22 For the LORD is our judge, the | could not well strengthen their mast; they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the

LORD is our law-giver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.

23 Thy 7 tacklings are loosed; they lame take the prey.

6 statute maker.

7 or, they have forsaken thy tacklings.

a 1 Cor. 1. 27.

New Translation.

22. For JEHOVAH is our judge;

JEHOVAH is our lawgiver;

JEHOVAH is our king:

He will save us.

23. Thy ropes hang loose;

They could not make firm the base of the mast;

They could not spread the sail :

Then shall a great spoil be divided;

The lame shall take the prey.

rivers. No advantage could be taken from what was to them a source of prosperity and happiness. While other cities were exposed to an enemy in the very quarters, and from the very sources from which they derived their wealth and prosperity, it would not be so with them. From what constituted their glory-the protection of JEHOVAH-no danger ever could be apprehended. It had all the advantage of broad rivers and streams, but with none of their attendant exposures and perils. No galley with oars. That is, no small vessel-for larger vessels were propelled by sails. Still the reference is doubtless to a vessel of war; since vessels of commerce would be an advantage, and would not be to be feared, and it would not be an object of congratulation that none of them should be there. ¶Neither shall gallant ship. No great (777) or magnificent ship; no ship fitted out for purposes of war. The sense is, therefore, that though Jerusalem should be thus favored, yet it should be safe, and unapproachable by an enemy. Pass thereby. Pass over the broad rivers and streams; there should be no ships of war passing on those streams.

22. For the LORD is our Judge, &c. JEHOVAH will be to us nothing but a source of happiness, truth, prosperity. His presence will be to us only a blessing, and a means of prosperity and joy. The repetition of the name JEHOVAH three times is common in the Scriptures.

23. Thy tacklings. This is evidently an address to Sennacherib. The mention of the war-galley and the ship scems to have suggested

the application of the figure to the enemies of the Jews, and particularly to Sennacherib. The prophet, therefore, compares the Assyrian to a ship that was rendered unmanageable, and unserviceable; whose sails were unfastened, and whose mast could not be made firm, and which was therefore at the mercy of winds and waves. The Hebrew which is here rendered "thy tacklings are loosed," means 'thy cords are let go;' that is, the cords or ropes that fastened the sails, the masts and the rudder, were loosened. In such a condition the ship would of course go to ruin. They could not well strengthen their mast. They could not fix it firm or secure. It is evident that if the mast cannot be made firm, it is impossible to navigate a ship. It is to be observed here, however, that the word which our translators have rendered "well" not only signifies well as an adverb, but is also used as a noun, and means a stand or station (Gen. xl. 13, xli. 13, Dan. xi. 20, 21); and also a base or pedestal, 1 Kings vii. 31, Ex. xxx. 18, 28, xxxi. 9, xxxv. 16, xxxviii. 8, Lev. viii. 11. It may be used here to denote the socket, or base of the ship's mast; or the crossbeam through which a hole was made to let the mast into, and to hold it firm. This was called by the Greeks ironton (Odyssey 12, 51), οι μεσόδμη, Ιστοδόκη (Iliad i. 434). The translation, therefore, 'They could not make fast the base of their mast,' would better express the sense of the Hebrew. The LXX render it "thy mast gave way." T They could not spread the sail. Of course as the ropes were all loosened, and the mast could not be made firm, it would be in vain to attempt to spread a sail. The sense is, that the plan of the Assyrian would be disconcerted, his scheme discomfited, and his enterprise would come to naught. He and his army would be like a vessel at sea without sails. Then is the prey of a great spoil divided. The word divided here means shall be distributed, or apportioned as spoil or plunder was usually among victors. The sense is, that much plunder or booty would be taken from the army of the Assyian and distributed among the Jews. See Note on ver. 4. It is certain that Hezekiah had given to Sennacherib three hundred talents of silver, and thirty talents of gold, and had stripped the temple, and given the gold that was on the temple to him (2 Kings xviii. 14-16), and this treasure was doubtless in the camp of the Assyrians. And it is certain that after this invasion of Sennacherib, the treasures of Hezekiah were replenished, and that his wealth abounded; so much so that he made an improper and ostentatious display of it to the am

24 And the inhabitant shall not say, therein shall be forgiven their iniI am sick the people that dwell quity.

24. And the inhabitants shall not say, "I am infirm:"

The people that dwell therein is freed from the punishment of their iniquity.

bassadors that came from Babylon (2 Kings xx. 13-15); and there is every presumption therefore that a great amount of spoil was collected from the camp of the Assyrian. ¶ The lame take the prey. The lame among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. It shall be so abundant, and shall be so entirely abandoned by the Assyrians, that even the feeble and the defenceless shall go forth to the camp and take the spoil that is left.

