Isaiah chapter 41

CHAPTER XLI.

The First to Zion—{RISHON-LE-ZION).

A CHALLENGE to the islands (coasts of the earth), and peoples, forms the opening of what is now known as the forty-first chapter of Isaiah. Of course, the prophet knew nothing of the conventional divisions of his writings now extant. The true divisions of this part of the book do not readily appear. Chapters forty to sixty-six are in fact a series of visions, denunciations and exhortations in which Christ appears sometimes in the attitude of a Conqueror, and at others as a sacrifice. And Israel is seen, sometimes under the blighting dominion of idolatry, and apostasy and at others rejoicing in salvation—and again the Gentiles appear as having unexpectedly found Yahweh without seeking him, and at last incorporated with Israel in “ everlasting salvation.” Cyrus is mentioned by name, a circumstance which has caused the unbelievers to invent a “ Babylonian Isaiah ” (of whom the Jews know nothing !), because they cannot conceive of God naming a man a century or so before his birth, and speaking of his future prowess in the language of accomplished fact. On this principle they might almost as well say that Isaiah was written after a.d. 34, since it actually reports the word of Yahweh’s servant, saying, " The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.”

Cyrus and the overthrow of Babylon, however, are to be taken both as a literal fulfilment of the prophecies, and as a striking allegory of the still more “ precious ” servant, and his overthrow of “ Babylon the Great.” This becomes incontrovertible when we hear an apostle apply Isa. xlv. 23 to Jesus in Rom. xiv. 11. The downfall of Babylon and the Return from the Captivity are thus to be taken as an allegory of the overthrow of " this present evil world ” and the return of the Saints and of the Jews to their possessions. Jerusalem divorced and Jerusalem re-married are interpreted by Paul in harmony with this ; and believers of “ the gospel of the kingdom,” now as ever, pose as watchmen upon the walls, giving Yahweh no rest until He “ make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”

It is not to be wondered at that learned men, crammed full of archaeological and philological lore, and absolutely empty con­cerning the first principles of the oracles of God, should be unable to make much of the prophets. Their training and lack of training are alike fatal disqualifications to them. “ Whoso­ever shall not receive the Kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.” So said Jesus. And the learned, almost to a man, are not childlike in their acceptance of truth. And again: “If any man will do His will he shall know of the doctrine.” And few, indeed, are content to subordinate their wills to God. Consequently, the writings of the prophets are reduced on the one hand to the impossible level of merely human speculations, as of the Bedawin of the desert ; or tortured on the other hand, into fancied agreement with a system of theology with which they have nothing to do but to condemn it. The true and just estimate is, that they are the writings of the Spirit of God by human instrumentality, concerning things which God has covenanted in Israel to establish on Earth in the hands of Christ and the   Saints. With this view, they become indeed “ a light that shineth in a dark place."

But, to end a digression, and seeing that no set and formal division of the last twenty-six chapters of Isaiah suggests itself, let us return to the challenge that opens chapter xli. It is one in the form of a question put by God to the peoples concerning One whom He has raised up to rule over kings and subdue armies. Who is this ? And to what “ peoples ” and “ islands ’ or coasts of the earth is the question addressed. Proximately, Cyrus is the conqueror, presently to be mentioned by name. And the peoples, those of Babylon and the nations subdued, who are afterwards similarly challenged in the prophecy. But it is a well-recognised fact, as before remarked, that all this is but a type of Christ as a greater conqueror, and a challenge to “ all flesh,” with which God is said to “ have a controversy.” The answer is the same at both epochs:                        ‘‘Who hath wrought and done it? .                        .                        . I,

Yahweh.” Those who only see the human element in the fall of Babylon, see only half the picture, and that but dimly ; and are but ill equipped to discern the true nature of the terrible times that are coming upon the world.

But the answer divinely given to the question divinely propounded is couched in peculiar terms: “ I, Yahweh, the first, and with the last; I am he.” So the English version runs. But, as Dr. Thomas and others point out, " the first ” here is singular, and "the last” plural. Who, then, is " the First One —a mani­festation of the Father among the generations from the beginning ’ ’ ? Who but Jesus, who says: I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last ” ? (Rev. xxii. 13 : i. 8.). It is He, who in verse 27 of this chapter of Isaiah, is styled “ Rishon-le-Zion, the First to Zion. One that bringeth good tidings,” the Servant, the Elect, upon whom the spirit of the Lord is poured.

He came in the Father’s name, and he spoke of his true disciples as being “ in him,” and prayed “ that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe that thou hast sent me’’(John xvii. 21). Here, then, “the last ones” are visible, together with the Lord Jesus their head, a manifestation of Yahweh, who, by Cyrus, subdued Babylon, and who by them will yet subdue all things on earth unto Himself.

