Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Isaiah 4:2

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Isaiah 4:2. The branch of the Lord - "the branch of JEHOVAH"] The Messiah of JEHOVAH, says the Chaldee. And Kimchi says, The Messiah, the Son of David. The branch is an appropriate title of the Messiah; and the fruit of the land means the great Person to spring from the house of Judah, and is only a parallel expression signifying the same; or perhaps the blessings consequent upon the redemption procured by him. Compare Isaiah 45:8, where the same great event is set forth under similar images, and see the note there.

Them that are escaped of Israel - "the escaped of the house of Israel."] A MS. has בית ישראל beith yisrael, the house of Israel.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

New life (4:2-6)

Having judged his people and removed sin, God blesses the righteous that remain. This new blessing is symbolized by a tree that bursts into new life and by a field that brings fresh growth. A new Israel is born where the people of God are those whom he has saved and made holy (2-4). In the new Jerusalem God dwells among and protects his people in a relationship far more wonderful than in previous times (5-6).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

“And seven women shall take hold of one man in that day, saying We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name; take thou away our reproach. “In that day shall the branch of Jehovah be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel. And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem shall be called holy, even everyone that is written among the living in Jerusalem. When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof, by the spirit of justice, and by the spirit of burning. And Jehovah will create over the whole habitation of mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flame of fire by night; for over all the glory shall be spread a covering. And there shall be a pavilion for a shade in the day-time from the heat, and for a refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.”

Isaiah 4:1 is joined to Isaiah 3 in most versions of the Bible, because it is further prophecy of the ruin of the chosen people. What is meant is that at the time of fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy, men shall be so scarce, having been slain in war, that seven women desiring to have children to take away their reproach would offer to eat their own bread and provide their own clothing, if only the available man would have children by them and thus take their reproach away. Every Jewish woman considered childlessness the most terrible earthly reproach.

“The general tenor of this chapter, in its context, is that salvation lies on the far side of judgment. Israel’s glory must be that of new growth after destruction, and of holiness after a fiery cleansing, and of God’s `Shekinah’ - His manifested presence, as in the Exodus days.”Derek Kidner, New Bible Commentary Revised, p. 593,

Isaiah 4:5 here recalls the days during Israel’s wilderness wanderings when the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night were constant witnesses of the presence and power of God to protect his people.

Isaiah 4:2 in this chapter mentions “the Branch of Jehovah,” using exactly the same word that is found in Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; and Zechariah 6:12, where in every instance the plain reference is to the Messiah; and it is our firm conviction that there is no reason to drop the capital letter and downgrade this reference to the fertility of the land or to anything else. We are aware, of course, of the radically conflicting views of commentators on this; and we shall note each position.

Kidner has this:

“Branch is a misleading term for `the shoot of new growth’ which is paralleled by `the fruit of the land.’ The point is that Israel must be reborn: from her roots a new crop must spring up when judgment has removed all her present glory and all but a few survivors. It is the renewed community that is in mind at this point; later, it will emerge that One Man will be this new growth.”Ibid., p. 594.

We acknowledge that many commentators follow this line, thus editing out of the sacred Old Testament another plain reference to the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is what is wrong with the viewpoint: (1) We do not allow that Kidner, or any other scholar, has the right to belittle the words of the sacred prophets as “misleading.” It is the inaccurate opinion of alleged scholars that is misleading. (2) The Branch is here represented as springing up out of the ground, whereas, Isaiah noted this Branch was to be a “Branch of Jehovah,” not a branch of the roots in the Old Israel, nor a branch out of the ground, but a “Branch of Jehovah!” Furthermore, in all the history of the human family, who else? pray tell, was ever a legitimate “Branch of Jehovah” except the Lord Jesus Christ? (3) Also, note the ridiculous postulation here that “Israel is to be reborn from her roots!” Contrast that impossible proposition with the statement of Jesus Christ that men must be born “from above” (John 3:3 ASV).

We are delighted that Gleason L. Archer has properly discerned the true meaning of the word “Branch” in Isaiah 4:2

“`The Branch of Jehovah’ (American Standard Version) refers to Christ himself, as the descendant of the promised line of David. The same word, literally sprout is used with reference to Messiah in Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; and Zechariah 6:12...Note that the ultimate prosperity is promised only to the escaped of Israel, although the nation as a whole must be rejected for disobedience. Only those who have been sanctified by the new birth, and inwardly transformed to mirror forth Christ’s holiness will be enrolled as citizens in the spiritual Jerusalem.”Gleason L. Archer, Wycliffe Old Testament Commentary, p. 615.

