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The prophet in this chapter (according to the directions given him, Isa 3:10,11) saith to the righteous, It shall be well with thee, but Woe to the wicked, it shall be ill with him. Here are, I. Gracious promises to those that adhere to the law and to the testimony; while those that seek to familiar spirits shall be driven into darkness and dimness, they shall see a great light, relief in the midst of their distresses, typical of gospel grace. 1. In the doctrine of the Messiah, Isa 9:1-3. 2. His victories, Isa 9:4,5. 3. His government and dominion as Immanuel, Isa 9:6,7. II. Dreadful threatenings against the people of Israel, who had revolted from and were enemies to the house of David, that they should be brought to utter ruin, that their pride should bring them down (Isa 9:8-10), that their neighbours should make a prey of them (Isa 9:11,12), that, for their impenitence and hypocrisy, all their ornaments and supports should be cut off (Isa 9:13-17), and that by the wrath of God against them, and their wrath one against another, they should be brought to utter ruin, Isa 9:18-21. And this is typical of the final destruction of all the enemies of the Son of David and his kingdom.

This chapter Isaiah 9 is a continuation of the prophecy begun in Isaiah 7, and continued in Isaiah 8. It is composed of mingled threats and promises. Its characteristic may be said to be "rays of light thrown into the midst of shades." It promises comfort and deliverance, while at the same time it denounces the sins of the nation, and assures the nation that the anger of the Lord is not turned away. The previous chapter had closed by describing a time of general calamity and darkness. This begins Isaiah 9:1-4 by showing that the calamity would not be so great as in former times. It would be mitigated. There would be light - particularly in the dark regions of Zebulun and Naphtali - the provinces lying most exposed to the Syrian invasion. This light or deliverance was connected with the birth of the promised child Isaiah 9:6-7; and the mention of this leads the prophet into a magnificent description of his names, character, and reign. The prophet then returns to the threatened destruction of Israel and denounces the divine judgment against it. By the Syrians and the Philistines it would be invaded and destroyed, Isaiah 9:8-12. The effects of this, in cutting off their sources of strength, and producing general dismay and ruin, are described in the remainder of the chapter, Isaiah 9:13-21. The chapter, therefore, would impart consolation to the inhabitants of Judah, and is designed to confirm the promise that it should be safe from the threatened invasion; compare Isaiah 8:1-4.

This chapter contains an illustrious prophecy of the Messiah. He is represented under the glorious figure of the sun, or light, rising on a benighted world, and diffusing joy and gladness wherever he sheds his beams, Isaiah 9:1-3. His conquests are astonishing and miraculous, as in the day of Midian; and the peace which they procure is to be permanent, as denoted by the burning of all the implements of war, Isaiah 9:4, Isaiah 9:5. The person and character of this great Deliverer are then set forth in the most magnificent terms which the language of mankind could furnish, Isaiah 9:6. The extent of his kingdom is declared to be universal, and the duration of it eternal, Isaiah 9:7. The prophet foretells most awful calamities which were ready to fall upon the Israelites on account of their manifold impieties, Isaiah 9:8-21.

INTRODUCTION TO Isaiah 9

This chapter contains a prophecy, partly of comfort to the church and people of God, against the calamities predicted in the preceding chapter Isaiah 8:1; and partly of punishment, to be inflicted upon the ungodly Israelites by their enemies. The comfort promised arises from the appearance of Christ, the great light, in some certain places of the land mentioned, said before to be afflicted, Isaiah 9:1 which would occasion a joy among them; illustrated by some similes, by the joy in harvest, and at the dividing of spoils, Isaiah 9:3 the cause of which is a deliverance from a burdensome yoke of tyranny and bondage, wrought in like manner as that by Gideon formerly; different from all other salvations, which are usually obtained with noise and blood, Isaiah 9:4 the author of which is the Messiah; who is described by his birth as man, and by his divine sonship as God; or by his person, having two natures united in him; and by the government devolved on him; and by his several names, which express the greatness and glory of his person and office; and by the increase and administration of his government, Isaiah 9:6 then follows a denunciation of judgment on Israel, Isaiah 9:8 the instruments of which are pointed at, Isaiah 9:11, and the persons described that should suffer, high and low, rich and poor, young and old, Isaiah 9:14 the reasons of it, their making light of former corrections, Isaiah 9:9 their impenitence and hardness under chastenings, Isaiah 9:13 their going astray by means of their leaders; and their hypocrisy and wickedness, Isaiah 9:16 all which would occasion the wrath of God to burn against them, and consume them, Isaiah 9:18 yea, through hunger and want of provisions, should destroy one another, Isaiah 9:20.

Chap. Isaiah 8:19 to Isaiah 9:7. Esoteric prophecies of the future addressed to Isaiah’s disciples

The prophet, having now discontinued and “sealed up” his public “testimony,” appears to address himself in what follows to his own immediate followers. The passage presents, in vivid contrast, two pictures; one of the darkness and despair that are settling down on the incorrigible nation, the other of the light and joy that are to break upon it with the advent of the Messianic salvation. “The morning cometh and also the night” (ch. Isaiah 21:12).

i. Isaiah 9:19-21. The night of despair and affliction. The whole of this section is unusually obscure, but two features can be clearly recognised, corresponding to the double prophecy in ch. Isaiah 6:9-12.

