Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Isaiah 61:1

Clarke's Commentary

CHAPTER LXI

The subject of the preceding chapter is continued in this; and

to give it the greater solemnity, the Messiah is introduced

describing his character and office, and confirming the large

promises made before, 1-9.

In consequence of this the Jewish Church is introduced,

praising God for the honour done her by her restoration to

favour, and by to accession of the Gentiles, which is

beautifully described by allusions to the rich pontifical dress

of the high priest; a happy similitude to express the ornaments

of a restored nation and of a renewed mind, 10.

Certainty of the prophecy illustrated by a figure drawn from

the vegetable kingdom, 11.

NOTES ON CHAP. LXI

Verse Isaiah 61:1. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me - "The Spirit of JEHOVAH is upon me"] The Septuagint, Vulgate, and St. Luke, (Luke 4:18,) and a MS., and two old editions omit the word אדני Adonai, the Lord; which was probably added to the text through the superstition of the Jews, to prevent the pronunciation of the word יהוה Jehovah following. See Kennicott on the state of the printed Hebrew text, vol. i., p. 610.

In most of Isaiah's prophecies there is a primary and secondary sense, or a remote subject illustrated by one that is near. The deliverance of the Jews from their captivity in Babylon is constantly used to shadow forth the salvation of men by Jesus Christ. Even the prophet himself is a typical person, and is sometimes intended to represent the great Saviour. It is evident from Luke 4:18 that this is a prophecy of our blessed Lord and his preaching; and yet it is as evident that it primarily refers to Isaiah preaching the glad tidings of deliverance to the Jews.

The opening of the prison - "Perfect liberty"] פקח קוח pekach koach. Ten MSS. of Kennicott's, several of De Rossi's, and one of my own, with the Complutensian, have פקחקוח pekachkoach in one word; and so the Septuagint and Vulgate appear to have taken it: not merely opening of prisons, but every kind of liberty - complete redemption.

The proclaiming of perfect liberty to the bound, and the year of acceptance with JEHOVAH. is a manifest allusion to the proclaiming of the year of jubilee by sound of trumpet. See Leviticus 25:9, c. This was a year of general release of debts and obligations, of bondmen and bondwomen, of lands and possessions which had been sold from the families and tribes to which they belonged. Our Saviour, by applying this text to himself, (Luke 4:18-19,) a text so manifestly relating to the institution above mentioned, plainly declares the typical design of that institution.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Good news for the exiles (61:1-62:12)

God’s Spirit gives the prophet some good news to pass on to the Jews held captive in Babylon. They will be released to return to their land, but their captors will be punished (61:1-2). When they arrive in Jerusalem, they may be overcome with grief because of the ruin and devastation they see around them. But God will encourage and strengthen them so that they can rebuild their beloved city (3-4).
Foreigners will carry out the everyday duties for the Jews and contribute liberally to the national income. This will enable the Jews to concentrate on the more important matters of worshipping and serving God (5-6). God will give blessings to his people that are far beyond anything they have ever expected. In justice he will compensate them for the plundering they have suffered at the hands of their enemies (7-9).
In thanks the prophet praises God in advance for saving Israel and giving it glory, a glory that he likens to the beauty of wedding garments. As surely as seeds sprout and grow, so just as surely will God save Israel and bring praise to himself from people of all nations (10-11).
But at the time of writing, the prophet is still in Babylon and Israel has not yet been saved. The prophet will therefore not cease praying for Israel till it has been restored to its land in glory (62:1-3). The nation will then no longer be like an unfaithful wife living alone and in disgrace. Her husband still loves her and will take her back. As the deserted woman becomes happily married again, so the desolate nation will again rejoice in fellowship with Yahweh (4-5).
In Jerusalem watchmen wait expectantly for the first returning exiles. The prophet urges these watchmen to join him in unceasing prayer that God will soon fulfil his promise and bring his people back, never to be plundered again (6-9). He then commands people to go out and prepare the way for Israel’s release from Babylon and return to Jerusalem. Israel will again be known as the people whom God has redeemed (10-12).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

“The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is upon me; because Jehovah hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the year of Jehovah’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of Jehovah, that he may be glorified.”

“The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is upon me” This is a reference to the baptism of Christ (Matthew 3:16 f), upon which occasion the Spirit of God in the form of a dove descended and alighted upon Jesus, remaining upon him. Nothing like this is written of Isaiah. Jesus Christ alone possessed the Spirit of God without limitation (John 3:34).

Furthermore, as Hailey noted, “The message and work of the Speaker here far transcend those of a prophet, even Isaiah; they are characteristic of deity.”Homer Hailey, p. 492. Also, as Rawlinson noted, “It is contrary to the entire spirit of Isaiah’s writings for him to have glorified himself in such language as that which appears here.”Pulpit Commentary, Vol. II, p. 414. Without any question whatever, we have here another passage like the others labeled “The Song of the Servant.” This writer is happy to identify himself as among those mentioned by Kelley: “Some have interpreted these verses as a fifth Servant Song (Isaiah 42:1-4; Isaiah 49:1-6; Isaiah 50:4-9; Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12).”Broadman Bible Commentary, p. 362. This interpretation is required by simple logic. The Suffering Servant is Christ; this passage refers to Christ; therefore, the passage refers to the Suffering Servant, regardless of the fact that the title does not appear in the passage!

“To preach the gospel to the poor (the meek in the ASV)” Our Lord referred to this paragraph when he replied to John the Baptist’s inquiry, “Art thou he that should come, or look we for another”? (Matthew 11:3-4), again identifying himself as the speaker here.

To the generation of the exiles in Babylon who first received Isaiah’s prophecy, the dramatic import of these words is that God would release them from their Babylonian bondage; but when Christ applied these words to himself, that bondage had ended long ago; and it was evident that Christ referred to an even greater deliverance of men, their deliverance from the captivity and bondage of sin. Our Lord did not come to earth on a mission of getting people out of jail!

“The opening of the prison to them that are bound” “This must be interpreted spiritually, as John the Baptist had to learn.”New Bible Commentary Revised, p. 622. There is no record of Jesus’ having procured the release of anyone from an actual prison.

“The year of Jehovah’s favor” This is a reference to the year of Jubilee; and from this has come the recognition that the reign of Messiah is the earth’s “Jubilee” from the darkness of paganism.

