Commentary on Isaiah, Commentary on Isaiah · Chapter 40 · Verse 25 – Verse 26
Verſ. 25. I hauehave raiſed vp from the north, and hee ſhall come: from the eaſt Sunne ſhall hee call vponupon my name, and ſhall come vponupon Princes, as vponupon clay, and as the potter treadeth mire vnderunder foote.
NOw hee turnes againe to the argument which hee touched before concerning Gods preſcience and power; and ſhewes that the name of diuinitie appertaines to him onelyonly, in whom theſe things are to be found. Touching his raiſing from the north, ſome expound it of Cyrus; others, of Chriſt: but I think the Prophet notes out two things here; ſo as by north, we are to vnderſtand the Caldeans, and by the eaſt, the Medes and Perſians: as if hee ſhould ſay; There vvill come two changes vvorthy of memorie, for I vvill raiſe vp the Caldeans, Caldeans.and exalt their kingdome: afterward, the Perſians Perſians.ſhall come, vvhichwhich ſhall bee their Lords and Maſters.
Now although theſe things were to fall out long time after, yet the Lord ſhewes that they were already manifeſt in his ſight; yea, that hee ordained them in his ſecret counſell, to the end the euent thereof might be a certaine token of his diuinitie. Yet in the firſt member of the verſe, he denounceth iudgement, to feare the Iewes: in the ſecond, he ſets forth mercy, in teſtifying that the captiuitie and deliuerance of the people was his worke, that all might perceiue that the preſcience and power of God were things which did indeed belong vntounto him.
The prophane nations diuide certaine offices amongſt their gods: Apollo,Apollos. Iupiter. he foretels things to come: Iupiter, he puts them in execution: another, hee diſpatches a buſineſſe contrarie to that: but Gods officeGods office. is not only to foretell and ſignifie things to come, but to diſpoſe of things alſo according to his good pleaſure. For in whatſoeuer thing it be that any diuinitie ſhines, it ought to bee aſcribed to God onelyonly, and not to any other. This is the cauſe why hee appropriates to himſelfe both preſcience, Preſcience and the execution thereof, ought to be appropriated to God inſeparably.and the execution of the ſame inſeparably.
In that hee ſaith, he will raiſe vp from the north, hee prophecieth (as I touched before) of the captiuitie to come: of which there was no feare at that time, becauſe the Iewes and Caldeans were in league together: in the next place hee prophecieth of the reſtauration of the people, who had leaue of Cyrus to returne into to their Country. Now who would hauehave imagined that things being in ſo good plight, (as then they were) that ſuch a change had been poſſible, eſpecially in regard the euent was to fall out long time after, namely,About ſome two hundred yeeres betweene the time of Iſaiahs prophecies, and the accompliſhmēt thereof. about 200. yeeres after the prophecies of Iſaiah? And yet the Lord teſtifies that he is the author thereof; that ſo all might know that the Caldeans came not by chance, but were raiſed vp of God, who vſed them as his rods to correct the Iewes withall.
The Medes and Perſians alſo ſubdued not the Caldeans by their owne power, further forth then as they were led and directed by the ſame hand of the Lord. In this place therfore hee ſets forth the greatneſſe of Gods power, and that ſo plainly, that hee proues Kings and Princes to be but dung and dirt in compariſon of him.
And thus we may yet better perceiue, that the Prophet not onelyonly reſpected thoſe of his owne time, but thoſe alſo which ſhould come after him: for they which then liued, could hardly diſcerne what this meant; but their ſucceſſors which ſaw it, and had experience of it, vnderſtood it much better. The end was, that all might know how there was but one God, before whoſe eies all things are naked and manifeſt, and who gouernes all things according to his good pleaſure. You may perceiue then what an excellent text this is, in that it ſhewes the perfection and certentie of Gods oracles.The perfection and certentie of Gods oracles. For the Iewes forged not theſe prophecies whileſt they were priſoners in Babylon; but their fathers hauing heard and receiued thē long time before, their ſucceſſors at laſt acknowledged Gods iuſt iudgement, whereof they had been forewarned before: and in the ſecond place, they alſo imbraced the mercy offered, in that they ſaw God would in due time ſend thē deliuerance: who as he is the preſeruer of his Church, ſo they felt him faithfull in his promiſes, by good triall and experience.Iſaiah ſpake as hee was moued by the holie Ghoſt. From this place therefore we may ſafely conclude, that Iſaiah ſpake not by his owne motion; but that God vſed his tongue as the organ of the holie Ghoſt, who put theſe wordes into his mouth.
