“"Thus says the Lord God to my Christ [the] Lord, whose right hand I have held, that the nations may hear him, 'the powers of kings will I burst asunder; I will open before him the gates, and the cities shall not be closed to him.' " This very thing we see now fulfilled. For whose right hand does God the Father hold but Christ's, his Son? All nations have heard of him, that is, people of all nations have believed. Their preachers, the apostles, are pointed to in the psalms of David: "Into the entire earth," he says, "is gone out their sound, and to the ends of the earth their words." For on whom else have nations the world over believed but on the Christ who has now already come?… In all these places the name of the Christ has already come to reign. He is the one before whom the gates of all cities have been opened and to whom none are closed, before whom iron bars have been crumbled and brazen gates opened. There is a spiritual sense affixed to these expressions. The hearts of individuals, having been blockaded in various ways by the devil, are now unbarred by the faith of Christ. This promise has already been evidently fulfilled, inasmuch as in all these places there are people who live believing in the name of Christ.”

“(Chapter 45, Verses 1-2) Thus says the Lord to Cyrus, his anointed one, whom he has taken by the right hand to subdue nations before him and strip the loins of kings, to force gateways before him that their gates be closed no more: I will go before you, and level the mountains; I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron. I know that in this chapter not only many Latin but also Greek people greatly err, thinking that it is written: Thus says the Lord to my Christ, the Lord; so that it is understood, according to what we read elsewhere: The Lord rains from the Lord (Gen. II). And: The Lord said to my Lord (Ps. CIX, 1). For it is not κυρίῳ, which means Lord, but it is said to Cyrus, who is called Chores in Hebrew, the king of the Persians, who overcame Babylon and the Chaldeans. And with the Medes joined together, the charioteer of the chariot, that is, of the camel and the donkey, is read above. This one is called Christ, that is, the anointed of the Lord, which was a sign among the Hebrews of royal power, just as with us the emperor is given a diadem and purple robe: so among the Hebrews those who were to reign were anointed with oil. Hence Saul is also called the anointed of the Lord (1 Samuel 24). And in the Psalms we read: 'Do not touch my anointed ones, and do no harm to my prophets' (Psalm 105:15). He grasped and held the right hand of this man, so that no one could resist his strength. Let us read the history of Cyrus the Great, consisting of eight books by Xenophon, and we will see the prophecy of Isaiah fulfilled. What city did not yield to him? What king did not submit to him? What walls, before impregnable, were not brought down by his siege?”

“to His anointed one Every title of greatness is called anointing. Comp. (Num. 18:8) “To you I have given them for greatness (לְמָשְׁחָה).” Our Sages, however, said: To the King Messiah, the Holy One, blessed be He, says, “I complain to you about Cyrus,” as it is stated in Tractate Megillah 12a. to flatten nations before him Heb. לְרַד, to spread out and to flatten nations before him. לְרַד is equivalent to לְרַדֵּד, to spread out. and the loins of kings I will loosen This is an expression of weakness and breaking strength, for girding the loins constitutes arming with strength. Comp. (Job 38:3) “Gird up your loins like a mighty man”; (Jer. 1:17) “And you gird up your loins”; (Job 12:21) “And the belt of the mighty He loosens”; an expression of breaking strength. to open...before him the portals of the gates of Babylon. Gates are the space of the opening of the gate; portals are those with which they open and lock the gate.”

“His anointed. According to some, the prophet; others think that Cyrus is meant; either explanation is admissible; comp. The Lord hath anointed me (61:1), and Anoint Hazael to be king (1 K. 19:15). לרד To subdue. It is infinitive of רדד ; comp. הרדד who subdueth (Ps. 144:2); as to its form comp. לְעַד to prey (Zeph. 3:8)”

“857. Thus says the Lord to my anointed. After he strengthened them to the firm expectation of divine promises, in this part, he begins to describe the divine promises for their consolation. And this is divided into two parts: in the first, he promises liberation from evils; in the second, he promises salvation in good things, thus says the Lord: keep judgment (ch. 56). The first of these is divided into two: in the first, he promises them the benefit of liberation; in the second, he excludes every impediment to liberation, thus says the Lord: what is this bill of the divorce (ch. 50). The first of these is divided into three: in the first, he foreshadows their liberator; in the second, he foretells the destruction of those who capture and detain them, Bel (ch. 46); in the third, he promises the liberation of the Jews: hear these things, O house of Jacob (ch. 48). The first of these is divided into two: in the first, he foretells the liberator; in the second, he shows the consequent utility: thus says the Lord the Holy One of Israel (Isa 45:11). The first of these is divided into three: in the first, he foretells the power of the liberator; in the second, he describes his birth: drop down dew, you heavens (Isa 45:8); in the third, he refutes the contradiction of the unbelievers, where it says, woe to him that gainsays (Isa 45:9). 858. Concerning the first, he does two things. First, he sets out the height of power to which he was exalted, against three things which tend to evade the hand of a king. Either because of multitude, and as to this, he says: my anointed, that is, my king, not because of his anointing, but because of his royal dignity, because among them, kings were anointed; whose right hand I have taken hold of, as the helper of his works, to subdue the various nations: the Lord shall cause your enemies (Deut 28:7).”

“Nevertheless, I assert according to the Scriptures that He was able to spread out lowly places and open fields, just as He Himself says: 'I will walk before you and make mountains plain.' The force of the water itself could also make deeper things, which had settled, more turbulent: with such a movement of waves and such a surge of a more agitated element, which daily twists the depths of the sea and turns the sands out of the deep.”

“Let us not fear punishment. By this faith we shall escape punishment.… This is the correct attitude of the servants of God to be. For if those who were brought up under the old dispensation, when death was not yet slain, or his "brazen gates broken down" or his "iron bars cut into pieces" so nobly encountered their end, how destitute of all defense or excuse shall we be, if, after having had the benefit of such great grace, we attain not even to the same measure of virtue as they did, now when death is only a name, devoid of reality. For death is nothing more than a sleep, a journey, a migration, a rest, a tranquil haven, an escape from trouble and a freedom from the cares of this present life!”

