Albert Barnes Commentary Isaiah 62:5

"For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee; and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee." — Isaiah 62:5 (ASV)

For as a young man marries a virgin—Roberts remarks on this, ‘In general no youth marries a widow. Such a thing I scarcely ever heard of (in India), nor will it ever be except under some very extraordinary circumstances, as in the case of a queen, princess, or great heiress. Even widowers also, if possible, always marry virgins.’ The idea here is that Yahweh would have delight in his people, which would be properly represented by the affection a young man has for his bride.

So shall your sons marry you—Lowth renders this, ‘So shall your restorer wed you.’ He supposes that the word rendered in our common version, ‘your sons’ (בניך bânâyı̂k), should be pointed בניך bonayı̂k — as a participle from בנה bânâh — ‘to build,’ rather than from בן bên — ‘a son.’ The parallelism requires some such construction as this, and the unusual form of expression, ‘your sons shall be wedded to you,’ seems also to demand it.

The Septuagint renders it, ‘As a young man cohabits (συνοικῶν sunoikōn) with a virgin (bride, παρθένῳ parthenō), so shall your sons dwell with you (κατοικήσουσιν οἱ υἱοί σου katoikēsousin hoi huioi sou).’ So the Chaldee. The conjecture of Lowth has been adopted by Koppe and Doderlin. Rosenmuller supposes that there is here a mingling or confusion of figures, and that the idea is that her sons should possess her — an idea which is frequently conveyed by the word בעל Ba‛al — which is used here. To me it seems that there is much force in the conjecture of Lowth, and that the reference is to God as the ‘builder,’ or the restorer of Jerusalem, and that the sense is that he would be ‘married,’ or tenderly and indissolubly united to her.

If it is objected that the word is in the plural (בניך bonayı̂k), it may be observed that the word commonly applied to God (אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym) is also plural, and that an expression remarkably similar to the one before us occurs in Isaiah 54:5: For your Maker is your husband (Hebrew, בעליך bo‛ălayk — ‘Your husbands.’). It is not uncommon to use a plural noun when speaking of God. It should be remembered that the points in the Hebrew are of no authority, and that all the change demanded here is in them.

And as the bridegroom—Margin, as in Hebrew, ‘With the joy of the bridegroom.’

Over the bride—In the possession of the bride—probably the most tender joy which results from the exercise of the social affections.

And I looked and there was none to help - The same sentiment is expressed in Isaiah 59:16 (see the note at that verse).

None to uphold - None to sustain or assist. The design is to express the fact that he was entirely alone in this work: that none were disposed or able to assist him. Though this has no direct reference to the plan of salvation, or to the work of the Messiah as a Redeemer, yet it is true of him also that in that work he stood alone. No one did aid him or could aid him; but alone he bore the burden of the world’s atonement.

My fury, it upheld me - My determined purpose to inflict punishment on my foes sustained me. There is a reference doubtless to the fact that courage nerves the arm and sustains a man in deadly conflict; that a purpose to take vengeance, or to inflict deserved punishment, animates one to make efforts which he could not otherwise perform. In Isaiah 59:16, the sentiment is, his righteousness sustained him; here it is that his fury did it. There the purpose was to bring salvation; here it was to destroy his foes.