That this is indeed the true meaning of the passage is indicated in what immediately follows in Isaiah 5, where it is revealed that the Old Israel, the vineyard of the Lord, is no true vine at all, but a corrupt or degenerate vine, carrying the simple meaning that no “sprout” from that evil vine could be the Branch spoken of here. All of this becomes crystal clear in the light of Jesus’ teaching in John 15:1 ff. Jesus alone is the “true vine,” the new sprout, not off the old vine, but from God Himself as given to men in the person of God’s Son, Jesus Christ.

There is also a contrast in this short chapter (Isaiah 4) between the “filth of the daughters of Zion” and the glorious beauty that shall pertain to the glorified remnant of Israel in the new kingdom of Messiah.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

The branch of the Lord - צמח יהוה y^ehovâh tsemach. “The sprout” of Yahweh. This expression, and this verse, have had a great variety of interpretations. The Septuagint reads it, ‘In that day God shall shine in counsel with glory upon the earth, to exalt, and to glorify the remnant of Israel.’ The Chaldee renders it, ‘In that day, the Messiah of the Lord shall be for joy and glory, and the doers of the law for praise and honor to those of Israel who are delivered.’ It is clear that the passage is designed to denote some signal blessing that was to succeed the calamity predicted in the previous verses. The only question is, to what has the prophet reference? The word ‘branch’ (צמח tsemach) is derived from the verb (צמח tsâmach) signifying “to sprout, to spring up,” spoken of plants. Hence, the word “branch” means properly that which “shoots up,” or “sprouts” from the root of a tree, or from a decayed tree; compare Job 14:7-9.

The Messiah is thus said to be ‘a root of Jesse,’ Romans 11:12; compare Isaiah 11:1, note; Isaiah 11:10, note; and ‘the root and offspring of David,’ Revelation 22:16, as being a “descendant” of Jesse; that is, as if Jesse should fall like an aged tree, yet the “root” would sprout up and live. The word ‘branch’ occurs several times in the Old Testament, and in most, if not all, with express reference to the Messiah; Jeremiah 23:5 : ‘Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a king shall reign;’ Jeremiah 33:15 : ‘In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David;’ Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12. In all these places, there can be no doubt that there is reference to him who was “to spring up” from David, as a sprout does from a decayed and fallen tree, and who is, therefore, called a “root,” a “branch” of the royal stock. There is, besides, a special beauty in the figure.

The family of David, when the Messiah was to come, would be fallen into decay and almost extinct. Joseph, the husband of Mary, though of the royal family of David Matthew 1:20; Luke 2:4, was poor, and the family had lost all claims to the throne. In this state, as from the decayed root of a fallen tree, a “sprout” or “branch” was to come forth with more than the magnificence of David, and succeed him on the throne. The name ‘branch,’ therefore, came to be significant of the Messiah, and to be synonymous with ‘the son of David.’ It is so used, doubtless, in this place, as denoting that the coming of the Messiah would be a joy and honor in the days of calamity to the Jews. Interpreters have not been agreed, however, in the meaning of this passage. Grotius supposed that it referred to Ezra or Nehemiah, but ‘mystically to Christ and Christians.’ Vogellius understood it of the “remnant” that should return from the Babylonian captivity. Michaelis supposed that it refers to the Jews, who should be a “reformed” people after their captivity, and who should spring up with a new spirit. Others have regarded it as a poetic description of the extraordinary fertility of the earth in future times. The reasons for referring it to the Messiah are plain:

(1) The word has this reference in other places, and the representation of the Messiah under the image of a branch or shoot, is, as we have seen, common in the Scriptures. Thus, also, in Isaiah 53:2, he is called also שׁרשׁ shoresh, root, and יונק yônēq, a tender plant, a sucker, sprout, shoot, as of a decayed tree; compare Job 8:16; Job 14:7; Job 15:30; Ezekiel 17:22. And in reference to the same idea, perhaps, it is said, Isaiah 53:8, that he was נגזר nı̂g^ezar, “cut off,” as a branch, sucker, or shoot is cut off by the vine-dresser or farmer from the root of a decayed tree. And thus, in Revelation 5:5, he is called ῥίζα Δαβὶδ riza Dabid - the root of David.