“I. The support of God or the heavenly prince of Persia is to be understood; comp. Dan. 10:20. והדורים The crooked places. It is the opposite of ישר straight. Some derive it from הדר glory; it means mountains, and is as to its form either adjective or participle passive. דלתות The doors that are in the gates of the city.”

“Or because of strength, and as to this he says: I will go before you, preparing the place of your victory, by sending terror of you among your adversaries, the great ones, powerful above others, like the Babylonians; the gates of brass, the most powerful cities: he has broken gates of brass, and burst iron bars (Ps 107:16).”

“The higher and profounder spiritual meaning is the "hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge," which the Holy Spirit speaking through Isaiah calls "dark and unseen and concealed treasures." These treasures require for their discovery the help of God, who alone is able to "break in pieces the gates of brass" by which they are shut in and concealed and to burst the iron bolts and bars that prevent us from entering in and reaching all those truths written in veiled language in Genesis concerning the various races of souls and the seeds and generations named there, whether closely akin to Israel or widely separated from his posterity.”

“Or because of hiding, and as to this, he says: and I will give you hidden treasures, of various kings, whose cities he took: he discovers deep things out of darkness (Job 12:22). 859. Second, he sets out the fruit of this benefit. And first, in himself, second, in others: that they may know who are from the rising of the sun (Isa 45:6). Concerning the first, he does two things. First, he sets out the fruit of power sought by God in Cyrus, namely, knowledge of him: that you may know that I am the Lord: he calls those things that are not (Rom 4:17).”

“(Verse 4) Because of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen one, I have called you by your name: I have likened you to myself, and you have not known me. These things, he says, I attribute to you because of my servant Jacob, and my chosen Israel, and I called you by your name, just as I called Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and long before, I foretold you, Isaac and Josiah, so that you would not think that he is the Christ, to whom you are compared, and in whose type and image you have preceded. But you did not know me, that is, you worshiped idols, not God.”

“For the sake of My servant Jacob that you take him out of Babylonian exile. yet you have not known Me You did not do My will, for I said, (infra v. 13) “He shall build My city,” but he when he assumed the throne said, “Whoever among you is from all His people, may ascend.” He gave them permission to go, but he cast off all the trouble from upon his neck.”

“And the liberation of his people: for the sake of my servant Jacob, namely, that you should liberate him from captivity: who knows whether you are not therefore come to the kingdom (Esth 4:14). Second, he shows that this benefit is partly frustrated on the part of Cyrus himself: I have even called you by your name, foretelling your name, I have made you like, other holy men in this, whose names were previously foretold by the Lord; you have not known me, to be the only true God, as you remain in idolatry.”

“(Verse 5) I am the Lord, and there is no other: besides me there is no God: I have girded you, and you have not known me. I have equipped you with strength; I have made you conquer many nations, and you did not know your helper. In this respect, I cannot help but be amazed at the foolishness of the readers; that they would refer these things to Christ, through whom the world is reconciled to God. I, says the Lord, and there is no one besides me. Besides my word, reason, power, and wisdom, which are in me, there is no other God.”

“[Cyrus] also was a slave to the error of idolatry. Even though he had received kingship from the God of the universe and obtained such great assistance from him, he had not known the dispenser of these benefits. God had nevertheless deemed him worthy, despite his error, of all these benefits. He had appointed him as an instrument of chastisement to the Babylonians and of the liberation of Israel. However, I have found some copies that bear this text: "Meanwhile, Israel, you have not known me." But I have not found the presence of the word Israel, either in the Hebrew text or with the other interpreters or in the Hexapla version [Origen's compilation] of the Septuagint. And it is justifiably so, for it is not Israel that he is accusing of scorning him, but Cyrus. Then he also indicates the cause of the liberation of the Jews.”

“"I have called you by name, I have surnamed you, though you do not know me." God addresses these words to Cyrus, so as to say, I have honored you to such an extent that, even before you were born, I had made your name illustrious and made you a part of my design to give freedom, through your hands, back to my people who are so dear to me. Even though I have honored you so much through my prophets, you were never interested in knowing me. Even though I acted, so that every nation might know me through you, you did not want to recognize me as the master and the creator of universe, but you have given the name of gods to others instead of me.”

“And inasmuch as this Son is undivided and inseparable from the Father, so is he to be reckoned as being in the Father, even when he is not named. The fact is, if he had named him expressly, he would have separated him, saying in so many words, "Beside me there is none else, except my Son." In short, he would have made his Son actually another, after excepting him from others.”

“(Verse 6) So that they may know, from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is no one besides me ((Previously it was added: God)). I am the Lord, and there is no other. And I have done these things so that from the East and the West the whole world may recognize that there is no other God besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other. For the Father is in the Son, and the Son is in the Father. He who speaks in the Gospel: I and the Father are one (John 10:30). And it is written in the book of Ezra that Cyrus wrote to all nations that there is no God except the God of Israel. Or it is to be understood in this way, that the release of captives and the mercy of God towards his people has made God known to all nations.”

“860. That they may know. Here he shows the fruit in others. And first, he shows that in others he seeks the fruit of knowledge of him: who are from the rising of the sun, that is, living throughout the entire world; and this was fulfilled in that, in his epistles, Cyrus wrote the praise of God everywhere; or because everyone praised God together seeing the liberation of the Jews: and let them know that the Lord is your name: you alone are the most High over all the earth (Ps 83:18).”

