And this [shall be] the sign unto thee there shall be eaten this year such as groweth of itself; and in the second year that which springeth of the same; but in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof.
Sennacherib's army had swept through Judah, and the fields lay unsown. God's sign to Hezekiah is not fire or thunder but food: two years of what the ground gives on its own, then a normal harvest.
The sign speaks to a people who had no crop in the ground. What grows "of itself" is what comes up from grain dropped in an earlier season, without anyone planting it.
They would stay in the land and eat "what grows of itself" that year — a crop nobody had planted. They had clearly been unable to sow any crop, so they could not count on a harvest, but God would give them what they needed. The same would be true in the second year, probably because conditions stayed unsettled. But in the third year they were to sow and reap, to plant vineyards and eat their fruit. So for three years God assured Jerusalem that they would be safe from the enemy's raids.
Later, when he is dying, Hezekiah asks for a sign and receives the shadow moving backward. Here, no request is recorded — the sign is simply handed to him.
Hezekiah had already received a sign of the enemy's final overthrow, and he had not asked for it. God had kept this remnant alive without any human help, and from them He would form the new Israel. Here Hezekiah learns how this remnant would be saved.
The three years are not three equal mercies. They rise in strength, and the Lord explains the picture to the king.
In the first year they would eat what grew from the fallen grain. It was a poor harvest, but it would keep them from starving. In prophecy, this is the story of how the remnant at Jerusalem was kept alive. In the second year the growth would be stronger. In the third year the harvest and the fruit of the vine would come. The Lord explains this picture to the king: "And the remnant of the house of Judah that has escaped will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem will go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion those who escape. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this." The Lord would establish the remnant of Judah again and fill them with His blessings.
Roots go down; fruit goes up. Each direction carries its own point.
God carries on His promise of blessing to Judah. He tells them that their small remnant, who have escaped the assault of Assyria, would "take root downward and bear fruit upward." Being firmly rooted gives a settled character, and that leads to fruit "upward" — that is, fruit for God. "For out of Jerusalem will go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion those who escape." The remnant of Judah would not be shut up in Jerusalem like prisoners. They do not escape from Mount Zion; they escape from Sennacherib. "The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this." How good for Jerusalem to depend on Him!
Chapter 37 is not the only sign in this part of Isaiah, and the writers link them. What grows where nothing was planted is treated as a picture of life rising where death had done its work.
We cannot close this section without looking at the other SIGN given. It is a life out of death sign, in beautiful harmony with the rest.
The same writer presses on to ask where such reversal comes from, and finds the answer in the Servant of Isaiah 53.
Why all this life out of death? How does it come about? It comes because of that other "Plant," the "tender Plant" — the One they saw no majesty in, for He was among them in lowliness. They saw no beauty in Him that they should desire Him. He was wounded for their transgressions, He was crushed for their iniquities. His wounds will bring them healing. He was "cut off out of the land of the living."
Some commentators read the whole episode as a pattern of something still ahead.
Seen this way, Sennacherib is a sample of "the wilful king" who will lift himself above everything that is called God, or that people worship… Hezekiah too, dressed in sackcloth as a sign of grief, is a sample of the righteous remnant of the last days, crying for rescue from the hand of the mighty oppressor.
- Unasked. Hezekiah never asked for a sign. God gave one anyway, keeping the remnant alive without any human help.
- Unsown. Year one is a volunteer crop from fallen grain — enough to stop them starving, and no credit to the farmer.
- Unhurried. Year two brings stronger growth. Year three brings sowing, reaping and vineyards. Bare survival is not God's goal.
- Rooted. The remnant takes root downward and bears fruit upward — fruit for God, from people no longer shut in by an enemy.
- His zeal. The zeal of the Lord of hosts does all of it. The same picture points on to life out of death through the One who was cut off.
And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward;
Assyria has stripped Judah's fields, and God answers King Hezekiah with a picture from farming, not a battle plan. A few survivors will root downward and bear fruit upward — but who makes that happen?
The promise sits inside a three-year sign about crops. Before Judah can sow anything, God feeds them from what the ground grows on its own. One writer reads that slow recovery as a picture of the remnant God is preserving.
The Lord then gives Hezekiah a sign of His deliverance. In the first year they would eat what grew from the fallen grain. It would be a poor harvest, but it would keep them from dying of hunger. Prophetically, this is the history of God preserving the remnant at Jerusalem. In the second year there would be strong growth. In the third year the harvest and the fruit of the vine would come… The Lord would establish the remnant of Judah anew, and fill them with His blessings.
The verse points in two directions. Downward comes first, and the upward growth is the result. That fruit is for God.
God goes on with His prophecy of blessing to Judah. He tells them that their small remnant, who have escaped the attack of Assyria, would "take root downward and bear fruit upward". Roots set right give a settled character, and that results in fruit "upward", that is, fruit for God… The remnant of Judah would not be shut up in Jerusalem like prisoners. They are not escaping from Mount Zion; they are escaping from Sennacherib. "The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this." How good for Jerusalem to depend on Him!
God gives the sign against the darkest possible background — an enemy who has stripped the land. One writer sees more here than recovery. He sees resurrection.
