wondrous changes in the land and the earth for Israel and the nations, when the kingdom is set up in visible power and glory. There is therefore not only no justification for getting rid of the plain meaning of the prophets, but we wrong God’s ancient people, to say nothing of the nations, of that bright prospect which is revealed for the earth. And good men are guilty of bad reasoning and worse exegesis who dislike to admit the glorious state predicted as a simple literal fact in honour of the Second man, the last Adam. Far be it to accuse such unbelieving believers of Manicheeism; but their speculations deprive them of entering into that immense counsel of God which will put the entire universe under Christ’s headship, and bind the earth beneath and the heavens above in united blessedness to His own glory, as we may read in Eph 1:10 ; of which Rev. 21 – 22 is the New Testament display prophetically.

Fuente: William Kelly Major Works (New Testament)

Isaiah

THE SUNLIT CHURCH

Isa 60:1 – Isa 60:3 .

The personation of Israel as a woman runs through the whole of this second portion of Isaiah’s prophecy. We see her thrown on the earth a mourning mother, a shackled captive. We hear her summoned once and again to awake, to arise, to shake herself from the dust, to loose the bands of her neck. These summonses are prophecies of the impending Messianic deliverance. The same circle of truths, in a somewhat different aspect, is presented in the verses before us. The prophet sees the earth wrapped in a funeral pall of darkness, and a beam of more than natural light falling on one prostrate form. The old story is repeated, Zion stands in the light, while Egypt cowers in gloom. The light which shines upon her is ‘the Glory of the Lord,’ the ancient brightness that dwelt between the cherubim within the veil in the secret place of the Most High, and is now come out into the open world to envelop the desolate captive. Thus touched by the light she becomes light, and in her turn is bidden to shine. There is a very remarkable correspondence reiterated in my text between the illuminating God and the illuminated Zion. The word for shine is connected with the word for light, and might fairly be rendered ‘lighten,’ or ‘be light.’ Twice the phrase ‘thy light’ is employed; once to mean the light which is thine because it shines on thee; once to mean the light which is thine because it shines from thee. The other word, three times repeated, for rising , is the technical word which expresses the sunrise, and it is applied both to the flashing glory that falls upon Zion and to the light that gleams from her. Touched by the sun, she becomes a sun, and blazes in her heaven in a splendour that draws men’s hearts. So, then, if that be the fair analysis of the words before us, they present to us some thoughts bearing on the Missionary work of the Church, and I gather them all up in three-the fact, the ringing summons, and the confident promise.

I. Now, as to the fact.

Beneath the poetry of my text there lie very definite conceptions of a very solemn and grave character, and these conceptions are the foundation of the ringing summons that follows, and which reposes upon a double basis-viz. ‘ for thy light is come,’ and ‘ for darkness covers the earth.’ There is a double element in the representation. We have a darkened earth, and a sunlit and a sunlike church; and unless we hold these two convictions-both of them-in firm grasp, and that not merely as convictions that influence our understanding, but as ever present forces acting on our emotions, our consciences, our wills, we shall not do the work which God has set us to do in the world. I need not dwell long on the former of these, or speak of that funeral pall that wraps the whole earth. Only remember that it is no darkness that came from His hand who forms the light and creates darkness, but is like the smoke that lies over our great cities-the work of many an earth-born fire, whose half-consumed foulness hides the sun from us. If we take the sulphureous and smoky pall that wraps the earth, and analyse its contents, they are these: the darkness of ignorance, the darkness of sorrow, the darkness of sin. Of ignorance; for throughout the wide regions that lie beneath that covering spread over all nations is there any certitude about God, about man, about morals, about responsibilities, about eternity? Peradventures, guesses, dreams, precious fragments of truth, twisted in with the worst of lies, noble aspirations side by side with bestial representations-these are the things on which our brethren repose, or try to repose. We do not forget that light which lighteneth every man that cometh into the world.

We do not forget, of course, that everywhere there are feelings after Him, and everywhere there are gleams and glimpses of a vanishing light, else life were impossible; but oh, dear brethren, let us not forget either that the people sit in darkness of ignorance, which is the saddest darkness that can afflict men.

And it is a darkness of sorrow, for all the ills that flesh is heir to press, unalleviated and unsustained by any known helper in the heavens, upon millions of our fellows. They stand, as the great German poet describes himself as standing, in one of the most pathetic of his lyrics, before the marble image of the fair goddess, who has pity on her face and beauty raying from her limbs, but she has no arms. So tears fall undried. The light-hearted savage is a fiction. What a heavy gloom lies upon his past and his present, which darkens into an impenetrable mist that wraps and hides the future!

And the darkness is a darkness of sin as well as of sorrow and of ignorance. On that point I need not dwell. We all believe that all have ‘sinned and come short of the glory of God,’ and we all believe that idolatry, as we see it, and as it is wrought out, is an ally of impurity and of sin. The process is this: men make gods in their own image, and the gods make devils of the men. ‘They that make them are like unto them, so is every one that trusteth in them.’ We need no other principle than that to account for the degradation of heathenism and for the obscenities and foul transgression within the very courts of the temple.

Now, dear friends, that I may not dwell too long upon the A B C of our belief, let me urge you in one sentence to be on your guard against present-day tendencies which weaken the force of this solemn, tragical conviction as to the realities of heathendom. The new science of comparative religion has done much for us. I am not saying one word against this pursuit, or the conclusions which are drawn from it. But I pray you to remember that the underlying truths buried beneath the system that any men hold as their religion are one thing, and the practical working of that system, as we see it in daily life, is altogether another. The actual character of heathenism is not to be learned from the sacred books of all nations and the precious gleams of wisdom and feeling after the Divine which we recognise in man. As a simple matter of fact, all over the world the religion of heathen nations is a mass of obscenity, intertwined so closely with nobler thoughts that the two seem to be inseparable. Unalleviated sorrows, hideous foulnesses, a gross ignorance covering all the most important realities for men-these are the facts with which we have to grapple. Do not let us forget them.

And on the other side, remember the contrasted picture here of the sunlit and sunny church. The incarnation of Jesus Christ is the fulfilment of my text. ‘We behold His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.’ If you and I are Christians, we are bound to believe in Him as the exclusive source of certainty. We hear from Him no peradventure, but His word is, ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you,’ and on that word we rest all our knowledge of God, of duty, of man, and of the future. Instead of fears, doubt, perhapses, we have a living Christ and His rock-word. And in Him is all joy, and in Him is the cleansing from all sin. And this threefold radiance, into which the one pure light may be analysed, falls upon us. It falls all over the world as well; but they into whose hearts it has come, they whose faces are turned to it, they receive it in a sense in which the unreceptive and unresponsive darkness of the world does not. The light shineth in the darkness, and the darkness will have none of it, and so it is darkness yet. The light shineth upon us, and if by His mercy we have opened our hearts to it, then, according to the profound teaching of this context, we are not only a sun-lighted but a sunlike Church, and to us the commandment comes, ‘Arise, shine, for thy light is come,’ and has turned thy poor darkness into a sun too.

If we have the light we shall be light. That is but putting in a picturesque form the very central truth of Christianity. The last word of the gospel is transformation. We become like Him if we live near Him, and the end for which the Master became like unto us in His incarnation and passion was that we might become like to Him by the reception of His very own life unto our souls. Light makes many a surface on which it falls flash, but in the optics of earth it is the rays which are not absorbed that are reflected; but in this loftier region the illumination is not superficial but inward, and it is the light which is swallowed up within us that then comes forth from us. Christ will dwell in our hearts, and we shall be like some poor little diamond-shaped pane of glass in a cottage window which, when the sun smites it, is visible over miles of the plain. If that sun falls upon us, its image will be mirrored in our hearts and flashing in our lives. The clouds that lie over the sunset, though in themselves they be but poor, grey, and moist vapour, when smitten by its beneficent radiance, become not unworthy ministers and attendants upon its glory. So, my brethren, it may be with us, for Christ comes to be our light, Because He is in us and with us we are changed into His likeness, and the names that are most appropriate to Him He shares with us. Is He the ‘Son’?-we are sons. Is He ‘the Light of the world’? His own lips tell us, ‘Ye are the light of the world.’ Is He the Christ? The Psalm says: ‘Touch not my Christs, and do My prophets no harm.’ Critics have quarrelled over these last chapters of the Book of Isaiah, as to whom the servant of the Lord is; whether he is the personal or collective Israel, whether he is Christ or His Church. Let us take the lesson that He and we are so united that His office that made the union possible, wherein He was sacrificed on the Cross for us all-belongs by derivation to His servants, and that He, the Sun of Righteousness, moves in the heavens circled by many another sun.

So, dear friends, these two convictions of these two facts, the dark earth, the sunlit, sunlike church, lie at the basis of all our missionary work. If once we begin to doubt about them, if once we begin to think that men have got a good deal of light already, and can do very well without much more, or if we at all are hesitant about our possession of the light, and the certitudes and the joys that are in it, then good-bye to our missionary zeal. We shall soon begin to ask the question, ‘To what purpose is this waste?’-though the lips that first asked it, by the bye, did not much recommend it-and shall consider that money and resources and precious lives are too precious to be thrown away thus. But if we rightly appreciate the force of these twin principles, then we shall be ready to listen to the ringing summons.

II. We have here, in the second place, based upon these two facts, the summons to the Church. ‘Shine, for thy light is come.’ If we have light, we are light. If we are light, we shall shine; but the shining is not altogether spontaneous and effortless. Stars do not need to be bidden to shine nor candles either; but we need the exhortation, because there are many things that dim the brilliance of our light and interfere with its streaming forth. True, the property of light is to shine, but we can rob the inward light of its beams. The silent witness of a Christian life transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ is, perhaps, the best contribution that any of us can make to the spread of His kingdom. It is with us as it is with the great lights in the heavens. ‘There is no speech nor language; their voice is not heart,’ yet, ‘their line has gone through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.’ So we may quietly ray out the light in us and witness the transforming power of our Master by the transparent purity of our lives. But the command suggests likewise effort, and that effort must be in the direction of the specific vocal proclamation of His name.

I take both these methods of fulfilling the command into my view, in the further remarks that I make, and I put that which I have to say upon this into three sentences: if we are light, we shall be able to shine; if we are light, we are bound to shine; if we are light, we shall wish to shine. We shall be able to shine. And man can manifest what he is unless he is a coward. Any man can talk about the things that are interesting to him if only they are interesting to him. Any man that has Jesus Christ can say so; and perhaps the utterance of the simple personal conviction is the best method of proclaiming His name. All other things are surplusage. They are good when they come, they may be done without. Learning, eloquence, and the like of these, are the adornments of the lamp, but it does not matter whether the lamp be a gorgeous affair of gilt and crystal, or whether it be a poor piece of block tin; the main question is: are there wick and oil in it? The pitcher may be gold and silver, or costly china, or it may be a poor potsherd. Never mind. If there is water in it, it will be precious to a thirsty lip. And so, dear brethren, I press this upon you: every Christian man has the power, if he is a Christian, to proclaim his Master, and if he has the Light he will be able to show it. I pause for a moment to say that this suggests for us the condition of all faithful and effectual witness for Jesus Christ. Cultivate understanding and all other faculties as much as you like: but oh! you Christian ministers, as well as others in less official and public positions, remember this: the fitness to impart is to possess, and that being taken for granted, the main thing is secured. As long as the electric light is in contact with the battery, so long does it burn. Electricians have been trying during the past few years to make accumulators, things in which they can store the influence and put it away in a corner and use it so that the light need not be in connection with the battery; and they have not succeeded-at least it is only a very partial success. You and I cannot start accumulators. Let us remember that personal contact with Jesus is power, and only that personal contact is so. Arise, shine! but if thou hast gone out of the light, thou wilt shine no more.

But again, if we are light we are bound to shine. That is an obvious principle. The capacity to shine is the obligation to shine, for we are all knit together by such mystical cords in this strange brotherhood of humanity that every one of us holds his possession as trust property for the use and behoof of others, and in the present case that which we have received, and the price at which we have received it, give an edge to the keenness of the obligation, and add a new grip to the stringency of the command. It is because Christ has given Himself thus to us that the possession of Him binds us to the imitation of His example, and the impartation of Him to all our brethren. The obligation lies at our doors, and cannot be delegated or devolved.

If we have light, we shall wish to shine. What shall we say about the Christian people who never really had such a wish? God forbid that I should say they have no light; but this I will say, it burns very dimly. Dear brethren, there is no better test of the depth and the purity of our personal attachment to, and possession of, our Master than the impulse that will spring from them to communicate Him to others. ‘Necessity is laid upon me, yea, woe is me if I preach not.’ That should be the word of every one of us, and it will be so in the measure in which we ourselves have thoroughly laid hold of Jesus Christ. ‘This is a day of good tidings, and we cannot hold our peace,’ said the handful of lepers in the camp. ‘If we are silent some mischief will come to us.’ ‘Thy word, when I shut it up in my bones and said, I will speak no more in Thy name, was like a fire, and was weary of forbearing and could not stay.’ Brother, do you know anything of the divine necessity to share your blessing with the men around you? Did you ever feel what it was to carry a burden of the Lord that drove you to speech, and left you no rest until you had done what it impelled you to do? If not, I beseech you to ask yourselves whether you cannot get nearer to the sun than away out there on the very edge of its system, receiving so few of its beams, and these so impotent that they can scarcely do more than melt the surface of the thick-ribbed ice that warps your spirit. If we are light we shall be enabled, we shall be bound, we shall wish, to shine. Christian men and women, is this true of you?

III. Lastly, notice here the confident promise.

‘The Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.’ If we have the light we shall be light; if we are light we shall shine, and if we shine we shall attract. Certainly men and women with the light of Christ in them will draw others to them, just as many an eye that cannot look undazzled upon the sun can look upon it mirrored upon some polished surface. A painter will fling upon his canvas a scene that you and I, with our purblind eyes, have looked at hundreds of times, and seen no beauty; but when we gaze on the picture, then we know how fair it is. There is an attractive power in the light of Christ shining from the face of a man. Of course, we have to moderate our expectations. We have to remember that whilst it is true that some men will come to the light, it is also true that some men ‘love the darkness, and will not come to the light because their deeds are evil’; and we have to remember that we have no right to anticipate rapid results. ‘An inheritance may be begotten hastily at the beginning, but the end thereof shall not be blessed,’ said the wise man; and the history of the Christian Church in many of its missionary operations is a sad commentary upon the saying. We must remember that we cannot estimate how long the preparation for a change, which will be developed swiftly, may be. The sun on autumn mornings shines upon the fog; and the people below, because there is a fog, do not know that it is shining; but it is doing its work on the upper layer all the while, and at length eats its way through the fleecy obstruction, which then swiftly disappears. That must be a very, very long day of which the morning twilight has been nineteen hundred years. Therefore, although the vision tarries, we may fall back with unswerving confidence on these words of my text-’The Gentiles shall come to the brightness of thy rising.’

But after all this has been said, are you satisfied with the rate of progress, are you satisfied with the swiftness of the fulfilment of such hopes? Whose fault is it that the rate of progress is what it is? Yours and mine and our predecessors’. There is such a thing as ‘hasting the day of the Lord,’ and there is such a thing as protracting the time of waiting. Dear brethren, the secret of our slow growth at home and abroad lies in my text. Fulfil the conditions and you will get the result; but if you are not shining by a light which is Christ’s light, who promised that it would have attraction or draw men to it? A great deal of the work of the Christian Church-but do not let us hide ourselves in the generality of that word-a great deal of our work is artificial light, brewed out of retorts, and smelling sulphureous; and a great deal more of it is the phosphorescence that glimmers above decay. If the Christian Church has ceased in any measure, or in any of its members, to be able to attract by the exhibition of its light, let the Christian Church sit down and bethink itself of the sort of light it gives, and perhaps it will find a reason for its failure. It is Christ, the holy Christ, the loving Christ, the Christ in us making us wise and gentle, it is the Christ manifested by word and by work, who will draw the nations to Him.

