37658301 isaiah-58-commentary
TRANSCRIPT
ISAIAH 58 COMME�TARYWritten and edited by Glenn Pease
PREFACE
I have put this study up under two names because people will read it for different reasons, and so
if you read it because it is a commentary, do not bother to check it out as Fasting Defined by God,
and vice versa. Most of the commentators I quote are long dead, but a few are contemporary, and
if any of them do not want their quotes in this study, they can let me know and I will remove
them. My e-mail is [email protected] In the index you will find all of my books listed if you
are interested in pursuing other things I have written and added to Scribd.
I�TRODUCTIO�
1. Jim Bomkamp, “In Leviticus 16 and 23, we read that under the Old Testament covenant the
people were required to fast once a year, on the Day of Atonement. However, this is the only fast
that was required of them. However, under various special circumstances the people would fast.
The heathens in their worship practiced their rites and perhaps even fasted, but they did so in
order that they might manipulate their god into doing what they wanted him to do. Their
worship was all based upon external observance and rites, and the Israelites had picked up this
practice. This is also what the Pharisees in Jesus’ day were guilty of.”
2. Lev. 16:29-31, “And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the
tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your
own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: For on that day shall the priest make an
atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. It
shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever.”
3. Rich Cathers points out, “The terms “fast” or “fasting” occur 65 times in the Bible. There are
also some occurrences of fasting when the term “fast” is not used (as when Moses didn’t eat for
forty days, Ex. 34:28), but the action happened anyway. A fast typically involves abstaining from
eating solid food. Sometimes it even involved no drinking as well (Ex. 34:28). Sometimes it
involved only a partial abstaining, as from certain foods (Dan. 10:3). Fasts could be for a meal, a
day, or even up to forty days.” He also points out that the reasons people fasted in the Bible was
in a time of grief over a loss of a loved one, a time of grief over sin, when they desperately needed
greater power in prayer, when they needed special guidance, and when they needed a deeper
intimacy with God.
4. Fasting has become quite popular as a method of bringing healing to the body, but there is no
example of this in the Bible. I have done it myself, and I know of friends who have done it, and it
has been very beneficial when done right. In the spiritual real it is also very important that it is
done right. It is possibly the easiest thing to do badly that is a good thing. Rich Cathers gives us
insight again. He wrote, “Fasting can be abused to create a false sense of spirituality. We’ve seen
in Isaiah 58 that people fasted for the wrong reasons and God wasn’t impressed. They were
fasting as an “outward” religious ritual, but “inwardly” their hearts weren’t being affected.This
warning about “false spirituality” is part of what Jesus was dealing with in His concerns over
fasting:(Mat 6:16-18 KJV) Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad
countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say
unto you, They have their reward. {17} But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash
thy face; {18} That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and
thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Fasting can actually “backfire” on
you. You may start off wanting to fast for the right reasons, and end up further away from the
Lord because of your own spiritual pride. Keep it a secret. Don’t draw attention to yourself.”
Isaiah 58 True Fasting
1 "Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
Shout it aloud, do not hold back,
Make then feel like they are under attack.
Like a trumpet raise your voice,
So to listen they have no choice.
To my people their rebellion declare,
So the house of Jacob to their sins must stare.
1. Here is a message that God wants heard by all. It is not to be whispered or spoken softly lest it
offend, but to be shouted with all the volume that his voice could produce. �othing was to be held
back. The voice was to be raised to the level of the trumpet if possible so that none would escape
hearing it. The message was not good news, but the bad news that the people of God were being
bad in their sins and rebellion against the will of God. Bad news needs to be proclaimed loudly
just as good news, and the reason is that until the bad news is heard and heeded by change, the
good news will not be made relevant. The bad news is that they were doing good things for the
wrong reasons, and neglecting doing what most pleased God.
2. Sometimes mothers need to scream at their naughty children to warn them that their behavior
is in danger of bringing judgment on them. God's children are just the same, and there are times
when they need to be shouted at to get their full attention to hear the truth about where they
stand with God. In this chapter we see God's children playing religion. They were just like little
children pretending to be what they were not. They seemed on the surface to be truly spiritual by
their actions, but in reality they were not spiritual at all. It was all veneer to cover up their sinful
attitudes and behavior toward the less fortunate. Adam Clarke wrote, “�ever was a louder cry
against the hypocrisy, nor a more cutting reproof of the wickedness, of a people professing a
national established religion, having all the forms of godliness without a particle of its power.”
3. Henry, “�ote, (1.) God sees sin in his people, in the house of Jacob, and is displeased with it.
(2.) They are often unapt and unwilling to see their own sins, and need to have them shown them,
and to be told, Thus and thus thou hast done. 2. He must be vehement and in good earnest herein,
must cry aloud, and not spare, not spare them (not touch them with his reproofs as if he were
afraid of hurting them, but search the wound to the bottom, lay it bare to the bone), not spare
himself or his own pains, but cry as loud as he can; though he spend his strength and waste his
spirits, though he get their ill-will by it and get himself into an ill name, yet he must not spare. He
must lift up his voice like a trumpet, to make those hear of their faults that were apt to be deaf
when admonition was addressed to them. He must give his reproofs in the most powerful and
pressing manner possible, as one who desired to be heeded. The trumpet does not give an
uncertain sound, but, though loud and shrill, is intelligible; so must his alarms be, giving them
warning of the fatal consequences of sin, Eze_33:3.”
4. Kyle, “With a loud voice that must be heard, with the most unsparing publicity, the prophet is
to point out to the people their deep moral wounds, which they may indeed hide from themselves
with hypocritical opus operatum, but cannot conceal from the all-seeing God. The ו of ְואֹוִתי does
not stand for an explanatory particle, but for an adversative one: “their apostasy ... their sins;
and yet (although they are to be punished for these) they approach Jehovah every day” This
message is not to be on the back page, or inside, but on the front page as headlines. It is to
demand the attention of everyone. God has had it with their superficial fasts, and it is time to
change or else.
2 For day after day they seek me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for
God to come near them.
They seek me out day after day,
And they seem eager to know the right way.
It is as if they were a people doing what is right,
And living a life that is pleasing in my sight.
Their longing for just decisions seems to be clear,
And they are eager for me to come and draw near.
1. What a paradoxical situation this is. The people seem eager to know God's will, and they pray
for God to give them just decisions, and they are eager for God's presence. They act just like
people should act when they are doing what is right in the eyes of God. On the surface they are
about as good as they can be, and God has much positive to say of them. This sounds like people
to be praised rather than denounced for their sin. How can all this good stuff be sin? I have never
seen a list of sins that included seeking God, being eager to know his ways, and asking him for
just decisions and to come near. This sounds more like holy living until you read the rest of the
context. Even a godly life-style can be sinful if it does not lead to loving behavior toward those
who need love. A great religious life without love is just what Paul said it was, and that is nothing.
Religion without righteousness is of no value to God or man. Here are people who are so heavenly
minded that they are of no earthly good. They have a religion that changes nothing, and that is
why God declares it to be worth nothing.
2. The problem is, it is all superficial because it is a matter of mere religious attitude without
religious action. They were like actors who had learned to practice being spiritual people, but
they did not back it up with a real life of doing the will of God. An actor can play the role of being
a very spiritual person, but then leave the casting scenes and live a godless life. The acting looks
good and convincing to everyone, but it does not impress God when there is no reality to back it
up. God's primary interest is not just in religious activities, but in practical activities where love
for others is conspicuous. You cannot detect a hypocrite by observing his religious practices, for
he is able to be faithful to them all with full sincerity, and not even realize that he is failing to
please God. You need to look at his life apart from his religious practices. How does he treat his
workers and servants? How does he reach out to those in need with any help? Does he care for
people with love and compassion? These are the areas where it can be determined if his religion
has any practical value. If he fails the love test, he is a hypocrite no matter how faithful he is in
his religious activities.
3. From Lambert Dolphin's library, “ False Worship
• Religion that is impersonal, formal turned-inward, purely liturgical, program centered.
• Comes into place by habit and tradition. "This is the way we have always done things
here." Seems logical, reasonable.
• Self-serving (what can God do for us?)
• Isolationist, Escapist (God will save us out of this awful evil world). Country-club
Christianity
• Predictable, comfortable, controlled, orchestrated, no surprises, runs on autopilot
• Passive involvement by most of the members, (ignoring the reality that God is a deeply
personal Being)
"...a religion which assumes a relationship with God while discounting a relationships
with the people."
J Vernon McGee calls this section of Isaiah "playing church."
"Religion that it pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit widows
and orphans in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world." (James)
Ray Stedman says "the ultimate test of faith has always been: does it lead you to
serve, to help somebody in need? Do you feel motivated to act? If you do, your faith is
real. Otherwise, as James says, it is a "dead faith." The acid test is not, "What does
my religion do for me?" but, "What does it make me do for others?"
3 'Why have we fasted,' they say,
'and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?'
"Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
and exploit all your workers.
Why have we fasted, they say,
And you seem to look the other way?
Why have we before you been humbled,
And upon this devotion you never have stumbled?
Just let me this observation to you declare,
You fast, but for others you don't seem to care.
On your fast days you just do what you please,
And treat your workers like a lowly sleaze.
1. The people complain that God does not recognize their efforts to please him. He does not
respond with favor to their sacrificial fasting, nor does he notice their humbling themselves
before him like lowly servants. We are being so good to God, and he is not being good to us.
Something is wrong with this picture is their complaint, and God agrees, but what is wrong is not
God's response, but their unworthy expectation. They wanted God to be pleased with their fake
obedience, but God points out what he really sees. It is not their fasting or humility, but their
open disrespect for what really matters to Him. They do not honor his day by devoting it to him,
but they devote it to their own purposes, and they have no compassion on the poor workers, but
exploit them for their own selfish benefit. Their religion is all surface rituals and fake behaviors
that might fool people, but God is not taken in by such play acting. People are a priority with
God, and there is nothing you can do, however high sounding it is, that will cover up your abuse
of people for your own benefit.
2. They were fasting as a means of manipulating God to bless them. This is hard for any of us to
escape. When we pray there is a danger that we try to use prayer to do the same thing. We hope
that we can somehow make God see things our way and get on our bandwagon for support. We
need to examine our motives constantly in spiritual matters, for it is just too easy to do right
things with the wrong motive of getting a reward by manipulating God.
3. �otice, it is on the very day of their fasting that they were abusing their power to exploit their
workers. They were thinking that they were being very spiritual as they gave up eating, and at
the same time they were treating people with disrespect. They separated their spiritual life from
their secular life. They then lived in two different worlds. In the one they were very godly people
doing what godly people do in fasting and prayer. Then they switched over like a different person
and acted ungodly and unloving just as if there was no inconsistency in doing so. They were
comfortable as godly people in doing what was ungodly. They thought that their godliness was
not supposed to have any effect on their secular life. This was business, and we cannot allow our
religion to interfere with our business. If we treat our servants with honesty and love it will lead
to less profit, and that is not good business. We have to see beyond the profit motive if we are
going to do what pleases God.
4. Barnes wrote, “The prophet here proceeds to state the reasons why their fasting s were not
succeeded as they supposed they would be, by the divine favor. The first reason which he states is,
that even when they were fasting, they were giving full indulgence to their depraved appetites
and lusts. The Syriac has well rendered this, ‘In the day of your fasting you indulge your lusts,
and draw near to all your idols.’ This also was evidently the case with the Jews in the time of the
Savior. They were Characterized repeatedly by him as ‘an evil and adulterous generation,’ and
yet no generation perhaps was ever more punctual and strict in the external duties of fasting and
other religious ceremonies.”