“The planting of Jehovah” This identifies the “trees of righteousness” in the passage as members of the body of Christ (See Isaiah 60:21).

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

The Spirit of the Lord God - Hebrew, The Spirit of the Lord Yahweh.’ The Chaldee renders this, ‘The prophet said, the spirit of prophecy from the presence of Yahweh God is upon me.’ The Syriac, ‘The Spirit of the Lord God.’ The Septuagint, Πνεῦμα Κυρίου Pneuma Kuriou - ‘The Spirit of the Lord,’ omitting the word אדני 'ădonāy. So Luke quotes it in Luke 4:18. That this refers to the Messiah is abundantly proved by the fact that the Lord Jesus expressly applied it to himself (see Luke 4:21). Rosenmuller, Gesenius, and some others, suppose that it refers to Isaiah himself, and that the idea is, that the prophet proclaims his commission as authorized to administer consolation to the suffering exiles in Babylon. It cannot be denied that the language is such as may be applied in a subordinate sense to the office of the prophet, and that the work of the Redeemer is here described in terms derived from the consolation and deliverance afforded to the long-suffering exiles. But in a much higher sense it refers to the Messiah, and received an entire completion only as applied to him and to his work. Even Grotius, who has been said to ‘find Christ nowhere in the Old Testament,’ remarks, ‘Isaiah here speaks of himself, as the Chaldee observes; but in him we see not an obscure image of Christ.’ Applied to the Redeemer, it refers to the time when, having been baptized and set apart to the work of the Mediatorial office, he began publicly to preach (see Luke 4:21). The phrase ‘the Spirit of Yahweh is upon me,’ refers to the fact; that he had been publicly consecrated to his work by the Holy Spirit descending on him at Iris baptism Matthew 3:16; John 1:32, and that the Spirit of God had been imparted to him ‘without measure’ to endow him for his great office (John 3:34; see the notes at Isaiah 11:2).

Because the Lord hath anointed me - The word rendered ‘hath anointed’ (משׁח mâshach), is that from which the word Messiah is derived (see the notes at Isaiah 45:1). prophets and kings were set apart to their high office, by the ceremony of pouring oil on their heads; and the idea here is that God had set apart the Messiah for the office which he was to bear, and had abundantly endowed him with the graces of which the anointing oil was an emblem. The same language is used in reference to the Messiah in Psalms 45:7 (compare Hebrews 1:9).

To preach good tidings - On the meaning of the word (בשׂר bâs'ar) rendered here ‘to preach good tidings,’ see the notes at Isaiah 52:7. The Septuagint renders it, Εὐαγγελίσασθαι Euangelisasthai - ‘To evangelize,’ to preach the gospel.

Unto the meek - The word rendered ‘meek’ (ענוים ‛ănâviym) properly denotes the afflicted, the distressed, the needy. The word ‘meek’ means those who are patient in the reception of injuries, and stands opposed to revengeful and irascible. This is by no means the sense of the word here. It refers to those who were borne down by calamity in any form, and would be particularly applicable to those who had been sighing in a long captivity in Babylon. It is not improperly rendered by the Septuagint by the word πτωχοῖς ptōchois, ‘poor,’ and in like manner by Luke Luke 4:18; and the idea is, that the Redeemer came to bring a joyful message to those who were oppressed and borne down by the evils of poverty and calamity (compare Matthew 11:5).

To bind up the broken-hearted - (See the notes at Isaiah 1:6). The broken-hearted are those who are deeply afflicted and distressed on any account. It may be either on account of their sins, or of captivity and oppressionk, or of the loss of relations and friends. The Redeemer came that he might apply the balm of consolation to all such hearts, and give them joy and peace. A similar form of expression occurs in Psalms 147:3 :

He healeth the broken in heart,

And bindeth up their wounds.

To proclaim liberty to the captives - This evidently is language which is taken from the condition of the exiles in their long captivity in Babylon. The Messiah would accomplish a deliverance for those who were held under the captivity of sin similar to that of releasing captives from long and painful servitude. The gospel does not at once, and by a mere exertion of power, open prison doors, and restore captives to liberty. But it accomplishes an effect analogous to this: it releases the mind captive under sin; and it will finally open all prison doors, and by preventing crime will prevent the necessity of prisons, and will remove all the sufferings which are now endured in confinement as the consequence of crime. It may be remarked further, that the word here rendered ‘liberty’ (דרור d^erôr) is a word which is properly applicable to the year of Jubilee, when all were permitred to go free Leviticus 25:10 : ‘And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty (דרור d^erôr) throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.’ So in Jeremiah 34:8-9, it is used to denote the manumission of slaves: ‘To proclaim liberty (דרור d^erôr) unto them; that every man should let his man-servant and every man his maid-servant, being an Hebrew, or an Hebrewess, go free.’ So also Isaiah 61:1, of the same chapter.

So also in Ezekiel 46:17, it is applied to the year in which the slave was by law restored to liberty. Properly, therefore, the word has reference to the freedom of those who are held in bondage, or to servitude; and it may be implied that it was to be a part of the purpose of the Messiah to proclaim, ultimately, universal freedom, and to restore all people to their just rights. If this is the sense - and I see no reason to doubt it - while the main thing intended was that he should deliver people from the inglorious servitude of sin, it also means, that the gospel would contain principles inconsistent with the existence of slavery, and would ultimately produce universal emancipation. Accordingly it is a matter of undoubted fact that its influence was such that in less than three centuries it was the means of abolishing slavery throughout the Roman empire; and no candid reader of the New Testament can doubt that if the principles of Christianity were universally followed, the last shackle would soon fall from the slave. Be the following facts remembered:

1. No man ever made another originally a slave under the influence of Christian principle. No man ever kidnapped another, or sold another, BECAUSE it was done in obedience to the laws of Christ.

2. No Christian ever manumitted a slave who did not feel that in doing it he was obeying the spirit of Christianity, and who did not have a more quiet conscience on that account.

3. No man doubts that if freedom were to prevail everywhere, and all men were to be regarded as of equal civil rights, it would be in accordance with the mind of the Redeemer.

4. Slaves are made in violation of all the precepts of the Saviour. The work of kidnapping and selling men, women, and children; of tearing them from their homes, and confining them in the pestilential holds of ships on the ocean, and of dooming them to hard and perpetual servitude, is not the work to which the Lord Jesus calls his disciples.