So, men and brethren, do you keep near your Master and live close by His side till you are drenched and saturated with His glory, and all your cold vapours turned into visible divinity and manifested Jesus. Keep near to Him. As long as a bit of scrap-iron touches a magnet, it is a magnet: as soon as the contact is broken it ceases to attract. If you live in the full sunshine of Christ and have Him, not merely playing upon the surface of your mind, but sinking deep down into it and transforming your whole being, then some men will, as they look at you, be filled with strange longings, and will say: ‘Come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.’ So may you and I live, like the morning star, which, from its serene altitudes, touched into radiance by the sun unseen from the darkened plains, prophesies its rising to a sleeping world, and is content to be lost in the lustre of that unsetting Light!

Fuente: Expositions Of Holy Scripture by Alexander MacLaren

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Isa 60:1-3

1Arise, shine; for your light has come,

And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.

2For behold, darkness will cover the earth

And deep darkness the peoples;

But the LORD will rise upon you

And His glory will appear upon you.

3Nations will come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising.

Isa 60:1 Arise, shine Two Qal IMPERATIVES implore the covenant people to be what they were called to be for themselves and for the world.

Light is a recurrent metaphor in this chapter to describe:

1. God’s presence, Isa 60:1-2; Isa 60:9-20; Rev 21:23; Rev 22:5

2. spiritual holiness, Isa 60:1; Isa 60:3; Isa 60:5; Isa 60:21; Isa 62:1

3. this recurring metaphor of light in Isaiah (cf. Isa 9:2; Isa 58:8; Isa 59:9)

your light has come The subject of Isa 60:1-22 is Zion (cf. Isa 60:14), which symbolizes the people of God.

The common VERB come (BDB 97, KB 112) is used several times in this chapter.

1. has come – Qal PERFECT, Isa 60:1

2. come – Qal PERFECT, Isa 60:4

3. will come – Qal IMPERFECT, Isa 60:4

4. will come – Qal IMPERFECT, Isa 60:5

5. will come – Qal IMPERFECT, Isa 60:6

6. will bring – Hiphil INFINITIVE CONSTRUCT, Isa 60:6

7. bring – same as #6, Isa 60:11

8. will come – Qal IMPERFECT, Isa 60:13

9-10. will bring – Hiphil IMPERFECT, twice, Isa 60:17

11. will set – Qal IMPERFECT, Isa 60:20

Remember the time element is not in the Hebrew VERB but in its use in context.

the glory of the LORD This is parallel to light in line 1. It is used in other places in Isaiah connected to light/lights (cf. Isa 24:23; Isa 58:8) and agricultural abundance (cf. Isa 35:2). The Hebrew term for glory (BDB 458), because of its association with the Shekinah cloud of glory (cf. Exo 13:21-22; Exo 14:19-20; Exo 14:24; Exo 19:16-18; Exo 20:21), symbolized YHWH’s personal presence with the Israelites during the Exodus. Fire and lightning were associated with the coming of YHWH to Mt. Sinai (cf. Exodus 19-20), so brightness became an aspect of glory.

Isa 60:2 This has some allusion to the physical darkness of Gen 1:1-2 or Exo 10:21-23 or even Isa 9:2, and the spiritual darkness caused by sin. YHWH will not allow the darkness of the Fall (cf. Genesis 3), which covers all humans, to remain. His light of revelation and salvation will rise (Qal IMPERFECT, BDB 280, KB 281).

Isa 60:3 Nations will come to your light It is obvious that God’s original purpose for Israel was to bring the world to Himself (cf. Isa 61:6; Isa 61:11 b; Isa 62:2; Isa 62:11; Gen 12:3; Exo 19:5-6). See Special Topic at Isa 40:15.

Of all the prophets, with the possible exceptions of Micah and Jonah, it is Isaiah who saw the universal implications of

1. monotheism

2. OT Patriarchal promises

3. Israel’s evangelistic purpose

Note Isa 2:3; Isa 45:14; Isa 45:22-25; Isa 49:23. This is surely the precursor of Joh 3:16; Joh 4:42; 1Ti 2:4; Tit 2:11; 2Pe 3:9; 1Jn 2:1; 1Jn 4:14. The NT, following the teachings of Jesus, universalized the OT promises to Israel (cf. Gen 12:3; Exo 19:5), to the whole world (cf. Mat 28:18-20; Luk 24:47; Act 1:8).

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

Arise. Compare Isa 51:9, Isa 51:17, “awake”; Isa 52:2, “awake”; Isa 60:1, “arise”; and contrast the cry to Babylon (Isa 47:1), “come down, sit in the dust”. See App-82. This refers to the future.

shine. Compare 2Sa 23:4.

thy light: i.e. Israel’s glory.

the glory of the LORD. Hebrew. kabod. See Isa 4:2, Isa 4:5; Isa 6:3; Isa 35:2; Isa 40:5; Isa 58:8; and Isa 60:2 here. Compare Psa 106:20. Jer 2:11. Hag 2:3, Hag 2:7, Hag 2:9.

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Chapter 60

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and the kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because of the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of the Medes and Ephah; all they from Sheba [Saudi Arabia] shall come: they shall bring gold and incense ( Isa 60:1-6 );

And they’re getting the gold right now.

and they shall show forth the praises of the LORD. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? Surely the coasts shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favor have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious ( Isa 60:6-13 ).

Now with this prophecy of the glorious coming of the Messiah and the glory that shall come to Israel when Messiah comes, you can understand the difficulty that they had with Jesus Christ. Even His own disciples wondering when He was going to overthrow the Roman government. And His own disciples troubled when He talked to them about His crucifixion. When Jesus said to Peter, after Peter said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Jesus said, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, flesh and blood did not reveal this unto you but My Father which is in heaven. And I say unto you that thou art Peter (Petros, little stone). And upon this Petra, this rock, I will build My church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” ( Mat 16:16-18 ). And then Jesus began to speak to them how that the Son of man must be rejected by men and turned over to the hands of sinners and be crucified and slain, and on the third day rise again. And Peter began to rebuke Him saying, “Lord, be that far from Thee.” And Jesus said, “Get thee behind Me, Satan: you are an offense unto Me because you can’t tell the difference between what comes from God and what comes from man” ( Mat 16:22-23 ). When Jesus started talking about His rejection, about His death, Peter couldn’t stand it. “Lord, don’t talk like that. Be that far from Thee.”

The Jews had great difficulty because here in chapter 53 of Isaiah, we read that He would be, “despised and rejected, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. We hid as it were our faces from Him, but surely He hath borne our griefs and He has carried our iniquities. And the chastisement of our peace was upon Him and by His stripes we were healed. For all of us like sheep had gone astray. We had turned every one of us to our own ways, but God had laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.” And He was smitten and all. And these prophecies of the Messiah and the suffering. Now we read of the glorious glory that is going to come to Israel when the Redeemer comes. So it was only natural that the Jews had difficulty trying to correlate such opposing positions as were prophesied with the Messiah. So the way they settled these opposing positions was to spiritualize the suffering. And they only accepted and looked at those scriptures that spoke of the glory, of the reign of the Messiah. And they emphasized that aspect and spiritualized the others. The suffering, the death, the rejection, and all, they would just spiritualize those scriptures.

Now, as the result they failed to recognize their Messiah when He came, though He was definitely fulfilling their own scriptures. Next week as we get into chapter 61, we will see in the prophecy itself a definite division between the two comings of the Messiah. And it’s just within one verse. There is a break and he immediately begins talking about the aspects of the second coming of Christ in contrast to the aspects of the first coming. Now Jesus, when He came to the synagogue in Capernaum and they handed Him the scriptures to read, opened the prophecy of Isaiah to what is to us the sixty-first chapter and He began to read to them. And He read the first part of the chapter, but He stopped suddenly, closed the scroll, and set it down. And looking around He said, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your eyes.”

That’s a pretty heavy declaration. But the interesting thing is where He stopped, because He stopped right where the aspects of His first coming stopped. He did not go into the aspects that dealt with His second coming, “to proclaim the day of the vengeance and the wrath of God.” That is yet to come. So He stopped before He got there. Now here again in chapter 60, we see the glorious reign of the Messiah and the prominence that Israel will have as the Gentiles will gather unto it, the nations and the strength of the nations will be brought unto it and a general bringing together of the people from all over the world and the glory that shall rest upon the nation. And this is what the disciples were constantly looking for.

After Jesus had risen from the dead and He said, “Now wait in Jerusalem until you receive the promise of the Father. For John indeed baptized you with the Holy Ghost but you’re going to be baptized.” I mean, “John indeed baptized you with water, but you’re going to be baptized with the Holy Ghost in just a few days.” And the disciples said, “Lord, is it at this time You’re going to bring glory to the kingdom?” “Come on, it’s not for you to know, the times and the seasons are appointed by the Father. We’re not talking about that right now. We’re talking about another issue. For you’re going to receive power when the Holy Ghost comes upon you and you are to be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, Judaea, Samaria, to the uttermost parts of the earth.” But even then they were still looking for this glory. The disciples were arguing, “Now when the Lord sets up the kingdom I’m going to be greater than you are.” And they were disputing who was going to be the greatest. And the Lord said, “What are you guys arguing about?” “Oh, nothing.” And that’s when He said, “Whoever wants to be the greatest, let him become the servant of all.” And He taught the way to greatness was the way of a servant, servanthood. Humbling yourself in the sight of the Lord that He might exalt you.

And so it was a problem with the disciples because you have passages like Isa 60:1-22 that tell of the glory and the people were true patriots. And they desired the glory to Israel. And they were looking for the Messiah to bring that glory, and when Jesus failed to do so, but instead submitted to the suffering of the cross, they couldn’t handle it. Many of them forsook Him and fled. They were expecting the kingdom to be established immediately. They didn’t know that God was going to use this interim of time to gather from among the Gentiles a body of believers which would be known as the body of Christ, the bride of Christ.

So he speaks of this glorious gathering. The gates being opened and then bringing the forces of the Gentiles. “For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; those nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon will come; and I will make the place of My feet glorious.”

The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bowing before thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel ( Isa 60:14 ).

The glory of Jerusalem in that day.

Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness ( Isa 60:15-17 ).

It’d be great to have righteous tax collectors.

Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise ( Isa 60:18 ).

Oh, what a glorious time and day and place when the city, the walls are called Salvation, the gates are called Praise. And so enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise. Where people will just come to worship the Lord in great celebrations. How glorious!

The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall be the moon give her light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: for I the LORD will hasten it in his time ( Isa 60:19-22 ).

So the Lord declares His purposes that He will accomplish in His time, the glorious restoration of God and the work of God among this people in this city and among this nation. Oh, what a day when the Messiah comes. And that’s what the heart of the Jew is yearning for today. That’s what the heart of the Christian is yearning for today, when God’s righteousness shall cover the earth as waters cover the sea. The glorious day of the Lord and as we look at the world in which we live today we see more and more the need for God to intervene. We see the injustices that fill our earth. It seems that if a person does stand up for what is right, he stands alone. He’s isolated and made fun of. So the time has come really for the Spirit of the Lord to lift up the standard against the enemy; for the Redeemer to return and to establish righteousness and His righteous kingdom upon this earth. God is seeking for justice, for judgment. God is seeking a people that will honor Him, not with their lips but with their hearts, with their actions. God is seeking a people that will serve Him with a pure heart. And God is open unto them and to their cry. But unto the wicked, there is no rest, there is no peace. God help us that we might live in a way that is pleasing unto Him. That we might know that peace of God. That our hearts might be established in His peace and in His love as we await the Messiah to come and for God’s promises to be fulfilled in that Kingdom Age.

God bless you and God cause you to abound in His grace and in His love as we show ourselves merciful, understanding, patient and kind with those that are about us. May God help us that we will be His servants and His representatives as we lift those that are fallen. As we reach out to those that are oppressed. And as we share with them that which God has given and done for us. May God make us His instruments of righteousness in this needy world. God wondered that there was no intercessor, no one to stand up. God help us to be intercessors in these days. God bless you and God use you this week for His glory. In Jesus’ name. “

Fuente: Through the Bible Commentary

Isa 60:1-3. Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

The Church of God is one, whether it be among Jews or Gentiles. That poor Church seemed left and forsaken; dark days came, and it looked as if the Church must even cease to exist, but it did not. Now, God has brought in many sinners of the Gentiles, and he will bring them in much more numerously in the future times of refreshing. They shall come in armies, in hosts, in nations, and the Church of God shall be exceedingly glorious.

Isa 60:4-5. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughter shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

All the strength of the land and of the sea, the armies and the navies shall come and prostrate themselves before the Church of God. The supreme power on earth shall yet be the Christ in the midst of his Church.

Isa 60:6. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come:

The Easterns shall bow before the King; they that of old had some light shall come to the yet greater light. In those holy lands, which afterwards became so unholy, there shall yet be a return to the truth, and all the false prophets shall be expelled. Where Mohammeds crescent has cursed the nations, there shall shine again the Sun of righteousness, with healing in his wings.

Isa 60:6-7. They shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory.

Wandering tribes of wild Arabs shall come and bow before Christ, and lay their wealth at his feet.

Isa 60:8. Who are these that fly a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

The growing Church sees a greater multitude coming to her than even the populous East could muster; whence come they? Listen, brethren, and look around, and see for yourselves.

Isa 60:9. Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.

In ships from these remote islands, and from countries that were dimly spoken of, in the East, as lands of Tarshish, far away, great multitudes were to come to Christ. Are they not coming today from this Ultimo Thule, this distant land beyond the pillars of Hercules, are they not coming to Christ as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

Isa 60:10-16. And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shal minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

In Gods good time, all this shall come to pass.

This exposition consisted of readings from Psalms 103; Isa 59:16-21; and Isa 60:1-16

Fuente: Spurgeon’s Verse Expositions of the Bible

Isa 60:1-14

Isa 60:1-3

This chapter begins a discussion of the glorious state of the New Israel, that is, the Church of Jesus Christ, during the reign of Christ upon this earth, a reign that began on the first Pentecost after the Resurrection of the Son of God. For ages, this has been the accepted position of Christian commentators on this prophecy. As Lowth expressed it:

“The subject of this chapter is the great increase and flourishing state of the church of God, by the conversion and accession to it of the heathen nations; which is set forth in such ample and exalted terms as plainly show that, the full completion of this prophecy is reserved for future times.”

Barnes agreed with this, and called it, “A description of the Golden Age under the Messiah,” stating also that, “The description continues to the end of the next chapter.”

Some scholars, of course, disagree. Payne applied it to the nation of Israel, calling it, “Jerusalem’s future glory.” Henderson identified the chapter, “Mainly, with the future glory of the Jews.” All such interpreters have completely overlooked the “judicial hardening” of Israel (the literal nation) pronounced, not only by Isaiah, but by Christ himself, and quoted no less than four times in the New Testament.

Difficult as some of the questions that arise here may be, the traditional interpretation appears to be absolutely correct.

The light which suddenly bursts upon mankind in this chapter, “Will appear at a time when the nations dwell in darkness; and, in the midst of that distressing condition, Jehovah will arise upon Zion in the person of His Son; in Christ, the glory of God will be revealed.”

We agree with Jamieson who declared that, “The language is too glorious to apply to anything that has yet happened;” and this surely fits the application of some of the things related here to heaven itself. However, there are actually no words too glorious to apply to the Church of our Lord which was purchased with his own blood, and in which alone, men of Adam’s condemned descendants may be fully restored to fellowship with their Creator, and attain, at last, to eternal life in heaven. No words are too wonderful for that!

The division of the chapter naturally fails into five parts, very nearly the same length each, and which Rawlinson entitled: “(1) Zion’s brightness and increased numbers (Isa 60:1-4); (2) Zion’s immense wealth (Isa 60:5-9); (3) Zion’s reconstruction (Isa 60:10-14); (4) Zion’s prosperity (Isa 60:15-18); and (5) Zion’s crowning glories (Isa 60:19-22).”

