mh_parser/vol_split/23 - Isaiah/Chapter 41.xml

<div2 id="Is.xlii" n="xlii" next="Is.xliii" prev="Is.xli" progress="15.02%" title="Chapter XLI">
<h2 id="Is.xlii-p0.1">I S A I A H.</h2>
<h3 id="Is.xlii-p0.2">CHAP. XLI.</h3>
<p class="intro" id="Is.xlii-p1" shownumber="no">This chapter, as the former, in intended both for
the conviction of idolaters and for the consolation of all God's
faithful worshippers; for the Spirit is sent, and ministers are
employed by him, both to convince and to comfort. And however this
might be primarily intended for the conviction of Babylonians, and
the comfort of Israelites, or for the conviction of those in Israel
that were addicted to idolatry, as multitudes were, and the comfort
of those that kept their integrity, doubtless it was intended both
for admonition and encouragement to us, admonition to keep
ourselves from idols and encouragement to trust in God. Here, I.
God by the prophet shows the folly of those that worshipped idols,
especially that thought their idols able to contest with him and
control him, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p1.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.1-Isa.41.9" parsed="|Isa|41|1|41|9" passage="Isa 41:1-9">ver. 1-9</scripRef>.
II. He encourages his faithful ones to trust in him, with an
assurance that he would take their part against their enemies, make
them victorious over them, and bring about a happy change of their
affairs, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p1.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.10-Isa.41.20" parsed="|Isa|41|10|41|20" passage="Isa 41:10-20">ver. 10-20</scripRef>.
III. He challenges the idols, that were rivals with him for men's
adoration, to vie with him either for knowledge or power, either to
show things to come or to do good or evil, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p1.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.21-Isa.41.29" parsed="|Isa|41|21|41|29" passage="Isa 41:21-29">ver. 21-29</scripRef>. So that the chapter may be
summed up in those words of Elijah, "If Jehovah be God, then follow
him; but, if Baal be God, then follow him;" and in the people's
acknowledgment, upon the issue of the trial, "Jehovah he is the
God, Jehovah he is the God."</p>
<scripCom id="Is.xlii-p1.4" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41" parsed="|Isa|41|0|0|0" passage="Isa 41" type="Commentary"/>
<scripCom id="Is.xlii-p1.5" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.1-Isa.41.9" parsed="|Isa|41|1|41|9" passage="Isa 41:1-9" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Is.xlii-p1.6">
<h4 id="Is.xlii-p1.7">Idolatry Exposed. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p1.8">b. c.</span> 708.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Is.xlii-p2" shownumber="no">1 Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the
people renew <i>their</i> strength: let them come near; then let
them speak: let us come near together to judgment.   2 Who
raised up the righteous <i>man</i> from the east, called him to his
foot, gave the nations before him, and made <i>him</i> rule over
kings? he gave <i>them</i> as the dust to his sword, <i>and</i> as
driven stubble to his bow.   3 He pursued them, <i>and</i>
passed safely; <i>even</i> by the way <i>that</i> he had not gone
with his feet.   4 Who hath wrought and done <i>it,</i>
calling the generations from the beginning? I the <span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p2.1">Lord</span>, the first, and with the last; I <i>am</i>
he.   5 The isles saw <i>it,</i> and feared; the ends of the
earth were afraid, drew near, and came.   6 They helped every
one his neighbour; and <i>every one</i> said to his brother, Be of
good courage.   7 So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith,
<i>and</i> he that smootheth <i>with</i> the hammer him that smote
the anvil, saying, It <i>is</i> ready for the sodering: and he
fastened it with nails, <i>that</i> it should not be moved.  
8 But thou, Israel, <i>art</i> my servant, Jacob whom I have
chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.   9 <i>Thou</i> whom I
have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the
chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou <i>art</i> my servant;
I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p3" shownumber="no">That particular instance of God's care for
his people Israel in raising up Cyrus to be their deliverer is here
insisted upon as a great proof both of his sovereignty above all
idols and of his power to protect his people. Here is,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p4" shownumber="no">I. A general challenge to the worshippers
and admirers of idols to make good their pretensions, in
competition with God and opposition to him, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p4.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.1" parsed="|Isa|41|1|0|0" passage="Isa 41:1"><i>v.</i> 1</scripRef>. It is renewed (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p4.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.21" parsed="|Isa|41|21|0|0" passage="Isa 41:21"><i>v.</i> 21</scripRef>): <i>Produce your
cause.</i> The court is set, summonses are sent to the islands that
lay most remote, but not out of God's jurisdiction, for he is the
<i>Creator and possessor of the ends of the earth,</i> to make
their appearance and give their attendance. Silence (as usual) is
proclaimed while the cause is in trying: "<i>Keep silence before
me,</i> and judge nothing before the time" ; while the cause is in
trying between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan it
becomes all people silently to expect the issue, not to object
against God's proceedings, but to be confident that he will carry
the day. The defenders of idolatry are called to say what they can
in defence of it: "<i>Let them renew their strength,</i> in
opposition to God, and see whether it be equal to the strength
which those renew that wait upon him (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p4.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.40.31" parsed="|Isa|40|31|0|0" passage="Isa 40:31"><i>ch.</i> xl. 31</scripRef>); let them try their
utmost efforts, whether by force of arms or force of argument.