"The isles saw it and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came ” (v. 5). History repeats itself, or rather God repeats it. Great Babylon feared, and strengthened herself in her gods in the days of Cyrus of old. But it was in vain, for he was Yahweh’s servant to destroy them all. And so " Babylon the Great ” will strengthen herself in the name of " the Blessed and Holy Trinity,” the “ Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God,” and all the patron “ Saints ” and “ Souls ” of her pantheon, when Christ is in the earth again, “ in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel.” But it will be in vain, for “ the Lamb shall overcome them,” avenge His slaughtered saints, and gather Israel again to the covenanted land.

The idols of Pagan Rome have already been subdued by His name in an earthquake that shook the world, and swallowed up the old order of superstition in the fourth century a.d. (Rev. vi. 12-17). The idols of Anti-Christendom were in turn subdued by His sword when Constantinople fell before the Turkish “ angel ” in 1453 (Rev. ix. 13-21 ; Eureka, vol. ii. 532). And the unre­pentant survivors (Rev. ix. 20), contemporary with “ the day of his coming,” will be similarly subdued “ by fire and sword ” in the day of the great victory of the Seed of Abraham, God’s friend. Jesus himself suffered rejection and death at the hands of apostate Israel and their idolatrous oppressors the Romans. And the saints and the Jews have in turn suffered ever since under Roman Christendom. “ Under the rod ” has been the condition of both during the past nineteen centuries. The saints individually and collectively, as well as the nation of Israel, are all, like the Head, being “ made perfect through suffering; ” but, unlike him, have by transgression incurred punishment. Nevertheless, there is forgiveness with God, and victory is on their side. In the light of this we may read these exhortations of Isaiah as words of encouragement, warning, and comfort to the faithful remnant of his day, to the Lord Jesus “ the Servant ” of Yahweh pre­eminently, and, after him, to all of the one body who have ears to hear. Thus, in the face of an idolatrous and antagonistic world, it is said :

“But thou, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend, thou whom I have taken from the ends oj the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee thou art my servant ; I have chosen thee and not cast thee away. Fear not thou, for I am with thee ; be not dismayed for I am thy God ; I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee ; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Behold all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded, they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish” (verses 8-11).

" If ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.” So says Paul; and therefore we are justified, if we are of Abraham’s faith and works, in appropriating this comfort. The Lord himself has “ overcome ” personally, and bolds out a wealth of promises to “him that overcometh.” A faithful testimony incurs many being “ incensed against thee,” now as ever. We need to remember the time of Jacob’s arising to " thresh the mountains,” that we may be encouraged to endure unto the end.

When the day of vengeance comes, it goes on to say that there will be a great break-up of spiritual drought, and a planting of the Paradise of God in the earth that He may be glorified. This is the import of verses 17-20. At present “ the poor and needy seek water, and there is none.” It was so in the days of Jesus. The water is the word of life. In another place in Isaiah (ch. lv.) it is a sign for the “ ever­lasting covenant," “ the sure mercies of David.” But Israel had not the word of God in them, as Jesus told them. In the language of the prophet Ezekiel, the shepherds of Israel had trodden down the pasture and fouled the water, and the flock, said he, “ drink that which ye have fouled with your feet.” It was greatly different with “ the Good Shepherd ” when he came. He ranked it among the miracles that he commended to the memory of John the Baptist in prison, “ that to the poor the gospel was preached ” (Lu. vii. 22). What the disciples of Jesus enjoyed under his ministration is what is promised to " the poor and needy ” of all the earth in the day of his coming again—yea, and more, for it will be immortal administration, "rivers of living water ” (John vii. 38). The gospel of the age to come will be preached by Christ and a multitude like him, strong in the possession of the divine nature.

And they will be the “ cedars, acacias, myrtles, and olives ” of the paradise of God, “ trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified ” (Isa. lxi. 3). They “ shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off” (Isa. lv. 13). They will be “for the healing "of the nations ” (Rev. xxii. 2). There will be no mistaking this development; it will be made plain “ that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of Yahweh hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.”

In view of this certain pre-determination, and the universal incredulity of Israel and the Gentiles, and in the midst of gross superstition, coupled with the assumption of superior wisdom and penetration, the Spirit challenges the idols and the gain-sayers with an invitation to them to Prophesy!   “ Produce your cause saith the Lord; bring forth your strong reasons saith the King of Jacob. Let them bring them forth and shew us what shall happen ... declare us things for to come. Shew us things that are to come hereafter.”

