captivity as well (the thinking was that they could not foment a rebellion away from their homeland). It is in that context that Second Isaiah utters his proclamation.
For well over a hundred years now, scholars have realized that chapters 40–55 of the book of Isaiah could not come from the author who wrote (most of) the first thirty-nine chapters. Those earlier chapters presuppose a situation in which Assyria is set to attack Judah—that is, they were written in the eighth century BCE. Chapters 40–55, on the other hand, presuppose a situation in which the southern kingdom had been destroyed and its people taken into exile—that is, the mid-sixth century BCE. Perhaps because the two books have similar prophetic themes, someone at a later date combined them into one scroll, adding as well chapters 56–66 from a yet later prophet (Third Isaiah) writing in still another context.
Second Isaiah agrees with his prophetic forebears in regarding the suffering that has come upon the people of Israel as a punishment for their sins against God. Indeed, Israel has now “received from the L ORD ’s hand double for all her sins” (40:2). This rule of sin and punishment, however, applies not only to Israel the conquered but also to Babylon the conqueror, as God himself informs the conquering nation:
I was angry with my people,
I profaned my heritage;
I gave them into your hand,
you showed them no mercy….
But evil shall come upon you [as well],
which you cannot charm away;
disaster shall fall upon you,
which you will not be able to
ward off. (Isa. 47:6, 11)
A key teaching of Second Isaiah, unlike that of prophets before the disaster, is that now that Judah has paid for its sins by being punished, God will relent and forgive his people, restoring them to the promised land and starting over in a new relationship with them. And so in the familiar opening words of the prophet’s account:
Comfort, O comfort my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that she has served her term,
that her penalty is paid. (Isa. 40:1–2)
Or as he says somewhat later:
For a brief moment I abandoned
you,
but with great compassion I will
gather you.
In overflowing wrath for a
moment
I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will
have compassion on you,
says the L ORD , your Redeemer. (Isa. 54:7–8)
Just as God saved Israel from slavery in Egypt so many centuries before, leading it through the wilderness into the promised land, so he will act again, making “in the desert a highway for our God.” This return will be miraculously delivered: “every valley shall be lifted up and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the L ORD shall be revealed” (Isa. 40:3–5). This glorious return through the wilderness will come to all who throw their trust on the Lord:
He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be
weary,
and the young will fall
exhausted;
but those who wait for the L ORD
shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings
like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint. (Isa. 40:29–31)
In several notable passages of the book, God speaks of Israel as his chosen servant, who has been sent into exile but will now be restored, while its enemies are dispersed:
But you, Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
the offspring of Abraham, my
friend;
you whom I took from the ends
of the earth,
and called from its farthest
corners,
saying to you, “You are my
servant,
I have chosen you and not cast
you off”;
do not fear, for I am with you,
do not be afraid, for I am your
God;
I will strengthen you, I will help
you…
Yes, all who are incensed against
you
shall be ashamed and disgraced;
those who strive against you
shall be as nothing and shall
perish. (Isa. 41:8–10)
It is important for the
For well over a hundred years now, scholars have realized that chapters 40–55 of the book of Isaiah could not come from the author who wrote (most of) the first thirty-nine chapters. Those earlier chapters presuppose a situation in which Assyria is set to attack Judah—that is, they were written in the eighth century BCE. Chapters 40–55, on the other hand, presuppose a situation in which the southern kingdom had been destroyed and its people taken into exile—that is, the mid-sixth century BCE. Perhaps because the two books have similar prophetic themes, someone at a later date combined them into one scroll, adding as well chapters 56–66 from a yet later prophet (Third Isaiah) writing in still another context.
Second Isaiah agrees with his prophetic forebears in regarding the suffering that has come upon the people of Israel as a punishment for their sins against God. Indeed, Israel has now “received from the L ORD ’s hand double for all her sins” (40:2). This rule of sin and punishment, however, applies not only to Israel the conquered but also to Babylon the conqueror, as God himself informs the conquering nation:
I was angry with my people,
I profaned my heritage;
I gave them into your hand,
you showed them no mercy….
But evil shall come upon you [as well],
which you cannot charm away;
disaster shall fall upon you,
which you will not be able to
ward off. (Isa. 47:6, 11)
A key teaching of Second Isaiah, unlike that of prophets before the disaster, is that now that Judah has paid for its sins by being punished, God will relent and forgive his people, restoring them to the promised land and starting over in a new relationship with them. And so in the familiar opening words of the prophet’s account:
Comfort, O comfort my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that she has served her term,
that her penalty is paid. (Isa. 40:1–2)
Or as he says somewhat later:
For a brief moment I abandoned
you,
but with great compassion I will
gather you.
In overflowing wrath for a
moment
I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will
have compassion on you,
says the L ORD , your Redeemer. (Isa. 54:7–8)
Just as God saved Israel from slavery in Egypt so many centuries before, leading it through the wilderness into the promised land, so he will act again, making “in the desert a highway for our God.” This return will be miraculously delivered: “every valley shall be lifted up and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the L ORD shall be revealed” (Isa. 40:3–5). This glorious return through the wilderness will come to all who throw their trust on the Lord:
He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be
weary,
and the young will fall
exhausted;
but those who wait for the L ORD
shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings
like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint. (Isa. 40:29–31)
In several notable passages of the book, God speaks of Israel as his chosen servant, who has been sent into exile but will now be restored, while its enemies are dispersed:
But you, Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
the offspring of Abraham, my
friend;
you whom I took from the ends
of the earth,
and called from its farthest
corners,
saying to you, “You are my
servant,
I have chosen you and not cast
you off”;
do not fear, for I am with you,
do not be afraid, for I am your
God;
I will strengthen you, I will help
you…
Yes, all who are incensed against
you
shall be ashamed and disgraced;
those who strive against you
shall be as nothing and shall
perish. (Isa. 41:8–10)
It is important for the
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