The certaintie of prophecies.In that he ſaith, he ſhall come; it ſignifies that whatſoeuer was foretold by Gods commandement, ſhould without all peraduenture come to paſſe. For hee ſpeakes of a thing to come,Gods preſcience and power. which ſets out as in liuely tables the preſcience of God. Secondly, in adding that he is the author of theſe things, that is to bee applied to his power. To call vponupon the name of God, ſignifies nothing elſe in this place, but to perform ſomewhat at Gods commandement. It is true that Cyrus little thought he was imploied in the ſeruice of the God of Iſrael, neither meant he to obey him: but the euent ſhewed that the Lord marched before him by his ſecret power and prouidence, to bring him to Babylon by continuall and incredible victories.
In comparing him to a Potter which treads his clay, it is added becauſe eueryevery one thoght the ſtrength and power of the Caldeans was ſo great, that none was able to vanquiſh thē: for they ſeemed inuincible then indeed. But euen at that time when the Babylonians truſted in their wealth, deſpiſed their enemies, and proudly aduanced themſelues, the Prophet telles vsus that they, and infinit others beſides, ſhould be troden vnderunder foote as the Potter doth his clay. In a word, his meaning is, that the proſperous eſtate of the Caldeans could no way hinder the change that was to come; neither ſhould they be able to let the Medes and Perſians from inioying their Monarchy. And truly the iſſue did well verifie and confirme the truth of this ſimilitude, when Cyrus hauing vanquiſhed ſo many nations, and got many godlie victories, did in a little ſpace of time conquer all the Eaſt.
Verſ. 26. Who hath declared from the beginning, that wee may know? or before time, that we may ſay, he is righteous? Surely there is none that ſheweth, ſurely there is none that declareth, ſurely there is none that heareth your words.
THe Lord hauing made proofe of his Diuinitie, returnes againe to ſhew the difference betweene him and idols. For he asks whether the idolaters were able for the confirmation of their falſe worſhip to ſay the like for themſelues: that is, to alleadge any example of ſuch a preſcience or power. Now becauſe hee might without controuerſie, rightly attribute theſe things to himſelfe, in deriſion of them he anſwers for them; Surely we acknowledge, that hee vvhichwhich is able to doe ſuch things, muſt needs be the true God.
Word for word it is, vve vvill ſay he is iuſt: but the word Iuſt, hath many ſignifications: for it is taken ſometimes for True & Approued: in which ſenſe it is ſaid, Luke 7.35. That wiſdome is iuſtified of her children: that is to ſay, approued. Wee hauehave ſeene teſtimonies enow then of Gods diuine maieſtie, which hath put downe all the vanities of idols, in regard that all things in heauen and earth are gouerned and ruled at the diſpoſition of one onelyonly God; who in an inſtant is able to bring the mightieſt Monarks to nought.
Now the Lord ſpeakes heere in the plurall number, vve; to ſhew that he defends not his own cauſe alone, but his peoples alſo. I grant his owne eternitie is ſufficient for him; but we being ſtill infirme, it is behoouefull for vsus to know certainly that hee is the true God, that ſo our mindes may not wander after creatures, but may reſt wholly and onelyonly in him. Experimentall knowledge therefore is added with the word,Experimētall knowledge muſt be ioined with the word. the better to ſuſtaine our weake faith, if it be yet ready to wauer. In the next member he ſaith, that the idols are all mute, and leaue thoſe that follow and ſerue them in ſuſpence. Whiliſt God on the contrary, makes the candle of his word to burne ſo cleerly, that it is able to giuegive light to his elect people, and to giuegive them both what to ſpeake and thinke.