5. Slavery, in fact, cannot be maintained without an incessant violation of the principles of the New Testament. To keep people in ignorance; to witchold from them the Bible; to prevent their learning to read; to render nugatory the marriage contract, or to make it subject to the will of a master; to deprive a man of the avails of Iris own labor without his consent; to make him or his family subject to a removal against his will; to prevent parents from training up their children according to their own views of what is right; to fetter and bind the intellect and shut up the avenues to knowledge as a necessary means of continuing the system; and to make people dependent wholly on others whether they shall hear the gospel or be permitted publicly to embrace it, is everywhere deemed essential to the existence of slavery, and is demanded by all the laws which rule over the regions of a country cursed with this institution. In the whole work of slavery, from the first capture of the unoffending person who is made a slave to the last act which is adopted to secure his bondage, there is an incessant and unvarying trampling on the laws of Jesus Christ. Not one thing is done to make and keep a slave in accordance with any command of Christ; not one thing which would be done if his example were followed and his law obeyed. Who then can doubt that he came ultimately to proclaim freedom to all captives, and that the prevalence of his gospel will yet be the means of universal emancipation? (compare the notes at Isaiah 58:6).

And the opening of the prison - This language also is taken from the release of those who had been confined in Babylon as in a prison; and the idea is, that the Redeemer would accomplish a work for sinful and suffering people like throwing open the doors of a prison and bidding the man who had been long lying in a dungeon to go free. On the grammatical structure of the verb rendered here ‘opening of the prison’ (פקץ־קיץ peqach-qôach), Gesenius (Lexicon) and Rosenmuller may be consulted. According to Gesenius, it should be read as one word. So many manuscripts read it. It occurs nowhere else. It means here deliverance. The Septuagint renders it, ‘And sight to the blind,’ which is followed by Luke. The sentiment which is found in the Septuagint and in Luke, is a correct one, and one which elsewhere occurs in the prophets (see Isaiah 34:5): and as the sentiment was correct, the Saviour did not deem it necessary to state that this was not the literal translation of the Hebrew. Or more properly the Saviour in the synagogue at Nazareth Luke 4:19 used the Hebrew, and when Luke came to record it, he quoted it as he found it in the version then in common use. This was the common practice with the writers of the New Testament. The Evangelist wrote probably for the Hellenists, or the Greek Jews, who commonly used the Septuagint version, and he quotes that version as being the one with which they were familiar. The sense is not materially varied whether the Hebrew be followed, or the version by the Septuagint. The Arabic version agrees nearly with the Evangelist. Horne (Introduction, ii. 403) is of opinion that the Hebrew formerly contained more than we now find in the manuscripts and the printed editions. Of that, however, I think there is no good evidence.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

1.The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah. As Christ explains this passage with reference to himself, (Luke 4:18) so commentators limit it to him without hesitation, and lay down this principle, that Christ is introduced as speaking, as if the whole passage related to him alone. The Jews laugh at this, as an ill­advised application to Christ of that which is equally applicable to other prophets. My opinion is, that this chapter is added as a seal to the former, to confirm what had hitherto been said about restoring the Church of Christ; and that for this purpose Christ testifies that he has been anointed by God, in consequence of which he justly applies this prophecy to himself; for he has exhibited clearly and openly what others have laid down ill an obscure manner.

But this is not inconsistent with the application of this statement to other prophets, whom the Lord has anointed; for they did not speak in their own name as individuals, or claim this authority for themselves, but were chiefly employed in pointing out the office of Christ, to whom belongs not only the publication of these things, but likewise the accomplishment of them. This chapter ought, therefore, to be understood in such a sense, that Christ, who is the Head of the prophets, holds the chief place, and alone makes all those revelations; but that Isaiah, and the other prophets, and the apostles, contribute their services to Christ, and each performs his part in making known Christ’s benefits. And thus we see that those things which Isaiah said would be accomplished by Christ, have now been actually accomplished.

On that account Jehovah hath anointed me. This second clause is added in the room of exposition; for the first would have been somewhat obscure, if he had said nothing as to the purpose for which he was endued with the Spirit of God; but now it is made far more clear by pointing out the use, when he declares that. he discharges a public office, that he may not be regarded as a private individual. Whenever Scripture mentions the Spirit, and says that he “dwelleth in us,” (Romans 8:11; 1 Corinthians 3:16) let us not look upon it as something empty or unmeaning, but let us contemplate his power and efficacy. Thus, after having spoken of the Spirit of God, the Prophet next mentions the “anointing,” by which he means the faculties which flow from him, as Paul teaches that the gifts are indeed various, but the Spirit is one. (1 Corinthians 12:4)

This passage ought to be carefully observed, for no man can claim right or authority to teach unless he show that he has been prompted to it by the Spirit of God, as Paul also affirms that “no man can call Jesus Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.” (1 Corinthians 12:3) But, it will be said, we see that almost all men boast of having the Spirit of God; for the Pope, and the Anabaptists, and other heretics and fanatics, have his name continually in their mouth, as if they were governed by him. How, then, shall we judge that any man has been sent by God, and is guided by his Spirit? By “anointing;“ that is, if he is endued with the gifts which are necessary for that orate. If therefore, having been appointed by the Lord, he abound in the graces of the Spirit and the ability which the calling demands, he actually has the Spirit. And if he wish to make profession of enjoying that teacher, and if he have no doctrine, ⁽¹⁶⁵⁾ let him be held as an impostor.

He hath sent me to preach. The Prophet does not claim for himself right and authority to teach, before he has shown that the Lord “hath sent him” The authority is founded on his having been “anointed,” that is, furnished by God with necessary gifts. We ought not to hear him, therefore, as a private individual, but as a public minister who has come from heaven.

To the afflicted. Some render it, “To the meek;“ and both ideas are conveyed by the word ענוים (gnanavim). But I preferred to adhere to the former signification, because the Prophet is speaking of captives and prisoners. Yet I think that he includes both; for he means those who, while they are altogether forsaken and abandoned, are also wretched in themselves. Christ is promised to none but those who have been humbled and overwhelmed by a conviction of their distresses, who have no lofty pretensions, but keep themselves in humility and modesty. And hence we infer that Isaiah speaks literally of the Gospel; for the Law was given for the purpose of abasing proud hearts which swelled with vain confidence, but the Gospel is intended for “the afflicted,” that is, for those who know that they are destitute of everything good, that they may gather courage and support. For what purpose were prophets, and apostles, and other ministers, anointed and sent, but to cheer and comfort the afflicted by the doctrine of grace?