<i>Let them come near;</i> they shall not complain that God's
<i>dread makes them afraid</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p4.4" osisRef="Bible:Job.13.21" parsed="|Job|13|21|0|0" passage="Job 13:21">Job
xiii. 21</scripRef>), so that they cannot say what they have to
say, in vindication and honour of their idols; no, <i>let them
speak</i> freely: <i>Let us come near together to judgment.</i>"
Note. 1. The cause of God and his kingdom is not afraid of a fair
trial; if the case be but fairly stated, it will be surely carried
in favour of religion. 2. The enemies of God's church and his holy
religion may safely be challenged to say and do their worst for the
support of their unrighteous cause. He that <i>sits in heaven
laughs at them,</i> and the <i>daughter of Zion despises them;</i>
for <i>great is the truth and will prevail.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p5" shownumber="no">II. He particularly challenges the idols to
do that for their worshippers, and against his, which he had done
and would do for his worshippers, and against theirs. Different
senses are given of <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p5.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.2" parsed="|Isa|41|2|0|0" passage="Isa 41:2"><i>v.</i>
2</scripRef>, concerning <i>the righteous man raised up from the
east;</i> and, since we cannot determine which is the true, we will
make use of each as good.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p6" shownumber="no">1. That which is to be proved is, (1.) That
<i>the Lord is God</i> alone, <i>the first and with the last</i>
(<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p6.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.4" parsed="|Isa|41|4|0|0" passage="Isa 41:4"><i>v.</i> 4</scripRef>), that he is
infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, that he governed the world
from the beginning, and will to the end of time. He has reigned of
old, and will reign for ever; the counsels of his kingdom were from
eternity, and the continuance of it will be to eternity. (2.) That
<i>Israel</i> is <i>his servant</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p6.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.8" parsed="|Isa|41|8|0|0" passage="Isa 41:8"><i>v.</i> 8</scripRef>), whom he owns, and protects, and
employs, and in whom he is and will be glorified. As there is a God
in heaven, so there is a church on earth that is his particular
care. Elijah prays (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p6.3" osisRef="Bible:1Kgs.18.36" parsed="|1Kgs|18|36|0|0" passage="1Ki 18:36">1 Kings xviii.
36</scripRef>), <i>Let it be known that thou art God, and that I am
thy servant.</i> Now,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p7" shownumber="no">2. To prove this he shows,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p8" shownumber="no">(1.) That it was he who called Abraham, the
father of this despised nation, out of an idolatrous country, and
by many instances of his favour <i>made his name great,</i>
<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.1" osisRef="Bible:Gen.12.2" parsed="|Gen|12|2|0|0" passage="Ge 12:2">Gen. xii. 2</scripRef>. He is <i>the
righteous man whom God raised up from the east.</i> Of him the
Chaldee paraphrast expressly understands it: <i>Who brought Abraham
publicly from the east?</i> To maintain the honour of the people of
Israel, it was very proper to show what a figure this great
ancestor of theirs made in his day; and <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.8" parsed="|Isa|41|8|0|0" passage="Isa 41:8"><i>v.</i> 8</scripRef> seems to be the explication of
it, where God calls Israel the <i>seed of Abraham my friend;</i>
and (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.4" parsed="|Isa|41|4|0|0" passage="Isa 41:4"><i>v.</i> 4</scripRef>) he
<i>calls the generations</i> (namely, the generations of Israel)
<i>from the beginning.</i> Also, to put contempt upon idolatry, and
particularly the Chaldean idolatry, it was proper to show how
Abraham was called from serving other gods (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.4" osisRef="Bible:Josh.24.2-Josh.24.3" parsed="|Josh|24|2|24|3" passage="Jos 24:2,3">Josh. xxiv. 2, 3</scripRef>, &amp;c.), so that an
early testimony was borne against that idolatry which boasted so
much of its antiquity. Also, to encourage the captives in Babylon
to hope that God would find a way for their return to their own
land, it was proper to remind them how at first he brought their
father Abraham out of the same country into this land, to give it
to him for an inheritance, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.5" osisRef="Bible:Gen.15.7" parsed="|Gen|15|7|0|0" passage="Ge 15:7">Gen. xv.
7</scripRef>. Now observe what is here said concerning him. [1.]
That he was a <i>righteous man,</i> or <i>righteousness,</i> a
<i>man of righteousness,</i> that <i>believed God, and it was
counted to him for righteousness;</i> and so he became the father
of all those who by faith in Christ are made the <i>righteousness
of God through him,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.6" osisRef="Bible:Rom.4.3 Bible:Rom.4.11 Bible:2Cor.5.21" parsed="|Rom|4|3|0|0;|Rom|4|11|0|0;|2Cor|5|21|0|0" passage="Ro 4:3,11,2Co 5:21">Rom.
iv. 3, 11; 2 Cor. v. 21</scripRef>. He was a great example of
righteousness in his day, and <i>taught his household to do
judgment and justice,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.7" osisRef="Bible:Gen.18.19" parsed="|Gen|18|19|0|0" passage="Ge 18:19">Gen. xviii.
19</scripRef>. [2.] That God <i>raised him up from the east,</i>
from Ur first and afterwards from Haran, which lay east from
Canaan. God would not let him settle in either of those places, but
did by him as the eagle by her young, when she stirs up her nest:
he raised him out of iniquity and made him pious, out of obscurity
and made him famous. [3.] He <i>called him to his foot,</i> to
follow him with an implicit faith; for he <i>went out, not knowing
whither he went,</i> but whom he followed, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.8" osisRef="Bible:Heb.11.8" parsed="|Heb|11|8|0|0" passage="Heb 11:8">Heb. xi. 8</scripRef>. Those whom God effectually calls
he calls to his foot, to be subject to him, to attend him, and
<i>follow the Lamb whithersoever he goes;</i> and we must all
either come to his foot or be made his footstool. [4.] <i>He gave
nations before him,</i> the nations of Canaan, which he promised to
make him master of, and thus far gave him an interest in that the
Hittites acknowledged him a mighty prince among them, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.9" osisRef="Bible:Gen.23.6" parsed="|Gen|23|6|0|0" passage="Ge 23:6">Gen. xxiii. 6</scripRef>. He <i>made him rule
over</i> those <i>kings</i> whom he conquered for the rescue of his
brother Lot, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p8.10" osisRef="Bible:Gen.14.1-Gen.14.24" parsed="|Gen|14|1|14|24" passage="Ge 14:1-24">Gen. xiv</scripRef>.
And when God <i>gave them as dust to his sword, and as driven
stubble to his bow</i> (that is, made them an easy prey to his
catechised servants), <i>he</i> then <i>pursued them, and passed
safely,</i> or in peace, under the divine protection, though it was
in a way he was altogether unacquainted with; and so considerable
was this victory that Melchizedec himself appeared to celebrate it.
