About Isaiah

Isaiah proclaims both judgment and salvation, containing the most detailed messianic prophecies in the Old Testament.

Author: IsaiahWritten: c. 740-680 BCReading time: ~3 minVerses: 25
HolinessJudgmentSalvationMessiahServantRestoration

King James Version

Isaiah 42

25 verses with commentary

The Servant of the Lord

Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.

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KJV Study Commentary

This inaugurates the first of four Servant Songs (42:1-4, 49:1-6, 50:4-9, 52:13-53:12), revealing the Messiah's character and mission. 'Behold my servant' uses the Hebrew 'ebed (עֶבֶד), signifying both submission and intimate relationship—the same word describing Moses, David, and the prophets. Yet this Servant is unique: 'mine elect' (bachir, בָּחִיר) means chosen, selected by divine purpose befo...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

XLII. (1) **Behold my servant . . .**—Here the words point not, as before, to the visible, or even the ideal Israel, but to One who is the centre of both, with attributes which are reproduced in His people in the measure of their fulfilment of the ideal. “Elect” is another of the words with which Isaiah has fashioned the theology of Christendom. It meets us there four times (45:4, 65:9, 22), and i...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**2. stood--**not necessarily the posture of standing; rather, were in attendance on Him [Maurer], hovering on expanded wings. **the--**not in the Hebrew. **seraphim--**nowhere else applied to God's attendant angels; but to the fiery flying (not winged, but rapidly moving) serpents, which bit the Israelites (Nu 21:6), called so from the poisonous inflammation caused by their bites. Seraph is t...
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He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.

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KJV Study Commentary

The Servant's ministry is characterized by quiet authority—'He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.' This contrasts with loud, self-promoting religious figures. The Hebrew 'tsa'aq' (cry out) and 'nasa' (lift up) suggest avoiding attention-seeking behavior. Christ fulfilled this perfectly, often commanding silence about His miracles.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(2) **He shall not cry . . .**—Isaiah’s ideal of a teacher, but partly realised in himself, is that of one exempt from the violence of strong feelings, calm in the sereneness of authority, strong in his far-reaching and pitying sympathy. False prophets might rave as in orgiastic frenzy. We are reminded of Solon affecting the inspiration of a soothsayer in order to attract attention to his converts...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

3. (Re 4:8). The Trinity is implied (on "Lord," see on Is 6:1). God's holiness is the keynote of Isaiah's whole prophecies. **whole earth--**the Hebrew more emphatically, the fulness of the whole earth is His glory (Psa 24:1; 72:19).

A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth. smoking: or, dimly burning quench: Heb. quench it

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KJV Study Commentary

The Servant's gentleness toward the weak is beautifully portrayed: a bruised reed ('qaneh ratsuts') He won't break, smoking flax ('pishtah kehah') He won't quench. These images depict the most fragile—nearly broken reeds and barely burning wicks—treated with utmost care. Yet this gentleness doesn't compromise truth: 'he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.'

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(3) **A bruised reed shall he not break . . .**—Physical, moral, spiritual weakness are all brought under the same similitude. In another context the image has met us in Isaiah 36:6. The simple negative “he shall not break” implies, as in the rhetoric of all times, the opposite extreme, the tender care that props and supports. The humanity of the servant of the Lord was to embody what had been alr...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**4. posts of ... door--**rather, foundations of the thresholds. **house--**temple. **smoke--**the Shekinah cloud (1Ki 8:10; Eze 10:4).

He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law. discouraged: Heb. broken

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KJV Study Commentary

The Servant will not fail ('kahah'—grow dim/discouraged) or be discouraged ('ratsats'—crushed/broken) until He establishes justice on earth. The same words used for weak humans in verse 3 are applied to Him—but negated. Where we fail, He perseveres. The 'isles shall wait for his law' indicates global scope.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(4) **He shall not fail nor be discouraged . . .**—Both verbs in the Hebrew point back to those of the previous verse, *He shall not burn dimly nor be crushed, *as if to teach that in helping others to strength and light, the servants of the Lord, after the pattern of *the *Servant, gain light and strength for themselves. **The isles shall wait for his law.**—The relation of “the servant” to the f...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**5. undone--**(Ex 33:20). The same effect was produced on others by the presence of God (Jud 6:22; 13:22; Job 42:5, 6; Lu 5:8; Re 1:17). **lips--**appropriate to the context which describes the praises of the lips, sung in alternate responses (Ex 15:20, 21; Is 6:3) by the seraphim: also appropriate to the office of speaking as the prophet of God, about to be committed to Isaiah (Is 6:9). **se...
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Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:

