Bibelkommentare

Isaiah 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, (Isaiah 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 people’s 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 Isaiah 11:9; and Zechariah 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.

Isaiah 60:2. For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth — Ignorance, idolatry, and all kinds of errors and vices; and gross darkness the people — Like that of Egypt; the most palpable blindness and infatuation as to divine things; but the Lord — Christ, the bright and morning-star, the day- spring from on high, or, rather, the Sun of righteousness, Revelation 22:16; Luke 1:78; Malachi 4:2; shall arise upon thee — By his gospel and his grace, bringing light to those that before sat in darkness, and in the shadow of death; and his glory shall be seen upon thee — Shall be wonderfully conspicuous. “The design of the Holy Spirit in this clause, as I suppose,” says Vitringa, “is to describe the state of the nations of the world, at the time when God should illuminate the church with this light, as if by a new advent of his Son, and a repeated manifestation of his divine kingdom. Almost all the world should be found in a similar state of darkness to that wherein the Son of God found it at his first coming; and if we might form any judgment from the state of things, from the darkness which now overspreads the earth, through the prevalence of Popery, infidelity, and immorality, in the countries professing Christianity, and Mohammedanism and paganism in the other regions of the earth, we may reasonably conclude, that these words of the prophet, at the period alluded to, will not want their exact completion.”

Isaiah 60:3. The Gentiles shall come to thy light — Or, shall be allured by thy light to come to thee, as travellers in a dark night, and out of their way, when a light discovers itself make to it; so the doctrine of the gospel shall shine so bright, and be made so conspicuous by preaching and miracles, that well-disposed heathen shall not only congratulate them that profess it, and wish them much joy, but shall rejoice to participate with them in their happiness. A plain prophecy this of the calling of the Gentiles, a promise of which was made to Christ, Isaiah 49:6. And, or Yea, kings to the brightness of thy rising — That is, the greatness and glories of the church shall attract the eyes of kings, and make them willing to become her proselytes. Or, to add to thy lustre, thou shalt not only be honoured by the conversion of mean persons, but even of honourable personages, yea, of kings, embracing the Christian faith, and submitting themselves to Christ’s sceptre and government: see Isaiah 49:23.

Isaiah 60:4-5. Lift up thine eyes round about — Or, in a circle, into all parts of the earth. He seems to refer to the apostles and disciples, with their successors, carrying the gospel into all quarters of the world. And because it would be, as it were, a thing incredible, he bids them lift up their eyes, as if they were to behold it in some vision, or upon some watch-tower in Jerusalem. See the like expression Isaiah 49:18. All they gather themselves together — He speaks of the coming in of all nations to embrace the gospel, and unite themselves to the Christian Church. Thy sons shall come from far — From the remotest parts, having heard the report of thee. And thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side — Shall be brought unto thee tenderly, as it were in persons’ arms, (Isaiah 49:22,) and shall have their education with thee from their infancy: there, where alone the sincere milk of the word is to be had, must the church’s newborn babes be nursed, that they may grow thereby, 1 Peter 2:2. Then thou shalt see — With delight, the multitudes of thy children running to thee; and flow together — As when two rivers meet, and, joining their waters, run sweetly together, as one and the same river. This denotes the abundance of their united joys and delights. Or the words may mean, they shall flock together to behold such an amazing sight. And thy heart shall fear — Or stand amazed, to see such multitudes come to the Lord Christ; and be enlarged — Both with joy and love. Because the abundance of the sea — The islands of the sea, the nations; shall be converted unto thee — Shall turn to thee in religion and affection; they that formerly so much hated thee shall now love thee. Or the sense is, The wealth and traffic of those who trade by sea, the riches of the merchants, shall be converted to thy use rather than to the use of the owners thereof. The forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee — Thou shalt not only have the wealth, but the strength of the nations to stand by thee, to protect thee, and aid thy endeavours to evangelize the world.

