Isaiah 51

1–3

(Chapter 51, verses 1 and following) Listen to me, you who pursue what is just and seek the Lord. Consider the rock from which you were hewn, and the quarry from which you were dug. Consider Abraham your father, and Sarah who bore you; for when I called him, he was but one, then I blessed him and made him many. Therefore, the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of praise. LXX: Listen, you who pursue what is just, and seek the Lord. Pay attention to the sturdy rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who bore you; for he was alone when I called him, but I blessed him and multiplied him. And now I will comfort you, Zion. I have made her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of praise. While the sleeping ones are in sorrow and perpetual grief, who kindled a fire for themselves and made the flames very strong, you who pursue justice and seek the Lord (which signifies the choir of the Apostles and of those who believe through the Apostles), look back at the rock, that is, your father Abraham, from whom you were cut off, and at the cave of the lake, from which you were cut off, that is, Sarah who bore you. And consider this, that when he was of one hundred years and his wife was barren, I multiplied his children like the stars of the sky, so that the multitude would surpass the number. If, therefore, from one man so many thousands of people have been born, what great thing is it for me to restore the ruins of Zion and to change its deserts into a paradise of pleasure and into the garden of the Lord which God planted in Eden opposite the East? And let there be found in it joy and gladness instead of diverse trees, confession and the voice of praise. The Jews refer this to Zerubbabel's time, because after the devastation of Babylon, Zion was restored, the Temple was built, and the ancient religion was restored. But how does it say above (in chapter XLIX, 22, 23) to Zion: They will bring your sons in their arms, and they will carry your daughters on their shoulders. And your kings will be your foster fathers, and your queens will be your foster mothers. And: Behold, these will come from afar, and those from the north and the sea, and those from the southern land; when Zion says: The place is too narrow for me, make room for me to dwell, which excludes the mediocrity of those times, and are not known to be fulfilled above earthly Jerusalem: thus the Lord also speaks here to those who persecute what is just, according to what is said elsewhere: Seek peace, and pursue it (Psalm XXXIII, 5); and again: Pursuing hospitality (Romans XI, 13). And they seek the Lord, so that from past events he may infer his presence: since much more difficult things have already happened, they should not doubt the future things that are promised. Furthermore, it is said by the persecutors of justice according to the Septuagint, that they may look upon the most sturdy rock, which they have cut down, and the pit of the trap they have dug, that is, the Lord as Savior, about whom the Apostle speaks: And that rock was Christ (I Cor. X, 4). And elsewhere it is written: He set my feet upon a rock (Ps. XXXIX, 3). And again: They have pierced my hands and feet. For they have pierced my side with a spear, from which blood and water have flowed, and they have pierced my hands and feet, as the Lord and Savior himself said: They have pierced my hands and feet, they have numbered all my bones (Ps. 22:16). We can call the rock that was hewn out the sepulcher of the Savior, in which he was buried, and rising from the dead, he begot innumerable children. And he was called Abraham, that is, the father of many nations. Just as Sarah, once barren, is interpreted as the Church, which is also called Zion, whom the Lord has comforted, and has made her desolate places like a paradise. For she has more children of the desolate than of her who has a husband. And what is said: And I will place in the paradise of the Lord those things that are towards the West, or in the garden of God, signifies that which, while sitting in darkness and the shadow of death, a sudden light has risen. The paradise, in which we turn our delights, is translated in Hebrew as Eden (), about which it is written in the beginning of Genesis. And this should be noted, that in Zion, which is compared to the paradise of God, there should be nothing other than joy and gladness, confession and the voice of praise, so that what the saints with the Angels of God will do in heaven, they should also meditate on this constantly on earth in the praise of the Lord.

Commentary on Isaiah

The Jews refer this to the time of Zerubbabel, because after the devastation of Babylon Zion was restored and its temple built up and the old religion reinstated.… But here the Lord speaks to those who were persecuting him because he was righteous.… Moreover, according to the Septuagint, it is said to the persecutors of righteousness that they are to look on the hardest stone, which they cut out, and on the pit of the crater that they dug, that is, on the Lord and Savior, about whom the apostle said, “The rock was Christ.” We can say that the cut-out rock means the tomb of the Savior into which he was placed. When he rose from the dead, he bore innumerable children and was called Abraham, that is, the father of many nations, just as Sarah’s once sterile womb means the church, which is otherwise called Zion, whom the Lord comforted and made its desert places like paradise.

Commentary on Isaiah 14:6

“Righteous,” he says, instead of “righteousness,” which is through Christ through faith in him, a faith that justifies the ungodly and removes all stain from those who have been filthy, and cleanses them in the Spirit and prepares for them the shining honor of sonship. They pursue righteousness, not in the sense of driving it before them and so away from their minds, but of running toward it to take hold of it. As David said, “Seek peace and pursue it.” … The speech of the holy prophets always draws figures from the visible and the tangible things. For it has expressions that transcend reference, the senses and even the mind. In this way “Zion” is mentioned—not that we think of the earthly city but rather take it to be the spiritual one, that is, the church of the living God. Or how else would we see the words of the prophet coming true?…“Worship in spirit and truth,” and the power of spiritual worship gave off the pleasant spiritual fragrance and joy in the hope that is in Christ. For if we trust that our body of lowliness will be transformed into the body of his glory, so we shall be with him and reign with him, assembled among the children of God and enriched with his divine and life-giving Spirit. We too bring forward the spiritual harvest to him—the confession and hymns of thanksgiving. For with such sacrifices is God well pleased.

Commentary on Isaiah 4:5.51:1-3

921. Give ear to me, you that follow. Here he excludes the second impediment to their liberation, which could be believed from the oppression and humiliation of the Jews. And this is divided into three parts:

in the first, the impediment of dejection from their fewness in number is excluded;

in the second, dejection from the power of their oppressors: hearken to me (Isa 51:7);

in the third, from the weight of their punishment: but I am the Lord your God, who trouble the sea (Isa 51:15).

922. Concerning the first, he does three things.

First, he stirs up attention, setting out their fitness: you that follow, by good works, and you that seek, by right intention: the rich have wanted, and have suffered hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not be deprived of any good (Ps 33:11[34:10]).

Second, he excludes fear of fewness in number;

third, he sets out the firmness of the promise, lift up your eyes to heaven (Isa 51:6).

Commentary on Isaiah

For the divine voice says somewhere in the prophecy of Isaiah, “Consider Abraham, your father, and Sarah, who gave you birth.” Scripture gives this admonition to those who wander outside virtue. Just as at sea those who are carried away from the direction of the harbor bring themselves back on a course by a clear sign, on seeing either a beacon light raised up high or some mountain peak coming into view, in the same way Scripture by the example of Abraham and Sarah may guide again to the harbor of the divine will those adrift on the sea of life with a pilotless mind.

Life of Moses, Prologue 11

He is leaving aside the unbelievers here in order to address those who have believed: it is to them that he gives the name of enamored with God and with righteousness. He comforts them because they are few in number and invites them to turn their eyes toward their ancestors: he reminds them of Abraham and Sarah and the many thousands of descendants who came from them. This is similar to the term expressed in the divine Gospels: “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” It is the same here.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.1

Nothing made is an obstacle to my power: not the fact that I called just one man or that old age was on him, or that Sarah lacked the physical capability; yet his race was [indeed] increased, just as I had wished. Be unbelieving no longer, therefore, even though you are [now] easy to count; I will make you too many to number.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.2

923. Concerning the second, he does three things.

First, he gives an example: look unto the rock, namely, Abraham, because of his old age, whence you are hewn, as though violently, not according to the course of nature; and to the hole of the pit, namely, Sarah, to whom it had ceased to be after the manner of women (Gen 18:11): neither did he consider his own body, when it was already dead (Rom 4:19), in which is shown that God has power to make fertile; for I called him alone (cf. Gen 12:1): Abraham was one (Ezek 33:24).