This is a strong argument. Baal ought to have known what Gideon was about; or what Elijah would do on Mount Carmel; or Jehu in Samaria. Bel and Nebo ought to have been prepared, with all the astrologers, to warn Belshazzar of his approaching fate, and the departure of the Babylonian power. The priests of Jupiter and the progeny of gods and goddesses ought to have declared how the great Roman Empire should be broken up before the name of a Jewish Carpenter. But they did not and could not, any more than could the gods of Egypt upon whom “ Yahweh executed judgment.” And the leaders of Israel in Christ’s day, corrupted by Oriental and Hellenic gnosis, or “ science falsely so-called.’ and given over to " covetousness which is idolatry,” ought to have known that Jesus was “for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem ” (Isa. viii. 14), “a stumbling-stone and a rock of offence,” but they knew not, and could not discern the fearful doom but 40 years distant, “ though it was declared to them.” And Anti-Christendom, “ whose real God,” according to the true testimony of a popular writer, “ is Mammon,” is equally powerless to “ shew the things that are to come hereafter.” Hence in our own day we have Pope Pius IX. solemnly proclaiming his infallibility, with the revolution at the door ready armed to exhibit his folly in a few weeks time to all the world, and pave the way for the taking awray of the remnant of the temporal powers So it came to pass in 1870. And can any of the mighty men of the present day, so dead sure of their own judgment, and so intensely sceptical con­cerning the Bible, tell us “ what shall happen ” ? Not in the least degree. Apart from God’s intervention, the future is a sealed book to all flesh.

But what the idols and their supporters cannot do. God can. He foretells the end from the beginning, and appeals to Israel, saying, “ The former things are come to pass, and new things do 1 declare.” He had raised up many prophets before Isaiah s day, as He has many since. He now spoke of Cyrus and his conquests, and also of the Heir, of whom Cyrus was but a type, even the “ First to Zion,” “ One that bringeth good tidings,” the “ arm of the Lord,” revealed because there was no “ counsellor ” among the best of Zion’s sons (xl. 9 : xli. 27-29 : lxiii. 5 : liii. 1).

This was “ that prophet ” promised in Moses’ writings, and dimly expected by the nation. Isaiah speaks of him elsewhere as Zion’s “ man-child,” the first-born (by resurrection) of all her children—“ Christ the first-fruits.” Even at his first coming, he was not manifested alone. John the Baptist prepared the way for the Lord,” and at his baptism proclaimed him, saying: “ Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.” This had the immediate effect of creating a following for Jesus, who chose his apostles, and sent them forth preaching the gospel of the kingdom, which was the “ good tidings of the prophetic word. Hence the plural form of expression: “ Behold, behold them.’’ With Christ, the apostles were considered as having been begotten by the word of God’s truth, a kind of first-fruits of His creatures.” But, at the resurrection, “ Behold, behold them ” will have a higher fulfilment, for “ all that see them shall acknowledge them that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed ” (lxi. 9). “ The last ones ” will then have been added, forming the completion of the one body in its millennial manifestation.

There was truly a return from Babylon after the cap­tivity, but nothing that then transpired satisfied the language of this prophecy, while the Bringer of good tidings is manifestly associated with Yahweh’s Servant in the immediate context (xlii. 1), “Behold my Servant,” that is the Lord Jesus Christ, and not the nation of Israel, as the Jews, or some of their leading lights, foolishly suppose. The scope of the prophetic visions is large and distant. We cannot be guided by those who seem to have no place for the word of God in the latter days, but desire to finish it all up in the history of the past.

Contrasting the shortsightedness and folly of the idolaters of Israel and the Gentiles (ancient and modern), with the omniscience of “ the Spirit of the Lord ” in Jesus, the result is striking. Jesus foretold his own death and the mode of it, and so it came to pass. He said his words should not pass away, and they have not and will not. He said a certain woman’s affectionate extra­vagance in annointing him with ointment should be advertised for ever; and so it has been to this day, and is growing in notoriety continually. He said he would rise again, and he did. He said Jerusalem should be destroyed within the lifetime of the then present generation; and so it was. Further, that the city should be trodden down of the Gentiles “ until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled ” ; and it has been sc trodden down to this day. At the end of the first century he declared elaborately, by special revelation to John in Patmos, the “ things which must be here­after.” And not a line has failed thus far. The nations now, like those of Isaiah’s time, are “ mad ” through Babylonian intoxication; but the truth goes on. A remnant now, as then, has been enlightened as to “ things to come.” And to them the word of the Lord, by the prophet, comes with the encouraging message: “ Fear not, I will help thee.”