(2) This interpretation accords best with the “magnificence” of the description, Isaiah 4:5-6; and,

(3) It was so understood by the Chaldee interpreter, and, doubtless, by the ancient Jews.

Shall be beautiful and glorious - Hebrew, ‘Shall be beauty and glory;’ that is, shall be the chief ornament or honor of the land; shall be that which gives to the nation its chief distinction and glory. In such times of calamity, his coming shal be an object of desire, and his approach shall shed a rich splendor on that period of the world.

And the fruit of the earth - הארץ פרי p^erı̂y hâ'ârets correctly rendered “fruit of the earth, or of the land.” The word ‘earth’ is often in the Scriptures used to denote the land of Judea, and perhaps the article here is intended to denote that that land is particularly intended. This is the parallel expression to the former part of the verse, in accordance with the laws of Hebrew poetry, by which one member of a sentence expresses substantially the same meaning as the former; see the Introduction, Section 8. If the former expression referred to the “Messiah,” this does also. The ‘fruit of the earth’ is that which the earth produces, and is here not different in signification from the “branch” which springs out of the ground. Vitringa supposes that by this phrase the Messiah, according to his human nature, is meant. So Hengstenberg (“Christology, in loc.”) understands it; and supposes that as the phrase “branch of Yahweh” refers to his divine origin, as proceeding from Yahweh; so this refers to his human origin, as proceeding from the earth. But the objections to this are obvious:

(1) The second phrase, according to the laws of Hebrew parallelism, is most naturally an echo or repetition of the sentiment in the first member, and means substantially the same thing.

(2) The phrase ‘branch of Yahweh’ does not refer of necessity to his divine nature. The idea is that of a decayed tree that has fallen down, and has left a living root which sends up a shoot, or sucker; and can be applied with great elegance to the decayed family of David. But how, or in what sense, can this be applied to Yahweh? Is Yahweh thus fallen and decayed? The idea properly is, that this shoot of a decayed family should be nurtured up by Yahweh; should be appointed by him, and should thus be “his” branch. The parallel member denotes substantially the same thing; ‘the fruit of the earth’ - the shoot which the earth produces - or which springs up from a decayed family, as the sprout does from a fallen tree.

(3) It is as true that his human nature proceeded from God as his divine. It was produced by the Holy Spirit, and can no more be regarded as ‘the fruit of the earth’ than his divine nature; Luke 1:35; Hebrews 10:5.

(4) This mode of interpretation is suited to bring the whole subject into contempt. There are plain and positive passages enough to prove that the Messiah had a divine nature, and there are enough also to prove that he was a man; but nothing is more adapted to produce disgust in relation to the whole subject, in the minds of skeptical or of thinking men, than a resort to arguments such as this in defense of a great and glorious doctrine of revelation.

Shall be excellent - Shall be “for exaltation,” or “honor.”

Comely - Hebrew, ‘For an ornament;’ meaning that “he” would be an honor to those times.

For them that are escaped of Israel - Margin, ‘The escaping of Israel.’ For the remnant, the small number that shall escape the calamities - a description of the pious portion of Israel which now escaped from all calamities - would rejoice in the anticipated blessings of the Messiah’s reign, or would participate in the blessings of that reign. The idea is not, however, that the number who would be saved would be “small,” but that they would be characterized as those who had “escaped,” or who had been rescued.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

2.In that day shall the branch of the Lord be for beauty and glory. ⁽⁷¹⁾ This consolation is seasonably added; for the announcement of a dreadful calamity might have alarmed the godly, and led them to doubt as to the stability of God’s covenant being maintained amidst the destruction of the people. For there is a wide difference between the two statements, that the people will be like the sand of the sea, (Genesis 22:17; Isaiah 10:22,) and yet that they would be cut down by such a frightful massacre, that in the remnant there would be found no dignity, no magnificence, and hardly any name. Isaiah, therefore, according to the custom generally followed by himself and by the prophets, provides against this alarm, and, by adding a consolation, assuages their excessive terror, that believers may still rest assured that the Church will be safe, and may strengthen their hearts by good hope. As he spoke of the restoration of the Church in the second chapter, so he now promises that a new Church will arise, as a bud or shoot springs up in a field which was formerly uncultivated.

This passage is usually expounded as referring to Christ; and the opinion, plausible in itself, derives additional probability from the words of the prophet Zechariah:

Behold the man whose name shall be The Branch.
(Zechariah 6:12.)

