Thomas Aquinas Commentary Isaiah 26:1-21

"In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah: we have a strong city; salvation will he appoint for walls and bulwarks. Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth faith may enter in. Thou wilt keep [him] in perfect peace, [whose] mind [is] stayed [on thee]; because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in Jehovah for ever; for in Jehovah, [even] Jehovah, is an everlasting rock. For he hath brought down them that dwell on high, the lofty city: he layeth it low, he layeth it low even to the ground; he bringeth it even to the dust. The foot shall tread it down; even the feet of the poor, and the steps of the needy. The way of the just is uprightness: thou that art upright dost direct the path of the just. Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O Jehovah, have we waited for thee; to thy name, even to thy memorial [name], is the desire of our soul. With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee earnestly: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. Let favor be showed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness will he deal wrongfully, and will not behold the majesty of Jehovah. Jehovah, thy hand is lifted up, yet they see not: but they shall see [thy] zeal for the people, and be put to shame; yea, fire shall devour thine adversaries. Jehovah, thou wilt ordain peace for us; for thou hast also wrought all our works for us. O Jehovah our God, other lords besides thee have had dominion over us; but by thee only will we make mention of thy name. [They are] dead, they shall not live; [they are] deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all remembrance of them to perish. Thou hast increased the nation, O Jehovah, thou hast increased the nation; thou art glorified; thou hast enlarged all the borders of the land. Jehovah, in trouble have they visited thee; they poured out a prayer [when] thy chastening was upon them. Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain and crieth out in her pangs; so we have been before thee, O Jehovah. We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen. Thy dead shall live; my dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for thy dew is [as] the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast forth the dead. Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, Jehovah cometh forth out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." — Isaiah 26:1-21 (ASV)

1. In that day. In this section, the prophet gives thanks for the justification of the people. This is divided into two parts.

First, he foretells the state of the just.

Second, he shows the fruit of justice, beginning with the old error (Isaiah 26:3).

Regarding the first part, he does two things.

First, he foretells the confidence of the just. The phrase in that day refers to the time after the return from captivity and the affliction of the Moabites by the Maccabees, or after the coming of Christ. Zion is called a city of strength because of its savior—Christ, or Judas Maccabeus. In this city, for its protection, a wall and a bulwark shall be set. This can be understood literally in the time of the Maccabees, or it can be interpreted with the wall as Christ and the bulwark as the prophets.

Alternatively, Zion is the city, and the savior—God, Christ, or Judas Maccabeus—is a wall, defending like a wall. As it is written, the name of the Lord is a strong tower (Proverbs 18:10), and, I will be to them, says the Lord, a wall of fire round about (Zechariah 2:5).

2. Second, the Lord foretells their justice, speaking to the angels: open the gates. This refers to the gates of heaven or of virtue, which were closed by sin. Or, taken literally, it means it is not necessary for you to close the gates against the unfaithful, for all are just. As the Psalm says, this is the gate of the Lord, the just shall enter into it (Psalms 117[118]:20).

3. The old error. Here the prophet presents the fruit of justice, which is peace. First, the people’s petition is presented, which contains three elements.

The fitness of the petitioners is established, referring to the old error of idolatry: the old things are passed away (2 Corinthians 5:17). The benefit of peace is requested: you will keep peace, a peace of body and soul, as it says later, my people shall sit in the beauty of peace (Isaiah 32:18). The basis for their peace is presented: because we have hoped in you. For, whoQuis. Vg.: nullus. DR: “no one.” has hoped in the Lord, and has been confounded? .

4. Second, the prophet's response is presented, who is the mediator between the people and God: you have hoped. This is divided into three parts.

In the first, the promise of peace is presented.

In the second, how peace is obtained is explained: the way of the just (Isaiah 26:7).

In the third, the peace that was obtained is announced: the inhabitants of the world shall learn justice (Isaiah 26:9).

5. Regarding the first point, he does three things.

First, he acknowledges their merit: you have hoped in the Lord for eternal ages, that is, forever. As the Psalm says, in him has my heart confided, and I have been helped (Psalms 27[28]:7).

Second, he adds a word of counsel: hope in the Lord God. For, he who perseveres to the end will be saved (Matthew 10:22).

Third, he promises the benefit of peace through the destruction of enemies: for he shall bring down them that dwell. The Jews say this refers to the Romans, but it can refer to any of their enemies or, mystically, to the Jews themselves, as mentioned previously: the bulwarks of your high walls shall fall (Isaiah 25:12). He adds the condition of those who will destroy them: the foot shall tread it down, the feet of the poor, meaning the Jews, who have little, and the needy, who lack many things. Or, if taken mystically, he presents the Jews’ deserving of destruction on account of the poor Christ, about whom it is said in Psalm 69:6[70:5], but I am needy and poor, and also, but I am poor and sorrowful (Psalms 68:30[69:29]). The needy refers to the disciples.

