How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
7. Describes, in vivid pictorial imagery taken from ch. Isa 40:9, the arrival in Jerusalem of the first tidings of the deliverance from Babylon and the establishment of the kingdom of God. Part of the verse occurs in Nah 1:15.
of him that bringeth good tidings ] The mbass r (see on Isa 40:9 and cf. Isa 41:27) is one of the prophet’s dramatis person, occupying a position somewhat analogous to that of “the fugitive” in the Book of Ezekiel (Eze 24:26 f., Eze 33:21 f.). He is the “evangelist,” the herald of salvation whose single function is to announce to Zion the speedy advent of her God. He is an ideal creation of the writer’s mind, and the conception fluctuates between that of an individual (as here and Isa 41:27) and of a company (in Isa 40:9). In St Paul’s application of the figure (Rom 10:15) it becomes a type of the gospel ministry.
Thy God reigneth ] Rather, thy God hath become king, has established His everlasting kingdom (cf. ch. Isa 24:23; Psa 93:1; Psa 97:1).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
7 12. The return of Jehovah to Zion.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
How beautiful upon the mountains – This passage is applied by Paul to the ministers of the gospel (see Rom 10:15). The meaning here seems to be this: Isaiah was describing the certain return of the Jews to their own land. He sees in vision the heralds announcing their return to Jerusalem running on the distant hills. A herald bearing good news is a beautiful object; and he says that his feet are beautiful; that is, his running is beautiful. He came to declare that the long and painful captivity was closed, and that the holy city and its temple were again to rise with splendor, and that peace and plenty and joy were to be spread over the land. Such a messenger coming with haste, the prophet says, would be a beautiful object. Some have supposed (see Campbell on the Gospels, Diss. v. p. 11, Section 3, 4), that the idea here is, that the feet of messengers when they traveled in the dust were naturally offensive and disgusting, but that the messenger of peace and prosperity to those who had been oppressed and afflicted by the ravages of war, was so charming as to transform a most disagreeable into a pleasing object.
But I cannot see any such allusion here. It is true that the feet of those who had traveled far in dry and dusty roads would present a spectacle offensive to the beholder; and it is true also, as Dr. Campbell suggests, that the consideration that they who were coming were messengers of peace and safety would convert deformity into beauty, and make us behold with delight this indication of their embassy. But it seems to me that this passage has much higher beauty. The idea in the mind of the prophet is not, that the messenger is so near that the sordid appearance of his feet could be seen. The beholder is supposed to be standing amidst the ruins of the desolated city, and the messenger is seen running on the distant hills. The long anticipated herald announcing that these ruins are to rise, at length appears. Seen on the distant hills, running rapidly, he is a beautiful object. It is his feet, his running, his haste, that attracts attention; an indication that he bears a message of joy, and that the nation is about to be restored. Nahum, who is supposed to have lived after Isaiah, has evidently copied from him this beautiful image:
Behold upon the mountains the feet of the joyful messenger,
Of him that announceth peace;
Celebrate, O Judah, thy festivals; perform thy vows;
For no more shall pass through thee the wicked one;
He is utterly cut off.
Nah 1:15
That publisheth peace – This declaration is general, that the coming of such a messenger would be attended with joy. The particular and special idea here is, that it would be a joyful announcement that this captivity was ended, and that Zion was about to be restored.
That bringeth good tidings of good – He announces that which is good or which is a joyful message.
That saith unto Zion, thy God reigneth – That is, thy God has delivered the people from their captivity, and is about to reign again in Zion. This was applied at first to the return from the captivity. Paul, as has been already observed, applies it to the ministers of the gospel. That is, it is language which will well express the nature of the message which the ministers of the gospel bear to their fellow-men. The sense is here, that the coming of a messenger bringing good news is universally agreeable to people. And it the coming of a messenger announcing that peace is made, is pleasant; or if the coming of such a messenger declaring that the captivity at Babylon was ended, was delightful, how much more so should be the coming of the herald announcing that man may be at peace with his Maker?
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Isa 52:7
How beautiful upon the mountains
Messengers of redemption
Messengers coming over the mountains announce to Jerusalem the peoples redemption from Babylon, and the advent of Jehovahs eternal kingdom.
(A. B. Davidson, D.D.)
Beautiful feet
The exclamation does not refer to the pretty sound of their footsteps, but their feet are as if they were winged, because it is a joyful message which they bring. (F. Delitzsch, D.D.)
The Gospel of the swift-footed messengers
The Gospel of the swift-footed messengers is the Gospel of the kingdom of God which is at hand. (F. Delitzsch, D. D.)
Good tidings of good
I. THE PRIMARY MEANING. The passage is supposed to refer to the sending forth the heralds of the conquering Persian to proclaim liberty to the Jews that groaned under captivity in Babylon (Ezr 1:2-3.) In order fully to understand the joy and gladness which such a proclamation as this must necessarily bring to the poor Jew mourning in captivity, we must have some conception of their condition, and the feelings that swelled in their hearts during that period of degradation and suffering. Of this, some idea may be formed from the lamentations of Jeremiah, which speak the language of the believing Israelite, mourning over the fall of Zion; and again, in Psa 137:1-9, we find the captive Jews describing their bitter sorrows. Even as the prophet Isaiah foretold, this deliverance came to the people of God, great and sudden; but God had promised, and He surely brought it to pass. In vain the might and power of Babylon interposed; the dominion and empire of Babylon fell for ever, even in one hour, because the day for the redemption of Israel was fully come.
II. This passage has A SECONDARY FULFILMENT far more glorious and extensive, in the sending forth those who shall preach good tidings of salvation to all the ends of the earth; and the message thus conveyed has an analogy with that proclaimed by the heralds of Cyrus; for it bears to man–fallen and degraded, the captive of sin, fast bound in slavish chains–the tidings of deliverance. The blowing of the trumpet of the Gospel tells of restoration to the forfeited inheritance. It proclaims a full and yet the only mode of deliverance to enslaved man; the only mode of reconciliation with an offended God. The state, then, of the multitude of the heathen should excite our earnest attention, and rouse our warmest sympathies.
III. THE MODE WHICH GOD HAS BEEN PLEASED TO APPOINT FOR MAKING THE JOYFUL SOUND KNOWN TO MAN. The preaching of the Word of God by his fellow man. The message must be received by faith.
IV. THE CHARACTER OF THE PREACHER SHOULD CORRESPOND WITH HIS MESSAGE, that he should show forth in his life and conversation, that the glorious tidings he was commissioned to convey to others had been received by himself. Pray that the feet of the missionaries in foreign lands may be beautiful in holiness and love.
V. THE AUTHORITY ON WHICH THIS PROCLAMATION IS MADE. It was the conqueror of Babylon, the victorious Persian, that gave liberty to the captive Jew; it is the Conqueror of death and hell, the risen and triumphant Saviour, who gave commandment that the Gospel should be proclaimed to all people. (C. Caulfield, M.A.)
The annunciation of peace
1. The tidings of the deliverance from Babylon were joyful. But the prophet sees more joyful tidings than these, and a mightier deliverance from a more terrible bondage than even that of Babylon.
2. It is not said, How lovely are the messengers! but How beautiful are their feet! Not what they are in themselves, but what they bring, as sent from God, and running in obedience to Him, is here presented to the view.
3. Observe how the message is dwelt upon! as if it was so full of everything joyful and good that words fail to express it. It is good tidings, peace, good tidings-of good, salvation. What a mine is there here for him who has eyes to see, a mind to understand, a soul to love, and a heart to overflow with gratitude!
4. Observe how the message ends. It is a glorious note of jubilee. It is a veritable shout of joy. It is a summing up in very deed of the glorious news. It is a pledge of peace and of salvation with which the good news is concluded: Thy God reigneth. (R. W. Close, M.A.)
The peace of the Gospel
1. The rich blessing, to which the text refers in such emphatic language, is conveyed in that single, but comprehensive word, Peace.
2. To whom, then, is the word of this salvation sent? To whom is the minister of the Gospel commissioned to preach the message of peace? The very mission implies the existence of previous enmity. With whom has God this controversy? Who stand in need of so free an amnesty? Where are the objects of His unmerited grace?
3. Whose heart should not burn within him at the thoughts of his privilege in being employed on such a ministration of love?
4. Let me add one word on the responsibility of those to whom the message of reconciliation is sent. (C. R. Sumner, D.D.)
Advent
I. THE STATE IMPLIED in the words before us is to be collected from the view of their primary meaning. They originally refer to the Jews captive in Babylon, banished from their country, and deprived of the ordinances of Divine worship, under the displeasure of the Almighty, and oppressed by a haughty and idolatrous enemy. But this is only a faint emblem of that spiritual captivity in which mankind are naturally involved, and from which the Son of God came to deliver us.
II. IN WHAT MANNER IS THIS GRACIOUS DISPENSATION DESCRIBED? As the proclamation of good tidings, as the message of reconciliation and peace, as the publication of deliverance and salvation.
III. We are now, in some measure, prepared to enter into the spirit of THE EXCLAMATION and to participate in the joyful reception of the message which it announces. Practical remarks:
1. The true nature of the Gospel. It is not, as some would represent it, a mere system of morality. It comprises this, but infinitely more. It contains, first and principally, the offer of parson to the guilty, of deliverance to the oppressed, of salvation to the lost.
2. If such, however, be the nature of the Gospel, how highly should we value it, and how anxious should we be to profit by it!
3. While we rejoice in the good tidings which have been proclaimed to ourselves, let us pray that the multitudes of our fellow-creatures, to whom they have not yet been announced, may speedily hear the same delightful sound; and may exult in the joyful message of the Gospel, until all flesh shall at length see the salvation of God, and the whole earth be filled with His glory! (Hugh Pearson, D.D.)
The best news
When bad news is abroad, this is good news; and when good news is abroad, this is the best news: that Zions God reigns. (M. Henry.)
The joy of the Christian ministry
I. THE MINISTER OF CHRIST IS HELD IN COMMUNION WITH THE GREATEST REALITIES IN THE UNIVERSE. The Hebrew prophets were strenuous men, living in the coils of battle, wrestling with great serpents, struggling up bare cliffs, and giving their lives for the ransom of the people; but we cannot doubt that they were happy men as well, because of the intellectual and spiritual glories in which their lives were set, and, their cheering and inspiring comradeship with the wonderful words of God. The Hymn to the Sun and the Sermon to the Birds of St. Francis of Assisi bear witness to a soul that was enriched, ennobled, purified, simplified, magnified, and made to ripple with gladness and to sing the songs of victory and peace because of perpetual communion with the high and holy thoughts of its heavenly Father. The artist whose soul is seeing visions of the great creations of Raphael and Angelo, the general on the eve of a campaign for the emancipation of a people, the philanthropist pouring out his tears upon the miseries and sins of the world, will sleep on planks and find them soft as down, will eat coarse food and get good blood out of it, and so far forget themselves in their sublime consecrations and so populate with their holiest passions the thought-world and spirit-world within them as to realize Hawthornes parable of the Great Stone Face, and grow into the image of the mountain on which their gaze is fixed. So it is with the preacher, and more so. He is surrounded by an imperial guard of holiest inspirations.
II. THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY IS BOUND TO WIN.
III. THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY HAS THE BULK OF GOOD MEN IN THE WORLD BEHIND IT, CHEERING IT ON. (W. J. McKittrick, D.D.)
The missionary theme
Dr. Judson when at home on a visit, addressed a large meeting, his theme being The Preciousness of Christ, and sat down, deeply affected. On his way home a friend said to him, The people are much disappointed; they wonder you did not talk of something else. Why, what did they want? said the missionary. I presented to the best of my ability the most interesting subject in the world. But, said the man, they have heard that before; they wanted something new from a man who has just come from the antipodes. Then, said the great man, kindling, I am glad to have it to say that a man from the antipodes had nothing better to tell them than the wondrous story of the dying love of Christ. (The Wellspring.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 7. How beautiful] The watchmen discover afar off, on the mountains, the messenger bringing the expected and much-wished-for news of the deliverance from the Babylonish captivity. They immediately spread the joyful tidings, Isa 52:8, and with a loud voice proclaim that JEHOVAH is returning to Zion, to resume his residence on his holy mountain, which for some time he seemed to have deserted. This is the literal sense of the place.
“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the joyful messenger,” is an expression highly poetical: for, how welcome is his arrival! how agreeable are the tidings which he brings!
Nahum, Na 1:15, who is generally supposed to have lived after Isaiah, has manifestly taken from him this very pleasing image; but the imitation does not equal the beauty of the original: –
“Behold upon the mountain the feet of the joyful messenger,
Of him that announceth peace!
Celebrate, O Judah, thy festivals; perform thy vows:
For no more shall pass through thee the wicked one;
He is utterly cut off.”
But it must at the same time be observed that Isaiah’s subject is infinitely more interesting and more sublime than that of Nahum; the latter denounces the destruction of the capital of the Assyrian empire, the most formidable enemy of Judah; the ideas of the former are in their full extent evangelical; and accordingly St. Paul has, with the utmost propriety, applied this passage to the preaching of the Gospel, Ro 10:15. The joyful tidings here to be proclaimed, “Thy God, O Zion, reigneth,” are the same that John the Baptist, the messenger of Christ, and Christ himself, published: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
From the use made of this by our Lord and the apostles, we may rest assured that the preachers of the Gospel are particularly intended. Mountains are put for the whole land of Judea, where the Gospel was first preached. There seems to be an allusion to a battle fought, and the messengers coming to announce the victory, which was so decisive that a peace was the consequence, and the king’s throne established in the land.
There appear to have been two sorts of messengers among the Jews: one sort always employed to bring evil tidings; the other to bring good. The names also and persons of these different messengers appear to have been well known; so that at a distance they could tell, from seeing the messenger, what sort of tidings he was bringing. See a case in point, 2Sa 18:19-27. Ahimaaz and Cushi running to bring tidings of the defeat of Absalom and his rebel army. Ahimaaz is a GOOD man, and bringeth GOOD tidings.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
How beautiful! these are words of rejoicing and admiration. They are exceeding precious and acceptable.
Upon the mountains of Zion and Moriah, which are sometimes mentioned as one mountain, and sometimes as two. Or in the mountainous country of Judea, to which these glad tidings were brought, and from which they were spread abroad into other countries.
Are the feet, which carry this welcome messenger; or the messenger himself. Of him; or, of them; for the singular number is oft put for the plural: although it may be here emphatically used, to signify, that although there were many messengers, yet one was the chief and Lord of the embassy, whose coming was more acceptable than the rest; which suits excellently to the Messiah, who is called the Messenger of the covenant, Mal 3:1, and is oft said to be sent by God, as Joh 6:38; 8:16,18, &c., to publish the glad tidings of salvation.
That bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation: these emphatical and repeated expressions are a sufficient evidence that something further and better is here intended than their deliverance out of Babylon, which in itself was but a very imperfect work, and reached at first but to a few of that numerous people, and was attended with many fears, and sorrows, and remainders of their bondage, Ezr 9:8,9; Ne 1:3; and that although that was the beginning of these glad tidings, yet they extended much further, even to the coming of Christ, by whom alone true peace and salvation were procured.
That saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth: it is true, this might in some sort be said when God so overruled the affairs of the world, and the heart of Cyrus, that his people were freed from the Babylonish captivity, and restored into and settled in their own land. Although he that considers the state of Gods people in their own land after their return, will find that the reign of God in and over the world was not then either very conspicuous or glorious. And therefore it seems far more reasonable to understand it of the days of the Messiah, when God did discover and exercise his dominion over the world far more eminently than ever he had done from the beginning of the world until that time.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
7. beautiful . . . feetthatis, The advent of such a herald seen on the distant”mountains” (see on Isa40:9; Isa 41:27; Isa25:6, 7; So 2:17) running inhaste with the long-expected good tidings, is most grateful tothe desolated city (Na 1:15).
good tidingsonlypartially applying to the return from Babylon. Fully, andantitypically, the Gospel (Luk 2:10;Luk 2:11), “beginning atJerusalem” (Lu 24:47),”the city of the great King” (Mt5:35), where Messiah shall, at the final restoration of Israel,”reign” as peculiarly Zion’s God (“Thy Godreigneth”; compare Ps 2:6).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings,…. Not of the messenger that brought the news of Cyrus’s proclamation of liberty to the Jews; rather of John the Baptist, the forerunner of our Lord; best of Christ himself, the messenger of the covenant, who was anointed to preach glad tidings to the meek, and by whom grace, peace, life, and salvation came; and also of the apostles of Christ, for to Gospel times are these words applied, and to more persons than one, Ro 10:15, who were not only seen “upon the mountains” of the land of Israel, as the Targum paraphrases it, where both Christ and his apostles preached, but upon the mountains of the Gentile world; and may denote the pains they took, the circuit they made, and the difficulties they had to encounter with; and the publicness of their ministrations, which lay in bringing “good tidings” of the incarnate Saviour, of God manifest in the flesh, for the word k here used has the signification of flesh in it; of good things in the heart of God for his people, in the covenant of grace, in the hands of Christ, and as come by him, and to be had from him; as pardon by his blood; justification by his righteousness; eternal life and happiness through him; and of all good things to be enjoyed now and hereafter. It may be applied to all other ministers of the Gospel in later ages, who are bringers of the same good tidings to the children of men, to whom their very feet are beautiful, and even at a distance, upon the high mountains; not to carnal men, but sensible sinners, to whom the good news of salvation by Christ is welcome. Feet are mentioned instead of their whole persons, because the instruments of motion, and so of bringing the tidings, and of running to and fro with them from place to place, and even though they are dirty and defiled with sin; for Gospel ministers are not free from it, and are men of like passions with others; yet are beautiful when their walk and ministry, conversation and doctrine, agree together; and their feet are particularly so, being shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace. The words may with the greatest propriety, and in agreement with the context, be understood of that angel, or set of Gospel ministers in the latter day, represented as flying in the midst of the heavens, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to all nations, which will precede the fall of Babylon,
Re 14:6:
that publisheth peace; peace by the blood of Jesus Christ, a principal article of the Gospel, and of its good news; hence it is called the Gospel of peace, and the word of reconciliation; peace of conscience, which flows from the same blood applied, and of which the Gospel is the means; and peace among the saints one with another, and among men, which shall at this time be enjoyed; there, will be no discord nor animosities among themselves, nor persecution from their enemies: happy times! halcyon days! welcome the publishers of such tidings!
that bringeth good tidings of good; or, “that bringeth good tidings” l; for the original does not require such a tautology; it means the same good tidings as before, and which follow after:
that publisheth salvation; by Jesus Christ, as wrought out by him for sinners, which is full, complete, and suitable for them, and to be had of him freely; and what better tidings than this? see Re 19:1:
that sitteth unto Zion, thy God reigneth; that saith to Zion, the church of Christ, that Christ, who is truly God, and their God, has taken to himself, in a more open and visible manner, his great power and reigns as the Lord God omnipotent; and this is good news and glad tidings; see Ps 97:1. The Targum is,
“the kingdom of thy God is revealed;”
see Mt 3:2. This passage is interpreted of the Messiah and his times, by many Jewish m writers, ancient and modern; [See comments on Ro 10:15].
k a “caro”. l “evangelizantis bonum”, Pagninus, Montanus, Junius Tremellius “qui nuntiat bonum”, Cocceius. m Vajikra Rabba, sect. 9. fol. 153. 2. Shirhashirim Rabba, fol. 11. 4. Yalkut Simeoni in Psal. xxix. 11. Menasseh Ben Israel, Nishmat Chayim, fol. 41. 2.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The first two turns in the prophecy (Isa 52:1-2, Isa 52:3-6) close here. The third turn (Isa 52:7-10) exults at the salvation which is being carried into effect. The prophet sees in spirit, how the tidings of the redemption, to which the fall of Babylon, which is equivalent to the dismission of the prisoners, gives the finishing stroke, are carried over the mountains of Judah to Jerusalem. “How lovely upon the mountains are the feet of them that bring good tidings, that publish peace, that bring tidings of good, that publish salvation, that say unto Zion, Thy God reigneth royally!” The words are addressed to Jerusalem, consequently the mountains are those of the Holy Land, and especially those to the north of Jerusalem: m e bhasser is collective (as in the primary passage, Nah 2:1; cf., Isa 41:27; Psa 68:12), “whoever brings the glad tidings to Jerusalem.” The exclamation “how lovely” does not refer to the lovely sound of their footsteps, but to the lovely appearance presented by their feet, which spring over the mountains with all the swiftness of gazelles (Son 2:17; Son 8:14). Their feet look as if they had wings, because they are the messengers of good tidings of joy. The joyful tidings that are left indefinite in m e bhasser , are afterwards more particularly described as a proclamation of peace, good, salvation, and also as containing the announcement “thy God reigneth,” i.e., has risen to a right royal sway, or seized upon the government ( in an inchoative historical sense, as in the theocratic psalms which commence with the same watchword, or like in Rev 19:6, cf., Rev 11:17). Up to this time, when His people were in bondage, He appeared to have lost His dominion (Isa 63:19); but now He has ascended the throne as a Redeemer with greater glory than ever before (Isa 24:23). The gospel of the swift-footed messengers, therefore, is the gospel of the kingdom of God that is at hand; and the application which the apostle makes of this passage of Isaiah in Rom 10:15, is justified by the fact that the prophet saw the final and universal redemption as though in combination with the close of the captivity.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| The Approach of the Messiah. | B. C. 706. |
7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! 8 Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion. 9 Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem. 10 The LORD hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God. 11 Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD. 12 For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the LORD will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rereward.
The removal of the Jews from Babylon to their own land again is here spoken of both as a mercy and as a duty; and the application of v. 7 to the preaching of the gospel (by the apostle, Rom. x. 15) plainly intimates that that deliverance was a type and figure of the redemption of mankind by Jesus Christ, to which what is here said of their redemption out of Babylon ought to be accommodated.