24. And the inhabitant. The inhabitant of Jerusalem. ¶ Shall not say I am sick. That is, probably, the weak and the infirm of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall not plead their infirmity as an excuse for not going forth against the Assyrians. But the spoil shall be so abundant, and the facility for taking it so great, that even the sick, the aged, and the infirm shall go forth nerved with new vigor to gather the spoil. ¶ The people that dwell therein. In Jerusalem. ¶T Shall be forgiven their iniquity. This is equivalent to saying that the calamities of the invasion would be entirely removed. This invasion is represented as coming upon them as a judgment for their sins. When the Assyrian should be overthrown it would be a proof that the sin which had been the cause of the invasion had been forgiven, and that God was now disposed to show them favor and mercy. It is common in the Scriptures to represent any calamity as the consequence of sin, and to identify the removal of the calamity and the forgiveness of the sin. Thus the Saviour said (Mark ii. 5,) to the man afflicted with the palsy, "Son, thy sins be forgiven thee." And when the scribes mur. mured, the Saviour urged that the power of forgiving sins and of healing disease was the same, or that the forgiveness of sin was equivalent to the removal of disease. Mark ii. 9.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

ANALYSIS OF THE CHAPTER.

THE xxxivth and xxxvth chapters make one distinct and beautiful prophecy, consisting of two parts, the first containing a denunciation of judgment on the enemies of the Jews and of JEHOVAH-particularly Edom (ch. xxxiv.); and the second a most beautiful description of the flourishing state of the people of God that should follow these judgments. ch. xxxv.

At what time this prophecy was delivered it is uncertain, and indeed can be determined by nothing in the prophecy itself. It is observable, however, that it is the close of the first part of the prophecies of Isaiah, the remaining chapters to the xlth, which commences the second part of the prophecies, being occupied with an historical description of the invasion of Sennacherib and his army. It has been supposed (see the Introduction, § 2, 3,) that between the delivery of the prophecies in the first and second portion of Isaiah an interval of some years elapsed, and that the second part was delivered for his own consolation, and the consolation of the people near the elose of his life.

A somewhat similar purpose and feeling, as I apprehend, led to the composition and publication of the prophecy before us. It is the close of the first portion of his prophecies; the last of the series of separate and independent predictions. The general strain of his prophecies thus far has been that, however numerous and mighty were the enemies of the Jews, and however formidable their armies and their power, the people of God would be delivered from them all. Such was the case in regard to the allied armies of Syria and Samaria (ch. vii, viii.); of the Assyrian (ch. x.); of Babylon (ch. xiii, xiv.); of Moab (ch. xv, xvi.); of Damascus and Ethiopia (ch. xvii, xviii.); of Egypt (ch. xix, xx.); and more particularly of the Assyrians under Sennacherib (ch. xxv, xxix, xxx, xxxi, xxxii, xxxiii.). The prophecy before us I regard as a kind of summing up, or recapitulation of all that he had delivered; and the general idea is, that the people of God would be delivered from all their foes, and that future happy times under the Messiah would succeed all their calamities. This he had expressed often in the particular prophecies; he here expresses it in a summary and condensed manner.

Keeping this general design of the prophecy in view, we may observe that it consists of the following parts.

I. A general statement that all the enemies of the people of God would be destroyed, ch. xxxiv. 1-4.

(a.) The nations of the earth are summoned to see this, and to become acquainted with the purpose of God thus to destroy all his enemies, ver. 1.

(b.) The destruction of the enemies of God described under the image of a great staughter, denoting their entire overthrow, vs. 2, 3.