The “Zion” of this chapter is by no stretch of imagination the hardened, blinded, and deluded Israel of the flesh. “Zion” here refers to the New Israel, the heavenly Jerusalem, which is our mother, and especially to the church of God in Christ.

Isa 60:1-3

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah hath risen upon thee. For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples; but Jehovah will arise upon thee. And nations shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.”

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come …” (Isa 60:1). “This prophecy received its highest fulfillment at the coming of Christ, the true Light of the World, which was followed by a great ingathering of the nations to the church of God.”

We must not be deceived by the literal language of this chapter, “Which is that of the Old Testament ordinances and of the literal Jerusalem; it will need translating into the terms of the `Jerusalem above’ (Gal 4:26) … and also of the radiant city of heaven (Revelation 21).”

“Darkness shall cover the earth …” (Isa 60:2). The birth of Christ did indeed occur at a time of universal spiritual darkness of the human race. (1) The Gentile nations were sunk in the grossest and most shameful idolatry. (2) The Jewish nation was in no better position, despite their possession of God’s Law, which they had formalized and perverted; and by their transgression of it dishonored God, leading to the blasphemy of God on their account by the whole Gentile world (Rom 2:23-24). (3) The vain philosophy of the Greeks and Romans provided no relief from the awful darkness of that era.

“Nations shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising …” (Isa 60:3). The religion of Jesus Christ dispersed the darkness that lay over the minds of men; and all nations turned to it. From that near-universal acceptance of Christ, the whole world was divided into B.C. and A.D.; and the holy light that came from the face of Christ was the “Star” that created what men call civilization; and when that Light is obscured, (Which may God prohibit), what is called “civilization” will disappear from the earth!

The mention of “kings” coming to the brightness of the rising of that Light received a token fulfillment at the birth of Christ, when the “wise men” from the East (the “three Kings of Orient”) came with gifts of gold, and frankincense, and myrrh; but the ultimate fulfillment came when the wisest and greatest of earth believed on Him and received his word.

It should be noted, as Douglas observed, that the vocabulary of this passage is practically identical with Isa 9:2. As we shall see, this is a recurring phenomenon in this chapter, indicating the correctness of the title that author gave his book, “Isaiah One, and His Book One.”

Isa 60:4-9

“Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: they all gather themselves together, they come to thee; thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be carried in the arms. Then thou shalt see and be radiant, and thy heart shall thrill and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned unto thee, the wealth of the nations shall come unto thee. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praises of Jehovah. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee; they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar; and I will glorify the house of my glory. Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of Jehovah thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.”

Douglas pointed out vocabulary correspondence in Isa 2:2-4; Isa 11:12; Isa 21:16-17; Isa 9:4; Isa 10:26; Isa 2:6-22; and in Isa 23:1; Isa 23:6; Isa 23:10; Isa 23:18), with this paragraph. The same author pinpointed such correspondence throughout these last twenty-seven chapters with earlier chapters in Isaiah, making it a practical certainty that Isaiah is the author of the whole prophecy.

Kidner pointed out that the priestly terms of Isa 60:7 “preclude a literal interpretation of the chapter, because the New Testament reveals that there can be no return to a worship based upon such things as `rams … altar … and house,’ which are but a shadow of the good things to come (Heb 10:1).”

These verses undoubtedly depict the glorious wealth that shall characterize Christianity, an amazing truth evident in all generations. This very day, all over the world, let the Christian nations (however imperfectly they deserve the title) be compared with the nations that are in darkness, either because they never accepted the truth, or because they rejected it and reverted to their old ways; and the result is astounding. Compare Ethiopia, India, China, etc. with England, Western Europe, and North America; and behold the difference. Russia is indeed a great nation; but they rejected Christianity; and today, they are rapidly slipping backward into the impoverished state that always belongs to the rejection of Christianity. The United States is feeding them via the sale of 200,000.000 metric tons of wheat a year! To us, this remarkable passage speaks more of this colossal truth than of anything else.

This very year (1989-1990), Russia is authorizing the shipment of millions of Bibles into their nation. The new leadership, at last, seems to have discovered the cause of the nation’s failure and are attempting to remedy it.

Isa 60:10-14

“And foreigners shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favor have I had mercy on thee. Thy gates also shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the wealth of the nations, and their kings led captive. For that nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine, and the box-tree together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. And the sons of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee The City of Jehovah, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”

This paragraph speaks of the contrast between the punishment and desolation brought upon the Old Israel because of their wickedness, and the glorious prosperity and blessing to be inherited by the New Israel, contingent in the case of the New Israel as it was in the case of the Old upon their continuity in the way of righteousness; and, without any doubt, many of the blessings to be associated with the New Covenant have not yet been realized fully because of the constant tendency of the human race to sin and rebellion against God.

Just as God’s promise to Abraham of a posterity that would be as numberless as the stars of heaven was never fully realized because of the sins of the people, there must, in like manner, be many blessings of the Messianic Age that will fall short of God’s intentions because of man’s wickedness.

The building of walls and gates here could not possibly be construed as literal, because with gates that never closed night or day, walls would be useless. What is meant is that in the Lord’s Kingdom of Messiah, “God openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and none openeth” (Rev 3:7).

People represented here as bowing down to the soles of the feet of the Old Israel is fulfilled in the person of the Ideal Israel, who is Jesus Christ. Since Christ is the New Israel, all of his followers being “in him” and part of him, all who worship Christ are, in that act, bowing down to Israel, not to the old wicked Israel, of course, but to Christ the True Israel. The Biblical confirmation of this principle is seen in Rev 3:9.

People who try to find the rebuilding of the walls and gates of literal Jerusalem here should note that, “Nehemiah commanded, “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot; and while they stand on guard, let them shut the doors, and bar ye them” (Neh 7:3). The gates mentioned here were never shut, either day or night.

Isa 60:1-5 LIGHT: It has been our purpose to show the student of Isaiah the logical progression of the prophets message. In the first 35 chapters Isaiah has declared that Israels salvation is not in any human programs; neither self-righteousness nor idolatry nor military alliance with the heathen will save her. In chapters 36-39 Isaiah inserts parenthetically a record of an historical event which demonstrates precisely what he is preaching; that Israel, Gods covenant people, can only be saved and reach her messianic destiny through faith in Jehovah by keeping covenant with Him. Finally, in chapters 40-66, Isaiah will prophesy and typify the grand climax of Gods program for the redemption of the whole world through the Servant and Covenant relationship to Him. The last section, with which we now begin to deal, predicts the glorious consequence of Zions appropriation of the Servants work by Covenant-communion. Zion will enjoy Reward, Regeneration and Rest, among other blessings. Zion is going to be made whole (see our discussion of the word shalom/peace on Isa 59:8) because she will have given to her a covenant of peace or wholeness (cf. Isa 54:10) when the Servant becomes peace/ shalom for her (cf. Isa 53:5).

The light which comes upon Zion is the glory of Jehovah. That cannot be anything less than the Messiah. Christ was the effulgence of the glory of God and bore the very image of His substance (cf. Heb 1:3). Jesus was the Word become flesh and men beheld His glory, glory as the only begotten from the Father (cf. Joh 1:14). The Word was the life and the light of men (Joh 1:4). The Hebrew word kevod is translated glory. The fundamental root meaning is probably weight or heaviness, conveying the idea of some external, physical manifestation of dignity or preeminence of majesty. But the word as it is most widely used means, the exhibition of the excellence of the subject to which it is ascribed. In other words, character is the chief element of glory. Concerning God it is the display of His divine attributes and perfections of righteousness, power, truthfulness, faithfulness, mercifulness, justice, compassion, love, etc. Some of the glory of God may be seen in a limited way in nature (cf. Rom 1:18-23; Act 14:15-18, etc.).

She is to reflect His glory. Darkness covers the earth. All nations (including Israel) fall short of the glory of God (cf. Rom 3:9-26; esp. Rom 3:23). But the people who walk in darkness will see a great light (cf. our comments Isa 9:1-7). The Light of the World came to Zion and made her a kingdom of light (cf. Joh 8:12-20; Joh 12:46; Eph 5:8; Col 1:12-13; 1Th 5:5; 1Pe 2:9; Revelation 2-3). The letters of the apostle Paul to churches predominantly Gentile confirm the prediction of Isa 60:3 that nations shall come to thy (Zions) light. Great and powerful rulers and men of renown were attracted to Zions glory (see comments Isa 49:7).

The Hebrew word amanah is translated carried but means more literally, a foster-father or foster-nurse who has a child in safe keeping. What it means in verse four is that the Gentiles shall bring children safely to Zion (cf. comments on Isa 49:22-23). Zion is exhorted to look even now in faith down through the centuries from Isaiahs day to the messianic glory and behold Gentiles coming to her from all directions of the earth. This vision compares to the one given the seven churches of Asia Minor by the apostle John when he recorded the spectacle of the redeemed which no man could number from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues standing before the throne (Rev 7:9).

The Hebrew word nahare is translated radiant in verse five. It is from a root which means to flow, to run. Zions reaction to the Gentiles coming to her for the glory of Jehovah which she has will be that of effervescent joy. She will radiate a bubbling excitement because she sees the promises of God being fulfilled that in her seed shall all the nations be blessed. The word phakhad means to tremble with joy and is thus translated thrill. The picture Isaiah paints of Zion is of the messianic age when she has realized she has become the instrument of God for the salvation of the world and is one of excitement. Zions heart trembles, swells, pumps and jumps with excitement as she realizes she is engaged in divine, eternal, cosmic redemptive history as a colaborer of Almighty God (cf. Act 11:18; Act 15:3; Act 19:10, etc.). Zion is caused to tremble with joy because she sees that there are Gentiles who are precious in character and that there are Gentiles worthy of becoming jewels in the crown of a Jewish apostle (cf. Php 4:1; 1Th 2:19). The abundance of the sea is the wealth of the islands and coastlands (Gentile territories). What is the wealth of a nation? It is its people, especially regenerated, redeemed people. These are the people who produce goodness, truth and beauty in any nation or society. These are the people who serve humanity without selfish motives. Zion sees that she possesses that which is the wealth of the world after all-people being conformed to the image of Christ.

Isa 60:6-7 LAUDATION: AS Keil and Delitzsch point out: The prophet, indeed cannot describe even what belongs to the New Testament in any other than Old Testament colors, because he is still within the Old Testament limits. In other words, Isaiah is depicting the spiritual prosperity of New Testament Zion (the church) in terminology of his own times. The picture Isaiah draws is that of multitudes of people from the fartherest reaches of civilization uniting in praise and honor to Jehovah. Midian was a son of Abraham from Keturah (Gen 25:1-6) and Ephah was a son of Midian. Midian and his descendants claimed the land east of the Jordan river and the Dead Sea, southward through the Akabah and including the southern and eastern parts of the peninsula of Sinai. Sheba was the oldest son of Jokshan (Jokshan was also a son of Abraham by Keturah). His descendants probably became what is called the kingdom of Sheba or the Sabeans. The Queen of Sheba who visited Solomon was from this people. These far distant peoples shall contribute their wealth to Zion and they shall come to Zion and proclaim the praises of Jehovah. Kedar was the second son of Ishmael (a son of Abraham by Hagar, the handmaiden of Sarah), (cf. Gen 25:13), whose descendants lived in the desert between Syria and Mesopotamia. Nebaioth is mentioned always in connection with Kedar or the descendants of Ishmael (Gen 25:13; Gen 28:9; 1Ch 1:29) and is regarded by most as identical with the Nabataeans. It is interesting to note that all these are descendants of Abraham, but alien to the original covenant which was administered exclusively through the only son of Abraham by Sarah-Isaac. Yet, when the promise was given to Abraham, before Isaacs birth, it included blessedness to all nations through that singular seed (cf. Gal 3:16). These Gentiles are going to be acceptable! Their offerings (worship) will be acceptable and their ministry will be acceptable. As Young says, The picture here given is that of Gentiles converted to Christ who bring all that they have and devote it to His service.

These verses indicate that Jehovah is going to send His Light (the Messiah) to glorify Zion and make available to her the wealth of the world. In other words God is going to demonstrate, once and for all, that His redemptive people (the church) are the focal point of the cosmos. Everything in His creation is to glorify Zion. Sooner or later, ultimately, inevitably God will use everything He has created to serve for the glorification of the redeemed. The apostle Paul said as much in 1Co 3:21-22 : . . . all things are yours . . . whether . . . the world or life or death or the present or the future . . . all are yours. Everything that is good and eternal and abiding of Gods is the birthright of His Son, and Christians are joint heirs with Him. The house of God is going to be made more beautiful than it has ever been when He adorns it with the wealth of the nations (Gentiles beautiful in character) (see comments Isa 56:7).

Isa 60:13-14 COMELINESS: The place of Gods dwelling (New Zion) will be exalted above all that is on the earth-both of nature and men. It is going to be made glorious and preeminent. Everything in creation will be made available to glorify her (art, music, learning, literature, thoughts, emotions). The greatest powers opposing her will be humbled (cf. Mat 16:18; Col 1:15-20; Col 2:14-15; Heb 2:5-18). Many of the powerful forces and peoples opposing Zion will become converts to her. Formerly they ridiculed and scoffed at her-but they will penitently call her what she very evidently is: The (only) city of Jehovah, The Zion (Citadel or Sanctuary) of the Holy One of Israel. In Old Testament times it appeared Zion could be despoiled, humbled and obliterated by war, siege and death. But Zions Eternal King came (the Messiah) in a space-time historical event and conquered death forever! This is the message of the book of Revelation. The Lamb has come and conquered death by resurrection and is now worthy to reveal (open the scroll) that New Zion (the church) is unconquerable! New Zion is the citadel of eternal safety.

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

In this and the next two chapters, we have a glorious description of the ultimate realization of the purposes of God. It commences with a declaration of the material prosperity of the people described in the last verses of the previous chapter. The breaking of the new day is first spoken of. The holy nation is a center of light in the midst of surrounding darkness. The glory of Jehovah manifest, nations and kings gather to the new center.

A graphic description of the returning exiles follows. The scattered sons and daughters are seen gathering home, bearing with them the wealth of the nations, and followed by the peoples.

The established city is then seen built by strangers, while surrounding peoples submit themselves, or perish; and Jehovah is known as Saviour, Redeemer, and Mighty One.

The ultimate conditions of the high noon of prosperity are set forth. Material prosperity and moral rectitude are to issue from perfect government. The glory of the people is to be Jehovah Himself, and the issue is perfect gladness. The days of mourning are to be ended, and all weakness change into strength.

Fuente: An Exposition on the Whole Bible

the Lord Glorifies His People

Isa 60:1-14

From this chapter and onward, the prophet predicts the glories of the restored Hebrew people. In a secondary sense, they are also true of the Church, for we are blessed with faithful Abraham. See Gal 3:8-9.

The summons to arise is addressed to Jerusalem. The seer beholds the flush of dawn on the eastern sky and bids the Holy City catch the earliest beams, Isa 60:1-2. While darkness veils the lowlands, the dweller on the plains looks up to the heights of Zion, Isa 60:3-4, and finds them bathed in the splendor of dawn. See 2Co 3:18.

There is a marvelous attractiveness in real religion. Where that is present, men need no driving. From the Far East come the camels, laden with priceless treasures, and from the distant West the ships laden with costly merchandise. The wastes of many years are rebuilt by the labor of strangers, while kings vie with each other in ministering to the beauty of the chosen city. When you are right with God, He will raise up help from unexpected quarters and even from former foes, Isa 60:14.

Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary

EXPOSITORY NOTES ON

THE PROPHET ISAIAH

Harry A. Ironside, Litt.D.

edited for 3BSB by Baptist Bible Believer in the spirit of the Colportage ministry of a century ago

ISAIAH CHAPTER SIXTY

GOD GLORIFIED IN THE REMNANT

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee” (verse 1).

AFTER that call the prophet goes on to show them the need for that light. It is the darkness.

“For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (verses 2, 3).

