Isaiah 2 · The Lantern

The word which Ysaie, the sone of Amos, siy on Juda and Jerusalem.

Judea and Jerusalem: Isaiah mentions Judea and Jerusalem, and in this is nothing unusual. His discourse was a prophecy, momentarily obscured by the names that are indicated. For it is the same for Jacob, predicting this, in the same way Isaiah will now state it (cf. Gen 49:10-11).

(Chapter 2, Verse 1) The word that Isaiah, the son of Amos, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. And in the previous Vision, which we have already explained, where the Septuagint translates it, it is written in Hebrew as 'Al Juda Ujerusalem' (); and in this second one, it is likewise contained in Hebrew.

Here he begins to rebuke their fault on the part of turning toward. And this is divided into three parts: in the first part, he denounces them for the fault which they were committing in the worship of idols; in the second, for the fault which they were committing in the oppression of men: "for behold" (ch.

And in the laste daies the hil of the hous of the Lord schal be maad redi in the cop of hillis, and schal be reisid aboue litle hillis. And alle hethene men schulen flowe to hym;

One can take the time to learn in what manner the prophecies of the call of the Gentiles should be understood and that they were fulfilled only after the coming of our Savior.

[Isaiah] announces the wonderful and widespread demonstration of piety everywhere: idolatry will be destroyed, while the house of God will receive its due sign of universal respect.… After our Savior's appearing, idolatry will be shown and the beauty of truth will be unveiled. In this we will see the fulfillment of this announcement.

Here he carries out the intention. And this is divided into three parts: in the first part, he promises the remedy of salvation, lest the weight of the following fault leads to despair; in the second, he shows the guilt of the fault, where it says: "for you have cast off your people" (Isa 2:6); in the third, he threatens the lash of punishment, where it says: "therefore forgive…

and many puplis schulen go, and schulen seie, Come ye, stie we to the hil of the Lord, and to the hous of God of Jacob; and he schal teche vs hise weies, and we schulen go in the pathis of hym. For whi the lawe schal go out of Syon, and the word of the Lord fro Jerusalem.

And when the Spirit of prophecy speaks as predicting things that are to come to pass, He speaks in this way: "For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

(Verse 3.) And they shall say: Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob: and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths. The nations and peoples, not content with their own salvation, will encourage one another and say: Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord and to the house of the God of Jacob.

The order of conversion was that the gentiles were converted through the calling of those who were from the Jews. And therefore he sets out three things: first, those who call, second, the calling, where it says, "come," third, the reason for this order, where it says, "for the law shall come forth from Zion." Therefore he says, "many," not all, "people," that is, who are from…

And he schal deme hethene men, and he schal repreue many puplis; and thei schulen welle togidere her swerdes in to scharris, and her speris in to sikelis, ether sithes; folk schal no more reise swerd ayens folk, and thei schulen no more be exercisid to batel.

The gospel will be this "way" of the new law and the new word in Christ, no longer in Moses. "And he shall judge among the nations," even concerning their error. "And these shall rebuke a large nation," that of the Jews themselves and their proselytes.

(Verse 4.) And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. All the eagerness for war will be turned to peace, and instead of discord there will be harmony throughout the world.

Here he promises peace to the converted. And concerning this, he does three things: first, he sets out that which brings about peace; second, the sign of peace: "and they shall turn their swords into ploughshares"; third, the fruit of peace: "nation shall not lift up sword." That which brings about peace is the judgment of a king, and therefore, first, he says, "he shall judge…

Come ye, the hous of Jacob, and go we in the liyt of the Lord.

But as there the prophet says, 'And now, O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord; for He has sent away His people, the house of Jacob, because their land was full, as at the first, of soothsayers and divinations;' even so it is necessary for us here to observe that there are two seeds of Judah, and two races, as there are two houses of Jacob: the one beg…

Dearly beloved, whether the Jews receive these divine testimonies with joy or with indignation, nevertheless, when we can, let us proclaim them with great love for the Jews. Let us not proudly glory against the broken branches; let us rather reflect by whose grace it is, and by much mercy, and on what root, we have been grafted into.

Here he places the calling of the Jews after the conversion of the gentiles has occurred: speaking either in the person of the prophet or in the person of the gentiles, that they may be in the tail who were in the head: "blindness in part has happened in Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles should come in" (Rom 11:25).

