Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
Isaiah 51:9-16
The First Call to Awake - Spoken To The Arm Of Yahweh (Isaiah 51:9).
Note that each call to awake is followed by Yahweh speaking to His people. It is a cry for Yahweh to awaken and act on behalf of His people.
‘Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of Yahweh.
Awake as in the days of old, the generations of ancient times.
Are you not it that cut Rahab in pieces, that pierced the monster?
Are you not it that dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep,
Who made the depths of the sea a way for the redeemed to pass over?
And the ransomed of Yahweh will return and come with singing to Zion,
And everlasting joy will be on their heads,
They will obtain gladness and joy,
Sorrow and sighing will flee away.'
Isaiah)or the remnant of Israel) reply to Yahweh's wakening call and in turn call on the arm of Yahweh to awake and put on its strength (compare Isaiah 40:10; Isaiah 52:10; Isaiah 62:8). It is a cry for God to reveal His power as He has done in the past. To once more act as He did of old. For it was then that His mighty arm cut Rahab in pieces and pierced the monster. Here Egypt is vividly described in terms of a mythical monster as defeated by Yahweh (compare Isaiah 30:7; Psalms 89:10), but contained within it is the thought that no gods can stand before Yahweh. Then He dried up the sea, the mighty deep, and made a way for His redeemed people to pass through. (The excessive description of the Reed Sea comes from the myths which surrounded Rahab. He was seen as a monster of the deep). Now the cry is that He might do it again. He redeemed them then, so let Him now enable His redeemed people to return to Him and come with singing to Zion. This includes all His people who are redeemed, not just those in exile. All are to unite in returning to Him and coming to Zion (compare 35). The whole idea is of coming into His presence and becoming one with Him.
‘And everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy. Sorrow and sighing will flee away.' These words are cited almost exactly from Isaiah 35:10. The same words are here repeated emphasising the fulfilment of his prophecy soon to come. This is more than the earthly Zion, for here they will find everlasting joy. All will be gladness and joy. There will be no more sorrow and sighing, it will simply take to its heels and flee. It is the Paradise of Isaiah 51:3, the place of everlasting deliverance (Isaiah 51:6).
Yahweh then responds to the plea, speaking to His faithful ones in their weakness and fear.
“I, even I, am he who comforts you (masculine plural).
Who are you (feminine singular) that you (feminine singular) are afraid of man who will die,
And of the son of man who will be appointed to be made as (‘is given as') grass,
And have forgotten Yahweh your (masculine singular) Maker,
Who stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundation of the earth,
And you (masculine singular) fear continually all the day,
Because of the fury of the oppressor, when he makes ready to destroy?
And where is the fury of the oppressor?”
Note the strength behind the reply. ‘I, I' parallels the repetition in ‘awake, awake'. God wants them to recognise, that His reply is consonant with their concern.
The change from masculine to feminine and back again is puzzling under any explanation. It may arise from the fact that ‘who are you that you are afraid of man who will die' was a well known saying and has been quoted verbatim without changing the ‘person', with Isaiah knowing that it will be recognised, or it may be asking, ‘why are you behaving like a lot of women before frail man?' Some see it as referring to Zion, Yahweh's daughter, but why then is it followed by a masculine?
Whichever way it is the basic question is why they are terrified of frail mortal man ('enosh), the son of man who will wither and perish like the grass.
So Yahweh's reply is that He is indeed there as the One Who will comfort them all, that is Who will act on their behalf with His strength, and will protect them. Why then is each one so afraid? They are not such as should fear man who keeps on dying and has been appointed to wither like grass. But they do fear because they have forgotten Yahweh Who made them, the same One Who by His mighty power stretched out the heavens and laid the foundation of the earth.
‘Yahweh your Maker, who stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundation of the earth.' The contrast is powerful; weak, frail man who is like grass and Yahweh, the great Creator Who made the world, the grass, man and all that is in it.
So how foolish they are to fear the oppressor continually all the day because of his fury and intention to destroy. For where is his fury? From now on it will be as nothing, because Yahweh is at work.
“The one who cowers will speedily be set free,
And he will not die and go down into the pit,
Nor will his bread fail.”
So those who fear should not fear, for as they cower in their fear they will be set free (and should not therefore be cowering). Not for them to go down into the grave. They are awaiting God's great deliverance. Indeed even their bread will not fail. For God is with them. This may have in mind the faithful among the exiles around the world, or it may simply indicate His people's position as being like prisoners cowering in their cells, afraid and under the authority of outsiders, fearful of death or of not receiving sufficient food. The assurance is not that no one will suffer in the near future, but that all may recognise that in the final outcome they will prosper. We must keep in mind here Isaiah 25:6; Isaiah 26:19; Isaiah 53:10.
“For I am Yahweh your God,
Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar.
Yahweh of hosts is his name.
And I have put my words in your mouth,
And have covered you in the shadow of my hand,
That I may plant the heavens,
And lay the foundations of the earth,
And say to Zion, ‘You are my people'.”
And the reason why they need not fear is because Yahweh is their God, and it is He Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar. It was He Who stirred up the sea when they were redeemed from Egypt, and made the waves roar against their enemy. And He still has the same power, so that it is clear that they need fear no one. He is Master of the waves.
This continues the thought of Isaiah 51:9. He is the Master of the deep as revealed by His victory over Rahab/Egypt, but here the thought is not so much of His redeemed walking through the sea, but of Him as making the waves roar to defeat their enemies. For He is Yahweh of hosts, the God of battle.
‘And I have put my words in your mouth, and have covered you in the shadow of my hand.' As His true and redeemed people they too will assist in the fulfilling of the Servant's task. For God will put His words in their mouth (the tense indicating that it is already seen as certain and complete) and has brought them under His protection so that they might carry His words everywhere (Isaiah 2:2).
The shadow of His hand parallels the Servant's protection in Isaiah 49:2. There it was connected with His sword. So here ‘my words in your mouth' are probably to be seen as the equivalent of their receiving their sword with the protecting hand of Yahweh over them. It will be like the shadow of a tree protecting from the sun, although much more effective and substantial, protecting from all that can harm. They share the Servant's weapons.
‘That I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say to Zion, ‘You are my people'.' Thereby He will plant the heavens, lay the foundations of the earth, and be able to claim Zion finally as His true people. The new heavens and the new earth and the new Jerusalem are already envisaged (Isaiah 65:17), brought in by the activity of His Servant. ‘Plant' and ‘lay the foundations' are both indications of beginning a new thing. Note how Zion is no longer Jerusalem but represents His people.
We saw in Isaiah 51:6 that the heavens were to disappear in a similar way in which smoke disperses, and that the earth would grow old and worn, and that all in it would die. But here we have the consequence for the true people of God. New heavens will be planted, a new earth will be founded. And then His people will have full recognition for what they are. All this is the literal truth.