I. It is here spoken of as a great blessing, which ought to be welcomed with abundance of joy and thankfulness. 1. Those that bring the tidings of their release shall be very acceptable (v. 7): “How beautiful upon the mountains, the mountains round about Jerusalem, over which these messengers are seen coming at a distance, how beautiful are their feet, when it is known what tidings they bring!” It is not meant so much of the common posts, or the messengers sent express by the government to disperse the proclamation, but rather of some of the Jews themselves, who, being at the fountain-head of intelligence, had early notice of it, and immediately went themselves, or sent their own messengers, to all parts, to disperse the news, and even to Jerusalem itself, to tell the few who remained there that their brethren would be with them shortly; for it is published not merely as matter of news, but as a proof that Zion’s God reigns, for in that language it is published: they say unto Zion, Thy God reigns. Those who bring the tidings of peace and salvation, that Cyrus has given orders for the release of the Jews, tidings which were so long expected by those that waited for the consolation of Israel, those good tidings (so the original reads it, without the tautology of our translation, good tidings of good), put this construction upon it, O Zion! thy God reigns. Note, When bad news is abroad this is good news, and when good news is abroad this is the best news, that Zion’s God reigns, that God is Zion’s God, in covenant with her, and as such he reigns, Psa 146:10; Zec 9:9. The Lord has founded Zion, ch. xiv. 32. All events have their rise in the disposals of the kingdom of his providence and their tendency to the advancement of the kingdom of his grace. This must be applied to the preaching of the gospel, which is a proclamation of peace and salvation; it is gospel indeed, good news, glad tidings, tidings of victory over our spiritual enemies and liberty from our spiritual bondage. The good news is that the Lord Jesus reigns and all power is given to him. Christ himself brought these tidings first (Luk 4:18; Heb 2:3), and of him the text speaks: How beautiful are his feet! his feet that were nailed to the cross, how beautiful upon Mount Calvary! his feet when he came leaping upon the mountains (Cant. ii. 8), how beautiful were they to those who knew his voice and knew it to be the voice of their beloved! His ministers proclaim these good tidings; they ought to keep their feet clean from the pollutions of the world, and then they ought to be beautiful in the eyes of those to whom they are sent, who sit at their feet, or rather at Christ’s in them, to hear his word. They must be esteemed in love for their work’s sake (1 Thess. v. 13), for their message sake, which is well worthy of all acceptation. 2. Those to whom the tidings are brought shall be put thereby into a transport of joy. (1.) Zion’s watchmen shall then rejoice because they are surprisingly illuminated, v. 8. The watchmen on Jerusalem’s walls shall lead the chorus in this triumph. Who they were we are told, ch. lxii. 6. They were such as God set on the walls of Jerusalem, to make mention of his name, and to continue instant in prayer to him, till he again made Jerusalem a praise in the earth. These watchmen stand upon their watch-tower, waiting for an answer to their prayers (Hab. ii. 1); and therefore when the good news comes they have it first, and the longer they have continued and the more importunate they have been in praying for it the more will they be elevated when it comes: They shall lift up the voice, with the voice together shall they sing in concert, to invite others to join with them in their praises. And that which above all things will transport them with pleasure is that they shall see eye to eye, that is, face to face. Whereas God had been a God hiding himself, and they could scarcely discern any thing of his favour through the dark cloud of their afflictions, now that the cloud is scattered they shall plainly see it. They shall see Zion’s king eye to eye; so it was fulfilled when the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and there were those that saw his glory (John i. 14) and looked upon it, 1 John i. 1. They shall see an exact agreement and correspondence between the prophecy and the event, the promise and the performance; they shall see how they look one upon another eye to eye, and be satisfied that the same God spoke the one and did the other. When the Lord shall bring again Zion out of her captivity the prophets shall thence receive and give fuller discoveries than ever of God’s good-will to his people. Applying this also, as the foregoing verse, to gospel times, it is a promise of the pouring out of the Spirit upon gospel ministers, as a spirit of wisdom and revelation, to lead them into all truth, so that they shall see eye to eye, shall see God’s grace more clearly than the Old-Testament saints could see it: and they shall herein be unanimous; in these great things concerning the common salvation they shall concur in their sentiments as well as their songs. Nay, St. Paul seems to allude to this when he makes it the privilege of our future state that we shall see face to face. (2.) Zion’s waste places shall then rejoice because they shall be surprisingly comforted (v. 9): Break forth into joy, sing together, you waste places of Jerusalem; that is, all parts of Jerusalem, for it was all in ruins, and even those parts that seemed to lie most desolate shall share in the joy; and they, having little expected it, shall break forth into joy, as men that dream, Psa 126:1; Psa 126:2. Let them sing together. Note, Those that share in mercies ought to join in praises. Here is matter for joy and praise. [1.] God’s people will have the comfort of this salvation; and what is the matter of our rejoicing ought to be the matter of our thanksgiving. He has redeemed Jerusalem (the inhabitants of Jerusalem that were sold into the hands of their enemies) and thereby he has comforted his people that were in sorrow. The redemption of Jerusalem is the joy of all God’s people, whose character it is that they look for that redemption, Luke ii. 38. [2.] God will have the glory of it, v. 10. He has made bare his holy arm (manifested and displayed his power) in the eyes of all the nations. God’s arm is a holy arm, stretched out in purity and justice, in defence of holiness and in pursuance of his promise. [3.] All the world will have the benefit of it. In the great salvation wrought out by our Lord Jesus the arm of the Lord was revealed and all the ends of the earth were made to see the great salvation, not as spectators of it only, as they saw the deliverance of the Jews out of Babylon, but as sharers in it; some of all nations, the most remote, shall partake of the benefits of the redemption. This is applied to our salvation by Christ. Luke iii. 6, All flesh shall see the salvation of God, that great salvation.
II. It is here spoken of as a great business, which ought to be managed with abundance of care and circumcision. When the liberty is proclaimed, 1. Let the people of God hasten out of Babylon with all convenient speed; though they are ever so well settled there, let them not think of taking root in Babylon, but Depart, depart (v. 11), go out from the midst of her; not only those that are in the borders, but those that are in the midst, in the heart of the country, let them be gone. Babylon is no place for Israelites. As soon as they have leave to let go, let them lose no time. With this word God stirred up the spirits of those that were moved to go up, Ezra i. 5. And it is a call to all those who are yet in the bondage of sin and Satan to make use of the liberty which Christ has proclaimed to them. And, if the Son make them free, they shall be free indeed. 2. Let them take heed of carrying away with them any of the pollutions of Babylon: Touch no unclean thing. Now that God makes bare his holy arm for you, be you holy as he is, and keep yourselves from every wicked thing. When they came out of Egypt they brought with them the idolatrous customs of Egypt (Ezek. xxiii. 3), which were their ruin; let them take heed of doing so now that they come out of Babylon. Note, When we are receiving any special mercy from God we ought more carefully than ever to watch against all impurity. But especially let those be clean who bear the vessels of the Lord, that is, the priests, who had the charge of the vessels of the sanctuary (when they were restored by a particular grant) to carry them to Jerusalem, Ezr 1:7; Ezr 8:23, c. Let them not only avoid touching any unclean thing, but be very careful to cleanse themselves according to the purification of the sanctuary. Christians are made to our God spiritual priests, Rev. i. 6. They are to bear the vessels of the Lord, are entrusted to keep the ordinances of God pure and entire it is a good thing that is committed to them, and they ought to be clean, to wash their hands in innocency and so to compass God’s altars and carry his vessels, and keep themselves pure. 3. Let them depend upon the presence of God with them and his protection in their removal (v. 12): You shall not go out with haste. They were to go with a diligent haste, not to lose time nor linger as Lot in Sodom, but they were not to go with a diffident distrustful haste, as if they were afraid of being pursued (as when they came out of Egypt) or of having the orders for their release recalled and countermanded: no, they shall find that, as for God, his work is perfect, and therefore they need not make more haste than good speed. Cyrus shall give them an honourable discharge, and they shall have an honourable return, and not steal away; for the Lord will go before them as their general and commander-in-chief, and the God of Israel will be their rearward, or he that will gather up those that are left behind. God will both lead their van and bring up their rear; he will secure them from enemies that either meet them or follow them, for with his favour will he compass them. The pillar of cloud and fire, when they came out of Egypt, sometimes went behind them, to secure their rear (Exod. xiv. 19), and God’s presence with them would now be that to them which that pillar was a visible token of. Those that are in the way of their duty are under God’s special protection; and he that believes this will not make haste.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Vs. 7-10: BEAUTIFUL FEET AND GOOD TIDINGS
1. The figure of feet upon the mountains is “good news” to those who trust in God; they are harbingers of deliverance!
a. Isaiah uses the figure in connection with the deliverance (salvation) of Zion through the destruction of Babylon – at the end of the age, (vs. 7); her God REIGNS! (comp. Isa 24:21-23; Psa 93:1).
b. To the government (mountain) of Assyria, they are the crushing feet of divine judgment; while to Judah they represent deliverance from the Assyrian (Nah 1:15), which means PEACE.
c. Paul uses the figure to represent the “good tidings” of deliverance from the guilt, power, condemnation, and bondage of sin, (Rom 10:15).
2. Those who have faithfully proclaimed God’s holy intention to restore His ancient people (not just the ancient prophets, but His faithful “watchmen” in all ages), will rejoice together as they hail the return of Jehovah to Zion in the faithful execution of His holy covenant, (vs. 8; Jer 6:16-19; Eze 3:17; Eze 33:7-9; Isa 62:6-7; comp. Heb 13:7; Heb 13:17).
3. There is a two-fold basis for the joy and singing described in verse 9.
a. The Lord’s word of comfort, (Isa 51:12; Isa 66:13-14; 2Co 1:3-5; comp. Luk 24:19; Act 27:22; Rom 15:5-6).
b. The Lord’s work of redemption, (Isa 43:1-3).
c. And such a word of comfort, and work of deliverance, may be the basis of our constant joy and song through the Holy Spirit, (Joh 16:14-15; 2Co 1:9-10; 2Th 2:16-17).
4. In the redemption of His people, Jehovah reveals His holy arm (Isa 51:9; Psa 98:1-3; comp. Exo 15:6; Eze 20:34) in such a marvelous and majestic display of divine power that “all the ends of the earth” may observe His saving strength, (vs. 10; Isa 45:22; Isa 48:20).
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
7. How beautiful upon the mountains. The Prophet again confirms believers as to the certainty of the word of God, that they may be fully persuaded that they shall be restored to their former liberty, and may comfort their hearts by assured hope during that hard bondage. He pronounces magnificent commendations on this message, that believers may be convinced that God holds out to them, in their calamity, the hope of future salvation; and indeed, when God speaks, they ought to accept the consolation, that, relying on it, they may calmly and patiently wait for the fulfillment of the promise. Thus, in order that believers may bridle their desires by patience, he splendidly adorns the word of God. “Will you be so ungrateful as not to rest satisfied with that incomparable treasure of the word which contains so many benefits? Will you give way to unruly passions? Will you complain of God?” He wishes to guard against distrust the people who were drawn away by various allurements, and did not fully rely on the word of God; and therefore he praises the excellence of the doctrine, and shews that the Lord bestows upon “us more than we can say or think.” (Eph 3:20.)
He states that he does not now speak of every kind of doctrine, but of that which is adapted to consolation, and therefore shews that “beautiful” and lovely is the approach of those who bring consolation from the mouth of God, which can not only alleviate our grief, but even impart to us abundant joy. Here he speaks of the doctrine of salvation, and consequently says that peace, happiness, salvation, is proclaimed. By the word “peace” he denotes a prosperous and happy condition, as we have already in other passages explained fully the signification of this term.
