Way of the Lord in the Book of Isaiah

LIBRARY OF HEBREW BIBLE/ OLD TESTAMENT STUDIES

522 Formerly Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series

Editors Claudia V. Camp, Texas Christian University Andrew Mein, Westcott House, Cambridge

Founding Editors David J. A. Clines, Philip R. Davies and David M. Gunn

Editorial Board Richard J. Coggins, Alan Cooper, John Goldingay, Robert P. Gordon, Norman K. Gottwald, Gina Hens-Piazza, John Jarick, Andrew D. H. Mayes, Carol Meyers, Patrick D. Miller, Yvonne Sherwood

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THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN THE BOOK OF ISAIAH

Bo H. Lim

Copyright © 2010 by Bo H. Lim

Published by T & T Clark International A Continuum imprint 80 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038 The Tower Building, 11 York Road, London SE1 7NX www.continuumbooks.com Visit the T & T Clark blog at www.tandtclarkblog.com All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher, T & T Clark International.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

ISBN: 978-0-567-02763-4 (hardback) Typeset and copy-edited by Forthcoming Publications Ltd. (www.forthpub.com) Printed in the United States of America

CONTENTS Acknowledgments Abbreviations

vii ix

Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION The Enduring Inuence of Isaiah’s “Way of the LORD” Different Authors, Different Ways One Author, One Way Composite Book, One Message Conclusion

1 1 3 7 10 15

Chapter 2 METHODOLOGY Isaiah as a Prophetic Book The Composition of Isaiah 40–66 Innerbiblical Interpretation Israelite Religion Literalism, Metaphor, and Typology Imagination, Myth, and Eschatology

18 19 25 34 35 37 40

Chapter 3 THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN ISAIAH 40:1–52:12 Denitions of “Way” The Genre of Second Isaiah A New Exodus in Second Isaiah? The Divine Council in Isaiah 40:1–11 The Way as the Reversal of Judgment The Way as Transformation of the Wilderness The Way as Eschatological and Ethical The Way of Cyrus The Way of the Servant Summary and Conclusion

43 43 46 47 49 52 53 61 68 85 93

Chapter 4 THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN ISAIAH 52:13–66:24 The Death of the Servant as the Beginning of Third Isaiah Isaiah 55 as Conclusion and Continuation of the New Exodus

95 95 96

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah Is Isaiah 56–66 the Result of Failed Prophecy? Did Cyrus Lead a New Exodus? Exegesis of Isaiah 57:14–21 Exegesis of Isaiah 62:10–12

102 106 114 123

Chapter 5 THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN ISAIAH 34–35 Chapters 34–35 as a Diptych Chapters 34–35 as a Conclusion to Isaiah 1–33 The “Way of the LORD” in Chapter 34 The “Way of the LORD” in Chapter 35 Summary and Conclusion

131 131 134 149 151 156

Chapter 6 THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Shorter Treatments of the “Way of the LORD” and the Isaianic New Exodus Programmatic Treatments of the “Way of the LORD” and the Isaianic New Exodus Evaluation and Critique Bibliography Index of References Index of Authors

