Isaiah 48:1

Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, which are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, which swear by the name of the LORD, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth, nor in righteousness.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

XLVIII.

(1) Are come forth out of the waters of Judah.—The words limit the wider terms of Jacob and Israel to the Judæan exiles. For the phrase, comp. “ye that are of the fountains of Israel” (Psalm 68:26). The ideal attributes of Israel, “swearing by the name of Jehovah . . .” are pressed in contrast with their actual state of hypocrisy and unrighteousness.

Benson Commentary

Isaiah 48:1-2. Hear ye this, O house of Jacob — For your conviction and humiliation; that, acknowledging God to be just, and even merciful, in what he has brought upon you, you may give glory to him, and take shame to yourselves; which are called by the name of Israel — Who are Israelites in name, but not in truth; and are come out of the waters of Judah — From the lineage of your progenitor, Judah, as waters flow from a fountain; which swear by the name of the Lord — Who profess the true religion, one act thereof being put for all; that own him to be the true God and your God, and give glory to him as the righteous judge of all. Or, that swear to the name of the Lord, as the words may be rendered; that take an oath of allegiance to him as your king, and join yourselves to him in covenant. And make mention of the God of Israel — In your prayers and praises, who often speak of, seem to glory in, and call yourselves by his name; but not in truth nor in righteousness — Which are the two chief ingredients of a lawful oath, and of a sincere profession of religion. Observe, reader, our religious professions avail nothing unless they be made in truth and righteousness. If we be not sincere in them, we do but take the name of the Lord our God in vain. For — Or, as the Hebrew particle often signifies, Though, they call themselves the holy city — Though they glory in this, that they are citizens of Jerusalem, a city sanctified by God himself to be the only place of his true worship and gracious presence, which, as it was a great privilege, so it laid a great obligation upon them to walk more holily than they did. And stay themselves upon the God of Israel — Not by a true and well-grounded faith, but by a vain and presumptuous confidence, flattering themselves, as that people commonly did, that they should enjoy peace and safety, notwithstanding all their wickedness, because they were the Lord’s people, and had his temple and ordinances among them; which disposition the prophets frequently notice, and sharply censure in them.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

48:1-8 The Jews valued themselves on descent from Jacob, and used the name of Jehovah as their God. They prided themselves respecting Jerusalem and the temple, yet there was no holiness in their lives. If we are not sincere in religion, we do but take the name of the Lord in vain. By prophecy they were shown how God would deal with them, long before it came to pass. God has said and done enough to prevent men's boasting of themselves, which makes the sin and ruin of the proud worse; sooner or later every mouth shall be stopped, and all become silent before Him. We are all born children of disobedience. Where original sin is, actual sin will follow. Does not the conscience of every man witness to the truth of Scripture? May the Lord prove us, and render us doers of the word.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Hear ye this - This is an address to the Jews regarded as in Babylon, and is designed to remind them of their origin, and of their privileges as the descendants of Jacob, and having the name of Israel (compare the notes at Isaiah 43:1).

And are come forth out of the waters of Judah - This metaphor is taken from a fountain which sends forth its streams of water, and the idea is, that they owed their origin to Judah, as the streams flowed from a fountain. A similar figure is used by Balaam in describing the vast increase of the Jews: Numbers 34 'He shall pour the waters out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters.' So in Deuteronomy 33:28 : 'The fountain of Jacob shall be upon a land of corn and wine.' So Psalm 68:26 :

Bless ye God in the congregations,

Jehovah, ye that are of the fountain of Israel.

Margin

The idea is, that Judah was the fountain, or origin of the people who were then exiled in Babylon. The ten tribes had revolted, and had been carried away, and the name of Benjamin had been absorbed in that of Judah, and this had become the common name of the nation. Perhaps Judah is mentioned here with honor as the fountain of the nation, because it was from him that the Messiah was to descend Genesis 49:10 : and this mention of his name would serve to bring that promise to view, and would be an assurance that the nation would not be destroyed, nor the power finally depart until He should come.

Which swear by the name - Who worship Yahweh, and acknowledge him as the only true God (see the notes at Isaiah 19:18; Isaiah 45:23; compare Isaiah 48:1; Isaiah 65:16).

And make mention - That is, in your prayers and praises. You acknowledge him, and profess to worship him.

But not in truth - In a hypocritical manner; not in sincerity. Compare Jeremiah 5:2 : 'And though they say, The Lord liveth, surely they swear falsely.'

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 48

Isa 48:1-22. The Things That Befall Babylon Jehovah Predicted Long before, lest Israel Should Attribute Them, in Its "Obstinate" Perversity, to Strange Gods (Isa 48:1-5).

