22 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
INTRODUCTION TO Isaiah 64 The prayer of the church is continued in this chapter; in which she prays for some visible display of the power and presence of God, as in times past, Isaiah 64:1, and the rather, since unheard of and unseen things were prepared by the Lord for his people; and it was his usual way to meet those that were truly religious,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
O that thou wouldst rend the heavens, that thou wouldst come down,.... Before, the church prayed that the Lord would look down from heaven and behold, Isaiah 63:15, now that he would open the heavens, and descend from thence; not by change of place, for he fills heaven and earth with his presence; but by some visible display of his power, in...
Matthew Henry - Complete Commentary - Matthew Henry
This chapter goes on with that pathetic pleading prayer which the church offered up to God in the latter part of the foregoing chapter. They had argued from their covenant-relation to God and his interest and concern in them; now here, I. They pray that God would appear in some remarkable and surprising manner for them against his and their...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence, as when the melting fire burneth, Or, much better, “as when the brushwood burneth”; for if God does but come to his people, they are ready to catch the flame, like the dry heather which is soon ablaze; and his enemies also...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
As when the melting fire burneth,.... Or, "the fire of melting" (k); a strong vehement fire, as Kimchi, such as is used under a furnace for melting metals; though De Dieu thinks a slow gentle fire is intended, such as is sufficient to keep the liquor boiling; which he concludes from the use of the word in the Arabic language, which, according to...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
The fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence! When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou comest down, the mountain flowed down at thy presence. O Lord, come again! Thou didst come in the past; repeat thy former acts, and let us see what thou canst...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
When thou didst terrible things, which we looked not for, thou camest down,.... Referring to the wonderful things God did in Egypt, at the Red sea, and in the wilderness, and particularly at Mount Sinai, things that were unexpected, and not looked for; then the Lord came down, and made visible displays of his power and presence, especially on...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear,.... Not only the things unexpected, undesired, and undeserved, had been done for the Lord's people of old; but there were other things, unheard of and unseen, which God, in his secret counsels, had prepared for them; and for which reason his appearance in his...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him. God is ready to help. He has everything in preparation before our needs begin. He has laid in supplies for all our wants. Before our prayers are presented, he has...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Thou meetest him that rejoiceth,.... Not in a carnal way, nor in a sinful manner, nor in a hypocritical one, or in vain boastings, all such rejoicing is evil: but in the Lord, in the person of Christ; in the greatness, glory, and fullness of his person; at the promise, and in the view, of his coming in the flesh, as Abraham did; in the grace of...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: God does not wait for us to return to him. He meets us. He comes to us the moment that we turn our feet towards his throne. While we are, like the prodigal, a great way off, he sees us, and has compassion upon us, and runs to meet us. Isa_64:5. Behold,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But we are all as an unclean thing,.... Or "we have been" (t); so all men are in a state of nature: man was made pure and holy, but by sinning became impure; and this impurity is propagated by natural generation, and belongs to all, none are free from it; and there is no cleansing from it but by the grace of God and blood of Christ: all are not...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. It is not a flattering picture that the prophet draws. Even our righteousnesses are like filthy rags, fit only for the fire; what must our righteousnesses be like? We, ourselves,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And there is none that calleth upon thy name,.... Upon the Lord himself, who is gracious and merciful, omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent, and all sufficient, a God hearing and answering prayer, and the Father of his people; all which should engage to call upon him: or, "there is none that prays in thy name", as the Targum; none that prays to...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: That is a wonderful description of prayer. When a man rouses himself from sinful lethargy, and stirs himself up to take hold of God in prayer, he will become an Israel, a prince prevailing with God.
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But now, O Lord, thou art our father,.... Notwithstanding all that we have done against thee, and thou hast done to us, the relation of a father continues; thou art our Father by creation and adoption; as he was in a particular manner to the Jews, to whom belonged the adoption; and therefore this relation is pleaded, that mercy might be shown...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
For thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities. But now, O Lord, thou art our father; Adoption does not come to an end because of sin. Regeneration or sonship does not die out; it cannot die out. I am my father’s son, and so I always shall be; and if I am my heavenly Father’s son, I shall never cease to be so....
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
We are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand. Be not wrath very sore, O Lord, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people. The holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation. Our holy and our beautiful house, where our fathers praised thee, is...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Be not wroth very sore, O Lord,.... They knew not how to deprecate the displeasure of God entirely; having sinned so greatly against him, they were sensible they deserved his wrath; but entreat it might not be hot and very vehement, and carried to the highest pitch, which would be intolerable: neither remember iniquity for ever; to afflict and...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Thy holy cities are a wilderness,.... Meaning either Zion, the city of David, and Jerusalem; the one called the upper, the other the lower city; now uninhabited, and a mere wilderness: or else the other cities of Judea, in which were formerly synagogues for religious service, and in which dwelt many godly families where the worship of God was kept...