158 159 162 172

175 188 199

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This study is a revision of my Ph.D. dissertation, which was submitted to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in 2006. I am grateful for to Dr. Willem VanGemeren and Dr. Richard Averbeck for supervising and examining my work. Though Dr. VanGemeren does not share my views on the composition of Isaiah, he has played a vital role in nurturing my intellect and my soul, and for this I am tremendously thankful. I am indebted to the other members of the TEDS faculty who, thanks to the interdisciplinary Ph.D. program, played a signicant role in broadening my theological education. It has taken a village worth of people to complete my education and this book. At the heart of this village are my wife Sarah, and our three children: Micah, Hannah, and Aaron. Little did we know how long and taxing my academic work would be when Sarah married me and when I began doctoral work. Nevertheless, Sarah has weathered every challenge and has supported me every step of the way. I dedicate this work to her, acknowledging that in so many ways it is already hers. My parents, Dong Ha and Kyong Ae, have sacriced for me in ways too numerous to mention. Much of this study was written in an unused bedroom in their house while they cared for my daughter, so that I could dedicate myself to this book. Most of important of all, they have continued to be models of faithful obedience to Christ for me, as they have done ever since I was a child. Numerous other individuals and ecclesial communities have supported me and my family. Know that even though your names are not mentioned here, you are in my thoughts. It is a great privilege for me to teach in the School of Theology at Seattle Pacic University. My colleagues embraced me as one of their own from the outset, and for this I am most grateful. Certainly their inuence will be found in this book, given that we never lack in stimulating and enriching conversations. In particular, I wish to thank Dr. Rob Wall and Dr. Doug Strong for their advice and encouragement to see this work published. Dr. Sara Koenig read an earlier version of this work and offered many helpful comments. My thanks are also due to Steve Perisho, librarian of the School of Theology, for his valuable assistance. 1

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Unless otherwise noted, all English Bible quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version. Biblical references correspond to the English Bible, followed by Hebrew Bible versication in brackets when the numbering differs. All German translations are my own unless otherwise noted. Unfortunately, I did not receive Østein Lund’s Way Metaphors and Way Topics in Isaiah 40–55 (Forschungen zum Alten Testament 2/28; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2007) in time to include its contribution in this study. I wish to thank the editors of the LHBOTS series for accepting my work into this series. While writing my dissertation, I observed that many of my sources came from this series (or its predecessor, the JSOT Supplement Series), so it is an honor for my work to be included in such an important series. My hope is that my work will stimulate others, biblical scholars and theologians alike, to further reect on the richness of Isaiah’s vision.

1

ABBREVIATIONS ABD BDB BHRG BHS GKC HALOT

IBHS LXX MT

NIB NIV NJPS NRSV RSV

TDOT

Anchor Bible Dictionary. Edited by D. N. Freedman. 6 vols. New York, 1992 Brown, F., S. R. Driver, and C. A. Briggs. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford, 1907 Van der Merwe, Christo H. J. A Biblical Hebrew Reference Grammar. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1999 Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Edited by K. Elliger and W. Rudolph. Stuttgart, 1983 Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar. Edited by E. Kautzsch. Translated by A. E. Cowley. 2d. ed. Oxford, 1910 Koehler, L., W. Baumgartner, and J. J. Stamm, The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Translated and edited under the supervision of M. E. J. Richardson. 4 vols. Leiden, 1994–99 An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. B. K. Waltke and M. O’Connor. Winona Lake, Indiana, 1990 Septuagint Masoretic text The New Interpreter’s Bible New International Version Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures: The New JPS Translation according to the Traditional Hebrew Text New Revised Standard Version Revised Standard Version Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Edited by G. J. Botterweck and H. Ringgren. Translated by J. T. Willis, G. W. Bromiley, and D. E. Green. 8 vols. Grand Rapids, 1974–

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Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

The Enduring Inuence of Isaiah’s “Way of the LORD” Standing before the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered what has now become arguably the most famous speech in American history. After declaring his dream that one day little black boys and girls would be able to join with little white boys and girls in Alabama, he proclaimed, “I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places shall be made plain, and the crooked places shall be made straight and the glory of the Lord will be revealed and all esh shall see it together.”1 For King, Isa 40:4–5 provides inspiration for the Civil Rights Movement, with its vision for equity. The hills and mountains are symbols of oppressive forces that need to be humbled and the crooked places are injustices that need to be rectied. Conversely, the lowly and oppressed of the earth will one day be exalted. Although he refers to this text as his hope, King here is not merely dreaming of the afterlife. Implied in this citation is the imperative to make this dream a present reality. The “way” is then a metaphor for the conduct of a nation and the glory of the Lord will only be revealed once the people have prepared a “way” by living according to justice and equity. Isaiah 40:4–5, then, provides for King not only an eschatology, but also an ethic. Certainly King is not the rst to make use of Isaiah’s proclamation of a way of the LORD. The Qumran community referred to their own movement as “the Way” and on two occasions in the Community Rule Isa 40:3 is quoted (1QS VIII 14; IX 19–20). The language and literature of Isaiah possessed such a formative role that Isa 40:3 functioned as a manifesto for this community.2 Early Christians similarly referred to 1. Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have a Dream: Writing and Speeches that Changed the World (New York: HarperCollins, 1992), 105. 2. S. Vernon McCasland, “The Way,” JBL 78 (1958): 222–30; George J. Brooke, “Isaiah 40:3 and the Wilderness Community,” in New Qumran Texts and Studies: 1