To bind up the broken in heart. Numerous are the metaphors which the Prophet employs for explaining more clearly the same thing. By “binding up,” he means nothing else than “healing,” but now he expresses something more than in the preceding clause; for he shows that. the preaching of the word is not an empty sound, but a powerful medicine, the effect of which is felt, not by obdurate and hard­hearted men, but by wounded consciences.

To proclaim liberty to the captives. This also is the end of the Gospel, that they who are captives may be set at liberty. We are prisoners and captives, therefore, till we are set free (John 8:36) through the grace of Christ; and when Christ wishes to break asunder our chains, let us not refuse the grace that is offered to us. It ought to be observed in general, that the blessings which are here enumerated are bestowed upon us by heavenly doctrine, and that none are fit for the enjoyment of them but those who, conscious of their poverty, eagerly desire the assistance of Christ, as he himself says,

“Come to me all ye that labor and are heavy laden,
and I will relieve you.” (Matthew 11:28)

(165) “S’il veut contrefaire le docteur, et n’a doctrine ni savoir.” “If he wishes to counterfeit the teacher, and has not any doctrine or knowledge.”

Smith's Bible Commentary

Shall we turn now in our Bibles to Isaiah 61:1-11 .

We are told in the New Testament that the Old Testament prophets many times wrote of things that they did not really understand. Earnestly desiring, really, to look into these things, but they wrote as the Spirit of God inspired them. And so we find that quite often, the Old Testament prophets did not clearly understand the work of God in creating the body of Christ, the church, from among the Gentiles. Paul the apostle in talking about the church and Christ in us, the hope of glory, said that it was a mystery that was hid from the beginning of time but is now revealed. And so it is something that was not revealed until the New Testament writings and the epistles. It was something that was more or less hid from the Old Testament writers.

Now in their prophecies concerning the work and the ministry of Jesus Christ, quite often both aspects of the coming of Christ would be more or less mixed together in a single phrase or in a prophecy. So they would be prophesying of aspects of the first coming of Jesus Christ and also would go right in and prophesy of the aspects of the second coming of Jesus Christ, right in the same sentence or paragraph. And they did not really clearly see the distinction between... Well, they really didn't see the two comings of Christ. And thus it was a mystery to them the things that they wrote because they seem to be so incongruous. They spoke of the glorious reign of the Messiah and of the kingdom, sitting upon the throne of David and all of the earth flowing unto Jerusalem and all. And then they spoke about Him being despised, rejected, a man of sorrows, acquainted with griefs, and they just really didn't themselves understand these things of which they wrote.

For they were written for our sakes. Now with Daniel, when he was seeking further understanding, the Lord said, "Just seal it up, Daniel. It's for the time of the end. It's not really given to you to understand these things. You just wrote them, you've done your job. That's good now. But in the last days knowledge will be increased. I will give the understanding of these things. These things are written for a generation that is to come. Not written for your understanding, but for the generation that is to come and they will be understanding these things." So that as we look now at the Bible prophecies with the advantage of our history, and we can look back now and see the coming of Christ, we can see Him despised and rejected, and we can now look towards the second coming of Christ and as we see these things beginning to take place in the world around us, we say, "Oh, well that's what Daniel was talking about. Oh yes, I can see that now." And it begins to unfold to us in these days. So as we get into the sixty-first chapter of Isaiah, the prophecy concerning Jesus Christ, he actually just merges both the comings of Christ into one prophecy.

But Jesus, because He understood the two aspects of His coming, when He in the synagogue of Nazareth, turned to the prophecy of Isaiah and read this particular passage, stopped in what is right the middle of verse Isaiah 61:2 in our Bible. And at that point, He closed the scroll and said, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your eyes" ( Luke 4:21 ). He didn't go on, because if you go on you are then dealing with the aspects of the second coming of Jesus Christ. Now that wasn't fulfilled that day. That won't be fulfilled until He comes again. So understanding and discerning His ministry in His first coming, He stopped right in what is the middle of the prophecy here in Isaiah for us and said, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your eyes." So what was fulfilled and what is yet to be fulfilled? This is what was fulfilled:

The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek ( Isaiah 61:1 );

Now in a restricted sense, this prophecy is of Jesus Christ and His ministry, who was anointed by the Spirit and went about preaching the good tidings to the meek. You remember when John the Baptist was in prison and John did not understand the prophecies concerning Jesus Christ. John was expecting Him to establish the kingdom momentarily. And when John was sitting there in prison for a while, he started getting impatient and he sent his disciples to Jesus and he said, "Are you the One that we're to look for? Or shall we start looking for someone else?" In other words, "When You going to get the show on the road? Tired of this prison life." And he was... He knew that Jesus was the One because he testified of Jesus that the Lord had told him whoever he saw the Spirit descending upon and remaining, that that was the One. And John testified of the Spirit of God descending upon Christ and resting upon Him there at His baptism. So he knew He was the One, and yet because Jesus wasn't moving right into the kingdom and setting up the kingdom and throwing out the Romans and all of this, he said, "Are you the One or shall we look for another?" And Jesus did not directly answer John's inquisition. But instead in that same hour, He healed many of the sick and He opened up the blind eyes and caused the lame to walk and so forth. And then He said to his disciples, "Just go tell John what you have seen-how that the blind have had their eyes opened, the deaf hear, the lame are walking, and to the poor the gospel is being preached. I'm fulfilling the prophecies, John. You know the Word. You know the scriptures. I'm doing the things that the scriptures said. You don't need a direct answer; yes, I am the Messiah. Just go back and tell John the things that you see. John knows the scriptures well enough. He'll know that I am the One. You don't need to look for anybody else."

"But the Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me. For the Lord has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the meek." As Jesus said, "He did not come to call the righteous, but the sinners to repentance. For they that are whole need not the physician, but they that are sick" ( Mark 2:17 ). "The Son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost" ( Luke 19:10 ).

I am interested in observing the ministry of Jesus Christ, His attitude towards those who were acknowledged, confessed sinners, and His attitude towards those self-righteous individuals. To the woman that was brought to Him caught in the very act of adultery, He shows great tenderness, understanding and grace. "Woman, where are your accusers?" "Sir, I guess I don't have any." "Well, neither do I condemn thee, go thy way, sin no more" ( John 8:11 ). Oh, how tender He deals with her.