5. Hypocrites are so blind to their own folly that they blame God for why they give up on going to
church, or by ceasing to pray and fast, and all other religious activities. They think God has failed
them by not giving them credit for their faithful efforts, even though it is all designed to put God
under obligation to them. When they cannot manipulate God to favor them, they accuse God of
being false to his promises, and they give up trying to please him. They do not see that they are
the ones failing, and not God. They need to wake up and see the folly of their ways, and begin to
add reality to their religious quest. You cannot please God by mere religious ritual and wishful
thinking. Faith without works is not just weak, it is dead. God expects practical acts of love in
your life, and if these never come forth, your faith and rituals are for all practical purposes
worthless.
6. The fact is that we all live in a double world, and we all separate our spiritual and secular life
to some degree. It has a lot to do with the limitations of our awareness, and our ability to be in
two states of mind at the same time. The result is we all spend a lot of our secular life without
even thinking of God and his will for our lives. This is common and God does not expect us be
always in a spiritual state of mind where we are praying, praising, and meditating on His Word.
He just expect us to do these things at some point in the day. Consistency in this will lead us to
know when we are practicing things in our secular life that are not pleasing to God. The people of
God that Isaiah shouted to in this chapter were not striving to carry over their spiritual life into
their secular life. They kept things in two exclusive departments, and did not allow what took
place in their religious department effect what took place in their secular department. This is
what leads the best of God's people to become hypocrites. These people in this text are truly godly
people that God loved, but they messed up and became superficial hypocrites. It can happen to
any of us, and that is why God gives us chapters like this. He knows his people will need this
lesson all through history if they expect to escape being hypocrites.
7. John Piper, “In other words, they are pious, religious, "Bible reading," praying folk – they
even enjoy being this way. They delight in their religious practices. But they don’t enjoy God and
his ways; they enjoy self-justifying religion, while forsaking the judgments of God. O let us take
heed to this frightening specter of private piety without public fruit. God is not pleased with this
piety.”
8. Lambert Dolphin, “The people complain that God has neither seen nor does He know (the
change in the tenses is significant) of their actions, and thus they accuse Him of indifference.
Actually God has seen and does know their action; but He has not seen it with favor, nor does He
know it in the sense of accepting it, inasmuch as their worship did not flow from a heart of
devotion to Him, but was merely external. They were trusting in the outward merit of religious
exercises and not in the living God. The question also reveals pride. "Why," they ask in effect
"should God not be pleased with our worship? Have we not done all that His law prescribes?"
They murmur at God's providence and complain of His not accepting their worship; hence they
are placing more confidence in that worship than in God Himself.
In the second half of the verse the Lord states why He has not seen nor known their worship.
They have combined worship with their own pleasure. On the day of their fast, when the heart
should be directed in meditation toward God, they have found a time for their own pleasure. In
addition they drive on their toilers. The root of the verb is found in the Amharic title of the king
of Ethiopia, the �egus; and the root is used of the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt. These
hypocritical worshipers regarded the day of fast as an ordinary day of work. The service of God
was not going to interfere in any way with the service that they felt was due themselves. They
could worship God and carry on their own pleasure and work at the same time (it is well to note
that Isaiah mentions pleasure before work) . To be noted also is the force of the verb, which
suggests that these employers demanded from their workers all that they could get.”
9. Joseph Raymond, “They would declare a day of fasting to themselves to prompt God to act on
their behalf. They set a time apart to afflict their souls yet God says that they found pleasure.
How so? They made such a show of their fasting to others that they received attention to their
false acts of holiness and humility so that in the eyes of others they appeared to be godly and holy.
Men would praise them for their piety. They thought of this as a bonus reward they received
from their fellows. This is what Jesus said when commenting on their way of fasting matt 6.16
“Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they
disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have
their reward. This is the answer to why God does not answer them. They have already received
an answer from men.
When someone goes fasting it implies that they need help. They are overcome or cannot rise
above their current condition. "I am weak oh Lord and need your help." Yet how weak are they
when they go out and force their own workers to perform that which is in their own hearts.
Exploit, to take advantage in a way that is not right in the eyes of God. They pressure others to
carry the largest burden while they display their fasting to all about them. What is this like?
Jesus said: matt 23. 4“For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's
shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 5 “But all their
works they do to be seen by men. God does not help those who oppress others. Instead, He judges
them.”
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
Your fasting does not add to the quality of life,
For you end up in quarreling and strife.
The goal of fasting you clearly have missed
When you conclude by striking each other with fists.
If this in the only kind of fasting you try,
Your voice will never be heard on high.
1. Your fasting is a joke in heaven, for when you get through pretending to be super spiritual, you
enter into bad relationships with your fellow man. You quarrel and fight over all kinds of things
for your own personal gain, and even end up in literal fist fights in defense of your own opinions
and rights. The concepts of cooperation and peaceful settlements of issues does not enter your
lame brain heads. You pretend to be humble, and as soon as your fasting is over, you enter into
life with all the pride of fallen Lucifer to get you own way in everything, and that regardless of
how many other people get hurt. Love of one another is foreign to your heart and head, and all
that matters is that you win and get your own way.
2. Then after demonstrating your godless and loveless behavior you come to me in prayer and
expect that I will be filled with gratitude that you acknowledge me as your God. I am telling you
straight out that you cannot fast like this and expect your hell inspired voice to be heard in
heaven. God has a filter on prayer, and when the prayer has no right to enter God's presence it is
shut out by this filter, and he will not hear it.
3. Warren Wiersbe writes, “Fasting and fighting do not go together! Yet how many families walk
piously out of church at the close of a Sunday worship service, get in the family car, and proceed
to argue with each other all the way home!”
4. Some authors believe that the fighting was due to the fact that they fasted to the point of being
miserable and out of sorts so that they lost all tolerance for others, even for their own family. �o
spiritual experience is worth the effort if it leads you to be so cranky and grouchy that you end
up fighting with family and friends. Both God and man would hope you never fast if this is the
end product of it all. Some people can do it well, and the end is nothing but good, but others we
should tell, this is one thing to do you never should. If you are not a better person for doing
something, then don't do it.
5. Barnes, “The idea is plain, that ‘even when fasting’ they were guilty of strife and personal
combats. Their passions were unsubdued, and they gave vent to them in disgraceful personal
encounters. This manifests a most extraordinary state of society, and is a most melancholy
instance to show how much people may keep up the forms of religion, and even be punctual and
exact in them, when the most violent and ungovernable passions are raging in their bosoms, and
when they seem to be unconscious of any discrepancy between the religious service and the
unsubdued passions of the soul.”
6. Gill, “Brawling with their servants for not doing work enough; or quarreling with their
debtors for not paying their debts; or the main of their religion lay in contentions and strife about
words, vain hot disputations about rites and ceremonies in worship..”
7. Kyle, “The exiles boast of this fasting here; but it is a heartless, dead work, and therefore
worthless in the sight of God. There is the most glaring contrast between the object of the fast
and their conduct on the fast-day: for they carry on their work-day occupation; they are then,
more than at any other time, true taskmasters to their work-people (lest the service of the master
should suffer form the service of God); and because when fasting they are doubly irritable and
ill-tempered, this leads to quarreling and strife, and even to striking with angry fist.”
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for a man to humble himself?
Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed
and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD ?
Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
Where you in mere tradition are frozen?
You bow your head and lie in sackcloth and ashes,
But this with God's will clearly clashes.
Do you really think this is what God had in mind,
And that this behavior is the best he can find?
1. Do you people really think that all I want out of a fast is for people to go through a bunch of
things like bowing to me, and laying on sackcloth and ashes? What kind of pleasure could I get
out of such nonsense in themselves. This sort of thing is of no value to me if there is no change in
your behavior in being a loving person toward other people. Do you really think that I am so
shallow that I can find such rituals pleasing and acceptable even though you go on being
unloving. It is all a hallow empty show with no substance of value without love for your fellow
man. God is asking a simple question. Do you think this is all I want in a fast? Is it an end in itself
so that all I really care about is what people do with their body before me? �o, �o �o! For
heaven's sake �o! That is no worthy goal at all, and to call that a fast is to miss the mark by a
mile. A fast is meant to make you aware of my will, and then motivate you to do it. The end is
loving service and not dead end ritual. If you think this play acting with props like sackcloth and
ashes is acceptable to me, you are greatly mistaken.
2. We can't help but think of Paul's words in I Cor. 13, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of
angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of
prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move
mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my
body to the flames,but have not love, I gain nothing.” Isaiah is just saying the same thing with
different words. All religious activity without love is empty and worthless ritual.
3. (Mat 23:2-4 �LT) "The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters
of the Scriptures. {3} So practice and obey whatever they say to you, but don't follow their
example. For they don't practice what they teach. {4} They crush you with impossible religious
demands and never lift a finger to help ease the burden.” This is the danger of all churches, for it
can become a place where we do religion, but get content with that and never reach out beyond
the church walls to meet the needs of suffering humanity. You can be the most spiritual church in
your community with everything possible for the best in worship and learning, but if there is no
love that reaches out to those suffering in the community, it is not a church pleasing to God. God
does not need our worship as much as he needs us to be his hands and feet in lovingly serving the
needs of people. If he did, he would be self-centered too, but he is not. He wants his love to be
expressed through the body of his people, and all else that is good is not enough if that goal is not
achieved. It is like building a car, and you get all of the parts assembled and put them all together
in the right way, and it looks perfect, but you do not add fuel to the tank. It lacks the one thing
that makes a car of value to achieve its purpose. All the other parts are good, but all that good
without fuel is to fall short of the goal. So it is with the church, the believer, and the spiritual life.
You can have it all, but without love it does not achieve a purpose that pleases God. Love is the
fuel that brings it all to a pleasing conclusion.
4. What they called a fast was not what God called a fast. It was not God's purpose in rejecting
their fast to persuade them to give up fasting. They were in the same boat as the Pharisees who
made it a matter of pride. In Jesus' parable of the Pharisee and the Publican, He told how the
self-righteous Pharisee made a special point to say, "I fast twice a week" (Luke 18:9-14). Jesus did
not say quit fasting, but quit being superficial like them, and make it more than an empty ritual.
Give meaning to your fast by doing what God wants you to do. Jesus fasted, but he also spent his
life going about doing good in healing and rescuing people from their many sad situations. He
practices secular salvation before he provided spiritual salvation. In other words, he was saving
people from all sorts of temporal problems before he saved men from eternal separation from
God. He was A savior before he became The Savior. Saving people on all levels was his ministry,
and to be like Jesus is to be in that same ministry of saving people from whatever is a hindrance
to their experiencing a life where they are grateful to God.
5. Henry, “It is not enough to do penance, to mortify the body a little, while the body of sin is
untouched. It is not enough for a man to spread sackcloth and ashes under him, which may indeed
give him some uneasiness for the present, but will soon be forgotten when he returns to stretch
himself upon his beds of ivory, Amo_6:4. Wilt thou call this a fast? �o, it is but the shadow and
carcase of a fast. Wilt thou call this an acceptable day to the Lord? �o, it is so far from being so
that the hypocrisy of it is an abomination to him. �ote, The shows of religion, though they show
ever so fair in the eye of the world, will not be accepted of God without the substance of it.”