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themselves as followers of “the Way” (Acts 9:2; 18:25, 26; 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22) and all four Gospel writers quote Isa 40:3 (Matt 3:3; Mark 1:2–3; Luke 3:4; John 1:23) in reference to John the Baptizer. Several New Testament scholars have argued that the Way of the LORD (WOL)/New Exodus (NE) motif functions as the organizing theme of Mark, Luke, and Acts.3 The programmatic role of this verse and the WOL theme for Jews and Christians demonstrates the importance of investigating its role within the book called Isaiah. For half a century, the WOL/NE has been considered by scholars to be not only a major motif within Isaiah, but the overarching theme of Isa 40–55.4 Several studies have traced the development of this theme in Isaiah and there has been one devoted solely devoted to this topic.5 Unfortunately, these studies all precede the re-examination of Isaiah as a composite book, which began in the 1980s. Given that the WOL theme spans First Isaiah (FI, chs. 1–39), Second Isaiah (SI, chs. 40–55), and Third Isaiah (TI, chs. 56–66),6 investigation of this motif requires the Proceedings of the First Meeting of the International Organization for Qumran Studies, Paris 1992 (ed. G. J. Brooke and F. G. Martínez; STDJ 15; Leiden: Brill, 1994), 117–32; Joseph Blenkinsopp, Opening the Sealed Book: Interpretations of Isaiah in Late Antiquity (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2006), 178–85. 3. Joel Marcus, The Way of the Lord: Christological Exegesis of the Old Testament in the Gospel of Mark (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1992); Rikki E. Watts, Isaiah’s New Exodus and Mark (WUNT 2/88; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1997); David W. Pao, Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus (WUNT 130; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2000). The proposals by New Testament scholars regarding this passage will be reviewed in Chapter 6. 4. N. H. Snaith, “Isaiah 40–66: A ‘Study’ of the Teaching of the Second Isaiah and Its Consequences,” in Studies on the Second Part of Isaiah (ed. N. H. Snaith and H. M. Orlinsky; VTSup 14; Leiden: Brill, 1967), 147; Muilenburg, “The Book of Isaiah,” 602; Claus Westermann, Isaiah 40–66: A Commentary (trans. D. Stalker; OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1969), 22; Walther Zimmerli, “Der ‘Neue Exodus’ in der Verkündigung der beiden grossen Exilspropheten,” in Gottes Offenbarung: Gesammelte Aufsatze zum Alten Testament. Fst. Ludwig Kohler (Munich: Kaiser, 1963), 198. 5. J. Fischer, “Das Problem des neuen Exodus in Is 40–55,” TübTQ 110 (1929): 111–30; Bernhard W. Anderson, “Exodus Typology in Second Isaiah,” in Israel’s Prophetic Heritage: Essays in Honor of James Muilenburg (ed. B. W. Anderson and W. J. Harrelson; New York: Harper & Row, 1962), 177–95; Zimmerli, “Der ‘Neue Exodus’ ”; Carroll Stuhlmueller, Creative Redemption in Deutero-Isaiah (AnBib 43; Rome: Biblical Institute, 1970), 59–98; Klaus Kiesow, Exodustexte im Jesajabuch: Literarkritische und Motivgeschichtliche Analysen (Freiburg, Schweiz: Universitätsverlag, 1979). 6. This study will use these terms merely as literary designations. Unless specied otherwise, no particular view of authorship is intended. 1