1. the waters of Judah—spring from the fountain of Judah (Nu 24:7; De 33:28; Ps 68:26; Margin). Judah has the "fountain" attributed to it, because it survived the ten tribes, and from it Messiah was to spring.

swear by … Lord—(Isa 19:18; 45:23; 65:16).

mention—in prayers and praises.

not in truth—(Jer 5:2; Joh 4:24).God reproveth their hypocrisy and obstinacy by his prophecies, Isaiah 48:1-8. He spareth them for his name’s sake, and that they may learn to know him aright, Isaiah 48:9-11. God’s powerful salvation a motive to obedience, Isaiah 48:12-15. God lamenteth their backwardness, Isaiah 48:16-19. Deliverance out of Babylon, Isaiah 48:20,21. No peace to the wicked, Isaiah 48:22.

Hear ye this, what I am now going to say against thee, that thou mayst be assured that that great deliverance which I have determined and declared to give time is not for thy own sake, but for my name’s sake.

Which are called by the name of Israel; which are Israelites in name, but not in truth, as it follows.

Out of the waters of Judah; from the lineage of your progenitor, Judah, as waters flow from a fountain, and as the Israelites are said to be

of the fountain of Israel, Psalm 68:26. Compare also Deu 33:28 Proverbs 5:15, &c.

Which swear; which profess the true religion; one act of religion being put for all.

Make mention of the God of Israel; either in oaths or otherwise; that own him and seek to glory in him as their God, and call themselves by his name.

But not in truth, nor in righteousness; which are the two chief ingredients of a lawful oath, Jeremiah 4:2. They are guilty of falsehood and injustice, both in oaths, and in their whole conversation.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Hear ye this, O house of Jacob,.... Who were of the house and family of Jacob, his descendants and posterity; and who were of the house of the God of Jacob, had a name and a place there, at least in profession:

which are called by the name of Israel; a name given to Jacob, because of his prevalence with God in prayer; but these had only the name, not the thing, however not as yet; they were neither praying Jacobs, nor prevailing Israels; they were not Israelites indeed:

and are come forth out of the waters of Judah; that is, were of the seed of Judah, as the Targum, Aben Ezra, and Kimchi interpret it; these were waters out of his buckets, as Jarchi observes from Numbers 24:7, so we read of the fountain of Jacob, Deuteronomy 33:28. These were streams from thence; they were of the tribe of Judah, to whom the kingdom belonged; from whence was the chief ruler, the Shiloh, the King Messiah; they were of these waters, though not born again of water and of the Spirit:

which swear by the name of the Lord God; own him for their God, acknowledge him their Lord and King, and solemnly promise to serve him, and yield obedience to him:

and make mention of the God of Israel; or "remember" him (z) in their religious exercises; invoke his name, sing his praises, ask of him the ordinances of righteousness, honour him with their lips, speak honourably of him, and profess to remember his works of old at their solemn feasts:

but not in truth, nor in righteousness; not according to the will of God, nor truth of things; nor in the integrity of their hearts, but in an hypocritical way, and not in sincerity and uprightness; in word and tongue only, not in deed and in truth; worshippers of God they were externally, but not in spirit and truth.

(z) "recordantur", Munster, Vatablus.

Geneva Study Bible

Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, who are {a} called by the name of Israel, and have come forth out of {b} the waters of Judah, who swear by the name of the LORD, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth, nor in righteousness.

(a) He detects their hypocrisy who claimed to be Israelites, but were not so.

(b) Meaning, the fountain and stock.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

1. Hear ye this] refers to the following oracle, which commences with Isaiah 48:3 (cf. Isaiah 46:3 and Isaiah 48:12). The rest of Isaiah 48:1 f. is an editorial insertion, in the view of Duhm and Cheyne (see above).

which are called] Or, which call themselves, as in Isaiah 48:2 (cf. ch. Isaiah 44:5). For the remnant of the tribe of Judah, whom the author has in his view, the name “Israel” was really a title of honour.

out of the waters of Judah] The metaphor can be explained from Psalm 68:26 (R.V.), where the ancestor of the nation is compared to a fountain or cistern. It is perhaps better, however, to read (with Secker) mimm‘ê for mimmê, rendering from the bowels (as Isaiah 48:19) of Judah.

To swear by the name of the Lord is a profession of allegiance to Him, and as such is enjoined as a religious duty (Deuteronomy 6:13; Deuteronomy 10:20).

make mention of] i.e. celebrate; Psalm 20:7. The words not in truth, nor in righteousness do not refer specially to false swearing, but mean that the profession is formal and insincere.

