saying to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pasture shall be on all bare hills.
This verse is one line in a longer message God speaks to His Servant, and it is a command of release. Two questions decide how we read it — who are these prisoners, and when does the word go out?
The command is not the prophet's own. God gives it to His Servant, and the setting is a scene of total ruin. (The writers quote older translations, which read "Go forth" and "Show yourselves" where the ESV has "Come out" and "Appear".)
"I will preserve you and give you for a covenant of the people (that is, of Israel) … saying to the prisoners, Go forth" (vv. 8-9). This assumes everything is in ruin, but that the Lord Jesus is the appointed repairer of the breaches.
Some read this release of prisoners as a rescue of the dead from hell. One writer rejects that, and points to the verse's own setting: the earth and its ruined lands.
This is Jehovah's prophetic word to the Messiah, and it applies expressly to the earth and not to hell at all: "I will also give you for a light to the Gentiles, … to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; that you may say to the prisoners, Go forth." Familiar passages use similar language, and nobody would dream of carrying it further. Anyone who applies this to hell must assume it. Will they say why?
If the prisoners are Israel, no human effort can arrange their freedom. The One who speaks sets the time.
Men may try to restore the land to the Jew, and bring the Jews back to the land. But their efforts, even if they seem successful for a time, will only bring the Jew back for the judgment of the great tribulation. To come back for blessing they must wait until Christ gives the word. In His time He will say to the prisoners, "Go forth". And to those in darkness, "Show yourselves". Today the Jew may be a captive, often hiding from the pitiless persecution of ruthless enemies. But when Christ says "Go forth" and "Show yourselves" no power will withstand His words.
This verse names prison and darkness. The next verse adds hunger and thirst. Each meets its exact opposite.
Prisons, and darkness, and hunger, and thirst, will yield up their captives and their victims at the gracious command of our Lord Jesus Christ; so that they may enjoy liberty, and light, and plenty. He will Himself guide them (vv. 9-10).
The second half of the verse turns from prison to pasture. It also settles where the freed come from.
"They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be on all bare heights… Behold, these shall come from afar; and behold, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim" (vv. 9-12). This predicts the return of Israel from all parts of the earth. But it is a return after they were scattered there. So they come not only from the north and south, but even from the land of Sinim — that is, from China. From there they emerge at last and gather in Palestine.
These captives have a name elsewhere in Scripture, and a scene in heaven matches their relief.
In verses 8-10 God gives Him as a covenant to the people, that is, Israel. He comes to bring in the blessing on earth, to set free captive Israel — "Prisoners of hope," Zechariah 9:11-12 — and to open the prison doors to those who are bound. So the true Shepherd of Israel feeds His now gathered flock, which would hunger and thirst no more. How similar is the language of Revelation 7:16-17, which the elder in heaven uses about those who had come out of the great tribulation.
- Ruin — the verse assumes everything lies in ruin: wasted lands, prisoners, people in the dark.
- Repairer — God gives His Servant as a covenant, and He is the appointed repairer of the breaches.
- Release — these prisoners are captives on the earth, not souls after death. His word ends both prison and darkness.
- Reach — release runs from every direction, from the north, the west, and lands as far off as China.
- Rest — the freed become a flock, fed along the ways and on bare heights, never hungry or thirsty again.
They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them will lead them, and by the springs of water will he guide them.
Isaiah 49 describes the work of God's Servant. His own nation rejects Him, yet God gives Him to bring a scattered people home. Verse 10 pictures that homecoming, and it raises three questions: who are these people, when does this happen, and what makes it certain?
Verse 10 sits in a chapter about Christ. Israel's refusal of Him looks like failure. Instead God widens the promise to the nations, and then returns to Israel:
The original thought was to gather Israel, but Israel would not be gathered. Then, says God, That is too small a thing; I will save the nations also. But Christ is first given as a light to the Gentiles… "This is what Jehovah, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, says to Him whom the soul despises, to Him whom the nation hates." Clearly Christ is now seen as a rejected person, and the cross is the great expression of that rejection. "I will preserve you and give you for a covenant of the people (that is, of Israel), to establish the land." All this supposes that everything is in ruin, but that the Lord Jesus is the destined repairer of the breaches.
The freedom from hunger, thirst and heat belongs to a journey home. One writer separates that homecoming from every human plan to resettle a people:
Men may seek to restore the land to the Jew, and bring the Jews back to the land. Their efforts may seem to succeed for a time. But they will only bring the Jew back for the judgment of the great tribulation. To come back for blessing they must wait until Christ gives the word… No longer will they hunger and thirst nor suffer the heat of a pitiless world. For the One who has mercy on them will Himself go before them. He will restore His wandering sheep, lead them by springs of water, and guide them over mountains and along His highways. They will be led back from every part of the earth.
