Table of Contents
Isaiah 63
Isaiah 63
1 Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.
2 Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?
3 I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.
4 For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.
5 And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me.
6 And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.
7 I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses.
8 For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour.
9 In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.
10 But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.
11 Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?
12 That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?
13 That led them through the deep, as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble?
14 As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the Lord caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name.
15 Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?
16 Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.
17 O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants' sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.
18 The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary.
19 We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.
Notes
Cross Reference
Commentary
Rashi
Verse 1
<html><b>Who is this coming from Edom</b> The prophet prophesies concerning what the Holy One, blessed be He, said that He is destined to wreak vengeance upon Edom, and He, personally, will slay their heavenly prince, like the matter that is said (supra 34:5), “For My sword has become sated in the heaven.” And afterward, (ibid.) “it shall descend upon Edom,” and it is recognizable by the wrath of His face that He has slain [them with] a great massacre, and the prophet is speaking in the expression of the wars of human beings, dressed in clothes, and when they slay a slaying, the blood spatters on their garments, for so is the custom of Scripture; it speaks of the Shechinah anthropomorphically, to convey to the ear what it can hear. Comp. (Ezek. 43:2) “His voice is like the voice of many waters.” The prophet compares His mighty voice to the voice of many waters to convey to the ear according to what it is possible to hear, for one cannot understand and hearken to the magnitude of the mighty of our God to let us hear it as it is. <b>Who is this coming from Edom</b> Israel says, “Who is this, etc.?” And He is coming with soiled garments, colored with blood, and anything repugnant because of its smell and its appearance fits to the expression of חִמּוּץ, soiling. <b>from Bozrah</b> Our Rabbis said (see Makkoth 12a): “The heavenly prince of Edom is destined to commit two errors. He thinks that Bozrah is identical with Bezer in the desert, which was a refuge city. He will also err insofar as it affords refuge only for inadvertent murder, but he killed Israel intentionally.” There is also an Aggadic midrash (see above 34:6) that because Bozrah supplied a king for Edom when its first king died, as in Gen. (36:33), “And Jobab the son of Zerah from Bozrah reigned in his stead,” and Bozrah is of Moab, according to the matter that is stated (Jer. 48:24): “Upon Kerioth and upon Bozrah.” <b>this one</b> who was stately in His attire, צֹעֶה, and girded with the greatness of His strength. And the Holy One, blessed be He, replies to him, ‘It is I, upon Whom the time has come to speak of the righteousness of the Patriarchs, and of the righteousness of the generation of religious persecution, and My righteousness, too, is with them, and I have revealed Myself as being great to save.’ And they say, ‘Why is your clothing red? Why are your garments red?’</html>
Verse 3
<html><b>and from the peoples, none was with Me</b> standing before Me to wage war. <b>and their lifeblood sprinkled</b> Heb. נִצְחָם, Their blood, which is the strength and victory (נִצָּחוֹן) of a man. <b>I soiled</b> Heb. אֶגְאָלְתִּי. Comp. (Lam. 4:14) “They were defiled (נִגֹּאֲלוּ) with blood.”</html>
Verse 5
<html><b>And I looked, and there was no one helping</b> Israel. <b>and I was astounded</b> An expression of keeping silent, and I have already explained it above (57:16): “And He was astounded for there was no intercessor.” <b>and My fury that supported Me</b> My fury that I have against the heathens (the nations [mss. and K’li Paz]), for I was a little wrath with My people, and they helped to harm them. That strengthened My hand and aroused My heart to mete recompense upon them although Israel is not fit and worthy of redemption.</html>