Isaiah 60:6-7. The multitude of camels — The treasure that is brought upon camels. By these, and such like figurative expressions in several verses of this chapter, is implied the coming in of all nations to Christ, and therefore they are brought in as presenting the chief commodities of their respective countries. The dromedaries — Or, also, or, even the dromedaries; which are a sort of lesser camel, so called from their swiftness in running. For it is said by the Arabs that they will run as far in one day as their best horses will do in nine; and therefore they are chiefly used for riding: for which they are the more fit, because, as Pliny observes, they can endure the want of water four days together. Of Midian and Ephah — The Midianites and Ephahites were descended from Abraham, by Keturah, and dwelt beyond Arabia, where camels were very numerous, Jdg 7:12. All they from Sheba — A country in Arabia Felix, whose queen it was that came to visit Solomon, and her bringing gifts might be a type of this. They shall bring gold and incense — The principal commodities with which this country abounded, by which we are to understand whatever is precious. All the flocks of Kedar — Arabia Petrea, or stony Arabia, the people inhabiting which being principally shepherds. They shall come up with acceptance — They shall not now, as heretofore, be rejected. I will glorify the house of my glory — He alludes to the temple, but must be understood as intending the gospel church, built of living stones, of which the temple at Jerusalem, with all the splendour of its ornaments, and the whole multitude of its sacrifices and oblations, was but a typical or shadowy representation.

Isaiah 60:8. Who are these that fly as a cloud — These metaphors import the number, as well as speed, of those that should be begotten by the apostles’ doctrine. “By this new crowd of believers hastening to the church,” Vitringa understands “the Greeks and Asiatics, and those of the west groaning under the Ottoman empire, who, having long sat in a state of ignorance and superstition, at this period shall be freed from their yoke, and hasten to the enlightened church in multitudes, like a cloud, and with zeal and impetuosity, (like doves to their cotes or holes,) when once made acquainted with the wonderful change of things, and the mighty works wrought by God for the deliverance of his people. The flight of doves, especially when they return to their cotes, is remarkably swift and precipitate.”

Isaiah 60:9. Surely the isles shall wait for me — The countries remote from Judea, and especially the islands and continents of Europe, generally intended by the term isles. And the ships — To convey them to me; of Tarshish first — Those that traffic by sea. In naming this, he implied all places that had commerce with other nations. Concerning Tarshish, see note on Isaiah 2:16. To bring thy sons from far — From the most distant countries; their silver and their gold with them — With all their treasure; unto the name of the Lord — To be presented to the Lord, and employed for the advancement of his glory, and the benefit of his church and people. Because he hath glorified thee — He will make thee honourable in the eyes of the world, and that especially by setting up the ministry of the gospel in the midst of thee.

Isaiah 60:10-12. And the sons of the stranger — Namely, such as were not Israelites born, but of Gentile race; and he puts sons of strangers, by a usual Hebraism, for strangers; shall build up thy walls — As Gentile proselytes to the Jewish religion assisted the Jews in repairing the walls of Jerusalem upon their return from captivity, so Gentile converts to Christianity assisted the apostles, evangelists, and other ministers of Christ, who were of Jewish extraction, in building and adorning the Christian Church: and for many ages its builders have been almost wholly of Gentile race. And their kings shall minister unto thee — Ecclesiastical history affords us many instances of kings and princes that were great benefactors to her, among whom Constantine greatly excelled. For in my wrath I smote thee, &c. — As I afflicted thee in mine anger, so out of my compassions I will abundantly bless thee. “The discourse here,” says Vitringa, “rises, and will continue to rise till the end of the section, that the blindest may discern spiritual things involved in these corporeal figures and emblems. It is not sufficient that the nations only, with their wealth and possessions, shall be added to the church, and perform all requisite offices toward it, but kings and princes also shall come: nor shall they come alone; a great retinue shall attend them: nor shall instances of their approach be few and rare, but common and frequent; insomuch that the gates of the city shall be always left open to receive this continual accession of kings and people.” The nation, &c., that will not serve thee — Do offices of kindness to thee, as the word ועבדוis used Isaiah 19:23, or, that will not submit to Christ’s sceptre; shall perish — Shall not only be subdued to thee, but shall be destroyed by the sword, or famine, or pestilence, or some other of the divine judgments. Yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted — Shall, by the peculiar interposition of a righteous providence, be brought to desolation. “This,” says Lowth, “must relate to the latter days, as the Scripture calls them, when the church shall become a great mountain, and break in pieces all the kingdoms of the earth, according to Daniel’s prophecy, Daniel 2:35; Daniel 2:44.”