John Calvin 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 thee. He now directs his discourse to Hezekiah and the whole nation, for he did not address Sennacherib as if he expected him to listen, but so that, by contemptuously mocking the absent tyrant, he might more powerfully stimulate the minds of believers to stronger confidence.

If he had simply said, “Take courage, Hezekiah; though Sennacherib is insolent, yet in due time I will restrain him,” that discourse would have been less impressive than when he addresses the tyrant and, by thundering against him, encourages believers to despise his presumption. Accordingly, the speech directed to the tyrant is now followed by a timely address to Hezekiah and the nation, and a promise of deliverance to them: not only that he will rescue them from the jaws of a savage beast, but also that Hezekiah will enjoy a peaceful reign, and that the rest of the people will have everything necessary for leading a prosperous and happy life.

Thus he enlarges on the benefit derived from the deliverance in such a way as to show that he intends, not in one way only, but in a variety of ways, to promote the interests of his people. For not only does he once and instantaneously rescue them from dangers, but he also largely and bountifully bestows his kindness upon them, so that the fruit is seen long afterwards.

But there is an apparent impropriety in presenting as “a sign” an event that occurred later than the deliverance itself. For if he intended to encourage the besieged to entertain favorable hopes, he should have provided some sign beforehand, instead of relating what he would do afterwards.

I reply that there are two kinds of signs. Some go before the event and lead us to it as by the hand, while others follow for the purpose of confirming the event, so that it may be more strongly impressed upon our minds and may never be effaced from our remembrance.

For instance, when the Lord brought back his people out of Egypt, He gave many signs to Moses beforehand, but He also appointed another that would be after the deliverance:

You shall sacrifice to me three days afterwards. (Exodus 3:12, 18).

The design was that they should not forget so great a blessing, but should give thanks to God after having received this additional favor. It is a sign of this nature that Isaiah here describes; and it certainly tends greatly to confirm our faith to place before our eyes the uninterrupted course of God’s favors towards us, so that we may consider how various they are.

When the enemy had been repelled, there was danger from famine, which most commonly follows war, for the wasting and pillaging of the fields must have been followed by a great scarcity of provisions. Amid such great scarcity as seemed likely to ensue, the Lord promises that there will be no lack of food and offers this as a very clear sign of deliverance, to convince them all the more that He will be the author of the deliverance, or at least, to fix it more deeply on their hearts.

This promise was indeed incredible and exceeded all expectation and belief. But it was necessary that the faith of Hezekiah and of the people be stirred, so that after hearing of such great kindness, they might be more ready to maintain good hope, and also so that the event might show that those illustrious works of God could not be ascribed to chance.

The meaning, therefore, is: “After driving out the enemy, God will restrain him so that he cannot bring fresh troops, and you will peacefully possess your country. He will also supply you with food and nourishment, so that you will be in want of nothing.”

But because, as usually happens, they had consumed a large portion of the crop and destroyed part of it, and because those who were besieged or were fugitives had not been able to attend to agricultural labors, He promises that they will have food without sowing until they sow in the third year.