Restored Israel is brought to the forefront of GOD’s plan and blessing for the whole earth. The kings of the earth will bow down to them, the nations that once persecuted them come and acknowledge that GOD is with them, and they will seek to enter into fellowship and communion with them. This is to be taken literally. GOD will deal thus with His people Israel and bring the nations that once antagonized and persecuted them into this blessed harmony in the last days.

“And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee . . . Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations . . . The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended” (verses 10, 15, 19, 20).

What a day that will be for Israel after the long centuries of suffering and their days of mourning! This carries us on through the millennial glory and into the eternal state, for GOD will never give up this people. They will always have a separate place in His mind, as the Church too will have hers. GOD has various groups, all of whom have their own place in His counsels – all redeemed alike by the precious blood of the Lord JESUS CHRIST.

~ end of chapter 60 ~

http://www.baptistbiblebelievers.com/

Fuente: Commentaries on the New Testament and Prophets

Isa 60:1

Taking these words into the full illumination of Christianity, they express, very beautifully, the awakening of a man to his true work in the world. It is because the “glory of the Lord has risen upon him,” that the Christian is able to reflect the light which has entered his soul.

Notice:-

I. The dawning of the light: “Thy light has come.” Man is not in a world of darkness, but blind in a world of light. All he needs is the opening of the spiritual eye, that the light may be seen. Our little life is enveloped by the spiritual world. Behind the appearance of earth, beyond the waste and decay of these frail bodies, it stands for ever in unclouded splendour. When the soul is born again, it seems as if the curtains of night were suddenly withdrawn, and the whole spiritual universe flashed in a moment into day; because until the dark veil of the carnal was dissolved the soul had been blinded to the invisible. There are three requisites for the dawning of the light-three stages in the history of the soul’s enlightenment: (1) spiritual penitence; (2) spiritual love; (3) spiritual prayer.

II. The awakening call. “Arise, shine.” That summons is the inevitable result of the dawning of the light. When God is felt to be near a man thus-in penitence, love, and prayer-that man is imperatively bound to reflect the glory which has risen in his heart; to bear witness of the light which has pierced and transformed his soul. This is based on a great principle, viz., the deepest emotion in a man’s nature must reveal itself in his life. There is no such thing as a life-long hypocrisy: sooner or later the master-passion within a man will glow to a red-heat, and he will stand transparent before the eye of the world. When God enters the soul, it shines unconsciously, and men feel its secret charm. The glory of the Lord manifests itself in life. (1) In the majesty of holiness. Christian separateness is not external nonconformity. It is being in the world and yet above it, having saintly separateness of soul amidst all the duties 6f life, making men feel that your inner life is apart from the business of the world, that your heart is in eternity. (2) In the beauty of unselfishness. The life of God is the life of the cross in the heart. (3) In the earnestness of your efforts for men.

E. L. Hull, Sermons, 1st series, p. 70.

The glory of the Christian Church.

I. That this and other similar prophecies had their measure of fulfilment when Christ came we all know; when His Church, built upon the apostles and prophets, wonderfully branched out from Jerusalem as a centre into the heathen world round about, and gathering into it men of all ranks, languages, and characters, moulded them upon one pattern, the pattern of their Saviour, in truth and righteousness. Thus the prophecies concerning the Church were fulfilled at that time in two respects-its sanctity and its catholicity. It is often asked, Have these prophecies had then and since then perfect accomplishment? Or are we to expect a more complete Christianising of the world than has hitherto been vouchsafed it? Consider the state and prospects of the Christian Church in this respect.

II. Whereas God is one and His will one, and His purpose one and His work one-whereas all He is and does is absolutely perfect and complete, independent of time and place and sovereign over creation-yet in His actual dealings with this world, that is, in all in which we see His providence, He seems to work by a process, by means and ends, by steps, by victories hardly gained and failures repaired and sacrifices ventured. Thus it is only when we view His dispensations at a distance, as the angels do, that we see their harmony and their unity; whereas Scripture, anticipating the end from the beginning, places at their very head and first point of origination all that belongs to them respectively in their fulness.

III. The Christian Church had in the day of its nativity all that fulness of holiness and peace named upon it, and sealed up to it, which beseemed it viewed as God’s design-viewed in its essence, as it is realised at all times and under all circumstances-viewed as God’s work without man’s co-operation-viewed as God’s work in its tendency and in its ultimate blessedness; so that the titles given it on earth are a picture of what it will be absolutely in heaven. The same interpretation will apply to the Scripture account of the elect people of God, which is but the Church of Christ under another name. In their election are sealed up, to be enrolled and enjoyed in due season, the successive privileges of the heirs of light. In God’s purpose-according to His grace, in the tendency and ultimate effects of His dispensation-to be called and chosen is to be saved. For God’s providence moves by great and comprehensive laws; and His word is the mirror of His designs, not of man’s partial success in thwarting His gracious will.

IV. It is our duty to walk by faith; therefore we will take the promises in faith; we will believe they are fulfilled, and enjoy the fruit of them before we see it. We will unlearn the expectation of any public display of God’s glory in the edification of His Church, seeing she is all glorious within, in that inward shrine, made up of faithful hearts, and inhabited by the Spirit of grace.

J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. ii., p. 79.

I. Notice the tidings announced in the text: “Thy light is come.” That language is very significant when we remember that Jesus said of Himself at the beginning of His public ministry, “I am the Light of the world.”

II. While Jesus Christ, the true Light, “shines in the darkness,” and the darkness does not receive it, it is His body, the Church, and not the unbelieving world, which is lighted up at His glorious appearing. Accordingly, the prophet, in the text, says of Zion and of her only, “Thy light is come.”

III. The glad announcement made to Zion was designed to exert a practical effect on the daily conduct of her children. “Arise, shine.” Christians are reminded that, if faithful to their holy calling, they will “shine as lights in the world.”

J. N. Norton, Old Paths, p. 73.

References: Isa 60:1.-D. Moore, Penny Pulpit, No. 3521; Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. xvi., p. 13; Short Sermons for Family Reading, p. 49; A. Watson, Sermons for Sundays, Festivals, and Fasts, 2nd series, vol. i., p. 156; F. W. Farrar, The Fall of Man, p. 382; E. L. Hull, Sermons, 1st series, p. 61; C. J. Vaughan, Good Words, 1869, p. 101; J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 69; S. Baring-Gould, Preacher’s Pocket, p. 43. Isa 60:1-3.-Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. xiv., p. 10; G. Huntington, Sermons for the Holy Seasons of the Church, p. 27; A. Maclaren, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxxii., p. 232; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. i., p. 32.

Isa 60:2-3

The manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles.

I. The first token that was shown to the Gentile world that the great Light had arisen which was to cast its beams over them as well as over the small nation which alone hitherto had known God was the star, the wonderful star, which was seen in the sky. This star appeared but twice to the Magi-once to tell them to set out, and once to tell them they had arrived. All the rest was faith. Faith that made them watch; faith that made them gather their gifts; faith that made them set forth on their long journey and maintain it to the end.

II. It was the manifestation of the Redeemer, the Light of the world, to the Gentiles. But much had yet to be done before the Gentiles were received into the full equality of privilege and grace with the Jews. It was above thirty years yet before the rending of the veil of the Temple showed that the partition wall was broken down by the death of Christ, which divided Jew from Gentile; still longer before the commission was given to go and teach all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Holy Trinity; still longer before the vision at Joppa and the gift of the Holy Spirit at Caesarea bade St. Peter baptize Cornelius, the first Gentile Christian, into the Church.

III. Let us claim our share in that exceeding great joy with which the wise men saw the first brightness of that star when they saw it in the East. If we do truth-that is to say, if we really try to please God, by living according to His will, by constant prayers, by confessing our sins, and ever asking His pardoning grace to enable us to obey better-then we come to the light, and our deeds will be made manifest that they are wrought in God.

G. Moberly, Parochial Sermons, p. 36.

Reference: Isa 60:3.-Bishop Walsham How, Plain Words, 2nd series, p. 34.

Isa 60:5

Enlargement of heart is the true description of that higher progress to which it is ever the aim of God to lead us; the text pictures the progress, and unfolds to us both the pain and the joy. The language of the prophet is intended to present to our mind’s eye that nameless dread, that inward shrinking and shuddering, with which the forecast shadows of great crises affect us as we approach them, and through which lies our passage to a larger freedom, a larger power and a larger joy.

I. It is very wonderful how all the great things which have largely influenced the world have grown from small, narrow, hard, but intensely vital beginnings, and have grown by enlargement of heart. Look, from this point of view, at the greatest of all institutions-the Church. There is a clear orderly progress in the development of a Divine idea and in the effect of a Divine influence on man from the day when Abraham “crossed the river” until now. The Church is the depositary of this sacred counsel, this redeeming purpose, which underlies all man’s history; and again and again the heart of the Church has been enlarged in seasons of sore strain and dread to take in those wider views of its vocation, its mission from God, and for God, for which, in the order of Providence, “the fulness of time” was come.

II. A kindred, or rather a parallel, course of enlargement has gone on in similar society. While God has been enlarging His Church, to comprehend better the meaning and the scope of His Gospel on the one hand, He has been enlarging, on the other, man’s heart to receive and to rejoice in it. And, looking at it only from the secular side, it is most notable that the periods of man’s greatest enlargement, when intellect and spirit have broken out of the old bounds and have occupied a new world, have been ages of convulsion and revolution, of ceaseless conflict and awful dread. The vision of a fairer order has never been wanting to mankind; when the path has been darkest, this vision has always been brightest; it is in the seasons of strain and dread that the fairest pictures of this higher order of things have been portrayed. There is travail everywhere through all the spheres of creation; and man’s life, standing as it does on the summit level of mere creature development, travails in birth with a kingdom of heaven,-a kingdom with a new commandment: Love one another.

J. Baldwin Brown, The Higher Life, p. 92.

References: Isa 60:5.-E. Hale, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxix., p. 58. Isa 60:6.-Preacher’s Lantern, vol. i., p. 427. Isa 60:7.-G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 409. Isa 60:8.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. ii., No. 63; Ibid., My Sermon Notes: Ecclesiastes to Malachi, p. 262; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 276; J. R. Macduff Communion Memories, p. 62.

Isa 60:13

I. Every attentive reader of Scripture must be aware what stress is there laid upon the duty of costliness and magnificence in the public service of God. Even in the first rudiments of the Church, Jacob, an outcast and wanderer, after the vision of the ladder of angels, thought it not enough to bow down before the unseen presence, but parted with-or, as the world would say, wasted-a portion of the provisions he had with him for the way in an act of worship. The Book of Exodus shows what cost was lavished upon the tabernacle even in the wilderness; the Books of Kings and Chronicles set before us the devotion of heart, the sedulous zeal, the carelessness of expense or toil, with which the first temple was reared upon Mount Zion. The glories of the Christian sanctuary were not to be less outward and visible, though they were to be more spiritual also.

II. It may be objected that such outward splendour in the worship of God is spoken of in terms of censure or jealousy by our Lord and Saviour. Thus, He says, while enumerating the offences of the Pharisees: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.” And when His disciples pointed out to our Lord the great size of the stones of which the temple was built-a temple, let it be noted, thus ornamented by the impious Herod-He answered abruptly: “There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” The answer surely is easy. Our Saviour condemned the show of great attention to outward things, while inward things which were more important were neglected. Thus He says Himself in His denunciation of the Pharisees: “These ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other “-the inward-“undone.” What Scripture reproves is the inconsistency, or what is more solemnly called the “hypocrisy of being fair without and foul within,” of being religious in appearance and not in truth. If it is an inconsistency to pretend to religion outwardly while we neglect it inwardly, it is also an inconsistency, surely, to neglect it outwardly while we pretend to it inwardly. St. Paul says expressly: “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Now, to adorn the worship of God our Saviour, to make the beauty of holiness visible, to bring offerings to the sanctuary, to be curious in architecture and reverent in ceremonies,-all this external religion is a sort of profession and confession; it is nothing but what is natural, nothing but what is consistent, in those who are cultivating the life of religion within. It is most unbecoming; most offensive, in those who are not religious; but most becoming, most necessary, in those who are so.

J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. vi., p. 295.

References: Isa 60:13.-W. Walters, Christian World Pulpit, vol. vii., p. 253. Isa 60:17.-J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 327.

Isa 60:18

Consider how salvation is a wall and how gates are praise.

I. There are three safeties which a sinner wants. First, he wants to be saved from the condemnation of his sins; then he wants to be saved from the power of his sins; and then he wants to be saved from the conflict and presence of his sins. Therefore a man’s salvation comes to him with three unfoldings. This threefold salvation is, to every man that receives it, as a wall. On the one side, towards the adversary, it is a wall of fire; on the other side, as it shows itself to him that is within it, it is shelter. It is beauteous, as with all bright and precious stones, inlaid with all the loveliness and the attributes of God. And whatever comes through that wall to touch a man has first touched and pierced his Saviour; for all the faithfulness of God, and all the power of God, and all the glory of God, and all the work of the great Mediator, go to make the eternity and the sufficiency of that great bulwark.

II. “Thou shalt call thy gates Praise.” What is praise? The joy of a happy spirit, pouring itself back into the bosom of God as its only fountain. Through the walls of salvation, the Christian enters into a perfect peace-that with a happy heart he may go out praisingly. In every object in nature, he likes to see some reflection of an unseen world; in every providence, he traces a Father’s hand. He has thoughts high above, that make him walk this world an independent man. Heaven is gilding all the distance to him. He comes at last to Zion “with songs and everlasting joy upon his head.”

J. Vaughan, Fifty Sermons, 1874, p. 165.

Isa 60:18

Praise is loftier than prayer. In prayer, I bow in my own family; in praise, I join the general assembly and Church of the firstborn written in heaven. Prayer isolates me; by my wants and misery it sets me apart. Praise unites me; by my glory and my gratitude it makes me one with the universe of adoring creatures. Prayer is the wail of an imprisoned spirit; praise is the song of the emancipated spirit floating over and through and out of time and space. Prayer speaks of its want; praise, of God’s fulness. Prayer centres in self; praise anchors on God. “Thou shalt call her gates Praise;” these gates revolve on four hinges, or rather, to drop the mere allegory, praise is composed of four emotions. These are adoration, humility, affection, and gratitude,-all praise strikes these four notes, and includes these as its spiritual elements.

I. Praise is the gate by which we pass out of ourselves. What is religion without thankfulness? There are some persons to whom it seems impossible to take the wings of the morning; their religion seems at best to be a divine kind of grumbling, which would not be if they could but pass through the gates of praise.

II. It is by this path that the believer passes from his old state; it is through these gates that he passes under and into new relations. He enters the Church through the gates of praise. Gratitude is the very bond of our fellowship and union; it is when we speak of our gratitude that we know each other. The Church is a city built of hymns and hallelujahs; its walks are salvation.

III. The gateway by which we pass to higher knowledge and to higher life is praise. A grateful heart is a learned heart, and it is the companion of a thankful mind. The whole universe is a cathedral of praise; its gates revolve on their hinges of melody; they heave and lift themselves with olian airs. This idea filled the mind of the Psalmist when he said, “All Thy works praise Thee.” In all the wonderful adaptations of the mind to things, and things to the mind, God is praised.

E. Paxton Hood, Sermons, p. 153.

References: Isa 60:18.-S. Cox, Expositions, 1st series, p. 79; Bishop M. Simpson, Sermons, p. 279.

Isa 60:19

I. There is no better test of men’s progress than the advancing power to do without the things which used to be essential to their lives. The lives of men who have been always growing are strewed along their whole course with things they have learned to do without. From the time when the child casts his leading strings aside, because his legs are strong enough to carry him alone, the growing man goes on for ever leaving each help for a higher, until at last, in that great change to which Isaiah’s words seem to apply, he can do without sun and moon as he enters into the immediate presence and essential life of God. And if every progress in life is a change from some new boyhood to some yet riper manhood, if every man is a child to his own possible maturer self, may it not be truly stated that all the spiritual advances of life are advances from some symbol to its reality, and that the abandoned interests and occupations which strew the path which we have travelled are the symbols which we have cast away easily, because we had grasped the realities for which they stood?