That saith to Zion. Hence we infer what is the beginning of that doctrine which Isaiah preaches, and what we ought chiefly to desire, namely, that the kingdom of God may be erected among us; for until he reign among us, everything must go in with us, and therefore we must be miserable, as, on the other hand, when God is pleased to take care of us, this of itself is the chief part of salvation; and this, too, is the only way of obtaining peace, though the state of affairs be ruinous and desperate. And let us remember that this message is sent to the Church; for it cannot apply to heathens that know not God.
Paul quotes this passage, in order to prove that the preaching of the Gospel proceeds not from men but from God, and that the ministers who bring the message of salvation are sent by him. He employs this chain of reasoning, — “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. But it is impossible for any one to call on God till he know him; for there can be no entrance to calling on him till it is opened up by faith, that, embracing God as our Father, we may familiarly pour our cares into his bosom. Now, the foundation of it is doctrine, by which the Lord has revealed himself to us, and for that purpose employs the agency and ministry of men. Therefore he adds, lastly, that there will be none to preach till he be sent by God.” (Rom 10:15.)
But it may be thought that Paul tortures the Prophet’s words; for Isaiah does not say that God sends ministers, but that their approach and presence is desirable. I reply, Paul took this principle for granted, that nothing is desirable but what comes from God. But whence comes salvation? From men? No; for none but God can be the author of such a distinguished benefit. Justly, therefore, does he conclude that it proceeds from God, and not from man.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
THE GOSPEL AND ITS PUBLISHERS
Isa. 52:7. How beautiful upon the mountains, &c.
Whatever reference this passage might have to the deliverance of the people of God from the Chaldean bondage, it refers also and chiefly to the great and glorious Gospel of Christ (Rom. 10:13). It is in this application of it that it is now interesting and important.
I. A DELIGHTFUL REPRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST.
1. The Gospel is represented as good tidings. This is literally the meaning of the word gospel. These good tidings centre in one glorious factthe provision of a Saviour for a guilty world. Everything else is based on this fact. Everything connected with the gift of the Saviour forms matter for joy: the supreme dignity of His person, the completeness of His work, the glory of His doctrine, the efficacy of His death, and the exhaustless fulness of His blessings.
2. It publishes peace. Man united with the fallen apostate spirits in rebellion against God, &c.
3. It brings tidings of good. Not only is God at peace with the sinner, but He waits to bless him with all good. There is
(1.) acceptance into Gods favour.
(2.) Divine adoption.
(3.) The influences of the Spirit to illume, convince, guide, solace, meeten for heaven.
(4.) The precious promises of the new covenant.
4. The Gospel publishes salvation. A salvation meeting the needs of the sinner.
5. The Gospel declares the reign of Jesus (Psa. 2:6-7, &c.)
II. AN INTERESTING DESCRIPTION OF THE MODE OF ITS PUBLICATION.
1. The messengers appointed to declare it. Jesus Himself went forth preaching the good tidings of His kingdom. Now the messengers are men, not angels. Men who have been called and qualifiedsent of God. Men who have known and felt the power of the truths themselves.
2. The publication of this Gospel is to be free and extensive. They are to go forth prominently; to ascend the mountain tops, and there, before God, and angels, and men, they are to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ. The message of grace is to be published throughout the world, and to every creature.
3. The publication of the Gospel is to be a source of joy and delight to perishing souls. By some it will be ridiculed. By others spurned. By others coolly and indifferently heard. But to thousands it shall be spirit and life, solace and bliss.
APPLICATION:
1. The subject should excite admiration and praise. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. But here is matchless loveunparalleled grace.
2. Have we experienced the saving power of the Gospel? Is it our boast, and joy, and ?Song of Solomon 3. The infatuation of the rejectors of the good news (Heb. 2:3; 1Pe. 4:17).
4. The duty of the Church to diffuse the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Its prayers, energies, and means, should all bear to this one great end, &c.The New Pulpit Assistant, pp. 318322.
I. The varied characteristics of the good tidings of Christianitythey are peace, salvation, the reign of God.
II. The great function of the minister of the Gospelis to bring these good tidings. III. The character in which he appearsHow beautiful, &c.; i.e., how welcome they should be to us!John Cumming, D.D.: Occasional Discourses, vol. i. p. 336.
THE MINISTRY OF THE GOSPEL
(Ordination Sermon.)
Isa. 52:7. How beautiful upon the mountains, &c.
This exclamation would strike those who first read it more impressively than it strikes us. They would see the runner coming over the distant hills, bearing welcome news. They would hear the loud cry from the watchmen on the walls. They would see the people crowd to the gate to hear. The primary reference of the text is to the news of the restoration of the Jews to Jerusalem, and of the restoration of the ruined city. But there is a secondary reference to gospel times. It is thus applied by the apostle (Rom. 10:15). We may thus apply it.
I. The ministry of the Gospel exists for the announcement of valuable intelligence. It brings good tidings. It is not a ministration of condemnation, but of salvation (2 Corinthians 3) It tells such things as these,
1. That satisfaction has been made for human sin. Man is sinful, guilty. The Lord Jesus Christ, by His death on the cross, has atoned for sin. Thus, in announcing this, the ministry of the gospel is the ministry of reconciliation.
2. That on the ground of that atonement salvation may be obtained by all that desire it. The dark angel of sin and sorrow has not left the world. But there is pardon for the sinner, holiness for the depraved, comfort for the distressed, which will develop into heaven at last. It may be obtained by faith in Christ. The time when the gospel is preached is the tide of opportunity.
3. That thus the Divine dominion over man is re-asserted and re-established. Thy God reigneth. He reigns through the bestowment of salvation. Jesus has been exalted to reign in His peoples hearts, in the Church, in the world.
II. The ministry of the Gospel is a great and important office. The bearer of this intelligence, primarily referred to in our text, acquired importance both from his mission and his qualifications. He would require speed, interest in the message, fidelity. Thus the ministry is important. Remember,
1. The end at which it aims. The message, the sermon, is not the end but the means. It aims at the salvation of souls. Nothing less will content the true preacher than conversion, spiritual growth.
2. The means which it employs. The message itself. Attract attention to it by legitimate, not fantastic means. While the message cannot be changed, let it be presented in varied forms, to the young, to the aged, in public, in private.
3. The qualifications which it demands. Intelligent acquaintance with the message; a living personal interest in it; thoughtful carefulness as to the methods by which it may be made most interesting and acceptable; diligent and sedulous use of opportunities; earnest sympathy with Christ and immortal souls.
III. The ministry of the Gospel should be regarded with suitable respect and honour. The office, because of its nature; the man, on the supposition that he deserves it. The office cannot entitle the man to respect if he is not worthy of it. Qualification is the only title to office, and the only claim to respect in it. This being supposed, the prominent idea of the text is the man. This honour will comprise,
1. Welcome. The Galatians welcomed Paul. Jesus said, Blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear. Welcome the ministry of the word by regular and constant attendance; by candid and respectful hearing, as distinguished from indifference, and from unkindly criticism; and by a kindly reception at the home.
2. Love. Cherish affection to the minister for his works sake. Let him see it in the manner which reveals and perpetuates kindness. Sometimes commend his work.
3. Maintenance (1 Corinthians 9; Gal. 6:6-8). Now what is maintenance? It is determined largely by position in society. If there is narrow-mindedness in relation to the ministers means of obtaining books, and unholding his influence in the locality where his lot is cast, the church suffers.
4. Co-operation. The primitive churches were active in many ministries. Every member of the church should do something for Christ. The work of extending the gospel is not the ministers business exclusively. The church should be a centre from which every one is working.
5. Prayer. This was the apostles request (Eph. 6:19; 2Th. 3:1).The work of the ministry is spiritual, and it requires spiritual influences. It needs the power of the Holy Ghost. Do you pray for it by praying for Him?
What is the practical effect of the preachers work in those that receive the truth? Is it not that you bring forth fruits of holiness? See that such fruit is borne. Then you will in your turn proclaim the gospel to others, if not in words, by the influence of your lives (H. E. I. 2622, 2623).
But have you received the truth which has been heralded to you? Some of you are, perhaps, not yet saved. The preacher seeks your salvation. Oh, let this be his joy; not for his sake but for your own. Life is passing on. And the gospel alone can save.J. Rawlinson.
I. A representation of a true minister of Christ. A messenger.
1. He receives his commission from God.
2. He is intrusted by Him.
3. He is qualified for his particular work.
II. The subject of his message. Good tidings.
1. Peace.
2. Salvation from spiritual evil, and an introduction to spiritual good.
3. Dominion of Christ. He reigns in His providential and mediatorial kingdom.
III. The dispositions with which he is received.
1. With joy.
2. With admiration.
Improvement.
1. Gratitude for the gospel.
2. Attention to its tidings.
3. Obedience to its precepts.J. Hordle.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
b.
REVELATION
TEXT: Isa. 52:7-12
7
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
8
The voice of thy watchmen! they lift up the voice, together do they sing; for they shall see eye to eye, when Jehovah returneth to Zion.
9
Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem; for Jehovah hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
10
Jehovah hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
11
Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; cleanse yourselves, ye that bear the vessels of Jehovah.
12
For ye shall not go out in haste, neither shall ye go by flight: for Jehovah will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rearward.
QUERIES
a.
Who is the messenger bringing good tidings?
b.
What is meant by seeing eye to eye?
c.
Why emphasize that the people would not go out in haste?
PARAPHRASE
How lovely will be the Messenger coming across the mountains of this land bringing good news, the good news of peace, goodness and salvation, announcing to faithful Zion, Jehovah has established His sovereign rule among men; the kingdom of God has come! Listen to the voices of your prophets who have been watching and announcing its coming! They are shouting and singing for joy! They see the eventual rule of Jehovah over Zion as surely as if it were right before their eyes! Babylon may ruin you, O Jerusalem, but Jehovah is going to restore you and make you strong, so burst forth into joyous singing. Jehovah is going to unleash His holy power so that the whole world will witness it; His salvation will be revealed to the whole world. So, Zion, when you are delivered from Babylonian captivity in anticipation of the coming kingdom of God, separate yourself completely from all the unholy paganism which has surrounded you there. Do not let your heart be defiled by desiring to cling to the worldliness of Babylon. You are a kingdom of priests to Jehovah and you must be holy unto Him. You will have plenty of time to arrive at the right attitude toward separating yourself from the ungodliness around you. Your exodus this time will not be in haste or in fear, as it was in the days of your forefathers and the Egyptian captivity. The Lord, Your God, will surround you, guiding you and protecting you on every side.
COMMENTS
Isa. 52:7-10 PEACE: Apparently we have in this prediction of Isaiah an instance of shortened perspective. That is, the prophet is predicting the deliverance of Judah from Babylonian captivity and the deliverance of all mankind from sin through the Messiah without mentioning all the history of the scheme of redemption that transpires between the two historical events (cf. our comments on Joe. 2:27-28). There is no doubt that the ultimate fulfillment of Isaiahs prediction was to find itself in the Messiah and His gospel (cf. Rom. 10:15). Isaiahs context indicates he is predicting what is going to eventuate with the coming of The Servant. Of course, messengers of the good news that Judah is to be released from her captivity and restored her physical commonwealth in Palestine by the decree of Cyrus will be lovely to behold. The lesson from this miraculous deliverance will be that God rules in the affairs of all men to fulfill His sovereign will. There will be peace for a while for Judah. But surely there is more good news involved in this prophecy than a physical deliverance and a physical peace.
