29. ashamed— ( :-). oaks—Others translate the "terebinth" or "turpentine tree." Groves were dedicated to idols. Our Druids took their name from the Greek for "oaks." A sacred tree is often found in Assyrian sculpture; symbol of the starry hosts, Saba. gardens—planted enclosures for idolatry; the counterpart of the garden of Eden. read more
30. oak—Ye shall be like the "oaks," the object of your "desire" ( :-). People become like the gods they worship; they never rise above their level (Psalms 135:18). So men's sins become their own scourges (Psalms 135:18- :). The leaf of the idol oak fades by a law of necessary consequence, having no living sap or "water" from God. So "garden" answers to "gardens" (Psalms 135:18- :). read more
31. strong—powerful rulers ( :-). maker of it—rather, his work. He shall be at once the fuel, "tow," and the cause of the fire, by kindling the first "spark." both—the wicked ruler, and "his work," which "is as a spark." read more
4. Israel’s response 1:21-31While God’s invitation to repent was genuine (Isaiah 1:16-20), the nation had so thoroughly departed from Him that repentance was not forthcoming and discipline was inevitable. The prophet bemoaned the depth of Israel’s apostasy and announced that the Lord would have to purify His people in the furnace of affliction before they would become what He intended them to be. The structural form of Isaiah 1:21-26 is palistrophic, with Isaiah 1:23-24 forming the center and... read more
The fate of the wicked 1:27-31Even though Zion (a poetic synonym for Jerusalem) will experience redemption by God’s justice and righteousness (Isaiah 1:25-26), the Lord will destroy individuals who continue in their sins and do not repent. This is the first occurrence of "redemption" as well as "Zion" in Isaiah, both of which received considerable attention from this prophet. The Israelites had turned to objects of idolatry ("oaks") and places of idolatry ("gardens," Isaiah 1:29), and in doing... read more
Jehovah’s Arraignment of His PeopleThis chapter is general in character, and much of it (e.g. Isaiah 1:10-17) might refer to almost any period. This general character of the prophecy renders it especially suitable as an introduction, and may account for its position at the beginning of the book. It gives us a picture of the internal condition of Judah in Isaiah’s age, and not only brings out his characteristic teaching, but more than any other OT. passage indicates the general line of prophetic... read more
(28) Of the transgressors and of the sinners.—The first of the two words presents evil in its aspect of apostasy, the second in that of the open sin which may accompany the apostasy or exist without it. read more
(29) They shall be ashamed of the oaks . . .—Better, terebinths. The words point to the groves that were so closely connected with the idolatry of Canaan, especially with the worship of the asherah, and which the people had chosen in preference to the sanctuary of Jehovah (Isaiah 17:8; Isaiah 57:5; Isaiah 66:17; Deuteronomy 16:21; 2 Kings 16:4; Jeremiah 3:6). Greek worship presents the parallels of the groves of Daphne at Antioch, and those of Dodona and of the Eumenides at Colônos. The... read more
(30) Ye shall be . . .—Men were to think of the pleasant places that had tempted them, not as they had seen them, fresh and green, but as burnt up and withered, and then were to see in that desolation a parable of their own future. The word for “strong” occurs only in Amos 2:9, where we find “strong as the oaks.” read more
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Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Isaiah 1:28
28. destruction—literally, "breaking into shivers" ( :-). The prophets hasten forward to the final extinction of the ungodly (Psalms 37:20; Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:15); of which antecedent judgments are types. read more