《Coke’s Commentary on the Holy Bible – Isaiah (Vol. 1)》(Thomas Coke)
Commentator
Thomas Coke (9 September 1747 - 2 May 1814) was the first Methodist Bishop and is known as the Father of Methodist Missions.
Born in Brecon, south Wales, his father was a well-to-do apothecary. Coke, who was only 5 foot and 1 inch tall and prone to being overweight, read Jurisprudence at Jesus College, Oxford, which has a strong Welsh tradition, graduating Bachelor of Arts, then Master of Arts in 1770, and Doctor of Civil Law in 1775. On returning to Brecon he served as Mayor in 1772.
A Commentary on the Holy Bible, six complete volumes (1801-1803), is an indepth look at the Old and New Testaments, with the following print volumes combined into the commentary here:
- Volume 1, Genesis to Deuteronomy, 1801.
- Volume 2, Joshua to Job, 1801.
- Volume 3, Psalms to Isaiah, 1802.
- Volume 4, Jeremiah to Malachi, 1803.
- Volume 5, Matthew to Acts, 1803.
- Volume 6, Romans to Revelation, 1803.
His numerous publications included Extracts of the Journals of the Rev. Dr. Coke's Five Visits to America (London, 1793); a life of John Wesley (1792), prepared in collaboration with Henry Mooro; A History of the West Indies (3 vols., Liverpool, 1808-11).
Introduction
THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH.
THE son of Amoz, the first of the four great prophets, was, as it is said, of the royal family; his father being, as is supposed, the son of king Joash, and brother to Amaziah, king of Judah. The beginning of Isaiah's prophecies we date, says Calmet, immediately from the death of Uzziah; and the death of this prophet we place in the reign of Manasseh, who began to reign in the year of the world 3306 before Jesus Christ 694 before the Vulgar Era 698. The great and principal objects of Isaiah's prophecies are, the captivity of Babylon, the return of the Jews from this captivity, and the reign of the Messiah: For this reason, the sacred writers of the New Testament have cited him more than any other prophet; and the fathers say, that he is rather an evangelist than a prophet. Dr. Taylor thinks, that the first chapter, "by reason of the grand exordium, might be judged proper to stand at the front of the book; but it gives such an account of the distressed and desolate state of the land of Judah, as agrees much better with the wicked and afflicted reign of the apostate Ahaz, than with the flourishing circumstances of the country, in the reigns of Uzziah, and of his son and successor Jotham; who were both, in the main, good princes. Compare chap. Isaiah 1:7-9with 2 Chronicles 26:1-16and the whole 27th chapter. But the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th chapters of this prophecy describe, and exactly correspond to, a state of national wealth and prosperity, which are usually attended with pride, arrogance, and luxury: Therefore I take this to be the order of those chapters. In the 6th chapter the prophet, in the council of God, received his commission, and soon after delivered the contents of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th chapters; and these chapters contain all that remains of his prophecies in the reigns of Uzziah and Jotham, for the space of about sixteen years, till the first year of king Ahaz." See Taylor's Scripture Divinity, p. 326. I shall principally follow, in my observations on this book, the divisions and analysis of Vitringa. It is the constant tradition both of Jews and Christians, that Isaiah was put to death with a saw atthe beginning of the reign of Manasseh; to which the apostle is generally thought to have respect, Hebrews 11:37. Isaiah is justly esteemed the most eloquent of all the prophets. Grotius compares him with Demosthenes: In the prophet we meet with all the purity of the Hebrew tongue, as in the orator all the delicacy of the Attic taste. Both are sublime andmagnificent in their style, vehement in their emotions, copious in their figures, and very impetuous when they set off things of an enormous nature, or which are grievous and odious. Whatever of its ancient sweetness and sublimity the Hebrew poetry preserves, it is all to be found in this exquisite book. The author of Ecclesiasticus says, that "Isaiah was great and faithful in his vision: In his time the sun went backward, andhe lengthened the king's life: he saw by an excellent spirit what should come to pass at the last, and he comforted them that mourned in Sion; he shewed what should come to pass for ever, and secret things ere everthey came." Sirach 48:22, &c. See Calmet and Bishop Lowth's 21stPrelection.
01 Chapter 1
Introduction
CHAP. I.
Isaiah complaineth of Judah for her rebellion: he lamenteth her judgments: he upbraideth her whole service: he exhorteth to repentance, with promises and threatenings. Bewailing her wickedness, he denounceth God's judgments: he promiseth grace, and threateneth destruction to the wicked.
Before Christ 760.