The physical deliverance of Judah was the first step in a long series of historical events which were to lead to the coming of the Messiah and the true deliverance, the spiritual salvation, and peace between God and man, (cf. comments on Dan. 9:24-27 for the time-table of historical events between). Ultimately then, him that bringeth good tidings is the Messiah. Christ, The Servant, is also The Messenger (cf. Isa. 61:1-2; Luk. 4:16-30; Mal. 3:1-4). The messenger who prepares the way before in Mal. 3:1 is unquestionably, John the Baptist. But the Lord whom you seek . . . the messenger of the covenant . . .of Mal. 3:1 is the Messiah. Notice what the messenger of Isaiahs prophecy announces: peacegoodsalvationthe rule of Godcomfort for His peopleredemption of Jerusalem. Furthermore, this is to be seen by all the ends of the earth. Surely there is more to Gods salvation and comfort (see Isa. 40:1 ff) than a mere temporary deliverance of the Jews from Babylonian captivity. Surely there is more to Gods reign than a Jewish nation only superficially submitted to Him in the restored commonwealth under Ezra and Zerubbabel. The post-exilic prophets make it very plain (Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi) that the returned exiles soon fell back into their old rebellions against the law of Moses and the rule of God. The salvation, peace and rule of God announced by Isaiahs beautiful bearer of good tidings is made accessible to all men through Him who came and preached peace to those far off and those near (cf. Eph. 2:11-22). Notice in Rom. 10:14-21 how Paul emphasizes the prophecies of Isaiah about the Lords salvation were not fulfilled in a rebellious, physical Israel!
The watchmen are probably the prophets and those faithful believers down through the centuries who kept on believing in the coming of the Christ (cf. 1Pe. 1:10-12; Heb. 11:13-16; Heb. 11:32-40, etc.). These watchers put their predictions and hopes into poetic form, song, symbol and type. They did it with great style and emotional expressiveness. For they saw the eventual rule of Jehovah as surely as if it were right before their eyes (cf. Joh. 8:56-58; Joh. 12:41), which is what they shall see eye to eye means. Even the return of Jehovah to Zion is messianic. The crowning glory of Ezekiels new temple and new city (Ezekiel 40-48) is . . . the name of the city henceforth shall be. The Lord is there. The church is the temple of Gods habitation (Eph. 2:21-22).
On account of the absolute certainty that Jehovah is going to eventually send His Messenger with the good tidings of salvation, and on account of the certainty that Jehovah is going to take the first step toward that end delivering the Jews from captivity, the Jerusalem (or Zion) that in Isaiahs day is being wasted and ruined by pagan oppressors should lift up its spirit and sing of its salvation. This would, of course, take faith because it was not as yet seen. But that is mans whole relationship to Godfaith! That was the problem when the Messiah came to comfort His people and redeem Jerusalem. Most of the people could not believe it because they could not see, touch, taste His deliverance. It is still a problem with so many millions today who want only to be saved physically from trouble and depravation, but not from their sinful rebellion against the revealed will of God!
The salvation of God was proven! Gods ability to save man and His faithfulness to keep His word was demonstrated visibly, historically and supernaturally. God bared His holy arm of supernatural power time and again in saving the Jewish people from their enemies. He showed in no uncertain terms to believer and unbeliever alike (read the book of Daniel) that He would deliver those who trusted and obeyed Him. The arm of the Lord will consummately be bared in the Messiahs death and resurrection (cf. Isa. 53:1 ff). Gods greatest power is the gospel which is, fundamentally, the atoning death and justifying resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jehovah showed His power in many and various ways in former ages, but the greatest demonstration of it was in the resurrection of Christ. It was here that God bared His holy arm to all the ends of the earth so that all men might see His salvation. God has fixed a day in which he will judge the world, by an appointed man, and He has given assurance to all men by raising this man from the dead, and so His message to all men everywhere is, repent (cf. Act. 17:30-31). But, you see, the problem is that the arm or power of the Lord was revealed in a Suffering Servant (Isa. 53:1) and this, so unacceptable to Jewish presuppositions about the power of Jehovah, is still unacceptable to human presuppositions (cf. 1Co. 1:18-31).
Isa. 52:11-12 PURIFICATION: Now we come to the practical application of the prophecy of the coming Messenger and His message. How are these people of Isaiahs day or the people of the Babylonian captivity to relate to a prophecy of something that is so far off in the future? They are to keep themselves from the ungodliness that surrounds them. The temptations to become Babylonianized, to devote their energies to pagan pursuits, will be strong. The temptation to stay in the relative security of the land to which they were exiled and forget they have a messianic destiny to serve will not be easily overcome. Thousands of Jews did stay in Babylon! The task of returning to a ravaged land, occupied by hostile people, to struggle through long hard years of rebuilding, was almost overwhelming! Even the temptation to take with them back to Palestine some of the heathen customs and practices that seemed so security-enforcing would seem innocent enough. Yet the command of the Lord is, depart . . . touch no unclean thing . . . cleanse yourselves. The rule of God cannot be established if the people are unwilling to depart from ungodliness. Those that bear the vessels of Jehovah is probably a figurative way of indicating the uniqueness of the Jewish people as a messianic people.
They will have ample opportunity to consider and apply the command of the Lord for separating themselves from their heathen environment. They will not have to make a hasty exodus as their ancestors did in Egypt and so they will not have to take any of the Babylonian baubbles to support them as those under Moses did. These Babylonian exiles will have plenty of time and they will know, by prophecy, exactly how many years they will be spending there. Cyrus will supply them with money to rebuild their commonwealth. And finally, they will not have to tramp the wilderness, constantly fleeing from one enemy after another as their ancestors did. Jehovah promises to surround them with guidance and protectionboth front and rear. And so they were protected from those who wanted to thwart their rebuilding (cf. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther), as they prepared to be the people through whom the great Messenger would come with a revelation of salvation to all the ends of the earth.
QUIZ
1.
Why do we call this prophecy of the messenger one of shortened perspective?
2.
Where is the N.T. quotation of this passage and what is the connection?
3.
Who are the watchmen and why do they sing?
4.
When did Jehovah bare his holy arm?
5.
Why the command to depart?
6.
Who are those who bear the vessels of Jehovah?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(7) How beautiful . . .The image is reproduced, with variations, from Isa. 40:9. There Zion herself was the herald proclaiming the glad tidings; here the heralds are seen coming to Zion, to tell her that her God is verily reigning, and their feet are beautiful on the mountains like those of an antelope (Son. 2:8-9; Nah. 1:15).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
7. The scene changes here in Jerusalem, and the prophet represents the watchmen on the lookout toward Babylon, as if expecting what, in an instant they see, namely, the swiftly coming messenger on the distant Judean hills. Then the exclamation: How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet, etc. The joyful expectation, now sure to be soon realized, is what gives the word “beautiful” its meaning. Glad tidings borne by any one, however ugly, makes the bearer an agreeable object. In this scene the message brought was the oncoming of the returning exiles to their spiritual Jerusalem. Figuratively, this verse applies to a glorious religious prospect in any period.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Proclamation of the Good News of Yahweh’s Deliverance; The Message Is To Be Taken To The World ( Isa 52:7-12 ).
Isaiah is so confident that God will deliver His people, that he already visualises God’s Servant (the Messiah and His true followers) going out onto the mountains of the world to take good news to the ‘Zion’ among the peoples (compare Isa 49:11), telling them that God reigns.
The parallels between these verses and Isa 2:2-4 should be noted. Here he is explaining in more detail how Isa 2:2-4 will come about. In Isa 2:2 the mountain of Yahweh’s house will be established as the highest of the mountains. Here the Servant will be exalted, lifted up and be very high (Isa 52:13). In Isa 2:2 the mountains represent the nations. Here the Good News is taken out into the mountains of the nations. In Isa 2:2 God’s Instruction goes out from Zion, and Yahweh’s word from Jerusalem, here those who go out ‘from thence’ (i.e. Jerusalem – Isa 52:11 with Isa 52:9) are to go out as His pure people bearing the vessels of Yahweh (Isa 52:11) so that they may sprinkle the nations (Isa 52:15) with God’s means of purification (Num 19:17-18), so that all the ends of the earth might see the salvation of God (Isa 52:10) because Yahweh has bared His holy arm before all nations in His redeeming work through His Servant (Isa 52:13 to Isa 53:12; compare Isa 40:10, ‘His arm will rule for Him’). And yet it is to happen in such a way that who could have seen in this the arm of Yahweh? – Isa 53:1).
Isa 52:7
‘How beautiful on the mountains,
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who publishes peace,
Who brings good news of good,
Who publishes salvation.
Who says to Zion,
“Your God reigns.”
As we have already seen the mountains represent the nations (Isa 2:2). The feet that bring good tidings are always beautiful, in whatever state they may be. Men will kiss such feet. But this man is not seen as running from anywhere. He is coming from God. The mountains are the mountains of the world (Isa 49:11). The comparison simply brings out how glorious is the bearer of good news. Even his dusty, tired feet are beautiful because of the wonderful new that he bears. “The Kingly Rule of God is at hand” (compare Mat 4:17 and parallels). ‘Your God reigns.’
This can only be speaking of the Servant. He is the One Who comes to bring good news of good to the poor and afflicted (Isa 61:1; compare Isa 40:9, ‘good tidings — good things’), to publish peace (Isa 49:6), to bring good news of good (Isa 42:6-7; Isa 49:9-10), who publishes salvation (Isa 49:6 b, 8), who declares ‘The Kingly Rule of God is at hand’ (Isa 42:1; Isa 42:4; Mar 1:15). And along with Him will be His servants who will also go with the Good News to the world. They too will be part of the corporate Servant of which He is the main constituent. The promise to Abraham (Isa 41:8) will be fulfilled through his seed.
The commentary on these verses is found in the Gospels, as the Bearer of Good News came over the mountains of Israel declaring that ‘the Kingly Rule of God is at hand’ (Mar 1:15), and then went on over the mountains of the world until the message reached Rome (Act 28:31). Israel would yet wait a long time for their Bearer of Good News to come, but it would be well worth waiting for, for His message would be for the whole world, a light to lighten the Gentiles (Isa 42:6; Isa 49:6; Isa 51:4) and to be the gory of His people Israel (Luk 2:32).
‘Your God reigns.’ Compare Psa 22:28; Psa 47:8; Psa 93:1; Psa 97:1; Psa 99:1. This became a central theme of Israel’s worship, indeed probably was already among the faithful. It became more and more their hope once the Davidic kinship had failed. Yahweh would reign in His everlasting kingdom, with the coming David, His servant, as His regent king (Jer 30:9; Eze 37:24-28). Compare Isa 40:9 where this proclamation is initially to the cities of Judah. As is apparent all the way through the chapter Jerusalem and Judah are the context of these words. Isa 52:8
‘The voice of your watchmen,
They lift up the voice, together do they sing,
For they will see eye to eye,
When Yahweh returns to Zion.
Break forth into joy,
Sing together you waste places of Jerusalem,
For Yahweh has comforted his people,
He has redeemed Jerusalem.