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KJV Study Commentary

God's self-identification emphasizes His credentials as Creator: He created the heavens, spread forth the earth, gives breath to people and spirit to those who walk on it. The Hebrew 'bara' (create) and 'nathan' (give) establish God's absolute authority. The Creator's covenant guarantees are backed by His unlimited power.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(5) **He that created.**—The accumulation of Divine attributes, as enhancing the solemnity of a revelation, has an earlier parallel in Amos 5:8; a later one in Zechariah 12:1.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**6. unto me--**The seraph had been in the temple, Isaiah outside of it. **live coal--**literally, "a hot stone," used, as in some countries in our days, to roast meat with, for example, the meat of the sacrifices. Fire was a symbol of purification, as it takes the dross out of metals (Mal 3:2, 3). **the altar--**of burnt offering, in the court of the priests before the temple. The fire on it ...
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I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;

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KJV Study Commentary

This verse intensifies the Servant's commission with covenant language. 'I the LORD have called thee in righteousness' emphasizes divine initiative—the Servant doesn't volunteer but is summoned by God's sovereign purpose. 'In righteousness' (be-tsedeq) indicates both God's righteous character motivating the call and the righteous manner of the Servant's ministry. 'Will hold thine hand' portrays in...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(6) **Have called thee in righteousness . . .**—The words apply to the personal servant. His call was in accordance with the absolute righteousness of God, manifesting itself in love. **A covenant of the people.**—The context limits the “people” to Israel. The “servant of the Lord” is to be in Himself not only the mediator of the covenant, but *the *covenant, the meeting-point between God and man,...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**7. mouth ... lips--**(See on Is 6:5). The mouth was touched because it was the part to be used by the prophet when inaugurated. So "tongues of fire" rested on the disciples (Ac 2:3, 4) when they were being set apart to speak in various languages of Jesus. **iniquity--**conscious unworthiness of acting as God's messenger. **purged--**literally, "covered," that is, expiated, not by any physica...
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To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.

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KJV Study Commentary

The Servant's mission includes opening blind eyes, releasing prisoners from dungeons, and freeing those in darkness. These physical descriptions carry spiritual meaning: spiritual blindness, bondage to sin, and darkness of ignorance are overcome through the Servant's work. The Hebrew 'paqach' (open) suggests violent opening of what is sealed shut.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(7) **To open the blind eyes.**—The prophet must have felt the contrast between this and his own mission (Isaiah 6:10). The words all point to spiritual blessings. (Comp. St. Paul’s call in Acts 26:18.) The “prison” is that of the selfishness and sin which hinder men from being truly free. In the “prisoners of hope” of Zechariah 9:11, and the “spirits in prison” of 1Peter 3:18, we have different a...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**8. I ... us--**The change of number indicates the Trinity (compare Ge 1:26; 11:7). Though not a sure argument for the doctrine, for the plural may indicate merely majesty, it accords with that truth proved elsewhere. **Whom ... who--**implying that few would be willing to bear the self-denial which the delivering of such an unwelcome message to the Jews would require on the part of the messeng...
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I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.

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KJV Study Commentary

God's emphatic declaration 'I am the LORD: that is my name' establishes His unique identity. The covenant name YHWH belongs exclusively to Him. He will not give His glory to another or share praise with idols. The Hebrew 'kavod' (glory) denotes the weighty significance and honor that belongs to God alone.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(8, 9) **I am the Lord. . . .**—The prophet grasps the full meaning of the name revealed in Exodus 3:15. It follows from that meaning that God cannot look with indifference on the transfer to the “graven image” of the worship due to Him. With his vision of Cyrus still present to his thoughts, the prophet again presses the unique point of prediction as distinguishing the religion of Israel from tha...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**9. Hear ... indeed--**Hebrew, "In hearing hear," that is, Though ye hear the prophet's warnings again and again, ye are doomed, because of your perverse will (Joh 7:17), not to understand. Light enough is given in revelation to guide those sincerely seeking to know, in order that they may do, God's will; darkness enough is left to confound the wilfully blind (Is 43:8). So in Jesus' use of parabl...
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Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.

