John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 33:16

"He shall dwell on high; his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks; his bread shall be given [him]; his waters shall be sure." — Isaiah 33:16 (ASV)

He shall dwell in high places. So that the Jews may know that the chastisements God had inflicted on them were righteous, and may strive to be restored to His favor, He says that His blessing is ready to be bestowed on good and upright men, such as He described in the previous verse. He also says that they are not subject to any danger and have no reason to dread the burning He mentioned, because they shall be made to dwell in a place of the greatest safety.

As for wicked men, slanderers, robbers, and deceitful persons, on the other hand, who cannot restrain their tongue, hands, ears, and eyes from base and wicked actions, the Prophet shows that we need not wonder if God treats them with severity. While God is their judge, their own conscience is at the same time their executioner. Consequently, the only way to prevent them from dreading God’s presence is for them to keep themselves voluntarily in the fear of God.

By “high places,” He means a very safe place, free from all danger, which no attack of the enemy can reach, as He declares plainly enough immediately afterwards by assigning them a habitation among “fortified rocks.”

Bread shall be given to him. To a safe dwelling He adds an abundance of good things; as if He had said that the holy and upright worshippers of God shall lack nothing, because God will not only protect them so as to keep them safe from all danger, but will also supply them abundantly with all that is necessary for the support of life. By the words “bread” and “water” He means all the daily necessities of life.

And his waters shall be sure. Though wicked men have abundance for a time, they shall afterwards be hungry, as God threatens in the Law that they shall have famine and hunger (Leviticus 26:19; Deuteronomy 28:23, 48). The same remark may be made regarding “bread,” for the word “sure” relates to both, as if He had said that all believers shall have their food made “sure.” Lions are hungry and wander about; but they that fear God shall not want any good thing (Psalms 34:10), because God, who is by nature bountiful, is not weary of bestowing liberally and does not exhaust His wealth by acts of kindness.

Besides, since human life is exposed to various dangers, and since an abundance of food and drink is not all that is necessary for our support unless the Lord defends us by His power, we ought, therefore, to observe carefully what He previously mentioned: that believers are placed in a safe abode.

The Lord performs the role of a shepherd: He not only supplies them with food but also defends them from the attacks of robbers, enemies, and wolves. In short, He keeps them under His protection and guardianship, so as not to allow any evil to befall them.

Therefore, whenever enemies annoy us, let us consider that we are justly punished for our sins and are deprived of God’s assistance because we do not deserve it, for we must recognize our sins as the cause of all the evils we endure.

Yet, those who are conscious of their integrity should not imagine that God has forsaken them. Instead, to the last day of their lives, they should rely on those promises in which the Lord assures His people that He will be a very safe refuge for them.

Indeed, no one can be so holy or upright as to be able to endure the eye of God; for if the Lord mark our iniquities, as David says, who shall endure? (Psalms 130:3). We therefore need a mediator, through whose intercession our sins may be forgiven.

The Prophet did not intend to set aside the ordinary doctrine of Scripture on this subject, but rather to strike terror into wicked men, who are continually stung and pursued by an evil conscience. This ought to be carefully observed in opposition to the Popish doctors, by whom passages of this kind, which recommend works, are abused to destroy the righteousness of faith, as if the atonement for our sins, which we obtain through the sacrifice of Christ, ought to be set aside.