“Now (like many other persons nowadays, especially those who have a heretical proclivity), while morbidly brooding over the question of the origin of evil, Marcion's perception became blunted by the very irregularity of his researches. When he found the Creator declaring, "I am he that creates evil," Marcion had already concluded from other arguments that satisfy only twisted minds that God is the author of evil. So Marcion now applied to the Creator the figure of the corrupt tree bringing forth evil fruit, that is, moral evil, and then presumed that there ought to be another god, after the analogy of the good tree producing its good fruit. Accordingly, finding in Christ a different disposition—one of a simple and pure benevolence, differing from the Creator—Marcion readily argued that in his Christ had been revealed a new and strange divinity; and then with a little leaven he leavened the whole lump of the faith, flavoring it with the acidity of his own heresy.”

“I form the light, etc. Things which are opposite to each other are mentioned in this verse. ובורא חשך And causeth darkness. ברא has here the same meaning as גזר to decree; for darkness is nothing by itself, it is but the absence of light. The same is to be said war, illness. But I. E. explains that these evils are but a certain relation of existing beings to each other; and finds the verb to decree or to command to be more applicable to them than the verb to create. concerning ובורא רע And causeth evil. By evil war is meant as the opposite of peace, or the sickness under which man labours, as being at war with his constitution. These antitheses are used to indicate that in the same way God will strengthen Cyrus and weaken the king of Babylon.”

“Second, he sets out the proof of his divinity, which can be known from the fact that he can afflict and liberate: I am the Lord, etc. I form the light, the day or consolation; I create evil, of punishment: is there evil in a city, which the Lord has not done? (Amos 3:6); the Lord made all things double, one against another (Sir 42:24).”

“"Rejoice, O heavens, from above," that is, rejoice over the salvation of the nations. The angels are delighted at the repentance of a single sinner. "And the clouds will rain down righteousness." The clouds, which rain down righteousness, are the apostles and the priests who justify through the absolution, which they give by means of baptism. "Let the earth open, that salvation may be multiplied." Justice, symbolized through the earth, is poured on the mind of the nations, and salvation shall multiply in every region. "And let it cause righteousness to spring up also." In the salvation of the nations also their justice is multiplied, and salvation and justice spring up and grow at the same time.”

“(Chapter 45, Verse 8) Drop down, ye heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain the just: let the earth be opened, and bud forth the saviour, and let justice spring up together: I the Lord have created him. Septuagint: Let the heavens above rejoice, and let the clouds rain down righteousness: let the earth bring forth salvation, and let mercy spring up, and let justice bud together: I the Lord have created thee. There is a double interpretation of this passage. For some believe that it refers to the previous statements, and that when Cyrus the king releases the captives, heaven and earth rejoice: metaphorically, this signifies those who dwell in heaven and on earth. Others separate it from what has gone before, and consider this chapter to be the beginning of its own section, and to prophesy concerning the coming of the Lord, which is commanded to come with clouds, about which it was written above (in ch. V, 6): 'I will command the clouds that they rain not upon it,' that is, upon the vineyard of Israel; and concerning those to whom the truth of God has come, so that they may rain righteousness upon the world or righteousness; and let the earth open, and let it bring forth a Savior. Concerning whom it is sung in the Psalms: 'Truth has sprung from the earth, and righteousness has looked down from heaven' (Ps. LXXXIV, 12); or, according to the Septuagint: 'The earth has brought forth mercy and righteousness together,' so that both sinners may obtain mercy and the righteous may receive rewards. And furthermore, I, the Lord, who created him, or, I, the Lord who created you, shall not be scandalized by the name of the creature, who has read him to be a worm, a servant, and a plant sprung from the earth.”

“861. Drop down dew. Here he describes the birth of Cyrus under the metaphor of the fruit of a tree, for whose generation the moisture of the earth and rain and dew from heaven are required; so in the birth of Cyrus, divine mercy, intending to liberate God's people through him, coincides with lower nature, which is signified. Thus he does three things: he describes his springing up: drop down; the fruit of his birth, and let justice spring up; and the first principle of his birth, I the Lord. Let the clouds rain the just, neuter or masculine. Or by heaven and the clouds is signified the prophets and the other just ones who by foretelling him and begging God for him with tears, in a certain manner rained him: he shall come down like rain (Ps 72:6). 869. Mystically, drop down dew (Isa 45:8), concerns the birth of Christ. In which he sets out three things: the principle of the birth, the birth of the infant, and the fruit of the birth. The principle is threefold. First, heaven dropping down dew, as the effective principle, namely, the operation of the three persons, because of which the plural, you heavens, is used: the Father, in sending the Son: but when the fullness of the time was come, God sent his Son (Gal 4:4); the Son, in taking flesh: he humbled himself (Phil 2:8); the Holy Spirit, in causing his conception: that which is conceived in her, is of the Holy Spirit (Matt 1:20). The second principle is the clouds raining, which is the preparative principle, in which is understood the office of the angel who announces the birth: the clouds spread their light (Job 37:11-12); the prophecy of the prophets (Luke 1:11, 26): dark waters in the clouds of the air (Ps 18:11); which he had promised before, by his prophets (Rom 1:2); the desire of the just: who makes the clouds your chariot (Ps 104:3); presently the Lord, whom you seek, and the angel of the testament, whom you desire, shall come to his temple (Mal 3:1). The third principle is the earth budding forth, which is the receptive principle, namely, the Blessed Virgin, about whom it says in Psalm 85:12: our earth shall yield her fruit; whose affections are opened to find the privilege of grace: fear not, Mary (Luke 1:30); many daughters have gathered together riches: you have surpassed them all (Prov 31:29); whose intellect is opened to believe the word of the angel: blessed are you that have believed (Luke 1:45); whose womb is opened to conceive the Son of God, behold you shall conceive in your womb and shall bring forth a son (Luke 1:31). 870. But his birth is compared to the dew, the rain, and the bud, because Christ is the dew for refreshing, above: as a cloud of dew in the day of harvest (Isa 18:4); the rain for making fertile: he shall come down like rain (Ps 72:6), below: as the rain and the snow come down from heaven (Isa 55:10); the bud for bearing fruit: I will raise up to David a just branch (Jer 23:5). 871. The fruit is justice, which is born with him in three ways: that which he fulfilled in his works: so it becomes us to fulfill all justice (Matt 3:15); that which he taught in his words, below: I, that speak justice (Isa 63:1); that which he gave as a gift: he is made unto us wisdom and justice (1 Cor 1:30).”