Verse 1
Isaiah 1:1. The vision of Isaiah, &c.— I divide the book of Isaiah, says Vitringa, into the title prefixed to the book, and the matter contained in it. The matter is twofold, prophetical and historical, which are interwoven together. The prophetical is divided into five parts; the first of which, from the 1st chapter to the 13th contains five prophetic sermons or harangues, immediately directed to the Jews, and also to the Ephraimites; whom the prophet variously reproves, exhorts, and consoles. The second part, from the 13th to the 24th chapter, contains eight sermons, in which the fate of other nations is declared; Babylonians, Philistines, Moabites, Syrians, Egyptians, Tyrians, and others. The third part, from the 24th to the 36th, explains the penal judgments denounced by God upon the disobedient Jews and enemies of the church, with the most ample promises given to the true church; and is comprehended in three sermons. The fourth part, from the 40th chapter to the 49th, sets forth in four sermons, of a consolatory kind, the manifestation of the Messiah in the flesh, with its circumstances and effects, and the signs preceding it; particularly the deliverance of the Jewish church from their exile in Babylon. The fifth part exhibits, in five sermons, from the 49th chapter, the fate and events of Jesus Christ, his person and kingdom; with which this most noble prophecy closes. The historical part relates some notable events of those times, in which God was pleased to make use of the ministry of Isaiah, and, beginning with the 36th, ends with the 39th chapter. Vitringa reads the verse, The prophecy of Isaiah—which he prophesied, &c. Vitringa also remarks, that the word Isaiah signifies the salvation of Jehovah; which he conceives to have been, in some degree, expressive of his office.
Verse 2
Isaiah 1:2. Hear, O heavens, &c.— We have observed, that this first part of the book of Isaiah is comprehended in five sermons to the Jews; the first of which is contained in this chapter, the second in the chapters ii, iii, 4: the third in chap. 5: the fourth in chap. 6: the fifth in chap. 7:—xii. The first sermon contains a judicial appeal, urged by the prophet in the name of God, against the Jews and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, as covenant-breakers and hypocrites; in which he sharply reproves the vices of the Jewish church, and seriously exhorts them to true repentance, with a denunciation of the divine vengeance upon the obstinate and rebellious, and a promise of the blessings of grace with a restoration of their state to the true worship of their God. In the scene of this divine vision we may suppose God present, as the king of his people; the people as rebellious and revolting, summoned by him into court: the prophet, who discharges the offices of a herald, or cryer, summoning the witnesses and judges to attend, and of an orator pleading in a manly manner the cause of God, setting forth his justice and equity, admonishing the rebellious people of their duty, and, like a counsellor, persuading them to better things: and lastly, the witnesses, the heavens and earth, who are here represented as endowed with sense, and to whom the judgment of the whole cause is figuratively committed. See Deuteronomy 32:1 and Vitringa.
Verse 4
Isaiah 1:4. Children that are corrupters—have provoked, &c.— Or, Children that corrupt themselves—have contemptuously treated the Holy One of Israel; &c.
Verse 5-6
Isaiah 1:5-6.Why should ye be stricken, &c. From the 4th to the 6th verse the prophet describes the mortal state of the people who had apostatized from God, and continued obstinate in that apostacy; and from thence to the
10th verse, their external or natural state. The metaphors here used are in themselves sufficiently clear, as is also their application in this view. Vitringa is of opinion, that the prophet here describes the state of the people under Ahaz.
Verse 7
Isaiah 1:7. Your country, &c.— Or, Your land is become a desolation: your cities are burned with fire; your ground strangers eat up before you; and the desolation is as if it were destroyed by an inundation. See Lowth.
Verse 8
Isaiah 1:8. A lodge in a garden of cucumbers, &c.— See Job 27:18.
Verse 10
Isaiah 1:10. Hear the word of the Lord, &c.— The singular wickedness of the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah was so enormous, that it was at last used as a proverbial expression, to convey the idea of the most black and incorrigible wickedness. The preceding words, which shew that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah could not now be addressed, because there were none left, shew likewise that it is the Jewish nation which is called by these names. This verse alludes to the song of Moses, Deuteronomy 32:32 and perhaps the prophet uses these allusions to shew that the times predicted in that song by the Jewish legislator were now come.
Verse 11
Isaiah 1:11. To what purpose, &c.— This is a strong remonstrance against the hypocritical services of the Jews; very plainly declaring to them, that all external services, administered with a bad heart, so far from pleasing, are detestable to God. See Proverbs 21:27. To whom, says Bishop Warburton, are these words addressed? to those who, besides their numerous irregularities, here reckoned up at large, delighted in groves and high places; for the denunciation is thus continued, They shall be ashamed of the oaks, &c. Isaiah 1:29. This shews that the Jews, notwithstanding their depravity, did not renounce their God when they descended to idolatry; but that their worst idolatry consisted in their mixing foreign worship with their own, or in worshipping the true God and idols together. God in these verses reproves the Jews respecting their sacrifices, their mere appearance before him, Isaiah 1:12 their gifts and incense, Isaiah 1:13 their fears and solemnities, Isaiah 1:13-14 and their prayers, Isaiah 1:15. And in the 16th and 17th verses he counsels them what to do; namely, to repent, and do works meet for repentance; setting forth in the 18th and 19th the happy effects of following that counsel, and in the 20th the bad effects of neglecting it. At the 18th verse we have the most ample declaration of the divine placability upon sincere repentance. Vitringa thinks that the words may refer in some degree to the sanguinary crimes of the Jews. See the last clause of the 15th verse.