Now who did this but the great Jehovah? Can any of the gods of the
heathen do so?</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p9" shownumber="no">(2.) That it is he who will, ere long,
raise up Cyrus from the east. It is spoken of according to the
language of prophecy as a thing past, because as sure to be done in
its season as if it were already done. <i>God will raise him up in
righteousness</i> (so it may be read, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p9.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.45.13" parsed="|Isa|45|13|0|0" passage="Isa 45:13"><i>ch.</i> xlv. 13</scripRef>), <i>will call him to his
foot,</i> make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious
over the nations that oppose his coming to the crown, and give him
success in all his wars; and he shall be a type of Christ, who is
righteousness itself, the Lord our righteousness, whom God will, in
the fulness of time, raise up and make victorious over the powers
of darkness; so that he shall spoil them and make a show of them
openly.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p10" shownumber="no">III. He exposes the folly of idolaters,
who, notwithstanding the convincing proofs which the God of Israel
had given of his being God alone, obstinately persisted in their
idolatry, nay, were so much the more hardened in it (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p10.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.5" parsed="|Isa|41|5|0|0" passage="Isa 41:5"><i>v.</i> 5</scripRef>): <i>The isles of the
Gentiles saw this,</i> not only what God did for Abraham himself,
but what he did for his seed, for his sake, how he brought them out
of Egypt, and made them <i>rule over kings,</i> and <i>they
feared,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p10.2" osisRef="Bible:Exod.15.14-Exod.15.16" parsed="|Exod|15|14|15|16" passage="Ex 15:14-16">Exod. xv.
14-16</scripRef>. They were afraid, and, according to the summons
(<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p10.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.1" parsed="|Isa|41|1|0|0" passage="Isa 41:1"><i>v.</i> 1</scripRef>), they <i>drew
near, and came;</i> they could not avoid taking notice of what God
did for Abraham and his seed; but, instead of helping to reason one
another out of their sottish idolatries, they helped to confirm one
another in them, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p10.4" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.6-Isa.41.7" parsed="|Isa|41|6|41|7" passage="Isa 41:6,7"><i>v.</i> 6,
7</scripRef>. 1. They looked upon it as a dangerous design upon
their religion, which they were jealous for the honour of, and were
resolved, right or wrong, to adhere to, and therefore were alarmed
to appear vigorously for the support of it, as the Ephesians for
their Diana. When God, by his wonderful appearances on the behalf
of his people, went about to wrest their idols from them, they held
them so much the faster, and said one to another, "<i>Be of good
courage;</i> let us unanimously agree to keep up the reputation of
our gods. Though Dagon fall before the ark, he shall be set up
again in his place." One tradesman encourages another to come into
a confederacy for the keeping up of the noble craft of god-making.
Thus men's convictions often exasperate their corruptions, and they
are made worse both by the word and the works of God, which should
make them better. 2. They looked upon it as a dangerous design upon
themselves. They thought themselves in danger from the growing
greatness both of Abraham that was a convert from idolatry, and of
the people of Israel that were separatists from it; and therefore
they not only had recourse to their old gods for protection, but
made <i>new</i> ones, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p10.5" osisRef="Bible:Deut.32.17" parsed="|Deut|32|17|0|0" passage="De 32:17">Deut. xxxii.
17</scripRef>. <i>So the carpenter,</i> having done his part to the
timberwork, <i>encouraged the goldsmith</i> to do his part in
gilding or overlaying it; and, when it came into the goldsmith's
hand, <i>he that smooths with the hammer</i> that polishes it, or
beats it thin, quickened <i>him that smote the anvil,</i> bade him
be expeditious, and told him it was <i>ready for the soldering,</i>
which perhaps was the last operation about it, and then it is
<i>fastened with nails,</i> and you have a god of it presently. Do
sinners thus animate and quicken one another in the ways of sin?
And shall not the servants of the living God both stir up one
another to, and strengthen one another in, his service? Some read
all this ironically, and by way of permission: <i>Let them help
every one his neighbour; let the carpenter encourage the
goldsmith;</i> but all in vain; idols shall fall for all this.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p11" shownumber="no">IV. He encourages his own people to trust
in him (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p11.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.8-Isa.41.9" parsed="|Isa|41|8|41|9" passage="Isa 41:8,9"><i>v.</i> 8, 9</scripRef>):
"<i>But thou, Israel, art my servant.</i> They know me not, but
thou knowest me, and knowest better than to join with such ignorant
besotted people as these" (for it is intended for a warning to the
people of God not to <i>walk in the way of the heathen</i>); "they
put themselves under the protection of these impotent deities, but
thou art under my protection. <i>Those that make them are like unto
them, and so is every one that trusts in them; but thou, O
Israel!</i> art the servant of a better Master." Observe what is
suggested here for the encouragement of God's people when they are
threatened and insulted over. 1. They are God's servants, and he
will not see them abused, especially for what they do in his
service: <i>Thou art my servant</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p11.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.8" parsed="|Isa|41|8|0|0" passage="Isa 41:8"><i>v.</i> 8</scripRef>), and (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p11.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.9" parsed="|Isa|41|9|0|0" passage="Isa 41:9"><i>v.</i> 9</scripRef>) "<i>I have said unto thee, Thou
art my servant;</i> and I will not go back from my word." 2. He has
<i>chosen</i> them to be a peculiar people to himself. They were
not forced upon him, but of his own good-will he set them apart. 3.
