Verse 1
Douglas divided this chapter and Isaiah 52 into seven divisions, as follows: the 1call (Isaiah 51:1-3), 2call (Isaiah 51:4-6), 3call (Isaiah 51:7-8), 4th call (Isaiah 51:9-16), 5th call (Isaiah 51:17-23), 6th call (Isaiah 52:1-6), and 7th call (Isaiah 52:7-10).[1] This is an interesting arrangement, in spite of the fact that it is not always clear as to just who is doing the calling. Kelley's arrangement of this chapter classified the first three of these "calls" as "The consolation of Zion,"[2] with three strophes, corresponding to Douglas' three calls.
"Hearken unto me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek Jehovah: look unto the rock whence ye were hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye were digged. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you; for when he was but one I called him, and I blessed him, and made him many. For Jehovah hath comforted Zion; he hath comforted all her waste places, and hath made her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Jehovah; and joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody."
"Look unto the rock ..." (Isaiah 51:1). Actually, the meaning here is not merely a rock, as indicated by its being called "hole" in the next line. The passage "should be read, `Look unto the quarry whence ye were digged.'"[3] The comparison, of course, is a metaphor instructing faithful believers to look back to their ancestry, Abraham and Sarah.
The persons addressed in this paragraph are called Israelites; but it is obvious that only the "righteous remnant" are meant; and therefore the ultimate application of the passage extends to the Ideal Servant and his holy Church. This does not diminish either the need of the discouraged captives in Babylon for such marvelous encouragement as that given here, or its ultimate application to all the discouraged followers of the Messiah in future generations.
The purpose of the encouragement given here is, "To convince them of the certainty and permanence of the coming deliverance."[4]
"He was but one when I called him ..." (Isaiah 51:2). The point here, given for the encouragement of the captive remnant is simple enough. If God called Abraham when he was only one person, and a hundred years old at that, and his wife barren at the age of 90 years, yet, despite all that, did indeed make him a mighty nation as he had promised, why should the thousands of the "righteous remnant" have any doubt whatever that God indeed had the power to bless and multiply them, overthrow their enemies and pour out the blessings of heaven upon them that trusted him? Kelley also pointed out that, "The fact that the prophet addressed these words to them in the very land in which Abraham and Sarah had indeed received their first call gave added meaning to what is said here."[5]
Note that these sacred promises should be restricted to the "righteous remnant," despite the fact of their being identified as "posterity of Abraham" (which, of course, they were). That portion of rebellious Israel, however, that included sons of the devil such as Manasseh and the nation of blind and deaf hypocrites, most of whom remained in Babylon even after being commanded to leave, certainly never participated in the consolation and blessing detailed in this passage. Of course, this remark is not intended as a judgment upon Manasseh following his repentance.
The promise in Isaiah 51:3 that God would comfort Zion means that he would intervene to rescue the "righteous remnant" and return them to Jerusalem.
"Ye that pursue righteousness ..." (Isaiah 51:1). This mark of identification eliminates all of the captives except the righteous remnant, the ones who would return. As to what the "pursuit of righteousness" actually meant, Lowth cautioned us that, "The word has a great latitude in meaning, signifying: justice, truth, faithfulness, goodness, mercy, deliverance, salvation, etc."[6] In this particular verse, Cheyne was sure that the meaning of the word was "fair dealing."[7] This may be correct, because a great many Jews by their unfair dealings became wealthy citizens of Babylon and refused to leave when the time came.
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