Isaiah 30

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:2

Trusting others than Jehovah. "Relying upon human aid, involving a distrust of the Divine promises, was a crying sin of the ancient Church, not at one time only, but throughout her history." It is quite as truly the crying sin of the modern Church, and of the Christian individual. In every time of pressure and need we first fly to some form of human help. It is either the expression of "first simplicity," or else of "cultured sanctity," to act on the words, "Our help is in the Lord our God."... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:4

His princes were at Zoan . "Zoan" is undoubtedly Tanis, which is now "San," a heap of ruins in the Delta, where some interesting remains of the shepherd-kings have been discovered. It was a favorite capital of the monarchs of the nineteenth dynasty, and seems to have been the scene of the struggle between Moses and the Pharaoh of the Exodus ( Psalms 78:12 , Psalms 78:43 ). It then declined, but is said to have been the birthplace of the first king of the twenty-first dynasty. In the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:5

They were all ashamed ; rather, all are ashamed . The reference is not to the ambassadors, who felt no shame in their embassy, and probably returned elated by the promises made them; but to the subsequent feelings of the Jewish nation, when it was discovered by sad experience that no reliance was to be placed on "the strength of Pharaoh." A people that could not profit them . Mr. Cheyne compares, very pertinently, an inscription of Sargon's, where he says of the people of Philistia,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:6

Burden of the beasts of the south . Delitzsch thinks that the Egyptians are intended by the "beasts of the south"—the expression pointing primarily to the hippopotamus, which was an apt emblem of the slow-moving Egyptians. But most commentators regard the "beasts" of this clause as equivalent to the " young asses and camels" mentioned towards the end of the verse. (On the sense of the word "burden," see the introductory paragraph to Isaiah 13:1-22 .) Into the land of trouble and anguish... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:7

Therefore have I cried concerning this . Their strength is to sit still. No modern critic accepts this interpretation. Most translate, "Wherefore I name it" ( i.e. Egypt) "Rahab, that sits still;" or "Arrogance, that 'sits still." Rahab, "pride" or 'arrogance," would seem to have been an old name for Egypt ( Job 26:12 ; Psalms 87:4 ; Psalms 89:10 ; Isaiah 51:9 ), not one given at this time by Isaiah. What he means to say is, "Proud as thou art, thou doest nothing to maintain thy... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8

Write it before them in a tablet ; i.e. " write the prophecy before them" (equivalent to " to be set up before them") " on a tablet," in the briefest possible form (comp. Isaiah 8:1 ). And note it in a book ; i.e. "and also make a full notation of it in a book," or parchment roll. The "tablet" was to be for the admonition of the living generation of men; the "book" was for future generations, to be a record of God's omniscience and faithfulness "forever and ever." That it... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8

The written Word endures forever. There is always a permanency about written, that does not belong to uttered, speech. " Liters scripts manet ," said one Roman poet; " Exegi monumentum osre perennius ," said another, when he had completed a book of his odes. It was to secure continuance to human utterances that the act of writing was invented at the first; and it was probably long employed for no other purpose. The permanency, however, that attaches to ordinary writings is a limited... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8-17

A RENEWAL OF THREATENING . The denunciation of the Egyptian alliance had been made viva voce , in the courts of the temple or in some other place of public resort. As he ended, Isaiah received a Divine intimation that the prophecy was to be put on record, doubly, upon a tablet and in a book. At the same time, the " rebelliousness " of the people was further pointed out, and fresh threats (verses 13, 14, and 17) were uttered against them. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8-18

A testimony forever. The prophet pauses. Perhaps he hears an inner voice bidding him to write down a few words, such as the last significant Rahab . As in Isaiah 8:1 , the inscription is to be on a large tablet, set up in a conspicuous place, so that he who runs may read. Then he is to inscribe the prophecy more fully on a scroll. Litera scripta manet . The oracle, the oral utterance, transferred to parchment, becomes a κτῆμα εἰς ἀεί , a "possession forever." The perpetuity... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8-18

Aspects of sin. This severe denunciation by the prophet of the sins of the Jews may remind us of some of the darker and sadder aspects of sin itself. I. THE PERMANENCY OF ITS RECORD . Isaiah was to record the guilt of "the rebellious children" in a book, that it might be there inscribed " for the time to come forever and ever." And in the sacred volume there stand written, to be read for all time, the accusations which the Lord brought against Israel; the record of their... read more

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:4

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:5

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:6

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:7

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8-17

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8-18

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 30:8-18

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