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1.
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Let my cry come unto thee. Hezekiah’s cry
would have to suffice; for he, being both sick and unclean (with leprosy),
could not literally come into the presence of God (cp. Psa. 42:1-4;
84:2,3).
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2.
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Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble;
incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily (Psa.
27:9; 69:17). And God did (2 Kings 20:4)! Faith turns a pitiful beseeching into
an imperative.
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3.
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For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are
burned as an hearth (Psa. 37:20; 68:2). This briefly describes the ravages
of his disease. That is, ‘I suffer undeservedly, as though I were full of
wickedness.’
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4.
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My heart (mind) is smitten, and withered like grass;
so that I forget to eat my bread (cp. v. 11; Psa. 121:6). The serious
debility of a sick man affects his powers of thought and ability to take any
interest in the affairs of life. “Heart” (v. 4) and
“bones” (v. 5) equal, essentially, “mind and body”
— i.e., the whole person.
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5.
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My bones cleave to my skin (Psa. 22:17; Lam. 4:18).
Compare Job’s description of his leprosy (Job 19:20).
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6.
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I am like a pelican of the wilderness: I am like an owl of
the desert. Both birds are unclean (Lev. 11:13-18; Deut. 14:12-17) and
solitary (Isa. 34:11 and Zeph. 2:14 — where “cormorant” is
s.w. as “pelican”; and Jer. 50:39) — symbolic of Hezekiah,
unclean by illness and secluded in his palace.
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“The pelican is a magnificent bird in flight, with its
huge white wings, and long yellowish bill. [But] when it sits motionless at the
edge of a swamp, its head against its breast, digesting the fish it scooped up
in its pouch, it becomes the very image of brooding sorrow” (A. Parmelee,
All the Birds of the Bible, p. 169).
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Some translators call the first bird a “vulture”
(RSV, Amplified), and the second a “pelican” (Aglen) — since
the Hebrew word rendered “owl” in the AV is literally
“cup”, calling attention (possibly) to the huge bill of the pelican.
Either way, the basic ideas of uncleanness and separation hold true.
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7.
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I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.
As in Isaiah 38:14, Hezekiah again compares himself to a sparrow (see also
Psa. 84:3).
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8.
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My enemies reproach me (Psa. 42:10; 44:13). The s.w. is
used eight times about Rabshakeh’s crude propaganda campaign outside the
walls of Jerusalem (2 Kings 19:4,16,22,23; Isa. 37:4,17,23,24; cp. Psa. 44:16
and 74:10 — also s.w.). Also cp. David’s experiences (69:9,10, s.w.
again).
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They that are mad against me are sworn against me. That
is, ‘they have sworn to their gods’, or ‘they have cursed me
by their gods’. The Israelite/Assyrian war had become a contest between
Yahweh and the gods of Nineveh (2 Kings 19:4,10,15-19; Isa. 46). Hence the
drastic action taken by God against Sennacherib’s army.
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10.
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Because of thine indignation and thy wrath. There can
be little doubt that God’s anger was against His people, not against the
king; but Hezekiah was being taught to see himself as the representative of
— and vicarious sufferer for — his entire nation (see especially
Isaiah 53 and H.A. Whittaker, Isaiah, pp. 456-475).
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For thou hast lifted me up (i.e., seized me), and
cast me down — a very vivid figure of speech. The “lifting
up” was the prosperity and revival of Temple activity and true worship of
Yahweh during the early days of Hezekiah’s reign. And the “casting
down”? Only too well-described here.
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11.
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My days are like a shadow that declineth. This is an
outstandingly appropriate allusion to the sundial of Ahaz (see Isa. 38:7,8).
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And I am withered like grass. As in v. 4 and Isa.
40:6-8.
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12.
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But thou, O Lord, shalt endure (sit enthroned: NIV; cp.
93:1; 97:1; 99:1) for ever (cp. vv. 24-28). The Assyrian campaign against
trust in Yahweh (Isa. 36:15; 37:4) must be exposed as empty human
futility.
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And thy remembrance unto all generations. This alludes
to God’s Covenant Name (Exod. 3:15), and so also in every use of this word
in the psalms.
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13.
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Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion. The linking
of this theme with that of the king’s sickness would be absurd if (as some
suppose by a mistaken reading of a couple of texts) the Assyrian invasion and
Hezekiah’s illness were separated by quite a number of years. But it is
all too plain that his suffering and the threat of Assyrian attack on Jerusalem
came simultaneously (see esp. Isa. 38:5,6).