II. You may ask (1) How can I tell the symbol from the reality, and so know what things it is good to hold less and less, what things it is good to hold more and more indispensable? The answer no doubt lies in a certain feeling of spirituality and infiniteness and eternity, which belongs to those things which it is good for a man not to be able to do without. (2) When I know what things I must not allow to become indispensable to me, what shall I do then? Shall I throw all those things away? No, certainly not. Not to give up the symbol, but to hold it as a symbol, with that looser grasp which lets its inner reality escape into us, and at the same time makes us always ready to let it go when the reality shall have wholly opened from it, that is the true duty of the Christian as concerns the innocent things of the world. (3) How shall I come to count nothing indispensable but what I really ought to, what I really cannot do without? The answer to that question is in Christ, who holds the answers of all our questions for us. Jesus lifted His disciples past one conception of necessity after another, until at last they knew nothing that was absolutely necessary except God. They began as fishermen, who could not do without their nets, and boats, and houses, and fishing friends, and sports, and gains, and gossipings. He carried them up till they were crying, “Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us.”

Phillips Brooks, Sermons, p. 282.

References: Isa 60:19.-A. B. Bruce, Expository 1st series, vol. x., p. 433; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. vii, p. 25. Isa 60:20.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xx., No. 1176. Isa 60:22.-G. Cousins, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxviii., p. 9; J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 299.

Fuente: The Sermon Bible

CHAPTER 60

The Glory Chapter: The Morning of a New Age and Its Blessing

1. The light and glory has come (Isa 60:1) 2. The darkness before the morning (Isa 60:2) 3. The conversion of the Gentiles (Isa 60:3) 4. The dispersed brought home (Isa 60:4) 5. The conversion of the world (Isa 60:5-9) 6. Jerusalem restored and glorified (Isa 60:10-16) 7. The theocratic kingdom established: Its material and spiritual glories (Isa 60:17-22) A small volume might be written on this glory chapter. The reader will note how all stands connected with chapters 58-59. First the call to repentance, then the uncovering of Jacobs transgression, their confession, the answer of Jehovah by His personal manifestation. He deals with His adversaries and appears as Redeemer in Zion. Then the glory light breaks forth. It is the dawn of the morning. That morning was preceded by gross darkness–universal apostasy and corruption. After the glory has broken forth the kingdom age begins. The conversion of the Gentiles will take place and Jerusalem will be indeed the city of a great King. Then at last all the people will be righteous. How strange that Christendom should ignore these majestic predictions and their divine order.

Fuente: Gaebelein’s Annotated Bible (Commentary)

Arise! Shine!

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.Isa 60:1.

The address is directed to Zion-Jerusalem, which is regarded as a woman. Stricken down by the punitive judgment of God, brought down by inward prostration, she lies on the ground: then the cry reaches her earsArise! It is a strength-imparting word, which reanimates her frame, so that she can arise from the ground on which she is lying, as it were under the ban. The power-imparting word Arise! is supplemented by a second, be light!1 [Note: F. Delitzsch, Commentary on Isaiah, ii. p. 382.]

The prophet is primarily addressing his speech to an awakening nation. Here is a people opening its eyes upon recovered sovereignty, stretching out its hands to a restored ministry, feeling out for enlarged dominion. And here is a statesman-prophet instructing the newly opened eyes, feeding and training the sight with large and healthy ideals. To direct a nations views is to shape its policies, and to determine the trend and colour of its life.

But the glory of the ideal is still further enriched and intensified. Old Testament words must to us now receive New Testament contents. Old Testament visions must acquire New Testament significance. We cannot take Isaiahs ideal and employ it with Isaiahs limitation; we must carry over his vocabulary into the fuller day and let it receive enlargement in the life and mind of Christ.

Those who have ever been privileged to see from the shoulder or the summit of a mountain in Switzerland the sun rise will never forget that wonderful sight. They will remember how, in the chill of the hour before dawn, great clouds had brooded down in the valley, rolling mists had lain beneath their feet, and thick darkness had dwelt over the whole earth. Suddenly, as they stood there, there has been a faint flush of pink on one snowy summit, then another, then another. The pink has changed to a bright gold, then to a deeper gold, and then, suddenly, like a giant set free, up with great leaps and bounds and a most astonishing speed has come the sun and flooded the world with light; and as it has come up it has seemed to cry to the sleeping earth, Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.1 [Note: Bishop A. F. W. Ingram.]

Around is absolute blackness; the valleys are in gloom; trees, rivers, towns have been obscured; nothing is visible but that dim shaft of granite rising into the silence of the sky. Suddenly we may imagine a spirits voice crying, The light has come. Instantly there is a glow on the mountaintrees, rivers, towns begin to take shape; the whole world has changed. The point to be observed here is that the light was from God. The city was exhorted to be in a condition in which the glory of God might be reflected from it.2 [Note: A. H. Bradford.]

Of our relation to the ancient prophecies, we can say, adapting words from Brownings Paracelsus, that we are the heirs of hopes too fair to turn out false. It is precisely the fact that the colours of the prophets palette are of such an unearthly fairness that justifies us in believing that our hopes will yet be fulfilled. The fact that the Perfect Man, the worlds Saviour, has come is our warrant for this. If so unexpected an event has occurred, nothing is now too great to hope for. Take Isaiah 60, which a great French scholar, who, in spite of his unbelief, continually falls into the language of faith, has finely called a ray from the glances of Jesus. If Jesus once lived upon the earth, lifting up all those with whom He came vitally into contact, surely this most radiant prophecy, which expresses the undoubting belief, not only of the prophet, but of Jesus, must itself be fulfilled.3 [Note: T. K. Cheyne in The Thinker, Jan. 1892, p. 8.]

Arise

The word Arise, or some word with the same meaning, is of great importance in Scripture, and occurs in several places.

There is a very remarkable correspondence reiterated in the text between the illuminating God and the illuminated Zion. The word for shine is connected with the word for light, and may fairly be rendered lighten or be light. Twice the phrase thy light is employed; once to mean the light which is thine because it shines on thee; once to mean the light which is thine because it shines from thee. The other word, three times repeated, for rising, is the technical word which expresses the sunrise, and is applied both to the flashing glory that falls upon Zion and to the light that gleams from her. Touched by the sun, she becomes a sun, and blazes in her heaven in a splendour that draws mens hearts.1 [Note: A. Maclaren.]

1. Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead. Here we have an exhortation to the dead. It is addressed to them by God, who is the Giver of life. It is the first of all exhortations. When the dead hear the voice of God they come forth. The moment that Jesus spoke that word of power to the man who had his dwelling among the tombs, that moment the man felt that he must obey. He became alive unto God for evermore. And not only alive for evermore, but also a witness for God, a witness to His power to raise the dead. Go home and tell thy friends; and he went.

2. The present passage may come nextArise, shine; for thy light is come. This is not the voice of God the Creator. It is the voice of Jehovah, the covenant God. He speaks to His own people with whom He has made a perpetual covenant, that they will reflect His light and glorify Him upon earth. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

There came, once, to a meeting I was addressing, a brother who had been, for years, earnest after the ordinary fashion of Christian young men; and the Lord so guided me that I spoke about the usefulness that some young men might acquire if they would but bestir themselves. I urged the desirability of some attempting to preach in the street, who might find their gifts abundant for that work. Well, this young man went back and tried what he could do for Christ, and God greatly blessed him. That young man was Mr. W. P. Lockhart, of Liverpool, who is at this moment pastor of the church meeting in the Toxteth Tabernacle, a large edifice erected by the people whom he gathered by his preaching. Our friend has, with much acceptance, occupied this pulpit, and been of great service to our denomination; but, if it had not been for Gods awakening him under that particular address, he might have remained just the ordinary trader that he was, serving the Lord in a very proper way, but nothing noteworthy might have come of it.1 [Note: C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, No. 2617, p. 170.]

3. Arise and be doing (1Ch 22:16). This comes third because it directs us to some definite way of letting our light shine. It may be Arise and build, as in 1Ch 22:19, Neh 2:20, there being so many who give their life to pulling down rather than to building up. Or it may be Arise and go to Nineveh, as the command came to Jonah (Isa 1:2, Isa 3:2), that we may do something which demands faith and self-control. This is the voice of the Lord the King.

4. Last of all we hear the voice of the tender friend. He speaks from the humble supper-room where He deigns to hold fellowship with His own: Arise, let us go hence (Joh 14:31). He calls us now to the fellowship of His sufferings, that we may be made conformable unto His death.

I heard M. Monod say last year at Keswick, mourning as he was the death of his wife, which had taken place only a fortnight before: As the gates seem to open, and the Masters voice is heard saying, Arise, come away, it is never going alone, or to be alone, but it is Let us go hence. 2 [Note: H. W. Webb-Peploe, Calls to Holiness, p. 191.]

Shine

If we are light, we shall be able to shine; if we are light, we are bound to shine; if we are light, we shall want to shine.

1. If we have light we shall be able to shine.Any man can manifest what he is, unless he is a coward. Any man can talk about the things that are interesting to him, if only they are interesting to him. Any man that knows Jesus Christ can say so; and perhaps the utterance of the simple personal conviction is the best method of proclaiming His name. All other things are surplusage. They are good when they come, they may be done without. Learning, eloquence, and the like of these, are the adornments of the lamp, but it does not matter whether the lamp be a gorgeous affair of gilt and richness, or whether it be a poor piece of black tin; the main question is: are there wick and oil in it? The pitcher may be gold and silver, or costly crystal or marble, or it may be a poor potsherd. Never mind. If there is water in it, it will be precious to a thirsty lip. And so, every Christian man has the power, if he be a Christian, to proclaim his Master; and if he has the Light, he will be able to show it. This suggests for us the condition of all faithful and effectual witness for Jesus Christ. Cultivate understanding and all other faculties as much as you like; but remember this, the fitness to impart is to possess, and that being taken for granted, the main thing is secured. As long as the electric light is in contact with the battery so long does it burn. Electricians have been trying during the past few years to make accumulators, things in which they can store the influence and put it away in a corner and use it so that the light need not be in connection with the battery; and they have not succeeded; at least, it is only a very partial success. You and I cannot start accumulators. Let us remember personal contact is power, and only the personal contact. Arise, shine.

The saints, while they have been the most invincible, have been also the most dependent of mankind. For of moral as of material light there are two kinds, one inherent and independent, the other derived and borrowed. The lamp on the table burns; the mirror opposite shines. Our sun, and the multitude of stars, all blaze with their own fire; but the sphere we inhabit is a planet whose milder lustre is entirely borrowed from the sun, whence all its light and loveliness are drawn.1 [Note: G. A. Chadwick, Pilates Gift, p. 164.]

2. If we are light we are bound to shine.That is an obvious principle. The capacity to shine is the obligation to shine, for we are all knit together by such mystical cords in this strange brotherhood of humanity that every one of us holds his position as trust property for the use and behoof of others, and in the present case that which we have received (and the price at which we have received it) gives an edge to the keenness of the obligation, and adds a new band to the stringency of the command. It is because Christ has given Himself thus to us that the possession of Him binds us to the imitation of His example, and the impartation of Him to all our brethren. The obligation lies at our doors, and cannot be delegated or devolved.

The most extraordinary of all British lighthouses is that found on Arnish Rock, Stornoway Bay, a rock separated from the Island of Lewis by a channel over 500 feet in width. On this rock a conical beacon is erected, and on its summit a lantern is fixed, from which, night after night, shines a light seen by fishermen far and wide. The way in which this peculiar lighthouse is illuminated is this: On the Island of Lewis, 500 feet away or so, is an ordinary lighthouse, and from a window on its tower a stream of light is projected on to a mirror in the lantern on the summit of the Arnish Rock. The consequence is that a lighthouse exists having neither lamp nor lighthouse keeper.

3. If we have light we shall wish to shine.What shall we say about the Christian people that never really had such a wish? God forbid that we should say they have no light; but this we may say, it burns very dimly. There is no better test of the depth and the purity of our personal attachment to and possession of our Master than the impulse that will spring from them to communicate them to others. Necessity is laid upon me, yea, woe is me if I preach not. That should be the word of every one of us; and it will be, in the measure in which we ourselves get thorough hold of Jesus Christ. This is a day of good tidings. We cannot hold our peace, said the handful of lepers in the camp; if we are silent some mischief will come to us. Thy Word, when I shut it up in my bones and said I will speak no more in Thy name, was like a fire, and I was weary of forbearing and I could not stay.

One hot June night, on the banks of the Hudson River in America, I watched the fire-flies dancing like fairy lamps against the deep blue-black of the sky. Now and again one would flare with exceptional brilliancy. I was told that it was when they were attacked by a hostile insect, and that their source of protection was to emit a keener brilliancy to discomfit and dazzle the adversary. Those that failed to let their light shine fell victims to the depredator.1 [Note: B. Wilberforce.]

III

For Thy Light is Come

The prophet enables us to see how bright the light is that has dawned upon the Holy City of Zion by presenting in the following verses a graphic picture of the gross darkness that still lies upon the surrounding nations. And it is good for us, even as we rejoice in the light, to recall sometimes the darkness from which we have been rescued.

It is not so many years ago that there was a young man, who did not know his right hand from his left in spiritual things; he put darkness for light, and light for darkness; bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter; and that man, not so young now, knows the Saviour, he has learnt the evil of sin, and he has rejoiced in all the delights of pardon. Was that young man yourself? If so, you may well prize your present privileges. It is not so long ago that there was a man who was in the darkness of soul-agony. His sin was heavy upon him; Gods hand pressed him till all the moisture of his being seemed to exude, and he was like a plant withered in the long droughts of autumn. He cried to the Lord, but for a while he received no response to his petitions. He begged for mercy, but it did not come. Now, that same person is sitting here, thankful that he is pardoned, and that he knows how he has been delivered from the wrath of God, and he blesses that Divine Substitute who took upon Himself his sin, and with it that sins penalty, and so delivered the guilty one from the wrath to come. Oh, what a change there is in that young man! That young man is yourself; is he not?1 [Note: C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, No. 2617, p. 171.]

There are three stages in the history of the souls enlightenment.

1. Spiritual penitence.I say spiritual penitence, because there is a repentance which is by no means a rising of Gods light in the soul, but merely a transient emotion, which passes into indifference and may deepen into despair. True repentance is the turning of the whole heart to God on the discovery of its own darkness and estrangement. Its chief cause is not so much the remembrance of guilty acts, as the feeling of a guilty heartit is not the sense of sinit is not the terror of judgmentit is the feeling of a deep darkness in the soul itself, and the turning of the soul to the Lord that He may make it pure.

2. Spiritual penitence must pass into spiritual love.Again the word spiritual is emphatic, in contrast with that semi-pious emotion which is always convulsively striving to learn whether the soul loves God or not. Spiritual love is not so much the feeling of our love to God, as of His love to us. It is the belief that He loved us amidst all our misery, and coldness, and sinthat from childhood the same loving power has guided us. It is the love which has swept into the soul, subduing its whole being, and becoming its ruling emotion. And this is requisite, because love is the insight of the soul, it colours all its visions, for the ruling passion of a man creates his world.

3. Spiritual love necessitates spiritual prayer.Again the word spiritual is emphatic. The first cry of life is prayer; but by spiritual prayer I mean living fellowship with the Father, the prayer which pervades the whole life of the soul. This is the full dawning of the light of God. He who lives in prayer, lives before the unveiled eternity. This life of prayer loosens from the bonds of sense, and elevates the spirit in the unclouded regions of Divine glory. When man daily walks with God thus, then he is living in the light. By penitence, therefore, the soul turns Godwards; by love its eye is opened; and by prayer it moves in the sunrise of the eternal light.1 [Note: E. L. Hull, Sermons Preached at Kings Lynn, 1st series, p. 65.]

