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ISA 9:3
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ISA 9:4
Isaiah 9:4. For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden— His burdensome yoke. The following discourse illustrates the preceding; for it sets forth the great and mighty benefits connected with the appearance of the Messiah, among which the first mentioned is a taking off of the yoke from the shoulders of the people of Christ, and the giving them true liberty, after the example of the deliverance formerly obtained by Gideon, though proceeding from God alone without any human aid. See Jer 23:6 and Luk 1:70-71 where Zechariah seems to have had this passage in view. The yoke here spoken of means the yoke of sin, which occasioned the yoke and servitude of the law, (Galatians 3:19. Acts 15:10.) and the oppressor seems most probably to refer to that strong man, whose power Christ broke and destroyed. The general meaning of the verse is, that Christ destroyed the power of sin and Satan: Hebrews 2:14-15. 1 John 3:8. We may just observe, that as all the great deliverances in the church were figurative of that through Christ, so this of Gideon has by most writers been understood as remarkably figurative of the Christian redemption. See Vitringa.
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ISA 9:5
Isaiah 9:5. For every battle of the warrior, &c.— So that every clashing of the noisy warrior, and the garment rolled in blood, shall be thrown to be burned; fuel for the fire. Vitringa; who observes, that another cause of rejoicing, connected with the former, is peace on earth, Luk 2:14 which should follow the destruction of the enemies of Christ, a remarkable consequence of his appearing in the flesh, and of his kingdom which is described in these words. This is my opinion, says he, though it must be acknowledged that the construction of the passage is extremely difficult, and that it has been very variously interpreted. See Psalms 46:9-10. Vitringa thinks that the words include another sense, and refer to that destruction by fire which is threatened and has fallen upon some of the enemies of the gospel, and particularly upon Jerusalem and the temple. See chap. Isa 30:33 Isaiah 33:12. Rev 18:8. 2 Peter 3:10.
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Isaiah 9:3. Thou hast multiplied the nation, &c.— The prophet, in the remainder of this discourse, sets forth, First, A consequence of this great benefit, that is, the joy of the pious for so great a blessing, vouchsafed to them; and secondly, He enumerates three causes of this joy; Isaiah 9:4-6. With respect to the first, there seems to be no doubt but the verse should be read as follows, Thou hast advanced the nation; hast heightened upon her the joy, &c. which is Vitringa's version; who observes very judiciously, that instead of לא la, not; לו lo, to her or it, should be read; which is agreeable to many of the ancient versions. The meaning is, "Thou hast advanced, amplified, or increased this nation with a very great benefit, and therefore prepared for it the highest joy; joy which, as the angel says to the shepherd, shall be to all people; true joy, arising from the consolations of the Gospel." See Luke 2:10. Zechariah 2:10. The prophet, in the subsequent part of the verse, makes use of two expressions to denote the highest degree of joy. See Psalms 4:7; Psalms 119:62.
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