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KJV Study Commentary

God points to fulfilled prophecy ('former things are come to pass') as validation, then announces 'new things' before they emerge. The Hebrew 'chadash' (new) emphasizes unprecedented redemption. Predictive prophecy distinguishes the true God from false gods—only He knows and declares the future because He controls it.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**10. Make ... fat--**(Psa 119:17). "Render them the more hardened by thy warnings" [Maurer]. This effect is the fruit, not of the truth in itself, but of the corrupt state of their hearts, to which God here judicially gives them over (Is 63:17). Gesenius takes the imperatives as futures. "Proclaim truths, the result of which proclamation will be their becoming the more hardened" (Ro 1:28; Ep 4:18...
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Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof. all: Heb. the fulness thereof

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KJV Study Commentary

The call to sing a new song ('shir chadash') to the LORD celebrates coming redemption. The Hebrew 'shiyr' denotes exuberant praise. This worship encompasses the entire earth—from sea to islands, from ends of the earth—universal scope. New mercies demand new praise.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(10) **Sing unto the Lord a new song.**—The words are familiar in the Psalms (Psalm 33:3; Psalm 40:3; Psalm 98:1) and are probably quoted from them. The only touch of definite localisation is found in the mention of Kedar. (See Note on Isaiah 21:16.) Starting from this, the other terms gain a more defined significance. The proclamation seems to be addressed to the nations of the Eastern, not the W...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**11. how long--**will this wretched condition of the nation being hardened to its destruction continue? **until--**(Is 5:9)--fulfilled primarily at the Babylonish captivity, and more fully at the dispersion under the Roman Titus.

Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit: let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains.

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KJV Study Commentary

The call to praise extends to wilderness and its cities, villages of Kedar (Bedouin settlements), and inhabitants of Sela (rock dwellers). Even traditionally hostile or remote peoples will sing from mountaintops. No place or people are beyond God's redemptive reach.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

12. (2Ki 25:21). **forsaking--**abandonment of dwellings by their inhabitants (Jr 4:29).

Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands.

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KJV Study Commentary

The call to 'give glory unto the LORD' and 'declare his praise in the islands' emphasizes that worship must be explicit and public, not merely internal. The Hebrew 'kavod' (glory) and 'tehillah' (praise) require articulate recognition of God's character and works. Silent appreciation insufficient—verbal declaration necessary.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**13. and it shall return, and ... be eaten--**Rather, "but it shall be again given over to be consumed": if even a tenth survive the first destruction, it shall be destroyed by a second (Is 5:25; Eze 5:1-5, 12), [Maurer and Horsley]. In English Version, "return" refers to the poor remnant left in the land at the Babylonish captivity (2Ki 24:14; 25:12), which afterwards fled to Egypt in fear (2Ki ...
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The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies. prevail: or, behave himself mightily

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KJV Study Commentary

God goes forth as a warrior ('gibbor'—mighty man) and stirs up His zeal like a man of war. The Hebrew 'qin'ah' (zeal/jealousy) indicates passionate commitment to His purposes. His war cry ('tsa'aq') and roar ('tsavach') demonstrate terrifying power against enemies. God's patience has limits; judgment comes.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(13) **The Lord shall go forth . . .**—The boldly anthropomorphic image prepares the way for the yet more awful picture of Isaiah 63:1, which belongs outwardly to the same region. As if roused from slumber, Jehovah stirs up His jealous indignation against the idols, which had seemed to sleep, and rushes to the battle as with the war-cry of a mighty one.

I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself: now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once. devour: Heb. swallow, or, sup up

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KJV Study Commentary

God's long silence ('been still' and 'refrained myself') has been deliberate patience, but now He will act like a woman in labor—crying out and panting. This striking feminine imagery conveys the intensity and inevitability of coming judgment/deliverance. What has been gestating must now be born.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(14) **I have long time holden my peace . . .**—The change of person indicates that Jehovah is the speaker. “Long time,” literally, *for an age, *or *an eternity. *What is actually meant is the period of the exile, during which, till the advent of the deliverer, there had been no interposition on behalf of Israel. To the exiles this had seemed endless in its weariness. Now there were the travail-p...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 7 **Is 7:1-9:7. Prediction of the Ill Success of the Syro- Israelitish Invasion of Judah--**Ahaz's Alliance with Assyria, and Its Fatal Results to Judea--Yet the Certainty of Final Preservation and of the Coming of Messiah. **In the Assyrian inscriptions the name of Rezin, king of Damascus, is found among the tributaries of Tiglath-pileser, of whose reign the annals of seventeen years h...
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I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools.