To the woman of Samaria there at the well. Now she wasn't the most moral woman around. She had been married to five different men. And then finally decided marriage wasn't for her and so she was just living with a man. Some of those who think they are so modern today, that stuff has been going on for a long time. People have been immoral from the beginning. And yet Jesus in His dealing with her was so gracious, revealing to her His identity. For she said, "I know that when the Messiah comes, He's going to teach us all things." And He said, "Woman, I that speak to thee am He" ( John 4:25-26 ). Oh, the attitude of Christ towards the sinner was always beautiful. He had good news for sinning man and those that confessed and were aware of their sinful state.

To those who were righteous in themselves, He had nothing but words of vilification. He was harsh with them. "Woe unto you, scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites!" Boy, did He denounce them. If you think, "Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, look upon this little child," you better think again and read Matthew's gospel twenty-two. And you'll see His attitude towards the self-righteous, self-sufficient. But, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me; He's anointed Me to preach the good tidings to the meek."

he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound ( Isaiah 61:1 );

Now I believe that this particular portion of the verse refers to the ministry of Christ to those who had died before He came. "To open the prison to those that are bound." For we are told by Peter that Christ preached to those souls that were in prison. Paul tells us that He who has ascended is the same One who first of all descended into the lower parts of the earth. And when He ascended, He led the captives from their captivity. You see, from the time even before Abraham, there were those men of the Old Testament who were accounted righteous because of their faith in God. Abraham became more or less the figurehead for those who believe and had faith in God. And they were waiting for the promises of God.

Hebrews 11:1-40 tells us that "they all died in faith, not having received the promise, but seeing it afar off, they embraced it" ( Hebrews 11:13 ). They held on to it. They claimed, "I'm only a stranger and a pilgrim here. I'm only passing through. This isn't my life. This isn't where it's at. I'm looking for a city which has foundation whose maker and builder is God." They were looking for the glorious kingdom of God. And they all died in faith believing the kingdom and God to establish that kingdom. They all died in faith not having received the promise. "God having reserved something better for us that they, apart from us, couldn't be brought into the completed state" ( Hebrews 11:40 ). It was impossible that the blood of bulls and goats could put away their sin. That took the sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the cross. So the blood sacrifices that they had made according to the old covenant covered their sin, but did not put it away. And they had to wait for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ before they could enter in to that heavenly scene.

So we are told by Peter that when Jesus died He descended into hell. He tells us the purpose of His going there, to preach to those souls that were in prison that one time were disobedient. But they believed and trusted in God. And Paul tells us when He ascended, He led the captives from their captivity. And Matthew's gospel, chapter 27, tells us that when He arose from the dead, many of the graves of the saints were open and they were seen walking in the streets of Jerusalem after His resurrection from the dead. They were released from the prison. So a part of the first coming was to release from the prison those that were bound by death. For Jesus said, "I am the resurrection, and the life. He that believeth on Me, though he were dead, yet he's going to live. And he who lives and believes in Me shall never die" ( John 11:25-26 ).

We will have a transition that is necessary. This corruption must put on incorruption. This mortal must put on immortality. And I know that when this earthly tabernacle is dissolved, I have a new building of God, a house that is not made with hands that is eternal in the heavens. And while I am still in this dumb old tent, I groan earnestly, desiring to move out.

You know, it's hard to get out of bed in the morning anymore. Dumb left foot of mine starting to pain first thing in the morning. I've got to walk for a few steps to get the thing operating. I never thought I'd reach this age. Hard to walk in the morning. What a tent. Wearing out. But oh, thank God, I have a building of God that's not made with hands, that's eternal in the heavens. One of these days I'm not going to die; I'm going to move from the tent into that glorious building of God. The mansion that He's prepared for me.

So to finish the aspects of His first coming:

To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD ( Isaiah 61:2 ),

This is the accepted day. God's accepted time for your salvation. At this point, Jesus closed the scroll because these things dealt with the first aspect of His coming. Now Isaiah, not really seeing the two comings, goes right on and he declares,

and the day of vengeance of our God ( Isaiah 61:2 );

Well, that's not going to take place until yet future. God's vengeance and wrath is going to be poured out upon this earth. As the seals are opened, the judgments of God are going to begin to fall and the earth will enter into that period known as the Great Tribulation. And we read where the men, the chief men of the earth and the captains and so forth, will call to the rocks and the mountains and say, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of the Lamb, for His day of wrath has come" ( Revelation 6:16-17 ). The day of the vengeance of our God.

Well, that won't take place until a yet future time during the Great Tribulation, and I think that it is totally inconsistent with God and the nature of God and the work of Jesus Christ to think that the church would be here during the time that God pours out His wrath upon the earth. In fact, Paul tells us in Rom 5:9 that we have not been appointed unto wrath. He tells us again in First Thessalonians Isa 5:9 that we've not been appointed unto wrath. And I think it's totally inconsistent with the nature of God to think that Christ having borne the wrath of God for our sin, that we would somehow have to face the wrath of God during the Great Tribulation.

Now as a child of God, as long as I'm in this alien world, I'm going to have tribulation. Jesus said, "In this world you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world" ( John 16:33 ). Now if you were of the world, the world would love you because you'd be a part of their whole system. Because you're not of the world, they hate you. And if they haven't received Me, they're not going to receive you. They hated Me; they're going to hate you. The servant isn't greater than his Lord.

And so as a child of God walking in fellowship with God in this alien world, I can expect to have tribulation. It's not going to be easy. However, I shall surely not face the wrath of God, the Great Tribulation. And the whole vast difference is the tribulation that I face comes from Satan. The tribulation that the world is going to face comes from the vengeance of God who has declared, "Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, saith the Lord" ( Romans 12:19 ).

So, "To proclaim the day of the vengeance of our God,"

and to comfort all that mourn ( Isaiah 61:2 );

Moving into the Kingdom Age.

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give them the beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called Trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified. For they shall build the old wastes ( Isaiah 61:3-4 ),

The rebuilding that will go on in that land.

they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations ( Isaiah 61:4 ).

