Zion
Zion (Israel) will be populated by Jews and Gentiles. Even though the residents many years ago thought that God had forgotten her, Zion now has Jews and Gentiles living in the city.
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14. “The paragraph begins by quoting what the personified city of Zion says. The city thinks that God has forsaken and forgotten her, but the reason she feels this way is not stated.” (Smith, Gary V., The New American Commentary, Volume 15B, Isaiah 40-66. [Nashville, B & H Publishing Group, 2009], 364)
15. “Isaiah pictures Israel as a nursing child, totally dependent on the Lord, who will never forget them or forsake them.” (Wiersbe, Warren W, The Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament Prophets. [Colorado Springs: David C Cook, 2002], 55)0
16. “The Lord is referring here to the Jews’ custom, perhaps drawn from Exodus 13:9, of puncturing their hands with a symbol of their city and temple as a sign of devotion (cf. Song 8:6).” (MacArthur, John, The MacArthur Bible Commentary. [Nashville, Thomas Nelson Inc., 2005], 820)
“God has engraved His children’s names on His hands. The words ‘engraved’ means ‘to cut into,’ signifying its permanence. God can never forget Zion or Zion’s children.” (Wiersbe, 55)
“When one has something engraved on his hand, it indicates an important relationship with someone who is very dear (44:5). (Smith, 365)
“This engraving was written on the powerful hands that created the heavens and the earth (48:13), so it is very comforting for the audience to know that Jerusalem is carved on the almighty hands that can accomplish great things.” (Smith, 365)
Haste
17. “Zion’s sons will return as the city’s destroyers depart and will adorn the city.” (MacArthur, 820)
18. “Now comes God’s oath of commitment to multiply the number of people in Zion far beyond anything that most of them could ever imagine.” (Smith, 366)
“Israel will be the means of the conversion of the nations in the end (cf. Romans 11:11-15).” (MacArthur, 820)
“These people will come and will be viewed like precious jewels, like ornaments of gold or silver that might be fastened to the hand, neck, ears, ankles, or clothes of a beautiful woman (the city of Zion), like a bride who is dressed up for a wedding celebration.” (Smith, 367)
19. “Zion seems like a forsaken and barren mother, but she will be so blessed of God that there will be no room for her children! (Wiersbe, 55)
“The last part of v. 19 indicates that there were those who devoured Zion (literally, ‘swallowed you up’), but it is difficult to determine if this refers to the military conquest of the Assyrians or Babylonians.” (Smith 358)
20. “The compliant about not having enough room is placed in the mouths of all those people who will come to live in Jerusalem.” (Smith, 368)
21. “The first paragraph ends with a positive evidence of God’s care based on God’s great promise of many children coming to Jerusalem.” (Smith, 368)
“Isaiah understood that future inhabitants of Zion would include both Hebrews and people from all the nations of the earth.” (Smith, 368) See Isaiah 2:1-5; 11:11-12; 14:1-2; 19:18-25; 42:6-11; 43:6-7; 45:14-25; and 49:22-26)
Gentiles
22. “God assures Israel that the Gentiles will assist Him in the final restoration of the nation to the land.” (McGee, 304)
“Once again, the prophet looked ahead to the end of the age when the Gentiles will honor Jehovah and Israel, and kings and queens will be babysitters for Israel’s children!” (Wiersbe, 55)
“At the outset of the kingdom when this regathering takes place, all the Gentiles will be believers in Jesus Christ who, by faith, escaped the wrath of the Lamb on the Day of the Lord and entered the kingdom.” (MacArthur, 821).
23. “Kings and queens provided the tender royal care given to these children when they were raised in foreign lands. This implies a miraculous transformation of the foreign nations from enemies of God’s people to sympathetic caretakers.” (Smith, 371)
“The hopeful person that patiently waits for God’s salvation to arrive will not be disappointed when God acts to fulfill his promises (Psalm 25:2-3; 27:13-14).” (Smith, 371)
24. “Isaiah speaks of Zion again expressing her despondency over her captivity and wondering about deliverance.” (MacArthur, 821)
25. “God has promised that ‘even’ those who will be taken as plunder by strong tyrants can be taken back from them; even the people the strong tyrants took can be rescued.” (Smith, 372)
“Strong language against Israel’s enemies reassures her of eventual deliverance from her exile.” (MacArthur, 821)
26. “God’s deliverance of Israel will be so dramatic that the world will recognize that the Lord, the Savior, Redeemer, and Mighty One of Israel is the true God (11:9; 45:6; Ezekiel 39:7; Habakkuk 2:14).” (MacArthur, 821)
“Once these people experience God’s grace they will know that Yahweh, the God of the Israelites is an Almighty God.” (Smith, 373)
References
Amplified Bible (AMP)
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
In this article Scripture quotations taken from KJV.
McGee, J. Vernon, Thru the Bible: Volume III. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1983
MacArthur, John, The MacArthur Bible Commentary. Nashville, Thomas Nelson Inc., 2005
Smith, Gary V., The New American Commentary, Volume 15B, Isaiah 40-66. Nashville, B & H Publishing Group, 2009
Wiersbe, Warren W, The Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament Prophets. Colorado Springs: David C Cook, 2002