How well the language here fits! In glowing colours the Holy Spirit shows us this striking sign. It shines out, vivid and fresh, against the dark background of the land the enemy has devastated… Here, again, we find resurrection pictured.
He then traces the reason back to a Person. The life of the people rests on One who was cut off.
Why all this life out of death? How does it come about? Because of that other "Plant," the "tender Plant". They saw no greatness in Him, for He was among them in lowliness. They saw no beauty that they should desire Him (Isa. 53:2). He was wounded for their transgressions, He was bruised for their iniquities. Through His stripes they will get healing. He was "cut off out of the land of the living" (Isa. 53:8).
Commentators read Hezekiah's crisis as more than history. Sennacherib, the Assyrian invader, and Hezekiah the praying king each stand for something still ahead.
In Sennacherib we may see a sample of "the wilful king". He will lift himself up above everything that people call God or worship… We may also see Hezekiah, covered with sackcloth, as a sample of the righteous remnant in the last days. He cries for rescue from the hand of the mighty oppressor… Then indeed "the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward."
The rescue was real. Yet another writer calls it only a shadow of a greater deliverance still to come.
Real as it was, it was no more than a shadow of the great chief of the eastern nations in the last days. In the same way, Judah's deliverance and blessing under the son of David in that day only pointed to a brighter era and a more lasting glory. Then the Lord will lift up the one who was low and bring down the high one.
One writer points to God's zeal as the power behind this promise.
God's zeal also shows itself in His sovereignty, preserving a remnant in days of darkness and failure, and while the enemies attack the people of God. Scripture records this in 2 Kings 19 and in Isaiah 37.
- Zeal starts it. God's own zeal does this. His sovereignty keeps a remnant alive in days of darkness and enemy attack.
- Zeal feeds them. The first year's self-sown crop is poor, but it keeps them alive. God's care for the remnant is pictured in a harvest.
- Zeal roots them. Roots come first. The hidden, settled growth below is what bears fruit above, and that fruit is for God.
- Zeal frees them. They are not shut up in Jerusalem as prisoners — the escape is from Sennacherib, not from Mount Zion.
- Zeal cost Him. This life out of death rests on the tender Plant. He was cut off out of the land of the living, and through His stripes comes healing.
for out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that escape the zeal of Jehovah of hosts shall do this.
Assyria's army still stood at the gates when God gave Hezekiah a sign: the stripped land would take root, grow, and send people out again. Who comes through such a siege, and who gets the credit?
The promise stands at the end of a three-year picture of harvests. One writer traces what each year said about the remnant:
The Lord then gives Hezekiah a sign that He will deliver them. In the first year they would eat what grew from the fallen grain. It was a poor harvest, but it would keep them from dying of hunger. As prophecy, it is the story of God preserving the remnant at Jerusalem. In the second year the growth would be stronger. In the third year the harvest and the fruit of the vine would come… The Lord would establish the remnant of Judah again and fill them with His blessings.
Roots and fruit both carry meaning here. The going out needs care too, since people cannot walk out of a besieged city. Commenting on the parallel account in 2 Kings, one writer reads both halves:
God tells them that their small remnant who escaped the assault of Assyria would "take root downward and bear fruit upward." A settled, rooted character would produce fruit "upward" — that is, fruit for God… The remnant of Judah would not be shut up in Jerusalem as prisoners. It is not escaping from Mount Zion, but escaping from Sennacherib. "The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this." How good for Jerusalem to depend on Him!
The invader had stripped the countryside bare. One writer sees the promise of new growth as more than recovery:
How well suited the language is here. In glowing colours the Holy Spirit shows us this striking sign. It shines with freshness against the dark background of the land, which the enemy had devastated… Here, again, we find a picture of resurrection.
The same writer asks why life comes out of death, and answers with a Person:
Why all this life out of death? How does it come about? Because of that other "Plant," the "tender Plant"; the One who had no lordliness in their eyes, for He was among them in lowliness. They saw no beauty in Him that they should desire Him… He was "cut off out of the land of the living."
The verse names who does this: the LORD, in His zeal. One writer ties that zeal to God's sovereignty, and points to this chapter:
It comes into view in connection with God's sovereignty in preserving a remnant in days of darkness and failure, and while the enemy attacks the people of God. 2 Kings 19 and Isaiah 37 record this.
One writer reads this episode as more than one nation's narrow escape. He sees its people as samples of figures in a later day:
In Sennacherib we may see a sample of "the wilful king" who will lift himself above everything that people call God or worship… Hezekiah too, covered with sackcloth, may be viewed as a sample of the righteous remnant in the latter day, crying for deliverance from the hand of the mighty oppressor. Then indeed, "out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this."
- Zeal — the verse names the cause: God's own zeal. He preserves a remnant in dark days and under enemy attack.
- Root — that zeal roots the remnant first. Stability grows below before anything shows above ground.
- Fruit — roots that hold then bear fruit upward: fruit for God, not just survival.
- Out — the escape is not out of Zion but out of Sennacherib's grip. The city that shelters them does not become their prison.
- Resurrection — the whole sign pictures life out of death. It rests on the tender Plant, who Himself was cut off out of the land of the living.