6. The way of the just. Here, what is presented is like a dispute of the prophet with the Lord to obtain the people's petition.

First, he urges Him with arguments to punish their enemies.

Second, he urges Him based on experience: you have indulged (Isaiah 26:15).

Regarding the first point, he does two things:

First, he urges Him to punish them.

Second, he urges Him to keep them in punishment: let not the dead live (Isaiah 26:14).

Regarding the first of these, he does three things:

First, he urges Him toward justice.

Second, he argues against mercy: let us have pity (Isaiah 26:10).

Third, he determines the punishment: and he shall not see the glory of the Lord (Isaiah 26:10).

7. Now he urges Him toward justice by presenting three things.

First, the righteousness of justice: the way of the just, that is, of justice. As it is written, the LordDominus. Vg.: haec. DR: “she” (i.e., Wisdom). conducted the just through the right ways .

Second, the expectation of the afflicted, presenting three things: the expectation itself, in the way, that is, through the punishment, of your judgments, by which You vindicate and liberate us: your justifications I will never forget: for by them you have given me life (Psalms 118[119]:93); the desire of those in expectation: your name, as in, this is the name that they shall call him, the Lord our just one (Jeremiah 33:16); and the constancy of their desire, for day and night, that is, at all times, or in prosperity and adversity: my soul has desired you. As it is written, in my bed I sought him whom my soul loves (Song of Solomon 3:1), and, O God, my God, to you do I watch at break of day (Psalms 62:2[63:1]).

Third, he presents the usefulness of justice: when you shall do your judgments on the earth, the inhabitants of the world shall learn justice. As the Psalm says, the Lord shall be known when he executes judgments (Psalms 9:17[16]).

8. Let us have pity. Here he argues against mercy, and concerning this, he does two things.

First, the Lord proposes mercy in the form of a question: let us have pity. For, the earth is full of the mercy of the Lord (Psalms 32[33]:5).

Second, the prophet argues against it because of its uselessness: but he will not learn. As it is written, because sentence is not speedily pronounced against the evil, the children of men commit evils without any fear (Ecclesiastes 8:11), and, a horse not broken becomes stubborn, and a child left to himself will become headstrong . He also argues against it because of the seriousness of the sin, for it profanes a holy place: in the land of the saints he has done wicked things. As the Psalm says, O God, the heathens are come into your inheritance, they have defiled your holy temple (Psalms 78[79]:1), and, what is the meaning that my beloved has wrought much wickedness in my house? (Jeremiah 11:15).

9. And he shall not see. Here the discussion to determine the punishment is presented.

First, the Lord asks, and he shall not see the glory of the Lord?, as if to say, “Should I give this punishment to him because he does not see?” Or, speaking patiently, “And this is sufficient for punishment.”

10. Second, the prophet responds: Lord, let your hand be exalted.

11. Third, the Lord determines the spiritual punishment: let the envious people see, and be confounded. As it is written, every eye shall see him (Revelation 1:7), in the glory of His humanity, not of His divinity. He also determines the physical punishment: let fire devour your enemies, for they were cast alive into the pool of fire (Revelation 19:20).

12. Fourth, the prophet joyfully agrees, presenting two positive outcomes from these punishments. The first is the peace of the people; therefore, Lord, once this is done, you will give us peace, and we hope for this from You, for all our works. As it is written, it is God who works in you, both to will and to accomplish (Philippians 2:13). You have wrought the works, that is, the punishments by which You have sufficiently cleansed us, as it says later: she has received of the hand of the Lord double (Isaiah 40:2).

The second outcome is the praise of God: O Lord our God, other lords besides you have had dominion over us, and therefore we could not give ourselves to praising You. Only in you, to whom alone we give ourselves, having no other god. As it is written, servants have ruled over us (Lamentations 5:8).

13. Note on the words, the city of our strength (Isaiah 26:1), that Christ is the city of our strength because He strengthens us in several ways:

1. In faith: other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid: which is Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 3:11).
2. In hope: we may have the strongest comfort, we who have fled for refuge to hold fast the hope set before us (Hebrews 6:18).
3. In charity: being rooted and founded in charity (Ephesians 3:17); I am come to cast fire on the earth (Luke 12:49).
4. In our work: it is God who works in you, both to will and to accomplish, according to his good will (Philippians 2:13).
5. In temptation: God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able (1 Corinthians 10:13).
6. In accusation: we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ (1 John 2:1).
7. In reward: I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God (Revelation 3:12).

14. Note also on the words, open the gates (Isaiah 26:2), that we ought to open the gates through meditation:

1. On the misery of hell, as it says later: I shall go to the gates of hell (Isaiah 38:10).
2. On the just life: let her works praise her in the gates (Proverbs 31:31).
3. On the glory of heaven: he has strengthened the bolts of your gates (Psalms 147:13).