“For we, who do not know at all what the future has in store and see merely our present circumstances, misjudge what will profit us. God … sees what is to come as if it were present. These prophecies are addressed, however, to those who make themselves God's judges. To them may also fittingly be cited those words of Scripture, "shall the clay say to the potter" and so forth.How shall we not shun a person who legislates in opposition to the laws of God and issues decrees in opposition to the works of providence, whereas he dares not breathe a word against human laws? Therefore, leaving such exaggerations, or, to speak more truly, blasphemies, on one side, let us demonstrate the error of denying particular providence while acknowledging universal and general providence.”

“(Verse 9 and following) Woe to those who contradict their maker, a pot made of clay, and say to the one who formed them, 'What are you making?' or 'Your work has no hands.' Woe to those who say to their father, 'What are you begetting?' or to their mother, 'What are you in labor with?' This is what the Lord says, the Holy One of Israel, and its maker: Ask me about the things to come, concerning my children, and about the work of my hands, give me orders. I made the earth and created humans on it, I stretched out the heavens with my hands, and I command all their host. I have raised him up to righteousness, and I will direct all his ways. He will build my city, and he will release my captivity, not for a price or with gifts, says the Lord of hosts. LXX: What better have I done than clay to a potter? Will the plowman plow the earth? Will the clay say to the potter, what are you doing, since you do not work and do not have hands? Woe to him who says to his father, what do you beget, and to his mother, what do you give birth? For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, who created what is to come. Ask me about my sons and command me concerning the work of my hands. I made the earth and created man upon it. I, with my own hand, stretched out the heavens; I commanded all the stars. I raised him up with righteousness as a king; all his ways are straight. He himself will build my city and will turn the captivity of my people, not with price nor with gifts, says the Lord God of hosts. Those who want to apply what was said to the character of Cyrus interpret this place as follows: With me promising great things, because of the return of my people to Judea, I will subjugate all the kingdoms to Cyrus: Woe to him who is incredulous and does not believe what I say will come to pass, as if clay and broken pottery were to criticize its potter why it was made or why it was made in that way; and a work should speak against its artist's hands; and a son should criticize his father and mother, why he was poured out onto the earth by the law of nature. Since I am the Holy Lord of Israel who formed Cyrus and caused him to be born by my command, it is pointless for you to doubt the future. Rather, you should know that my sons, the people of Israel, and the work of my hands are not subject to your control, but to my will. I, who created darkness and evil for them in the past, will now give them light and peace. For I am the God who did not create the earth in vain, but for the purpose of habitation by humans. I have extended and established the heavens as the dwelling place of the angels. I have adorned them with the diversity of the stars, and I have commanded each one to run its course in order, and to fill the different spaces of days, months, and years. Therefore, if I have made the heavens and the earth, what is it of great significance if I create one king who will obey my commands and direct all his ways? For he will be commanded to build my city, Jerusalem, and to bring the captives back to Judah. Not for reward or gifts, but for my own willingness, says the Lord God of hosts. But whoever brings understanding to Christ refers to his explanation in the following words: Woe to those who contradict God and do not believe that Christ will come; as if clay and a vessel were to contradict its potter. Woe to him who says to the Almighty Father, why do you beget a son, and to the holy woman Mary, what are you giving birth to? Of whom the Apostle also writes (Galatians 4): That Christ was made from a woman, made under the law. Therefore, the Holy Lord of Israel, who formed the Savior in a virgin womb, says, speaking through Gabriel: The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you (Luke 1:35). And what will be born in you, holy, will be called the Son of God. Let the earthen vessel ask me, and let it seek the secrets of the future. And let it command me how I should regenerate the adopted children who will believe in my Son. And the evangelist John says: Whoever received him, he gave them the power to become children of God (John 1:12). But if I made the earth to be inhabited by men, and stretched out the heavens above, and adorned them with the variety of stars, so that the worshipers of God might dwell on earth: why is it surprising that I sent my Son, the righteous king, into the world, or raised him from the dead, whose ways are all straight? For he did not commit sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth (1 Peter 2:22). Whoever builds my city upon a rock, against which the gates of Hell shall not prevail (Matth. XVI); and which, when placed on a mountain, cannot be hidden (Ibid., V): and who first binds the possessed with chains, and sets all the children free, not for a price or reward: for we have been saved freely, both those who listen and those who act: You have received freely, freely give (Matth. X, 8). Some attribute these words to Zorobabel, who led the captives out of Babylon, and built the city, and constructed the temple, as prophesied by Haggai and Zechariah, who said: The hands of Zorobabel have laid the foundation of this house, and his hands shall complete it (Zach. IV, 9). But we say more correctly and truly, neither did Cyrus build the city that was later built under Nehemiah, nor were all its roads straight. To whom it was said above: I have taken you, and girded you: and you have not known me; and Zerubbabel, who was under the authority and power of the Medes and Persians, exceeds all that is said. For Zerubbabel did not build the city, nor did he release the captivity, nor can he be called a king, who, living under other kings, lacked this title. But what do the Seventy mean, who translated at the beginning of this chapter: What have I done better than the clay of the potter? Will the one who tills, till the earth? I do not know: unless perhaps I follow the edition of Theodotion, who put instead: Woe to him who contends against his maker, the one who tills tilling the earth: because he would wound the hearts of mortals in repentance, and in the manner of plows, he would undermine and overthrow it. But even this interpretation is frivolous. Furthermore, because a potter, that is, our Creator and Maker, is called God, and the apostle Paul speaks in his Epistle to the Romans: Does the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why have you made me like this? Does not the potter have power over the clay, to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor? (Romans 9:20) And in Jeremiah it is written in more detail, where he narrates among other things: I went down to the potter's house, and behold, he was making a work on the wheel, and the vessel that he made was marred in his hands. And again he made another vessel from the same clay, as it pleased him in his sight. And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Cannot I do with you, as this potter, O house of Israel, saith the Lord? Behold as clay is in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel (Jeremiah 18:3-4). And that which is written: I have commanded the stars to all, and I have given opportunity to some, so that the stars may have reason and soul and sense. For they say that He would not have commanded [these things] unless they were intelligible: not remembering [what is] written in Jonah: 'The Lord commanded a burning wind' (Jonah 4:8). And again: 'The Lord commanded the morning worm' (Ibid., 7). And that in the Gospel the Savior rebuked the winds and the sea (Luke 8), in which it is clear that there is no sense or reason.”