6. Barnes, “A bulrush is the large reed that grows in marshy places. It is, says Johnson, without
knots or joints. In the midst of water it grows luxuriantly, yet the stalk is not solid or compact like
wood, and, being unsupported by joints, it easily bends over under its own weight. it thus
becomes the emblem of a man bowed down with grief. Here it refers to the sanctimoniousness of
a hypocrite when fasting - a man without real feeling who puts on an air of affected solemnity,
and ‘appears to others to fast.’ Against that the Savior warned his disciples, and directed them,
when they fasted, to do it in their ordinary dress, and to maintain an aspect of cheerfulness
Mat_6:17-18. The hypocrites in the time of Isaiah seemed to have supposed that the object was
gained if they assumed this affected seriousness. How much danger is there of this now! How
often do even Christians assume, on all the more solemn occasions of religious observance, a
forced sanctimoniousness of manner; a demure and dejected air; nay, an appearance of
melancholy - which is often understood by the worm to be misanthropy, and which easily slides
into misanthropy! Against this we should guard. �othing more injures the cause of religion than
sanctimoniousness, gloom, reserve, coldness, and the conduct and deportment which, whether
right or wrong, will be construed by those around us as misanthropy. Be it not forgotten that the
seriousness which religion produces is always consistent with cheerfulness, and is always
accompanied by benevolence; and the moment we feel that our religious acts consist in merely
bowing down the head like a bulrush, that moment we may be sure we shall do injury to all with
whom we come in contact.
The wearing of sackcloth was usually accompanied with ashes Dan_9:3; Est_4:1, Est_4:3.
Penitents, or those in affliction, either sat down on the ground in dust and ashes Job_2:8;
Job_42:6; Jon_3:6; or they put ashes on their head 2Sa_13:19; Lam_3:16; or they mingled ashes
with their food Psa_102:9. The Greeks and the Romans had also the same custom of strewing
themselves with ashes in mourning. Thus Homer (Iliad, xviii. 22), speaking of Achilles bewailing
the death of Patroclus, says:
Cast on the ground, with furious hands he spread
The scorching ashes o’er his graceful head,
His purple garments, and his golden hairs;
Those he deforms, and these he tears.
Laertes (Odys. xxiv. 315), shows his grief in the same manner:
Deep from his soul he sighed, and sorrowing spread
A cloud of ashes on his hoary head.
6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
I have chosen a fasting of this kind,
Where those tied up you set loose and unbind.
Set them loose who are in unjustified chains,
Untie the cords of those yoked in pains.
Set the oppressed free for mercies sake,
And every cruel yoke get busy and break.
1. Let me spell it out for you so you see what really pleases me. The fast I love is when you cease
to hold people in the chains of injustice and let them go free. I love it when you stop treating
people like your work animals, and untie the cords of the yoke that oppresses them. I love it when
you care enough about the suffering poor to break the yoke of their slavery and set them free.
Treat them like my children, and not as slaves, and this is the kind of sacrifice that will please me.
If you want to win my favor by giving up something, let it not be just the food you eat, but let it
be the giving up of the unfair treatment you show to people who deserve better. Give up being
mean and selfish. Give up ignoring the sad needs of others for food, shelter and clothing. Give up
seeing life only from your self-centered perspective, and start seeing from mine. Watching you
give up food will not touch my heart like it would be touched by seeing you share that food with
the hungry. God has revised the definition of fasting to mean mean a great deal more than giving
up food. He had defined it as giving up self-centeredness in order that we might have our eyes
open to the opportunities to be a channel of his love in a needy world. True fasting is giving up
anything and everything that blocks your vision to what love should be doing in a world of so
many people with unmet needs.
2. Henry wrote, “It is to undo the heavy burden laid on the back of the poor servant, under which
he is ready to sink. It is to let the oppressed go free from the oppression which makes his life bitter
to him. “Let the prisoner for debt that has nothing to pay be discharged, let the vexatious action
be quashed, let the servant that is forcibly detained beyond the time of his servitude be released,
and thus break every yoke; not only let go those that are wrongfully kept under the yoke, but
break the yoke of slavery itself, that it may not serve again another time nor any by made again
to serve under it.” That we be charitable to those that stand in need of charity.”
3. Kyle, “ During the siege of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans a general emancipation of the slaves of
Israelitish descent (who were to be set free, according to the law, every three years) was resolved
upon and carried out; but as soon as the Chaldeans were gone, the masters fetched their liberated
slaves back into servitude again (Jer_34:8-22). And as Isa_58:6 shows, they carried the same
selfish and despotic disposition with them into captivity.”
God takes giving slaves their freedom very seriously, and he send severe judgment on his people
for violating his will on this matter in Jer. 34:8-22. “The word came to Jeremiah from the LORD
after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom
for the slaves. 9 Everyone was to free his Hebrew slaves, both male and female; no one was to
hold a fellow Jew in bondage. 10 So all the officials and people who entered into this covenant
agreed that they would free their male and female slaves and no longer hold them in bondage.
They agreed, and set them free. 11 But afterward they changed their minds and took back the
slaves they had freed and enslaved them again.
12 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: 13 "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel,
says: I made a covenant with your forefathers when I brought them out of Egypt, out of the land
of slavery. I said, 14 'Every seventh year each of you must free any fellow Hebrew who has sold
himself to you. After he has served you six years, you must let him go free.' [a] Your fathers,
however, did not listen to me or pay attention to me. 15 Recently you repented and did what is
right in my sight: Each of you proclaimed freedom to his countrymen. You even made a covenant
before me in the house that bears my �ame. 16 But now you have turned around and profaned
my name; each of you has taken back the male and female slaves you had set free to go where
they wished. You have forced them to become your slaves again.
17 "Therefore, this is what the LORD says: You have not obeyed me; you have not proclaimed
freedom for your fellow countrymen. So I now proclaim 'freedom' for you, declares the LORD
-'freedom' to fall by the sword, plague and famine. I will make you abhorrent to all the kingdoms
of the earth. 18 The men who have violated my covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the
covenant they made before me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two and then walked between
its pieces. 19 The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests and all the
people of the land who walked between the pieces of the calf, 20 I will hand over to their enemies
who seek their lives. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds of the air and the beasts of
the earth. 21 "I will hand Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials over to their enemies who seek
their lives, to the army of the king of Babylon, which has withdrawn from you. 22 I am going to
give the order, declares the LORD, and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against
it, take it and burn it down. And I will lay waste the towns of Judah so no one can live there."
4. Barnes, “This is the first thing to be done in order that their fasting might be acceptable to the
Lord. The idea is, that they were to dissolve every tie which unjustly bound their fellowmen. The
Chaldee renders it, ‘Separate the congregation of impiety;’ but the more probable sense is, that if
they were exercising any unjust and cruel authority over others; if they had bound them in any
way contrary to the laws of God and the interests of justice, they were to release them. This might
refer to their compelling others to servitude more rigidly than the law of Moses allowed; or to
holding them to contracts which had been fraudulently made; or to their exacting strict payment
from persons wholly incapacitated to meet their obligations; or it might refer to their subjecting
others to more rigid service than was allowed by the laws of Moses....
It may be applied to those who are treated with violence in any way, or who are broken down by
bard usage. It may refer, therefore, to slaves who are oppressed by bondage and toil; or to
inferiors of any kind who are subjected to hard usage by those who are above them; or to the
subjects of a tyrant groaning under his yoke. The use of the phrase here, ‘go free,’ however, seems
to limit its application in this place to those who were held in bondage. Jerome renders it, ‘Free
those who are broken’ (confracti). The Septuagint Τεθρασµένος Tethrasmenos - ‘Set at liberty
those who are broken down.’ If slavery existed at the time here referred to, this word would be
appropriately understood as including that - at least would be so understood by the slaves
themselves - for if any institution deserves to be called oppression, it is theft of slavery.
This interpretation would be confirmed by the use of the word rendered free. That word (חפׁשים
chophshı̂ym) evidently refers to the act of freeing a slave. The person who had once been a slave,
and who had afterward obtained his freedom, was denominated חפׁשי chophshı̂y (see Jahn, Bib.
Ant. Section 171). This word occurs, and is so used, in the following places; Exo_21:12, ‘And the
seventh (year) he shall go free;’ Exo_21:5, ‘I will not go out free;’ Exo_26:27, ‘He shall let him go
free;’ Deu_15:12, ‘Thou shalt let him go free;’ Deu_15:13, ‘When thou sendest him out free’
Deu_15:18, ‘When thou sendest him away free;’ Job_3:19, ‘The servant is free from his master;’
that is, in the grave, where there is universal emancipation. Compare Jer_34:9-11, Jer_34:14,
Jer_34:16 where the same Hebrew word is used, and is applied expressly to the emancipation of
slaves. The word is used in other places in the Bible except the following: 1Sa_17:25, ‘And make
his father’s house free in Israel,’ referring to the favor which was promised to the one who would
slay Goliath of Gath. Job_39:5 : ‘Who hath sent out the wild donkey free?’ Psa_88:5 : ‘Free
among the dead.’ The usage, therefore, is settled that the word properly refers to deliverance
from servitude. It would be naturally understood by a Hebrew as referring to that, and unless
there was something in the connection which made it necessary to adopt a different
interpretation, a Hebrew would so understand it of course. In the case before us, such an
interpretation would be obvious, and it is difficult to see how a Jew could understand this
direction in any other way, if he was an owner. of slaves, than that be should set them at once at
liberty.”
5. Clarke expresses indignation at any who profess belief in the God of Scripture who still
maintain slaves. “How can any nation pretend to fast or worship God at all, or dare to profess
that they believe in the existence of such a Being, while they carry on the slave trade, and traffic
in the souls, blood, and bodies, of men! O ye most flagitious of knaves, and worst of hypocrites,
cast off at once the mask of religion; and deepen not your endless perdition by professing the
faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, while ye continue in this traffic!” The Civil War was all about
Christians who supported slavery against those who hated it, and the haters won because they
loved liberty and were willing to pay a price to gain it for others.
6. Gill, “The Septuagint render it, "dissolve the obligations of violent contracts"; such as are
obtained by violence; so the Arabic version; or by fraud, as the Syriac version, which translates
it, bonds of fraud. The Targum is,
"loose the bonds of writings of a depraved judgment;''
all referring it to unjust bonds and contracts in a civil sense: but rather it regards the loosing or
freeing men from all obligation to all human prescriptions and precepts; whatever is after the
tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ; so the traditions of the
Scribes and Pharisees are called "heavy burdens, grievous to be borne", Mat_23:4 these should
not be laid and bound on men's shoulders, but should be done and taken off of them, as well as
all penal laws with which they have been enforced:
and to let the oppressed go free; such as have been broken by oppression, not only in their spirits,
but in their purses, by mulcts and fines, and confiscation of goods; and who have been cast into
prisons, and detained a long time in filthy dungeons; and where many have perished for the sake
of religion, even in Protestant countries:
and that ye break every yoke; of church power and tyranny; everything that is not enjoined and
authorized by the word of God; every yoke but the yoke of Christ; all human precepts, and
obedience to them; all but the commands of Christ, and obedience to them; no other yoke should
be put upon the neck of his disciples but his own.”
7. John Piper, “There is something very close to Jesus' heart in this chapter. You can hear it
coming out in his words in Luke 4:18 ("The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed
Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and
recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden"). And in Matthew 25:35 ("I
was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a
stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I
was in prison, and you came to Me".)”