15. Note also on the word, peace (Isaiah 26:2), that three things bring peace in this present life:

1. Disdain for temporal riches, as it says later: but the wicked are like the raging sea, which cannot rest (Isaiah 57:20).
2. The subduing of carnal desire: Living at peace in their houses .
3. The contemplation of divine wisdom: his place is in peace: and his abode in Zion (Psalms 75:3[76:2]).

16. Note also on the words, the way of the just (Isaiah 26:7), that the way of justice is right for three reasons:

1. Because of the shortness of its course: we have walked through hard ways .
2. Because of the smoothness of its path, which does not deviate: knowing that he came from God and goes to God (John 13:3).
3. Because of its beauty: the Lord bless you, the beauty of justice, the holy mountain (Jeremiah 31:23).

17. Note also on the word, peace (Isaiah 26:12), that three things bring peace in the future life:

1. The abundance of good things: he has placed peace in your borders (Psalms 147:14).
2. Freedom from evils, as it says later: and my people shall sit in the tabernacles of confidence (Isaiah 32:18).
3. Unchanging stability: in peace in the self same I will sleep, and I will rest (Psalms 4:9[8]).

18. Let not the dead live. Here the prophet asks that God not release the punished from further punishment.

First, he presents the petition: let not the dead, that is, sinners, live in the life of glory, unless they repent. Let not the giants, who glory in their own power, rise again to glory. As the Psalm says, the wicked shall not rise again in judgment (Psalms 1:5), and, the ancient giants did not obtain pardon for their sins (Sirach 16:8[7]). Or, he asks that their fallen enemies not rise again to power.

Second, he gives the answer to the petition: therefore have you visited and destroyed them, and have destroyed all their memory. As it is written, let their memory perishPereat. Vg.: periit. DR: “their memory hath perished.” with a noise (Psalms 9:7[6]), and, in the time of their visitation they shall fall (Jeremiah 8:12).

19. You have indulged. Here he urges God to act justly based on experience.

First, from experience among the Gentiles.

Second, among the Jews: as a woman with child (Isaiah 26:17).

Regarding the first, he does two things.

First, he demonstrates from experience the uselessness of mercy, both in the remission of sins—you have indulged—and in the increase of good things: you have removed all the ends of the land far off. As it is written, they become great and enriched, and they are grown gross and fat: and have most wickedly transgressed my words (Jeremiah 5:27–28), and, the prosperity of fools shall destroy them (Proverbs 1:32).

Second, he demonstrates the usefulness of retributive justice: Lord, they have sought after you in distress. As it is written, in their affliction they will rise early to me (Hosea 6:1), and, in the time of their affliction they will say: arise, and deliver us (Jeremiah 2:27).

20. As a woman with child. Here he demonstrates the same thing from the experience among the Jews.

First, he presents the affliction of tribulation: as a woman with child. As it is written, a woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow (John 16:21), and, there were pains as of a woman in labor (Psalms 47:7[48:6]).

Second, he presents the fruit of repentance: so are we become in your presence. As it is written, now all chastisement for the present indeed seems not to bring with it joy, but sorrow: but afterwards it will yield to them that are exercised by it the most peaceable fruit of justice (Hebrews 12:11).

21. We have not wrought justice. Here he announces the peace that was obtained, and concerning this, he does three things.

First, the reason for the delay is shown: we have not wrought justice, so that he alludes to what is said in Deuteronomy 28:7: the Lord shall cause your enemies, that rise up against you, to fall down before your face.

22. Second, the restoration of the people through resurrection is presented, either the bodily resurrection on the last day or the resurrection from the misery of captivity. Thus, resurrection is promised: your dead men shall live, which is the voice of the prophet to the Lord (Ezekiel 37). The thanksgiving of the resurrected is announced: awake, and give praise, for many of those that sleep in the dust of the earth, shall awake (Daniel 12:2). The cause, or reason, for the resurrection is given: for your dew is the dew of the light, namely, of divine kindness (Hosea 6:3).

23. Third, the destruction of their enemies is shown. First, he presents the destruction itself: the land of the giants, that is, of the proud and powerful, as stated previously: it shall be as a ruinous heap of stones (Isaiah 17:1).

Second, the protection of God's people is shown: go, my people; enter into your chambers, meaning tombs, or literally, the fortifications where they sometimes carefully protected themselves. As it says later, in a moment of indignation have I hid my face a little while from you, but with everlasting kindness have I had mercy on you (Isaiah 54:8), and, and it was said to them that they should rest for a little time till the number of their brethrenFratrum eorum. Vg.: conservi eorum, et fratres eorum. DR: “their fellow servants and their brethren.” should be filled up (Revelation 6:11).

Third, he presents the order of destruction, for it comes through judgment. He describes the coming of the judge: for behold the Lord will come, as in, behold the Lord will come forth (Micah 1:3), and all the angels with Him. He also describes the revealing of their crimes: and the earth shall disclose her blood. This is like the cry in Job, O earth, do not cover my blood, neither let my cry find a hiding place in you (Job 16:19).