“Woe to him who contends with his Creator Isaiah prophesied concerning Habakkuk, who was destined to stand and complain about the length of Nebuchadnezzar’s success (1:2): “How long, O Lord, have I entreated [You]?...” (v. 14) “And [why] have You made man like the fish of the sea?” And the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Isaiah, Why does this one come to contend with Me? Does he think that I do not give thought to save My people? When the time lapses, “that the land will appease its sabbaths” (Lev. 26:34). has no place [lit. has no hands,] has no place.”

“הוי Hi! Interjectio vocandi. The prophet calls unto him, that does not believe in the words of God, who foretells these future events. רב את יוצר That striveth with his maker. יוצר has here the same meaning as in Ps. 2:9; namely potter. The potsherd. The man who is like a potsherd of earthenware. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? This cannot be ; but he who fashions the clay does what he wishes. ופעלך אין ידים לו Or thy work, etc. Or shall the clay say to him who fashions it, What thou doest is not done by thy hands. I think that this phrase contains the same idea as the preceding, namely : Thy work is made without hands; thou hast no power to do it as thou likest.”

“862. Woe to him that gainsays. Here he excludes the contradiction of the unbelievers. And first, under the metaphor of a craftsman who fashions clay; for as clay does not contradict the one who fashions it, so the Jews ought not contradict God, by not believing that anyone could arise who would conquer the Babylonians; earthen pots or samia, earthen vessels, so-called because this art was invented in Samos; your work is without hands, as if to say: without the proper working of the hands, or as jugs have hands, above: as if the clay should think against the potter (Isa 29:16); shall the thing formed say to him that formed it: why have you made me thus? (Rom 9:20).”

“Second, under the metaphor of a father who begets: woe to him that says to his father, as if to say: I am a father begetting Cyrus and like a mother conceiving him in intention, and therefore you ought not contradict me in this, just as you ought not contradict the mother who gave birth to you, below: shall not I that make others to bring forth children, myself bring forth, says the Lord? Shall I, that give generation to others, be barren? (Isa 66:9); or he speaks against those diviners who foretold that many bad things would come from the birth of Cyrus, saying it would have been better if he had not been born; or against those of the Jews who were saying: why should we beget children to be born in captivity?”

“There is no doubt that human wills cannot resist the will of God, "who has done whatsoever he pleased in heaven and on earth," and who has even "formed the things that are to come." Nor can the human will prevent [God] from doing what he wills, seeing that even with human wills, he does what he wills, when he wills to do it.”

“"He who made the things that will be," therefore, the things that were to be done, he willed them to be spoken of as if done, because these things which come about changeably in time, he has made firm with the unchangeable eternity of his plan. Therefore, in those things as well, in which the effect of the work has not yet come to be, the plan of the Creator remains firm from eternity.”

“Ask Me about the signs etc. Heb. הָאוֹתִיוֹת. The ‘heh’ is voweled with a ‘kamatz.’ This indicates that it is not the interrogative, but this is its explanation: If you have come to ask Me, you and the prophets, ask Me about the signs of the heavens and the wonders that you see coming about on the earth; about them you may ask Me, what they are, but about My children and about the work of My hands, Israel, for whose sake I formed everything, shall you come to command Me and to complain before Me? do you command Me? This is the interrogative. Must you command Me concerning My children? I have already created the salvation for them in the thought that has entered My mind [lit. has come before Me]. How so? I aroused him with righteousness. This is stated regarding Cyrus.”

“And his maker. I am he who made Israel. שְׁאׇלוּגׅי Ask me. It is imperative like שְׁמׇלוּגׅי hear me (Gen. 23:8), the kamez being substituted for zeré because of the guttural letter (א) . ,mubhWill ye command me. It is a question.—As the potter knows what to do with the clay, so I know what to do with Israel, who is my son. The other nations, the Non-Israelites are addressed in these words.”

“863. Thus says the Lord. Here he sets out the utility of the liberator. And first, as to the liberation of the Jews; second, as to the conversion of the gentiles: for thus says the Lord (Isa 45:18). Concerning the first, he does three things. First, he shows his authority to foretell future things: his, namely Cyrus's, maker (plastes); concerning my children, the Jews, to be liberated, or whatever others I will to be born, and not the idols, above: should not the people seek of their God? (Isa 8:19). But the Gloss reads this ironically.”

“I have made the earth, etc. How will you command me concerning my children, when the whole universe belongs to me? I have created earth and man upon it; my hands have stretched out the heavens, and all their hosts have I commanded, and consequently they were created. I commanded is poetically said for I spoke as in the verse He commanded and they were created (Ps. 148:5)”

“[The Septuagint reads], "You are God, and we knew it not." The words "we knew it not," spoken in the person of those of old who did not know him, occur only in the Septuagint. The Hebrew is different and is rendered by Aquila, "God then is strong and hidden, God that saves Israel," and by Theodotion, "Therefore a strong secret God preserves Israel." It is remarkable how [Isaiah] calls Christ a hidden God and gives the reason clearly as to why he calls him God alone among the ones begotten after the First and Unbegotten, namely, the dwelling of the Father in him.…According to this, then, the true and only God must be One and alone owning the name in full right. The Second, by sharing in the being of the true God, is thought worthy to share his name, not being God in himself or existing apart from the Father, but altogether being, living and existing as God, through the presence of the Father in him. [He is] one in being with the Father, and constituted God from him and through him, holding his being as well as his divinity not from himself but from the Father.”

