John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 5:19

"that say, Let him make speed, let him hasten his work, that we may see it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!" — Isaiah 5:19 (ASV)

Who say, Let him make speed. He specifies one class of sins, by means of which he shows that they draw sins as by ropes. When people not only lay aside all thought of the divine judgment, but despise and treat as fictional all that is said about it, nothing can be worse than this. He intended to say that the utmost contempt is manifested when people, to whom God's judgment has been declared, say it would give them joy to see it and then treat it with ridicule as a silly alarm. This contempt is denoted by these words, full of contempt and wicked confidence: Let him come, let him make speed.

Work is here used, by way of eminence (κατ’ ἐξοχὴν), for judgment. For God appears to be doing nothing when he does not punish the crimes of the ungodly; but when he rises up to execute judgment and inflicts punishment, his work is then seen and becomes visible (as is commonly said) by action, because from this very fact we learn that the world is governed by his authority and power. Work, therefore, is taken specially for judgment, because by means of it we see that God is by no means unemployed but performs his office. Now, ungodly people speak of him with reproach and contempt. To this very day, we have abundant instances of such wickedness and rebellion, and the same war previously waged by the prophets is the one we also are called to maintain.

The ungodly think that God does nothing and does not care about the affairs of men, just as Epicurus thought that God’s highest happiness consisted in his being free from all occupation. Although they imagine that there is some God, they do not at all acknowledge his judgment. In the meantime, they tell themselves to be cheerful and resolve not to wear themselves out with such thoughts, saying, “Let these prophets and ministers cry and bawl, and present terrors and threats; we will wait without any concern for what they tell us, and in the meantime we will enjoy our amusement.” In this way, the Prophet relates the speeches of the ungodly, by which they expressed ridicule and contempt for the word. Not only do they say, Let his work come, but also, Let him hasten, Let him make speed. For when he delays, they conclude that everything God does not execute as soon as he has spoken it is idle talk. Thus Peter represents the ungodly as saying,

Since the world was created, the course of nature has been uniform;
and, therefore, after so many ages, it is idle to expect a day of judgment (2 Peter 3:4).

In the meantime, they purposely, as it were, provoke God to exert his power immediately, if he has any.

Let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come. To work is added counsel, as if they had said, “Why does God deliberate so long, or say what he intends to do? Let him rather show that what he has decreed is accomplished.” It is a great aggravation of their crime that they wickedly dared to set aside the doctrine which was well known to them. They were more wicked than the heathen Gentiles in this respect: they despised the doctrine by which he had adopted them to be his peculiar people.

That we may see it. These are proofs of unbelief, for ungodly people will not acknowledge God unless they have immediate evidence of his presence, and they refuse to believe his words. Now, if the Holy Spirit, by means of this mark, marks ungodly people for detestation, we should testify to our faith and piety by the opposite sign: that is, by relying on the word of God, even though the effect does not immediately appear. For it is the unique excellence of faith to keep us dependent on the mouth of God.

True, we next derive confirmation from works, but we must not begin with them. For this is the distinction between the elect and the reprobate: the elect simply rely on the word but do not disregard works, while ungodly people scorn and disdain the word, even if God speaks a hundred times, and yet they continually and eagerly call upon him for works.

And when the judgment of God is declared, they say, “Where is it?” They cannot endure the mention of it, unless it is immediately made known by action. When people are so immoderate, it follows that they have no faith, but rather an obstinate rebelliousness which increasingly withdraws and estranges them from God.