Yahweh has made bare his holy arm,
In the eyes of all the nations,
And all the ends of the earth will see,
The salvation of our God.’
All the watchmen will rejoice when they see God accomplishing His deliverance. The celebration is of the return of Yahweh to Zion, which He had deserted when He handed them over to the nations. He had ceased to be with His people. (It has nothing to do with exile here. The people are still in Jerusalem. It is Yahweh Who has gone). That is why He would allow Jerusalem and the Temple to be laid waste (Isa 43:28; Isa 44:28). But now in the coming of the Servant they see the return of Yahweh. And all the watchmen in Jerusalem will cry out and sing, all seeing eye to eye. One eye will look into another and there will be full mental contact (compare Jer 32:4) and each will be aware of what the other is thinking. There will no longer be disunity, no longer two nations, no longer rival factions. They will all be one under the Servant.
Note the emphasis on the watchmen. There were many who watched for the coming of Jesus. But they were not the sentries, they were mainly the meek and the lowly (Luk 2:25; Luk 2:38), including initially of course the prophets. And when they heard of His coming they rejoiced.
The waste places of Jerusalem, that is, both broken down houses and what had once been surrounding fields which have gone to waste under siege (compare Isa 39:30-31), will break forth into joy and sing together, for all will be united when Yahweh comes, and the song will be of Yahweh’s redemption of Israel, and of the comfort and strength He has brought to His people. But the emphasis is not on physical restoration. That is but the symbol of Israel’s state. Isaiah constantly uses physical descriptions with deeper truths in mind. He is a prophet not a recorder. Jerusalem’s problem was that its heart was laid waste, that its morals were wanting. It was filled with weeds. It desperately needed restoration. And now Yahweh has come to restore (compare Isa 40:3 where it all begins with a voice from the wilderness – compare Mat 3:3; Luk 3:4-6).
‘For Yahweh has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem.’ Thus are fulfilled the many promises in Isaiah of comfort (Isa 40:1; Isa 49:13; Isa 51:3; Isa 51:12) and redemption (see Isa 1:27; Isa 29:22; Isa 35:9; Isa 41:14; Isa 43:1; Isa 43:4; Isa 43:14; Isa 44:6; Isa 44:22-24; Isa 47:4; Isa 48:17; Isa 48:20; Isa 49:7; Isa 49:26; Isa 50:2; Isa 51:11; Isa 52:3). And it is all through the Servant (Isa 53:1-12).
But the message is not only to His people. All the nations will see what Yahweh has done, they will see the delivering power of God. Thus will be fulfilled the promise of Isa 2:2-4, and the nations will flock to Yahweh (Isa 2:2-4; compare Isa 42:6; Isa 49:6; Isa 49:23; Isa 52:13-15; Isa 60:4-14), and His instruction and word will go out from Jerusalem into all the world (Isa 52:10; Isa 2:3-4; Isa 11:9). The Servant will have restored His people to Him, and given His light to the Gentiles and been their salvation (Isa 49:6-7; Mat 12:17-21).
To Isaiah this was all one vision. It was not for Him to know the long (from earth’s point of view) and complicated process that would bring it all about.
‘Laid bare His holy arm.’ The picture is delightful. All strong men like to bare their arms to reveal their muscles, and here Yahweh reveals His muscles to all men. They are permitted to see His power in action. This arm is the arm of the Mighty One in Isa 40:10. But as Isa 53:1 reveals it is exerted in a way beyond the understanding of men.
Isa 52:11-12
‘Depart, depart, go out from there.
Touch no unclean thing.
Go out of the midst of her, be pure,
You who bear the vessels of Yahweh.
For you will not go out in haste,
Nor will you go out by flight,
For Yahweh will go before you,
And the God of Israel will be your rear guard.’
Now that the messenger has come with the Good News there is an immediate response. The Good News must be passed on, and immediate preparations are to be made for the departure of messengers to the world. (Isa 2:3 – There is absolutely no reason at all to see here any reference to Babylon. We are still in a context of Assyria and Egypt – Isa 52:4; And Jerusalem is redeemed not re-inhabited – Isa 52:9. There is not an exile in sight).
‘Depart, depart, go out — go out.’ All is hustle the message is so vital (for ‘go out’ compare Isa 55:12). Now at last true Israel is to fulfil its calling as the holy nation, the kingdom of priests (Exo 19:5-6). They will become those who truly ‘bear the vessels of Yahweh’. They will take to the nations God’s instruction and call them to the true sacrifice, seen in Isaiah’s terms as the taking out of the waters of purification with which to sprinkle the nations (Isa 52:15; Num 19:17-18; Eze 36:25-28). They are to stream out from Jerusalem to the world (Isa 2:3), ensuring that they themselves keep ‘pure’ and have nothing to do with what defiles. They are to proclaim the One Who will ‘sprinkle’ many nations (Isa 52:15). The verb is not the usual one for being ‘clean’ when related to priestly functions. It is the word used of the ‘polished’ arrow of the Servant in Isa 49:2. Thus the thought is very much of spiritual fitness for the task that lies ahead, the task of the Servant, for they must remember that they are crucially those whose responsibility it is to bear the vessels of Yahweh to the nations, that is, they are to be the means of God’s blessing and deliverance to the nations.
‘Be clean.’ This looks back to Isa 52:1. The ideal Jerusalem was now the city of the ‘clean. So as these men of cleanness go out with the vessels of Yahweh they are to avoid all that is unclean. They are to retain their ‘Jerusalem cleanness’. Uncleanness in one way or another is a theme of Isaia, see Isa 6:5; Isa 35:8; Isa 52:1; Isa 61:6.
The vessels of Yahweh.’ These are a symbol of all that the Temple meant, of all the Temple paraphernalia. They are the means by which the sacrifices were applied, by which the ordinances were fulfilled. All that was holy to Yahweh was carried in these vessels (compare Isa 66:20). They are the means of conveying holy things (Isa 66:20). The idea here is that they will carry the benefits of the self-sacrifice of the Servant (Isa 53:1-12) out to the world. To be a ‘bearer of the vessels of Yahweh’ is to be one who is greatly privileged, one who carries out the priestly functions. That had always been God’s purpose for faithful Israel (Exo 19:5-6; compare Isa 66:21) And one of the duties of such was to explain God’s word to those who would receive it.
So they bear to the world the news of God’s provision for men that they might be reconciled to Him, and call on them to participate and have their part in Him. They take God’s deliverance to the world (see Isa 51:4-5). This unusual use here conjoined with Isa 52:13 to Isa 53:12 cannot be accidental. For we are now to read of a sacrifice that replaces all sacrifices. The sacrificial offering of the Servant. This will be applied by His ‘sprinkling many nations (Isa 52:15), presumably with the waters of purification which have as it were received His ashes (Num 19:17), and contained in the vessels of Yahweh.
We can compare here also how the Gentiles who restore God’s exiles to Himself are seen as bearing the vessels of Yahweh, the litters that carry His true people because they are holy (Isa 66:20). So the vessels of Yahweh are what carry holy things.
And they will not go with haste and flee as they did from Egypt, and as men fled from Babylon (Isa 48:20). This is not an escape from the world of nations, that is something that is now behind them. This is a triumphant and glorious departure from Zion (‘from there’). We can compare Isa 55:12 where the same verb ‘go out’ is used. See also Isa 2:3. It is a going forward to the nations with God in attendance with them. They will go forward firmly and deliberately, triumphantly and gloriously, and Yahweh will go before them and protect them from behind (Exo 14:19), as He did in their time of need. They will enjoy His full protection and presence. Compare here Isa 58:8, ‘your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of Yahweh will be your rearward’ where it is to be the result of their ‘good living’. This privilege was given to them at the Exodus, how much more so now that the exodus is reversed as they go out from Jerusalem to the world with the message of God’s salvation.
NOTE on ‘You who bear the vessels of Yahweh’ (compare Num 1:50-51 where the same verb and noun are used) .
In Isa 52:1 Zion is to put on the ‘garments of beauty’ of the priesthood (Exo 28:2), and in Isa 52:14 the Servant ‘sprinkles’ many nations. Again a responsibility of the priests. It is clear therefore that priestly functions are very much in mind in this section. ‘Israel’, the new refined Israel (Isa 49:3), are to be a kingdom of priests (Exo 19:5-6), going out with the Instruction of Yahweh (Isa 2:3), and taking the water of purification to the peoples (Isa 52:15; Eze 36:25-28).
Thus this phrase ties in with these references. It may not necessarily be saying that the literal vessels are actually taken to the nations. The vessels may well be metaphorical (compare Isa 66:20) and to be seen as bearing the message that they take. Or it may simply be defining the status of those going out, that they are ‘the bearers of the vessels of Yahweh’, i.e. ‘God’s priests’. But if the Servant is to ‘sprinkle many nations’ (Isa 52:15) He must in some way be ‘bearing a vessel of Yahweh’, at least symbolically, for that is how sprinkling took place. Of course the sprinkling is equally as symbolic as the vessels. We can compare Eze 36:25 where the sprinkling is of ‘clean’ water, that is the water of purification (Num 8:7) or separation (Num 19:9; Num 19:13; Num 19:20-21) but as symbolising the pouring out of the Spirit. That would then make the vessels of Yahweh symbolic. But either way it would seem that the idea is that the benefits of His sacrifice (Isa 53:10) are to be taken out and offered to the whole world. This would tie in with Isa 2:2-3 where the nations come to the mount of Yahweh, while the instruction goes out from Jerusalem to the world.
While we cannot suggest here that Isaiah in any way has in mind ‘the cup of blessing’ which in multiplied form (1Co 10:16) would be taken out from Jerusalem to the world, as the new congregation of Israel was being formed by the establishment of Christ’s ‘congregation’ around the world, and would partake of the cup of the Lord (1Co 10:21). But the idea is the same. Zion, having drunk of the cup of God’s anger (Isa 51:17), now takes out from Jerusalem the vessels of blessing for all the world, and Jesus may well have had these verses in mind.
The attribution of these verses to the return from Babylon is extremely unlikely. There is nothing in this section remotely connected with that. Why then should such a reference be introduced so oddly here? All the emphasis is on the preparation of Zion in order that she might be the Servant of Yahweh, so that the Servant might be seen by the world and experience His priestly activity (Isa 52:15). And the departure mentioned here bears no resemblance to the earlier description of the departure of people from Babylon in Isa 48:20 (whatever that means). To bring Babylon in here is totally to ignore the context. There men were called on to flee. Here they will specifically not flee.