In the days of the monarchy in Madagascar the festival of the native New Year was ushered in at sunset by the Queen taking a bath. That ceremony over, and the short twilight having ended in complete darkness, a signal was given by lighting a torch outside the palace in Tananarive. The signal was answered at once. Bunches of hay fastened to poles had been made ready, and these were lighted and waved on high. Throughout the city, on the wide plains beyond, on the hill-sides beyond these, and on to the farthest ridges, these lights gleamed in the clear darkness of a tropical night. Then in widening circles, North, South, East and West, torches blazed from hill-top to hill-top, until, in about twenty minutes from the start, the signal would be flashed to the writers district some 200 miles to the South. Almost instantly, the whole country-side would be gilded with these tiny points of flame. In appearance it was much as if on some frosty November night the multitudinous stars had slid down from the sky to bespangle the pall of earthly darkness. Everywhere throughout the land the palace-torch had been translated into a call, Arise, shine; for thy light is come.

Certain men slept upon a plain, and the night was chill and dark. And as they slept, at that hour when night is darkest, one stirred. Far off to the eastward, through his half-closed eyelids, he saw, as it were, one faint line, thin as a hairs width, that edged the hill-tops. And he whispered to his fellows: The dawn is coming. But they with fast closed eyelids murmured, He lies, there is no dawn. Nevertheless, day broke.1 [Note: Olive Schreiner, Trooper Peter Halket.]

And the Glory of the Lord is Risen upon Thee

It is wonderful, not only that God should give us light, but that that light should be His own glory. Creation is a part of Gods glory, but it is only a moonlight glory compared with that of redemption. God, in the gift of Jesus Christ, displayed the whole of His nature. Creation is not a canvas large enough for the whole image of God to be stamped upon it. Byron speaks of Gods face being mirrored in the sea; but there is not space enough for the face of Deity to be fully reflected in the broad Atlantic, or in all the oceans put together. The image of God is to be fully seen in Jesus Christ, and nowhere else; for there you behold attributes which Creation cannot display. Creation can manifest love, power, wisdom, and much else; but how can Creation manifest justice, and justice lying side by side with mercy, like the lion and the lamb? It is only in Christ that you can see this wondrous sight, God hating sin with perfect hatred, but yet loving sinners with much more than the tenderness of a mother towards her child.

These great words, the glory of the Lord, ought not to be merely a vague phrase to us. You remember what power upon our spiritual life St. Paul associates with that glory. We all with unveiled face reflecting as a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit. So he says in another place, That which is illuminated is light. The personal transformation which the best of us are still conscious of needingthe change from fleshly creatures into spiritual, from what we have been into what we may beis to be wrought through our submitting ourselves with inward willingness and desire to the glory which shines upon us. Divine light cannot be divorced from warmth and quickening. The Spirit is always proceeding from the Father and the Son. In all who set their spiritual eyes upon the glory of the Lord, the life-giving power of the Spirit is working, and is effecting that blessed transformation. They are being transformed into an image for which they were created. And the image is that of the King of Glory, who is Himself the image of God.

Christ is not to be reduced into words. That very word glory itself testifies that He transcends all words. Yet there are two words which let us into the secrets of the revelation of the Divine nature in Christ. They are grace and righteousness; we can hardly make too much of these, as indicating the Image which is shown to us, and into which it is our high destiny to be transformed. These two words are of unlimited significance; the powers they signify are able to invest themselves with all ideals which should draw us upwards and onwards. Grace and righteousness are as windows through which we may gain trustworthy visions of the incomprehensible nature of our God, and they are adequate characters of the nature into which we ourselves are to grow. Grace is the compassionate issue of the eternal love; righteousness is the expression of the Divine order. To what better things can we look up, towards what better things can we strive, than grace and righteousness?

There are three ways in which the glory of the Lord manifests itself in life

1. In the majesty of holiness.Holiness means, literally, separateness from sin, by dedication to God; from the world, in living by heavenly laws and aspirations. In saying this, we must carefully avoid an error. Our fathers, in the early centuries, drew a broad outward line of demarcation between the Church and the world. That was their fault; but it was in harmony with the tendency of the age. We are not likely to fall into such an error. Men now are, perhaps, too much afraid of standing alone. The hollow spirit of a hollow Christianity sneers at the lonely grandeur of a saint. The endeavour of many Christian people seems now to be to conform as much as possible to the world, without being excluded from the pale of the Church. One result of this is that the power of the Christian Church has greatly fallen away. But we must remember that Christian separateness is not external nonconformity. It is being in the world and yet above it;having saintly separateness of soul amidst all the duties;making men feel that your inner life is apart from the business of the world; that your heart is in eternity. Now this must result from the dawning of the light. He who communes with God will not fear to be alone. Seeing the Invisible, he will have too strong a faith in the Kingdom of heaven to seek to uphold it by excitement, convulsive effort, or outward show. A pilgrim of the morning, he will not go with the tide of the world. In him there will be a solemn sense of eternitythe looking onwards of an eye that beholds the dawning glory. And this is powerthe truest, deepest power.

2. In the beauty of unselfishness.The life of God is the life of the Cross in the heart. This is a manifestation of Gods light in the soul. Let that light dawn, and men will see the Cross-life there. This is the light which the world so much needs to-day. This is the light which made the Pantheon crumble, and the Greek altars fall. Men believe in Christ as a beautiful imagein Christianity as an old fable. Show them His reality, and reveal to them its power in your daily lives.

3. In the earnestness of your efforts for men.If the light has risen, you know its power. If the glory has dawned, you feel the realities of life. In that illumination who can be slothfully calm? There is a spirit of so-called refinement abroad now which makes men afraid to speak of those things which lie deepest in the heart. Was it so with the great ones of old? Was it so with Paul? Was he afraid to speak in the name of Christ before Agrippa? Did he shrink before the fiery scorn of Festus? Go, then, bear witness of that light. Live out your prayers in daily actions. You say it is hard, difficult, impossible. Yes, it is hardin all ages men have found it so: but remember the glory of the future is the result of your struggle to-day. Struggle on, then, the morning is breaking, the day is at hand when the Lord shall be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended!

There is a certain picture in the National Gallery which, Ruskin says, reveals the first sign and token of the Renaissance. The painter has partially shaken himself free from the cold, stiff, imitative traditionalisms of medival art; he has partially broken the bands of the mere copyist, he has gone out to Nature, has been for himself, and has brought back a bird! That bird, set there in the midst of much that is still ceremonial and traditional, Ruskin declares to be one of the first signs of the renaissance of art! Yes, but the coming of that bird was subsequent to the coming of a new atmosphere! The renaissance of art succeeded to the renaissance of religion! The bird was significant of a more intimate touch with reality, but this intimate touch with reality was the issue of a more intimate communion with God. The sensitive perception of the beautiful was the fruit of the re-discovery of the beauty of the Lord. The cheery light and the genial heat of the Renaissance are to be explained by the Sun of Righteousness, upon whose glory mens eyes were gazing again in ravishing and exultant delight. The people had obtained a new vision of the light and glory of God, and they rose into a sweeter and more wholesome life.1 [Note: J. H. Jowett.]

Arise! Shine!

Literature

Chadwick (G. A.), Pilates Gift, 162.

Cornaby (W. A.), In Touch with Reality, 83.

Henson (H. H.), Light and Leaven, 99.

Holland (H. S.), Pleas and Claims, 108.

Hull (E. L.), Kings Lynn Sermons, i. 61.

Huntington (G.), Sermons for the Churchs Seasons, 27.

Ingram (A. F. W.), Banners of the Christian Faith, 197.

Keble (J.), Sermons for the Christian Year, ChristmasEpiphany, 69.

MCheyne (R. M.), Additional Remains, 45.

Maclaren (A.), Expositions, Isaiah xlix.lxvi. 176.

Newman (J. H.), Parochial Sermons, ii. 79.

Sellar (J. A.), Church Doctrine and Practice, 25.

Spurgeon (C. H.), Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, xlv. No. 2617.

Webb-Peploe (H. W.), Calls to Holiness, 175.

Wilmot Buxton (H. J.), Sunday Lessons for Daily Life, i. 85.

American Jewish Pulpit, i. (Kohler).

Sermons for Sunday Festivals and Fasts, 2nd Ser., i. 156.

Christian World Pulpit, xxxii. 232 (Maclaren); xxxv. 307 (Horton); xxxix. 24 (Holland); l. 181 (Bradford); lxii. 16 (Jowett).

Church of England Pulpit, lvii. 2 (Davies).

Church Pulpit Year Book, vi. 9.

Thinker, i. 6 (Cheyne).

Treasury, (New York), xiv. 82 (Hallock).

Fuente: The Great Texts of the Bible

Arise: Isa 52:1, Isa 52:2, Mat 5:16, Eph 5:8, Eph 5:14, Phi 2:15

shine; for thy light is come: or, be enlightened, for thy light cometh, Isa 60:19, Isa 60:20, Isa 9:2, Mat 4:16, Luk 1:78, Luk 1:79, Joh 1:9, Joh 3:19, Joh 8:12, Joh 12:46, Eph 5:8, Rev 21:23, Rev 22:5

the glory: Mal 4:2, Luk 2:32, 1Pe 4:14

Reciprocal: Gen 49:10 – the gathering Exo 10:23 – but all Exo 29:43 – sanctified Jdg 5:12 – Deborah 2Sa 23:4 – as the light 1Ki 8:41 – cometh out 1Ch 22:19 – arise 2Ch 6:32 – is come Psa 27:1 – light Psa 36:9 – in thy Psa 45:16 – children Psa 72:7 – In his days Psa 80:1 – shine Psa 87:3 – Glorious Psa 87:5 – of Zion Psa 97:11 – Light Psa 102:13 – Thou Psa 102:16 – he shall Psa 107:14 – brought Psa 118:27 – showed Son 2:11 – General Son 8:8 – what Isa 2:5 – come ye Isa 11:9 – for the Isa 11:11 – set his hand Isa 25:7 – he will Isa 26:19 – Awake Isa 28:5 – shall the Isa 29:22 – Jacob shall Isa 32:3 – General Isa 32:15 – wilderness Isa 35:2 – they shall Isa 40:1 – comfort Isa 40:5 – the glory Isa 40:10 – the Lord God Isa 42:6 – a light Isa 42:16 – I will bring Isa 43:5 – I will Isa 49:9 – to them Isa 51:17 – awake Isa 62:2 – the Gentiles Jer 16:19 – Gentiles Eze 43:2 – the earth Mic 7:8 – the Lord Zec 14:6 – not Mal 1:11 – my name Mat 2:1 – from Mat 8:11 – That Mar 4:21 – Is a Mar 16:15 – into Luk 2:9 – and the Luk 4:18 – and Luk 9:32 – they saw Luk 21:28 – look Luk 24:47 – among Joh 1:14 – we Joh 9:5 – long Joh 12:36 – believe Act 3:19 – when Act 8:26 – Arise Act 12:7 – Arise Act 26:18 – and to Rom 11:12 – their Rom 11:25 – until 2Co 4:4 – shine Tit 2:11 – hath appeared 1Pe 2:9 – show 2Pe 1:19 – a light 1Jo 2:8 – the darkness Rev 7:9 – a great Rev 12:1 – a woman Rev 18:1 – and the Rev 21:11 – the glory

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Isa 60:1. Arise, &c. The prophet here addresses the church of God, which he supposes to be sitting sorrowful, and exhorts her to awake and arise from a state of darkness and mourning, and enter into a state of light and happiness, now that her salvation, so long desired and hoped for, is at hand, and the divine glory is about to rise upon her, and illuminate the nations and people who had hitherto sat in thick darkness. See Vitringa. The reader will observe the exhortation is accommodated to the Jewish or Hebrew style, wherein, as by lying down is signified a servile and calamitous condition, (Isa 47:1,) so, by rising, and standing up, a recovery out of it into a free and prosperous state, as may be seen frequently. Shine Discover thyself, as a luminary breaking forth from a dark night. Show thy native beauty: suffer thyself to be so strongly irradiated by the glory of the Lord, that thou mayest not only be enlightened, but mayest be able to enlighten others. For thy light is come Thy flourishing and prosperous condition, an allusion to peoples rising, when after a dark night the light breaks forth upon them. And the glory of the Lord Glorious light, grace, and salvation from the Lord; or a bright display of the glory, that is, of the glorious attributes of the Lord; or, the Lord of glory, Christ, is about to make himself glorious, in some wonderful work, for thy salvation. Is risen upon thee Like as when the sun, arising, spreads his light everywhere, leaving no place dark. Thus shall the church of God be fully illuminated in the latter days, and thus shall she shine for the perfect illumination of all flesh: see Isa 11:9; and Zec 14:7. In his description of this perfect state of the Christian Church, this evangelical prophet is here peculiarly eloquent, displaying it in the most splendid colours, and under a great variety of images, highly poetical, designed to give a general idea of its glories, when the fulness of the Gentiles shall come in, and the Jews shall be converted and gathered from their dispersions, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God, and of his Christ. Bishop Lowth.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

This chapter contains the full cup of consolation given to Zion, after all her woes and long afflictions in the dark ages of the church. But it is, as Matthew Henry judiciously observes, the gospel church expressly called Zion and Jerusalem, and under that idea, all believers are expressly said to come to it. Heb 12:22. Ye are come to mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem; which text of St. Paul serves as a key to this prophecy. This passage is likewise alluded to in Rev 21:24. The ancient Jews have understood it in their Targums and ancient books, as relating to the Messiah. Vide Bereschit Rabba, in Gen 25:6; Gen 41:44.

Isa 60:1. Arise, shine, for thy light is come. The prophet had said, two verses before, The Redeemer shall come to Zion; to them that turn from transgression in Jacob. Therefore, arise, shine, for thy light is come. Christ the sun of righteousness, and the glory of God, is risen upon thee. It is the voice of the bridegroom rousing the bride. This is my covenant, saith the Lord, as in the words before. These words speak to the church in all succeeding ages. They stirred up the saints in Isaiahs time; they cheered them in the Babylonian captivity with the hope that Jerusalem should be rebuilt, even by the sons of strangers, and by the largesses of the Persian kings. But to the christian church the curtains are undrawn, for the dayspring from on high hath visited us.

And the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. This was promised in Isa 40:5, and that all flesh should see it together; yea, and in the course of a few years. The apostles saw this excellent glory on the mount, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. He is the Shekinah on the mercyseat, now dwelling in the christian church. He shines out in all the glory of the gospel, to illuminate the mind, and enlighten the gentiles. He hallows the heart by regeneration, when we behold as in a mirror his glory. He is also the light and glory of the celestial world. Therefore rise, oh Zion, from a winterly state, and shine in all the beauty and glory of righteousness.

Isa 60:2. Darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people. After the apostasy from the covenant of Noah, by which they knew God, but obstinately gave his glory to those that were no gods, he gave the heathens up to judicial blindness, and to work all manner of uncleanness with greediness. The books of the christian fathers on the superstition of the gentiles, and the letters of our modern missionaries, confirm all that St. Paul has said of the gentiles. But how striking is the confirmation of prophecy, that the Lord should arise on Zion, and cause the gospel-law to go forth from Jerusalem, a figure of the heavenly city.

Isa 60:3. The gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Yea, all kings shall fall down before thee. Psa 72:11. Those kings bow down to Christ, the King of kings, for Judea had no glory of this kind.

Isa 60:5. Thy heart shall fear, and be enlarged, because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee. Jeremiah uses a similar phrase: They shall fear and tremble for all the goodness, and all the prosperity that I will procure unto her: Isa 33:9. We humbly expect and hope, that when the missionaries shall have penetrated into the heart of gentile kingdoms, there shall be such an influx of converts as shall astound the church with joy.

Isa 60:7. All the flocks of Kedarthe rams of Nebaioth (descendants of Ishmael) shall come up with acceptance on mine altar. While the glorious clouds were transporting their showers for the hill of Zion in the latter day, they let some drops fall on Jerusalem, after the Babylonian captivity, when the sons of strangers should help in building her walls, and Persian kings minister to her recovery. But we must not stop here, for of the true Zion it is said as follows.