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
The fast that really counts with me
Is sharing food with those who are hungry.
It is providing the wandering poor
With a place of shelter that is indoor.
It is providing clothes to the naked in shame,
And not turning away from those with your name.
Your own flesh and blood should be first on your list,
And caring for their needs I strongly insist.
1. Lets get away from rituals and focus on people. The real fast that I love to see is when you give
up hoarding all the food for yourself and share it with the hungry. I love it when you are willing
to share some of your room with those who have no shelter and have to live out in the elements
because they are homeless. I love it when you see those in rags even to the point of being naked,
and you share some of your clothing with them. The needy may even be a part of your own family
who have gotten down on their luck and are suffering lack of necessities. Maybe you have been in
conflict with your brother, and have had arguments, but when you see he has a need do not turn
away and fail to come to his aid. This is the king of humility and sacrifice that will open the way
for your prayers to enter heaven.
2. This text is telling us the same thing that we see in the �ew Testament.
(James 2:15-16 �LT) Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, {16} and
you say, "Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well"--but then you don't give
that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
(1 John 3:16-18 �LT) We know what real love is because Christ gave up his life for us. And so we
also ought to give up our lives for our Christian friends. {17} But if one of you has enough money
to live well, and sees a brother or sister in need and refuses to help--how can God's love be in that
person? {18} Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our
actions.
3. Barnes, “The idea is, that we are to apportion among the poor that which will be needful for
their support, as a father does to his children. This is everywhere enjoined in the Bible, and was
especially regarded among the Orientals as an indispensable duty of religion. Thus Job
Job_31:16-22 beautifully speaks of his own practice:
If I have witheld the poor from his desire,
Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail;
Or have eaten my morsel myself alone,
And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof;
If I have seen any perish for want of clothing,
Or any poor without covering; - ...
Then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade,
And mine arm be broken from the bone.
4. Henry wrote, “This then is the fast that God has chosen. First, To provide food for those that
want it. This is put first, as the most necessary, and which the poor can but a little while live
without. It is to break thy bread to the hungry. Observe, “It must be thy bread, that which is
honestly got (not that which thou hast robbed others of), the bread which thou thyself hast
occasion for, the bread of thy allowance.” We must deny ourselves, that we may have to give to
him that needeth. “Thy bread which thou hast spared from thyself and thy family, on the fast-
day, if that, or the value of it, be not given to the poor, it is the miser's fast, which he makes a
hand of; it is fasting for the world, not for God. This is the true fast, to break thy bread to the
hungry, not only to give them that which is already broken meat, but to break bread on purpose
for them, to give them loaves and not to put them off with scraps.” Secondly, To provide lodging
for those that want it: It is to take care of the poor that are cast out, that are forced from their
dwelling, turned out of house and harbor, are cast out as rebels (so some critics render it), that are
attainted, and whom therefore it is highly penal to protect. “If they suffer unjustly, make no
difficulty of sheltering them; do not only find out quarters for them and pay for their lodging
elsewhere, but, which is a greater act of kindness, bring them to thy own house, make them thy
own guests. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for though thou mayest not, as some have
done, thereby entertain angels, thou mayest entertain Christ himself, who will recompense it in
the resurrection of the just. I was a stranger and you took me in.” Thirdly, To provide clothing for
those that want it: “When thou seest the naked, that thou cover him, both to shelter him from the
injuries of the weather and to enable him to appear decently among his neighbours; give him
clothes to come to church in, and in these and other instances hide not thyself from thy own flesh.”
Some understand it more strictly of a man's own kindred and relations: “If those of thy own
house and family fall into decay, thou art worse than an infidel if thou dost not provide for them.”
1Ti_5:8. Others understand it more generally; all that partake of the human nature are to be
looked upon as our own flesh, for have we not all one Father? And for this reason we must not
hide ourselves from them, not contrive to be out of the way when a poor petitioner enquires for
us, not look another way when a moving object of charity and compassion presents itself; let us
remember that they are flesh of our flesh and therefore we ought to sympathize with them, and in
doing good to them we really do good to our own flesh and spirit too in the issue; for thus we lay
up for ourselves a good foundation, a good bond, for the time to come.”
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness [a] will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
Fasting like this according to my definition
Will produce power like turning on the ignition.
Your light will break forth like the dawn,
And the darkness of selfishness will be gone.
Your healing will quickly appear,
And for lack of guidance you'll never need fear.
Your righteousness will go before you leading the way,
And the glory of the Lord will at your back ever stay.
1. When you behave like this, you are light in a world of darkness, and you represent the light of
God's love in the world. You light and love going out to others will bring healing to your own life,
for God loves a cheerful giver, and he will respond with giving to the giver. You will be
demonstrating true righteousness then, and it will be conspicuous to all, and God will honor that
kind of love, and he will back you up. He will protect you from behind so that negative
consequences will be avoided by you being such a sacrificial giver. In other words, you can't lose
when you shine forth the light of God's love toward others.
2. Barnes, “The idea here is, that if they were faithful in the discharge of their duty to God, he
would bless them with abundant prosperity (compare Job_11:17). The image is, that such
prosperity would come on the people like the spreading light of the morning.
And thine health - Lowth and �oyes render this, ‘And thy wounds shall be speedily healed over.’
The authority on which Lowth relies, is the version of Aquila as reported by Jerome, and the
Chaldee. The Hebrew word used here, (ארּוכה 'ărûkâh), means properly “a long bandage” (from
ârak, “to make long”), such as is applied by surgeons to heal a wound (compare the notes at' ארך
Isa_1:6). It is then used to denote the healing which is secured by the application of the bandage;
and figuratively here means their restoration from all the calamities which had been inflicted on
the nation. The word rendered ‘spring forth’ (from צמח tsâmach) properly relates to the manner
in which plants germinate (compare the notes at Isa_42:9). Here the sense is, that if they would
return to God, they would be delivered from the calamities which their crimes had brought on
them, and that peace and prosperity would again visit the nation. And thy righteousness shall go
before thee - Shall be thy leader - as an army is conducted. The idea is that their conformity to
the divine laws would serve the purpose of a leader to conduct them in the ways of peace,
happiness, and prosperity.”
3. Henry, ““Thy righteousness shall go before thee as thy vanguard, to secure thee from enemies
that charge thee in the front, and the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward, the gathering host, to
bring up those of thee that are weary and are left behind, and to secure thee from the enemies,
that, like Amalek, fall upon thy rear.” Observe, How good people are safe on all sides. Let them
look which way they will, behind them or before them; let them look backward or forward; they
see themselves safe, and find themselves easy and quiet from the fear of evil. And observe what it
is that is their defense; it is their righteousness, and the glory of the Lord, that is, as some
suppose, Christ; for it is by him that we are justified, and God is glorified. He it is that goes
before us, and is the captain of our salvation, as he is the Lord our righteousness; he it is that is
our rearward, on whom alone we can depend for safety when our sins pursue us and are ready to
take hold on us. Or, “God himself in his providence and grace shall both go before thee as thy
guide to conduct thee, and attend thee as thy rearward to protect thee, and this shall be the
reward of thy righteousness and so shall be for the glory of the Lord as the rewarder of it.”
9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
"If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
Then you will call, and the Lord will respond,
For proper fasting with God builds a bond.
�ow to heaven you can lift up your cry,
And the Lord of love will say, “Here am I.”
If you meet what the Lord makes as a condition
You will open his ears to hear any petition.
Just do away with every oppressive yoke,
And stop treating people like a nasty joke.
Put away that angry finger of scorn,
That has the self esteem of other torn.
Quiet your tongue from that talk so malicious,
And be loving with your words rather than vicious.
1. �ow you are in a state where God hears your every word. Your prayers no longer fall short
and get blocked out of heaven. They have the power to penetrate any filter God has established to
prevent unworthy prayers from entering his mind. You can cry for help now, and God will be at
your service. God humbles himself to become your servant by saying “Here am I.” This kind of
special treatment from God comes because you release your servants from the yoke of
oppression, and you stop treating them with the disrespect of pointed fingers and degrading talk
about them. In other words, when you treat people with love and respect, God will treat you with
love and respect, and he will gladly give heed to you call for help.
When you throw dirt you are losing ground
But when you give love, God will be found.
You can abuse people and damage their self esteem by both verbal and symbolic means. The
pointed finger of scorn can be as damaging as the verbal abuse. Even today we talk about giving
someone the finger, and we mean that we have symbolically blasted them with abusive sign
language. We can curse and swear with the finger as well as the tongue, and this king of attack
will cut off your success in prayer.
2. Barnes, “The sense is, that if we go before God renouncing all our sins, and desirous of doing
our duty, then we have a right to expect that he will hear us. But if we go indulging still in sin; if
we are false and hollow and hypocritical in our worship; or if, while we keep up the regular forms
of devotion, we are nevertheless guilty of oppression, cruelty, and dishonesty, we have no right to
expect that he will hear us.” Scripture supports this: Isa 1:15 “And when ye spread forth your
hands,I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear:” The
same sentiment is elsewhere expressed; Psa_66:18 : ‘If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord
will not hear me;’ Pro_28:9 : ‘He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer
shall be abomination;’ Jer_16:10-12; Zec_7:11-12; Pro_1:28-29.”
3. Henry, “God will be always nigh unto them, to hear their prayers, Isa_58:9. As, on the one
hand, he that shuts his ears to the cry of the poor shall himself cry and God will not hear him; so,
on the other hand, he that is liberal to the poor, his prayers shall come up with his alms for a
memorial before God, as Cornelius's did (Act_10:4): “Then shalt thou call, on thy fast-days,
which ought to be days of prayer, and the Lord shall answer, shall give thee the things thou callest
to him for; thou shalt cry when thou art in any distress or sudden fright, and he shall say, Here I
am.” This is a very condescending expression of God's readiness to hear prayer. When God calls
to us by his word it becomes us to say, Here we are; what saith our Lord unto his servants? But
that God should say to us, Behold me, here I am, is strange. When we cry to him, as if he were at a
distance, he will let us know that he is near, even at our right hand, nearer than we thought he
was. It is I, be not afraid. When danger is near our protector is nearer, a very present help. “Here I
am, ready to give you what you want, and do for you what you desire; what have you to say to
me?” God is attentive to the prayers of the upright, Psa_130:2. �o sooner do they call to him than
he answers, Ready, ready. Wherever they are praying, God says, “Here I am hearing; I am in the
midst of you.” He is nigh unto them in all things, Deu_4:7.”
A further account of the duty to be done in order to our interest in these promises (Isa_58:9,
Isa_58:10); and here, as before, it is required that we both do justly and love mercy, that we cease
to do evil and learn to do well. 1. We must abstain from all acts of violence and fraud. “Those
must be taken away from the midst of thee, from the midst of thy person, out of thy heart” (so
some); “thou must not only refrain from the practice of injury, but mortify in thee all inclination
and disposition towards it.” Or from the midst of thy people. Those in authority must not only not
be oppressive themselves, but must do all they can to prevent and restrain oppression in all
within their jurisdiction. They must not only break the yoke (Isa_58:6), but take away the yoke,
that those who have been oppressed may never be re-enslaved (as they were Jer_34:10,
Jer_34:11); they must likewise forbear threatening (Eph_6:9) and take away the putting forth of
the finger, which seems to have been then, as sometimes with us, a sign of displeasure and the
indication of a purpose to correct. Let not the finger be put forth to point at those that are poor
and in misery, and so to expose them to contempt; such expressions of contumely as are
provoking, and the products of ill-nature, ought to be banished from all societies. And let them
not speak vanity, flattery or fraud, to one another, but let all conversation be governed by
sincerity. Perhaps that dissimulation which is the bane of friendship is meant by the putting forth
of the finger (as Pro_6:13 by teaching with the finger), or it is putting forth the finger with the
ring on it, which was the badge of authority, and which therefore they produced when they spoke
iniquity, that is, gave unrighteous sentences. 2. We must abound in all acts of charity and
beneficence.”