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KJV Study Commentary

God's judgment transforms landscape: making waste mountains and hills, drying up herbs, turning rivers to islands, and drying up pools. The Hebrew 'charav' (make waste) depicts devastation. This ecological judgment shows that creation itself responds to God's decrees—nature serves His purposes.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(15) **I will make waste mountains . . .**—The whole description is symbolic, and points to the subjugation of the heathen nations, the “rivers” and “pools” probably representing the kingdoms of the Tigris and Euphrates (Isaiah 8:7). All this seems a purely destructive work, but through it all mercy and truth are working, and a way is being opened for the return of Israel, in painting which, as el...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**2. is confederate with--**rather, is encamped upon the territory of Ephraim [Maurer], or better, as Rezin was encamped against Jerusalem, "is supported by" [Lowth] Ephraim, whose land lay between Syria and Judah. The mention of "David" alludes, in sad contrast with the present, to the time when David made Syria subject to him (2Sa 8:6). **Ephraim--**the ten tribes. **as ... trees of ... wood...
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And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them. straight: Heb. into straightness

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KJV Study Commentary

God promises to lead the blind by unknown ways, make darkness light, and crooked things straight. The Hebrew 'ivver' (blind) represents those without spiritual sight whom God guides personally. The emphatic conclusion—'I will do them, and not forsake them'—guarantees completion. God finishes what He starts.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**3. Go forth--**out of the city, to the place where Ahaz was superintending the works for defense and the cutting off of the water supply from the enemy, and securing it to the city. So Is 22:9; 2Ch 32:4. **Shearjashub--**that is, A remnant shall return (Is 6:13). His very name (compare Is 7:14; Is 8:3) was a standing memorial to Ahaz and the Jews that the nation should not, notwithstanding the...
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They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods.

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KJV Study Commentary

Those trusting in idols will be 'turned back' and 'greatly ashamed' (Hebrew 'bosh'—deep humiliation). The irony: saying to molten images 'Ye are our gods' exposes absurdity—addressing human creations as creators. Shame is the inevitable result when trust is misplaced in impotent objects.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(17) **They shall be greatly ashamed . . .**—Manifestly the winding up of a section. The foretold victories of Cyrus shall bring shame and confusion on the worshippers of the idols which he, the representative of a purer faith, should overthrow.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**4. Take heed, &c.--**that is, See that thou be quiet (not seeking Assyrian aid in a fit of panic). **tails--**mere ends of firebrands, almost consumed themselves (about soon to fall before the Assyrians, Is 7:8), therefore harmless. **smoking--**as about to go out; not blazing. **son of Remaliah--**Pekah, a usurper (2Ki 15:25). The Easterners express contempt by designating one, not by...
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Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.

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KJV Study Commentary

God commands the deaf to hear and blind to look—a paradoxical call to those incapable without divine intervention. This emphasizes that only God can open deaf ears and blind eyes. The imperatives demand response while acknowledging dependence on God's enabling grace.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(18) **Hear, ye deaf . . .**—The words form the beginning of a new section. The prophet feels or sees that the great argument has not carried conviction as it ought to have done. The people to whom Jehovah speaks through him are still spiritually blind and deaf, and that people is ideally the servant of the Lord (Isaiah 41:8), in whom the pattern of the personal servant ought to have been reproduc...
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Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the LORD'S servant?

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KJV Study Commentary

The shocking rhetorical question: 'Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger?' God's own servant and messenger are blind and deaf! This indicts Israel for failing their mission despite privileges. The Hebrew 'shamar' (perfect) ironically describes one who should see but doesn't.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(19) **Deaf, as my messenger . . .**—The work of the messenger of God had been the ideal of Isaiah, as it was of *the *servant in whom the ideal was realised (Romans 10:15; Isaiah 42:1). But how could a blind and deaf messenger, like the actual Israel, do his work effectually? (Psalm 123:2). **As he that is perfect.**—Strictly speaking, *the devoted, *or *surrendered one. *The Hebrew *meshullam *i...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**6. vex--**rather, "throw into consternation" [Gesenius]. **make a breach--**rather, "cleave it asunder." Their scheme was to divide a large portion of the territory between themselves, and set up a vassal king of their own over the rest. **son of Tabeal--**unknown; a Syrian-sounding name, perhaps favored by a party in Jerusalem (Is 3:6, 9, 12).

Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not.

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KJV Study Commentary

The indictment continues: 'Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not.' Physical capacity exists but functional awareness absent. The Hebrew 'ra'ah' (seeing) and 'shama' (hearing) happen, yet comprehension fails—a willful obtuseness more culpable than simple ignorance.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(20) **Seeing many things . . .**—With a clear vision into the future, the prophet sees that the future Israel will be as far from the ideal as his contemporaries had been. In the actual work of *the *Servant we find the fulfilment of his vision. Scribes and Pharisees are as those who “learn nothing and forget nothing,” on whom all the lessons of experience are cast away, reproducing the state fro...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

7. (Is 8:10; Pr 21:30).