Commentary on Isaiah

It is not a question of inhabited places but of desert places, not of regions situated in the east but of those in the west. Those who have seen the city with their own eyes know that the temple of the Jews was in the eastern part of the city, whereas the cross and the [place of] the resurrection were in the western part. Moreover, these places were formerly situated outside the walls. The divine apostle was witness to this when he said, “Jesus … suffered outside the gate. Therefore let us go forth to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach.” He makes this prediction accordingly: all the places of the city that were deserted and all those that were in the west will be as the garden of the Lord, for they truly possess the tree of life. “They shall find in it gladness and exultation, thanksgiving and the voice of praise.” This also we still see fulfilled in our day: in place of the smoke, of the odor of fat that rises from the victims and of the cult rendered according to the law, which the Lord of the universe, even in former days, did not find agreeable, night and day Zion raises hymns in honor of the God of the universe, for it is filled with [worshipers] who chant hymns.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.3

924. [Second,] he deduces the benefit of divine comfort: the Lord therefore will comfort, as to the rebuilding of cities, all the ruins: you are comforted concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, in all things (Ezek 14:22); as to the cultivation of fields: and he will make her desert, that is, your land, which formerly was desert: their soul shall be as a watered garden (Jer 31:12); and as to the gladness of men: joy, above: you shall have a song (Isa 30:29).

928. Note on the words, he will make her desert as a place of pleasure (Isa 51:3), that the saints have twofold pleasures.

First, those of glory, which consist

first, in the full vision of God: then shall you abound in delights in the Almighty (Job 22:66);

second, in perfect love;

third, in abundant refreshment;

fourth, in eminent authority.

Second, those of grace, which consist

first, in the perception of divine light: night shall be my light in my pleasures (Ps 138:11);

second, in the intention or the solicitude for good works: he shall not much remember the days of his life (Eccl 5:19);

third, in the adornment of the virtues: how beautiful are you, and how comely, my dearest, in delights (Song 7:6);

fourth, in peace of heart, below: you will call the sabbath delightful (Isa 58:13).

Commentary on Isaiah

For the law promulgated on Horeb is now old, and belongs to yourselves alone; but this is for all universally. Now, law placed against law has abrogated that which is before it, and a covenant which comes after in like manner has put an end to the previous one; and an eternal and final law-namely, Christ-has been given to us, and the covenant is trustworthy, after which there shall be no law, no commandment, no ordinance. Have you not read this which Isaiah says: "Hearken unto Me, hearken unto Me, my people; and, ye kings, give ear unto Me: for a law shall go forth from Me, and My judgment shall be for a light to the nations. My righteousness approaches swiftly, and My salvation shall go forth, and nations shall trust in Mine arm?" And by Jeremiah, concerning this same new covenant, He thus speaks: "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by the hand, to bring them out of the land of Egypt."

Dialogue with Trypho, Chapter XI

“Listen to me, my people, and give ear to me, my nation; for a law will go forth from me.” And how could it go forth now, if it were the same law that went forth in the days of Moses? But it is evident that here he mystically signifies the spiritual law, which is the New Testament. “And my justice is a light to the peoples,” that is, my sacrament. He also means that the conscience of the Gentiles, which is now clouded by idolatry, will be enlightened after all their gods are condemned by the divine sentence.

Commentary on Isaiah 51:4

4–5

(Vers. 4, 5.) Listen to me, my people, and my tribe, listen to me: for the law will come forth from me, and my judgment will rest on the light of the nations. My righteous one is near, my savior has come forth, and my arms will judge the peoples. The islands will wait for me, and my arm will sustain them. LXX: Listen to me, listen to me, my people, and kings, give heed to me: for the law will come forth from me, and my judgment will be a light to the Gentiles. My justice approaches quickly, and it will come forth like the light of my salvation. And nations will place their hope in my arm. The islands will wait for me, and they will place their hope in my arm. Once it is said in Hebrew: 'Listen,' and secondly according to the Septuagint: 'Hear me, hear me,' so that it may teach us that we should hear with the ears of the body and the understanding of the soul. And a multitude of nations, which is the people of God, is called upon to diligently listen to what is said about it, as Zacharias says: 'Many nations will take refuge in the Lord, and they will become his people' (Zech. II, 11). They are called a people, as some will have it, the remnant of believers of Israel; and for tribe, or race, those who have believed from the multitude of nations, as Moses in Deuteronomy says to the nations in his song: 'Rejoice, O nations, with His people' (Deut. 32:43). For tribe, which we have interpreted as Theodotion, means 'race'; Symmachus translates it as 'nation'; the Seventy, as 'kings'. For we are both tribe and race, and people, and a royal and priestly lineage of the Lord, just as Abraham, who was called a king, and the other saints, of whom it is written: 'Touch not my anointed ones' (Ps. 105:15). What is it that is commanded to be heard? Because the law, he says, will go forth from me, and my judgment into the light of the people, or nations. This law of the Gospel is shown to be spiritual, which will go forth from Zion; not of Moses, which was given of old on Sinai; and my judgment will proceed into the light of the nations, through which it has been established and decreed that all nations will be saved. And lest we should think that what he promised would come after a long time, he adds, my righteousness, or justice, is near. For Christ has been made for us wisdom and redemption from the Father (1 Cor. 1), holiness and righteousness, and all things by which virtue is called by name. And it is beautifully said, justice will proceed, so that not just one nation, but the whole world may be saved. And the Savior, or salvation, which in Hebrew is called Jesus, is called the Son of God, who was sent by the Father. Simeon, holding the child in his arms, says: Now you dismiss your servant, Lord, because my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all peoples, a light for the revelation of the gentiles (Luke 11, 29 et seq.). And what follows: And my arms will judge the peoples. Whether according to the LXX, and in my arm the nations will hope, or this signifies that all will be judged by his power, or that all nations will believe in Christ, who is the arm and strength of God. It is also said in another place: Your arm with power. Let your hand be strengthened, and let your right hand be exalted (Ps. 88:14). And again: Sing to the Lord a new song: his right hand and holy arm will save him (Ps. 27:1, 2). For the right hand and arm of the Lord, is He who first saved the lost for Himself, so that none of those whom the Father had given Him would perish (John 17). And as for the islands, or the souls of the Saints, who in the persecutions of this world are firmly rooted in God by faith, or the multitude of Churches from the nations, we have often explained. And just as the arm of the Lord is the Savior, so we can understand all the saints as His arms that will judge the peoples, in whom God will judge the world.

Commentary on Isaiah

In the Septuagint “listen to me” is said twice to teach us that we ought to listen with the ears of our body and with the understanding of our soul.… For “tribe,” as we have translated, Theodotion has “race,” Symmachus “people” and the Septuagint “kings.” For we are a tribe and line and a royal, priestly race of the Lord, such as was Abraham, who was called “king,” and the rest of the saints, concerning whom it is written, “touch not my christs.”

Commentary on Isaiah 14:7

But when the time of his incarnation unexpectedly arrived, then the shadows made way for the truth. And he said, “Listen to me, O my people.” … He is speaking here not only to those who are numbered among the people but also to the kings, because he wanted the rulers, the leaders of the people, to receive his message as well.… “The law will go forth from me, and my judgment will be a light to the nations.” He refers to the divine and evangelical preaching as “law” here; it is just that it is in a different form now, just as the oracles and salvation also are new. For just as the old law was changed to something better, there has also been a transfer from those things that were provisional types to that which is the truth. For Christ said, “Do not think I have come to destroy the law.” … The law in letters was given by Moses, but the preaching of salvation, which is the gospel, came through Christ.… He calls his “judgment” here something that is both sanctioned by the law of God as well as a benevolent accounting; it is the grace from him that went out to illuminate the Gentiles; they were amazed at his judgment, which was both righteous and just—truly the righteousness that is clearly made known in the gospel.