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
If on behalf of the hungry yourselves you spend,
You will not only have man, but God as your friend.
If of the oppressed you satisfy needs,
It will be of far more valued than satisfying your greed s.
Then in the darkness your light will rise,
And you will be righteous in God's eyes.
Your night will become like the noonday
With a glory that will not fade away.
1. Give yourself to meeting the needs of others by sharing the blessings God has given to you, and
even greater blessing will come back to you. Your light will rise in the darkness and reveal the
power of love to chase away the darkness of poverty and oppression. You will light up the lives of
others by your generosity, and the result will be your own darkness will vanish in the light of the
noonday sun of God's glorious favor. The greatest thing you can do for yourself is not to be selfish
and grabbing all you can get, but to be generous in helping others be satisfied, for then you will
have the greatest reward, which is God's favor. This is true religion that pleases God and blesses
man. Everyone is a winner when we do things God's way, just as everyone loses when we do
things in the self-centered way of being religious but not loving.
2. Henry, “We must not only give alms according as the necessities of the poor require, but, (1.)
We must give freely and cheerfully, and from a principle of charity. We must draw out our soul to
the hungry (Isa_58:10), not only draw out the money and reach forth the hand, but do this from
the heart, heartily, and without grudging, from a principle of compassion and with a tender
affection to such as we see to be in misery. Let the heart go along with the gift; for God loves a
cheerful giver, and so does a poor man too. When our Lord Jesus healed and fed the multitude it
was as having compassion on them. (2.) We must give plentifully and largely, so as not to
tantalize, but to satisfy, the afflicted soul: “Do not only feed the hungry, but gratify the desire of
the afflicted, and, if it lies in your power, make them easy.” What are we born for, and what have
we our abilities of body, mind, and estate for, but to do all the good we can in this world with
them? And the poor we have always with us.
Those that are cheerful in doing good God will make cheerful in enjoying good; and this also is a
special gift of God, Ecc_2:24. Those that have shown mercy shall find mercy. Job, who in his
prosperity had done a great deal of good, had friends raised up for him by the Lord when he was
reduced, who helped him with their substance, so that his light rose in obscurity. “�ot only thy
light, which is sweet, but thy health too, or the healing of the wounds thou hast long complained
of, shall spring forth speedily; all thy grievances shall be redressed, and thou shalt renew thy
youth and recover thy vigor.” Those that have helped others out of trouble will obtain help of
God when it is their turn. 2. God will put honor upon them. Good works shall be recompensed
with a good name; this is included in that light which rises out of obscurity. Though a man's
extraction be mean, his family obscure, and he has no external advantages to gain him honor, yet,
if he do good in his place, that will procure him respect and veneration, and his darkness shall by
this means become as the noon-day, that is, he shall become very eminent and shine brightly in
his generation. See here what is the surest way for a man to make himself illustrious; let him
study to do good. He that would be the greatest of all, and best-loved, let him by humility and
industry make himself a servant of all.”
11 The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
The Lord then will always be your guide,
And be ever present at your side.
He will satisfy your needs even when nature says no,
For he will give you the strength to go and go.
You will end up with a garden, and you will be so proud,
For it will flourish even if you don't see a cloud.
You will have water on the grandest scale,
For God will provide a spring whose waters never fail.
1. God is so pleased with true religion that he will be your unfailing guide, and will satisfy all
your needs in spite of your environment being so unproductive because of the harsh weather
conditions. He will give you strength to manage so that you will be as productive as one who lives
in a well watered garden with an unfailing spring. The best way to get God's blessing is to be a
blessing to others. Be a spring supplying the water of life to the thirsty, and God will be a spring
supply what you need to live the abundant life.
“Karl Menninger, the famous psychiatrist, once gave a lecture on medical health and answered
questions from the audience. Someone asked, “What would you advise a person to do if that
person felt a nervous breakdown coming on?” Most people thought he would say “Go see a
psychiatrist immediately,” but he didn’t. To their astonishment, Dr. Menninger replied, “Lock up
your house, go across the railroad tracks, find somebody in need, and help that person.”
Dr. Menniger had a firm grasp on the fact that helping others is, oftentimes, the best way to help
oneself. And in today’s passage Isaiah gave a similar message to the people of Israel: if you want
to be blessed by God, be a blessing to others. This is true worship.” TODAY I� THE WORD
DEVOTIO�AL
The acid test is not, "What does my religion do for me?" but, "What does it make me do for
others?
2. Henry, “God will direct them in all difficult and doubtful cases (Isa_58:11): The Lord shall
guide thee continually. While we are here, in the wilderness of this world, we have need of
continual direction from heaven; for, if at any time we be left to ourselves, we shall certainly miss
our way; and therefore it is to those who are good in God's sight that he gives the wisdom which
in all cases is profitable to direct, and he will be to them instead of eyes, Ecc_2:26. His providence
will make their way plain to them, both what is their duty and what will be most for their
comfort. 6. God will give them abundance of satisfaction in their own minds. As the world is a
wilderness in respect of wanderings, so that they need to be guided continually, so also is it in
respect of wants, which makes it necessary that they should have continual supplies, as Israel in
the wilderness had not only the pillar of cloud to guide them continually, but manna and water
out of the rock to satisfy their souls in drought, in a dry and thirsty land where no water is,
Psa_63:1. To a good man God gives not only wisdom and knowledge, but joy; he is satisfied in
himself with the testimony of his conscience and the assurances of God's favor. “These will satisfy
thy soul, will put gladness into thy heart, even in the drought of affliction; these will make fat thy
bones, and fill them with marrow, will give thee that pleasure which will be a support to thee as
the bones to the body, that joy of the Lord which will be thy strength. He shall give thy bones rest”
(so some read it), “rest from the pain and sickness which they have labored under and been
chastened with;” so it agrees with that promise made to the merciful. The Lord will make all his
bed in his sickness, Psa_41:3. “Thou shalt be like a watered garden, so flourishing and fruitful in
graces and comforts, and like a spring of water, like a garden that has a spring of water in it,
whose waters fail not either in droughts or in frosts.” The principle of holy love in those that are
good shall be a well of living water, Joh_4:14. As a spring of water, though it is continually
sending forth its streams, is yet always full, so the charitable man abounds in good as he abounds
in doing good and is never the poorer for his liberality. He that waters shall himself be watered.”
3. Barnes, “Syriac, ‘Like paradise.’ This is a most beautiful image to denote continued prosperity
and blessedness - an image that would be particularly striking in the East. The ideas of happiness
in the Oriental world consisted much in pleasant gardens, running streams, and ever-flowing
fountains, and nothing can more beautifully express the blessedness of the continued favor of the
Almighty. Waters or springs lie or deceive when they become dried up, or fail in the dry seasons
of the year. They deceive the shepherd who expected to obtain water there for himself or his
flock; they deceive the caravan which had traveled to the well-known fountain where it had been
often refreshed, and where, it is now found, its waters are dried up, or lost in the sand. Hence,
such a brook or fountain becomes an emblem of a false and deceitful friend Job_6:15 :
My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook,
As the stream of brooks they pass away.
But in the supplies which God makes for his people there is no such deception. The fountains of
pardon, peace, and joy are ever open and ever full. The streams of salvation are always flowing.
The weary pilgrim may go there at any season of the year, and from any part of a desolate world,
and find them always full, refreshing, and free. However far may be the pilgrimage to them from
amidst the waste and burning climes of sin, however many come to slake their thirst, and
however frequently they come, they find them always the same. They never fail; and they will
continue to flow on to the end of time.”
4. Gill, “and thou shalt be like a watered garden; like a "garden", the church of Christ is
separated from others, by electing, redeeming, and efficacious grace; and like a "watered" one,
watered by the Lord himself, and the dews of his grace, and by the ministry of the word; whereby
the plants that are planted in it thrive and flourish, lift up their heads, shoot up and grow, and
bring forth fruit:
and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not; as there is in every believer a well of living water
springing up unto everlasting life, not of themselves, but from Christ, and which is very
abundant, and never fails; so there is in the church a spring of the living waters of Gospel
doctrines, and of Gospel ordinances; here runs the river of divine love, which makes glad the city
of God; here Christ is the fountain of gardens; and here the Spirit and his graces are
communicated; all which remain, and never fail.”
12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
The ancient ruins your people will rebuild,
For God will provide those who are skilled.
The age-old foundations you will raise,
Leading your people to rejoice and praise.
You will gain reputations for repairing broken walls,
And for restoring streets with dwellings due to previous falls.
1. Your people will have the strength and the resources to rebuild the ancient ruins and restore
the old foundations. There will be a new beginning, and you will be called Repairer of Broken
Walls, and Restorer of Streets with Dwellings. In other words, all that has been destroyed because
of sin will be restored because of repentance and restoration of righteous and loving living where
true worship and service to God thrives. All things become new because of true obedience to the
revealed will of God.
2. Henry, “This is here promised (Isa_58:12): “Those that now are of thee, thy princes, and
nobles, and great men, shall have such authority and influence as they never had;” or, “Those
that hereafter shall be of thee, thy posterity, shall be serviceable to their generation, as thou art to
thine.” It completes the satisfaction of a good man, as to this world, to think that those that come
after him shall be doing good when he is gone. 1. They shall re-edify cities that have been long in
ruins, shall build the old waste places, which had lain so long desolate that the rebuilding of them
was quite despaired of. This was fulfilled when the captives, after their return, repaired the cities
of Judah, and dwelt in them, and many of those in Israel too, which had lain waste ever since the
carrying away of the ten tribes. 2. They shall carry on and finish that good work which was
begun long before, and shall be helped over the obstructions which had retarded the progress of
it: They shall raise up to the top that building the foundation of which was laid long since and has
been for many generations in the rearing. This was fulfilled when the building of the temple was
revived after it had stood still for many years, Ezr_5:2. Or, “They shall raise up foundations
which shall continue for many generations yet to come;” they shall do that good which shall be of
lasting consequence. 3. They shall have the blessing and praise of all about them: “Thou shalt be
called (and it shall be to thy honor) the repairer of the breach, the breach made by the enemy in
the wall of a besieged city, which whoso has the courage and dexterity to make up, or make good,
gains great applause.” Happy are those who make up the breach at which virtue is running out
and judgments are breaking in. “Thou shalt be the restorer of paths, safe and quiet paths, not only
to travel in, but to dwell in, so safe and quiet that people shall make no difficulty of building their
houses by the road-side.” The sum is that, if they keep such fasts as God has chosen, he will settle
them again in their former peace and prosperity, and there shall be none to make them afraid.
See Zec_7:5, Zec_7:9; Zec_8:3-5. It teaches us that those who do justly and love mercy shall have
the comfort thereof in this world.”