It is still further strengthened by the consideration, that the Prophet does not barely name this Branch, but mentions it with a title expressive of respect, as if he had intended to honor the Divinity of Christ. When he afterwards adds the fruits of the earth, they consider this as referring to his human nature. But after a careful examination of the whole, I do not hesitate to regard the Branch of God and the fruit of the earth as denoting an unusual and abundant supply of grace, which will relieve the hungry; for he speaks as if the earth, barren and exhausted after the desolation, would hold out no promise of future produce, in order that the sudden fertility might render the kindness of God the more desirable; as if the parched and barren fields would yield unexpected herbage.

This metaphor is frequently employed in Scripture, that the gifts of God spring up in the world.

Truth shall spring out of the earth, and
righteousness shall look down from heaven. (Psalms 85:11.)

In like manner the Prophet afterwards says:

Let the earth open and bring forth salvation. (Isaiah 45:8.)

These words unquestionably denote a rich supply both of spiritual and of earthly blessings. That such is the meaning of the passage now under consideration is evident from the context; for Isaiah immediately afterwards adds, that it will be for honor and lustre to the delivered of Israel, ⁽⁷²⁾ that is, to the number left, whom the Lord will rescue from destruction.

The word פליטת (pheletath) is commonly translated escape, but here, as in many other passages, it is a collective noun, denoting those who have escaped. He declares that the elect will enjoy that happy fertility which he had promised, and therefore (verse 3) that those who shall be left will be holy. The meaning of the Prophet is, that the glory of God will be illustriously displayed when a new Church shall arise; as if he would create a people for himself out of nothing, and to enrich it with every kind of blessings.

They who limit it to the person of Christ expose themselves to the ridicule of the Jews, as if it were in consequence of scarcity that they tortured passages of Scripture for their own convenience. But there are other passages of Scripture from which it may be more clearly proved that Christ is true God and true man, so that there is no need of ingenious glosses. Yet I acknowledge that the Prophet speaks here about the kingdom of Christ, on which the restoration of the Church is founded. But it ought to be observed, that the consolation is not addressed indiscriminately to all, but only to the remnant, which has been marvellously rescued from the jaws of death.

Besides, as it might be deemed a cold consolation if he had only said that a small number would be saved, he discourses about the magnificent glory and dazzling brightness, to lead believers to hope that this diminution will do no harm; because the excellence of the Church does not consist in multitude but in purity when God bestows splendid and glorious communications of the Spirit of God on his elect. Hence we ought to draw a very useful doctrine, that though believers be exceedingly few, when they are like brands plucked out of the fire, (Zechariah 3:2,) yet that God will glorify himself amongst them, and will display in the midst of them a proof of his unspeakable greatness not less illustrious than amidst a large number.

(71) In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious. — Eng. Ver. The marginal reading is, beauty and glory. — Ed.

(72) Excellent and comely [Heb.beauty and glory ] for them that are escaped of Israel, [Heb.for the escaping of Israel. ] — Eng. Ver.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 4

Now Isaiah looks on through the Lord to the future.

And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and we will wear our own clothes; only let us be called by your name, to take away our reproach ( Isaiah 4:1 ).

It was a reproach to a woman in those days, of course, not to bear a child. But there will be a shortage of men, so seven women will take hold of one man and say, "Hey, we'll take care of ourselves. We'll provide our own food and everything else, but we want you to take away our reproach and give your name really to our child."

But in that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful ( Isaiah 4:2 )

The branch of the Lord, of course, is one of the terms by which Christ is described, the branch of Jehovah. He is called, actually, the branch of David, and Jehovah's servant, the Branch, in Zechariah and the term branch is used many times in reference to Jesus Christ.

In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel. And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem: When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning. And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defense. And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from the storm and from the rain ( Isaiah 4:2-6 ).

So going ahead again from the darkness of the impending judgment and the long period of time in which the Gentiles shall rule to the day of the Lord when He shall once again rule, and Israel and Jerusalem shall be blessed in the center of God's righteous reign upon the earth. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

"In that day" connects this section of the oracle with its earlier parts and shows that all of it deals with a future time (cf. Isaiah 2:12; Isaiah 2:17; Isaiah 2:20; Isaiah 3:8; Isaiah 3:18; Isaiah 4:1). However, here we learn that "that day" will be a day of glory and vindication for Israel, as well as retribution and judgment.

