Scholars generally consider that someone other than the prophet Isaiah of
the first thirty-nine chapters writes Isaiah forty through fifty-five.[1]
They can tell this because there is a certain chapter in Isaiah where there is
a sharp difference in tone and theme. Whereas the first thirty-nine chapters
focus on the sinfulness of the people of Israel, chapter forty reveals a God
trying to comfort the broken people in exile.[2]
Isaiah introduces this new theme of God’s providential plan for their despair
and that these people can come under the protection of the Lord. Though Israel
had seemingly left God’s favor in Proto-Isaiah, Deutero-Isaiah reveals that God
is close to Israel and has not forgotten the covenant.
The format of Isaiah 40:1-11 is somewhat confusing to the reader because it begins with a schizophrenic conversation of the Lord to God. God explicitly calls Israel “my” people meaning that God is deeply concerned with their wellbeing (40:1). This “comfort ye” is a divine imperative to the prophet Deutero-Isaiah, and because it is a plural, it could be for anyone else to comfort the people of God.[3] These mouthpieces of the Lord will have to remind Israel that she is not forsaken and that her sins have been removed. God even says that the retribution will be doubled, alluding to a promise from God to Job 42:10.
God continues speaking to the comforters to prepare the way (40:3). It is a divine task but one that any person can accomplish; any person who truly hears the word of God automatically becomes a forerunner for God (Mark 1:3). Whoever this word is directed to must remind the brokenhearted that YHWH will return.[4] It is a message of grace and forgiveness.[5] The only one who can pardon the amount of sin that Israel has transgressed against God is God, so this forgiveness serves as a paradigm-altering act for the people in exile; God revealed that the destruction of the temple and the Israelites’ exile were not retribution for sin.[6]
Whoever delivers this news to the defeated Israelites must exude confidence in what he or she says, and Deutero-Isaiah appears to lack the fortitude. Just as Moses lacked the words to say, so too does Deutero-Isaiah not have any idea in how to truly comfort the disenchanted (Exodus 6, Isaiah 40:6-7). This call narrative reveals that God has already planted words into the prophets’ mouths. God answers this internal struggle within the prophets by saying that it is the “word of our God” that should be the very foundation for all of Israel to believe (40:8); this word of God is not to be confused with “thus says the Lord” that other prophets speak. It is authoritative and inspirational. The Lord is not a distant deity but a relational God whose word remains even when the “grass fades” (40:8). This alone should excite anyone who has an ear to proclaim the good news to anyone with a shout (40:9). The people of God have an obligation to scream the good news just as in Joshua 6.
The poem climaxes with the exaltation of God being a shepherd tending to the flock (40:10-11). The Lord saves in the nick of time with power and comfort. The Lord had already shown power in the Exodus account and Canaanite conquest, but now shows immense care for the collective Israelite people. God had already been referred to as a shepherd by David but is now one for all of Israel (Psalm 23). They are not isolated in this struggle, and they can rely on God for strength and relief. Yahweh alone is the savior of the Israelite people.[7]
There is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3), and God has decreed that the time for sadness is no longer necessary. The Lord will give and take away, but ultimately, God is close to the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18). This passage in 2nd Isaiah moves from a time of remorse to a time of joy. God desperately cares for the people of Israel and will do whatever it takes to remind them of God’s faithfulness. The Lord appoints people who will speak the “word of God.” Agency is necessary to bring about these words to give the human touch, but more importantly, it is God’s loving-kindness that will bring comfort to the desolated people.[8] Deutero-Isaiah finishes this hinge chapter with a large proclamation of how good God has been and is currently that “those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.” This prophet wants to emphasize that this God of old who led the people out of Egypt into The Promised Land will continue to be faithful in everything. God was there and will be there for the Israelites so long as they hold onto God’s word.