3. Barnes, “Shall build the old waste places - Shall repair the old ruins, and restore the desolate
cities and fields to their former beauty. This language is taken from the condition of Judea during
the long captivity at Babylon. The land would have been desolated by the Chaldeans, and lain
waste for a period of seventy years. Of course all the remains of their former prosperity would
have gone to decay, and the whole country would be filled with ruins. But all this, says the
prophet, would be restored if they were obedient to God. and would keep his law. Their
descendants would be so numerous that the land would be entirely occupied and cultivated again,
and cities and towns would rise with their former beauty and magnificence.
Thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations - That is, the foundations which had
endured for generations. The word ‘foundations’ here ( מוסד môsâd), means properly the
foundation of a building, that is, on which a building rests. Here it means the foundation when
that alone remains; and is equivalent to ruins. The Hebrew phrase translated ‘of many
generational’ (דור־ודור dôr-vâdôr, generation and generation), is equivalent to one generation
after another, and is the usual form of the superlative degree. The exact amount of time is not
designated; but the phrase is equivalent to a long time - while one generation passes away after
another. Vitringa applies this to the gospel, and supposes that it means that the church, after long
decay and desolation, would rise to its former beauty and glory. The promise is indeed general;
and though the language is taken from the recovery of Palestine from its ruins after the captivity,
yet there can be no objection to applying it in a more general sense, as teaching that the people of
God, if they are faithful in keeping his commandments, and in manifesting the spirit which
becomes the church, will repair the ruins which sin has made in the world, and rebuild the wastes
and the desolations of many ages.
Sin has spread its desolations far and wide. Scarce the foundations of righteousness remain in the
earth. Where they do remain, they are often covered over with ruined fragments, and are
surrounded by frightful wastes. The world is full of the ruins which sin has caused; and there
could be no more striking illustration of the effects of sin on all that is good, than the ruins of
Judea during the seventy years of exile, or than those of Palmyra, of Baalbec, of Tyre, of Ephesus,
and of Persepolis, at present. It is for the church of God to rebuild these wastes, and to cause the
beauties of cultivated fields, and the glories of cities rebuilt, to revisit the desolate earth; in other
words, to extend the blessings of that religion which will yet clothe the earth with moral
loveliness, as though sin had not spread its gloomy and revolting monuments over the world.
And thou shalt be called - The name which shall appropriately designate what you will do.
The repairer of the breach - Lowth, ‘The repairer of the broken mound.’ The phrase properly
means, ‘the fortifier of the breach;’ i. e:, the one who shall build up the breach that is made in a
wall of a city, either by the lapse of time, or by a siege.
The restorer of paths to dwell in - Lowth and �oves render this, ‘The restorer of paths to be
frequented by inhabitants.’ The Septuagint renders it, ‘And thou shalt cause thy paths to rest in
the midst of thee;’ and Jerome. Avertens semitas in quietem - ‘Turning the paths into rest,’ which
the Jewish exposition explains to mean, ‘Thou shalt build walls so high that no enemy can enter
them.’ So Grotius renders it, ‘Turning thy paths to rest;’ that is, thou shalt leave no way of access
to robbers. The Chaldee renders it, ‘Converting the wicked to the law.’ The common English
version has probably expressed correctly the sense. The idea is, that they would repair the public
highways which had long lain desolate, by which access was had to their dwelling-places. It does
not mean, however, that the paths or ways were to be places in which to dwell, but that the ways
which led to their dwelling-places were to be restored, or repaired. These roads, of course, in the
long desolations would be ruined. Thorns, and brambles, and trees would have grown upon
them; and having been long neglected, they would be impassable. But the advantages of a free
contact from one dwelling and one city to another, and throughout the land, would be again
enjoyed. Spiritually applied, it means the same as the previous expression, that the church of God
would remove the ruins which sin has caused, and diffuse comfort and happiness around the
world. The obstructed and overrun paths to a quiet and peaceable dwelling on earth would be
cleared away, and the blessings of’ the true religion would be like giving free and easy access
from one tranquil and prosperous dwelling-place to another.”
4. Gill, “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places,.... As the cities in Israel
and Judea, which had been long laid waste by the Assyrians and Chaldeans, were rebuilt by those
of the Jewish nation, who returned from the captivity of Babylon, to which there is at least an
allusion; and as the church of God, the tabernacle of David, which was fallen down, and had lain
long in ruins, through corruptions in doctrine and worship, to the times of Christ, when the
apostles, who were of the Jews, those wise masterbuilders, were instruments of raising it up
again, and repairing its ruins: so, in the latter day, "the waste places of the world" (n), as the
words may be rendered, shall be built by a set of men, that shall be of the church of God, who
shall be instruments in his hand of converting many souls, and so of peopling it with Christians;
such places as before were desolate, where before there was no preaching of the word, no
administration of ordinances, nor any Gospel churches:
thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; either such foundations as have been
razed up, and lay so for ages past; or raise up such as shall continue for generations to come. It
may allude to the raising the foundations of the city and temple of Jerusalem; but rather refers to
the founding of churches in Gospel times, which, as it was done in the first times of it by the
apostles in the Gentile world, so shall be again in the latter day, which will continue for many
ages:
and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach, and the restorer of paths to dwell in; that is,
the church and her builders, that shall be of her, shall be so called; the Jews and Gentiles will be
converted in great numbers, and coalesce in the same Gospel church state, and so the breach
between them will be repaired. Christians of various denominations, who now break off and
separate one from another, will be of the same sentiment and judgment in doctrine and
discipline; they shall see eye to eye, and cement together, and all breaches will be made up, and
there will be no schism in the body; and they shall dwell together in unity, and walk in the same
paths of faith and duty, of truth and holiness; and such who will be the happy instruments of all
this will have much honour, and be called by these names.
The Targum is,
"they shall call thee one that confirms the right way, and converts, the ungodly to the law.''
13 "If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight
and the LORD's holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
If from breaking the Sabbath you keep your feet,
And if from self pleasing you cease to repeat,
But instead call the Sabbath my holy day of delight,
And treat it as the Lords holy day in my sight,
And if you honor it by not going your own way,
And not doing as you please, or idle words say,
1. The glorious hope of a new beginning with all things restored better than ever has a clear
condition attached. It his to be preceded by an honest obedience to the Sabbath laws. It has to
become a truly holy day with a focus on God and not on getting your own will done. The self-
centered focus needs to change and get back to a God centered focus where you truly honor God
with worship, prayer, learning, and service. It has to be kept as a day of selflessness rather than a
day of selfishness. Forsake doing your own thing, and speaking idle words of no value. Speak
instead of the glory of God, and sing his praises, and grow in your understanding of God. Use the
day to develop love for God's Word so you can carry out its loving concepts through the rest of
the week.
2. Jamison, “God claims it as His day; to take it for our pleasure is to rob Him of His own. This is
the very way in which the Sabbath is mostly broken; it is made a day of carnal pleasure instead
of spiritual “delight.”
3. Barnes, “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath - The evident meaning of this is, that
they were sacredly to observe the Sabbath, and not to violate or pollute it (see the notes at
Isa_56:2). The idea, says Grotius, is, that they were not to travel on the Sabbath day on ordinary
journeys. The ‘foot’ is spoken of as the instrument of motion and travel. ‘Ponder the paths of thy
feet’ Pro_4:26; that is, observe attentively thy goings. ‘Remove thy foot from evil’ Pro_4:27; that
is, abstain from evil, do not go to execute evil. So here, to restrain the foot from the Sabbath, is
not to have the foot employed on the Sabbath; not to be engaged in traveling, or in the ordinary
active employments of life, either for business or pleasure.
From doing thy pleasure on my holy day - Two things may here be observed:
1. God claims the day as his, and as holy on that account. While all time is his, and while he
requires all time to be profitably and usefully employed, he calls the Sabbath especially his own -
a day which is to be observed with reference to himself, and which is to be regarded as belonging
to him. To take the hours of that day, therefore, for our pleasure, or for work which is not
necessary or merciful, is to rob God of that which he claims as his own.
2. We are not to do our own pleasure on that day. That is, we are not to pursue our ordinary
plans of amusement; we are not to devote it to feasting, to riot, or to revelry. It is true that they
who love the Sabbath as they should will find ‘pleasure’ in observing it, for they have happiness
in the service of God. But the idea is, here, that we are to do the things which God requires, and
to consult his will in the observance. It is remarkable that the thing here adverted to, is the very
way in which the Sabbath is commonly violated. It is not extensively a day of business, for the
propriety of a periodical cessation from toil is so obvious, that people will have such days
recurring at moderate intervals. But it is a day of pastime and amusement; a day not merely of
relaxation from toil, but also of relaxation from the restraints of temperance and virtue. And
while the Sabbath is God’s great ordinance for perpetuating religion and virtue, it is also, by
perversion, made Satan’s great ordinance for perpetuating intemperance, dissipation, and
sensuality.
And call the Sabbath a delight - This appropriately expresses the feelings of all who have any
just views of the Sabbath. To them it is not wearisome, nor are its hours heavy. They love the day
of sweet and holy rest. They esteem it a privilege, not a task, to be permitted once a week to
disburden their minds of the cares, and toils, and anxieties of life. It is a ‘delight’ to them to recall
the memory of the institution of the Sabbath, when God rested from his labors; to recall the
resurrection of the Lord Jesus, to the memory of which the Christian Sabbath is consecrated; to
be permitted to devote a whole day to prayer and praise, to the public and private worship of
God, to services that expand the intellect and purify the heart. To the father of a family it is the
source of unspeakable delight that he may conduct his children to the house of God, and that he
may instruct them in the ways of religion. To the Christian man of business, the farmer, and the
professional man, it is a pleasure that he may suspend his cares, and may uninterruptedly think
of God and of heaven. To all who have any just feeling, the Sabbath is a ‘delight;’ and for them to
be compelled to forego its sacred rest would be an unspeakable calamity.
The holy of the Lord, honorable - This more properly means, ‘and call the holy of Yahweh
honorable.’ That is, it does not mean that they who observed the Sabbath would call it ‘holy to
Yahweh and honorable;’ but it means that the Sabbath was, in fact, ‘the holy of Yahweh,’ and
that they would regard it as ‘honorable.’ A slight inspection of the Hebrew will show that this is
the sense. They who keep the Sabbath aright will esteem it a day “to be honored” (מכבד
mekubâd).
And shalt honor him - Or rather, shalt honor it; to wit, the Sabbath. The Hebrew will bear
either construction, but the connection seems to require us to understand it of the Sabbath rather
than of the Lord.
�ot doing thine own ways - This is evidently explanatory of the phrase in the beginning of the
verse. ‘if thou turn away thy foot.’ So the Septuagint understands it: Οὐκ άρεῖς τὸς πόδα σου ἐπ ̓
ἔργῳ Ouk areis ton poda sou ep' ergō - ‘And will not lift up thy foot to any work.’ They were not
to engage in secular labor, or in the execution of their own plans, but were to regard the day as
belonging to God, and to be employed in his service alone.
�or finding thine own pleasure - The Chaldee renders this, ‘And shalt not provide on that day
those things which are necessary for thee.’
�or speaking thine own words - Lowth and �oyes render this, ‘From speaking vain words.’
The Septuagint, ‘�or utter a word in anger from thy mouth.’ The Chaldee renders it, ‘Words of
violence.’ It is necessary to add some epithet to make out the sense, as the Hebrew is literally,
‘and to speak a word.’ Probably our common translation has expressed the true sense, as in the
previous members of the verse the phrase ‘thine own’ thrice occurs. And according to this, the
sense is, that on the Sabbath our conversation is to be such as becomes a day which belongs to
God. It is not less important that our conversation should be right on the Sabbath than it is that
our conduct should be.”