“And the direction of its execution: I have raised, to worthiness, him, Cyrus, using the past tense for the future, to carry out justice concerning the Chaldeans: in all your ways think on him, and he will direct your steps (Prov 3:6); and he promises the liberation: he, namely, Cyrus, shall build, promising and paying the expenses for building, below: you were sold gratis, and you shall be redeemed, without money (Isa 52:3).”

“For taking into his hands the book of Isaiah he found as he read the section which contained the prophecy concerning himself; since Isaiah says in that section: Thus saith the Lord to his Anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden to subdue nations before him, and I will loose the loins of kings. I will open the doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut. I will go before thee and will level mountains. I will break in pieces the doors of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron; and I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places will I present to thee, that thou mayest know I am the Lord, which call thee by thy name, even the God of Israel. For Jacob my servant's sake and Israel my chosen, I have called thee by thy name and I will accept thee; and shortly afterwards: I have raised him up a king in righteousness, and I will make straight all his ways. He shall build my city, and lead back the captivity of my people, not for price nor reward, saith the Lord of hosts. Cyrus, struck with wonder at the foreknowledge and the prediction, and finding his own name expressly announced by the Prophet beforehand, ordered the people to go up to Jerusalem, after having released them from captivity, and given them funds wherewith to build their city and their temple. And not only did he do this, but those also who came after him did the same until the City and the Temple were finished”

“Would you receive yet a third testimony to Christ's godhead? Hear Isaiah saying, "Egypt has labored, and the merchandise of Ethiopia," and soon after, "In you shall they make supplication, because God is in you, and there is no God except you. For you are God, and we knew it not, the God of Israel, the Savior." You see that the Son is God, having in himself God the Father, saying almost the very same which he has said in the Gospels. … And again he has not said, "I and the Father am one" but "I and the Father are one," that we should neither separate them nor make a confusion of Son-Father.”

“The toil of Egypt etc. I have informed how I will save My children from the hand of Babylon, for I have aroused Cyrus for that purpose with My righteousness. I further inform you of the salvation from Sennacherib that will take place in the days of Hezekiah. When he returns (supra 36:36) from marching upon Tirhaka, king of Cush, he will return to Jerusalem with all the valuable treasures of Cush, and Egypt, who will go to aid Cush, in his possession, and he will come with those spoils and fall in Jerusalem, and Hezekiah and his people will plunder everything. So is it delineated in Seder Olam (ch. 23) that it is stated concerning Sennacherib. men of stature Tall people. over to you Jerusalem. they shall come over in chains For Sennacherib brought them there, with neck-irons fastened to them, and after his defeat, Hezekiah stood and released all those captives, who became converted to Judaism and recognized the kingdom of Heaven. Only in you is God They will acknowledge that there is no God but the Lord alone. ([Mss. and K’li Paz read:] but to Israel.)”

“The labour of Egypt, etc. This verse shows that Cyrus was also to conquer Egypt, and to carry the inhabitants thereof away into captivity; the way, as is well known, led through. Palestine, which is situated in the midst between Elam and Egypt. Men of measure. Men of great measure; for all men have a certain measure; comp. show thyself a man═show thyself a brave man (1 Kgs. 2:2). Surely God is in thee. These are the words which they will confess and declare; this was in fact the case after the return of Israel from the Babylonian captivity.”

“865. Third, where it says, thus says the Lord, he promises the exaltation of the liberated as to three things. First, as to the adherence of foreigners, setting out their adherence: the labor of Egypt, their riches, and they themselves, as to the many who had followed them: ten men of all languages of the Gentiles shall take hold (Zech 8:23); or he says this of those who adhered to Christ; labor, in idolatry will cease, the earthly business; and the subjection of the adherents: they shall walk after you, subject to you, with hands bound with manacles, that is, chains for binding hands, as if to say: so humiliated before you like those who are bound in such a manner; or with the chains of the precepts of Christ, below: they shall come bowing down to you (Isa 60:14); and he sets out the confession of truth: only in you, namely, they will say this.”

“Indeed, You are a God Who conceals Himself And so they shall say to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Indeed, You have given us to understand (we understand [Mss. and K’li Paz]) that to collect the debts of Your people, You conceal yourself from showing Your victory. So to speak, You have not the ability, and when Your mercy is aroused, You are the God of Israel, the Savior.” So it is explained in Mechilta (Ex. 14:4).”

“Verily thou art a God, etc. Then they will confess to God and say, It is true that thou art God who hid himself from the people in which He delighted, and now thou art the God of the Israelites, who helps them. Some say that אל נסתר ═ אל מסתתר invisible God, and explain the verse thus: God, though invisible, revealed himself for the sake of Israel. This explanation, however, is not supported by the rules of Hebrew grammar, מסתתר being Hithpael, and signifying who hid himself.”

“(Vers. 18) Because this is what the Lord says, the one who created the heavens, the one who formed the earth and made it, the one who established it; he did not create it in vain, but formed it to be inhabited. I am the Lord, and there is no other. LXX: Thus says the Lord who made the heavens: this is the God who revealed the earth and made it, he prepared it: he did not make it empty, but formed it to be inhabited. I am the Lord, and there is no other. He calls Egypt, and Ethiopia, and the Sabaeans with their exalted men, through whom the salvation of all barbarian nations and the conversion of the whole world to God is shown, God shows His justice; so that the Lord is not only of the Jews, but also of the Gentiles. For He is the maker of heaven and earth equally the God of all, and He created the earth for no other reason than that it should be the habitation of mankind who would worship and understand their Creator, and despise all idols.”