The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable. it: or, him

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KJV Study Commentary

Despite Israel's failure, 'the LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake'—His own righteousness, not theirs. He will 'magnify the law, and make it honourable' through His purposes. The Hebrew 'gadal' (magnify) suggests exalting and displaying the law's perfection, ultimately through Christ who fulfills it.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(21) **The Lord is well pleased . . .**—The tenses require a change: *The Lord was well pleased **. . .*** *He made His law great and glorious. *This had been His purpose, and he had not failed in it. He had done all that it was possible to do. (Comp. Isaiah 5:4; Romans 9:4.)

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**8. head--**that is, in both Syria and Israel the capital shall remain as it is; they shall not conquer Judah, but each shall possess only his own dominions. **threescore and five ... not a people--**As these words break the symmetry of the parallelism in this verse, either they ought to be placed after "Remaliah's son," in Is 7:9, or else they refer to some older prophecy of Isaiah, or of Amos...
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But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes , and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore. they are all: or, in snaring all the young men of them for a spoil: Heb. a treading

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KJV Study Commentary

Israel's condition is pitiable: 'robbed and spoiled,' trapped in holes and prisons, becoming prey without deliverance. The Hebrew 'bazaz' (spoiled/plundered) depicts total defeat. None says 'Restore'—no advocate, no hope from human sources. This desperate situation reveals the need for divine intervention.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(22) **But this is a people robbed and spoiled . . .**—It is hard to say whether the prophet contemplates the state of the exiles in Babylon, or sees far off yet another exile, consequent on a second and more fatal falling off from the true ideal. **None delivereth . . .** **none saith, Restore.**—The tone of despondency seems to come in strangely after the glorious promise of deliverance. On the ...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**9. believe, ... be established--**There is a paronomasia, or play on the words, in the Hebrew: "if ye will not confide, ye shall not abide." Ahaz brought distress on himself by distrust in the Lord, and trust in Assyria.

Who among you will give ear to this? who will hearken and hear for the time to come? for: Heb. for the after time?

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KJV Study Commentary

The prophet calls for attentive response: 'Who among you will give ear to this? who will hearken and hear for the time to come?' The Hebrew 'azan' (give ear) and 'qashab' (attend) emphasize careful, ongoing attention. Past failure demands present learning for future wisdom.

Who gave Jacob for a spoil , and Israel to the robbers? did not the LORD, he against whom we have sinned? for they would not walk in his ways, neither were they obedient unto his law.

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KJV Study Commentary

God asks who gave Jacob to robbers and Israel to spoilers, then answers: 'the LORD, he against whom we have sinned.' The shift from third to first person ('we have sinned') acknowledges corporate guilt. The Hebrew 'chata' (sinned) admits covenant violations brought judgment. God Himself delivered them to enemies as discipline.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(24) **Who gave Jacob for a spoil . . .?**—The sufferers, whether in the nearer or more distant exile, are reminded that they have brought their sufferings upon themselves, and that it is Jehovah who sends them in the wrath which, as aiming at their restoration, is but another aspect of His love.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**11. Ask thee--**since thou dost not credit the prophet's words. **sign--**a miraculous token to assure thee that God will fulfil His promise of saving Jerusalem (Is 37:30; 38:7, 8). "Signs," facts then present or near at hand as pledges for the more distant future, are frequent in Isaiah. **ask ... in ... depth--**literally, "Make deep ... ask it," that is, Go to the depth of the earth or of...
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Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger, and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart.

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KJV Study Commentary

God poured fury of anger and violence of war upon Israel, yet 'he knew not'—they didn't understand—and though it burned, 'yet he laid it not to heart.' The Hebrew 'sum lev' (lay to heart) means taking seriously, learning lessons. Suffering without spiritual perception produces no benefit.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(25) **The fury of his anger.**—Better, *the burning heat of His wrath, and the violence of war. *Historically, the words seem to find a better fulfiment in the “wars and rumours of wars” (Matthew 24:6) than in the long equable continuance of the exile. **Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission. **Bible Hub

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**12. neither ... tempt--**hypocritical pretext of keeping the law (De 6:16); "tempt," that is, put God to the proof, as in Mt 4:7, by seeking His miraculous interposition without warrant. But here there was the warrant of the prophet of God; to have asked a sign, when thus offered, would not have been a tempting of God. Ahaz' true reason for declining was his resolve not to do God's will, but to ...
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