In a general sense "The Branch of the Lord" refers to Israel, but this is also a messianic title here as elsewhere (cf. Isaiah 11:1; Isaiah 53:2; Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12). It was regarded as a messianic reference here as early as the Targums, the Aramaic interpretive translation of the Old Testament that dates after the Babylonian exile or possible during it. [Note: See Joyce G. Baldwin, "Semah as a Technical Term in the Prophets," Vetus Testamentum 14 (1964):93-97.]

"[The branch is] a name of Christ, used in a fourfold way: (1) ’the branch of the LORD’ (Isaiah 4:2), i.e. the Immanuel character of Christ (Isaiah 7:14) to be fully manifested to restored and converted Israel after His return in divine glory (Matthew 25:31); (2) ’the Branch’ of David (Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15), i.e. the Messiah, ’of the seed of David according to the flesh’ (Romans 1:3), revealed in His earthly glory as King of kings, and Lord of lords; (3) the LORD’s ’servant, the Branch’ (Zechariah 3:8), Messiah’s humiliation and obedience unto death according to Isaiah 52:13-15; Isaiah 53:1-12; Philippians 2:5-8; and (4) the ’man whose name is THE BRANCH’ (Zechariah 6:12), that is, His character as Son of man, the ’last Adam,’ the ’second man’ (1 Corinthians 15:45-47), reigning as Priest-King over the earth in the dominion given to and lost by the first Adam. Matthew is the Gospel of the Branch of David; Mark, of the LORD’s Servant, the Branch; Luke, of the Man whose name is the Branch; and John, of the Branch of the LORD." [Note: The New Scofield . . ., p. 716.]

God would provide a source of fruitfulness and blessing, which a tree branch (stemming from David and ultimately from the Lord) is, to Israel (cf. 2 Samuel 23:5). The nation would not produce this on her own by trusting in people, but God Himself would provide it. "The fruit of the earth" probably refers to the fruitfulness of the earth that God would provide through Israel and, specifically, the Messiah. God promised earlier to judge Israel with lack of fruitfulness because of her sin (Isaiah 4:1).

Many conservative interpreters have understood "the fruit of the earth" to be a second messianic title, which is possible. Some of them felt that the first title referred to Messiah’s divine nature, and the second to His human nature. [Note: E.g., Delitzsch, 1:152-53. ] Others favored taking "the fruit of the earth" simply as a reference to the future agricultural abundance of the land. [Note: E.g., Chisholm, "A Theology . . .," p. 317.]

"The survivors of Israel" refers to those who would live through the judgments mentioned earlier in this passage. Since the time of these judgments includes the Exile and the Tribulation, and since the reference to the Branch points to messianic times, these survivors will probably be Jews who will still be alive at the end of the Tribulation (cf. Zechariah 13:8). The daughters of Jerusalem previously sought to beautify themselves (Isaiah 3:16; Isaiah 3:18; Isaiah 4:1), but now the Lord would adorn them with fruitfulness.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

3. God’s determination for Israel 4:2-6

Having begun this oracle by clarifying God’s desire for Israel (Isaiah 2:1-4), the prophet proceeded to contrast her present condition. She depended on people rather than Himself, a condition that would result in divine discipline (Isaiah 2:5 to Isaiah 4:1). Next, and in conclusion, he revealed that God would indeed bring what He determined for His chosen people to completion in the future (Isaiah 4:2-6). Israel’s destiny would be glorious-in spite of intervening judgment.

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious,.... When the beauty of the Jewish women shall be taken away, and their men shall he slain; by whom is meant, not the righteous and wise men left among the Jews, as Jarchi and Aben Ezra; nor Hezekiah; which is the sense of some, as the latter observes: but the Messiah, as Kimchi, and so the Targum, which paraphrases the words thus,

"at that time shall the Messiah of the Lord be for joy and glory;''

and the Septuagint understand it of a divine Person appearing on earth, rendering the words, "for in that day God shall shine in counsel with glory upon the earth"; and so the Arabic version. Christ is called "the branch", not as God, but as man, not as a son, but as a servant, as Mediator; and it chiefly regards his descent from David, and when his family was very mean and low; and a branch being but a tender thing, it denotes Christ's state of humiliation on earth, when he grew up as a tender plant before the Lord, and was contemptible in the eyes of men: and he is called the branch "of the Lord", because of his raising up, and bringing forth; see Zechariah 3:8 and yet this branch became "beautiful", being laden with the fruits of divine grace, such as righteousness, reconciliation, peace, pardon, adoption, sanctification, and eternal life; as well as having all his people as branches growing on him, and receiving their life and fruitfulness from him: and "glorious", being the branch made strong to do the work of the Lord, by his obedience and death; and especially he became glorious when raised from the dead, when he ascended up to heaven, and was exalted there at the right hand of God; and when his Gospel was spread and his kingdom increased in the Gentile world, as it did, both before and after the destruction of Jerusalem, the time here referred to; and which will he in a more glorious condition in the last days; and now he is glorious in the eyes of all that believe in him, and is glorified by them; and when he comes a second time, he will appear in his own and his father's glory, and in the glory of the holy angels.