End of note.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Messengers of Redemption
v. 7. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, v. 8. Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice, v. 9. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem, v. 10. The Lord hath made bare His holy arm, v. 11. Depart ye, depart ye, v. 12. For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Isa 52:7-8. How beautiful, &c. While the Son of God manifested himself in the flesh to his people, the prophet, immediately rapt into ecstacy, beholds first the evangelists, chosen by the Lord throughout Judaea; then the apostles, and their contemporaries, departing by the Lord’s command from Jerusalem; announcing throughout the whole world, by the preaching of the Gospel, the good tidings of salvation prepared for all people without distinction, and inviting them to a participation of this salvation. It is impossible to apply these words to any other than the first preachers of the Gospel, without wresting them in the strongest manner possible: , the Gospel, is, literally, good tidings. See Luk 2:10. Vitringa renders the eighth verse, The voice of the watchmen; they lift up the voice; together do they sing; or they sing in concert. For men shall see with both eyes, when the Lord shall have restored Zion. Vitringa supposes that the watchmen here mean the prophets, who answer to, or sing in concert with the evangelists; for between these there is the utmost harmony; so that what the prophets have foretold as to be fulfilled, the evangelists relate as fulfilled. Believers therefore, in the voice of the evangelists, acknowledge the words of the prophet.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 961
THE NATURE OF THE GOSPEL
Isa 52:7. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
IN order to understand the prophetic writings, we must always bear in mind that they have a spiritual or mystical sense, as well as a plain and literal one. The words before us, in their primary meaning, evidently refer to the joy with which the proclamation of Cyrus, when he permitted the captive Jews to return from Babylon to their native country, would be received. But they certainly relate also to the deliverance announced to us under the Gospel-dispensation; for it is in this view that they are quoted by the Apostle Paul [Note: Rom 10:15.]. We shall take occasion from them to shew,
I.
What the Gospel is
It is described with sufficient accuracy in the text: it is,
1.
A proclamation of peace and salvation to man
[The Gospel supposes men to have offended God, and to be obnoxious to his everlasting displeasure. It further supposes that they have no way of conciliating the Divine favour, or of warding off the stroke of his indignation. Coming to men in this helpless and hopeless state, it publisheth tidings of peace and salvation: it represents sin as expiated by the atoning blood of Jesus; and God as reconciled to all who will trust in his meritorious and all-prevailing sacrifice. This is the view which St. Paul himself gives us of the Gospel; in preaching of which Gospel ministers resemble the messengers sent to Babylon, who had nothing to do but to proclaim a full and free deliverance to the wretched captives [Note: 2Co 5:18-20.].]
2.
A declaration of Christs power and grace
[The Chaldeans, who so grievously oppressed their Jewish captives, may justly represent to us the bitter and tyrannical dominion of sin and Satan: and Cyrus, who, without fee or reward, liberated them from their bondage, may be considered as the agent and representative of the Deity. As therefore the messengers would not fail to remind the Jews, that Cyrus, the one author of their happiness, would continue to them his protection and favour while they maintained their allegiance to him; so, in preaching the Gospel, we are to declare, that Christ, to whom we owe the beginnings of our liberty, will complete our deliverance, and continue to us all the tokens of his love, provided we yield him, as we are in duty bound, a willing and unreserved obedience. Thus did Christ himself preach the Gospel, saying. Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand [Note: Compare Mar 1:14-15. with Mat 4:17.].]
If we view the Gospel in this light, we shall see immediately,
II.
That it is a ground of joy
By a beautiful figure, the very steps of the messenger hastening over the distant mountains are represented as inspiring us with joy. That the Gospel itself is a source of joy, appears in that,
1.
It has been considered so from the first moment of its promulgation
[Abraham, two thousand years before its promulgation, rejoiced exceedingly in a distant prospect of it [Note: Joh 8:56.]. At the birth of Jesus, our deliverer, a host of angels congratulated the world, saying, Behold, we bring you glad tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people; for unto you is born a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord [Note: Luk 2:10-11]. As soon as ever the full effects of the Gospel came to be experienced, the converts, filled with every malignant temper just before, were filled with joy, and ate their bread with gladness and singleness of heart, blessing and praising God [Note: Act 2:46-47.]. No sooner was the Gospel preached in Samaria, than there was great joy in that city: and, the instant that the eunuch had embraced it, he went on his way rejoicing [Note: Act 8:8; Act 8:39.]. Thus it is at this day a healing balm and a reviving cordial to all who understand and receive it.]
2.
It is in itself well calculated to create joy in our hearts
[Let but its blessings be felt, and it will be impossible not to rejoice. Did the Jews exult at a deliverance from a cruel yoke, and a restoration to their native country? How much more must a sinner rejoice at his deliverance from death and hell, and his restoration to the forfeited inheritance of heaven! The transports of joy manifested by the cripple whom Peter and John had healed, were the natural effusions of a grateful heart: we should have wondered if he had not so expressed the feelings of his soul [Note: Act 3:8.]: but he had received no benefit in comparison of that which the believer enjoys when he first embraces the Gospel of Christ. Hence our prophet represents the Gospel as invariably producing such sensations as the husbandman feels when bringing home the fruits of the field, or the soldier when dividing the spoils of victory [Note: Isa 9:3; Isa 9:6.].]
3.
It is, and ever will be, the one subject of thanksgiving in the realms of glory
[The glorified saints never have their attention diverted from it for one single moment: day and night are they singing to him who loved them, and washed them from their sins in his own blood [Note: Rev 1:5-6.]. And though the angels are less interested in this subject, because they never needed redeeming grace, yet do they join the general chorus, ascribing honour and glory to him that sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb for ever. Nor will they ever be weary of this subject; such an inexhaustible fund is it of light, and happiness, and glory.]
Infer
1.
How strange is it that the Gospel should be treated with indifference!
[That it is so treated, needs no proof: but how amazing that it should ever be slighted by those to whom it is sent! that condemned criminals should disregard the offers of pardon sent them by their prince! O that there might be no more occasion for that complaint, Who hath believed our report? Let the very feet of the messengers who bring the tidings be henceforth beautiful in our eyes.]
2.
Of what importance is it to distinguish between mere morality, and the Gospel of Christ!
[Lectures upon honesty would administer but little comfort to a person about to be executed for breaking the laws of his country: nor can mere discourses on morality administer much comfort to a self-condemning sinner: and if he mistake such discourses for the Gospel, he is fatally deceived. The Gospel is a full and free offer of salvation through the blood of Christ: and this is glad tidings indeed; like rivers of water in a dry place, or a shadow of a great rock in a weary land. O that all who are ambassadors of God may remember the great scope of their ministry, and testify the Gospel of the grace of God! And let all who hear the joyful sound, improve the day of their visitation: blessed are they if they receive the truth in the love thereof; but most aggravated will be their condemnation if they despise the mercy so freely offered them.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
What glorious tidings of salvation must they be, when the very feet of those who bring them, are accounted by the Lord himself to be beautiful! This is indeed good news from a far country; and when the soul that hears the joyful sound, knows by heart-felt experience, that Jesus reigneth in and over all his affections, this is a joy unspeakable and full of glory. I cannot dismiss this view of the beautifulness of the feet of Jesus’s sent servants, without reminding the Reader how Jesus honoured them; see Joh 13:3-5 ; neither can I look at the servants, without still having my mind more fully led to the contemplation of the master. Reader! think how beautiful were the feet of Jesus when he came over the mountains of sin, in our nature, and published peace in his blood! Think how the feet of Jesus appeared when on Mount Calvary they were nailed, for us and our salvation, to the cross! Oh! thou unequalled pattern of everything beautiful and lovely! And how blessed are the promises that follow! Zion’s watchmen shall see, eye to eye, when redemption here promised, was completed; and was it not so, when they saw Jesus, face to face, in the days of his flesh, when he manifested his glory, and his disciples believed on him? Joh 2:11 . It is not so now, in every instance, both in the Jewish and the Gentile Church, where the Lord hath made bare his holy arm, and the believing soul cries out, as holy Simeon, Mine eyes have seen thy salvation Luk 2:30 . And will it not be so in that day, when the Lord shall make up his jewels, when every eye shall see him, and he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all that believe? Rev 1:7 ; 2Th 1:10 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Isa 52:7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
Ver. 7. How beautiful! ] Quam amaeni, i.e., amabiles! How amiable or desirable. Interrogatio admirantis et exultantis.
Upon the mountains.
Of him that bringeth good tidings.
That publisheth peace.
That bringeth good tidings.
That publisheth salvation.
That saith to Zion, Thy God reigneth.
a Bishop Andrews.
b Leo Castrius ex Procop., et Euseb.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Isa 52:7-10
7How lovely on the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who announces peace
And brings good news of happiness,
Who announces salvation,
And says to Zion, Your God reigns!
8Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices,
They shout joyfully together;
For they will see with their own eyes
When the LORD restores Zion.
9Break forth, shout joyfully together,
You waste places of Jerusalem;
For the LORD has comforted His people,
He has redeemed Jerusalem.
10The LORD has bared His holy arm
In the sight of all the nations,
That all the ends of the earth may see
The salvation of our God.
Isa 52:7-9 These verses are using the metaphor of (1) a governmental messenger bringing good news (cf. Isa 52:7) and (2) the watchman (cf. Isa 52:8) at the gate announcing it to the whole city. The city is Zion; the good news is that YHWH reigns again as King over His restored people.
Isa 52:7 The Hebrew VERB bring good news (BDB 142, KB 163, Piel PARTICIPLE, twice) is alluded to in Rom 10:15 for the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ (cf. Isa 52:13 to Isa 53:12).
Notice the parallelism between the announced good news.
1. peace (BDB 1022)
2. happiness/good (BDB 373 I)
3. salvation (BDB 447)
SPECIAL TOPIC: PEACE (SHALOM)
Your God reigns This (BDB 573, KB 590, Qal PERFECT) is the fulfillment of Isa 24:23. It may reflect a well known Israeli liturgy (cf. Psa 93:1; Psa 96:10; Psa 97:1; Psa 99:1).
Isa 52:8
NASB, TEV,
NJBthey will see with their own eyes
NKJVthey shall see eye to eye
NRSVin plain sight they see
JPSOAevery eye shall behold
NET Biblethey will see with their very own eyes
The MT has eye to eye. Leupold, in his commentary on Isaiah, makes a good point.
The phrase ‘eye to eye’ has an utterly different meaning in English than in Hebrew. In English it means something like agreeing completely in one’s approach and outlook with another. In Hebrew the meaning is ‘close at hand,’ something like being so near that you can see the whites of the eye of the person approaching (p. 219).
Isa 52:10 Israel was established by YHWH to be a kingdom of priests to the world (cf. Gen 12:3; Exo 19:4-6). However, her covenant unfaithfulness required God’s judgment, therefore, the world never saw God’s true character. By God delivering Israel from captivity, first Egypt, then Assyria, and now Babylon, all the peoples of the earth will see God’s power, love, and blessing.
has bared His holy arm The VERB (BDB 362, KB 359, Qal PERFECT) is an anthropomorphic metaphor (see Special Topic: Hand ) for YHWH getting ready for action/deliverance (cf. Eze 4:7).
Often the phrase with an outstretched arm denotes the same divine actions (cf. Exo 6:6; Deu 4:34; Deu 5:15; Deu 26:8).
In the sight of all the nations This is parallel to the next phrase, all the ends of the earth may see. This is also parallel to all flesh will see it (Isa 40:5; also note Joe 2:28 for another universal image).
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
How beautiful, &c. Quoted in Rom 10:15.
the feet. Put by Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Part), for the whole person of the messenger, that we may not think of him, but of his coming as sent by Jehovah (compare Nah 1:15). Fulfilled partially in John and Christ, both of whom were rejected and slain. There will be other messengers of the future coming, even Elijah and others (Mal 4:5).