And, of course, we see a beginning of that today. But what we see today is not really the fulfillment of this particular passage in Isaiah, because Isaiah here is going on into the Kingdom Age. That which... so much of that which is being built up now is going to be destroyed. Unfortunately, Israel is going to be the central battlefield of two more major battles. Probably the biggest and bloodiest battles in the history of the world are yet to be fought in that land. And so much of that marvellous building that is going on there today will be destroyed in the wars that are yet to come upon this nation. But this particular prophecy goes out into the Kingdom Age as they rebuild the waste and the waste cities and the desolations of many generations.

And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks ( Isaiah 61:5 ),

As God restores the nation Israel. Now you hear a lot of people and even ministers who talk about the final restitution of all things, "God is going to finally save everybody. Nobody will be lost. Even Satan will repent and be brought back as a child." That is not what the Bible teaches when it speaks of the final restitution. In the final restitution, God is talking about His restitution of the nation of Israel as His people. They have been put away as an unfaithful wife and God is going to bring them back again, even as is depicted graphically in the prophecy of Hosea.

When God said, "Go out and take a wife," and he married this wife and she bore him a couple of children. She bore another child and called it Loammi. "That's not my kid." And she finally just went out and became a prostitute. Her life was marred and ruined as she made love with anybody who would come along. God finally said to Hosea, "Go find your wife and take her again and buy her. Redeem her. She's gone into slavery. Redeem her. Wash her up. Clean her up and take her as your wife again." So God spoke then through that graphic illustration of how He would bring Israel again back into a relationship with Him. For He will love her as a wife and be a husband unto them. And this goes into that area, "The stranger shall stand and feed your flocks."

and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God ( Isaiah 61:5-6 ):

The word minister is servant. I think that it's important that we remember that. We so oftentimes use that as a title of great distinction. "Oh, he's a minister." You're saying he's a slave. That's great. We ought to think of it as that. Sometimes I think, "Well, I'm a minister, you know. Give me a ten percent discount, after all, you know." And we think if I'm a minister I should have special privileges. I'm a minister. I should get in front of the line. Or I'm a... And that is totally incongruous with the true aspect of the word minister and the idea of ministry as Jesus spoke of it. He said if you're going to be chief, then learn to be the servant of all. And He taught the servanthood. He took and put a towel around Himself. Tied a towel around Himself and He went around and washed the disciples' feet. "If I being your Lord have become your servant, then learn to be servants." And so the beautiful privilege we have of serving God by serving one another. "Inasmuch as you've done it unto the least of these My brethren, you've done it unto Me" ( Matthew 25:40 ). Giving a cup of cold water, serving in the name of the Lord. God rewards us for His service. "Whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all to the glory of God" ( Colossians 3:17 ). Do it as unto the Lord, knowing that of the Lord you're going to receive your reward. And so the glorious thing to be called.

Now in the book of Revelation in chapter 1, as He is giving the opening remarks, in speaking of Jesus Christ, he said, "Who hath redeemed us with His blood. Who hath made us kings and priests unto our God" ( Revelation 1:6 ). More literally, a kingdom of priests unto our God. So that is going to be a part of the ministry and the work of the church in the Kingdom Age is that we will be priests unto our God. In the fifth chapter of the book of Revelation, when Jesus takes the scroll out of the right hand of the Father and they sing the new song, it is, "Thou art worthy to take the scroll and loose the seals: for Thou was slain, and hath redeemed us by Thy blood out of all of the nations, tribes, tongues and people. And hath made us unto our God [again] a kingdom of priests: and we shall reign with Thee upon the earth" ( Revelation 5:9-10 ). And so looking forward to the glorious Kingdom Age, the place of the church will be as a kingdom of priests reigning with the Lord upon the earth.

And so, "You shall be named the Priests of the Lord: men shall call you the Ministers of our God."

ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. For your shame [talking again to Israel, the shame that they've gone through] ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them. For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD has blessed ( Isaiah 61:6-9 ).

The universal recognition of God's grace and mercy as He restores the nation Israel to that favored nation status.

I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness ( Isaiah 61:10 ),

This is the response, actually, to these glorious promises of God of restoration. "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He's covered me with the robe of righteousness."

as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with jewels. For as the earth brings forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations ( Isaiah 61:10-11 ).

Oh, that glorious day of the Lord. How we anticipate and look for it. As I look around the world today and I see the things that are happening, I pray with John, "Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus" ( Revelation 22:20 ).

This week they'll be sharing with you some of the things that the scientists are now dabbling in genetic engineering, and some of the goals that the chief geneticists have declared for genetic engineering. And some of the things that they're starting to do now, shocking things. Some of the creatures that they're beginning to create through genetic engineering. It's really shocking things that are happening in the world today. And you wonder, how far will God allow these things to go? It seems that man in the past has perhaps had periods of genetic engineering. It isn't... Man has arisen to tremendous scientific levels in the past. But whenever man seems to get to a point in development, especially as they move into the area of genetic engineering, God says, "That's it," and He cuts it off. Even as before the flood there were these creatures that were upon the earth, the giants, men of renown through genetic engineering, and God wiped them out and started all over again with Noah. You've got some very interesting things to consider this week as they share with us some of the past and some of the future from a scientific standpoint.

"

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Isaiah spoke for the Messiah, as is clear from what he said about Him (cf. Isaiah 49:1; Isaiah 50:4). The Spirit of sovereign Yahweh would be upon Him (cf. Isaiah 11:2; Isaiah 48:16). This is a verse in which all three members of the Trinity appear. This verse indicates that He would possess supernatural wisdom and capacity (cf. Genesis 41:38; Exodus 31:3; Numbers 11:17; Numbers 11:29), and that He would be able to bring justice and righteousness to the earth through His spoken word (cf. Isaiah 11:2; Isaiah 32:15-16; Isaiah 42:1; Isaiah 44:3; Isaiah 48:16; Isaiah 59:21). His possession of the Spirit is a result of God anointing Him for His mission. He would need divine enablement by the Spirit to fulfill it (cf. 1 Samuel 10:1; 1 Samuel 10:6-7; 1 Samuel 16:3; 2 Samuel 23:1-7; Matthew 3:16-17). This Anointed One would do the Servant’s work.