And the fruit of the earth [shall] be excellent and comely; not the children of the righteous, as Jarchi; nor אוריתא עבדי, "the doers of the law", as the Targum; see Romans 2:13 but the Messiah, as before, as Kimchi well observes; called "the fruit of the earth", to show that he is not a dry and withered, but a fruitful branch, and which should fill the earth with fruit; and because he sprung from the earth as man, and was the fruit of a woman, that was of the earth, earthly; and so this, as the former, denotes the meanness of Christ in human nature, while here on earth; and yet he became, as these words foretold be should, "excellent": he appeared to be excellent in his person as the Son of God, and to have a more excellent name and nature than the angels, and fairer than the sons of men; to be excellent as the cedars, and more excellent than the mountains of prey; to have obtained a more excellent ministry than Aaron and his sons; to be excellent in all his offices of Prophet, Priest, and King; and particularly in the fruits and blessings of grace, which grew upon him, and came from him; see Deuteronomy 33:13 "and comely", in his person, as God and man, in the perfections of his divine nature, and in the fulness of his grace; and so are his people, as considered in him, who are made perfectly comely, through the comeliness he puts upon them: and so he is

for them that are escaped of Israel; not beautiful and glorious; excellent and comely, in the view of all men, only them that believe, who have seen his glory, and have tasted that he is gracious; these are the remnant according to the election of grace, the preserved of Israel, the chosen of God, and precious, who were saved from that untoward generation, the Jews, and escaped the destruction of Jerusalem, and were saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      2 In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.   3 And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:   4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.   5 And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.   6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.

      By the foregoing threatenings Jerusalem is brought into a very deplorable condition: every thing looks melancholy. But here the sun breaks out from behind the cloud. Many exceedingly great and precious promises we have in these verses, giving assurance of comfort which may be discerned through the troubles, and of happy days which shall come after them, and these certainly point at the kingdom of the Messiah, and the great redemption to be wrought out by him, under the figure and type of the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem by the reforming reign of Hezekiah after Ahaz and the return out of their captivity in Babylon; to both these events the passage may have some reference, but chiefly to Christ. It is here promised, as the issue of all these troubles,

      I. That God will raise up a righteous branch, which shall produce fruits of righteousness (Isaiah 4:2; Isaiah 4:2): In that day, that same day, at that very time, when Jerusalem shall be destroyed and the Jewish nation extirpated and dispersed, the kingdom of the Messiah shall be set up; and then shall be the reviving of the church, when every one shall fear the utter ruin of it.

      1. Christ himself shall be exalted. He is the branch of the Lord, the man the branch; it is one of prophetical names, my servant the branch (Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12), the branch of righteousness (Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15), a rod out of the stem of Jesse and a branch out of his roots (Isaiah 11:1; Isaiah 11:1), and this, as some think, is alluded to when he is called a Nazarene,Matthew 2:23. Here he is called the branch of the Lord, because planted by his power and flourishing to his praise. The ancient Chaldee paraphrase here reads it, The Christ, or Messiah, of the Lord. He shall be the beauty, and glory, and joy. (1.) He shall himself be advanced to the joy set before him and the glory which he had with the Father before the world was. He that was a reproach of men, whose visage was marred more than any man's, is now, in the upper world, beautiful and glorious, as the sun in his strength, admired and adored by angels. (2.) He shall be beautiful and glorious in the esteem of all believers, shall gain an interest in the world, and a name among men above every name. To those that believe he is precious, he is an honour (1 Peter 2:7), the fairest of ten thousand (Song of Solomon 5:10), and altogether glorious. Let us rejoice that he is so, and let him be so to us.