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scholar to be mindful of the dynamics of reading Isaiah as a composite book. Odil Steck observes that this theme serves as a framing device in the late stages of the formation of the book of Isaiah (BI),7 but his studies have focused narrowly on redaction and paid less attention to historical and theological concerns, as well as the exegesis of individual texts. The present work has been written to address the need to re-examine the various texts that contribute to this prominent theme in light of recent research on the formation of BI. Naturally, a number of questions arise: What does SI announce in Isa 40:3–5 when he calls for the preparation of a “way”? Is King correct to interpret the passage eschatologically and ethically? Are the Qumran Covenanters justied in identifying the “way” as the study and practice of the Torah commanded by Moses? Or is the “way” an announcement only of salvation, as often interpreted by Protestants? How can the Gospel writers imagine Jesus as the fulllment of this prophecy? The focus of this study will be to dene the WOL and to trace the development of this theme in conjunction with the growth of BI. It is no surprise that the same scholars who espouse different authors or redactors to BI also believe the “way” carries different meanings throughout the book. This theme appears to have played a crucial role in the formation of BI, so an investigation into the “way” necessitates inquiry into the composition of the book. In this introductory chapter I will review the various interpretations of this theme within BI, and identify the key interpretive issues that will need to addressed in the course of this study. Different Authors, Different Ways As with most modern inquiries into BI, this study too begins with Bernhard Duhm. Although Walther Zimmerli is most often credited with the view that TI reinterprets what was previously announced as a literal trek from Babylon to Yehud by SI in a spiritual and ethical manner, this interpretation originates from Duhm’s groundbreaking 1892 commentary. It was his characterization of the author of TI as a personality in sharp contrast to that of the prophet of SI that suggested TI reinterpreted SI’s words. As a literary work, Duhm nds Isa 56–66 to be a more corrupt

7. Odil Hannes Steck, Bereite Heimkehr: Jesaja 35 als Redaktionelle Brucke zwischen dem Ersten und dem Zweiten Jesaja (SBS 121; Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, 1985), and “Jes 62, 10–12 als Abschluß eines Großjesajabuches,” in Studien zu Tritojesaja (ed. O. H. Steck; BZAW 203; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1991), 143–66. 1

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text, full of glosses and additions, and less poetically rened, degenerating in a prosaic manner. For these chapters Duhm assumes a postexilic setting in which Yahweh already resides in the temple. In regard to TI’s concept of the “way,” he writes: One can argue about whether Trito-Isaiah wants the clearing of the way to be understood in a literal or gurative sense. Whether the saying refers to the preparation of the roads on which the diaspora Jew travels to the temple, or the removal of everything, particularly moral obstacles. For those coming at that time in the way, in which all “the redeemed of Yahweh” choose Jerusalem; 57:14 and the following verse rather speak for the latter.8

