Isaiah 59:1-2

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Isaiah 59:1-8

The prophet here rectifies the mistake of those who had been quarrelling with God because they had not the deliverances wrought for them which they had been often fasting and praying for, Isa. 58:3. Now here he shows, I. That it was not owing to God. They had no reason to lay the fault upon him that they were not saved out of the hands of their enemies; for, 1. He was still as able to help as ever: His hand is not shortened, his power is not at all lessened, straitened, or abridged. Whether we... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Isaiah 59:1

Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save ,.... It is not for want of power in the Lord, that he has not as yet destroyed the enemies of his people, antichrist, and the antichristian states, and saved them out of their hands, and made them to triumph over them; or brought on the glorious state of the church, and fulfilled the promises of good things, suggested in the latter part of the preceding chapter. His hand is as long as ever, and as able to reach his and their... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Isaiah 59:2

Like a partition wall dividing between them, so that they enjoy no communion with him in his worship and ordinances; which is greatly the case of the reformed churches: they profess the true God, and the worship of him, and do attend the outward ordinances of it; but this is done in such a cold formal way, and such sins and wickedness are perpetrated and connived at, that the Lord does not grant his gracious presence to them, but stands at a distance from them: and your sins have hid his... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Isaiah 59:2

His face - For פנים panim , faces, I read panaiv , his face. So the Syriac, Septuagint, Alexandrian, Arabic, and Vulgate. פני panai , MS. Forte legendum פני panai , nam מ mem , sequitur, et loquitur Deus ; confer cap. Isaiah 58:14 . "We should perhaps read פני panai ; for מ mem follows, and God is the speaker." - Secker. I rather think that the speech of God was closed with the last chapter, and that this chapter is delivered in the person of the prophet.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 59:1

The Lord's hand is not shortened; i.e. God is not less able to help than of old; his "hand" has lost none of its power. That he does not help is owing to the iniquities of his people, which have separated between him and them ( Isaiah 59:2 ). It is the same fact which has made his ear heavy. He cannot hear prayers that are not sincere—not from the heart. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 59:1

The Divine ability. "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save." We note here something that awakens surprise. Behold!" Let Israel know where her help lies. There has been wrong looking , viz. to self. I. GOD STILL WORKS IN THE WORLD . It is "his hand." He "formed" us, and he "redeems" us. II. WE MAY MAKE MISTAKES CONCERNING HUMAN HISTORY . His "hand is not shortened." It can always reach to every length, and raise from every depth.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 59:1

Misconceptions of the Divine delay. This is a plea with the murmurers, who doubtingly asked—Where are the signs of the fulfilment of these great Divine promises? Things looked black and hopeless right up to the time of Cyrus. The Lord appeared to be delaying his coming, and it was easy for unbelievers to say that God delayed because "his hand was too short to deliver, and his ear too heavy to hear" Keble renders the text thus— "Wake, arm Divine! awake, Eye of the only Wise! Now for thy... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 59:1-2

The true and the false account of Divine inactivity. How comes it to pass that the people of the Lord are in such distress? How do we account for the fact that the cause of Christ makes such slow progress or even shows symptoms of decline and failure? Where is the Lord God of Israel? Is the Spirit of God present in the midst of the Churches? I. THE APPARENTLY INEXHAUSTIBLE FORCES AT OUR COMMAND . For our resources we have: 1 . The fulness of Divine pity. The ear of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 59:1-8

A GENERAL REBUKE OF ISRAEL FOR ITS MANIFOLD SINS , The command given to the prophet in Isaiah 58:1 to "show God's people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins "—partly executed in Isaiah 58:4-7 and Isaiah 58:13 —is now further carried out by a scathing denunciation of various forms of wickedness, more or less prevalent in Israel, the effect of which has been to separate between Israel and God, to "shorten God's hand" and "make his ears heavy." The... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 59:1-15

The separation of the soul from God. Why in the hour of need is there no deliverance? Why are prayers for aid unanswered? A theory might obtain, or an objection might be raised, that Divine power was not sufficient, that the Divine sensibility was dulled. And yet this cannot be. The simplest knowledge of what God is must contradict an assumption so foolish. There must be another explanation; and that, the conscience says, is to be found on the human side of the relation. I. THE ... read more

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