Chapter 35
35:1 The land that was desolate and impassable shall be glad, and the wilderness shall rejoice, and shall flourish like the lily.
35:2 It shall bud forth and blossom, and shall rejoice with joy and praise: the glory of Libanus is given to it: the beauty of Carmel, and Saron, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the beauty of our God.
35:3 Strengthen the feeble hands, and confirm the weak knees.
35:4 Say: let the fainthearted take courage and fear not. Behold your God will bring the revenge of recompense: God himself will come and will save you.
35:5 Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
35:6 Then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall be free. For waters are broken out in the desert, and streams in the wilderness.
35:7 And that which was dry land, shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water. In the dens where dragons dwelt before, shall rise up the verdure of the reed and the bulrush.
35:8 And a path and a way shall be there, and it shall be called the holy way: the unclean shall not pass over it, and this shall be unto us a straight way, so that fools shall not err therein.
35:9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any mischievous beast go up by it, nor be found there: but they shall walk there that shall be delivered.
35:10 And the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and shall come into Zion with praise, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and mourning shall flee away.
744 . The land that was desolate and impassable shall be glad . In this part, he sets out the effect of prosperity resulting for the Jews from the destruction of their enemies. And this is divided into two parts:
in the first, a consoling promise is set out;
in the second, a strengthening exhortation: strengthen the feeble hands (Isa 35:3).
745 . Concerning the first, he does three things.
First, he sets out the cheerfulness of the people, which he compares to a flowering meadow, which is also said to laugh, because it has beauty when it is in flower; hence he says: the land that was desolate , that is, the land of the Jews, which, before, having been laid waste by the Assyrians, was like this, metonymically, that is, the people themselves, like the lily , which is the most beautiful flower, and lasts a long time: send forth flowers, as the lily (Sir 39:19); it also has beauty in its bud; hence he says, it shall bud forth : the just shall spring up as a green leaf (Prov 11:28), for like the bud comes from the flower, so outward cheerfulness comes from the joy of the heart.
Second, he promises the fertility of the land: the glory of Libanus , that is, the fertility of various things, which is the glory of these places, will be found in the promised land: his glory shall be as the olive tree: and his smell as that of Libanus (Hos 14:7).
Third, the nearness of both of these: they themselves shall see , that is, it shall not be postponed to the time of their children, above: his eyes shall see the king in his beauty (Isa 33:17).
746 . Strengthen the feeble hands . Here a strengthening exhortation is set out, and concerning this, he does three things.
First, he sets out the enjoining of the office of exhortation: strengthen the hands , which are weak for working, and confirm the trembling knees , which are weak for supporting: lift up the hands which hang down and the feeble knees (Heb 12:12).
Second, the strengthening itself is set out: say to the fainthearted : fear not, little flock (Luke 12:32).
Third, the reason for the strengthening is assigned,
and first, as to the removal of evils, in liberating them from their enemies: behold your God will bring the revenge of recompense : he will revenge the blood of his servants (Deut 32:43). And in healing their infirmities, then shall the eyes of the blind be opened . And these are metaphorical expressions, if they are referred to the time after the destruction of the Assyrians, so that they are understood as spiritual ills, as above; or they can be understood literally, if they are referred to the coming of Christ, as it says in Matthew 11:5: the blind see, the lame walk .
Second, as to the gathering of goods, four things.
747 . First, as to the abundance of the waters: for waters are broken out , metaphorically, in the desert , for consolations; or because it will rain much, so that there will be great fertility: he has turned a wilderness into pools of waters (Ps 106:34[107:35]).
Second, as to the beauty of the fields: in the dens where dragons dwelt before , that is, the land, which formerly was desert, so that these animals lived in it, will be cultivated; the verdure of the reed and the bulrush , which spring up verdant places: he sleeps under the shadow, in the covert of the reed (Job 40:16).
Third, as to the restoration of the ways, he sets out the holiness of the way: and a path , leading to the temple, shall be there , in the land of Judah; the unclean , the gentile, as before, or mystically, concerning the Church militant or triumphant: there shall not enter into it any thing defiled (Rev 21:27). He also sets out straightness of the way: and this shall be unto you a straight way, so that fools shall not err therein , that is, however simple they may be, they will not err , because of the multitude of those traveling by it: I will bring them from the north country (Jer 31:8); he also sets out the security of the way: no lion shall be there , above: they shall not hurt, nor shall they kill in all my holy mountain (Isa 11:19). And he sets out the frequentation of the ways: and the redeemed , those redeemed from the preceding dangers: for behold your children come, whom you sent away scattered (Bar 4:37).
Fourth, he promises them joy of heart: everlasting joy , above: he shall wipe away tears from every face (Isa 25:8); the condition of the joy of the saints in heaven is also shown, that it is everlasting ; that it is full: they shall obtain , that it is pure: sorrow and mourning shall flee away : and God shall wipe away all tears from the eyes of the saints: and neither mourning, nor crying, nor any sorrow shall be any more (Rev 21:4).
748 . The saints are compared to lilies (see 35:1),
because of the height of its stem, from which is shown constancy in troubles: as the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters (Song 2:2);
because of the sweetness of its scent, from which is shown good reputation: send forth flowers, as the lily, and yield a smell, and bring forth leaves in grace (Sir 39:19);
because of the verdure of its humor, from which is shown virtue of mind: as the lilies that are on the brink of the water (Sir 50:8);
because of its connectedness, from which is shown the charity of the saints: your belly is like a heap of wheat, set about with lilies (Song 7:2).
749 . Christ clothes these lilies
as to the gifts of the virtues: consider the lilies of the field (Matt 6:28);
gathers them together to their eternal reward: my beloved is gone down into his garden, to the bed of aromatical spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies (Song 6:1);
rests in them, for he is pleased in them: I to my beloved, and my beloved to me, who feeds among the lilies (Song 6:2);
and therefore he himself is a lily: I am the flower of the field, and the lily of the valleys (Song 2:1).