Commentary on Isaiah 4:5.51:4

925. Third, he sets out the manner of execution: hearken unto me.

And first, he sets out the divine intention: a law, the precept of Cyrus concerning the liberation of the people; my judgment, promulgated from the justice of the Lord; to be a light, comfort, above: to them that dwelt in the region of the shadow of death, light is risen (Isa 9:2).

Commentary on Isaiah

If we want to know the meaning of these words in the person of God and Father, then we say that he calls the Son “his righteousness.” For we are saved in him … through his great mercy.… He is called “righteousness” and “salvation” and rightly so. For he has removed all evil from us and, freeing us from the chains of death, has led us into eternal life.… Those who were once weak and prostrate on the ground grasp his right hand and gain the hope of an unexpected salvation. For the holy Scriptures often call the Son the right arm of the Father. For he is his power.

Commentary on Isaiah 4:5.51:5

He calls his power “arm”: that which constitutes the greatest proof of divine power is to have conquered the world by the cross, by ignominy and by death; it is to have given fishermen, publicans, shoemakers as masters to philosophers and to rhetoricians; it is to have, thanks to a dozen men, cultivated the whole world and, thanks to an equally small number of men, filled the entire earth and sea with the divine message.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.5

Second, he sets out the nearness of the judgment: my just one is near at hand, namely, Cyrus, or Christ; my savior is gone forth, already in my foreknowledge, above: I have brought my justice near (Isa 46:13).

Third, he sets out the usefulness of the judgment: arms, powerful men, by my power, Cyrus and Darius; the islands shall look for me, various peoples will hope in me, seeing the liberation of the people, above: he will set judgment in the earth (Isa 42:4).

Commentary on Isaiah

[Some malignantly assert] that if heaven is indeed the throne of God and earth his footstool, and if … the heaven and earth shall pass away, then when these pass away, the God who sits above must also pass away, and therefore he cannot be the God who is over all. In the first place, they are ignorant what the expression means, that heaven is [his] throne and the earth [his] footstool. For they do not know what God is, but they imagine that he sits after the fashion of a person and is contained within the bounds, but nothing contains God. And they are also unacquainted with [the meaning of] the passing away of the heaven and earth; but Paul was not ignorant of it when he declared, “For the form of this world passes away.” In the next place, David explains their question, for he says that when the fashion of this world passes away, not only shall God remain, but his servants also, expressing himself thus in Psalm 101: “In the beginning, you, O Lord, have founded the earth, and the heavens are the works of your hands. They shall perish, but you shall endure, and all shall grow old as a garment; and as a piece of clothing you shall change them, and they shall be changed. But you are the same, and your years shall not fail. The children of your servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established forever”; pointing out plainly what things they are that pass away and who it is that does endure forever—God, together with his servants.

Against Heresies 4:3.1

But if our opponents say, How then is it, if the universe is not destroyed, that the Lord says that “heaven and earth shall pass away,” and the prophet, that “the heaven shall perish as smoke” and “the earth shall grow old as a garment”; we answer, because it is usual for the Scriptures to call the change of the world from its present condition to a better and more glorious one destruction, as its earlier form is lost in the change of all things to a state of greater splendor, for there is neither contradiction nor absurdity in the Scriptures. For not “the world” but “the fashion of this world” passes away, it is said. So it is usual for the Scriptures to call the change from an earlier form to a better and more comely state “destruction”; just as when one calls by the name of “destruction” the change from a childish form into a perfect adult, as the stature of the child is turned into mature size and beauty.

On the Resurrection 1:9

And not only the souls of people, which are immortal, but also their bodies will be changed into a glorified substance.… The opinion of the world’s philosophers is that all things that we can see will be destroyed by fire.… Just as John the apostle says, “The world and its desire will pass away,” and here in Hebrew it is said, “The sky like smoke will evaporate,” or, as Aquila and Symmachus have it, “will be reduced to nothing and will be worn away.” … Therefore I wonder at what the Septuagint wants to say when it says, “The sky like smoke has been made firm.” For if we take “firmness” to be “solidity,” how can what is firm be compared with smoke? Unless perhaps we can say that all the firmness and solidity and strength of the heaven that dissolves in the air is as Ecclesiastes says, the most empty wind and smoke: “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” And that must be said that if the sky and the earth were to perish and grow old, then its inhabitants would also die and vanish, although we know that souls are everlasting and bodies are also resurrected. From this it is clear that heaven and earth do not perish and become reduced to nothing, but they are changed into something better.

Commentary on Isaiah 14:8

(Verse 6) Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look down to the earth beneath: for the heavens will vanish like smoke, and the earth will wear out like a garment, and its inhabitants will die like flies. But my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be abolished. LXX: Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and behold the earth beneath, for the heavens are established like smoke. But the earth will grow old like a garment, and its inhabitants will die like these things. But my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never fail. This is what the Lord speaks in the Gospel: Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away (Matt. XXIV, 35). And David sings in the psalm: In the beginning, Lord, you founded the earth, and the works of your hands are the heavens. They will perish, but you will endure, and all of them will wear out like a garment; you will wrap them up like a cloak, and they will be changed (Ps. CI, 26). From this it is shown that the destruction of heaven does not mean annihilation, but a change for the better. Of this it is said: 'There will be a new heaven and a new earth, which I will make to remain in my sight' (Apoc. XXI, 2). For if it is written of the saints: 'We shall all indeed rise again, but we shall not all be changed' (I Cor. XV, 51); and in the titles of four psalms it is said: 'For those who shall be changed'; how much more must this be believed of the heaven, the sun, and the stars, when the moon will receive the light of the sun and the sun will shine seven times brighter? And every creature groans and labors, awaiting the revelation of the sons of God, to be changed for the better (Rom. VIII). And not only the souls of humans, which are immortal, but also their bodies will be transformed into a glorified substance. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality (I Cor. XV, 53). And when the heavens and the earth grow old, along with all that is contained within the circle of the heavens, and humans, who are the inhabitants of the earth, will die like this: not for their destruction, but for the abolition of their former lowliness, and for the renewal of future glory; when the righteous will shine like the sun (Matth. XIII, 43); and as the past and old things pass away, all things will become new. Some people understand perishing and growing old as abolition and death. According to what we read in the Catholic Epistle: The heavens and the earth which now exist are reserved by the same word for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. And again: The elements will be dissolved with burning heat (2 Peter 3:7). This is indeed the opinion of the philosophers of the world, that all things which we see will perish by fire. Hence the Apostle says: The fashion of this world is passing away, for those who contemplate not the things which are seen, but the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (I Cor. VII, 32). This is also what the apostle John writes: The world passes away, and the desire thereof (I John II, 17). And in Hebrew it is said: The heavens shall fade away like smoke. Or, according to Aquila and Symmachus, they shall be broken into nothingness, and crushed like salt and vanish away, of which the former said, they shall be dissolved; the latter, they shall perish; which clearly indicates a meaning derived from the breaking and dissolving of salt. Therefore, I wonder what the Seventy wanted to say when they said that the sky is firm like smoke. For if firmness is understood as strength, how can smoke, which is only firm, be compared to it? Unless, perhaps, we can say this: that the firmness, strength, and power of the sky are equal to the most empty wind and smoke, which dissolves in the air, as stated in Ecclesiastes: 'Vanity of vanities, all is vanity' (Eccl. I, 2). And it must be said that if the sky and the earth will perish and grow old, by what reasoning can we believe that its inhabitants will die and disappear, while we know that souls are eternal and bodies will be resurrected? From which it is clear that the sky and the earth do not perish and are not reduced to nothingness, but are changed for the better.