4. Gill, “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath,.... From walking and working on that day;
or withdrawest thy mind and affections from all worldly things; the affections being that to the
mind as the feet are to the body, which carry it here and there. The time of worship, under the
Gospel dispensation, is here expressed in Old Testament language, as the service of it usually is in
prophetic writings; though its proper name is the Lord's day, Rev_1:10, and is here instanced in,
and put for all religious institutions and services to be attended unto, and which will be with
greater strictness in the times referred to:
from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; that is, if thou turnest away, or dost abstain from doing
thine own servile work, the business of thy calling; which may be agreeable for the sake of the
profit of it; or from recreations and amusements, which may be lawfully indulged on another
day:
and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of God, and honourable; take delight and pleasure in the
service of it; in all the duties of religion, private and public, to be observed on that day; in
reading and hearing the word, and meditation on it; in prayer, and in attendance on all
ordinances; and reckon it as separated for holy use and employment, and on that account
honourable; and so have it in high esteem, and desire the return of it, and not think the service of
it long and tedious, when enjoyed, and wish it was over: or, "for the Holy One of God, and
honourable"; that is, for the sake of Christ, the Holy One of God, in both his natures, and
honourable in his person and office; accounting the sabbath a delight, in remembrance of the
great work of redemption and salvation wrought out by him:
and shall honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking
thine own words; honour the Lord on that day, by not attending to any secular business, or
walking abroad in the fields, to the neglect of private duties or public worship; by not seeking the
gratification of the fleshly and sensual part, or indulging to those things which are agreeable to it;
and by not speaking such words, or talking of such things, as relate to worldly affairs, or the
things of civil life, but walking in the ways of the Lord, doing those things which are well pleasing
in his sight, and conversing about spiritual and heavenly things; by such means God is honoured
on his own day; and the reverse of this is a dishonouring him. The Jews (o) make this honour to
lie chiefly in wearing other clothes on this day than on a weekday, and not walking as on other
days, or talking as on them; yet they allow of thoughts, though not of words, about worldly
things.”
5. Gill, “We must call it holy, separated from common use and devoted to God and to his service,
must call it the holy of the Lord, the day which he has sanctified to himself. Even in Old
Testament times the sabbath was called the Lord's day, and therefore it is fitly called so still, and
for a further reason, because it is the Lord Christ's day, Rev_1:10. It is holy because it is the
Lord's day, and upon both accounts it is honourable. It is a beauty of holiness that is upon it; it is
ancient, and its antiquity is its honour; and we must make it appear that we look upon it as
honourable by honouring God on that day. We put honour upon the day when we give honour to
him that instituted it, and to whose honour it is dedicated.”
If we thus remember the sabbath day to keep it holy,
1. We shall have the comfort of it; the work will be its own wages. If we call the sabbath a
delight, then shall we delight ourselves in the Lord; he will more and more manifest himself to us
as the delightful subject of our thoughts and meditations and the delightful object of our best
affections. �ote, The more pleasure we take in serving God the more pleasure we shall find in it.
If we go about duty with cheerfulness, we shall go from it with satisfaction and shall have reason
to say, “It is good to be here, good to draw near to God.”
2. We shall have the honour of it: I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth,
which denotes not only a great security (as that, Isa_32:16, He shall dwell on high), but great
dignity and advancement. “Thou shalt ride in state, shalt appear conspicuous, and the eyes of all
thy neighbours shall be upon thee.” It was said of Israel, when God led them triumphantly out of
Egypt, that he made them to ride on the high places of the earth, Deu_32:12, Deu_32:13. Those
that honour God and his sabbath he will thus honour. If God by his grace enable us to live above
the world, and so to manage it as not only not to be hindered by it, but to be furthered and
carried on by it in our journey towards heaven, then he makes us to ride on the high places of the
earth.
3. We shall have the profit of it: I will feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father, that is, with
all the blessings of the covenant and all the precious products of Canaan (which was a type of
heaven), for these were the heritage of Jacob. Observe, The heritage of believers is what they
shall not only be portioned with hereafter, but fed with now, fed with the hopes of it, and not
flattered, fed with the earnests and foretastes of it; and those that are so fed have reason to say
that they are well fed. In order that we may depend upon it, it is added, “The mouth of the Lord
has spoken it; you may take God's word for it, for he cannot lie nor deceive; what his mouth has
spoken his hand will give, his hand will do, and not one iota or tittle of his good promise shall fall
to the ground.” Blessed, therefore, thrice blessed, is he that doeth this, and lays hold on it, that
keeps the sabbath from polluting it.”
6. Lambert Dolphin, “Why, however, is there mention of the Sabbath at this point? Is it not that
the Sabbath was a unifying ordinance which at all times (and particularly in times of apostasy
and the exile) would bind the people together as no other ordinance would do? For the Sabbath
was not merely a Mosaic ordinance; it was far more. It was instituted at the creation, and is a
pattern of the heavenly Sabbath rest which the redeemed are to enjoy in the presence of their
eternal God. In the great calamity of the exile that was to come upon them, Isaiah stresses the
Sabbath as in a sense the heart of true devotion to God. He who keeps the Sabbath as it is
intended to be kept will be happy in the Lord of the Sabbath.”
14 then you will find your joy in the LORD,
and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob."
The mouth of the LORD has spoken.
Then, and only then, will you find your joy in the Lord,
And bring an end to your religion where all are just bored.
I will cause you then on the heights of the land to ride,
And you will feel like your right by my side.
On the inheritance of your father Jacob you will feast,
And all needs will be met from the great to the least.
Let none of the conditions of fasting be broken,
For the mouth of the Lord has here been spoken.
1. Joy in the Lord comes at a price. You have to be willing to please the Lord by obedience to his
will before you can be filled with the spirit of joy. Joy is a reward that is earned by obedience,
and when you get it you will experience a high that no drug can give you. You will ride on the
heights of the land. You will be like one floating over the mountains in ecstasy, and you will feast
on the inheritance of your father Jacob. In other words all that God promised Jacob will be
fulfilled in your lives. This is not just speculation, for the mouth of God himself has given this
promise and assurance. It is a sure thing if the conditions are met.
2. Humble yourself to share with those in need, and God will raise you up to stand on mountains,
and raise you up to be more than you can be, just as the song says. If you want to be king of the
mountain you need to be a servant in the valley of human need.
3. I like the way David Guzik concludes, “In this chapter, God exposed the emptiness of two
religious rituals as practiced in Isaiah's day: fasting and Sabbath keeping. Both of these are
expressions of not doing things. In fasting, you don't eat. In Sabbath keeping, you don't work. An
important aspect to this chapter is showing us that what we don't do isn't enough to make us right
before God. Our walk with God shouldn't only be defined by what we don't do. What do we do
for the LORD?”
4. Barnes, “Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord - That is, as a consequence of properly
observing the Sabbath, thou shalt find pleasure in Yahweh. It will be a pleasure to draw near to
him, and you shall no longer be left to barren ordinances and to unanswered prayers. The delight
or pleasure which God’s people have in him is a direct and necessary consequence of the proper
observance of the Sabbath. It is on that day set apart by his own authority, for his own service,
that he chooses to meet with his people, and to commune with them and bless them; and no one
ever properly observed the Sabbath who did not find, as a consequence, that he had augmented
pleasure in the existence, the character, and the service of Yahweh. Compare Job_22:21-26,
where the principle stated here - that the observance of the law of God will lead to happiness in
the Almighty - is beautifully illustrated (see also Psa_37:4).
And I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth - A phrase like this occurs in
Deu_32:13 : ‘He made him ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eat the increase of
fields.’ In Hab_3:19, the phrase also occurs: ‘He will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and he will
make me to walk upon mine high places.’ So also Psa_18:33 : ‘He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet,
and setteth me upon my high places.’ In Amo_4:13, it is applied to God: ‘He maketh the morning
darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth.’ Kimchi, Calvin, and Grotius suppose
that the idea here is, that God would restore the exiled Jews to their own land - a land of
mountains and elevated places, more lofty than the surrounding regions. Vitringa says that the
phrase is taken from a conqueror, who on his horse or in his chariot, occupies mountains, hills,
towers, and monuments, and subjects them to himself. Rosenmuller supposes it means, ‘I will
place you in lofty and inaccessible places, where you will be safe from all your enemies.’ Gesenius
also supposes that the word ‘high places’ here means fastnesses or strongholds, and that to walk
over those strongholds, or to ride over them, is equivalent to possessing them, and that he who
has possession of the fastnesses has possession of the whole country (see his Lexicon on the word
bâmâh, �o. 2). I give these views of the most distinguished commentators on the passage, not במה
being able to determine satisfactorily to myself what is the true signification. �either of the above
expositions seems to me to be entirely free from difficulty. The general idea of prosperity and
security is undoubtedly the main thing intended; but what is the specific sense couched under the
phrase ‘to ride on the high places of the earth,’ does not seem to me to be sufficiently explained.
And feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father - That is, thou shalt possess the land
promised to Jacob as an inheritance.
For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it - This formula often occurs when an important
promise is made, and it is regarded as ample security for the fulfillment that Yahweh has
promised it. What more ample security can be required, or conceived, than the promise of the
eternal God?”
From the closing portion of this chapter Isa_58:13-14, we may derive the following important
inferences respecting the Sabbath:
1. It is to be of perpetual obligation. The whole chapter occurs in the midst of statements that
relate to the times of the Messiah. There is no intimation that the Sabbath was to be abolished,
but it is fairly implied that its observance was to be attended with most happy results in those
future times. At all events, Isaiah regarded it as of binding obligation, and felt that its proper
observance was identified with the national welfare.
2. We may see the manner in which the Sabbath is to be observed. In no place in the Bible is
there a more full account of the proper mode of keeping that holy day. We are to refrain from
ordinary traveling and employments; we are not to engage in doing our own pleasure; we are to
regard it with delight, and to esteem it a day worthy to be honored; and we are to show respect to
it by not performing our own ordinary works, or pursuing pleasures, or engaging in the common
topics of conversation. In this description there occurs nothing of unique Jewish ceremony, and
nothing which indicates that it is not to be observed in this manner at all times. Under the gospel,
assuredly, it is as proper to celebrate the Sabbath in this way, as it was in the times of Isaiah, and
God doubtless intended that it should be perpetually observed in this manner.
3. Important benefits result from the right observance of the Sabbath. In the passage before us,
these are said to be, that they who thus observed it would find pleasure in Yahweh, and would be
signally prospered and be safe. But those benefits are by no means confined to the Jewish people.
It is as true now as it was then, that they who observe the Sabbath in a proper manner find
happiness in the Lord - in his existence, perfections, promises, law, and in communion with him -
which is to be found nowhere else. Of this fact there are abundant witnesses now in every
Christian church, and they will continue to be multiplied in every coming age. And it is as true
that the proper observance of the Sabbath contributes to the prosperity and safety of a nation
now, as it ever did among the Jewish people. It is not merely from the fact that God promises to
bless the people who keep his holy day; though this is of more value to a nation than all its armies
and fleets; but it is, that there is in the institution itself much that tends to the welfare and
prosperity of a country.