For Duhm, the differences in language as well as geographical and chronological provenance suggest the “way” of TI differs from that of SI. Following the publication of Duhm’s commentary in 1892, J. Skinner followed with a commentary of his own espousing the same interpretation. He attributes the transformation of SI’s original message by TI to the disappointment of unfullled prophecy experienced by the postexilic generation.9 Like Duhm, Skinner assumes SI’s prophecy announced Yahweh’s triumphal march leading his people through the desert to Yehud. Paul Volz, writing in 1932, would also embrace Duhm’s interpretation of the “way” while positing a different redactional history to TI.10 He labels TI’s quotation of other texts as an Umbiegung (“bending”) of SI’s words. This term clearly carries negative connotations and thus the quotation of SI’s texts by TI is viewed as a distortion of the author’s original intent. Walther Zimmerli serves as the key gure in formalizing a conception of the WOL in TI since he sets forth an interpretation that dominates Isaianic studies for the latter half of the twentieth century.11 Zimmerli’s viewpoint has been disseminated through such notable gures as James Muilenburg, Claus Westermann, R. N. Whybray, Paul Hanson, and more recently Joseph Blenkinsopp and Antti Laato. These scholars follow Zimmerli’s lead in their interpretation of the WOL in TI and cite his oftquoted article, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas.” 8. Bernhard Duhm, Das Buch Jesaia (HKAT 111/1; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1892), 462. 9. J. Skinner, The Book of the Prophet Isaiah Chapters XL–LXVI (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1898), 177. 10. Paul Volz, Jesaia II, Zweite Hälfte: Kapitel 40–66 (Leipzig: Deichert, 1932), 217–18. 11. Zimmerli acknowledges his indebtedness to Duhm, Volz, and Elliger. See Walther Zimmerli, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” in Gottes Offenbarung, 218 n. 3. 1

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In this essay, Zimmerli recognizes that speech, whether human or divine, is conditioned by, and representative of a particular historical situation. He follows the critical consensus that TI stands in both a different historical period and geographical location than that of SI. For him, SI is a prophet to the exiles in Babylon and TI is a prophet in Jerusalem speaking to a post-exilic generation. By stressing the fact that language is always historically situated, Zimmerli emphasizes the differences between SI and TI. He acknowledges TI’s heavy dependence upon SI, yet for him TI lacks the creativity, originality, and authority SI possessed. Verbal parallels between the two prophets are classied into “quotations” (Zitate), “brief accidental similarities” (kleinere gelegentlichen Berührungen), and “freer imitations” (freiere Nachmungen) and categorizes the reuse of 40:3 by 57:14 as the latter. For Zimmerli, TI reinterprets SI’s announcement in a gurative sense, as “religiously sancted vocabulary” (religiös geheiligte Vokabel) and “pious speech” (frommen Rede). Thus the WOL proclaimed by SI as a physical and spiritual deliverance from bondage in Babylon loses its original meaning and TI redenes it as an ethical “way,” a pious manner of life. This “way” no longer stretches from Babylon to Yehud, but rather exists on a spiritual plane between Yahweh and his people. The people are no longer to reconstruct the topography between Babylon and Zion in preparation for this “way,” but rather expunge the cultic and social sins from within their own community. In summary, Zimmerli writes: What is the meaning, then, of the call to prepare the way for the people? It is the removal of the inner obstacles of thought, unrepentance, and trusting in other powers… The call to prepare the way, which DeuteroIsaiah still understood in its literal sense, has become a part of the general pious parenesis.12

The end result is that TI’s prophetic activity departs from SI in language and concept. TI presents a new message yet utilizes SI’s speech only for “improper formulaic use” (formelhaft-uneigentliche Verwendung). Although in many ways Muilenburg’s commentary breaks from previous form-critical approaches to Isa 40–66, in regards to this topic he upholds the distinctions between TI and SI in the manner of Zimmerli. He views TI as homilies that are based upon SI, who more often departs from SI’s message rather than coheres to it. For Muilenburg, the “way” of 40:3 alludes to the Exodus road from Egypt, which functions as an eschatological symbol determined in the heavenly council to be executed in history as the departure from Babylon. According to him, a different 12. Ibid., 224. 1

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historical context exists for the announcement of a “way” in TI. Muilenburg comments on 57:14: The content of the poem suggests that the words are not used in the same way as in 40:1–11. It is an inward preparation of the heart that is in the writer’s mind (cf vs. 18a). It is precisely in this way that Second Isaiah’s words are employed in the Gospels (Mark 1:3; Matt. 3:3; Luke 3:4; John 1:23). The people must remove every obstruction within themselves, every stone of stumbling, every moral and spiritual offense.13