(1) Spiritual darkness, the people resorting to necromancy, &c., in default of a true revelation (19, 20). This we may regard as a symptom of the last stage of the hardening of heart foretold in Isaiah 6:9 f.

(2) Outward distress: men roaming through a dreary land, maddened by hunger, and seeking relief in vain (21, 22). The fulfilment of Isaiah 6:11 f.

Ch. Isaiah 9:1 (in the Hebr. 8:23) is a transition verse.

ii. Ch. Isaiah 9:2-7. The dawn of the Messianic age.

(1) The light and joy of the great deliverance (2, 3).

(2) The manner of the deliverance: the overthrow of the Assyrian tyrant (4, 5).

(3) The advent of the Messianic King (6, 7).

Isa 9:1-7.

CONTINUATION OF THE PROPHECY IN THE EIGHTH CHAPTER.

1. Nevertheless, &c.--rather, "For darkness shall not (continually) be on it (that is, the land) on which there is (now) distress" [HENGSTENBERG and MAURER]. The "for" refers, not to the words immediately preceding, but to the consolations in

Isa 8:9, 10, 17, 18.

Do not despair, for, &c.

when at the first, &c.--rather, "as the former time has brought contempt on the land of Zebulun and Naphtali (namely, the deportation of their inhabitants under Tiglath-pileser,

2Ki 15:29,

a little before the giving of this prophecy); so shall the after-coming time bring honor to the way of the sea (the district around the lake of Galilee), the land beyond (but HENGSTENBERG, "by the side of") Jordan (Perea, east of Jordan, belonging to Reuben, Gad, and half-Manasseh), the circle (but HENGSTENBERG, "Galilee") (that is, region) of the "Gentiles" [MAURER, HENGSTENBERG, &c.]. Galil in Hebrew is a "circle," "circuit," and from it came the name Galilee. North of Naphtali, inhabited by a mixed race of Jews and Gentiles of the bordering Phœnician race

(Jud 1:30; 1Ki 9:11).

Besides the recent deportation by Tiglath-pileser, it had been sorely smitten by Ben-hadad of Syria, two hundred years before

(1Ki 15:20).

It was after the Assyrian deportation colonized with heathens, by Esar-haddon

(2Ki 17:24).

Hence arose the contempt for it on the part of the southern Jews of purer blood

(Joh 1:46; 7:52).

The same region which was so darkened once, shall be among the first to receive Messiah's light

(Mt 4:13, 15, 16).

It was in despised Galilee that He first and most publicly exercised His ministry; from it were most of His apostles. Foretold in

De 33:18, 19; Ac 2:7; Ps 68:27, 28,

Jerusalem, the theocratic capital, might readily have known Messiah; to compensate less favored Galilee, He ministered mostly there; Galilee's very debasement made it feel its need of a Saviour, a feeling not known to the self-righteous Jews

(Mt 9:13).

It was appropriate, too, that He who was both "the Light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of His people Israel," should minister chiefly on the border land of Israel, near the Gentiles.

Nevertheless - Notwithstanding what is said in the previous chapter of the calamities that are coming upon Israel. Hengstenberg renders this whole verse: 'For darkness shall not be upon the land upon which there is distress; as the former time has dishonored the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali; so shall the time come to honor it, the region on the border of the sea, by the side of the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles.'

The dimness - The Hebrew word hero denotes obscurity, or darkness; and is used here, as the word darkness often is in the Scriptures, to denote calamity or affliction. The dimness, or calamity, here referred to, is that which is threatened, Isaiah 8:21-22.

Shall not be such - It shall not be unbroken darkness, and unalleviated calamity; but it shall be interrupted by the rising of the great light that shall shine on the dark land of Zebulun and Naphtali.

In her vexation - The word 'her' refers to the whole land of Palestine, to the afflictions that came upon the whole region. The word vexation, מוצק mûtsâq means oppression, calamity, or being "straitened, or pressed."

When at the first - In the former time; on a former occasion.

He lightly afflicted - The word used here, קלל qâlal, means properly, to be, or make light, or small; and in Hiphil, the form which occurs here, it often means to "esteem lightly, to despise, to hold in contempt;" 2 Samuel 19:43; Ezekiel 22:7. It probably has that sense here, as the design of the prophet is evidently to speak, not of a light affliction in the former time, but of a grievous, heavy calamity - a calamity which would be well denoted by the expression, 'he made them vile; he exposed them to contempt and derision.' The time to which reference is made here, was probably the invasion of the land by Tiglath-pileser; 2 Kings 15:29; 1 Chronicles 5:26. In that invasion, the parts of Zebulun and Naphtali were particularly afflicted. 'Tiglath-pileser took Ijon, and Gilead, and Galilee, and all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria;' 2 Kings 15:29. This region had also been invaded by Benhadad two hundred years before the time of Isaiah; 1 Kings 15:20, and there might have been a reference to these various invasions to which this northern part of the land of Palestine had been subjected.