The verse gives the reason for this care: the One leading them has mercy on them. One writer underlines that word:
At last the comfort announced in the opening verse of Isaiah 40 will have reached "His people." Those who for so long had been "His afflicted" will find mercy. MERCY, notice; not merit, as the end of Romans 11 shows so clearly.
The picture sounds like paradise, so many readers take it for heaven. One writer points to what the rest of the chapter says:
This passage is not a prophecy about heaven, but about restored Israel; for it goes on to declare, "I will feed them that oppress you with their own flesh," and concludes by saying that "all flesh shall know that I, Jehovah, am your Saviour, and your Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob." (v. 26.)
The promise is spoken to Israel. Yet one writer notes that the same prophecy reaches further:
And though these blessings are promised to Israel, the same prophecy shows us also a Gentile remnant, who share, at least in part, the same portion.
Revelation uses the same words of a crowd drawn out of every nation, and another writer takes both companies to be in view:
In the first part of Revelation 7 we have seen that in the time of these judgments God will have a saved remnant from Israel and the Gentiles. In the closing verses one of the elders in heaven answers the question of who this company is and where they come from. It would seem that these verses apply to both classes, for in Isaiah 49:10 exactly similar language is used to describe the blessing of restored Israel.
One writer gives the passage two applications, one future and one present:
This beautiful passage… will come literally true during the millennium, for all who are faithful to "the King of glory." (Compare Isa. 49 with Rev. 7.) But it is also true now, in a spiritual sense, of every sheep and lamb in the highly favoured flock of Christ. But do you know this truth, O my soul, for yourself — is it your own experience? Only the word of God can make it known, and only faith can enjoy it in the heart.
- Mercy begins it. The One who leads them leads in mercy. The blessing comes to those who "find mercy… not merit."
- Mercy is carried by a Servant. His own nation rejected Him, yet God gives Him as a covenant, and He becomes "the destined repairer of the breaches."
- Mercy sets the timing. No human effort brings the people home for blessing; they "must wait until Christ gives the word."
- Mercy reaches wide. Revelation uses the same words of a saved company from every nation, so both Israel and the Gentiles seem to be in view.
- Mercy lands on earth. This is "not a prophecy about heaven, but about restored Israel" — yet its comfort is true now, by faith, for every sheep of Christ.
And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be raised up.
Isaiah 49 answers the Servant's apparent failure. Here God promises a road home for a scattered people. The mountains that would block their return become the route. So who builds this road, who walks it, and when?
This promise sits inside a larger commission. God hands the rejected Messiah the ruined land and its scattered people to restore.
"I will preserve you and give you for a covenant of the people (that is, of Israel), to establish the land (or, earth), to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; saying to the prisoners, Go forth, to those in darkness, Show yourselves" (vv. 7-9). Clearly this supposes everything is in ruin, but also that the Lord Jesus is the destined repairer of the breaches.
The chapter names God's servant as Israel, yet the Servant speaks as a Person distinct from the nation. One writer explains it:
If we may dare to say it, Christ takes the place of Israel as the true servant of God. As He said, "I am the true vine." This creates an apparent difficulty, but it gives the true sense of chapter 49.
The next verse names where the travellers come from. That shows how far these highways reach.
"And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted. Behold, these shall come from afar; and behold, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim" (vv. 9-12). This predicts the return of Israel from all parts of the earth. It is a return after they have been scattered there. So they come out not only from the north and south, but even from the land of Sinim — that is, China — and gather at last in Palestine.
(This is an older rendering; the ESV reads "I will make all my mountains a road, and my highways shall be raised up.")
People can try to bring the Jews back to their land by their own effort. One writer warns that such efforts run ahead of God's timing.
Men may seek to restore the land to the Jew, and bring the Jews back to the land. But their efforts, even if they seem to succeed for a time, will only bring the Jew back for the judgment of the great tribulation. To come back for blessing they must wait until Christ gives the word... The One who has mercy on them will Himself go before them. He will restore His wandering sheep, lead them by springs of water, and guide them over mountains and along His highways.
The verses around this one describe the travellers as prisoners and as people hiding in dark places. Their condition settles what they can claim when they arrive.
Some will be prisoners, some hiding in dark places; coming over the mountains from distant spots in north and west, and even from "the land of Sinim," which some identify with China. At last the comfort announced in the opening verse of Isaiah 40 will have reached "His people." Those who for so long had been "His afflicted" will find mercy. MERCY, notice; not merit — as the end of Romans 11 shows so clearly.