According to Muilenburg, SI’s words have been spiritualized and moralized by TI. He also believes the eschatological outlook of TI differs from SI in that chs. 56–66 are more apocalyptic, pessimistic, dualistic, and cosmic. It is evident from his comments that the Gospels’ use of Isaiah has inuenced Muilenburg’s interpretation. Similar to the views of Muilenburg, Westermann writes, “In ch. 56–66 quotations from, or reminiscences of, Deutero-Isaiah consistently change the meaning of what they found on 57.14 in relation to 40.3ff.,”14 and he goes on to cite Zimmerli’s article, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” approvingly. Westermann believes that even though TI utilizes the same language, the semantic value differs from SI. The literal is transformed into the gurative. He supports his conclusions by quoting Volz, “Here, the way which is to be prepared is not the processional way home for Yahweh and the returning exiles, but purely metaphorically and spiritually the ‘road’ for the salvation that is to come.”15 Volz distinguishes this “way” from that announced by SI on the grounds that this new “way” is no longer a highway extending from Babylon to Jerusalem but a new salvation to come. The obstacles are no longer physical but rather spiritual. Like Muilenburg, Westermann makes note that that the Gospels refer to the “way” in the same manner. Joseph Blenkinsopp believes enough evidence exists to warrant separate treatments of chs. 1–39, chs. 40–55, and chs. 56–66 as distinct literary units as in the tradition of Duhm. He acknowledges that FI, SI, and TI possess linguistic continuity, yet this alone does not warrant theological unity. Blenkinsopp recognizes that the language of the “way” appears in FI, SI, and TI but believes that it describes different realities in each respective corpus. In FI, the “way” refers to a “processional

13. James Muilenburg, “The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40–66,” in The Interpreter’s Bible, vol. 5 (ed. G. A. Buttrick; New York: Abingdon, 1956), 671. 14. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 327, emphasis added. 15. Ibid., 328, from Volz, Jesaia II, 217. Volz also refers to the New Testament quotations of 40:3 as support for his interpretation. 1

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route, a via sacra (cf. 35).”16 SI uses the language of the “way” in literal and physical terms—a way out of Babylon, through the wilderness, and back to Jerusalem for the exile. TI, in conscious literary dependence on SI, reuses the language of the “way” for a different purpose. The “way” no longer refers to a physical road, but serves as a metaphor for a way of life, a “way in the direction of redemption.”17 The “way” has now become spiritualized and eschatologized by the writer of TI. Isaiah 57:14–21 and 62:10–12 now serve as eschatologized versions of processional hymns for the purposes of cultic worship, much in the same fashion as Exod 15; Pss 24:7–10; 100:4; 118:19–20. To summarize, scholars who hold to three Isaiahs also tend to believe that TI has reinterpreted SI’s concept of the WOL. Yet there is no consensus as to what SI meant by the “way,” nor is there agreement regarding how TI reuses this language. Most of the scholars surveyed above do follow Zimmerli’s view that what was once a literal journey from Babylon to Yehud has now been spiritualized by TI. The literal has become the gurative. Yet for Muilenburg the way began as an eschatological concept in SI and was later spiritualized by TI. Blenkinsopp believes the way was initially literal in SI, but was later reinterpreted in a cultic and eschatological manner by TI. One Author, One Way It is not surprising that those scholars who afrm the Isaianic authorship of BI also deny that the “way” is reinterpreted throughout the book. Franz Delitzsch believes Isa 40:3 refers primarily to the physical road from Babylon to Judah.18 He envisions Yahweh not at the head of the