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For the set time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.
This Hebrew word moed always refers to one of Israel’s
religious feasts, in this instance to Passover, for the Assyrian attack came at
that very time (Isa. 26:20,21; Isa. 30:29 — s.w.; and Isa.
31:5,8).
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14.
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For the servants take pleasure in her stones, as the
Lord’s disciples did centuries later (Mark 13:1).
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15.
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So the heathen (Gentiles) shall fear the name of the
Lord. The effect of the mighty destruction of Sennacherib’s army was
to put all surrounding nations in awe of the power of the God of Israel (2
Chron. 32:23; Isa. 37:20; 45:6; 59:19; see also v. 22 here).
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16.
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When the Lord shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his
glory. It was by this means that the Assyrian camp was decimated (Isa.
37:36; 30:30,31). This may also refer to the Lord’s Glory being manifested
in Hezekiah’s recovery from his fatal illness — perhaps the Shekinah
Glory that caused the shadow (cp. v. 11 here!) of the sundial to go backward ten
degrees (2 Kings 20:8-11).
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17.
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He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise
their prayer: Isa. 37:1; 38:2,3. Hezekiah was without heir
(“destitute”) at this time (cp. s.w. in Gen. 15:2; Lev. 20:20,21;
and Jer. 22:30).
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18.
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This shall be written for the generations to come. This
answer to the prayer of the destitute was written in the Scriptures just cited.
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And the people which shall be created shall praise the
Lord. Hezekiah’s state and nation seemed to be virtually obliterated
— the Land ravaged from end to end, 200,000 captives taken away, great
numbers of refugees now in foreign lands, cities destroyed, farms and forests
burnt, only Jerusalem not yet desolated. Yet within one year all was renewed
— the Land fertile and productive, the captives returned, cities rebuilt,
and Jerusalem “re-created” a rejoicing in the earth: Psa. 67:6;
81:16; 85:12; 96:12; Isa. 35:1,2,6,7; 44:26; 45:13; 48:12,13; 55:10,11,13;
58:11,12; 60:3-5; 62:5-7; 65:17-19; 66:22; Mic. 4:10.
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19,20.
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For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary;
from heaven did the Lord behold the earth; to hear the groaning of the prisoner;
to loose those that are appointed to death. The captives returning from
Assyria, as in v. 18 note above.
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23.
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He weakened my strength in the way. “He has
broken my strength in midcourse” (RSV; cp. NEB).
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He shortened my days. Hezekiah’s sickness:
“Set thine house in order: thou shalt die, and not live” (2 Kings
20:1; Isa. 38:1).
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24.
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I said. This phrase is a Hezekiah characteristic: Isa.
38:10,11.
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O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days
(NEB: ‘before half my days are done’). The king had reigned 14
years when another 15 years was added to his life. With “my days”
here contrast “thy years”, which “shall
have no end” (here, and v. 27).
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Thy years are throughout all generations. It is as
though this good king prays: ‘Out of Your eternity — an
inexhaustible store — will You not spare me just a few more
years?’
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28.
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The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed
shall be established before thee. Here Hezekiah is pleading the unshakable
continuity of the Promise made to David (2 Sam. 7:12-16). “Continue”
may be translated “dwell” or “abide” — as in a
home (Psa. 37:27,29; 68:16,18; 69:35,36).
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1-12.
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This describes the loneliness of Christ in his ministry, and
his wrestling in the garden of Gethsemane.
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2.
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In the day when I call, answer me speedily. And He did,
in Gethsemane, with an Angel from heaven (Luke 22:43); and on the cross, with a
manifestation of the Shekinah Glory (notes, Psa. 22:22-31).
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5.
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My bones cleave to my skin. Compare: “I may tell
all my bones” (22:17).
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8.
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Mine enemies reproach me all the day. The ceaseless
campaign of vilification and plotting against Jesus (cp. Psa. 69:12; see
references, Psalms Studies, Psa. 10, Par. 5).
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9.
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For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink
with weeping (Psa. 42:3; 80:5). Strong expressions to signify the intense
vexation and frustration which frequently beset Jesus in his ministry. And
especially, the mingled sorrow and joy of the “Passover” in the
upper room.
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10.