They were the seed of Abraham his friend. It was the honour of
Abraham that he was <i>called the friend of God</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p11.4" osisRef="Bible:Jas.2.23" parsed="|Jas|2|23|0|0" passage="Jam 2:23">James ii. 23</scripRef>), whom God covenanted
and conversed with as a friend, and the <i>man of his counsel;</i>
and <i>this honour have all the saints,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p11.5" osisRef="Bible:John.15.15" parsed="|John|15|15|0|0" passage="Joh 15:15">John xv. 15</scripRef>. And for the father's sake the
people of Israel were beloved. God was pleased to look upon them as
the posterity of an old friend of his, and therefore to be kind to
them; for the covenant of friendship was made with Abraham and his
seed. 4. He had sometimes, when they had been scattered among the
heathen, fetched them from the ends of the earth and taken them out
of the hands of the chief ones thereof, and therefore he would not
now abandon them. Abraham their father was fetched from a place at
a great distance, and they in his loins; and those who had been
thus far-fetched and dear-bought he could not easily part with. 5.
He had not yet cast them away, though they had often provoked him,
and therefore he would not now abandon them. What God has done for
his people, and what he has further engaged to do, should encourage
them to trust in him at all times.</p>
</div><scripCom id="Is.xlii-p11.6" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.10-Isa.41.20" parsed="|Isa|41|10|41|20" passage="Isa 41:10-20" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Is.xlii-p11.7">
<h4 id="Is.xlii-p11.8">Israel Encouraged. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p11.9">b. c.</span> 708.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Is.xlii-p12" shownumber="no">10 Fear thou not; for I <i>am</i> with thee: be
not dismayed; for I <i>am</i> thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea,
I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my
righteousness.   11 Behold, all they that were incensed
against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as
nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish.   12
Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, <i>even</i> them
that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as
nothing, and as a thing of nought.   13 For I the <span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p12.1">Lord</span> thy God will hold thy right hand, saying
unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.   14 Fear not, thou
worm Jacob, <i>and</i> ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith
the <span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p12.2">Lord</span>, and thy redeemer, the Holy
One of Israel.   15 Behold, I will make thee a new sharp
threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains,
and beat <i>them</i> small, and shalt make the hills as chaff.
  16 Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away,
and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the
<span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p12.3">Lord</span>, <i>and</i> shalt glory in the
Holy One of Israel.   17 <i>When</i> the poor and needy seek
water, and <i>there is</i> none, <i>and</i> their tongue faileth
for thirst, I the <span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p12.4">Lord</span> will hear
them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.   18 I will
open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the
valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry
land springs of water.   19 I will plant in the wilderness the
cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will
set in the desert the fir tree, <i>and</i> the pine, and the box
tree together:   20 That they may see, and know, and consider,
and understand together, that the hand of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p12.5">Lord</span> hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel
hath created it.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p13" shownumber="no">The scope of these verses is to silence the
fears, and encourage the faith, of the servants of God in their
distresses. Perhaps it is intended, in the first place, for the
support of God's Israel, in captivity; but all that faithfully
serve God <i>through patience and comfort of this scripture may
have hope.</i> And it is addressed to Israel as a single person,
that it might the more easily and readily be accommodated and
applied by every Israelite indeed to himself. That is a word of
caution, counsel, and comfort, which is so often repeated, <i>Fear
thou not;</i> and again (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p13.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.13" parsed="|Isa|41|13|0|0" passage="Isa 41:13"><i>v.</i>
13</scripRef>), <i>Fear not;</i> and (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p13.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.14" parsed="|Isa|41|14|0|0" passage="Isa 41:14"><i>v.</i> 14</scripRef>), "<i>Fear not, thou worm
Jacob;</i> fear not the threatenings of the enemy, doubt not the
promise of thy God; fear not that thou shalt perish in thy
affliction or that the promise of thy deliverance shall fail." It
is against the mind of God that his people should be a timorous
people. For the suppressing of fear he assures them,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p14" shownumber="no">I. That they may depend upon his presence
with them as their God, and a God all-sufficient for them in the
worst of times. Observe with what tenderness God speaks, and how
willing he is to let the heirs of promise know the immutability of
his counsel, and how desirous to make them easy: "<i>Fear thou not,
for I am with thee,</i> not only within call, but present with
thee; <i>be not dismayed</i> at the power of those that are against
thee, for <i>I am thy God,</i> and engaged for thee. Art thou weak?
<i>I will strengthen thee.</i> Art thou destitute of friends? <i>I
will help thee</i> in the time of need. Art thou ready to sink,
ready to fall? <i>I will uphold thee with the right hand of my
righteousness,</i> that right hand which is full of righteousness,
in dispensing rewards and punishments," <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p14.1" osisRef="Bible:Ps.48.10" parsed="|Ps|48|10|0|0" passage="Ps 48:10">Ps. xlviii. 10</scripRef>. And again (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p14.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.13" parsed="|Isa|41|13|0|0" passage="Isa 41:13"><i>v.</i> 13</scripRef>) it is promised, 1. That God
will strengthen their hands, that is, will help them: "<i>I will
hold thy right hand,</i> go hand in hand with thee" (so some): he
will take us by the hand as our guide, to lead us in our way, will
help us up when we are fallen or prevent our falls; when we are
weak he will hold us up-wavering, he will fix us-trembling, he will
encourage us, and so <i>hold us by the right hand,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p14.3" osisRef="Bible:Ps.73.23" parsed="|Ps|73|23|0|0" passage="Ps 73:23">Ps. lxxiii. 23</scripRef>. 2. That he will