Verse 6
<html><b>And I trod</b> Heb. וְאָבוּס. An expression of wallowing in blood and treading with the feet. Comp. (Ezekiel 16:6) “wallowing (מִתְבּוֹסֶסֶת) in your blood.” Comp. also (Jer. 12:10): “They trod (בֹּסְסוּ) My field.” <b>their power</b> Heb. נִצְחָם, the might of their victory.</html>
Verse 7
<html><b>The kind acts of the Lord I will mention</b> The prophet says, I will remind Israel of the kind acts of the Lord. <b>and much good</b> I will remind Israel of what He bestowed upon the house of Israel with His mercies.</html>
Verse 8
<html><b>They are but My people</b> Although it is revealed before Me that they would betray Me, they are, nevertheless, My people, and they are to Me like children who will not deal falsely.</html>
Verse 9
<html><b>In all their trouble</b> that He would bring upon them. <b>He did not trouble [them]</b> He did not trouble them according to their deeds, that they deserved to suffer, for the angel of His presencei.e., Michael the prince of the Presence, of those who minister before Him saved them always as an agent of the Omnipresent.</html>
Verse 10
<html><b>But they rebelled</b> Heb. מָרוּ. They angered. Comp. (Deut. 9:7) “You were rebellious (מַמְרִים).”</html>
Verse 11
<html><b>And His people remembered the days of old, [the days of] Moses</b> The prophet laments and says in an expression of supplication, Today in exile, His people remembers the days of old, the days of Moses, and in its trouble, it says, Where is Moses our shepherd, who drew us up from the Reed Sea? <b>[like] a shepherd his flock</b> Compared to a shepherd who brings up his flock. Where is he who placed within Israel the Holy Spirit of the Holy One, blessed be He, and taught us statutes and ordinances?</html>
Verse 12
<html><b>He led at Moses’ right the arm of His glory</b> The Holy One, blessed be He, led at Moses’ right the arm of His might. Every time he required the aid of the Holy One, blessed be He, His arm was ready at his right.</html>
Verse 13
<html><b>like a horse in the desert</b> which does not stumble since it is smooth land, so they did not stumble in the deep.</html>
Verse 14
<html><b>As animals</b> that spread in the valley, and a valley is a smooth land, where there is no obstacle, campagne in French, open country. <b>spread out</b> Heb. תֵרֵד, spread out. Comp. (supra 45:1) “to flatten (לְרַד) nations before him.” So did the spirit of the Lord guide them to the deep and make therein a paved road. <b>so You guided Your people</b> So was everything as we said; You guided Your people.</html>
Verse 15
<html><b>where are Your zeal</b> Your early zeal. <b>the yearning of Your heart</b> [Lit. the stirring of Your innards,] that were wont to stir concerning us, like the matter that was stated (Jer. 31:19), “Therefore, My heart yearns for him.” And the stirring of your first mercies toward us have been restrained now. They have been restrained from stirring over us as from then. <b>are restrained</b> Heb. הִתְאַפָּקוּ. Comp. (Gen. 43:31) “And he restrained himself and said, Put down food.” He restrained himself, and they did not recognize that his mercies were stirred toward his brother.</html>
Verse 16
<html><b>For You are our father</b> and it is incumbent upon You to look and see our troubles. <b>for Abraham did not know us</b> in the trouble of Egypt. <b>neither did Israel recognize us</b> in the desert, for they had already passed away from the world. <b>but You, O Lord, are our father</b> In all of them, You became our father. And our Rabbis expounded this as they expounded in Tractate Shabbath (89b).</html>
Verse 17
<html><b>Why do You lead us astray</b> Since You have the power to remove the evil inclination, as it is said (Jer. 18:6): “Like clay in the potter’s hand.” Scripture states elsewhere (Ezekiel 36:26): “And I will remove the heart of stone, etc.” <b>You harden</b> Heb. תַּקְשִׁיחַ, an expression of hardening the heart.</html>
Verse 18
<html><b>For [but] a short time, Your holy people inherited</b> They had their greatness and their inheritance for a short time. <b>trampled</b> [The term בוססו denotes] trampled underfoot.</html>
Verse 19
<html><b>We were</b> now like a people whom You did not choose ever to rule over them, and it is as though Your name was not called upon them. <b>had You rent the heavens</b> and descended to save us now as You descended to save us from the hand of the Egyptians, then, mountains would drip from before You with fear and quaking.</html>