Albert Barnes Commentary Isaiah 37:30

"And this shall be the sign unto thee: ye shall eat this year that which groweth of itself, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof." — Isaiah 37:30 (ASV)

And this shall be a sign to you - It is evident that the discourse here turns from Sennacherib to Hezekiah. Such transitions, without distinctly indicating them, are common in Isaiah. God had in the previous verses, in the form of a direct personal address, foretold the defeat of Sennacherib and the confusion of his plans. He here turns and gives to Hezekiah the assurance that Jerusalem would be delivered.

On the meaning of the word ‘sign,’ see the note at Isaiah 7:14. Commentators have been much perplexed in the exposition of the passage before us, wondering how something that was to occur one, two, or three years after the event could be a sign of the prophecy's fulfillment.

Many have supposed that the year in which this was spoken was a Sabbatic year, in which the lands were not cultivated but were allowed to lie still (Leviticus 35:2-7), and that the following year was the year of Jubilee, in which the lands were also to remain uncultivated. They suppose the idea is that the Jews could be assured they would not experience the famine they had anticipated from the Assyrians. This assurance came because the divine promise guaranteed their supply during the Sabbatic year and the year of Jubilee. Thus, even though their fields had been laid waste by the Assyrian, their needs would be supplied until the third year, when they would be permitted to cultivate their land in quietness. This sequence of events would then be a sign or token to them of divine intervention. But to this there are two obvious objections:

1. There is not the slightest evidence that the year in which Sennacherib besieged Jerusalem was a Sabbatic year, or that the following year was the Jubilee. No mention is made of this in the history, nor is it possible to prove it from any part of the sacred narrative.

2. It is still difficult to see, even if this were so, how something that was to occur two or three years after the event could have been a sign to Hezekiah at that time of the truth of what Isaiah had predicted.

Rosenmuller suggests that the two years mentioned, in which they were sustained by the spontaneous productions of the earth, were the two years Judea had already been ravaged by Sennacherib. He further suggests that the third year was the one in which the prophet was then speaking, and that the prediction means they would be permitted to sow and reap in that very year.

In explaining the passage, it should be observed that the word ‘sign’ is used in a variety of meanings. It may be used as an indication of anything unseen (Genesis 1:14); as a military ensign (Numbers 2:2); as a sign of something future, an omen (Isaiah 8:18); or as a token, argument, or proof (Genesis 17:2; Exodus 31:13).

It may be used as a sign or token of a prophecy's truth; that is, when some minor event provides proof that the whole prophecy would be fulfilled (Exodus 3:12; 1 Samuel 2:34; 1 Samuel 10:7, 9). Or it may be used as a wonder, a prodigy, or a miracle (Deuteronomy 4:34; Deuteronomy 6:22).

In the case before us, it seems to mean that in the events predicted here, Hezekiah would have a token or argument that the land was completely freed from Sennacherib's invasion. Although a considerable part of Sennacherib's army would be destroyed and the monarch himself compelled to flee, Hezekiah would not, from that fact alone, have the assurance that Sennacherib would not rally his forces and return to invade the land. Indeed, every inducement arising from disappointment and the rage of defeat would compel him to do so.

To calm Hezekiah's mind regarding this, the assurance was given that the land would be quiet. The fact that it would remain quiet for the rest of that year and into the third year would be a sign, or demonstration, that the Assyrian army was entirely withdrawn and that all danger of an invasion was over. The sign, therefore, does not refer so much to the past as to the security and future prosperity that would follow.

It would be evidence to them that the nation would be safe and would be favored with a high degree of prosperity . It is possible that this invasion took place when it was too late to sow for that year, and that the land was so ravaged that it could not that year be cultivated. The harvests and the vineyards had been destroyed, and they would be dependent on what the earth spontaneously produced in those parts that had been untilled. As it was now too late to sow the land, they would be dependent in the following year on the same scanty supply. In the third year, however, they might cultivate their fields securely, and the former fertility would be restored.

Such as grows of itself - The Hebrew word here (ספיח sâphı̂yach) denotes grain produced from the kernels of the former year, without new seed and without cultivation. This, it is evident, would be a scanty supply; but we must remember that the land had been ravaged by the Assyrian army.

That which springs of the same - The word used here (שׁחיס shâchiys), in the parallel passage in 2 Kings 19:29 (סחישׁ sâchiysh), denotes that which grows of itself the third year after sowing. This production of the third year would, of course, be more scanty and less valuable than in the preceding year, and there can be no doubt that the Jews would be subjected to a considerable extent to the evils of want.

Still, as the land would be quiet and the people permitted to live in peace, it would be a sign to them that the Assyrian was finally and entirely withdrawn. They could then return in the third year to cultivate their land with the assurance that this much-dreaded invasion was no longer to be feared.

And in the third year - Then you may resume your agricultural operations with the assurance that you will be undisturbed. Your two years of quiet will have been a full demonstration to you that the Assyrian will not return, and you may resume your employments with the assurance that all the evils of the invasion and all apprehension of danger are at an end.