(c.) The same destruction described under the image of the heavens rolled together as a scroll, and the stars falling, ver. 4. II. This general truth particularly applied to Edom or Idumea as among the most virulent of their enemies, and as a representation of them all, vs. 5-17.

(a.) JEHOVAH's vengeance should come upon the land of Idumea, and the land should be covered with the slain, and soaked in blood, vs. 5-8.

(b.) The entire and utter desolation of the land of Idumea is foretold in language remarkably resembling that used of the de

struction of Babylon. The kingdom should he destroyed; the land laid waste; and the whole country should become a dwelling place of wild beasts, vs. 9-17.

III. The future happy times that should succeed-the times of the Messiah are exhibited (ch. xxxv.) in language of great beauty and sublimity. This is the substance of all that the prophet had predicted, and all his visions terminate there. The wilderness shall blossom; the sick and the afflicted shall be healed; the desolate lands shall be fertile; there shall be no enemy to annoy, and the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads.

As so large a part of this prophecy relates to Edom, or Idumea, it may be proper to preface the exposition of the chapter with a brief notice of the history of that country, and of the causes for which God denounced vengeance upon that land. The evidences of the fulfillment of the prophecy will be exhibited in the course of the exposition. See Notes on vs. 9-17.

Idumea was the name given by the Greeks to the land of Edom, the country which was settled by Esau. The country which they occupied extended originally from the Dead Sea to the Elanitic gulf of the Red Sea. Their territory however they extended considerably by conquest, and carried their arms to the east and northeast of Moab, and obtained possession of the country of which Bozrah was the chief city. To this they had had access through the intervening desert without crossing the country of the Moabites, or Ammonites. The capital of East Idumea was Bozrah; the capital of South Edom was Petra, or Sela-called in 2 Kings xiv. 7, Joktheel. See Note ch. xvi. 1.

This country received its name from Esau, the son of Isaac, and the twin brother of Jacob, and the elder of the two. He was called Edom, which signifies red, from the color of the red pottage which he obtained from Jacob by the sale of his birth-right. Gen. xxv. 30. After his marriage he removed to Mount Seir, and made that his permanent abode, and the country adjacent to it received the name of Edom. Mount Seir had been occupied by a people called Horites, who were displaced by Esau, when he took possession of their country and made it his own. Deut. ii. 12. The Edomites were at first governed by princes, improperly translated "Dukes," Gen. xxxvi. 9-31. They were an independent people until the time of David. They seem to have continued under the government of separate princes, until the apprehension of foreign invasion compelled them to unite under one leader, and to submit themselves to a king. When Moses and the children of Israel were passing through the wilderness, as the land of Edom lay between them and Canaan, Moses sent ambassadors to the king of Edom, soliciting the privilege of a peaceful passage through their country,on the ground that they were descended from the same ancestor,and promising that the property of the Edomites should not be injured by the children of Israel, and offering to pay for all that they should consume. Num. xx. 14 -19. To this reasonable request the king of Edom sent a positive refusal, and came out with a strong army to resist them. Num. xx. 20. This refusal was long remembered by the Jews, and was one cause of the hostile feeling which was cherished against them. The kingdom of Edom seems to have risen to a considerable degree of prosperity. There is indeed no direct mention made of it after this until the time of David; but it seems to have then risen into so much importance as to have attracted his attention. David carried his arms there after having obtained a victory over the Syrians, Moabites, and Ammonites. It is not known, indeed, what was the cause of this war, but it is known that David slew eighteen thousand Edomites in the valley of Salt (2 Sam. viii. 13, 1 Chron. xviii. 12), and the rest of them were either brought into subjection under Joab, or forced to fly into foreign countries. Hadad, their young king, fled to Egypt, and was favorably received by Pharaoh, and was highly honored at his court. He was married to the sister of Tahpanes, the sister of the queen of Egypt. 1 Kings xi. 15-20. Yet though he lived at the court of Pharaoh, he waited only for an opportunity to recover his kingdom, and when David and Joab were dead he proposed to the king of Egypt to make an effort to accomplish it. He returned to Idumea, but was unsuccessful in his attempts to overcome the garrisons which David had stationed to guard and