Bible Commentaries
Isaiah 62

Verse 1

Evidently God is the speaker (cf. Isaiah 62:6). Other possibilities are the Servant Messiah (cf. Isaiah 61:1-3) or Isaiah. Watts believed the speaker was Jerusalem’s civil administrator. [Note: Watts, Isaiah 34-66, pp. 309, 311-12.] God assured His people that even though they thought He had been silent to their prayers for deliverance (cf. Isaiah 42:14; Isaiah 45:15-19; Isaiah 57:11; Isaiah 64:12; Isaiah 65:6), He would indeed provide righteousness and salvation for them. He would do it for the love of His people, for Zion’s sake.

Verses 1-9

The certainty of these benefits 62:1-9

It seemed to Isaiah’s audience that the promises in chapter 60 could hardly come to pass, since the Babylonian exile was still looming ahead of them. The Lord assured them that He would surely fulfill these promises.

"Much of this chapter speaks of preparation being made for the coming of the Lord and for the restoration of His people, thus expanding the thoughts in Isaiah 40:3-5; Isaiah 40:9." [Note: J. Martin, p. 1116.]

Verse 2

All the Gentiles would see Israel’s righteousness and her reflected glory. Her new name, that sovereign Yahweh would give her, would identify the change in her character (cf. Genesis 32:28).

"So often in the OT a new name (Isaiah 62:2) is the pledge of divine action to change the status or character of a person (cf., e.g., Genesis 17:5; Genesis 17:15[; John 1:42])." [Note: Grogan, p. 336.]

Verse 3

The Lord would make Jerusalem as a beautiful crown-fit for a king-that He would hold securely, safe in His hand.

Verse 4

The new name promised in Isaiah 62:2 would be Hephzibah (My delight is in her; cf. 2 Kings 21:1) and Beulah (Married). These names would replace former designations of Israel’s condition: Azubah (Forsaken; cf. 1 Kings 22:42) and Shemamah (Desolate). These new names would reflect God’s delight in His people and His work of uniting them with their land.

Verse 5

Future generations of Israelites would be married to the Promised Land in the sense that they would not leave it. From a different perspective, the Lord Himself would be Israel’s bridegroom and would rejoice over her as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.

"In all that Israel was to endure, what a source of comfort God’s pet name for them: ’My-Delight-Is-in-Her’ (Isaiah 62:4) must have been. It is still true today. When circumstances and failure and blighted hopes combine to convince us that our name is ’Forsaken,’ that is the hour to hear the whisper of the Bridegroom to his Bride (cf. 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:27; Revelation 21:2; Revelation 21:9), with the name that it is his alone to give and hers alone to hear." [Note: Oswalt, The Book . . . 40-66, pp. 581-82.]

"The Lord had, as it were, divorced Zion (see Isaiah 54:5-7), but now he will remarry her (Isaiah 62:5)." [Note: Chisholm, Handbook on . . ., p. 131.]

Verse 6

The Lord revealed that He had appointed watchmen, whose job it was to remind Him of His promises to Israel, so that He would not forget them (cf. Isaiah 36:3; 2 Samuel 8:16; 1 Kings 4:3; Luke 2:36-38). Obviously the Lord does not forget His promises, but this assurance, in the language of the common practice of the day, underscored the fact that He would not forget. The watchmen in view may be angels and or human intercessors (cf. Ezekiel 33; Daniel 4:13; Luke 11:5-10; Luke 18:1-8).

Verse 7

These watchmen were to give the Lord no rest-to keep reminding Him-until He fulfilled what He had promised, namely: making Jerusalem an object of praise in the earth (in the Millennium; cf. Matthew 6:10). Christians who pray "Thy kingdom come" do this today.

"The prophets of the last times, with their zeal in prayer, and in the exercise of their calling as witnesses, form a striking contrast to the blind, dumb, indolent, sleepy hirelings of the prophet’s own time (ch. lvi. 10)." [Note: Delitzsch, 2:438.]

Verse 8

Not only did the Lord promise that enemies would never again invade the Promised Land and rob His people of their hard-earned food and drink, but He confirmed His promise with an oath. He swore by Himself, the highest authority, specifically: by His right hand that would personally execute His will, and by His strong arm that would powerfully accomplish His plan.

Verse 9

Unlike the days of Gideon (Judges 6), when the Israelites grew their grain only to have it stolen at harvest time, they would harvest and eat what they had sown. They would drink the wine that they harvested, in the security of the Lord’s sanctuary, as an act of worship.

Verse 10

With now familiar figures for preparing a highway (cf. Isaiah 7:3; Isaiah 11:16; Isaiah 19:23; Isaiah 33:8; Isaiah 35:8; Isaiah 36:2; Isaiah 49:11; Isaiah 59:7), Isaiah called on God’s people to plan for the fulfillment of the promised redemption, return to the land, and Gentile worship. They should not just wait passively, but should take steps to express and to bolster their faith in these promises. They should march through the gates of Babylon and return to their homeland.

Verses 10-12

The need for faith 62:10-12

Having learned of the mission of the Anointed One to bring salvation to Israel, and having received promises of benefits that would accompany His salvation, the Israelites needed to believe these promises-in spite of impending exile in Babylon. This pericope concludes the section of Isaiah dealing with the revelation of future glory (chs. 60-62; cf. Isaiah 40:1-11; Isaiah 52:1-12).

Verse 11

By proclaiming to the end of the earth that Yahweh would save the Israelites, the Lord was guaranteeing that He would do it. This was not just a private promise to Israel but one that the world could anticipate. Here the prophet personified Salvation as coming with the Anointed One. When the Anointed One came, Salvation would come with Him. Salvation would receive a reward from Yahweh for saving His people, as well as compensation, namely: His redeemed people themselves. Consequently everyone needed to get ready.

Verse 12

Then the nations would call the Israelites "the holy people" (in standing and state; cf. Exodus 19:6; Deuteronomy 7:6), "those whom Yahweh had redeemed" (physically and spiritually), and "sought out." They would refer to Jerusalem as "the city that the Lord had not forsaken." In short, Yahweh would restore His people’s relationship with Himself.