Albert Barnes Commentary Isaiah 49:18

"Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith Jehovah, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all as with an ornament, and gird thyself with them, like a bride." — Isaiah 49:18 (ASV)

Lift up your eyes round about — That is, see the multitudes that will be converted to you; see your ruined city rise again in its former beauty; see the Gentiles come and yield themselves to the worship of the true God; see kings and princes approach and do you homage.

All these gather themselves — That is, from a distant country, from the north, the west, and the south (Isaiah 49:12).

As I live, says the Lord — This is the customary form of an oath when Yahweh swears.

It is a solemn assurance that the event will as certainly occur as He has an existence (see the note at Isaiah 45:23; Ezekiel 5:11; Ezekiel 14:16, 18, 20; Ezekiel 16:48).

You will surely clothe yourself with them — Zion is here represented, as it is often elsewhere, as a female (see the note at Isaiah 1:8).

The accession of converts from abroad is represented under the figure of bridal ornaments. The accession of converts from the Gentiles should be to her what jewels are to a bride.

And bind them on you as a bride does — The sentence here is manifestly incomplete. It means, as a bride binds on her ornaments.

The Septuagint has supplied this, and renders it, ‘As a bride her ornaments’ (ὡς κόσμον νύμφη hōs kosmon numphē).

The sentiment is that the accession of the large number of converts under the Messiah to the true church of God would be the real ornament of Zion, and would greatly increase her beauty and loveliness.