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Because of thine indignation and thy wrath. Again, a
strong way of expressing how heavy was the burden which he bore for mankind. The
Father had laid upon the Son the reproach and iniquity of all men (Isa. 53:6; 2
Pet. 1:20-25; cp. notes in Vol. 1, pp. 47, 220, 229, 230, 297, 298, 397, and
398).
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Thou hast lifted me up and cast me down. There were
certainly moments of considerable exhilaration in the course of the Lord’s
ministry, but also — and more generally — much experience of
dis-appointment and depression (see esp. Isa. 49:4).
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11.
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My days are like a shadow that declineth. From very
early days, when he would have posed the question: “What mean ye by this
(Passover) service?”, the life of Jesus moved inexorably, as a shadow
declining, towards an end shrouded in tragedy.
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13.
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Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to
fa-vour her, yea, the set time, is come. It is a serious mistake to suppose
that this means a fixed date in a heavenly calendar. There is clear implication
here (see earlier note) that the blessing of Zion will come at a “set
time” (moed), that is, at one of the Feasts of the Lord
(this is how the Hebrew word is used about 150 times): Dan. 8:19 (an
“appointed time” is s.w. moed); Hab. 2:3 (s.w. again);
see also Whittaker, Passover, pp. 34-37.
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14.
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Thy servants. After Isa. 53:11 (the last of 23
singular uses of the word), Isaiah has servants (plural) nine
times. Generally speaking, the servant (Christ) now gives way to the
servants (those in Christ) in the last dozen or so chapters of
Isaiah.
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Thy servants... favour [even] the dust thereof,
meaning that Jeru-salem is no longer an unclean leprous city (Lev.
14:41).
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15.
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All the kings of the earth [shall fear] thy glory:
Psa. 72:10,11; Isa. 60:3,9-12. He who was merely (if that is the
right word!) King of the Jews has now become King of the World (Rev. 5:8-14;
11:15; 12:10; 15:4; Phil. 2:8,10; Dan. 4:17,25; Isa. 24:23; 26:9; 45:23; Psa.
22:27-29; 86:9; etc.).
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16.
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When the Lord shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his
glory. Is it not likely that Jerusalem will be largely destroyed by an
earth-quake (Zech. 14:4), and so will need rebuilding? But without dis-pute,
this is also the “new Jerusalem” — the embodiment of the
glor-ified saints (Gal. 4:26; Heb. 12:22; Rev. 21:2,9,10). It is there,
through them, that God will truly appear in all His glory (Rev. 21:3;
22:3,4)!
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17.
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He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise
their prayer. Israel, repentant at last (Lev. 26:40-42; Deut. 30:1-3; Psa.
81:13,14; Ezek. 20:42-44; Joel 2:12-20; Zech. 12:10; Matt. 23:39; Acts 3:19,20;
Rom. 11:15), will cry to God out of her misery, and He will send His Son to
redeem Israel from her captivity (see notes, Psa. 74, Par. 7).
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18.
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And the people which shall be created shall praise the
Lord. The Hebrew bara signifies: ‘made afresh’:
Psa. 22:31; Isa. 43:5,21. This is now seen to be the new, spiritual
“Creation” in Christ: 2 Cor. 5:14-19; Gal. 6:15; Eph. 2:1-10;
4:22-24; Col. 1:15-18; 3:9,10; James 1:18; Rev. 3:14.
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19,20.
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For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary;
from heaven did the Lord behold the earth; to hear the groan-ing of the
prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death. Compare Psa. 79:11,
notes; Zech. 9:11. The inarticulate groaning of the “prisoners” of
the flesh is given words by Paul:
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“O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the
body of this death?” (Rom. 7:24).
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And...
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“For we know that the whole creation [surely the
ecclesia, or the ‘New Creation’, here!] groaneth and travaileth
in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have
the firstfruits of the Spirit [i.e., the Apostles especially], even we ourselves
groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our
body” (8:22,23).
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21.
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To declare the name of the Lord in Zion, and his praise in
Jerusalem. The same “captives” are now brought forth to praise
the Lord in Jerusalem. Surely this provides evidence as to the locality of the
saints’ immortalization, and thus (presumably) the locality of the
Judgment Seat of Christ (cp. Isa. 25:7,8; Psa. 87:5,6; 133:1-3; see Psalms
Studies, Vol. 1, pp. 384-388).
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22.
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When the people are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to
serve the Lord. This continues the picture of the Kingdom established:
the people (i.e., God’s Israel and New Israel) are
gathered; and the kingdoms (or nations, of Gentiles) serve the
Lord.
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