One writer sets the same care beside the Lamb's care for His flock in Revelation. He finds in it both a promise for the millennium and a truth for today.
"They will hunger no more, nor thirst any more; the sun will not strike them, nor any heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will feed them and lead them to living fountains of water; and God will wipe away all tears from their eyes." This beautiful passage ... will be literally true during the millennium of all who are faithful to "the King of glory." But it is also true now, in a spiritual sense, of every sheep and lamb in the highly favoured flock of Christ.
(An older rendering of Revelation 7.)
The next verse calls creation to sing. One writer ties that shout to God's old pledge to Israel about land and liberty.
But what when the great Jubilee surpasses this generous pledge beyond all comparison! Then... "Shout, you heavens; and be joyful, you earth; and break forth, you mountains, into singing; for Jehovah comforts his people, and will have mercy on his afflicted ones" (Isa. 49:12-13). No loss of liberty or land any more.
- Builder. The road is not a human project — the rejected Servant is the appointed repairer of the ruin, and He makes the way.
- Word. The road opens when Christ says "Go forth." Efforts that run ahead of Him bring tribulation, not blessing.
- Reach. Its highways stretch to the far ends of the earth — north, west, and Sinim — so God can gather every exile, however distant.
- Basis. Those who travel it are prisoners and afflicted ones met by mercy, not by merit.
- End. It leads to a Jubilee greater than the old one, where liberty and land are never lost again.
Behold, these shall come from afar; and behold, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.
This verse ends a picture of Israel coming home from every corner of the earth. It names one place so remote that readers still argue over where it was, and it raises a bigger question: who brings them back?
Two kinds of return are possible, one writer says, and only one of them ends in blessing.
Men may seek to restore the land to the Jew, and bring the Jews back to the land. Their efforts may seem to succeed for a time. But they will only bring the Jew back for the judgment of the great tribulation. To come back for blessing they must wait until Christ gives the word. In His time He will say to the prisoners, "Go forth". And to those in darkness, "Show yourselves". Today the Jew may be a captive, often hiding from the pitiless persecution of ruthless enemies. But when Christ says "Go forth" and "Show yourselves" no power will withstand His words. From every quarter of the earth they will be led back.
Older translations read "the land of Sinim" where the ESV has "the land of Syene." Most writers here read it as China. One traces the name through the scholars who studied it.
This predicts the return of Israel from all parts of the earth. But it is a return after they have been scattered there. So in the end they come out and gather in Palestine not only from the north and south, but even from the land of Sinim — that is, from China… Gesenius had too much sense to miss that a distant people at the south or east edge of the world was meant. Even Knobel and Hitzig point to China, whose Rabbinical name is Tsin.
The writers do not all agree. One reference work lists the options and shows why China fits the verse.
A remote place from which some will be brought when in a future day God is blessing Israel. The Septuagint, an early Greek translation, has "the land of the Persians." The land of the Sinae, who settled in Western China, has been suggested: this would not clash with "north" and "west," which are also mentioned in the same passage.
A few verses earlier the Lord tells His Servant that He answered Him at an accepted time. One writer says the homecoming here hangs on that answer. The same promise held something no Old Testament reader could see.
Jesus is preserved, treasured up in the heavens now, awaiting the moment of the ingathering of Israel… Old Testament saints read that the Messiah Himself was heard in an accepted time and helped in a day of salvation. They dimly saw that Israel's coming out from the north and west, and from the land of Sinim, depended on it. But which of them could have known that there would be a people accepted in His acceptance? A people saved in His own salvation out of death and judgment? A people able to say that by His resurrection they were risen with Him?
Isaiah 40 opens with a promise of comfort. One writer says these travellers are where that promise lands.
Some will be prisoners, some hiding in dark places; coming over the mountains from distant spots in north and west, and even from "the land of Sinim," which some identify with China. At last the comfort, announced in the opening verse of Isaiah 40, will have reached "His people," and those who for so long had been "His afflicted," will find mercy. MERCY, notice — not merit, as the end of Romans 11 shows so clearly.
One writer reads this verse against Israel's jubilee law.
Israel alone had God's guarantee every fifty years. But what happens when that generous promise is far surpassed in the great Jubilee!… No loss of liberty or land any more; "for as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the Lord, so shall your offspring and your name remain."
The next verse calls on heaven and earth to sing. One writer lists what has to happen first.
At last the Servant will finish the will of the Lord. The nation will be restored, the Gentiles will come into blessing, and kings and princes will bow and worship at His feet. Then the heavens and the earth will join to sing His praise. The wide creation will break out in singing, and all will own that the Lord has done it all.