The land of Zebulun - The region occupied by the tribe of Zebulun. This tribe was located between the sea of Tiberias, or the lake Gennesareth, and the Mediterranean. It extended entirely across from the one to the other, and as it was thus favored with a somewhat extended seacoast, the people were more given to commerce than the other tribes, and hence, mingled more with surrounding nations.

And the land of Naphtali - The region which was occupied by this tribe was directly north of Zebulun, and of the sea of Galilee, having that sea and the tribe of Zebulun on the south and southeast, Asher on the west, and a part of the tribe of Manasseh, on the east.

And afterward - That is, in subsequent times; meaning times that were to come after the prophecy here delivered. The previous part of the verse refers to the calamities that had come upon that region in former times. The expression here refers to what was seen by the prophet as yet to occur.

Did more grievously afflict - הכביד hı̂kebbı̂yd. This verb has very various significations. It properly means "to be heavy, to be grievous, to lie or fall heavy on anyone, to be dull, obstinate; also, to be honored, respected;" that is, of weight, or influence in society. It means, in Hiphil, the form which is used here, "to make heavy, or grievous;" 1 Kings 12:10; Isaiah 47:6; "to oppress," Nehemiah 5:15; and it also means to "cause to be honored, or distinguished, to favor. - Gesenius." The connection requires that it should have this sense here, and the passage means, that the land which he had made vile in former times, or had suffered to be despised, he had purposed to honor, or to render illustrious by the great light that should rise on it. So Lowth, Rosenmuller, and Gesenius, translate it; see a similar use of the word in Jeremiah 30:19; 2 Chronicles 25:19; 1 Samuel 2:30.

By the way of the sea - The sea of Galilee, or Gennesareth. All this region was in the vicinity of that sea. The word "way" here, דרך derek, means toward, or in the vicinity of. The extensive dark region lying in the vicinity of that sea, Both those tribes bordered on the sea of Tiberias, or had that as a part of their boundary.

Beyond Jordan - This expression - הירדן עבר ‛ēber hayareddēn - means in the vicinity of Jordan; the land by the side of the Jordan, or perhaps that large region through which the upper part of the Jordan passed. It does not mean strictly on the east of Jordan, but rather the northern portion of the land. It is such language as a man would use who was describing the upper and imperfectly known regions of the country - the dark, uncivilized region through which the upper part of the Jordan flowed, and the word עבר ‛ēber, rendered here "beyond," means "side" - by the side of the Jordan.

Galilee of the nations - This was sometimes called upper Galilee. It was called 'Galilee of the nations,' or of the Gentiles, because it was surrounded by them, and because the pagan were extensively intermingled with the Jews. In this region, Solomon had given to Hiram, king of Tyre, twenty cities; 1 Kings 9:2. Adjacent to this region were the countries of Phenicia, Tyre, and Sidon; and the people would naturally mingle much with them in commerce. The country abounded with hills and caverns, and, consequently, it was never possible completely to dislodge from the fastnesses the former inhabitants of the land. Strabo enumerates among the inhabitants of Galilee, Arabians and Phenicians. The inhabitants of this country are represented as having been bold and courageous, but as seditious, and prone to insolence and rebellion. If it be asked here, in what way this land had been made contemptible, or why it was regarded as an object of contempt? we may reply,

(1) The district in which these two tribes dwelt constituted the border-land toward the pagan nations.

(2) The Galileans not only dwelt in the vicinity of the pagan, but a large number of them had actually remained in the country, and it had been found impossible to expel them from it; Judges 1:30-35.

(3) The Phenicians, with whom they held commercial contact, and with whom they dwelt intermingled, were among the most corrupt of the pagan nations. To this may be added,

(4) They were far from Jerusalem, and, consequently, the influence of religion may be supposed to have been less felt among them than among the other Jews. The true religion was, in a great measure, lost upon them, and ignorance and superstition took its place. Hence, in the New Testament, they are spoken of as almost proverbially rude and ignorant.

Dimness "Accumulated darkness" - Either מנדחה menuddechah, fem. to agree with אפלה aphelah; or אפל המנדח aphel hammenuddach, alluding perhaps to the palpable Egyptian darkness, Exodus 10:21.

The land of Zebulun - Zebulun, Naphtali, Manasseh, that is, the country of Galilee all round the sea of Gennesareth, were the parts that principally suffered in the first Assyrian invasion under Tiglath-pileser; see 2 Kings 15:29; 1 Chronicles 5:26. And they were the first that enjoyed the blessings of Christ's preaching the Gospel, and exhibiting his miraculous works among them. See Mede's Works, p. 101, and 457. This, which makes the twenty-third verse of chap. 8 in the Hebrew, is the first verse in chap. 9 in our authorized version. Bishop Lowth follows the division in the Hebrew.