silence their fears: <i>Saying unto thee, Fear not.</i> He has said
it again and again in his word, and has there provided sovereign
antidotes against fear: but he will go further; he will by his
Spirit say it to their hearts, and make them to hear it, and so
will help them.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p15" shownumber="no">II. That though their enemies be now very
formidable, insolent, and severe, yet the day is coming when God
will reckon with them and they shall triumph over them. There are
those that are incensed against God's people, that <i>strive with
them</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p15.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.11" parsed="|Isa|41|11|0|0" passage="Isa 41:11"><i>v.</i> 11</scripRef>),
that war against them (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p15.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.12" parsed="|Isa|41|12|0|0" passage="Isa 41:12"><i>v.</i>
12</scripRef>), that hate them, that seek their ruin, and are
continually picking quarrels with them. But let not God's people be
incensed at them, nor strive with them, nor render evil for evil;
but wait God's time, and believe, 1. That they shall be convinced
of the folly, at least, if not of the sin of striving with God's
people; and, finding it to no purpose, <i>they shall be ashamed and
confounded,</i> which might bring them to repentance, but will
rather fill them with rage. 2. That they shall be quite ruined and
undone (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p15.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.11" parsed="|Isa|41|11|0|0" passage="Isa 41:11"><i>v.</i> 11</scripRef>):
<i>They shall be as nothing</i> before the justice and power of
God. When God comes to deal with his proud enemies he makes nothing
of them. Or they shall be brought to nothing, shall be as if they
had never been. This is repeated (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p15.4" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.12" parsed="|Isa|41|12|0|0" passage="Isa 41:12"><i>v.</i> 12</scripRef>): They <i>shall be as nothing
and as a thing of nought,</i> or as that which is gone and has
failed. Those that were formidable shall become despicable; those
that fancied they could do any thing shall be able to bring nothing
to pass; those that made a figure in the world, and a mighty noise,
shall become mere ciphers and be buried in silence. They shall
perish, not only be nothing, but be miserable: <i>Thou shalt seek
them,</i> shalt enquire what has become of them, that they do not
appear as usual, but thou <i>shalt not find them</i> as David,
<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p15.5" osisRef="Bible:Ps.37.36" parsed="|Ps|37|36|0|0" passage="Ps 37:36">Ps. xxxvii. 36</scripRef>. <i>I sought
him, but he could not be found.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p16" shownumber="no">III. That they themselves should become a
terror to those who were now a terror to them, and victory should
turn on their side, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p16.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.14-Isa.41.16" parsed="|Isa|41|14|41|16" passage="Isa 41:14-16"><i>v.</i>
14-16</scripRef>. See here, 1. How Jacob and Israel are reduced and
brought very low. It is the <i>worm Jacob,</i> so little, so weak,
and so defenceless, despised and trampled on by every body, forced
to creep even into the earth for safety; and we must not wonder
that Jacob has become a worm, when even Jacob's King calls himself
<i>a worm and no man,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p16.2" osisRef="Bible:Ps.22.6" parsed="|Ps|22|6|0|0" passage="Ps 22:6">Ps. xxii.
6</scripRef>. God's people are sometimes as worms, in their humble
thoughts of themselves and their enemies' haughty thoughts of
them—worms, but not vipers, as their enemies are, not of the
serpent's seed. God regards Jacob's low estate, and says, "<i>Fear
not, thou worm Jacob;</i> fear not that thou shalt be crushed; and
<i>you men of Israel</i>" (<i>you few men,</i> so some read it,
<i>you dead men,</i> so others) "do not give up yourselves for gone
notwithstanding." Note, The grace of God will silence fears even
when there seems to be the greatest cause for them. <i>Perplexed
but not in despair.</i> 2. How Jacob and Israel are advanced from
this low estate, and made as formidable as ever they have been
despicable. But <i>by whom shall Jacob arise, for he is small?</i>
We are here told: <i>I will help thee, saith the Lord;</i> and it
is the honour of God to help the weak. He will help them, for he is
their Redeemer, who is wont to redeem them, who has undertaken to
do it. Christ is the Redeemer, from him is our help found. He will
help them, for he is the <i>Holy One of Israel,</i> worshipped
among them in the beauty of holiness and engaged by promise to
them. The Lord will help them by enabling them to help themselves
and making Jacob to become <i>a threshing instrument.</i> Observe,
He is but an instrument, a tool in God's hand, that he is pleased
to make use of; and he is an instrument of God's making and is no
more than God makes him. But, if God make him a threshing
instrument, he will make use of him, and therefore will make him
fit for use, <i>new</i> and <i>sharp,</i> and <i>having teeth,</i>
or sharp spikes; and then, by divine direction and strength,
<i>thou shalt thresh the mountains,</i> the highest, and strongest,
and most stubborn of thy enemies: thou shalt not only be at them,
but <i>beat them small;</i> they shall not be a corn threshed out,
which is valuable, and is carefully preserved (such God's people
are when they are under the flail, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p16.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.21.10" parsed="|Isa|21|10|0|0" passage="Isa 21:10"><i>ch.</i> xxi. 10</scripRef>: <i>O my threshing!</i>
yet <i>the corn of my floor,</i> that shall not be lost); but these
are made <i>as chaff,</i> which is good for nothing, and which the
husbandman is glad to get rid of. He pursues the metaphor,
<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p16.4" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.16" parsed="|Isa|41|16|0|0" passage="Isa 41:16"><i>v.</i> 16</scripRef>. Having
threshed them, <i>thou shalt winnow them, and the wind shall
scatter them.</i> This perhaps had its accomplishment, in part, in
the victories of the Jews over their enemies in the times of the
Maccabees; but it seems in general designed to read the final doom
of all the implacable enemies of the church of God, and to have its
accomplishment like wise in the triumphs of the cross of Christ,
the gospel of Christ, and all the faithful followers of Christ,
over the powers of darkness, which, first or last, shall all be
dissipated, and in Christ all believers shall be more than
conquerors, and <i>he that overcomes shall have power over the
nations,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p16.5" osisRef="Bible:Rev.2.26" parsed="|Rev|2|26|0|0" passage="Re 2:26">Rev. ii.