- Cause. Everything rests on the Servant, heard "in an accepted time" — on what He accomplished, not on political effort.
- Command. The journey starts when Christ says "Go forth" and "Show yourselves." No power will withstand His words.
- Compass. North, west, far away, and Sinim — most read it as China, some as Persia. No distance is too far for His word.
- Character. Those who arrive come as prisoners and afflicted ones, and what meets them is mercy, not merit.
- Chorus. The homecoming ends in a jubilee: no more loss of land or liberty. Heaven and earth sing that the Lord has done it all.
Shout, ye heavens; and be joyful, thou earth; and break forth into singing, ye mountains for Jehovah hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted ones.
Isaiah 49 has just described the Servant of the Lord. His own nation rejected Him, and His work looked wasted. Yet God gave Him as a light to the nations and as the one who brings scattered Israel home. Verse 13 is the song that answers all of that. Why does it call heaven, earth and mountains to join in, when the comfort is for one afflicted people?
Israel had been God's servant, and Israel had failed. The chapter puts a true Servant in that place. The song comes only when His work is finished.
Israel failed as God's servant, so God set Israel aside and put Christ forward as the true servant. Yet Christ says, "I have laboured in vain," because Israel rejected Him. God's answer comes in verse 5 and the verses after it. It was too small a thing for Him only to raise up the tribes of Israel; God would lift Him high and give Him as a light to the nations. In verse 8, God gives Him as a covenant to the people, to deliver them at the end.
Hamilton Smith reads verse 13 as the last step in a sequence running through the chapter. He also names who gets the credit.
Seventh, the Servant will finish the will of Jehovah at last. God will restore the nation. He will bring the nations into blessing. Kings and princes will bow and worship at His feet. Then at last the heavens and the earth will join to sing His praise. The whole creation will burst into song, and all will admit that the Lord has done it all.
The people comforted here are the ones named just before: prisoners and people in dark places, coming home from far away. How God treats them matters as much as who they are.
Verse 13, though, seems to point mainly, perhaps only, to an afflicted remnant of Israel. Some will be prisoners. Some will be hiding in dark places. They come over the mountains from far-off places in the north and the west, and even from "the land of Sinim," which some take to be China. At last the comfort announced in the opening verse of Isaiah 40 will have reached "His people." Those who had been "His afflicted" for so long will find mercy. Mercy, notice — not merit.
The very next verse has Zion saying she has been forsaken and forgotten. So this comfort is not general encouragement. It answers one despair, and it answers with a love stronger than the closest human bond.
No wonder the call goes out for the heavens to shout and the mountains to sing. Comfort has come to God's people through Israel's Restorer. Zion thought she had been abandoned for good. A woman may forget her own baby, against all nature; but Jehovah does not forget His own people. He comforts Zion. He consoles her, and He quickly increases the number of her children.
Earlier in the chapter the call went out to the distant coastlands. Here the audience widens past anything human.
No wonder the call to rejoice goes out not only to the islands, but to heaven and earth… These are the last days. Jehovah is looking back over His goodness and calling the whole universe to be joyful.
This song fits a wider pattern. Writers tie creation's joy to one coming event, and the prophets and the apostle name that event in different ways.
The apostle hangs all this joy of creation on "the revealing of the sons of God" (Rom. 8). The prophets hang it on the redemption of Israel (Isa. 44:23; Isa. 49:13; Isa. 55:12). The testimonies differ because apostles and prophets had different ministries. In one place the Psalmist joins the two in a few words, touching the note where their harmonies meet — "when the Lord builds up Zion, He appears in His glory." (Ps. 102:16)
That is why the call reaches the mountains. Creation has been waiting, and its release comes at the same moment.
There has already been a creation song. The earth came fresh from the hands of God, and "the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy" (Job 38:7). Then sin spoiled that beautiful creation. Singing gave way to weeping, and songs to groans. In the thousand-year day to come, God will make the earth new. Creation's groan will fall silent, and heaven and earth will join in a new song.
- Cause. The song rests on the Servant. Israel rejected Him, and He said He had laboured in vain. God then gave Him as a light to the nations and a covenant to the people.
- Gift. The afflicted receive mercy, not merit. The comfort promised in Isaiah 40 reaches prisoners and exiles gathered from as far away as the land of Sinim.
- Answer. Zion said she was forsaken and forgotten. A mother may forget her child; God does not forget His people.
- Reach. The call widens from the far-off coastlands to heaven, earth and mountains. The whole universe joins in one nation's relief.
- Result. Creation's groan falls silent. The prophets tie that release to the redemption of Israel; the apostle ties it to the revealing of God's sons. One day, one song.