It is a time when worldliness is broken in upon by a periodical season of rest, and when the
thoughts are left free to contemplate higher and purer objects. It is a time when more instruction
is imparted on moral and religious subjects, than on all the other days of the week put together.
The public worship of God tends to enlarge the intellect, and purify the heart. �o institution has
ever been originated that has contributed so much to elevate the common mind; to diffuse order,
peace, neatness, decency among people, and thus to perpetuate and extend all that is valuable in
society, as the Sabbath. Anyone may be convinced of this, who will be at the pains to compare a
neighborhood, a village, or a city where the Sabbath is not observed with one where it is; and the
difference will convince him at once, that society owes more to the Sabbath than to any single
institution besides, and that in no way possible can one-seventh portion of the time be so well
employed as in the manner contemplated by the Christian day of rest.
4. Society will have seasons of cessation from labor, and when they are not made occasions for
the promotion of virtue, they will be for the promotion of vice. Thus among the Romans an
annual Saturnalia was granted to all, as a season of relaxation from toil, and even from the
restraints of morality, besides many other days of periodical rest from labor. Extensively among
pagan nations also, the seventh day of the week, or a seventh portion of the time, has been
devoted to such relaxation. Thus, Hesiod says, Ἑβδοµον ἱερον ἡµαρ Hebdomon hieron hēmera -
The seventh day ‘is holy.’ Homer and Callimachus give it the same title. Philo says of the seventh
any. Ἐόρτη γὰρ ου ̓ µιας πολέως η χώρας ἐστὶν ἀλλὰ τοῦ πακτὸς Heortē gar ou mias poleōs ē
chōras estin alla tou pantos - ‘It is a feast, not of one city or one country only, but of all.’ Josephus
(Contra Apion. ii.), says, ‘There is no city, however barbarous, where the custom of observing the
seventh day which prevails among the Jews is not also observed.’ Theophilus of Antioch (ii.), says,
‘Concerning the seventh day, which all people celebrate.’ Eusebius says, ‘Almost all the
philosophers and poets acknowledge the seventh day as holy.’ See Grotius, De Veritate, i.
It is evident that this custom did not originate by chance, nor was it kept up by chance. It must
have been originated by far-spreading tradition, and must have been observed either because the
day was esteemed to be holy, or because it was found to be convenient or advantageous to observe
such a periodical season of rest. In accordance with this feeling, even the French nation during
the Revolution, while they abolished the Christain Sabbath, felt so deeply the necessity of a
periodical rest from labor, that they appointed the decade - or one day in ten, to be observed as a
day of relaxation and amusement. Whatever, therefore, may have been the origin of the Sabbath,
and whatever may be the views which may be entertained of its sacredness, it is now reduced to a
moral certainty that people will have a periodical season of cessation from labor. The only
question is, In what way shall it be observed? Shall it be devoted to amusement, pleasure, and
vice; or shall it be employed in the ways of intelligence, virtue, and religion? It is evident that
such a periodical relaxation may be made the occasion of immense good to any community; and
it is not less evident that it may be the occasion of extending far the evils of intemperance,
profaneness, licentiousness, and crime. It is vain to attempt to blot out wholly the observance of
the Christian Sabbath; and since it will and must be observed as a day of cessation from toil, all
that remains is for society to avail itself of the advantages which may be derived from its proper
observance, and to make it the handmaid of temperance, intelligence, social order, and pure
religion.
5. It is deeply, therefore, to be regretted that this sacred institution has been, and is so widely
abused in Christian lands. As it is, it is extensively a day of feasting, amusement, dissipation, and
revelry. And while its observance is, more decidedly than anything else, the means of
perpetuating virtue and religion on earth, it is perhaps not too much to say that it is the occasion
of more intemperance, vice, and crime than all the other days of the week put together. This is
particularly the case in our large cities and towns. A community cannot be disbanded from the
restraints of labor one-seventh part of the time without manifest evil, unless there are salutary
checks and restraints. The merchant cannot safely close his counting-room; the clerk and
apprentice cannot safely be discharged; the common laborer cannot safely be dismissed from toil,
unless there is something that shall be adapted on that day to enlarge the understanding, elevate
the morals, and purify the heart. The welfare of the community demands that; and nowhere
more than in this country. Who can doubt that a proper observance at the holy Sabbath would
contribute to the prosperity of this nation? Who can doubt that the worship of God; the
cultivation of the heart; the contemplation of moral and religious truth; and the active duties of
benevolence, would contribute more to the welfare of the nation, than to devote the day to
idleness, amusement, dissipation, and sin?
6. While the friends of religion, therefore, mourn over the desecration of the Christian Sabbath,
let them remember that their example may contribute much to secure a proper observance of
that day. On the friends of the Redeemer it devolves to rescue the day from desecration; and by
the divine blessing it may be done. The happiness of every Christian is indissolubly connected
with the proper observance of the Sabbath. The perpetuity of the true religion, and its extension
throughout the earth, is identified with the observance of the Sabbath. And every true friend of
God the Savior, as he values his own peace, and as he prizes the religion which he professes to
love, is bound to restrain his foot on the Sabbath; to cease to find his own pleasure, and to speak
his own words on that holy day; and to show that the Sabbath is to him a delight, and that he
esteems it as a day to be honored and to be loved.”
5. Gill, “ Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord,.... In his perfections; in his omnipotence,
omniscience, omnipresence, eternity, immutability, holiness, justice, truth, and faithfulness; in his
wisdom, love, grace, and mercy, especially as displayed in Christ, and salvation by him; in the
relations he stands in to his people, as their covenant God and Father, and in what he is to them,
their shield and exceeding great reward, their portion and inheritance; in his works of creation,
providence, and grace; in his word, the Gospel, the truths, doctrines, and promises of it; in his
ways and worship: in his ordinances and commandments; in communion with him, and with his
people; in all which, abundance of delight, pleasure, and satisfaction, is found by those who know
him in Christ, have tasted that he is gracious; who have some likeness to him, love him, and are
the objects of his love and delight:
and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth; to live above the world, and to
have their conversation in heaven; to be in the utmost safety, and enjoy the greatest plenty,
especially of spiritual things: or to be superior to the men of the world, even the highest of them;
to have power and authority in the earth, as the saints will have in the latter day; particularly this
will be true when the mountain of the Lord's house is established upon the top of the mountains,
Isa_2:2,
and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: the Jewish writers inquire why Jacob is
mentioned, and not Abraham nor Isaac; and answer, as in the Talmud (p), not Abraham, of
whom it is written, "arise, walk through the land in the length of it", &c. Gen_13:17, nor Isaac,
of whom it is written, "for unto thee, and to thy seed, will I give all these countries", &c.
Gen_26:3, but Jacob, of whom it is written, "and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the
east, and to the north, and to the south", &c. Gen_28:14 expressing the larger extent of the
inheritance; so Jarchi and Samson account for it; but Kimchi gives a better reason, because the
sons of Jacob, and not Ishmael the son of Abraham, nor Esau the son of Isaac, inherited the land
of Canaan: but rather the reason is, because he is the father of all true Israelites, who are, as he
was, wrestling and prevailing; these the Lord feeds with spiritual provisions here, and glory
hereafter; which the good things of the land of Canaan, the inheritance of Jacob and his sons,
were a type of: and perhaps this may have respect to the conversion of the Jews, when they shall
return to their own land, and enjoy the good things of it, as well as all spiritual blessings:
for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it; who is faithful to his covenant, true to his word; cannot
lie, will never deceive; performs whatsoever he has promised, being able to do it; and therefore it
may be depended upon that all this shall be as he has said.”
6. Kyle, “The Sabbath, above all other institutions appointed by the law, was the true means of
uniting and sustaining Israel as a religious community, more especially in exile, where a great
part of the worship necessarily feel into abeyance on account of its intimate connection with
Jerusalem and the holy land; but whilst it was a Mosaic institution so far as its legal
appointments were concerned, it rested, in a way which reached even beyond the rite of
circumcision, upon a basis much older than that of the law, being a ceremonial copy of the
Sabbath of creation, which was the divine rest established by God as the true object of all motion;
for God entered into Himself again after He had created the world out of Himself, that all created
things might enter into Him. In order that this, the great end set before all creation, and
especially before mankind, viz., entrance into the rest of God, might be secured, the keeping of
the Sabbath prescribed by the law was a divine method of education, which put an end every
week to the ordinary avocations of the people, with their secular influence and their tendency to
fix the mind on outward things, and was designed by the strict prohibition of all work to force
them to enter into themselves and occupy their minds with God and His word. The prophet does
not hedge round this commandment to keep the Sabbath with any new precepts, but merely
demands for its observance full truth answering to the spirit of the letter. “If thou turn away thy
foot from the Sabbath” is equivalent to, if thou do not tread upon its holy ground with a foot
occupied with its everyday work.”
I�DEX A. ALL OF MY BOOKS THAT ARE O� SCRIBD.COM
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CHRISTMAS WITH DR. LUKE
CHRISTMAS TREASURES
BIBLE PARADOXES
PARADOXES OF PAUL
LOVE IS THE GREATEST
THE GLORY OF EASTER
LOOKI�G AT JESUS
U�USUAL BIBLE TOPICS
BEHOLD THE GLORY OF GOD
SUCCESSFUL CHRISTIA� LIVI�G
THE BEAUTY OF THE CROSS
THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
THE PASSIO� EXPOU�DED
Being-Thankful-People
JESUS THE GREATEST
JESUS THE GREATEST VOL. 2
ISSUES OF SUFFERI�G, DEATH A�D EVIL
A STUDY OF GOD’S CREATIO�
FAMOUS BIBLE CHARACTERS
ME�-I�-THE-LIFE-OF-JESUS
THE SECO�D COMI�G
THE TE� COMMA�DME�TS
HAPPI�ESS THE JESUS WAY
WOME� I� THE LIFE OF JESUS
STUDIES I� GALATIA�S
STUDIES I� I PETER
STUDIES I� II PETER
STUDIES I� JAMES
STUDIES I� JO�AH
STUDIES I� MARK
STUDIES I� LUKE
STUDIES I� ROMA�S
WI�DOWS I�TO HEAVE�
ISSUES WORTH THI�KI�G ABOUT
THE ABC’S OF A HAPPY MARRIAGE
LOVE A�D ROMA�CE I� THE BIBLE
MESSAGES TO I�SPIRE MOTHERS
STUDIES I� I CORI�THIA�S
STUDIES I� II CORI�THIA�S
THE LORD’S PRAYER
THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
JESUS TEACHES US
FAMOUS FATHERS OF FAITH
MESSAGES O� PRAISE
MESSAGES O� PRAYER
FAMOUS BIBLE CHARACTERS
STUDIES I� ACTS
STUDIES I� DA�IEL
STUDIES I� ESTHER
STUDIES I� GALATIA�S
STUDIES I� GE�ESIS
STUDIES I� JOH�’S GOSPEL
STUDIES I� JOH�’S LETTERS
STUDIES I� LUKE
STUDIES I� MARK
STUDIES I� ROMA�S
STUDIES I� I A�D II THESSALO�IA�S
STUDIES I� PHILIPPIA�S
STUDIES I� I PETER
STUDIES I� TITUS
STUDIES I� II PETER
STUDIES I� I TIMOTHY
STUDIES I� JOB
STUDIES I� PROVERBS
STUDIES I� JO�AH
STUDIES I� RUTH
STUDIES I� THE PSALMS
STUDIES I� REVELATIO