John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 22

The burden of the valley of vision. Isaiah again prophesies against Judea, which he calls the valley of vision. He gives this name to the whole of Judea rather than to Jerusalem, of which he afterwards speaks; but now in the preface he includes the whole of Judea. He appropriately calls it a “valley,” because it was surrounded on all sides by mountains.

It is a harsher view of the metaphor, adopted by some, that Jerusalem is called “a valley” because it was thrown down from its loftiness. The reason why he adds the words of vision is plain enough. The Lord enlightened the whole of Judea by his word; the prophets were continually employed in it, and that was the reason why they were called seers (1 Samuel 9:9). There is also an implied contrast here, for valleys have less light than open plains, because the height of the mountains intercepts the light of the sun. Now, this valley, he tells us, is more highly enlightened than those countries which were exposed on all sides to the sun. It was by the extraordinary goodness of God that this happened; for he means that it was enlightened, not by the rays of the sun, but by the word of God.

Besides, the Prophet unquestionably intended to beat down that foolish confidence with which the Jews were puffed up, because God had distinguished them above others by remarkable gifts. They abused his word and prophecies, as if by means of them they had been protected against all danger, though they were disobedient and rebellious against God. He therefore declares that visions will not prevent God from punishing their ingratitude; and he even aggravates their guilt by this mark of ingratitude, that amidst such splendor of heavenly doctrine they still continued to stumble like the blind.

What have you here? or, What have you now? He now addresses Jerusalem; not that this defeat affects Jerusalem alone, but because the whole country thought it safe to take refuge under the shadow of the sanctuary which then existed, and to lead the Jews to reflect, since this happened to a fortified city, what would become of other cities which had no means of defense. He asks in astonishment, “What does it mean that every person leaves his house and flies to the house-top for the purpose of saving his life?” Among the Jews the form of house-tops was different from what is now customary with us, and hence arose that saying of Christ,

What you have heard in the ear proclaim on the housetops. (Matthew 10:27).

When the inhabitants of Jerusalem fled to the house-tops, they left their houses open to be a prey to enemies, and this was a proof that they were exceedingly afraid. It is likewise possible that they went up to the house-tops for the purpose of throwing down javelins and other weapons against the enemies, whose arrival not only terrified them, but made them flee in consternation, and yet they did not escape danger.

Thou that art full of noises. He means that it was exceedingly populous, for where great multitudes of people are brought together, noise abounds. Therefore, amid so crowded a population, there was less cause for fear. To make the representation still more striking, Isaiah has therefore added this circumstance: that instead of being, as they should have been, walls and bulwarks to defend the city when there was no scarcity of men, they ignominiously turned their backs on the enemies and fled to the tops of their houses.

By these words he urges the Jews more strongly to consider the judgment of God. For when such overwhelming fear has seized the hearts of men, it is certain that God has struck them with trembling, as if he had said, “How is it that you do not have greater firmness to resist? It is because God pursues and chases you.”

These statements are taken from the writings of Moses, from which, as we have frequently remarked, the prophets borrow their instructions, but with this difference: that what Moses spoke in general terms they apply to the matter in hand.

The Lord shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies; thou shalt go out one way against them, and shalt flee seven ways before them. The Lord shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart (Deuteronomy 28:25, 28).

He reproaches the Jews for their distressed condition, and with good reason, for it was proper to drive the accusation home, so that they might learn to ascribe to their sins and transgressions all the afflictions and sufferings that they endured. The Lord had promised that he would continually assist them; and when they are now left destitute, let them acknowledge that they do not deserve such assistance and that God has cast them off on account of their rebelliousness.

The Lord does not deceive or make false promises, but by their own fault those wretched persons have shut themselves out from his aid and favor. This is still more strongly expressed by the question, What hast thou here? It means that God gave practical evidence that Jerusalem had been deprived of her protector and guardian, for this mode of expression denotes something strange and extraordinary.

Thy slain men are not slain by the sword. To show still more clearly the vengeance of God, he affirms that those who were slain there did not die bravely in battle. Thus he shows that all that they lacked was manly courage, for a timid and cowardly heart was a sure proof that they had all been forsaken by the Lord, by whose assistance they would have bravely and manfully resisted. He therefore does not mean that the defeat would be accompanied by shame and disgrace, but ascribes it to the wrath of God that they had not courage to resist; and unquestionably by this circumstance he beats down their foolish pride.

All your rulers have fled together. This verse has been interpreted in various ways. The fact is abundantly clear, but there is some difficulty about the words. As מ (mem) signifies before and more than, some explain מרחוק (mĕrāchōk) to mean, “They fled before others, though they were situated in the most distant parts of the country, and were in greater danger.” Others render it, “Although they were at a great distance from Jerusalem, they still continued to flee like men who are seized with terror, and never stop in their flight, because they continually think that the enemy is at their heels.”

However, a more natural interpretation, it seems to me, is: They have fled from afar; that is, “those who have resorted to Jerusalem as a safe retreat will be seized by enemies and vanquished.” For Jerusalem might be regarded as the general protection of the whole of Judea, and therefore, when a war broke out, the inhabitants rushed to it from every quarter.

While they considered their dwelling in Jerusalem as safe, they were taken prisoners. Others suppose it to refer to the siege of Sennacherib (2 Kings 18:13; 2 Chronicles 32:1). But I cannot be persuaded to expound the passage in this manner, for he speaks of the destruction of Jerusalem.