Isa 60:12. The nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish. Such is the current language of the prophets. The stone cut out of the mountain without hands, shall break in pieces all the other kingdoms, and shall become a great mountain, and fill the whole earth. Dan 2:34-35. When the Son is seated on the holy hill of Zion, he shall shiver the rebellious as a potters vase with a rod of iron. Psa 2:9. He rejected the Jews for rejecting the gospel. The bloody empire of the Romans he shook to pieces with the earthquake of civil wars, and avenged the blood of his saints. Rev 6:12. The enormous limbs of the Ottoman empire, once the scourge of the Arian church, drop from the body by the weight of its crimes. The same sentence seems to be passed against the old governments of India, which neither admit wisdom, nor reform tyranny. The issues shall be the same with all who will not have the Redeemer to reign over them.

Isa 60:16. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the gentiles. The Chaldaic turns it, Thou shalt be satiated with the riches of the people. This is coincident with the promise in Isa 54:3. Thy seed shall inherit the gentiles.

Isa 60:17. For brass I will bring gold, and for iron, silver. This indicates a progress from indigence to a state of glory and affluence beyond conception.

Isa 60:18. Violence shall no more be heard in thy land. When the Prince of peace shall have vanquished the world by the power of truth and grace, the sons of Zion shall be as much ashamed of war as highwaymen are of swords and pistols. This was the original state of society in the golden age, sung by all the poets, and favoured by prophets and divines. In the dark ages, our venerable Bede wrote a book, Oracula Sibylina, where the age of peace is sung in beautiful verse. Fenelon, speaking of the same age, says of Betica, Human blood has never stained that land, and the blood of lambs is rarely shed there. Jamais le sang humain n a rougi cette terre, peine y voiton couler celui des agneaux.

What then must we think of Hugo Grotius, who can see nothing in this chapter but what belongs to the Jews after their return from Babylon! What can be the ultimate aim of him, and of our new translators of the sacred text, but to substitute philosophy for revelation. Not a word can we find in all their works of the prexistence of Christ, of original sin, of the real atonement, as stated in Leviticus 16., nor a word about the work of the Holy Spirit on the heart! When the Son of man cometh, at which they now sneer, shall he find faith on the earth?

Isa 60:19. The sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightness shall the moon give light to thee, , by night. The old Hebrew sun is already darkened, her moon has waned, her stars have fallen; but in that age the light of Gods countenance shall shine with full-orbed splendour on the church, and in every form of covenant grace; and so brilliantly as to eclipse, in some sort, the orbs of heaven. Language, aided with all the powers of rhetoric, cannot say more.

Isa 60:20. Thy sun shall no more go down. The sun of Zion shall set no more, when Jehovah, her Messiah, shall become her everlasting light. The winterly ages of sorrow and sighing shall flee away: Isa 35:10. In some more glorious manner than we can now conceive, the Lord will be present with the church. Some have said, in his bodily presence, to live and reign with the saints a thousand years. On a subject so involved in figures, we fear to speak decidedly. Zion will then sing this song, Great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee: Isa 12:6. His Glory shall enter in by the east gate, and fill the sanctuary. Eze 43:4-5. The Lord shall come in glory to avenge himself on the enemies of Zion. Zec 14:1-11. The full choir shall sing in heaven, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them. Rev 21:3.

Isa 60:21. Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land, or the earth, as the same word is rendered in Mal 4:6, by longevity, as in Isa 65:20-21. But while surrounded with all this exuberance of language, and brilliancy of figure, we must not forget that men will always be born in sin, and have need of conversion. They must also prepare the luxuriant harvests by agriculture, and provide clothing for themselves, by arts and by manufactures. On this head, the promise of the Lord prevents our prayers. I the Lord will hasten it in its time.

REFLECTIONS.

In addition to the general reflections which follow at the end of the book, we must notice here, that the presence and glory of Christ is the best consolation of the church. Sweet is that voice, Thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. Fear not, oh Zion, for I am with thee.

When the Lord comes, the nations will follow; kings and gentiles shall come to thy brightness. They shall fly as a cloud, and as doves to the windows. The abundance of the sea shall come to thee. The gentiles, long walking in darkness, and groaning under the yoke of demons, shall hail the joyful day. The glory of the gospel shall open light and life and righteousness on a guilty world. The earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God, when he shall clothe his saints with salvation.

The earth, as well as the heavens, shall rejoice in all the righteousness which God shall rain down upon his people. Population shall multiply as the sand; cities shall rise, and their gates shall be praise; for the elders that sit there shall be characterized by peace and righteousness, as the prophet had said before, in chap. 35. The glory of Zion in the latter day shall never be followed by a dark day. Thy sun shall no more go down, nor thy moon wane, for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light. The Lord says not, that she shall not be tried: but what can the enemy do without, while glory dwells within. Hail Zion! this is thy hope; and it is near. The Lord will hasten it in its time.

Fuente: Sutcliffe’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Isa 60:1-22. The Glories of the New Jerusalem.This, with Isaiah 61 f., is marked by close imitation of the style of 2 Is.

Isa 60:1-3. The prophet, taking for his standpoint the fulfilment of his prediction, pictures as accomplished facts Zions coming glories. While all other nations lie in darkness, Yahweh bids Zion stand forth radiant in the light of the prosperity He bestows. The nations are drawn to Zions bright light.

Isa 60:3. rising: i.e. dawn.

Isa 60:4-9. He bids her behold her exiled children brought home from distant lands, her daughters carried carefully upon the hip (cf. mg.), as is the custom of the Oriental nurse. Then shall her face become radiant, and her heart beat wildly for joy. Into her shall flow the treasures of sea and land. The Bedouin tribes send droves of camels. Shebas inhabitants (1 Kings 10*) come and proclaim Yahwehs praises. From the N. Arabian tribesKedar and Nebaiothflocks arrive for the sacrifices of the glorified Temple. From the West ships, so numerous that their sails are like clouds, comeunerringly as homing-dovestreasure-laden. The seafarers too, those of Tarshish in the van, bring returning exiles, and precious metals, as a tribute to Yahwehs name.

Isa 60:5. be enlarged: read, throb.

Isa 60:6. Midian and Ephah: cf. Gen 25:4. Here apparently representative of the camel-owning Bedouin tribes of neighbouring deserts.Sheba: in S.W. Arabia.

Isa 60:7. Kedar, Nebaioth: cf. Gen 25:13*; N. Arabian nomads.minister unto: emend seek eagerly.

Isa 60:8. Windows: the lattice openings of their cotes.

Isa 60:9. Read, Surely the ships (or mariners) gather to me, which fits what follows.

Isa 60:10-16. The immigrants shall build up Zions walls, their kings minister to her needs; for Yahwehs impulsive anger is now replaced by gracious mercy. So great shall be the throng of incoming proples, bringing their treasures, their kings leading the way, that the gates of Zion must be open day and night. To beautify the Temple, poor beside the glories of its predecessor, shall come the most precious woods from Lebanons forests. The children of Zions arrogant oppressors shall be her humble suppliants, recognising the dwelling-place of the mighty Yahweh. Hitherto avoided by the traveller, because of her poverty and meanness, she shall now become a proud city. From the nations and their kings she shall receive new strength, and shall realise that Yahweh is indeed her redeemer.

Isa 60:11. led with them: emend, leading them.

Isa 60:17-22. In the new city gold and silver shall replace brass and iron: Peace shall be her magistrate, and Right her governor. Violence and ruin shall no more be found in her midst: the walls which protect her shall be called Deliverance and the gates through which throng the peoples and their treasures shall be called Renown. She shall need no sun or moon, for Yahweh shall ever be her light and beauty, and His is light that knows no setting. All her inhabitants shall then be upright; they shall never be dispossessed, but, increasing as a tree planted by Yahweh might be expected to grow, they shall become a numerous people. Yahweh will hasten the accomplishment of her glory in His own good time.

Isa 60:21. Read probably, The branch (i.e. shoot) of Yahwehs planting, the work of His hands. . . .

Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

60:1 Arise, shine; for thy {a} light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

(a) The time of your prosperity and happiness: while speaking of Babylon, he commanded her to go down, Isa 47:1 .

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

The nations drawn to Israel 60:1-9

Light would dawn on Israel, and as a result: the Gentiles would seek her out.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

God had called Israel to be a light to the nations (Isa 43:10), but presently she was darkness (Isa 56:9 to Isa 57:13; Isa 59:1-15 a). The Lord had promised that He would enable His people to fulfill their calling (Isa 57:14-21; Isa 59:15-21). Now Isaiah summoned the nation to rise up and shine because her light had arrived (cf. Isa 51:17; Isa 52:1). God’s glory, rather than His discipline, will rise as the sun upon her. Like a city gleaming in the light of the risen sun, Israel will shine with a glory that is not her own. God will not share His glory with false gods (Isa 42:8; Isa 48:11), but He will share it with His people through His Servant (Isa 11:10; Isa 35:2; Isa 43:7; Joh 1:14; Joh 17:4; Joh 17:22; Rom 8:17; 2Co 4:6; 1Pe 4:13-14).

The first coming of Christ anticipated the dawning of a new day for Israel, but His second coming will see the fulfillment of these prophecies of Israel’s glorification (cf. Rev 2:28; Rev 22:16).

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

CHAPTER XXIV

SALVATION IN SIGHT

Isa 60:1-22

THE deliverance from Babylon has long been certain, since chapter 48; all doubts in the way of Return have been removed, Isa 49:1-26 through Isa 52:12; the means for the spiritual Restoration of the people have been sufficiently found, chapter 53 and preceding chapters on the Servant: Zion has been hailed from afar, chapter 54; last calls to leave Babylon have been uttered, chapter 55; last councils and comforts, Isa 56:1-8; and the civic conscience has been rekindled; Isa 56:9 through Isa 59:1-21. There remains now only to take possession of the City herself; to rehearse the vocation of the restored people; and to realise all the hopes, fears, hindrances, and practical problems of the future. These duties occupy the rest of our prophecy, chapters 60-66

Chapter 60 is a prophecy as complete in itself as chapter 54. The City, which in 54 was hailed and comforted from afar, is in chapter 60 bidden rise and enjoy the glory that has at last reached her. Her splendours, hinted at in chapter 54, are seen in full and evident display. In chapters 61-62 her prophet, her genius and representative, rehearses to her his duties, and sets forth her place among the peoples. And in Isa 63:1-7 we have another of those theophanies or appearances of the Sole Divine Author of His peoples salvation, which, -abrupt and separate as if to heighten the sense of the solitariness of their subject-occur at intervals throughout our prophecy, -for instance, in Isa 42:10-17, and in Isa 59:16-19. These three sections, chapter 60, chapters 61-62, and Isa 63:1-7, we will take together in this chapter of our volume.

I. ARISE, SHINE

(Chapter 60)

The sixtieth chapter of Isaiah is the spiritual counterpart of a typical Eastern day, with the dust laid and the darts taken out of the sunbeams, -a typical Eastern day in the sudden splendour of its dawn, the completeness and apparent permanence of its noon, the spaciousness it reveals on sea and land, and the barbaric profusion of life, which its strong light is sufficient to flood with glory.

Under such a day we see Jerusalem. In the first five verses of the chapter, she is addressed, as in chapter 54, as a crushed and desolate woman. But her lonely night is over, and from some prophet at the head of her returning children the cry peals, “Arise, shine, for come hath thy light, and the glory of Jehovah hath risen upon thee.” In the East the sun does not rise; the word is weak for an arrival almost too sudden for twilight. In the East the sun leaps above the horizon. You do not feel that he is coming, but that he is come. This first verse is suggested by the swiftness with which he bursts upon an Eastern city, and the shrouded form does not, as in our twilight, slowly unwrap itself, but “shines” at once, all plates and points of glory. Then the figure yields: for Jerusalem is not merely one radiant point in a world equally lighted by the sun, but is herself Jehovahs unique luminary. “For behold the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples, but upon thee shall Jehovah arise, and His glory upon thee shall be seen. And nations shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.” In the next two verses it is again a woman who is addressed. “Lift up” thine eyes “round about and see, all of them have gathered, have come to thee: thy sons from afar are coming, and thy daughters are carried in the arms.” Then follows the fairest verse in the chapter. “Then thou shalt see and be radiant, and thy heart shall throb and grow large; for there shall be turned upon thee the seas flood-tide, and the wealth of the nations shall come to thee.” The word which the Authorised English version translated “shall flow together,” and our Revised Version “lightened,” means both of these. It is liquid light, -light that ripples and sparkles and runs across the face; as it best appears in that beautiful passage of the thirty-fourth Psalm, “they looked to Him and their faces were lightened.” Here it suggests the light which a face catches from sparkling water. The prophets figure has changed. The stately mother of her people stands not among the ruins of her city, but upon some great beach, with the sea in front, -the sea that casts up all heavens light upon her face and drifts all earths wealth to her feet, and her eyes are upon the horizon with the hope of her who watches for the return of children.

The next verses are simply the expansion of these two clauses, -about the seas flood and the wealth of the Nations. Isa 60:6-9 look first landward and then seaward, as from Jerusalems own wonderful position on the high ridge between Asia and the sea: between the gates of the East and the gates of the West. On the one side, the citys horizon is the range of Moab and Edom, that barrier, in Jewish imagination, of the hidden and golden East across which pour the caravans here pictured. “Profusion of camels shall cover thee, young camels of Midian and Ephah; all of them from Sheba shall come: gold and frankincense shall they bring, and the praises of Jehovah shall they publish. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered to thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to thee: they shall come up with acceptance on Mine altar, and the house of My glory will I glorify.” These were just what surged over Jordan from the far countries beyond, of which the Jews knew little more than the names here given, -tawny droves of camels upon the greenness of Palestine like a spate of the desert from which they poured; rivers of sheep brimming up the narrow drove-roads to Jerusalem:-conceive it all under that blazing Eastern sun. But then turning to Judahs other horizon, marked by the yellow fringe of sand and the blue haze of the sea beyond, the prophet cries for Jehovah: “Who are these like a cloud that fly, and like doves to their windows? Surely towards Me the Isles are stretching, and ships of Tarshish in the van, to bring thy sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them, to the Name of Jehovah of Hosts and to the Holy of Israel, for He hath glorified thee.” The poetry of the Old Testament has been said to be deficient in its treatment of the sea; and certainly it dwells more frequently, as was natural for the imagination of an inland and a highland people to do, upon the hills. But in what literature will you find passages of equal length more suggestive of the sea than those short pieces in which the Hebrew prophet sought to render the futile rage of the world, as it dashed on the steadfast will of God, by the roar and crash of the ocean on the beach; (Isa 14:1-32; “Isa 1:1-31; Isa 2:1-22; Isa 3:1-26; Isa 4:1-6; Isa 5:1-30; Isa 6:1-13; Isa 7:1-25; Isa 8:1-22; Isa 9:1-21; Isa 10:1-34; Isa 11:1-16; Isa 12:1-6; Isa 13:1-22; Isa 14:1-32; Isa 15:1-9; Isa 16:1-14; Isa 17:1-14; Isa 18:1-7; Isa 19:1-25; Isa 20:1-6; Isa 21:1-17; Isa 22:1-25; Isa 23:1-18; Isa 24:1-23; Isa 25:1-12; Isa 26:1-21; Isa 27:1-13; Isa 28:1-29; Isa 29:1-24; Isa 30:1-33; Isa 31:1-9; Isa 32:1-20; Isa 33:1-24; Isa 34:1-17; Isa 35:1-10; Isa 36:1-22; Isa 37:1-38; Isa 38:1-22; Isa 39:1-8”) or painted a nations prosperity as the waves of a summer sea; Isa 48:18. or described the long coastlands as stretching out to God, and the white-sailed ships coming up the horizon like doves to their windows!