Verse 17
Isaiah 1:17. Relieve the oppressed— Or, Reform what is amiss. Bochart.
Verse 21
Isaiah 1:21. How is the faithful city become an harlot— Though the Lord, in the preceding part of the chapter, had suggested to the wicked and the hypocrites a method of returning to his favour, yet he foresaw that they would not hearken. He begins, therefore, afresh, (as if he repented of having indulged them so much, speaking after the manner of men,) to deplore their calamitous state, and to shew what this corrupt people were hereafter to expect. The first part of this new discourse contains a preface, from the 21st to the 24th verse, and a prediction of future events, from the 24th to the end of the chapter. In the preface the prophet complains, first, of the corruption of the whole city in general; which was become a harlot, violating her covenant, revolting from God by idolatry, or, what seems principally intended here, transgressing the laws of the covenant made with God; for, to violate the faith of the covenant, is, in the style of Scripture, to commence harlot. The 22nd verse expresses metaphorically, what is expressed plainly at the latter end of the 21st and in the 23rd verse; namely, that the princes, the judges, and chief men of the Jews, had declined from the paths of purity and integrity. See Vitringa.
Verse 24
Isaiah 1:24. Therefore, &c.— Here begins the prediction of the events which should happen to this corrupt people. The first of these are, the evils to be inflicted by the Babylonish captivity; the second the purification of the church, Isaiah 1:25 the third the restoration of their government, Isaiah 1:26-27 the fourth the salvation of the faithful by Christ, the end of the 26th and 27th verse: the fifth the final judgment of God upon the rebellious and disobedient to the Gospel, which shall follow the salvation of the true Israelites. The reader cannot but observe how sublime and full of majesty this passage is; in which the Lord of Hosts is represented as a mighty and generous hero, rousing up himself to punish, after he had a long time borne with patience the injuries unjustly offered him, and had solicited in vain his adversaries to their duty. See Vitringa.
Verse 25
Isaiah 1:25. Purely purge away thy dross— See Deuteronomy 2:3. The meaning of these words is, that God would purge the remains of Israel in banishment from the drops and dregs of hypocrites and profane men, and would restore them, thus purged, to their land; the government being entirely renewed under just judges and senators, and prudent teachers. Some suppose that this refers to the times of Christ; but Vitringa is of opinion, that the immediate reference is to that renewal which happened directly after their punishment.
Secondarily, this whole passage may refer to the future and grand redemption through Christ.
Verse 29-30
Isaiah 1:29-30. They shall be ashamed of the oaks, &c.— The prophet here manifestly alludes to the ancient mode of idolatry in sacred groves and gardens, which consisted of tall, thick, and leafy trees, among which oaks were held in great honour from all antiquity. The 30th verse is remarkably elegant, where what was the pleasure and confidence of these idolaters, is made to denote their punishment. All the gardens in the east have water in them, which is so absolutely necessary, that without it everything in the summer would be parched up. This is a circumstance to which we should attend, if we would enter into the energy of the last clause, As a garden that hath no water. See Observations, p. 409. and Spencer, de Leg. Heb. lib. ii. c. 16.
Verse 31
Isaiah 1:31. And the maker of it as a spark— The prophet had explained the judgment of God upon the finally disobedient, as it principally concerned their spiritual state; he now subjoins another explanation, which chiefly respects their corporal afflictions. The words are elegant; and the meaning of them is, that the rich, the powerful, the great (meant by the word חסןchason, which we render strong), who seemed like a lofty and well-rooted oak, shall perish, with their works; for their works, their great and wicked undertakings by which they had sought safety, like sparks, shall set them on fire, and consume them like tow. They shall perish, like fools, by their own devices. Nay, the very works themselves which they had raised with a proud spirit to the glory, preservation, and safety of themselves and their nation, shall afford an occasion for their destruction, and be turned into the very cause of it. The prophet here alludes, according to Vitringa, to the destruction of the state and temple by the Romans. The verse might be rendered, And the powerful, or mighty one, shall be as tow, and his work as a spark. Taylor would render it, as a blaze, whose effects upon tow would be certain, while that of a spark might be doubtful. See ch. Isaiah 50:11. Malachi 4:1; Malachi 4:6 and Vitringa.
REFLECTIONS.—1st, The first verse is a kind of title to the whole book. The author is Isaiah, or the salvation of the Lord: his father was Amoz, not Amos the prophet, but a different person, and of a different name. It is called his vision, as being delivered to him in this way; and, as he had himself a clear understanding of what he spoke, he delivered it very perspicuously to others. His ministry continued under four kings; but in what year of Uzziah he began his prophesies, or in which of Hezekiah he finished, is uncertain. Certain however it is, that he lived to see the best and worst of times, and under both proved himself alike faithful. They who live long may expect to see strange alterations; happy if, with the prophet, they can in all states and conditions approve their unshaken fidelity to God!
2nd, Dark and dismal is the prospect with which the prophet opens his discourse.