Isaiah 51:1

Hearken unto me, ye that follow after righteousness,.... After having declared the doom of the wicked, and those that trust to their own righteousness, the Lord returns to them that fear him, whom he

Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. Hearken to me - the God of your fathers.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 51 Abraham our pattern to trust in Christ; in his promises, and righteous salvation: this is constant, but men are transitory, . A prayer of the godly in affliction, . The Lord’ s answer, . He bewaileth Jerusalem, . The bitter cup taken from her, and given to her enemies, . Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness: now he turneth his speech again to the believing and godly Jews. That seek the Lord; that make it your chief care and business to seek favour and help from God. Look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged; consider the state of Abraham and Sarah, when they procreated Isaac, from whom Jacob and all of you sprang; for so he explains the metaphor in the next verse. He compareth the bodies of Abraham and Sarah unto a rock, or pit, or quarry out of which stones are hewed or digged, thereby implying that God in some sort actually did that which Christ said he was able to do, , even of stones to raise up children unto Abraham; it being then as impossible by the course of nature for Abraham and Sarah in that age to procreate a child, as it is to hew a living child out of a rock, or to dig one out of a pit of stone.

Isaiah 51:1 Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock [whence] ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit [whence] ye are digged.Ver. 1. Hearken unto me, ye that follow after righteousness.] Heb., Ye that pursue or follow hard after it, as Paul did. The speech is directed to those Jews that embraced the gospel; persuading them to persist in the faith, "in nothing terrified by their adversaries," since Almighty God would keep and help them, as he had done faithful Abraham and Sarah, their ancestors; to whom also he would of stones raise up sons in the conversion of the Gentiles, and could do it as easily as he had hewed the Hebrews, that great nation, out of aged Abraham, and superannuated Sarah; who are here compared to a dry rock, and a deep pit. And to the hole of the pit whence ye were digged.] Est honesta periphrasis actus coniugalis. The word here used is of the same root with Nekebah, the female kind of all creatures. Banim Meabanim.

LI. (1) Look unto the rock.—The implied argument is, that the wonder involved in the origin of Israel is as a ground of faith in its restoration and perpetuity. The rock is, of course, Abraham, the pit, Sarah.

CHAPTER LI The prophet exhorts the children of Abraham to trust in the Lord; and briefly, but beautifully, describes the great blessedness which should be the consequence, 1-3. Then, turning to the Gentiles, encourages them to look for a portion in the same salvation, 4, 5; the everlasting duration of which is majestically described, 6. And as it is everlasting, so is it sure to the righteous, notwithstanding all the machinations of their enemies, 7, 8. The faithful, then, with exultation and joy, lift their voices, reminding God of his wondrous works of old, which encourage them to look now for the like glorious accomplishment of these promises, 9-11. In answer to this the Divinity is introduced comforting them under their trials, and telling them that the deliverer was already on his way to save and to establish them, 12-16. On this the prophet turns to Jerusalem to comfort and congratulate her on so joyful a prospect. She is represented, by a bold image, as a person lying in the streets, under the intoxicating effects of the cup of the Divine wrath, without a single person from among her own people appointed to give her consolation, and trodden under the feet of her enemies; but, in the time allotted by the Divine providence, the cup of trembling shall be taken out of her hand, and put into that of her oppressors; and she shall drink it no more again for ever, 17-22. NOTES ON CHAP. LI Verse 1. Ye that follow after righteousness] The people who, feeling the want of salvation, seek the Lord in order to be justified. The rock] Abraham. The hole of the pit] Sarah; as explained in Isaiah 51:2.

Ch. Isaiah 51:1-16. Encouragements addressed to true IsraelitesThe strain of consolation, which was interrupted by the soliloquy of the Servant at ch. Isaiah 50:4, is now resumed, and is continued till we reach the fourth and last of the Servant-passages, Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12. Throughout this long passage (Isaiah 51:1 to Isaiah 52:12) the prophet’s thoughts are occupied with the near prospect of deliverance, and his high-strung emotion finds vent in a series of short impassioned oracles, mostly of a lyrical character. These may be divided into two groups, each consisting of three oracles. While those of the second group (Isaiah 51:17 to Isaiah 52:12) are addressed to the prostrate and desolate Zion, the first (Isaiah 51:1-16) contains words of cheer to the faithful but timid hearts in whom the prophet’s message had found an entrance. This section shews some points of contact with the preceding descriptions of the Servant, and the line of thought was probably influenced by the last of these, in Isaiah 50:4-9. The contents of the section are as follows:— i. Isaiah 51:1-8. A glowing and animated appeal to the believing exiles to put away the fears and misgivings which hinder their full acceptance of the promise of salvation. The thrice-repeated “Hearken to me” (see, however, on Isaiah 51:4) indicates a division into three strophes. (1) The first draws a lesson of encouragement from the example of the solitary patriarch Abraham, who by the blessing of Jehovah became the progenitor of a great nation. Let the true-hearted believers, therefore, take courage, in spite of the fewness of their number, for the same blessing rests on them, and will transform the waste places of Zion into a scene of joy and gladness (Isaiah 51:1-3). (2) The next strophe directs the hope of the loyal Israelites to the glorious future that belongs to those who wait for Jehovah’s salvation; though heaven and earth pass away that world-wide salvation is imperishable and eternal (Isaiah 51:4-6). (3). The last strophe, re-echoing one of the voices of the Prologue (Isaiah 40:6-8), reminds the exiles that the reproach they fear is that of frail and short-lived mortals, while the salvation they hope for endures for ever. ii. Isaiah 51:9-10. Here for a moment the prophetic discourse is interrupted by a magnificent apostrophe to the “arm” of Jehovah. The speakers are most probably those to whom the previous words were addressed. As if all their doubts had been swept away by the impressive appeals to which they have listened, their impatience breaks forth in this impetuous challenge to Jehovah to reveal His power as in the days of old. (Isaiah 51:11 has been inserted from ch. Isaiah 35:10.) iii. Isaiah 51:12-16. The Divine voice is again heard (in answer to the people’s prayer). Since their comforter is Jehovah Himself, the Creator of heaven and earth, how unreasonable is their craven fear of their cruel oppressors! (Isaiah 51:12-13). Towards the close, however, the connexion becomes very obscure (see the notes).

Hearken unto me - That is, to the God of their fathers, who now addresses them. They are regarded as in exile and bondage, and as desponding in regard to their prospects.

1. Hearken to me — This formula is used when there is a turn from one class of hearers to another.