The rest of the chapter, from Isa 60:10 onwards, is occupied with the rebuilding and adornment of Jerusalem, and with the establishment of the people in righteousness and peace. There is a very obvious mingling of the material and the moral. The Gentiles are to become subject to the Jew, but it is to be a voluntary submission before the evidence of Jerusalems spiritual superiority. Nothing is said of a Messiah or a King. Jerusalem is to be a commonwealth; and, while her “magistracy shall be Peace and her overseers Righteousness,” God Himself, in evident presence, is to be her light and glory. Thus the chapter ends with God and the People, and nothing else. God for an everlasting light around, and the people in their land, righteous, secure, and growing very large. “The least shall become a thousand, and the smallest a strong nation: I Jehovah will hasten it in its time.”

This chapter has been put through many interpretations to many practical uses:-to describe the ingathering of the Gentiles to the Church (in the Christian year it is the Lesson for Epiphany), to prove the doctrine that the Church should live by the endowment of the kingdoms of this world, and to enforce the duty of costliness and magnificence in the public worship of God. “The glory of the Lebanon shall come unto thee, fir-tree, plane-tree and sherbin together, to beautify the place of My sanctuary, and I will make the place of My feet glorious.”

The last of these duties we may extend and qualify. If the coming in of the Gentiles is here represented as bringing wealth to the Church, we cannot help remembering that the going out to the Gentiles, in order to bring them in, means for us the spending of our wealth on things other than the adornment of temples; and that, besides the heathen, there are poor and suffering ones for whom God asks mens gold, as He asked it in olden days for the temple, that He may be glorified. Take that last phrase:-“And” – with all that material wealth which has flown in from Lebanon, from Midian, from Sheba-“I will make the place of My feet glorious.” When this singular name was first uttered it was limited to the dwelling-place of the Ark and Presence of God, visible only on Mount Zion. But when God became man, and did indeed tread with human feet this world of ours, what were then the “places of His feet?” Sometimes, it is true, the Temple, but only sometimes; far more often where the sick lay, and the bereaved were weeping, -the pool of Bethesda, the death-room of Jairus daughter, the way to the centurions sick servant, the city gateways where the beggars stood, the lanes where the village folk had gathered, against His coming, their deaf and dumb, their palsied and lunatic. These were “the places of His feet, who Himself bare our sicknesses and carried our infirmities”; and these are what He would seek our wealth to make glorious. They say that the reverence of men builds now no cathedrals as of old; nay, but the love of man, that Christ taught, builds far more of those refuges and houses of healing, scatters far more widely those medicines for the body, those instruments of teaching, those means of grace, in which God is as much glorified as in Jewish Temple or Christian Cathedral.

Nevertheless He, who set “the place of His feet,” which He would have us to glorify, among the poor and the sick, was He, who also did not for Himself refuse that alabaster box and that precious ointment, which might have been sold for much and given to the poor. The worship of God, if we read Scripture aright, ought to be more than merely grave and comely. There should be heartiness and lavishness about it, -profusion and brilliance. Not of material gifts alone or chiefly, gold, incense, or rare wood, but of human faculties, graces, and feeling; of joy and music and the sense of beauty. Take this chapter. It is wonderful, not so much for the material wealth which it devotes to the service of Gods house, and which is all that many eyes ever see in it, as for the glorious imagination and heart for the beautiful, the joy in light and space and splendour, the poetry and the music, which use those material things simply as the light uses the wick, or as music uses the lyre, to express and reveal itself. What a call this chapter is to let out the natural wonder and poetry of the heart, its feeling and music and exultation, -“all that is within us,” as the Psalmist says, -in the Service of God. Why do we not do so? The answer is very simple. Because, unlike this prophet, we do not realise how present and full our salvation is; because unlike him, we do not realise that “our light has come,” and so we will not “arise and shine.”

II. THE GOSPEL

(Chapters 61-62)

The speaker in chapter 61 is not introduced by name. Therefore he may be the Prophet himself, or he may be the Servant. The present expositor, while feeling that the evidence is not conclusive against either of these, and that the uncertainty is as great as in Isa 48:16, inclines to think that there is, on the whole, less objection to its being the prophet who speaks than to its being the Servant. But it is not a very important question which is intended, for the Servant was representative of prophecy; and if it be the prophet who speaks here, he also speaks with the conscience of the whole function and aim of the prophetic order. That Jesus Christ fulfilled this programme does not decide the question one way or the other; for a prophet so representative was as much the antetype and foreshadowing of Christ as the Servant himself was. On the whole, then, we must be content to feel about this passage, what we must have already felt about many others in our prophecy, that the writer is more anxious to place before us the whole range and ideal of the prophetic gift than to make clear in whom this ideal is realised; and for the rest Jesus of Nazareth so plainly fulfilled it, that it becomes, indeed, a very minor question to ask whom the writer may have intended as its first application.

If chapter 60 showed us the external glory of Gods people, chapter 61 opens with the programme of their inner mission. There we had the building and adornment of the Temple, that “Jehovah might glorify His people”: here we have the binding of broken hearts and the beautifying of soiled lives, that “Jehovah may be glorified.” But this inner mission also issues in external splendour, in a righteousness which is like the adornment of a bride and like the beauty of spring.

The commission of the prophet is mainly to duties we have already studied in preceding passages, both on himself and on the Servant. It will be enough to point out its special characteristics. “The Spirit of my Lord Jehovah is upon me, for that Jehovah hath anointed me to bring good tidings to the afflicted; He hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim to the captive liberty, and to the prisoners open ways; to proclaim an acceptable year for Jehovah, and a day of vengeance for our God; to comfort all that mourn; to offer to the mourners of Zion, to give unto them a crest for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the mantle of praise for the spirit of dimness; so that men may call them Oaks-of-Righteousness, the planting of Jehovah, that He may break into glory.”

There are heard here all the keynotes of our prophet, and clear, too, is that usual and favourite direction of his thoughts from the inner and spiritual influences to the outward splendour and evidence, the passage from the comfort and healing of the heart to the rich garment, the renown, and his own dearest vision of great forest trees, -in short, Jehovah Himself breaking into glory. But one point needs special attention.

The prophet begins his commission by these words, “to bring good tidings to the afflicted,” and again says, “to proclaim to the captive.” “The afflicted,” or “the poor,” as it is mostly rendered, is the classical name for Gods people in Exile. We have sufficiently moved among this people to know for what reason the “bringing of good tidings” should here be reckoned as the first and most indispensable service that prophecy could render them. Why, in the life of every nation, there are hours, when the factors of destiny, that loom largest at other times, are dwarfed and dwindled before the momentousness of a piece of news, -hours, when the nations attitude in a great moral issue, or her whole freedom and destiny, are determined by telegrams from the seat of war. The simultaneous news of Grants capture of Vicksburg and Meades defeat of Lee, news that finally turned English opinion, so long shamefully debating and wavering, to the side of God and the slave; the telegrams from the army, for which silent crowds waited in the Berlin squares through the autumn nights of 1870, conscious that the unity and birthright of Germany hung upon the tidings, -are instances of the vital and paramount influence in a nations history of a piece of news. The force of a great debate in Parliament, the expression of public opinion through all its organs, the voice of a people in a general election, things in their time as ominous as the Fates, all yield at certain supreme moments to the meaning of a simple message from Providence. Now it was for news from God that Israel waited in Exile; for good tidings and the proclamation of fact. They had with them a Divine Law, but no mere exposition of it could satisfy men who were captives and waited for the command of their freedom. They had with them Psalms, but no beauty of music could console them: “How should we sing the Lords song in a strange land?” They had Prophecy, with its assurance of the love and the power of their God; and much as there was in it to help them to patience and to hope, general statements were not enough for them. They needed the testimony of a fact. Freedom and Restoration had been promised them: they waited for the proclamation that it was coming, for the good news that it had arrived. Now our prophecy is mainly this proclamation and good news of fact. The prophet uses before all other words two, -to call or proclaim, kara, and to tell good tidings, bisser. We found them in his opening chapter: we find them again here when he sums up his mission. A third goes along with them, “to comfort,” Naham, but it is the accompaniment, and they are the burden, of his prophecy.

But “good tidings” and the “proclamation” meant so much more than the mere political deliverance of Israel-meant the fact of their pardon, the tale of their Gods love, of His provision for them, and of His wonderful passion and triumph of salvation on their behalf-that it is no wonder that these two words came to be ever afterwards the classical terms for all speech and prophecy from God to man. We actually owe the Greek words of the New Testament for “gospel” and “preaching” to this time of Israels history. The Greek term, from which we have “evangel,” “evangelist,” and “evangelise,” originally meant good news, but was first employed in a religious sense in the Greek translation of our prophecy. And our word “preach” is the heir, though not the lineal descendant, through the Latin prcedicare and the Greek khrussein, of the word, which is translated in chapter 60 of our prophet to proclaim, but in chapter 40 to call or cry. It is to the Exile that we trace the establishment among Gods people of regular preaching side by side with sacramental and liturgical worship; for it was in the Exile that the Synagogue arose, whose pulpit was to become as much the centre of Israels life as was the altar of the Temple. And it was from the pulpit of a synagogue centuries after, when the preaching had become dry exposition or hard lawgiving, that Jesus re-read our prophecy and affirmed again the “good news” of God.

What is true of nations is true of individuals. We indeed support our life by principles; we develop it by argument; -we cannot lay too heavy stress upon philosophy and law. But there is something of far greater concern than either argument or the abstract principles from which it is developed; something that our reason cannot find of itself, that our conscience but increases our longing for. It is, whether certain things are facts or not; whether, for instance, the Supreme Power of the Universe is on the side of the individual combatant for righteousness; whether God is love; whether Sin has been forgiven; whether Sin and Death have ever been conquered; whether the summer has come in which humanity may put forth their shoots conscious that all the influence of heaven is on their side, or whether, there being no heavenly favours, man must train his virtue and coax his happiness to ripen behind shelters and in conservatories of his own construction. Now Christ comes to us with the good news of God that it is so. The supreme force in the Universe is on mans side, and for man has won victory and achieved freedom. God has proclaimed pardon. A Saviour has overcome sin and death. We are free to break from evil. The struggle after holiness is not the struggle of a weakly plant in an alien soil and beneath a wintry sky, counting only upon the precarious aids of human cultivation; but summer has come, the acceptable year of the Lord has begun, and all the favour of the Almighty is on His peoples side. These are the “good tidings” and “proclamation” of God, and to every man who believes them they must make an incalculable difference in life.

As we have said, the prophet passes in the rest of this prophecy from the spiritual influences of his mission to its outward effects. The peoples righteousness is described in the external fashion, which we have already studied in chapter 14; Zions espousals to Jehovah are celebrated, but into that we have also gone thoroughly; the restoration of prophecy in Jerusalem is described, {Isa 62:6-9} as in Isa 52:8; and another call is given to depart from Babylon and every foreign city and come to Zion. This call coming now, so long after the last, and when we might think that the prophet had wholly left Babylon behind, need not surprise us. For even though some Jews had actually arrived at Zion, which is not certain, others were hanging back in Babylon; and, indeed, such a call as this might fitly be renewed for the next century or two: so many of Gods people continued to forget that their citizenship was in Zion.

III. THE DIVINE SAVIOUR

{Isa 63:1-7}

Once again the prophet turns to hail, in his periodic transport, the Solitary Divine Hero and Saviour of His people.

That the writer of this piece is the main author of “Second Isaiah” is probable, both because it is the custom of the latter to describe at intervals the passion and effort of Israels Mighty One, and because several of his well-known phrases meet us in this piece. The “speaker in righteousness mighty to save” recalls Isa 45:19-24; and “the day of vengeance and year of my redeemed” recalls Isa 61:2; and “I looked, and there was no helper, and I gazed, and there was none to uphold,” recalls Isa 59:16. The prophet is looking out from Jerusalem towards Edom, -a direction in which the watchmen upon Zion had often in her history looked for the return of her armies from the punishment of Israels congenital and perpetual foe. The prophet, however, sees the prospect filled up, not by the flashing van of a great army, but by a solitary figure, without ally, without chariot, Without weapons, “swaying on in the wealth of his strength.” The keynote of the piece is the loneliness of this Hero. A figure is used, which, where battle would only have suggested complexity, enthrals us with the spectacle of solitary effort, -the figure of trampling through some vast winevat alone. The Avenging Saviour of Israel has a fierce joy in being alone: it is his new nerve to effort and victory, -“therefore mine own right arm, it brought salvation to me.” We see One great form in the strength of one great emotion. “My fury, it upheld me.”

The interpretation of this chapter by Christians has been very varied, and often very perverse. To use the words of Calvin, “Violenter torserunt hoc caput Christiani.” But, as he sees very rightly, it is not the Messiah nor the Servant of Jehovah, who is here pictured, but Jehovah Himself. This Solitary is the Divine Saviour of Israel, as in Isa 42:7 f. and in Isa 59:16. In chapter 8 of Book II we spoke so fully of the Passion of God that we may now refer to that chapter for the essential truth which underlies our prophets anthropomorphism, and claims our worship where a short sight might only turn the heart away in scorn at the savage and blood-stained surface. One or two other points, however, demand our attention before we give the translation.

Why does the prophet look in the direction of Edom for the return of his God? Partly, it is to be presumed, because Edom was as good a representative as he could choose of the enemies of Israel other than Babylon. (See Isa 1:1-31; Isa 2:1-22; Isa 3:1-26; Isa 4:1-6; Isa 5:1-30; Isa 6:1-13; Isa 7:1-25; Isa 8:1-22; Isa 9:1-21; Isa 10:1-34; Isa 11:1-16; Isa 12:1-6; Isa 13:1-22; Isa 14:1-32; Isa 15:1-9; Isa 16:1-14; Isa 17:1-14; Isa 18:1-7; Isa 19:1-25; Isa 20:1-6; Isa 21:1-17; Isa 22:1-25; Isa 23:1-18; Isa 24:1-23; Isa 25:1-12; Isa 26:1-21; Isa 27:1-13; Isa 28:1-29; Isa 29:1-24; Isa 30:1-33; Isa 31:1-9; Isa 32:1-20; Isa 33:1-24; Isa 34:1-17; Isa 35:1-10; Isa 36:1-22; Isa 37:1-38; Isa 38:1-22; Isa 39:1-8) But also partly, perhaps, because of the names which match the red colours of his piece, -the wine and the blood. Edom means red, and Bossrah is assonant to Bosser, a vinedresser. Fitter background and scenery the prophet, therefore, could not have for his drama of Divine Vengeance. But we must take care, as Dillmann properly remarks, not to imagine that any definite, historical invasion of Edom by Israel, or other chastening instrument of Jehovah, is here intended. It is a vision which the prophet sees of Jehovah Himself: it illustrates the passion, the agony, the unshared and unaided effort which the Divine Saviour passes through for His people.

Further, it is only necessary to point out, that the term in Isa 63:1 given as “splendid” by the Authorised Version, which I have rendered “sweeping,” is literally “swelling,” and is, perhaps, best rendered by “sailing on” or “swinging on.” The other verb which the Revised Version renders “marching” means “swaying,” or moving the head or body from one side to another, in the pride and fulness of strength. In Isa 63:2 “like a wine-treader” is literally “like him that treadeth in the pressing-house”-Geth (the first syllable of Gethsemane, the oil-press): But Isa 63:3 is the “pressing trough.”

Who is this coming from Edom,

Raw-red his garments from Bossrah!

This sweeping on in his raiment,

Swaying in the wealth of his strength?

I that do speak in righteousness,

Mighty to save!

Wherefore is red on thy raiment,

And thy garments like to a wine-treaders?

A trough I have trodden alone,

Of the peoples no man was with me.

So I trod them down in my wrath,

And trampled them down in my fury;

Their life-blood sprinkled my garments

And all my raiment I stained.

For the day of revenge in my heart,

And the year of my redeemed has come.

And I looked, and no helper;

I gazed, and none to uphold!

So my righteousness won me salvation;

And my fury, it hath upheld me.

So I stamp on the peoples in my wrath,

And make them drunk with my fury,

And bring down to earth their life-blood.

Fuente: Expositors Bible Commentary

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