The mission of the Anointed One would be to announce good news to distressed people (cf. Psalms 25:16-21; Matthew 9:12-13; Mark 2:17; Luke 5:31-32). In other occurrences of this verb, it is the hope of Israel that is in view, specifically deliverance from Babylon and deliverance from sin (cf. Isaiah 40:9; Isaiah 41:27; Isaiah 52:7; Isaiah 60:6). What "announcing good news to the afflicted" means, follows next (through Isaiah 61:3). First, it means He would mend the hearts of those so broken by life that they despair of having any hope. Second, it means the Anointed One would liberate those so enslaved that they could not break free (cf. Isaiah 1:27; Isaiah 11:3-5). Captives are in bondage to another person, and prisoners are bound to a place.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The mission of the Anointed One 61:1-3

These two chapters begin with an introduction of the Servant (Messiah) and His mission. Some scholars regard Isaiah 61:1-3 as a fifth Servant Song. [Note: E.g., Robert B. Chisholm Jr., "The Christological Fulfillment of Isaiah’s Servant Songs," Bibliotheca Sacra 163:652 (October-December 2006):401-4), regard 61:1-3.] That the Servant of the Servant Songs is the same person as the Anointed One (Messiah) of chapter 11, is clear from what Isaiah wrote about Him.

"The Anointed One now appears for the second time. As in the second Servant Song (Isaiah 49:1-6), he speaks in his own person about himself and his God-given ministry." [Note: Motyer, p. 499.]

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,.... According to the Targum, these are the words of the prophet concerning himself; and so say Aben Ezra and Kimchi; but the latter elsewhere says p they are the words of the Messiah, who should say, "because the Lord hath anointed me", c. and another of their writers q is in a doubt about them; either, says he, they are the words of the prophet with respect to the Messiah, or the words of the prophet concerning himself; but there is no doubt but the Messiah himself is the person speaking, as appears from Luke 4:17, on whom the Spirit of God was; not his grace and gifts only, but the person of the Spirit, the third Person in the Trinity, equal with the Father and the Son; to whom several divine actions are ascribed, and to whom many things relating to Christ are attributed, and who is described as residing on him, and who, by the baptist, was seen upon him, Isaiah 11:2 the phrase denotes his continuance with him, whereby he was qualified, as man and Mediator, for his office:

because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the meek: not the Lord, the Spirit that was upon him, for Christ was anointed with the Holy Ghost; but Jehovah the, Father, he was the anointer of Christ, by whom he was anointed in some sense from everlasting, being invested by him with the office of Mediator, Proverbs 8:21 and in the fulness of time, in the human nature, at his birth and baptism, with the Holy Spirit, his gifts and grace, without measure, Psalms 45:7, hence he has the name of Messiah or Anointed, and from him his people have the anointing which teacheth all things: and hereby he was qualified, as a prophet, to preach good tidings to the meek; such as are sensible of sin, and humbled for it; submit to the righteousness of Christ; ascribe all they have to the grace of God and have a mean opinion of themselves, and patiently bear every affliction: or "poor", as in Luke 4:18, the poor of this world, and as to their intellectuals, and spirit, who are sensible of their spiritual poverty, and seek the true riches, to these the Gospel is "good tidings"; and to such Christ preached good tidings concerning, the love, grace, and mercy of God; concerning peace, pardon, righteousness, life and salvation, by himself; concerning the kingdom of God, and the things appertaining to it:

he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted; whose hearts are smitten and made contrite by the Spirit and Word of God, and are truly humbled under a sense of sin; who are cut to the heart, have wounded spirits, and in great pain; these Christ binds up, by speaking comfortably to them; by applying his blood; by discovering the free and full pardon of their sins; and for this, as Mediator, he had a mission and commission from his Father; he came not of himself, but he sent him:

to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening, of the prison to them that are bound; to such who were captives to sin, Satan, and the law, and as it were prisoners to them, shut up by them, and in them, and held fast there; but Christ, as he is the author of liberty; obtains it for his people, and makes them free with it, so he proclaims it in the Gospel; a liberty from sin, from the damning and governing power of it; a freedom from the curse and condemnation of the law; a deliverance from Satan, as of a prey from the mighty, or as of prisoners from the prison house. The allusion is to the proclamation of liberty, in the year of jubilee, Leviticus 25:10. The Targum is,

"to the prisoners appear in light.''

It may be rendered, "open clear and full light to the prisoners" r, so Aben Ezra interprets it; Leviticus 25:10- :.

p Sepher Shorash. rad. משח q Ben Melech in loc. r ולאסורים פקח-קוח "et vinctis visum acutissimum", Vitringa.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;   2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;   3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

      He that is the best expositor of scripture has no doubt given us the best exposition of these verses, even our Lord Jesus himself, who read this in the synagogue at Nazareth (perhaps it was the lesson for the day) and applied it entirely to himself, saying, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears (Luke 4:17; Luke 4:18; Luke 4:21); and the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, in the opening of this text, were admired by all that heard them. As Isaiah was authorized and directed to proclaim liberty to the Jews in Babylon, so was Christ, God's messenger, to publish a more joyful jubilee to a lost world. And here we are told,

      I. How he was fitted and qualified for this work: The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,Isaiah 61:1; Isaiah 61:1. The prophets had the Spirit of God moving them at times, both instructing them what to say and exciting them to say it. Christ had the Spirit always resting on him without measure; but to the same intent that the prophets had, as a Spirit of counsel and a Spirit of courage, Isaiah 11:1-3; Isaiah 11:1-3. When he entered upon the execution of his prophetical office the Spirit, as a dove, descended upon him,Matthew 3:16. This Spirit which was upon him he communicated to those whom he sent to proclaim the same glad tidings, saying to them, when he gave them their commission, Receive you the Holy Ghost, thereby ratifying it.

      II. How he was appointed and ordained to it: The Spirit of God is upon me, because the Lord God has anointed me. What service God called him to he furnished him for; therefore he gave him his Spirit, because he had by a sacred and solemn unction set him apart to this great office, as kings and priests were of old destined to their offices by anointing. Hence the Redeemer was called the Messiah, the Christ, because he was anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows. He has sent me; our Lord Jesus did not go unsent; he had a commission from him that is the fountain of power; the Father sent him and gave him commandment. This is a great satisfaction to us, that, whatever Christ said, he had a warrant from heaven for; his doctrine was not his, but his that sent him.