1–11. These verses present some peculiar features, both of thought and style, which have been felt by scholars representing widely diverging critical tendencies. The severe judgement on the people goes beyond anything else in the prophecy; and, as has been pointed seems to breathe the spirit of Ezekiel rather than of the second Isaiah. Israel is addressed as a nation of hypocrites, of apostates, and of persistent idolaters. Then the argument of the passage as a whole is very remarkable. The “former things” (i.e. the events that have just taken place) were announced long beforehand, lest Israel should be led to ascribe them to some false god (Isaiah 48:3-6 a); but the “new things” (the subject of the present prophecy) have been “hidden” till the last moment, lest the people in their perversity should say they had known of them all along (6 b–8). Duhm and Cheyne agree in assigning these peculiarities to an editor, who has supplied a running commentary on the words of the original author, in the shape of annotations. There is much in the section which would be more intelligible if inserted by a later writer; but the method attributed to the editor is peculiar, and no motive suggests itself for his systematic attempt to correct the tendency of this isolated passage. The difficulties are perhaps exaggerated; the stern attitude towards the nation is not without parallels (see ch. Isaiah 45:9 ff., and on ch. Isaiah 46:8), and the special development of the argument from prophecy cannot be shown to involve a radical inconsistency with the prophet’s general conceptions.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 1. - Jacob... Israel (camp. Isaiah 40:27; Isaiah 41:8, 14; Isaiah 43:1, 22; Isaiah 44:1, etc.). "Jacob" is the natural and secular designation; "Israel" is a spiritual or covenant name (Cheyne). Both terms being appropriate to the ten tribes no less than to the two, and the present address being intended especially for the Jewish captives, a further designation is appended - which are come forth out of the waters of Judah (comp. Psalm 68:26, "Ye that are of the fountain of Israel," marginal rendering). Which swear by the Name of the Lord. Swearing "by the Name of the Lord" is an evidence of true religion, to a certain extent (Deuteronomy 6:13; Deuteronomy 10:20). It indicates that there has been, at any rate, no open apostasy. Still, it does not necessarily prove more than this; and, in the present case, it scarcely showed anything beyond mere outward formal conformity. The bulk of the captives "swore by the Name of Jehovah, and made mention of the God of Israel" (camp. Joshua 23:7), but did so not in truth, nor in righteousness; i.e. "without their state of mind or mode of action corresponding to their confession, so as to prove that it was sincerely and seriously meant" (Delitzsch). The condition of the majority of the exiles was that expressed in the words, "This people honoureth me with their lips, but in their hearts are far from me" (Matthew 15:8). Isaiah 48:1

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

This third portion of the trilogy (Isaiah 46:1-13, Isaiah 47:1-15, 48) stands in the same relation to Isaiah 47:1-15, as Isaiah 46:3. to Isaiah 46:1-2. The prophecy is addressed to the great body of the captives. "Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and have flowed out of the waters of Judah, who swear by the name of Jehovah, and extol the God of Israel, not in truth and not in righteousness! For they call themselves of the holy city, and stay themselves upon the God of Israel, Jehovah of hosts His name." The summons to hear is based upon the Israelitish nationality of those who are summoned, to which they still cling, and upon the relation in which they place themselves to the God of Israel. This gives to Jehovah the right to turn to them, and imposes upon them the duty to hearken to Him. The blame, inserted by the way, points at the same time to the reason for the address which follows, and to the form which it necessarily assumes. "The house of Jacob" is not all Israel, as the following words clearly show, but, as in Isaiah 46:3, the house of Judah, which shared in the honourable name of Israel, but have flowed out of the waters, i.e., the source of Judah. The summons, therefore, is addressed to the Judaean exiles in Babylon, and that inasmuch as they swear by the name of Jehovah, and remember the God of Israel with praise (hizkı̄r b' as in Psalm 20:8), though not in truth and not in righteousness (1 Kings 3:6; Zechariah 8:8), i.e., without their state of mind (cf., Isaiah 38:3; Jeremiah 32:41) or mode of action corresponding to their confession, so as to prove that it was sincerely and seriously meant. The praise bestowed upon the persons summoned, which is somewhat spoiled by this, is explained in Isaiah 48:2; they call themselves after the holy city (this title is applied to Jerusalem both here and in Isaiah 52:1, as well as in the books of Daniel and Nehemiah). We may easily supply here, that the holiness of the city laid an obligation upon its citizens to be holy in their character and conduct. They also relied upon the God of Israel, whose name is Jehovah Zebaoth; and therefore He would require of them the fullest confidence and deepest reverence.