26</scripRef>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p17" shownumber="no">IV. That, hereupon, they shall have
abundance of comfort in God, and God shall have abundance of honour
from them: <i>Thou shalt rejoice in the Lord,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p17.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.16" parsed="|Isa|41|16|0|0" passage="Isa 41:16"><i>v.</i> 16</scripRef>. When we are freed from
that which hindered our joy, and are blessed with that which is the
matter of it, we ought to remember that God is our exceeding joy
and in him all our joys must terminate. When we rejoice over our
enemies we must rejoice in the Lord, for to him alone we owe our
liberties and victories. "Thou shalt also <i>glory in the Holy One
of Israel,</i> in thy interest in him and relation to him, and what
he has done for thee." And, if thus we make God our praise and
glory, we become to him for a praise and a glory.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p18" shownumber="no">V. That they shall have seasonable and
suitable supplies of every thing that is proper for them in the
time of need; and, if there be occasion, God will again do for them
as he did for Israel in their march from Egypt to Canaan, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.17-Isa.41.19" parsed="|Isa|41|17|41|19" passage="Isa 41:17-19"><i>v.</i> 17-19</scripRef>. When the
captives, either in Babylon or in their return thence, are in
distress for want of water or shelter, God will take care of them,
and, one way or other, make their journey, even through a
wilderness, comfortable to them. But doubtless this promise has
more than such a private interpretation. Their return out of
Babylon was typical of our redemption by Christ; and so the
contents of these promises, 1. Were provided by the gospel of
Christ. That glorious discovery of his love has given full
assurance to all those who hear this joyful sound that God has
provided inestimable comforts for them, sufficient for the supply
of all their wants, the balancing of all their griefs, and the
answering of all their prayers. 2. They are applied by the grace
and Spirit of Christ to all believers, that they may have strong
consolation in their way and a complete happiness in their end. Our
way to heaven lies through the wilderness of this world. Now, (1.)
It is here supposed that the people of God, in their passage
through this world, are often in straits: <i>The poor and needy
seek water, and there is none; the poor in spirit hunger and thirst
after righteousness.</i> The soul of man, finding itself empty and
necessitous, seeks for satisfaction somewhere, but soon despairs of
finding it in the world, that has nothing in it to make it easy:
creatures are <i>broken cisterns, that can hold no water;</i> so
that <i>their tongue fails for thirst,</i> they are weary of
seeking that satisfaction in the world which is not to be had in
it. Their sorrow makes them thirsty; so does their toil. (2.) It is
here promised that, one way or other, all their grievances shall be
redressed and they shall be made easy. [1.] God himself will be
nigh unto them in all that which they call upon him for. Let all
the praying people of God take notice of this, and take comfort of
it; he has said, "<i>I the Lord will hear them,</i> will answer
them; <i>I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them;</i> I will be
with them, as I have always been, in their distresses." While we
are in the wilderness of this world this promise is to us what the
pillar of cloud and fire was to Israel, an assurance of God's
gracious presence. [2.] They shall have a constant supply of fresh
water, as Israel had in the wilderness, even where one would least
expect it (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.18" parsed="|Isa|41|18|0|0" passage="Isa 41:18"><i>v.</i> 18</scripRef>):
<i>I will open rivers in high places,</i> rivers of grace, rivers
of pleasure, <i>rivers of living water,</i> which he spoke of the
Spirit (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.3" osisRef="Bible:John.7.38-John.7.39" parsed="|John|7|38|7|39" passage="Joh 7:38,39">John vii. 38,
39</scripRef>), that Spirit which should be poured out upon the
Gentiles, who had been as high places, dry and barren, and lifted
up on their own conceit above the necessity of that gift. And there
shall be <i>fountains in the midst of the valleys,</i> the valleys
of Baca (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.4" osisRef="Bible:Ps.84.6" parsed="|Ps|84|6|0|0" passage="Ps 84:6">Ps. lxxxiv. 6</scripRef>),
that are sandy and wearisome; or among the Jews, who had been as
fruitful valleys in comparison with the Gentile mountains. The
preaching of the gospel to the world turned that wilderness into a
pool of water, yielding fruit to the owner of it and relief to the
travellers through it. [3.] They shall have a pleasant shade to
screen them from the scorching heat of the sun, as Israel when they
pitched at Elim, where they had not only wells of water, but
palm-trees (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.5" osisRef="Bible:Exod.15.27" parsed="|Exod|15|27|0|0" passage="Ex 15:27">Exod. xv. 27</scripRef>):
"<i>I will plant in the wilderness the cedar,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.6" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.19" parsed="|Isa|41|19|0|0" passage="Isa 41:19"><i>v.</i> 19</scripRef>. I will turn the
wilderness into an orchard or garden, such as used to be planted
with these pleasant trees, so that they shall pass through the
wilderness with as much ease and delight as a man walks in his
grove. These trees shall be to them what the pillar of cloud was to
Israel in the wilderness, a shelter from the heat." Christ and his
grace are so to believers, <i>as the shadow of a great rock,</i>
<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.7" osisRef="Bible:Isa.32.2" parsed="|Isa|32|2|0|0" passage="Isa 32:2"><i>ch.</i> xxxii. 2</scripRef>. When
God sets up his church in the Gentile wilderness there shall be as
great a change made by it in men's characters as if thorns and
briers were turned into cedars, and fir-trees, and myrtles; and by
this a blessed change is described, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.8" osisRef="Bible:Isa.55.13" parsed="|Isa|55|13|0|0" passage="Isa 55:13"><i>ch.</i> lv. 13</scripRef>. [4.] They shall see and
acknowledge the hand of God, his power and his favour, in this,
<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p18.9" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.20" parsed="|Isa|41|20|0|0" passage="Isa 41:20"><i>v.</i> 20</scripRef>. God will do
these strange and surprising things on purpose to awaken them to a
conviction and consideration of his hand in all: <i>That they may
see</i> this wonderful change, <i>and knowing</i> that it is above
the ordinary course and power of nature may consider that therefore
it comes from a superior power, and, comparing notes upon it,
<i>may understand together,</i> and concur in the acknowledgment of
it, <i>that the hand of the Lord,</i> that mighty hand of his which
is stretched out for his people and stretched out to them, <i>has
done this,</i> and <i>the Holy One of Israel has created it,</i>
made it anew, made it out of nothing, made it for the comfort of
his people. Note, God does great things for his people, that he may
be taken notice of.</p>