The format of Isaiah 40:1-11 is somewhat confusing to the reader because it begins with a schizophrenic conversation of the Lord to God. God explicitly calls Israel “my” people meaning that God is deeply concerned with their wellbeing (40:1). This “comfort ye” is a divine imperative to the prophet Deutero-Isaiah, and because it is a plural, it could be for anyone else to comfort the people of God.[3] These mouthpieces of the Lord will have to remind Israel that she is not forsaken and that her sins have been removed. God even says that the retribution will be doubled, alluding to a promise from God to Job 42:10.
God continues speaking to the comforters to prepare the way (40:3). It is a divine task but one that any person can accomplish; any person who truly hears the word of God automatically becomes a forerunner for God (Mark 1:3). Whoever this word is directed to must remind the brokenhearted that YHWH will return.[4] It is a message of grace and forgiveness.[5] The only one who can pardon the amount of sin that Israel has transgressed against God is God, so this forgiveness serves as a paradigm-altering act for the people in exile; God revealed that the destruction of the temple and the Israelites’ exile were not retribution for sin.[6]
Whoever delivers this news to the defeated Israelites must exude confidence in what he or she says, and Deutero-Isaiah appears to lack the fortitude. Just as Moses lacked the words to say, so too does Deutero-Isaiah not have any idea in how to truly comfort the disenchanted (Exodus 6, Isaiah 40:6-7). This call narrative reveals that God has already planted words into the prophets’ mouths. God answers this internal struggle within the prophets by saying that it is the “word of our God” that should be the very foundation for all of Israel to believe (40:8); this word of God is not to be confused with “thus says the Lord” that other prophets speak. It is authoritative and inspirational. The Lord is not a distant deity but a relational God whose word remains even when the “grass fades” (40:8). This alone should excite anyone who has an ear to proclaim the good news to anyone with a shout (40:9). The people of God have an obligation to scream the good news just as in Joshua 6.
The poem climaxes with the exaltation of God being a shepherd tending to the flock (40:10-11). The Lord saves in the nick of time with power and comfort. The Lord had already shown power in the Exodus account and Canaanite conquest, but now shows immense care for the collective Israelite people. God had already been referred to as a shepherd by David but is now one for all of Israel (Psalm 23). They are not isolated in this struggle, and they can rely on God for strength and relief. Yahweh alone is the savior of the Israelite people.[7]
There is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3), and God has decreed that the time for sadness is no longer necessary. The Lord will give and take away, but ultimately, God is close to the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18). This passage in 2nd Isaiah moves from a time of remorse to a time of joy. God desperately cares for the people of Israel and will do whatever it takes to remind them of God’s faithfulness. The Lord appoints people who will speak the “word of God.” Agency is necessary to bring about these words to give the human touch, but more importantly, it is God’s loving-kindness that will bring comfort to the desolated people.[8] Deutero-Isaiah finishes this hinge chapter with a large proclamation of how good God has been and is currently that “those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.” This prophet wants to emphasize that this God of old who led the people out of Egypt into The Promised Land will continue to be faithful in everything. God was there and will be there for the Israelites so long as they hold onto God’s word.
[1]
Jacq Lapsley, “Second Isaiah,” Lecture, Princeton Theological Seminary,
Princeton, NJ, November 12, 2013.
[2] I used NRSV unless
specified.
[3]
Gerald Sheppard, “Isaiah,” In The HarperCollins Bible Commentary, edited
by James L. Mays (San Francisco:HarperSanFrancisco, 2000), 515.
[4]
John D. W. Watts, “Isaiah 34-66,” In Word
Biblical Commentary: Volume 25, edited by David A. Hubbard and Glenn W.
Barker (Waco, TX: Word Books, 1987), 79.
[5]
Bernhard W. Anderson, “The Dawn of a New Age,” In Understanding the Old Testament: Fifth Edition (Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Pearson Preston Hall, 2007),433-434.
[6]
Walter Brueggeman, “Forgiveness,” In
Reverberations of Faith: A Theological Handbook of Old Testament Themes (Louisville,
KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 85-86.
[7]
Walter Brueggeman, “Salvation,” In Reverberations
of Faith: A Theological Handbook of Old Testament Themes (Louisville, KY:
Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 184-185.
[8]
Watts, 89.
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