Commentary on Isaiah

The Son is called "salvation" and "righteousness," as we often say, and thus his quality is declared that he has in himself, by which and in which he is Son by nature. Indeed, he is eternal and does not "wear out." Such is the difference between creator and creation, the made from the maker, which is clearly seen in this verse.

Commentary on Isaiah 4:5.51:6

From the sky and the earth, from the things on high and those below, learn of my power. I produced these elements with great ease and, conversely, I can make them disappear. “But my salvation shall be for eternity, and my righteousness shall not fail.” This is what the Lord has likewise said in the holy Gospels: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.”

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.6

926. Lift up your eyes to heaven. Here he shows the firmness of the divine promise by comparison to the changing of creatures.

Hence he first sets out the changeableness of creation: the earth shall vanish, as to shape and as to substance (1 Cor 7:31); and the same thing is to be said concerning the others: in the beginning, O Lord, you founded the earth: and the heavens are the works of your hands (Ps 101:26[102:25]).

Second, the firmness of the divine promise: but my salvation shall be for ever, because I promise it, or because I will never lack, so as to not be prepared to save and do justice: heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away (Luke 21:33).

Commentary on Isaiah

7–8

(Verse 7, 8.) Listen to me, you who know righteousness, (people add "my" in Vulg.): my law is in their hearts. Do not fear the reproach of men, nor be afraid of their blasphemies. For like a moth, it will consume them; and like a worm, it will devour them. But my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness for generations upon generations. LXX: Listen to me, you who know judgment, my people: whose law is in their hearts. Do not be afraid of the disgrace of men, and do not be overcome by their contempt. For just as clothing will be consumed with time, and as wool will be eaten by moths. But my righteousness will be eternal, and my salvation for generations upon generations. He who said above: The law will come forth from me, and my judgment to the light of the nations: now speaks to the same ones who know his judgment, and have his law in their hearts, so that they may do all things with judgment, and have the law which the Lord promises through Jeremiah, saying (Jer. XXXI, 31 et seqq.): I will establish a new testament, not according to the testament which I made with their fathers: but I will establish a testament, giving my laws in their minds: and I will write them upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they will be my people: so that they may not live according to the letter, but according to the spirit, restoring the natural law in their hearts, about which the Apostle writes: For when the Gentiles, who do not have the law, naturally do the things that are of the law: they, not having the law, are a law unto themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts (Rom. II, 14). Regarding which it is signified in the psalm: The mouth of the just shall meditate wisdom: and his tongue shall speak judgment. The law of his God is in his heart, and his steps shall not be supplanted (Psalm 36:30-31). And because the prophetic spirit knew that there would be many persecutions for those who believe, he exhorts them to fortitude, even to the contempt of those who will persecute them. This is what the Lord also spoke of in the Gospel: Fear ye not them that kill the body, and are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him that can destroy both soul and body into hell (Matthew 10:28). And in another place: Rejoice, when all evil things are said against you falsely (Ibid., V, 11). For just as a garment is consumed by worms or by time, and just as wool is devoured by moths, so all the reproach of persecutors will pass with the persecutors. Therefore the Apostles boasted that they were considered worthy to suffer insults for the Lord (Act. V). But they boasted because the salvation and righteousness of the Lord, which had promised them victory and rewards, that is, the Lord and Savior may remain forever, both in the previous and later generations, who have received his coming, about whom it is also said above: My righteous one is near, my savior has gone forth.

Commentary on Isaiah

7–8

This is what the Lord has also said in the divine Gospels: “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul,” and again: “Do not fear them,” and: “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and shall say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven.” Similarly, here, the prophetic text has shown that people who revile and trample underfoot the heralds of truth are like garments and like wool that is eaten away by the moth, while the salvation and the righteousness of those who are being insulted has no end and escapes death. After having made the prediction here concerning the new people, [the prophet] passes to another subject and prophesies to Jerusalem the return from exile in Babylon. One should know, however, that these announcements were not made at the same time as the others, but that the first dates from one epoch, the second from some other time, and that they were put together later to form a single book.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.8

927. Hearken to me. Here he excludes the impediment which could be feared from oppression, so far as pertains to the power of their oppressors. And concerning this, he does two things:

first, the consolation of the Lord is set out;

second, the discussion of the prophet: arise (Isa 51:9).

Concerning the first, he does four things.

First, he stirs up attention: you that know what is just, that is, the justice which I have revealed in my judgments: he has not done in like manner to every nation: and his judgments he has not made manifest to them (Ps 147:20); in your heart, in your understanding: let them not depart from your eyes, keep them in the midst of your heart (Prov 4:21).

Second, he excludes fear: fear not the reproach of men, who hold you in contempt, glorying in their own power: but I am a worm, and no man: the reproach of men, and the outcast of the people (Ps 21:7[22:6]).

Commentary on Isaiah

Third, he shows their fragility: for the worm shall eat them up as a garment: who am as a garment that is moth-eaten (Job 13:28).

Fourth, the firmness of divine help: but my salvation shall be for ever, above: Israel is saved in the Lord with an eternal salvation (Isa 45:17).

Commentary on Isaiah

According to the Hebrew, it is not Jerusalem but the arm of the Lord that has to put on strength. This relates to what we spoke about above [v. 5], about the nations hoping in “my arm.” For we have said that the divinity of the Word is signified here, since he urges the people not to fear the rebuke of human beings or to be affected by their filth, and in the same way here it is right to see in the person of the people a prayer being sent to the “arm of the Lord” to rouse himself and overcome the enemies of his people. For we confess we are nothing unless you rise up and overcome on our behalf.

Commentary on Isaiah 2:39

9–11

(Vers. 9 seqq.) Arise, arise; put on the strength of the arm of the Lord. Arise as in the days of old, in the generations of ages. Have you not struck down the proud, wounded the dragon? Have you not dried up the sea, the water of the great abyss, who made the depths of the sea a path, so that the redeemed might pass over? And now those who have been redeemed by the Lord will return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy will be upon their heads: they will have gladness and joy, sorrow and sighing will flee away. LXX: Arise, arise, O Jerusalem, and put on the strength of your arm. Arise as in the beginning of the day, as the everlasting generation. Are you not the one who formed the width, who crushed the dragon? Are you not the one who made the desert into a sea, the waters of the abyss many: who made a deep passage through the sea, for those who were freed and redeemed? For they shall be returned by the Lord, and they shall come to Zion with eternal joy and rejoicing. For in their head shall they apprehend praise and joy. Grief and mourning and sighing shall flee away. The name Jerusalem, which is added here by the LXX, is not found in Hebrew, nor is it found in any of the three Interpreters, from which it should be noted with an obelus and thus connected with the previous sense of the following chapter. The Lord had encouraged those who believed in him, saying: Do not fear the reproach of men, and do not be afraid of their blasphemies. And he had promised them his eternal salvation and justice as an aid, which is none other than Christ, the arm of the Lord, of whom he had said above: And the Gentiles shall hope in my arm. Where the people speak to the arm of the Lord, and implore His coming, and beg for the promised help, saying: Arise, arise: put on strength, arm of the Lord. Arise as in the ancient days, and exercise all your strength, so that you who have saved your Saints from dangers through many centuries may also protect us with your strength. For it is you who struck down the proud, wounded the dragon, the king indeed of Egypt Pharaoh, who is also called the great dragon in Ezekiel (Ezek. XXIX). You dried up the Red Sea, so that through the raging waters and deep sea, your people could find a way and escape the pursuing Egyptians. Therefore, you who did these things: now also bring back those redeemed and liberated by your blood to Zion and the heavenly Jerusalem, or to the Church which you prepared for yourself with your blood. In this place, when they are present, they will rejoice with eternal joy and say: Lord, you have crowned us with the shield of your good will. For they shall have joy and gladness, with sorrow and sighing fleeing away. This is according to the Hebrew. However, according to the Septuagint, Jerusalem, that is, the sinful soul is provoked to put on the strength of its arm and to take up its former works, just as it was before it fell: when it turned about in the day and in the light. For you are the one, it says, who have overcome the broad and spacious way that leads to death: and you have crushed the dragon, the twisting serpent: of which it is also read in the Psalms: You have crushed the heads of the dragons in the waters (Ps. 73:13). Remember your former strength, that you trampled the sea of this world and made it a desert, and you found a way in the midst of the waves. Therefore, the Apostle Peter also crossed the sea of this world to the Lord, and as he walked by faith, he began to sink in unbelief, except that he was supported by the right hand of the Lord. Just as the previous victory was granted with the help of the Lord, so also to those who return after repentance and listen: Will the one who falls not rise again? The Lord says: (Jer. VIII, 4). And, 'Turn to me, sons who are turning away; and I will heal your contritions' (Ibid., III). He himself will extend his hand and lead them back to Zion, the pinnacle and stronghold of virtues, with eternal joy and gladness, and put praise and rejoicing on their heads. For the eyes of the wise are in his head; and they will have this crown, and will be protected by this diadem, so that they may always rejoice and praise the Lord, because joy has succeeded sorrow, mourning, and groaning.