Forsothe thou hast cast awei thi puple, the hous of Jacob, for thei ben fillid as sum tyme bifore; and thei hadden false dyuynouris bi the chiteryng of briddis, as Filisteis, and thei cleuyden to alien children.

The lond is fillid with siluer and gold, and noon ende is of the tresouris therof; and the lond therof is fillid with horsis, and the foure horsid cartis therof ben vnnoumbrable.

Someone might ask, what is wrong with having silver or horses, particularly when what the people believed was not rigorous? How should we respond? The prophet was not criticizing the use of these possessions but the misuse of them. When he said, "Woe to the mighty," he was not condemning them for having possessions but for hoarding so much more than they needed.

Vanity is the general term for vices, but vain in the particular sense means that which is found alien to God. Just as trusting in the Godhead is fruitful constancy, so deviating from him is the vanity that perishes.… So those who burned with the most base love of idols are convicted, and the phrase is to be pronounced as a rebuke, as if the words were, "Why do you love the van…

Here he sets out the occasion of idolatry, which is avarice or its likeness: "or covetousness, which is a serving of idols" (Eph 5:3–5).

And the lond therof is fillid with ydols, and thei worschipiden the werk of her hondis, which her fyngris maden;

Not only do human beings "make gods for themselves" from statues, but you will also find them "making gods for themselves" from their imaginations. For such people can imagine another god and creator of the world in a system different from the divine plan of the world recorded by the Spirit, other than the true world.

(Verse 8) And the land was filled with silver and gold, and there was no end to its treasure. Among the other vices of the earth, the house of Jacob is also counted for its abundance of gold and silver. Among all the omens and divinations, the horses and chariots that God prohibited the kings of Israel from multiplying are condemned.

Here he denounces in them the worship of idolatry; and he adds to the weight of this from three things. First, from its multitude, where he says, "also is full": "Ephraim has made many altars to sin" (Hos 7:11); "under every green tree, and on every high hill you didst prostitute yourself" (Jer 2:20).

and a man bowide hymsilf, and a man of ful age was maad low. Therfor foryyue thou not to hem.

Entre thou, puple of Juda, in to a stoon, be thou hid in a diche in erthe, fro the face of the drede of the Lord, and fro the glorie of his mageste.

The iyen of an hiy man ben maad low, and the hiynesse of men schal be bowid doun; forsothe the Lord aloone schal be enhaunsid in that dai.

For the dai of the Lord of oostis schal be on ech proud man and hiy, and on ech boostere, and he schal be maad low;

and on alle the cedres of the Liban hiye and reisid, and on alle the ookis of Baisan,

and on alle hiy munteyns, and on alle litle hillis, `that ben reisid;

and on ech hiy tour, and on ech strong wal;

and on alle schippis of Tharsis, and on al thing which is fair in siyt.

And al the hiynesse of men schal be bowid doun, and the hiynesse of men schal be maad low; and the Lord aloone schal be reisid in that dai,

and idols schulen be brokun togidere outirli.

And thei schulen entre in to dennes of stoonys, and in to the swolewis of erthe, fro the face of the inward drede of the Lord, and fro the glorie of his maieste, whanne he schal ryse to smyte the lond.

The Creator ought to be known even by the light of nature, for he may be understood from his works and may thereby become the object of a more widely spread knowledge. To him, therefore, does it appertain to punish such as do not know God, for none ought to be ignorant of him.

(Verse 19) On that day, a man will cast away his silver idols and his gold images that he made for himself to worship moles and bats. He will enter the clefts of the rocks and the crevices of the cliffs, from the terror of the Lord and the splendor of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth.

Here he places the precaution of hiding; and it is the same as before, except that here it is foretold as in the future, because he had also explained by foretelling and not by calling down that their power was to be thrown down; "they shall go into the lower parts of the earth: they shall be delivered into the hands of the sword, they shall be the portions of foxes" (Ps 63:9–1…

In that dai a man schal caste awei the idols of his siluer, and the symylacris of his gold, whiche he hadde maad to hym silf, for to worschipe moldewarpis and backis, `ether rere myis.

And he schal entre in to chynnis, ethir crasyngis, of stoonys, and in to the caues of hard roochis, fro the face of the inward drede of the Lord, and fro the glorie of his mageste, whanne he schal ryse to smyte the lond.

Therfor ceesse ye fro a man, whos spirit is in hise nose thirlis, for he is arettid hiy.

Isaiah2