“866. For thus says the Lord. Here he sets out the other utility as to the conversion of the gentiles. And concerning this he does three things. First, he introduces five reasons leading to conversion, the first of which is taken from the creation of things: God himself that formed the earth: who made heaven and earth (Ps 146:6); second, from his love for men, for he gave them the earth as a dwelling place: he did not create it in vain: the heaven of heaven is the Lord's: but the earth he has given to the children of men (Ps 115:16).”

“(Vers. 19) I did not speak in secret, in a dark place on the earth. I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, 'Seek me in vain.' I am the Lord, speaking truth, declaring what is right. LXX: I have not spoken in secret, nor in a dark place on the earth. I have not spoken in secret, in a place of a land of darkness: I have not said to the seed of Jacob: Seek me in vain. I am the Lord that speak justice, that declare right things. For on Mount Sinai, from its lofty summit, he spoke these words to the listening people: You shall have no other gods before me, nor shall you make for yourself an idol (Exod. XX, 3, 4). But it is better to believe this saying about the preaching of the Gospel: For Moses spoke to the people in the hidden solitude alone. But the sound of the Apostles went forth into the whole world, and their words reached to the ends of the earth (Psal. XVIII). I did not say, he said, that I am seeking the seed of Jacob in vain. For I have promised them the kingdom of heaven, and I spoke first to them: I have come only for the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matth. XXV, 24). And for this reason I spoke of justice and proclaimed what is right, or the truth, so that, with the images of the Law and the ceremonies set aside, they would follow the truth of the Gospel.”

“Not in secret did I speak When I gave the Torah, and I did not say for naught and in vain to the seed of Jacob, Seek Me, but to receive great reward. I am the Lord Who speaks righteousness Since I commenced to speak to them concerning My righteousness, to inform them of the giving of their reward, afterwards I told them things that are right, My statutes and My laws, for before the giving of the Torah it was said to them, “And now, if you heed, etc., you shall be for Me a treasure...a kingdom of priests, etc.” (Ex. 19:5f.).”

“I have not spoken, etc. I have not made the earth in vain, how then should I say to the Israelites Seek ye me in vain. Many refer this verse to the revelation on Sinai; but I refer it to those future events, of which the Lord informed the prophet, and which the prophet announced to Israel and all other nations ; this may be gathered from the words מגיד מישרים I declare things that are right.”

“Third, from the manifestation of truth foretold: I have not spoken in secret, as if to say, the things that natural reason prescribes are to be done, or of the preaching of the Christian faith: I have spoken openly to the world (John 18:20); fourth, from the utility of his precepts: I have not said to the seed of Jacob: seek me in vain: in keeping them there is a great reward (Ps 19:11); fifth, from the equity of his precepts: I am the Lord that speak justice, below: I, that speak justice (Isa 63:1).”

“(Vers. 20) Gather together and come, draw near, you who have been saved from the nations. They have no knowledge, those who carry about their wooden idols and pray to a god who cannot save. LXX: Assemble yourselves, and come, and draw near together, ye that are saved of the Gentiles: they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven work, and pray to a god that cannot save. But because they did not want to believe and judged themselves unworthy of salvation, therefore I say to the Gentiles: Gather from all over the world; and come and join me, all of you who have been saved from the Gentiles. By which he shows that not all nations will believe immediately, but gradually and in part. Finally, he rebukes those who remained in their former error, saying: They did not know those who lift up the wood of their carved image, and they pray to a God who does not save. And the meaning is: They did not understand my words, burdened by the weight of their idols, and hoping in them, in which there is no salvation.”

“But Emmanuel appeared who led with courage those who were snared. He endured for us the death of the flesh so that as Isaiah says in an evangelical way, the scattered children of God would be gathered into one … to gather, that is, to be bound together in one faith and like-mindedness. [They are] gathered by God the ruler of all through holiness and righteousness … and "brought near through the blood of Christ." … For it is through faith that understanding grows so that it is not in doubt. Even though faith might be undermined by deceit of ill counsel or led astray into ruin by ancient wickedness, we can quickly return to God and receive the light of the true divine knowledge and with a deliberation that comes from an upright mind constantly pursue the better things. Consider then and take counsel, all who have been saved from among the nations.”

“approach Heb. הִתְנַגְּשׁוּ, an expression of approaching (הַגָּשָׁה) and the ‘nun’ is attached to it, as one says “they were struck (הִתְנַגְּפוּ)”; “they will be struck (יִתְנַגְּפוּ).” you survivors of the nations who survived the sword of Nebuchadnezzar. who carry their graven wooden image...do not know to understand knowledge.”

“867. Second, where it says, assemble yourselves, he enjoins upon the Jews the calling of the gentiles, recalling their salvation: assemble yourselves, as though to hear my precept, you that are saved, liberated from the captivity to the gentiles, below: I will send of them that shall be saved, to the Gentiles (Isa 66:19); he also sets out the necessity of the calling, namely, the error of the gentiles, they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven work: you shall see in Babylon gods of gold, and of silver, and of stone, and of wood borne upon shoulders, causing fear to the Gentiles (Bar 6:3).”

“(Vers. 21) Announce, and come, and counsel together: Who has declared this from the beginning, and from then on predicted it? Is it not I, the Lord? There is no other God besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me. LXX: Tell ye, and come, and consult together: who hath declared this from the beginning, who hath foretold this from that time? Have not I the Lord, and there is no God else besides me? A just God and a saviour, there is none besides me. Therefore, the Apostles are commanded to proclaim the truth opportune and importune (2 Timothy 4), and to devise a plan for the salvation of the nations. But, that is, in order that many might be saved, God spoke from the beginning that they should be gathered and come from the nations, and the mouths of all the prophets proclaimed those who spoke the word of the Lord, except for whom there is no other. For the Son is not without Him, but in Him is God.”