Commentary on Isaiah

He addresses these words as if [Jerusalem] had fallen and were prone on the ground, and he invites it to take up again its power of other times. “Awake as in the early time, as the ancient generation.” Renew yourself, he says, and become again such as you were when your splendor attracted all eyes.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.9

929. Arise. Here the discussion of the prophet with God is set out, as if to say: I have not contended that the enemies of the people are confounded or consumed otherwise than by divine strength.

Thus, first, the petition of the prophet is set out;

second, the response of the Lord: I myself (Isa 51:12).

930. Concerning the first, he does two things.

First, he sets out his petition, in which he calls upon the arm of divine power: O you arm of the Lord, that is, the power of God, arise, as if from sleep: arise, why sleep you, O Lord? (Ps 43[44]:23); put on strength, like soldiers put on arms of war, to fight our enemies: the Lord is clothed with strength, and has girded himself with power (Ps 92[93]:1); and have you an arm like God? (Job 40:4). He also alleges a sign of divine strength in the killing of Pharaoh: have not you struck the proud one, and wounded the dragon?, Pharaoh, about whom it says in Ezekiel 29:3: behold, I come against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, you great dragon.

Commentary on Isaiah

The Hebrew gives the historical sense for the Jews [the Red Sea overcoming Pharaoh], yet this includes another sense, since the One who who did these things now also leads those redeemed and freed by your blood into Zion and into the heavenly Jerusalem—into the church that you have prepared by your blood.… This is what the Hebrew teaches. The rest of the meaning is found through reading the Septuagint concerning Jerusalem, that is, the sinful soul is provoked to put on the strength of God’s arm and to take on the former works such as it did before the fall, when the soul was illumined.

Commentary on Isaiah 14:10

The great number of the Egyptians he calls the “sea.” If, however, one wishes also to see the Assyrians under this name, the explanation would hardly stray from the truth. “[Are you not the one] who made the depths of the sea a way of passage for the delivered and redeemed?” He has said that of the Red Sea: because it was parted in two, Israel enjoyed salvation. So he is recalling these events in order to invite them to have confidence relating to future events. The ensuing passage makes this quite clear.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.10

And in the division of the sea: have not you dried up the sea: by his power the seas are suddenly gathered together (Job 26:12).

Commentary on Isaiah

“They will be gathered by the Lord, and they will arrive in Zion full of joy and an eternal cheerfulness; and on their head praise and joy will take hold of them; sadness, pain and grief will have gone.” He has declared in advance the return of cheerfulness and joy, which take hold of believers after the coming as man of our Savior.… Then by the expression of the face he inspires confidence.… It is the Lord who strengthens him, the One who worked these paradoxes in former times, who delivered Pharaoh with his army into the sea, who killed the many thousands of Assyrians through one angel. … He says, “You have worked with the enemies and have carried out their aims—you were afraid of them and forgot me who am the Creator of all things, among whom he gave a thousand pledges of power. Yet you feared a mortal and corruptible man while you have not paid attention to your own dignity and you have not sought my help.”

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.11-13

931. Second, he announces to his people that the Lord has heard his petition: and now, as it was when they came forth from Egypt, they that are redeemed, from captivity in Babylon: for the Lord will lead them back (Bar 4:23).

Commentary on Isaiah

12–13

(Verse 12, 13.) I, I myself will comfort you. Who are you that you fear from a mortal man, and from the son of man, who will dry up like grass? And you have forgotten the God your maker, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth; and you were constantly afraid all day long because of the fury of the one who was afflicting you, who had prepared to destroy. Where is the fury of the one afflicting you now? It will come quickly, walking to open and will not kill to the point of destruction: and his bread will not fail. But I am the Lord your God, who stirs up the sea and its waves roar; the Lord of hosts is His name. I have put My words in your mouth, and have covered you with the shadow of My hand, that I may plant the heavens, lay the foundations of the earth, and say to Zion, 'You are My people.' LXX: I am, I am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid of a man who will die, and of the son of a man who will be made like grass? And you forget the Lord your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth; you have feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, when he has prepared to destroy. But where is the fury of the oppressor now? For when you are saved, it will not stand, nor will it remain; it will not bring destruction, and its bread will not fail. For I am your God, who stirs up the sea and makes its waves roar. The Lord of hosts is my name. I will put my words in your mouth, and cover you with the shadow of my hand; in which I have set the heavens and established the earth; and Zion will say, 'You are my people.' The people of the faithful is the arm of the Lord, who is the strength of God and the wisdom of God, and they had prayed that he would rise up and provide them with aid, and with him fighting for the saints, they would have joy and gladness, with sorrow and groaning banished. Therefore, either the arm of the Lord, or the Lord Himself responded: I am, I am; and not through the Prophets, but I myself will console you: God of mercies, and Father of all consolation. And I wonder how, with me saying above: Do not fear the reproach of men and their blasphemies, you may fear the rage of persecutors, and not know that they are mortals, who dry up suddenly like hay, and perish. And certainly at that time when you feared them, you forgot the Lord your Maker. For if you had always kept me in your heart, you would never have feared men who are destined to turn to ashes. And whom have you forgotten? God, who suspends the heavens with incredible power and establishes the earth with solid mass. And you feared your adversaries, not for a short time, which could have been granted to you in some way; but constantly and throughout the day, so that even when you had the light of faith, darkness of fear would possess you, and the one who believed you would perish. Where now is the pride of the persecutors? Where is the secular power by which they raged with furious mouth against you? My son will come quickly, treading on and trampling your adversaries, to open for you the way of victory: whether to open the abyss, which he will not destroy until complete annihilation; but he desires to save the converted. Finally, the bread of him, who is interpreted by the Gospel, the teaching proving, will never fail, but will always be open to those willing to partake. At the same time, He makes reference to the Son, whom He promises will come quickly and whose bread He says is eternal: because He is the Lord God Himself, who, in the dispensation of assumed flesh, causes the sea to be troubled and its waves to swell, so that the pride of persecutors may be inflated against His servants, who will then find rest again with the help of the Lord. And He says that He has placed His words in his mouth. For whatever the Son speaks, the words are of the Father, and He will protect him in the shadow of His hand. And for this reason he will be protected so that he may plant new heavens and pour out a new earth, and say to Zion, that is, to the Church: You are my people. Therefore, Zion is none other than the people of God. Symmachus, in that place where we said, 'He will come quickly, walking to open,' and he will not kill until extermination, he interpreted it thus: Hell will open quickly, and he will not die into corruption. Christ is understood, who speaks in the fifteenth psalm: You will not abandon my soul to hell, nor will you allow your Holy One to see corruption. In that place also we translate the words in the Hebrew and Aquila: I have set my words in your mouth, and I have covered you with the shadow of my hand, that you may plant the heavens and lay the foundations of the earth and say to Zion: You are my people. He translated it in this way: I will put my words in your mouth, and I will protect you with the shadow of my hand, in which I have planted the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, and that I may say to Zion: You are my people. According to the LXX, it is said to the soul of every believer, because it, having been created in the image and likeness of God, has ignored its own dignity; but it fears man and the son of man, who can only kill the body, and has not known that it is immortal, nor has it said with the Prophet: The Lord is my light and my savior, whom should I fear? The Lord is the protector of my life; from whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1, 2) And again: The Lord is my helper; I will not fear what man can do to me. The Lord is my helper, and I will look down upon my enemies. (Psalm 118:6, 7) The nature of man is shown in another verse: In the Lord I will put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do to me. (Psalm 56:5) Therefore it is now said: You have feared mortal man, and the son of man, who are as dry grass. For all flesh is grass, and all its glory is like the flower of grass (Isaiah XL), and you have been terrified by the power of the judge, forgetting that he was your protector, who made the heaven and the earth, and all the elements that we see; or those heavens that bear the image of the celestial above, and that earth which multiplies the seed of the Lord. However, what is said above: And his flesh shall not decay, and his bread shall not fail, is added from the edition of Theodotion from the Hebrew. He stirs up the sea and makes its waves roar, as is sung in the Psalms: You rule the might of the sea and calm the tumult of its waves (Psalm 89:9). In Jeremiah it is also written: You shall not fear me, says the Lord, and from my presence you shall not tremble, who have set a boundary for the sea, an everlasting decree that will not be surpassed (Jeremiah 5:22). The seas were stirred up when the net of the Lord drew in a multitude of fish (Matthew 13). And the Lord put His words in the mouth of the believer, and He covered him with the shadow of His hand. He also speaks in the Gospel: When they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you should say; for it will be given to you in that hour what you should say. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you (Matthew 10:19-20). And in another place, He says to the righteous: Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it (Psalm 81:10). And again: Open your mouth to the word of God: for the Lord will give the word to those who proclaim it with great power. Therefore, God speaks to the inner man of Jeremiah, after touching his mouth: Behold, I have put my words in your mouth (Jeremiah 1:9). Who could sing with the Psalmist: He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn to our God (Psalm 40:4). But who has worked all these things if not the Lord and Savior, who made heaven and earth, and says to Zion: You are my people? What belongs to the gathered people of the Church. And in Hosea, He promises to those who believe, saying: I will call them 'my people,' who were not my people; and they will say to me, 'You are my God' (Hosea 2:24).