God. Hebrew. Elohim. App-4.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Isa 52:7-10
Isa 52:7-10
“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, and publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! The voice of thy watchmen! they lift up the voice, together do they sing; for they shall see eye to eye, when Jehovah returneth to Zion. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem; for Jehovah hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem. Jehovah hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”
The apostle Paul applied this passage to the preaching of the Gospel (Rom 10:15); and the truth that Israel’s God reigneth (Isa 52:7) is a reference to the same reality proclaimed “By John the Baptist, and by the Lord Jesus Christ himself, that, `The Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand!'” As regards the exact time when that reign of God (through Christ) began, it was upon that occasion when Jesus Christ declared that, “All authority in heaven and upon earth has been given unto me” (Mat 18:18-20). Some people find it hard to harmonize the fact of God’s current reign upon earth with the presence of much evil in the world; but all such doubts fail when it is realized that, at the very darkest hours in the history of the Old Israel, as in this chapter, while the people were languishing in captivity, God was reigning then; and God through Christ is reigning now! The most delusive notion ever entertained by mortals is that all men will, in some glorious tomorrow, submit to the Word of God. The reason that the vast majority of Adam’s race are condemned to eventual destruction is due to the fact that God has given men the freedom of choice; and as Jesus said, “Broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many are they that enter in thereby” (Mat 7:13). God will never rule in human hearts that reject his word, deny the Christ, and by choice prefer the service of Satan.
This reference to those “who bring good tidings and publish peace” is an oft recurring subject in Isaiah, as in Isa 40:9 and Isa 41:27, another signature declaring Isaiah as the author.
“Jehovah hath laid bare his holy arm …” (Isa 52:10). When Isaiah wrote these words there were tremendous apparent contradictions in the contemporary situation that seemed to deny God’s authority. Jerusalem was in ruins, her temple destroyed, its sacred vessels used for wine and debaucheries for the king of Babylon and his concubines. How could men believe that God reigned in a situation like that? But men of every age have been tempted by the same questions. “How can men believe that God is king when evil seems to be enthroned on every hand”.’? Isaiah here reveals the answer, namely, that God rules in the kingdoms of men (Dan 4:25). God has control of all history, regardless of how the circumstances of any given generation may seem to contradict it.
Isa 52:7-10 PEACE: Apparently we have in this prediction of Isaiah an instance of shortened perspective. That is, the prophet is predicting the deliverance of Judah from Babylonian captivity and the deliverance of all mankind from sin through the Messiah without mentioning all the history of the scheme of redemption that transpires between the two historical events (cf. our comments on Joe 2:27-28). There is no doubt that the ultimate fulfillment of Isaiahs prediction was to find itself in the Messiah and His gospel (cf. Rom 10:15). Isaiahs context indicates he is predicting what is going to eventuate with the coming of The Servant. Of course, messengers of the good news that Judah is to be released from her captivity and restored her physical commonwealth in Palestine by the decree of Cyrus will be lovely to behold. The lesson from this miraculous deliverance will be that God rules in the affairs of all men to fulfill His sovereign will. There will be peace for a while for Judah. But surely there is more good news involved in this prophecy than a physical deliverance and a physical peace.
The physical deliverance of Judah was the first step in a long series of historical events which were to lead to the coming of the Messiah and the true deliverance, the spiritual salvation, and peace between God and man, (cf. comments on Dan 9:24-27 for the time-table of historical events between). Ultimately then, him that bringeth good tidings is the Messiah. Christ, The Servant, is also The Messenger (cf. Isa 61:1-2; Luk 4:16-30; Mal 3:1-4). The messenger who prepares the way before in Mal 3:1 is unquestionably, John the Baptist. But the Lord whom you seek . . . the messenger of the covenant . . .of Mal 3:1 is the Messiah. Notice what the messenger of Isaiahs prophecy announces: peace-good-salvation-the rule of God-comfort for His people-redemption of Jerusalem. Furthermore, this is to be seen by all the ends of the earth. Surely there is more to Gods salvation and comfort (see Isa 40:1 ff) than a mere temporary deliverance of the Jews from Babylonian captivity. Surely there is more to Gods reign than a Jewish nation only superficially submitted to Him in the restored commonwealth under Ezra and Zerubbabel. The post-exilic prophets make it very plain (Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi) that the returned exiles soon fell back into their old rebellions against the law of Moses and the rule of God. The salvation, peace and rule of God announced by Isaiahs beautiful bearer of good tidings is made accessible to all men through Him who came and preached peace to those far off and those near (cf. Eph 2:11-22). Notice in Rom 10:14-21 how Paul emphasizes the prophecies of Isaiah about the Lords salvation were not fulfilled in a rebellious, physical Israel!
The watchmen are probably the prophets and those faithful believers down through the centuries who kept on believing in the coming of the Christ (cf. 1Pe 1:10-12; Heb 11:13-16; Heb 11:32-40, etc.). These watchers put their predictions and hopes into poetic form, song, symbol and type. They did it with great style and emotional expressiveness. For they saw the eventual rule of Jehovah as surely as if it were right before their eyes (cf. Joh 8:56-58; Joh 12:41), which is what they shall see eye to eye means. Even the return of Jehovah to Zion is messianic. The crowning glory of Ezekiels new temple and new city (Ezekiel 40-48) is . . . the name of the city henceforth shall be. The Lord is there. The church is the temple of Gods habitation (Eph 2:21-22).
On account of the absolute certainty that Jehovah is going to eventually send His Messenger with the good tidings of salvation, and on account of the certainty that Jehovah is going to take the first step toward that end delivering the Jews from captivity, the Jerusalem (or Zion) that in Isaiahs day is being wasted and ruined by pagan oppressors should lift up its spirit and sing of its salvation. This would, of course, take faith because it was not as yet seen. But that is mans whole relationship to God-faith! That was the problem when the Messiah came to comfort His people and redeem Jerusalem. Most of the people could not believe it because they could not see, touch, taste His deliverance. It is still a problem with so many millions today who want only to be saved physically from trouble and depravation, but not from their sinful rebellion against the revealed will of God!
The salvation of God was proven! Gods ability to save man and His faithfulness to keep His word was demonstrated visibly, historically and supernaturally. God bared His holy arm of supernatural power time and again in saving the Jewish people from their enemies. He showed in no uncertain terms to believer and unbeliever alike (read the book of Daniel) that He would deliver those who trusted and obeyed Him. The arm of the Lord will consummately be bared in the Messiahs death and resurrection (cf. Isa 53:1 ff). Gods greatest power is the gospel which is, fundamentally, the atoning death and justifying resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jehovah showed His power in many and various ways in former ages, but the greatest demonstration of it was in the resurrection of Christ. It was here that God bared His holy arm to all the ends of the earth so that all men might see His salvation. God has fixed a day in which he will judge the world, by an appointed man, and He has given assurance to all men by raising this man from the dead, and so His message to all men everywhere is, repent (cf. Act 17:30-31). But, you see, the problem is that the arm or power of the Lord was revealed in a Suffering Servant (Isa 53:1) and this, so unacceptable to Jewish presuppositions about the power of Jehovah, is still unacceptable to human presuppositions (cf. 1Co 1:18-31).
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
How beautiful: This is a highly poetical expression, for, How welcome is his arrival! how agreeable are the tidings which he brings! Isa 40:9, Isa 61:1-3, Nah 1:15, Luk 2:10, Rom 10:12-15
publisheth: Psa 68:11, Son 2:8, Mar 13:10, Mar 16:15, Luk 24:47, Act 10:36-38, Rev 14:6
Thy God: Isa 24:23, Isa 33:22, Psa 59:13, Psa 93:1, Psa 96:10, Psa 97:1, Psa 99:1, Mic 4:7, Zec 9:9, Mat 25:34, Mat 28:18, Rev 11:15
Reciprocal: 2Sa 18:27 – He is a good 2Ki 7:9 – this day Psa 72:3 – mountains Psa 89:15 – know Psa 96:2 – show Psa 97:8 – Zion Psa 125:1 – be as mount Psa 138:5 – they shall Psa 146:10 – thy God Psa 147:12 – praise thy God Psa 149:2 – let the Pro 25:25 – so Isa 12:6 – Cry out Isa 24:14 – General Isa 35:4 – behold Isa 41:10 – for I am thy God Isa 41:27 – I will give Isa 65:18 – General Jer 31:6 – a day Lam 1:1 – sit Luk 13:35 – Blessed Act 13:32 – we Rom 10:15 – How beautiful 2Co 5:18 – hath given Eph 2:17 – and preached Eph 6:15 – the gospel Phi 2:29 – with 1Th 1:8 – from 1Th 3:6 – and brought Rev 14:7 – with Rev 19:6 – for
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Isa 52:7. How beautiful How exceeding precious and acceptable; upon the mountains Of Judea, to which these glad tidings were brought; are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings Tidings, first, Of the release of the Jews from captivity in Babylon; and, secondly, Of the redemption and salvation of mankind by the Messiah. Thus most commentators interpret the prophets words. They are a poetical description, says Lowth, of the messenger who first brought the good news of Cyruss decree for the people to return home, whom the watchmen, mentioned Isa 52:8, are supposed to descry afar off from the tops of the mountains, making all possible haste to publish this happy news: a signal instance of Gods overruling providence, of the peculiar care he hath for his church. But this text is very fitly applied by St. Paul to the first preachers of the gospel, (Rom 10:15,) the very words importing good tidings of that peace and salvation whereby the kingdom of God was erected among men. Indeed, true peace and salvation were procured for mankind, and are conferred upon them, only by Christ. And in his days, or from the time of his manifestation in the flesh, and entering upon his public ministry, God discovered and exercised his dominion over the world far more eminently than he ever had done from the beginning of the world until that time. Accordingly, we may observe, those Psalms wherein we find that expression, The Lord reigneth, are by the generality of interpreters, both Jewish and Christian, expounded of the times of the Messiah; the declaration being, in effect, the same that John the Baptist, the messenger of Christ, and that Christ himself published, when they testified, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
52:7 How {g} beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that proclaimeth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that proclaimeth salvation; that saith to Zion, Thy God reigneth!
(g) Signifying that the joy and good tidings of their deliverance would make their affliction in the mean time more easy: but this is chiefly meant of the spiritual joy, as in Nah 1:15, Rom 10:15 .
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Isaiah exulted in the good news that the Lord had just revealed. The news had reached His people through a messenger whom the prophet pictured as running across mountains with his message (cf. Isa 40:9; Isa 41:27; Nah 1:15). The messenger’s feet were beautiful because they carried him and his message of peace, happiness, and salvation (cf. Mat 10:1-7; Rom 10:15). His message is that Yahweh is the only true God and that He reigns as the sovereign over the universe and all supposed gods. Watts believed the rejoicing was due to Darius seizing the reigns of power from the Babylonians. [Note: Watts, Isaiah 34-66, pp. 216-17.]
"What does God’s rule entail? It entails a condition where all things are in their proper relation to each other, with nothing left hanging, incomplete, or unfulfilled (peace, shalom); it entails a condition where creation purposes are realized (good, tob; cf. Gen 1:4; Gen 1:10, etc.); it entails a condition of freedom from every bondage, but particularly the bondage resultant from sin (salvation, yeshu’a). Where God reigns, these follow. Of course, this is exactly congruent with what the Christian faith considers its good news (euangelion) to be." [Note: Oswalt, The Book . . . 40-66, p. 368.]