      2. His gospel shall be embraced. The success of the gospel is the fruit of the branch of the Lord; all the graces and comforts of the gospel spring from Christ. But it is called the fruit of the earth because it sprang up in this world and was calculated for the present state. And Christ compares himself to a grain of wheat, that falls into the ground and dies, and so brings forth much fruit,John 12:24. The success of the gospel is represented by the earth's yielding her increase (Psalms 67:6), and the planting of the Christian church is God's sowing it to himself in the earth,Hosea 2:23. We may understand it of both the persons and the things that are the products of the gospel: they shall be excellent and comely, shall appear very agreeable and be very acceptable to those that have escaped of Israel, to that remnant of the Jews which was saved from perishing with the rest in unbelief, Romans 11:5. Note, If Christ be precious to us, his gospel will be so and all its truths and promises--his church will be so, and all that belong to it. These are the good fruit of the earth, in comparison with which all other things are but weeds. It will be a good evidence to us that we are of the chosen remnant, distinguished from the rest that are called Israel, and marked for salvation, if we are brought to see a transcendent beauty in Christ, and in holiness, and in the saints, the excellent ones of the earth. As a type of this blessed day, Jerusalem, after Sennacherib's invasion and after the captivity in Babylon, should again flourish as a branch, and be blessed with the fruits of the earth. Compare Isaiah 37:31; Isaiah 37:32. The remnant shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward. And if by the fruit of the earth here we understand the good things of this life, we may observe that these have peculiar sweetness in them to the chosen remnant, who, having a covenant--right to them, have the most comfortable use of them. If the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious in our eyes, even the fruit of the earth also will be excellent and comely, because then we may take it as the fruit of the promise, Psalms 37:16; 1 Timothy 4:8.

      II. That God will reserve to himself a holy seed, Isaiah 4:3; Isaiah 4:3. When the generality of those that have a place and a name in Zion and in Jerusalem shall be cut off as withered branches, by their own unbelief, yet some shall be left. Some shall remain, some shall still cleave to the church, when its property is altered and it has become Christian; for God will not quite cast off his people,Romans 11:1. There is here and there one that is left. Now, 1. This is a remnant according to the election of grace (as the apostle speaks, Romans 11:5), such as are written among the living, marked in the counsel and fore-knowledge of God for life and salvation, written to life (so the word is), designed and determined for it unalterably; for "what I have written I have written." Those that are kept alive in killing dying times were written for life in the book of divine Providence; and shall we not suppose those who are rescued from a greater death to be such as were written in the Lamb's book of life?Revelation 13:8. As many as were ordained unto eternal life believed to the salvation of the soul,Acts 13:48. Note, All that were written among the living shall be found among the living, every one; for of all that were given to Christ he will lose none. 2. It is a remnant under the dominion of grace; for every one that is written among the living, and is accordingly left, shall be called holy, shall be holy, and shall be accepted of God accordingly. Those only that are holy shall be left when the Son of man shall gather out of his kingdom every thing that offends; and all that are chosen to salvation are chosen to sanctification. See 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Ephesians 1:4.

      III. That God will reform his church and will rectify and amend whatever is amiss in it, Isaiah 4:4; Isaiah 4:4. Then the remnant shall be called holy, when the Lord shall have washed away their filth, washed it from among them by cutting off the wicked persons, washed it from within them by purging out the wicked thing. They shall not be called so till they are in some measure made so. Gospel times are times of reformation (Hebrews 9:10), typified by the reformation in the days of Hezekiah and that after captivity, to which this promise refers. Observe, 1. The places and persons to be reformed. Jerusalem, though the holy city, needed reformation; and, being the holy city, the reformation of that would have a good influence upon the whole kingdom. The daughters of Zion also must be reformed, the women in a particular manner, whom he had reproved, Isaiah 3:16; Isaiah 3:16. When they were decked in their ornaments they thought themselves wondrously clean; but, being proud of them, the prophet call them their filth, for no sin is more abominable to God than pride. Or by the daughters of Zion may be meant the country towns and villages, which were related to Jerusalem as the mother-city, and which needed reformation. 2. The reformation itself. The filth shall be washed away; for wickedness is filthiness, particularly blood-shed, for which Jerusalem was infamous (2 Kings 21:16), and which defiles the land more than any other sin. Note, The reforming of a city is the cleansing of it. When vicious customs and fashions are suppressed, and the open practice of wickedness is restrained, the place is made clean and sweet which before was a dunghill; and this is not only for its credit and reputation among strangers, but for the comfort and health of the inhabitants themselves. 3. The author of the reformation: The Lord shall do it. Reformation-work is God's work; if any thing be done to purpose in it, it is his doing. But how? By the judgment of his providence the sinners were destroyed and consumed; but it is by the Spirit of his grace that they are reformed and converted. This is the work that is done, not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of hosts (Zechariah 4:6), working both upon the sinners themselves that are to be reformed and upon magistrates, ministers, and others that are to be employed as instruments of reformation. The Spirit herein acts, (1.) As a spirit of judgment, enlightening the mind, convincing the conscience,--as a spirit of wisdom, guiding us to deal prudently, (Isaiah 52:13),-- as a discerning, distinguishing, Spirit, separating between the precious and the vile. (2.) As a Spirit of burning, quickening and invigorating the afflictions, and making men zealously affected in a good work. The Spirit works as fire, Matthew 3:11. An ardent love to Christ and souls, and a flaming zeal against sin, will carry men on with resolution in their endeavours to turn away ungodliness from Jacob. See Isaiah 32:15; Isaiah 32:16.