Commentary on Isaiah

932. I myself. Here is set out the response of the Lord speaking to the people.

And first, he promises comfort: I will comfort: blessed be the God and Father of our Lord, and below this, and the God of all comfort: who comforts us in all our tribulation (2 Cor 1:3–4).

933. Second, he excludes fear of their enemies, setting out their fragility: who are you, that you should be afraid of a mortal man, and of the son of man, who shall wither away like grass, above: all flesh is grass, and all the glory thereof as the flower of the field (Isa 40:6).

Commentary on Isaiah

And David being taught this, and knowing that the Lord’s hand was nothing else than Wisdom, he says in the psalm, “In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creation.” Solomon also received the same from God and said, “The Lord by wisdom founded the earth.” And John, knowing that the Word was the hand and the Wisdom, preached, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … without him was not anything made.”

Defence of the Nicene Definition 4

And the power of God protecting them: and you have forgotten the Lord your maker? You have forsaken the God that begot you, and have forgotten the Lord that created you (Deut 32:18); and the mockery of the enemy: where is now the fury of the oppressor?, Nabuchodonosor or Sennacherib: if your pride mount up even to heaven (Job 20:6).

Commentary on Isaiah

Symmachus in this verse translated, “speedily hell will open up, and he will not remain in corruption,” which indicates Christ when it says, “You will not abandon my soul to hell, nor will you give your holy one over to see corruption.”

Commentary on Isaiah 14:11

“And his bread will not fail because I am the Lord your God, who stirs up the sea and its waves, the Lord of hosts is my name.” The phrase “and his bread will not fail” appears in the Septuagint with an asterisk. The text means that in very captivity they will enjoy the divine concern since God provides generously for their need.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.15

934. Third, he shows the order of comfort: he shall quickly come, namely, Cyrus, that is going to open, the prison for the captives, and he shall not kill you, like the other kings of the Chaldeans, neither shall the bread of his sustenance fail you, above: bread is given him (Isa 33:16), above: and I have given you for a covenant of my people (Isa 42:6).

Commentary on Isaiah

935. But I. Here he excludes the impediment which could be believed to come from their dejection as pertains to the magnitude of their punishment.

And first, he sets out the power of God strengthening them: I am the Lord your God, who trouble the sea, against various sinners sending tribulation against you: they know that the Lord is just, and has loved justice (Ps 10:8[11:7]).

Commentary on Isaiah

For the same verse we, following the Hebrew and Aquila, translated “I have put my words in your mouth, and in the shadow of my hands I have protected you as you lay out the heavens and establish the earth and say to Zion, ‘you are my people.’ ” Symmachus had, “I will put my words in your mouth, and in the shadow of my hand I will protect you—[the hand] with which I laid out the sky and founded the earth so that I might say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’ ” According to the Septuagint, it is spoken to all the souls of believers because, though created towards the image and likeness of God, it was unaware of its dignity. Instead, it feared man and the son of man who can only kill the body and did not understand that it is immortal.

Commentary on Isaiah 14:11

It is by means of actions that I will teach you the truth of my words. “And I will shelter you under the shadow of my hand, with which I fixed the sky and founded the earth: and the Lord shall say to Zion, you are my people.” It suffices to recall the creation to show the capability of his dynamic force that he has promised to convey to them; for he has indicated his dynamic force by the name “hand.”

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.16

Second, the authority granted to the prophet: I have put my words in your mouth, O Isaiah; that you might plant the heavens, that is, that you might foretell that the great of the people are to be planted, and found the earth, the lowly; or that you might plant, by your teachings.

Commentary on Isaiah

Anger, which is called “the cup in the hand of the Lord” and “the cup of falling that is drained,” is in proportion to transgressions, even though he abates to all some of what is their due and dilutes with compassion the unmixed draught of his wrath. For he inclines from severity to indulgence toward those who accept chastisement with fear, and who after a slight affliction conceive and are in pain with conversion and bring forth the perfect spirit of salvation. But he nevertheless reserves the dregs, the last drop of his anger, that he may pour it out entire on those who, instead of being healed by his kindness, grow obdurate, like the hardhearted Pharaoh.