When it was besieged by Sennacherib, the Lord immediately delivered it; none were taken or made prisoners, and there was no slaughter of men. These events therefore happened long after the death of the Prophet. Sacred history relates them and informs us that in that destruction even the rulers fled; but they derived no advantage from their flight, nor did Jerusalem afford them any defense, for they fell into the hands of their enemies.

When he expressly mentions the rulers, this shows more strongly the shamefulness of the transaction, for they ought to have been the first to risk their lives for the safety of the people. They might be viewed as the shields that ought to have guarded and defended the common people.

As long as Jerusalem stood firm and was in a prosperous condition, these statements might have seemed incredible, for it was a very strong and powerfully fortified city. But they primarily boasted of the protection of God, for they thought that in some way God was bound to His “Temple.” And their pride swelled them with the confident hope that, even if all were allied against it, no power and no armies could bring it down (Jeremiah 7:4).

This prophecy—that they would have no courage, that they would flee, and that even then they could not escape—might therefore have seemed very strange.

Therefore I said. Here the Prophet, in order to affect the hearts of the Jews more deeply, not only assumes the character of a mourner but also bitterly bewails the distressed condition of the Church of God. This passage must not be explained in the same manner as some former passages, in which he described the grief and sorrow of foreign nations; but he speaks of the fallen condition of the Church of which he is a member, and therefore he sincerely bewails it and invites others by his example to join in the lamentation. What has befallen the Church ought to affect us in the same manner as if it had befallen each of us individually; for otherwise what would become of that passage? The zeal of thy house hath eaten me up (Psalms 69:9).

I will be bitter in my weeping. He does not mourn in secret, or without witnesses; first, because he wishes, as I have already said, to stir up others by his example to lamentation, and not to lamentation only, but much more to repentance, that they may ward off the dreadful judgment of God against them, which was near, and from now on may refrain from provoking His displeasure; and secondly, because it was proper that the herald of God’s wrath should actually make evident that what he utters is not mockery.

Because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people. That he expresses the feelings of his own heart may be inferred from what he now declares: that he is bitterly grieved “on account of the daughter of his people.” Being one of the family of Abraham, he thought that this distress affected his own condition and intimates that he has good grounds for lamentation.

By a customary mode of expression he calls the assembly of his people a daughter. Therefore, it should be observed that whenever the Church is afflicted, the example of the Prophet ought to move us to be touched (συμπαθείᾳ) with compassion, if we are not harder than iron; for we are altogether unworthy of being counted among the children of God and added to the holy Church if we do not dedicate ourselves, and all that we have, to the Church, in such a manner that we are not separate from it in any respect.

Thus, when in the present day the Church is afflicted by so many and so various calamities, and innumerable souls are perishing, whom Christ redeemed with His own blood, we must be barbarous and savage if we are not touched with any grief. And especially the ministers of the word should be moved by this feeling of grief, because, being appointed to keep watch and to look from a distance, they should also groan when they perceive the tokens of approaching ruin.

The circumstance of his weeping publicly tended, as we have said, to soften the hearts of the people, for he had to deal with obstinate men who could not easily be induced to lament. There is a passage that closely resembles it in Jeremiah, who bewails the miserable and wasted condition of the people and says that through grief his heart fainteth (Jeremiah 4:31); and in another passage, O that my head were full of waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might bewail the slain of my people! (Jeremiah 9:1). When the prophets saw that they labored in vain to subdue the obstinacy of the people, they could not avoid being altogether overwhelmed by grief and sorrow. They therefore endeavored, by their moving addresses, to soften hard hearts, that they might bend them, if it were at all possible, and bring them back to the right path.

It is a day of trouble. He again declares that the Lord is the author of this calamity and, so that the Jews might not gaze around in all directions or wonder that their enemies prevail against them, he pronounces that they are fighting against God. Though this doctrine is frequently taught in Scripture, it is still not superfluous and cannot be so earnestly inculcated that it is not forgotten when we put it into practice. The consequence is that we are not humbled in the presence of our Judge, and we direct our eyes to outward remedies rather than to God, who alone could cure our distresses.

He uses the word day, as is usual in Scripture, to signify an appointed time. For when God overlooks the transgressions of men, He appears to make some concession regarding His rightful claims, which, however, He can be said to reclaim at the proper and appointed time.

In the valley of vision. It is not without good reason that he again calls it “the valley of vision,” for the Jews believed that they would be protected against every calamitous event, because the Lord shone on them by the word. But having ungratefully rejected His instruction, they vainly trusted that it would be of use to them. Indeed, the Lord punishes the unbelief of men, not only outside the Church, but within the Church itself. In fact, He begins His chastisement at the Church, so that we must not abuse the gifts of God, or vainly boast in His name (1 Peter 4:17).

And crying to the mountain. This may refer either to God, to the Babylonians, or even to the exiles themselves. Conquerors raise a cry to increase terror, and the conquered either utter what is intended to awaken compassion, or give vent to their grief by lamentation. The singular number may be taken for the plural, or it may rather denote that part of the city in which the temple was situated. Both meanings will agree well with the context, and it makes little difference whether we say that the enemies cried to Mount Zion to encourage each other, or that, while they were destroying and plundering the city, a cry was heard in the neighboring mountains, or that the citizens themselves caused their lamentations to resound to the mountains which surrounded the plain of Judea.