      III. What the work was to which he was appointed and ordained.

      1. He was to be a preacher, was to execute the office of a prophet. So well pleased was he with the good-will God showed towards men through him that he would himself be the preacher of it, that an honour might thereby be put upon the ministry of the gospel and the faith of the saints might be confirmed and encouraged. He must preach good tidings (so gospel signified) to the meek, to the penitent, and humble, and poor in spirit; to them the tidings of a Redeemer will be indeed good tidings, pure gospel, faithful sayings, and worthy of all acceptation. The poor are commonly best disposed to receive the gospel (James 2:5), and it is likely to profit us when it is received with meekness, as it ought to be; to such Christ preached good tidings when he said, Blessed are the meek.

      2. He was to be a healer. He was sent to bind up the broken-hearted, as pained limbs are rolled to give them ease, as broken bones and bleeding wounds are bound up, that they may knit and close again. Those whose hearts are broken for sin, who are truly humbled under the sense of guilt and dread of wrath, are furnished in the gospel of Christ with that which will make them easy and silence their fears. Those only who have experienced the pains of a penitential contrition may expect the pleasure of divine cordials and consolations.

      3. He was to be a deliverer. He was sent as a prophet to preach, as a priest to heal, and as a king to issue out proclamations and those of two kinds:-- (1.) Proclamations of peace to his friends: He shall proclaim liberty to the captives (as Cyrus did to the Jews in captivity) and the opening of the prison to those that were bound. Whereas, by the guilt of sin, we are bound over to the justice of God, are his lawful captives, sold for sin till payment be made of that great debt, Christ lets us know that he has made satisfaction to divine justice for that debt, that his satisfaction is accepted, and if we will plead that, and depend upon it, and make over ourselves and all we have to him, in a grateful sense of the kindness he has done us, we may be faith sue out our pardon and take the comfort of it; there is, and shall be, no condemnation to us. And whereas, by the dominion of sin in us, we are bound under the power of Satan, sold under sin, Christ lets us know that he has conquered Satan, has destroyed him that had the power of death and his works, and provided for us grace sufficient to enable us to shake off the yoke of sin and to loose ourselves from those bands of our neck. The Son is ready by his Spirit to make us free; and then we shall be free indeed, not only discharged from the miseries of captivity, but advanced to all the immunities and dignities of citizens. This is the gospel proclamation, and it is like the blowing of the jubilee-trumpet, which proclaimed the great year of release (Leviticus 25:9; Leviticus 25:40), in allusion to which it is here called the acceptable year of the Lord, the time of our acceptance with God, which is the origin of our liberties; or it is called the year of the Lord because it publishes his free grace, to his own glory, and an acceptable year because it brings glad tidings to us, and what cannot but be very acceptable to those who know the capacities and necessities of their own souls. (2.) Proclamations of war against his enemies. Christ proclaims the day of vengeance of our God, the vengeance he takes, [1.] On sin and Satan, death and hell, and all the powers of darkness, that were to be destroyed in order to our deliverances; these Christ triumphed over in his cross, having spoiled and weakened them, shamed them, and made a show of them openly, therein taking vengeance on them for all the injury they had done both to God and man, Colossians 2:15. [2.] On those of the children of men that stand it out against those fair offers. They shall not only be left, as they deserve, in their captivity, but be dealt with as enemies; we have the gospel summed up, Mark 16:16, where that part of it, He that believes shall be saved, proclaims the acceptable year of the Lord to those that will accept of it; but the other part, He that believes not shall be damned, proclaims the day of vengeance of our God, that vengeance which he will take on those that obey not the gospel of Jesus Christ,2 Thessalonians 1:8.

      4. He was to be a comforter, and so he is as preacher, healer, and deliverer; he is sent to comfort all who mourn, and who, mourning, seek to him, and not to the world, for comfort. Christ not only provides comfort for them, and proclaims it, but he applies it to them; he does by his Spirit comfort them. There is enough in him to comfort all who mourn, whatever their sore or sorrow is; but this comfort is sure to those who mourn in Zion, who sorrow after a godly sort, according to God, for his residence is in Zion,--who mourn because of Zion's calamities and desolations, and mingle their tears by a holy sympathy with those of all God's suffering people, though they themselves are not in trouble; such tears God has a bottle for (Psalms 56:8), such mourners he has comfort in store for. As blessings out of Zion are spiritual blessings, so mourners in Zion are holy mourners, such as carry their sorrows to the throne of grace (for in Zion was the mercy-seat) and pour them out as Hannah did before the Lord. To such as these Christ has appointed by his gospel, and will give by his Spirit (Isaiah 61:3; Isaiah 61:3), those consolations which will not only support them under their sorrows, but turn them into songs of praise. He will give them, (1.) Beauty for ashes. Whereas they lay in ashes, as was usual in times of great mourning, they shall not only be raised out of their dust, but made to look pleasant. Note, The holy cheerfulness of Christians is their beauty and a great ornament to their profession. Here is an elegant paronomasia in the original: He will give them pheer--beauty, for epher--ashes; he will turn their sorrow into joy as quickly and as easily as you can transpose a letter; for he speaks, and it is done. (2.) The oil of joy, which make the face to shine, instead of mourning, which disfigures the countenance and makes it unlovely. this oil of joy the saints have from that oil of gladness with which Christ himself was anointed above his fellows,Hebrews 1:9. (3.) The garments of praise, such beautiful garments as were worn on thanksgiving-days, instead of the spirit of heaviness, dimness, or contraction--open joys for secret mournings. The spirit of heaviness they keep to themselves (Zion's mourners weep in secret); but the joy they are recompensed with they are clothed with as with a garment in the eye of others. Observe, Where God gives the oil of joy he gives the garment of praise. Those comforts which come from God dispose the heart to, and enlarge the heart in, thanksgivings to God. Whatever we have the joy of God must have the praise and glory of.

      5. He was to be a planter; for the church is God's husbandry. Therefore he will do all this for his people, will cure their wounds, release them out of bondage, and comfort them in their sorrows, that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that they may be such and be acknowledged to be such, that they may be ornaments to God's vineyard and may be fruitful in the fruits of righteousness, as the branches of God's planting,Isaiah 60:21; Isaiah 60:21. All that Christ does for us is to make us God's people, and some way serviceable to him as living trees, planted in the house of the Lord, and flourishing in the courts of our God; and all this that he may be glorified--that we may be brought to glorify him by a sincere devotion and an exemplary conversation (for herein is our Father glorified, that we bring broth much fruit), that others also may take occasion from God's favour shining on his people, and his grace shining in them, to praise him, and that he may be for ever glorified in his saints.