On His Father’s Silence, Oration 16:4

17–19

(Vers. 17 seqq.) Lift up, lift up, arise, O Jerusalem, who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath: you have drunk to the dregs the cup of sleep, and have drained it to the bottom. There is no one to support her among all the sons she has borne, and there is no one to take her by the hand among all the sons she has brought up. There are two things that have befallen you; who will grieve over you? devastation and destruction, famine and sword: who will comfort you? Arise, arise, O Jerusalem, which have drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury. For thou hast drunken the cup of ruin and the dregs of the cup of fury: thou hast utterly drained it. And there is none to comfort thee among all the sons whom thou hast brought forth; neither is there any that taketh hold of thy hand, of all the sons that thou hast raised up. These two things are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword: who shall comfort thee? I often taught that Jerusalem and Zion are synonymous: of which Zion, which is interpreted as a watchtower, is called a fortress because it is located on a mountain: but the rest of the city, Jerusalem, which was previously called Jebus and Salem: which now the Prophet exhorts to rise, which previously fell into denial, saying in the Passion of the Lord: Crucify, crucify such [a man]: we have no king but Caesar (John 19:15): and let her repent, and feel the evils of captivity, why she offended her Creator. Doctors usually provide the most bitter antidote, which is named from its taste, to a nauseous stomach, so that it may expel harmful substances and be able to pass through the cooked and digested foods into the intestine, which the quantity of phlegm did not allow to be digested. Therefore, both Jerusalem, which drinks from the cup of the Lord's wrath, and from his κόνδυ, which Symmachus interpreted as a wine bowl, and which according to the book of Genesis, Joseph ordered to be hidden in his brother Benjamin's sack (Gen. XLIV), is ordered to rise up from drunkenness because she has drunk and emptied it, and has drunk it until the dregs: which three have indicated in one word, Ἐξεστράγγισας. Here is the chalice about which we read in Psalms: The chalice in the hand of the Lord is full of mixed wine. And he poured from this into that, but its dregs were not emptied: all the sinners of the earth will drink. (Psalm 74:9, 10). God also speaks about this to Jeremiah: Take the chalice of mixed wine from my hand, and you will offer it to all the nations to which I send you. And they will drink and vomit, and become insane because of the sword that I will send among them. (Jeremiah 25:15, 16). And when he says that he came near to other nations, and to Jerusalem, and to the cities of Judah, he declares: Thus says the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel: Drink and get drunk, and vomit, and fall down before the sword that I will send among you (Jer. 25:27). And it should be noted that this cup of the fury of the Lord is his sword, which is sent in the midst of sins. From this a question arises: how can it be said in Jeremiah that Jerusalem cannot rise up after drinking, drunkenness, vomiting, and ruin, and now through Isaiah it says to her: Lift up, lift up, rise up Jerusalem. This is how it is resolved: As long as someone drinks from the cup and becomes intoxicated and insane, and vomits and falls, they cannot rise, for they have not yet drunk the cup of the Lord, nor have they reached the dregs, so as to drink it to the bottom. But now concerning Jerusalem from the past, it says: you have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury, and not the one you are drinking. At the same time, it must be considered that neither a prophet nor an Apostle has been in Judea who could have comforted him and taken hold of his hand and raised him up while he was lying down. From which it is evident that these things are said after the last captivity; otherwise the history relates that Ezekiel and the other prophets had it while in Babylon and after Babylon. But what he says: There are two things that have happened to you, or rather these two things that have opposed you: who will be sorrowful for you? And instead of two, he presents four: devastation and destruction, famine and sword: this is similar to what is sung in the Psalter: God has spoken once, these two things I have heard: that power belongs to God, and to you, O Lord, mercy: for you will render to each one according to his works (Psalm 62:11-12). And there, indeed, God speaks once, that he is omnipotent, and the two prophets hear that his omnipotence prevails on both sides, so that he may grant mercy to the penitent and render the punishments they deserve to those who persist in sin. Similarly, in another place, two occurrences of Jerusalem are found, each of which has two things. For ruin or devastation is followed by contrition, and death by famine and sword. We can understand these things in an analogical and spiritual sense, referring to the sinful soul that, unwilling to drink the cup of the Lord's fury, says in the psalm: Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath (Ps. 6:1). But if he drinks, it is good for him to feel his own punishments, and to hear the Lord saying: When the anger of my fury has passed, I will heal again. And elsewhere: Shall the one who falls not rise again, says the Lord (Jeremiah 8:4)?

Commentary on Isaiah

He calls chastisement “the cup,” because it is stupefying like drunkenness. Of this cup, the blessed David has likewise made mention in the following terms: “For there is a cup in the hand of the Lord, full strength, full of a mixture [of aromatics]; and he has turned it from side to side”—for he chastises some, now others—“but its dregs have not been wholly poured out; all the sinners of the earth shall drink them.” The divine Jeremiah, in turn, has mentioned this in these terms: “Thus the Lord God said, Take the cup of this undiluted wine from my hand, and you shall cause all the nations to drink, to whom I send you. And they shall drink and vomit and become mad.” And to teach what he means by the name “cup,” he has added, “from the face of my sword, which I shall send in the middle of them.” Then he adds, “I took the cup out of the Lord’s hand and caused the nations to whom the Lord sent me to drink: Jerusalem and the cities of Judea, and the kings of Judea and their princes, to make them a desert place, a desolation and a hissing,” as is the case today and so on. Here also, God has therefore declared through the prophet: “You have drained the cup of calamity and emptied it,” that is to say, you have endured a very great chastisement, and you have had no help from the kings, the generals and the multitude of soldiers in whom you continued to put your trust.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.18

Third, he promises liberation from punishments: arise; and concerning this, he does two things:

first, he shows their past affliction;

second, he promises liberation.

936. Concerning the first, he does three things.

First, he shows the sum of their punishment: you have drunk even to the bottom, as if to say, you have endured unto the last of your punishments; sleep, that is, death: in the hand of the Lord there is a cup of strong wine full of mixture (Ps 74:9[74:8]).

Commentary on Isaiah

937. Second, he excludes every human remedy, namely, of defense: there is none that can uphold her; of liberation: there is none that takes her.

Commentary on Isaiah

By “two,” he means the bravery of the adversaries and the desertion of the auxiliaries: while the former attack with courage, the others flee in a cowardly fashion. “Downfall and destruction.” He has again presented two calamities: that of falling and that of being crushed. For sometimes a person falls without being struck. “Famine and sword.” Again a double chastisement: if the first make a siege from the city of the outside, even harder to endure than the enemies was the famine that was within, annihilating them.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.19

“These two things have befallen you,” that is, they have befallen you because of your sins. You have abandoned God, and you have followed the idols; that is why two punishments have come over you, “famine and sword,” because “devastation” comes from the sword and “destruction” from famine.

Commentary on Isaiah 51:19

Of compassion: there are two things; in goods, desolation, the effect of which is famine; in persons, destruction, the end of which is the killing sword: such as are for the sword, to the sword (Jer 15:2); and of comfort, who shall comfort you? There is none to comfort her among all them that were dear to her (Lam 1:2); I saw the oppressions that are done under the sun, and the tears of the innocent, and they had no comforter (Eccl 4:1).

Commentary on Isaiah

Whoever is at any time unbelieving is called a raw beet root, whereas whoever is happy in the faith of the simple, without paying attention to reflection and the truth of doctrines but who performs deeds of justice, can be called a cooked beet root; in turn, the one who floats between vices and the virtues and approaches the service of God with a mixed heart can be called semi-cooked.… Those who sin in the law will be judged by the law, which works the wrath of God for those who are half-hearted.…Let us come, following the Septuagint, to the spiritual sense. It is said to the soul brought down by vices and the upsets of drunkenness that it may come to know the Lord its Judge as one who will give reasons for all things. And if they turn to better things, the cup will be given over to those who humiliated them.… It should be noted that others did not force Israel or make it, who was once upright, now bent down to the earth, but their own will was directly toward abandonment. [Israel] by its own will put its neck or back or whole body down low for those who abused it within and without.