</div><scripCom id="Is.xlii-p18.10" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.21-Isa.41.29" parsed="|Isa|41|21|41|29" passage="Isa 41:21-29" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Is.xlii-p18.11">
<h4 id="Is.xlii-p18.12">Idolatry Exposed. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p18.13">b. c.</span> 708.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Is.xlii-p19" shownumber="no">21 Produce your cause, saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Is.xlii-p19.1">Lord</span>; bring forth your strong <i>reasons,</i>
saith the King of Jacob.   22 Let them bring <i>them</i>
forth, and show us what shall happen: let them show the former
things, what they <i>be,</i> that we may consider them, and know
the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come.   23
Show the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that
ye <i>are</i> gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be
dismayed, and behold <i>it</i> together.   24 Behold, ye
<i>are</i> of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination
<i>is he that</i> chooseth you.   25 I have raised up
<i>one</i> from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of
the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes
as <i>upon</i> mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay.   26
Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and
beforetime, that we may say, <i>He is</i> righteous? yea, <i>there
is</i> none that showeth, yea, <i>there is</i> none that declareth,
yea, <i>there is</i> none that heareth your words.   27 The
first <i>shall say</i> to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will
give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.   28 For I
beheld, and <i>there was</i> no man; even among them, and <i>there
was</i> no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a
word.   29 Behold, they <i>are</i> all vanity; their works
<i>are</i> nothing: their molten images <i>are</i> wind and
confusion.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p20" shownumber="no">The Lord, by the prophet, here repeats the
challenge to idolaters to make out the pretentions of their idols:
"<i>Produce your cause</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p20.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.21" parsed="|Isa|41|21|0|0" passage="Isa 41:21"><i>v.</i>
21</scripRef>) and make your best of it; <i>bring forth the
strongest reasons</i> you have to prove that your idols are gods,
and worthy of your adoration." Note, There needs no more to show
the absurdity of sin than to produce the reasons that are given in
defence of it, for they carry with them their own confutation.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p21" shownumber="no">I. The idols are here challenged to bring
proofs of their knowledge and power. Let us see what they can
inform us of, and what they can do. Understanding and active power
are the accomplishments of a man. Whoever pretends to be a god must
have these in perfection; and have the idols made it to appear that
they have? No;</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p22" shownumber="no">1. "They can tell us nothing that we did
not know before, so ignorant are they. We challenge them to inform
us," (1.) "What has been formerly: <i>Let them show the former
things,</i> and raise them out of the oblivion in which they were
buried" (God inspired Moses to write such a history of the creation
as the gods of the heathen could never have dictated to any of
their enthusiasts); or "let the defenders of idols tell us what
mighty achievements they can boast of as performed by their gods in
former times. What did they ever do that was worth taking notice
of? Let them specify any thing, and it shall be considered, its due
weight shall be given it, and it shall be compared with the latter
end of it; and if, in the issue, it prove to be as great as it
pretended to be, they shall have the credit of it." (2.) "We
challenge them to tell us what shall happen, to declare to us
<i>things to come</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p22.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.22" parsed="|Isa|41|22|0|0" passage="Isa 41:22"><i>v.</i>
22</scripRef>), and again (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p22.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.23" parsed="|Isa|41|23|0|0" passage="Isa 41:23"><i>v.</i>
23</scripRef>), <i>show the things that are to come hereafter.</i>
Give this evidence of your omniscience, that nothing can be hidden
from you, and of your sovereignty and dominion. Make it to appear
that you have the doing of all, by letting us know beforehand what
you design to do. Do this kindness to the world; let them know what
is to come, that they may provide accordingly. Do this, and we will
own that you are gods above us, and gods to us, and worthy of our
adoration." No creature can foretel things to come, otherwise than
by divine information, with any certainty.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p23" shownumber="no">2. "They can do nothing that we cannot do
ourselves, so impotent are they." He challenges them to do either
<i>good or evil,</i> good to their friends or evil to their
enemies: "Let them do, if they can, any thing extraordinary, that
people will admire and be affected with. Let them either bless or
curse, with power. Let us see them either inflict such plagues such
as God brought on Egypt or bestow such blessings as God bestowed on
Israel. Let them do some great thing, and we shall be amazed when
we see it, and frightened into a veneration of them, as many have
been into a veneration of the true God." That which is charged upon
these idols, and let them disprove it if they can, is that <i>they
are of nothing,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p23.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.24" parsed="|Isa|41|24|0|0" passage="Isa 41:24"><i>v.</i>
24</scripRef>. Their claims have no foundation at all, nor is there
any ground or reason in the least for men's paying them the respect
they do; there is nothing in them worthy our regard. "They are less
than nothing, worse than nothing;" so some read it. "<i>The work
they do is of nought,</i> and so is the ado that is made about
them. There is no pretence or colour for it; it is all a jest; it
is all a sham put upon the world; and therefore <i>he that chooses
you,</i> and so give you your deity, and" (as some read it) "that
delights in you, <i>is an abomination;</i>" so some take it. A
servant is at liberty to choose his master, but a man is not at
liberty to choose his God. He that chooses any other than the true
God chooses an abomination; his choosing it makes it so.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p24" shownumber="no">II. God here produces proofs that he is the
true God, and that there is none besides him. Let him produce his
strong reasons.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p25" shownumber="no">1. He has an irresistible power. This he
will shortly make to appear in the raising up of Cyrus and making
him a type of Christ (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p25.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.25" parsed="|Isa|41|25|0|0" passage="Isa 41:25"><i>v.</i>
25</scripRef>): <i>He will raise him up from the north</i> and
<i>from the rising of the sun.</i> Cyrus by his father was a Mede,
by his mother a Persian; and his army consisted of Medes, whose