      IV. That God will protect his church, and all that belong to it (Isaiah 4:5; Isaiah 4:6); when they are purified and reformed they shall no longer lie exposed, but God will take a particular care of them. Those that are sanctified are well fortified; for God will be to them a guide and a guard.

      1. Their tabernacles shall be defended, Isaiah 4:5; Isaiah 4:5.

      (1.) This writ of protection refers to, [1.] Their dwelling places, the tabernacles of their rest, their own houses, where they worship God alone, and with their families. That blessing which is upon the habitation of the just shall be a protection to it, Proverbs 3:33. In the tabernacles of the righteous shall the voice of rejoicing and salvation be,Psalms 118:15. Note, God takes particular cognizance and care of the dwelling-places of his people, of every one of them, the poorest cottage as well as the statliest palace. When iniquity is put far from the tabernacle the Almighty shall be its defence, Job 23:23; Job 23:26. [2.] Their assemblies or tabernacles of meeting for religious worship. No mention is made of the temple, for the promise points at a time when not one stone of that shall be left upon another; but all the congregations of Christians, though but two or three met together in Christ's name, shall be taken under the special protection of heaven; they shall be no more scattered, no more disturbed, nor shall any weapon formed against them prosper. Note, we ought to reckon it a great mercy if we have liberty to worship God in public, free from the alarms of the sword of war or persecution.

      (2.) This writ of protection is drawn up, [1.] In a similitude taken from the safety of the camp of Israel when they marched through the wilderness. God will give to the Christian church as real proofs, though not so sensible, of his care of them, as he then gave to Israel. The Lord will again create a cloud and smoke by day, to screen them from the scorching heat of the sun, and the shining of a flaming fire by night, to enlighten and warm the air, which in the night is cold and dark. See Exodus 13:21; Nehemiah 9:19. This pillar of cloud and fire interposed between the Israelites and the Egyptians, Exodus 14:20. Note, Though miracles have ceased, yet God is the same to the New-Testament church that he was to Israel of old; the very same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. [2.] In a similitude taken from the outside cover of rams' skins and badgers' skins that was upon the curtains of the tabernacle, as if every dwelling place of Mount Zion and every assembly were as dear to God as that tabernacle was: Upon all the glory shall be a defense, to save it from wind and weather. Note, The church on earth has its glory. Gospel truths and ordinances, the scriptures and the ministry, are the church's glory; and upon all this glory there is a defence, and ever shall be, for the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church. If God himself be the glory in the midst of it, he will himself be a wall of fire around about it, impenetrable and impregnable. Grace in the soul is the glory of it, and those that have it are kept by the power of God as in a strong-hold, 1 Peter 1:5.

      2. Their tabernacle shall be a defence to them, Isaiah 4:6; Isaiah 4:6. God's tabernacle was a pavilion to the saints (Psalms 27:5); but, when that is taken down, they shall not want a covert: the divine power and goodness shall be a tabernacle to all the saints. God himself will be their hiding-place (Psalms 32:7); they shall be at home in him, Psalms 91:9. He will himself be to them as the shadow of a great rock (Isaiah 32:2; Isaiah 32:2) and his name a strong tower,Proverbs 18:10. He will be not only a shadow from the heat in the daytime, but a covert from storm and rain. Note, In this world we must expect change of weather and all the inconveniences that attend it; we shall meet with storm and rain in this lower region, and at other times the heat of the day no less burdensome; but God is a refuge to his people in all weathers.