Commentary on Isaiah 14:13-14

(Verse 20.) Your sons are cast out, they have slept at the head of all the streets, like a trapped wild goat: full of the indignation of the Lord, the rebuke of your God. LXX: Your sons are destitute and sleeping at the head of all the streets: like a half-cooked beet, full of the fury of the Lord, and lacking from the Lord your God. As for the half-cooked beet, the remaining interpreters translated it as a captured and trapped wild goat, which is called 'Tho' in Hebrew, a type of wild animal found in the wilderness, listed among the clean animals in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. The Syriac language they have translated as thoreth, which means beta. Let us pass over the name and consider the meaning of it. Your sons, like wild oxen caught in snares, have slept in the streets and public squares, placing their naked bodies on the bare ground, thereby revealing the wrath of the Lord and the rebuke of their God, indicating their own misery. Furthermore, according to the Seventy: those who do not desire spiritual riches in every word, knowledge, and good work, but choose to be poor and not endure the threat, will by no means dwell in the houses that are built with virtues, but will remain at the beginning of the roads and at the exit, touching everything and leaving everything behind. Those who are said to sleep well in that sleep, of which it is written: They have slept their sleep and found nothing (Ps. 75:6). In that sleep, the Assyrian king has put them to sleep. And they are compared to half-cooked beets, which are a type of vegetable that is very cheap and fragile. About these vegetables, I believe that it is said in the Psalms: Do not be jealous of evildoers, nor envy those who do iniquity. For like grass, they will quickly wither, and like the green vegetables, they will quickly fall (Ps. 36:1, 2). For it is the food of the sick. He who is once unbelieving is called raw beetroot. But he who is content with simple faith, without reason and the truth of doctrines, performs the works of justice, can be called cooked beetroot. Furthermore, he who fluctuates between vices and virtues, and approaches the service of God with a double heart, is most rightly called half-cooked beetroot, of whom God speaks in the Apocalypse of John: Would that you were either hot or cold: but because you are lukewarm, I will vomit you out (Rev. III, 15, 16). Those who are lukewarm and sleeping are full of the fury of the Lord, and they are loose, or failing, through the Lord God. Not that the Lord is the cause of their loosening, who did not make death, nor does he take pleasure in the destruction of the living. But rather, those who have sinned in the Law, let them be judged by the Law, which works the wrath of God against those who are transgressors of it.

Commentary on Isaiah

By the slumber, he has indicated their indolence, and by the cooked vegetables their laxness. But what he adds is even harsher than what he has said before: “They that are full of the anger of the Lord are caused to faint by the Lord God.” By their iniquity they draw my anger, and by reason of my anger, they are deprived of my kind attention and despoiled of every kind of strength.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.20

938. Third, he shows the reason for this: your children are cast forth, from their land, they have slept at the head of all the ways, resting on the way, when they were led in captivity. As the oryx, "orix, oricis," an unclean animal, the water mouse, or an animal that sleeps a lot, namely, the lira, or a certain bird which is in Africa; or "orix, origis," a clean animal similar to a goat, about which, see Deuteronomy 14:5; according to the Septuagint: the beta, which is a certain plant that fades quickly in the heat of the sun, or a kind of common vegetable: her young children were dashed in pieces (Nah 3:10).

Commentary on Isaiah

21–23

(Verse 21 and following) Therefore, listen to these things, poor and drunken one, not from wine. This is what your Lord and your God says, who fought for his people: Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of slumber, the bottom of the cup of my indignation; you shall not add to drink it any further. And I will place it in the hand of those who humbled you, and they said to your soul: Bow down, that we may pass over, and you have made your body like the ground, and like a road to those passing by. LXX: Therefore listen, humiliated and drunk, not from wine. Thus says the Lord God who judges his people: Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of ruin, the chalice of my fury; and you shall no longer drink from it. And I will deliver it into the hands of those who unjustly oppressed and humiliated you, who said to your soul, 'Bow down, that we may pass over,' and you have made your back like the ground and like a street for those who pass by. O Jerusalem, to whom I said, 'Lift up, lift up, arise, and repent,' for you have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury; and you have drunk it to the dregs. And your sons, who were scattered throughout the whole world and led away captive, have lain prostrate in the streets and on the corners of the roads. Know that you are poor and humiliated, and drunk, not from wine, but from the fury of the Lord. Therefore, if you repent and rise lifted up, you will know the chalice of sleep and ruin: whether according to Symmachus and Theodotion, of tearing and shaking, to be taken from your hand: and that, which in this place Symmachus interpreted as a cup, you will no longer drink: but deliver it to your adversaries, who said to your soul, bow down, so that we may pass: and to those who said, you have bowed down by your own will. And you made your body like the earth, or back: or according to the Septuagint, your middle and your necks passing outside. Let this be said according to history, that if Jerusalem wants to lift itself and rise, it should not drink the cup of the Lord's fury, nor endure what it previously endured. But in order to understand it spiritually according to the Septuagint, it is said to mean a soul humbled by vices and intoxicated by disturbances, so that it may know that it has the Lord as its judge, and that it will render an account of everything. But if it were turned to better things, the cup of ruin would be taken away from his hands, and the bowl of the fury of the Lord, which contained punishments, about which Ezekiel also says to Jerusalem: You will drink the deep and wide cup of your sister Samaria, so that you may be drunk (Ezec. 23:32), should be given into the hands of those who humbled her. There is no doubt that it signifies opposing powers, which said to her souls: Bow down, so that we may pass by. In which it must also be noted that they did not bend it, nor did they force it, so that it would be inclined to the ground as before; but they left it to their own choice. However, it placed its neck or back, or its whole body, not inwardly, but outwardly, for those who trampled upon it. We also read something similar in the Gospel (Luke 13), because Satan had bent a woman for eighteen years, whom the Lord restored to her former state, so that she could say: I lift up my eyes to the mountains, from where will my help come? (Psalm 120:1); and: To you I lift up my eyes, you who are enthroned in the heavens (Psalm 123:1).

Commentary on Isaiah

939. Therefore. Here he promises liberation; and concerning this, he sets out two things:

first, their liberation: you that are drunk but not with wine, but with the bitterness of your punishments: he has filled me with bitterness, he has inebriated me with wormwood (Lam 3:15).

Commentary on Isaiah

For it is the function of the blood of the Lord that as it makes drunk it heals the mind, shielding it from fancies, not leading it toward sins. This wine makes them sober; this fullness empties them of evils. One who does not become full with this cup will be rendered hungry with an eternal lack … Anyhow, when God bestows such things, he does so that they may draw them to the kingdom of heaven. And about this cup it is said in the Gospel, “Whoever drinks from the water that I give will never thirst and will become in them a source of water springing up for eternal life.”

Exposition of Psalm 22:5

Who has fought for his people, in their escape from Egypt: for the Lord will fight for you (Exod 14:14).

Commentary on Isaiah

He has indicated both the arrogance of the enemies and the distress of the city. He says, If you had requested my alliance, you would have prevailed over those who waged war on you; but since you did not want to do this, you have been abased even to the level of the ground.

Commentary on Isaiah 16:51.23

Of these enemies, indeed, it is said through the prophet: “They say to your soul: Bow down, that we may pass over.” For the soul standing upright is sublime, bowed down it is lowly, because through the height of virtues and through heavenly desire it is raised to lofty things; but when it falls away to vices or to love of the world, it falls to that place where the enemy, rushing in, easily tramples it. They say therefore to your soul, “Bow down, that we may pass over,” because if they do not humble it to doing or thinking earthly things, they neither penetrate it with malign persuasions nor disturb it with the warfare of vices. From this, therefore, we can gather how far we ought to distance ourselves from the world in deed, word, and thought.

Commentaries on the Book of 1 Kings, Book 5

Hence another prophet says concerning unclean spirits: Who said to your soul, Bow down that we may pass over. For the soul stands upright when it desires heavenly things, and is by no means bent toward the lowest things. But when malign spirits see it standing in its uprightness, they cannot pass through it. For their passing through is to scatter unclean desires upon it. Therefore they say, Bow down that we may pass over, because if the soul does not cast itself down to desiring the lowest things, their perversity by no means prevails against it; and they cannot pass through her whom they fear standing rigid against them in heavenly intention.

Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 31

Second, the punishment of their enemies: and I will put it in the hand of them that have oppressed you, and have said to your soul: bow down, under our power, treating you so basely, as mud that is trod upon: your people, O Lord, they have brought low: and they have afflicted your inheritance (Ps 93[94]:5); behold they whose judgment was not to drink of the cup, shall certainly drink (Jer 49:12).

Commentary on Isaiah