Commentary on Isaiah Volume 1 John Calvin
COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH
ing eagerness to preserve their young; for they almost kill themselves with hunger, and shrink from no danger, that they may defend and preserve their young. Moses makes use of the same comparison when, reproaching the people for their ingratitude, he compares the Lord to an eagle "laying her nest, spreading her wings, and fluttering over her young." (Deuteronomy 32:11.)
Christ also remonstrates with Jerusalem, "How often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen gathereth her chickens, and ye would not!" (Matthew 23:37.)
The sum of this passage is, that the Lord will be sufficiently powerful to defend his people, for whom he has a special love and a peculiar care. What Moses relates that God did, Isaiah promises that he will always do; for he will never forsake those whom he has once received into his favor. Lest any one therefore should imagine that this statement related only to the men of a single age, he expressly declares that God will spread his wings to defend Jerusalem. Nor is it unnecessarily that he mentions not only Mount Zion but its hill; for on that "hill" was built the temple in which God desired that men should call upon him. Wherever therefore the worship of God is pure, let us know that salvation will be certain; for men cannot call upon him in vain.
"Let us be his people, and, on the other hand, he will be our God." (Leviticus 26:12.)
6. Return. This verse is explained in various ways; for the Hebrew commentators explain it thus, "Return to the Lord, for you have multiplied revolts." But, in my opinion, the meaning is more simple: "Return according as you have made a deep revolt; 586 for( לאשרlăăshĕr) is, I think, employed in the same sense as( כאשרkăăshĕr), "according as." 587 He means that the aggravated nature of their wickedness does not shut the door against them from returning to God, if they repent; that, although they have been sunk into the deepest wickedness, still God will pardon them. Yet, at the same time, he makes use of this spur to stimulate them to earnest grief and hatred of their sins, that they may not carelessly and lightly, as frequently happens, aim at a half repentance. He therefore bids them consider attentively with what fearful destruction they have cast themselves down to hell, that they
586"Return to him against whom you have entertained deep thoughts; in the same manner as you revolted, and have still revolted, from him, return now to him." — Jarchi. Among the commentators who belonged to the Hebrew nation, or wrote in the Hebrew language, Jarchi was probably held, on the ground of the first part of his paraphrase, to support that view which our Author condemns; but the second part of it, beginning with "in the same manner as" approaches very closely to the Reformer's own words. — Ed
587Piscator and others construe( לאשרlăăshĕr) as equivalent to( אליו, ממנו אשרēlāiv ăshĕr mĭmmĕnnū,) ``to him from whom.'' Vitringa does not reject this exposition, which he acknowledges to be supported by an analogous use of ,( מאשרmēăshĕr,) in Ruth 2:9; but he pronounces the rendering, ``according as.'' to be more elegant and probably more correct. Modern critics, however, approve of the meaning given in our common version. ``The syntax may be solved either by supposing `to him' to be understood, and giving( לאשרlăăshĕr) the sense of `with respect to whom,' or by assuming that, as both these ideas could be expressed by this one phrase, it was put but once in order to avoid the tautology.'' --- Alexander. The other mode of resolving the syntax, by bringing out the sense, ``to him from whom,'' appears to adhere more closely to the usage of the Hebrew language.