country lay north, and Persians, whose country lay east, from
Babylon. God will raise him up to great power, and he shall come
against Babylon with ends of his own to serve. But, (1.) <i>He
shall proclaim God's name;</i> so it may be read. He shall publish
the honour of the God of Israel; so he did remarkably when, in his
proclamation for the release of the Jews out of their captivity, he
acknowledged that the Lord God of Israel was the Lord God of
heaven, and <i>the God:</i> and he might be said to call on his
name when he encouraged the building of his temple, and very
probably did himself call upon him and pray to him, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p25.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezra.1.2-Ezra.1.3" parsed="|Ezra|1|2|1|3" passage="Ezr 1:2,3">Ezra i. 2, 3</scripRef>. (2.) All opposition
shall fall before him: <i>He shall come upon the princes of
Babylon,</i> and all others that stood in his way, <i>as
mortar,</i> and trample upon them <i>as the potter treads clay,</i>
to serve his own purposes with it. Christ, as man, was raised up
from the north, for Nazareth lay in the northern parts of Canaan;
as the angel of the covenant, he ascends from the east. He
maintained the honour of heaven (<i>he shall call upon my
name</i>), and broke the powers of hell, came upon the prince of
darkness as mortar and trod him down.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p26" shownumber="no">2. He has an infallible foresight. He would
not only do this, but he did now, by his prophet, foretel it. Now
the false gods not only could not do it, but they could not foresee
it. (1.) He challenges them to produce any of their pretended
deities, or their diviners, that had given notice of this, or could
(<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p26.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.26" parsed="|Isa|41|26|0|0" passage="Isa 41:26"><i>v.</i> 26</scripRef>): "<i>Who
has declared from the beginning</i> any thing of this kind, or has
told it before-time? Tell us if there be any that you know of, for
we know not any; if there be any, <i>we will say, He is
righteous,</i> he is true, his cause is just, his claims are
proved, and he is in the right in demanding to be worshipped." This
agrees with <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p26.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.22-Isa.41.23" parsed="|Isa|41|22|41|23" passage="Isa 41:22,23"><i>v.</i> 22,
23</scripRef>. (2.) He challenges to himself the sole honour of
doing it and foretelling it (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p26.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.27" parsed="|Isa|41|27|0|0" passage="Isa 41:27"><i>v.</i> 27</scripRef>): <i>I am the first</i> (so it
may be read) <i>that will say to Zion, Behold, behold them,</i>
that will let the people of Israel know their deliverers are at
hand (for there were those who understood by books, God's books,
the approach of the time, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p26.4" osisRef="Bible:Dan.9.2" parsed="|Dan|9|2|0|0" passage="Da 9:2">Dan. ix.
2</scripRef>), and I am he that <i>will give to Jerusalem one that
brings good tidings,</i> these good tidings of their enlargement.
This is applicable to the work of redemption, in which the Lord
showed himself much more than in the release of the Jews out of
Babylon: he it was that contrived our salvation, and he brought it
about, and he has given to us the glad tidings of
reconciliation.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Is.xlii-p27" shownumber="no">III. Judgment is here given upon this
trial. 1. None of all the idols had foretold, or could foresee,
this work of wonder. Other nations besides the Jews were released
out of captivity in Babylon by Cyrus, or at least were greatly
concerned in the revolution of the monarchy and there transferring
of it to the Persians; and yet none of them had any intelligence
given them of it beforehand, by any of their gods or prophets:
"<i>There is none that shows</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.26" parsed="|Isa|41|26|0|0" passage="Isa 41:26"><i>v.</i> 26</scripRef>), <i>none that declares,</i>
none that gives the least intimation of it; <i>there is none</i> of
the nations <i>that hears your words,</i> that can pretend to have
heard from their gods such words as you, O Israelites! have heard
from your God, by your prophets," <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.2" osisRef="Bible:Ps.147.20" parsed="|Ps|147|20|0|0" passage="Ps 147:20">Ps.
cxlvii. 20</scripRef>. None of all the gods of the nations have
shown their worshippers the way of salvation, which God will show
by the Messiah. The good tidings which the Lord will send in the
gospel is a mystery hidden from ages and generations, <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.3" osisRef="Bible:Rom.16.25-Rom.16.26" parsed="|Rom|16|25|16|26" passage="Ro 16:25,26">Rom. xvi. 25, 26</scripRef>. 2. None of those
who pleaded for them could produce any instance of their knowledge
or power that had in it any colour of proof that they were gods.
All their advocates were struck dumb with this challenge (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.4" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.28" parsed="|Isa|41|28|0|0" passage="Isa 41:28"><i>v.</i> 28</scripRef>): "<i>I beheld, and
there was no man</i> that could give evidence for them, even among
those that were their most zealous admirers; <i>and there was no
counsellor,</i> none that could offer any thing for the support of
their cause. Even among the idols themselves there was none fit to
give counsel in the most trivial matters, and yet there were those
that asked counsel of them in the most important and difficult
affairs. When I asked them what they had to say for themselves they
stood mute; the case was so plain against them that there was
<i>none who could answer a word.</i>" Judgment must therefore be
given against the defendant upon <i>Nihil dicit—He is mute.</i> He
has nothing to say for himself. <i>He was speechless,</i> <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.5" osisRef="Bible:Matt.22.12" parsed="|Matt|22|12|0|0" passage="Mt 22:12">Matt. xxii. 12</scripRef>. 3. Sentence is
therefore given according to the charge exhibited against them
(<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.6" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.24" parsed="|Isa|41|24|0|0" passage="Isa 41:24"><i>v.</i> 24</scripRef>):
"<i>Behold, they are all vanity</i> (<scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.7" osisRef="Bible:Isa.41.29" parsed="|Isa|41|29|0|0" passage="Isa 41:29"><i>v.</i> 29</scripRef>); they are a lie and a cheat;
they are not in themselves what they pretend to be, nor will their
worshippers find that in them which they promise themselves.
<i>Their works are nothing,</i> of no force, of no worth; their
enemies need fear no hurt from them; their worshippers can hope for
no good from them. <i>Their molten images,</i> and indeed all their
images, <i>are wind and confusion,</i> vanity and vexation; those
that worship them will be deceived in them, and will reflect upon
their own folly with the greatest bitterness. Therefore, <i>dearly
beloved, flee from idolatry,</i>" <scripRef id="Is.xlii-p27.8" osisRef="Bible:1Cor.10.14" parsed="|1Cor|10|14|0|0" passage="1Co 10:14">1
Cor. x. 14</scripRef>.</p>
</div></div2>