“There is among them no true knowledge of the things to come, but rather they prophesy falsely, and with clownish talk and deception and trickery and nothing else. The God of the universe responds: If they prophesy rightly, they will come close and will know at the same time. For if they are able to prophesy rightly, then they will all be brought together as one. For their oracles came from many places. But some worked others into a frenzy and honored the unclean demons who were speaking falsehood. If they had been able to prophesy rightly, they would all be aware of what is to come and who from the very start made these things to be heard.”

“He enjoins the declaration of his praise: tell, in which he enjoins the office, consult together, how you ought to convert others: declare his glory among the Gentiles (Ps 96:3); who has declared, in which he teaches them the proof of his divinity for converting others, namely from his foreknowledge of future things. And he sets out the reasoning and the conclusion, where it says, have not I, therefore, etc.; he declares the things that are past, and the things that are to come (Sir 42:19).”

“(Vers. 22) Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. LXX: Turn to me and you will be saved from the ends of the earth. I am God, and there is no other. And elegantly He joins together: God is just, not of one nation alone, but of the whole world, to whom He speaks: Turn to me and you shall be saved, all the ends of the earth; this having been fulfilled which the Father promised to the Son: Ask of me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, and the ends of the earth as your possession (Psalm 2:8).”

“(Vers. 23) By myself I have sworn, from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness a word that shall not return: 'To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.' LXX: By myself I swear: righteousness will go out of my mouth, my words will not be turned away, for every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will swear and confess to God, saying. And He swore by Himself, since His word and judgment are unchangeable, that the declaration which He uttered once concerning the salvation of the nations might not in any way be voided, but that His promise might be fulfilled by His work, saying above: Turn to Me, and you will be saved, all the ends of the earth. He also swore by the Apostle (Heb. 6) that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have strong consolation; and He also swore that every knee should bow to Him, heavenly, earthly, and infernal, and every tongue should swear by Him among mortal men (Phil. 2). In which it is clearly stated that the Christian people are signified. It is the custom of the Church to bow the knee to Christ: which the Jews, demonstrating the pride of their minds, absolutely do not do. But also every tongue of all barbarian nations, not in synagogues but in the Churches of Christ, confesses God.”

“By Myself I swore and righteousness emanated from My mouth to accept all those who return to Me. I spoke a word, and it will not be retracted. What is the righteousness that emanated from My mouth? That to Me shall every knee kneel, and I will accept them, as the matter is stated (Zeph. 3: 9): “For then will I change for the people a pure language, to call all of them in the name of the Lord...””

“By myself, who am eternal. I have sworn. I have made a decree, which will not be undone. דבר צדקה ═ צדקה a righteous word. Comp. צדקה she hath been righteous (Gen. 38:27). That unto me, etc. These things here foretold I shall do, till unto me every knee shall bow and every tongue shall swear to belong to me. לי unto me must be repeated before תשבע shall swear ; it is an ellipsis, such as is frequently met with. Comp. And shall swear by His name (Deut. 6:13)”

“Second, he foretells their conversion, setting out the sign of adoration: I have sworn by myself, for I have nothing greater by which I might swear (Heb 6:13); it shall not return, without effect, below: so shall my word be, which shall go forth from my mouth: it shall not return to me void (Isa 55:11). Every knee shall be bowed to me, by Christians, for this is the manner of adoring the Redeemer, according to John Damascene, in the name of Jesus every knee should bow (Phil 2:10); he also sets out the sign of swearing, every tongue shall swear, for everyone swears by his god: all they shall be praised that swear by him (Ps 63:11).”

“(Vers. 24) Therefore, in the Lord, it is said: My justice and power belong to me; they will come to him, and all who oppose him will be put to shame. LXX: Righteousness and glory will come to him, and all who separate themselves from the Lord will be put to shame. Moreover, every tongue confessing Christ will speak in the Lord, and will say: 'Mine are righteousness and mine is dominion, not the people of the Jews.' To him all nations will come, and those who previously resisted his Gospel will be put to shame.”

“But to me did He say by the Lord Heb. אַךְ בַה' לִי אָמַר [lit. but by the Lord to me He said]. This verse is inverted, and thus is its interpretation: But to me did He say by the Lord righteousness and strength. Although all the nations shall prostrate themselves before Him [correct reading according to Warsaw edition, K’li Paz, and mss.], but to me alone, the congregation of Israel, has been promised by the Lord righteousness and strength, and other nations shall not be included in my glory. to Him shall come and be ashamed etc. All who were incensed against the Holy One, blessed be He, shall come to Him to regret what they did in their lifetimes and be ashamed. all who are incensed Heb. כֹּל הַנֶּחֱרִים בּוֹ, all who are incensed.”

“לי Unto me. The pronoun of the first person refers to the prophet. He declares, that he does not know these future events by the aid of his reason, but by the Lord alone, who informed him of these things of righteousness and strength. It is more correct to explain the verse thus : Surely in the Lord, alone is righteousness and strength, the words לי אמר are a relative sentence signifying who spoke unto me. עדיו To Him. Comp. Am. 4:6”

“He also sets out the sign of true confession: therefore shall he say: in the Lord, that is, in the person of the Lord; my, namely, God's, justices and empire: to him be glory and empire (Rev 1:6); or my, namely, the Church's, justices, the figures of the law of the Jews. Third, he foretells the confusion of the unbelievers: they shall come to him, as if to be judged, who will not come as believers, in the day of judgment.”

“(Vers. 25) In the Lord, all the descendants of Israel will be justified and praised. LXX: Every descendant of Israel will be justified and glorified in God. And all the descendants of Israel will be justified and praised, whose preaching and most fruitful sowing has brought abundant fruit throughout the whole world. Whether according to the Seventy or in every language, swearing and confessing God, it will be said that the righteousness and glory of the whole world come to him, and the Jews who separate themselves from him will be confounded. But those who are descended from the children of Israel and have sprung from the seed of the Apostles, and have believed in Christ, may they have eternal righteousness and glory.”