16. Joseph Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 19B; New York: Doubleday, 2003), 31. 17. Ibid. 18. It ought to be noted that Delitzsch apparently changed from a one-author position to a multiple author position as his career progressed. Edward Young traces this progression in Studies in Isaiah (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1954), 18–22; 29–32. In an appendix to Dreschsler’s commentary on Isaiah published posthumously in 1854, Delitzsch defends the traditional view of Isaianic authorship to the book of Isaiah; see D. Moritz Dreschsler, Der Prophet Jesaja, Übersetz und Erklärt, Zweiter Hälfte (ed. F. Delitzsch and A. Hahn; Berlin, 1854), 412. Later in his own commentary, the fourth and last edition published in 1889, Delitzsch considers chs. 40–66 as a continuation of Isaianic tradition but does not provide a detailed description of how these chapters originated. What is noteworthy is that his agnostic approach to authorship did little to inuence his interpretation. He concludes the 1

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procession leading the people, but rather coming through the desert towards Israel, which would place Yahweh initially at the opposite side of the desert than Babylon. Israel’s responsibility is to clear a way in the wilderness for Yahweh’s approach to Babylon. This removal of obstructions is to be understood both literally and spiritually, or as Delitzsch puts it, “the literal meaning spiritualizes itself in an allegorical way.”19 Thus Israel is to prepare both spiritually and physically for the coming of Yahweh. They are to clear the road of physical obstacles as well as their hearts of moral stumbling blocks. Given this interpretation for 40:3, Delitzsch nds the same exhortation repeated in 57:14 and 62:10. Thus all three exhortations are addressed to an exilic audience and subsequent generations. He writes: Men everywhere, i.e. as far as the earth or the dispersion of Israel extends, are to say to the daughter of Zion—that is to say, to the church which has its home in Zion, but is now in foreign lands—that “its salvation cometh,” i.e. that Jehovah, its Saviour, is coming to bestow a rich reward upon His church, which has passed through severe punishment, but has been so salutarily rened.20

In Delitzsch’s conception, Zion extends beyond Israel to include the Church. Given his previous concession to allegorical interpretation, Delitzsch can include the Church in Israel’s exile and restoration. The success of Duhm’s commentary did not expunge one-author positions regarding BI.21 For Edward Young, the “way” should posses a single denition within chs. 40–66 unless explicitly indicated otherwise. Commenting on Isa 40:3, he asks, “Why should msillah have a connotation here different from that which it has in 11:16; 19:23; 33:8? Nor in

introduction to his third edition (Franz Delitzsch and Carl F. Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament [trans. J. Martin; 10 vols.; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1949–50], 7/2:138, original emphasis) as follows: “And in relation to this, if we only allow that the prophet really was a prophet, it is of no essential consequence to what age he belonged.” 19. Ibid., 7/2:142. 20. Ibid., 7/2:441, emphasis added. 21. The most rigorous defense of Isaianic authorship in the nineteenth century was set forth by Joseph A. Alexander, The Earlier Prophecies of Isaiah (New York: Wiley & Putnam, 1846), and The Later Prophecies of Isaiah (New York: Wiley & Putnam, 1847). Alexander, writing fty years before Duhm, would defend Isaianic authorship against the likes of Eichhorn and Gesenius, who knew of no TI, yet did espouse a SI who authored chs. 40–66. Alexander (The Later Prophecies, 410–12) believes 40:3; 57:14; 62:10–12 all refer to the same message and are addressed not to exiles in Babylon, but rather Zion or the Church. 1

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49:11; 59:7 or 62:10 is the reference necessarily different.”22 Young believes that the book assumes a unied theological message unless evidence to the contrary exists. He goes on to reject interpretations that speak of a literal, historical return of exiles from Babylon. For Young, the proleptic perspective of the prophecy is primary and therefore interpretation involves foremost the gurative and theological rather than the literal and historical. Jerusalem then represents the people of God spanning every age.  is a gure of speech that describes the tragic condition of the people. Taken together,  and  communicate that the way for God is to be prepared in a hostile, uninhabited, and uninviting region. In his comments on 62:10, Young does entertain the possibility for a reference to the return from Babylonian captivity, though he quickly adds that such a historical reference serves only as an example of the great eschatological exaltation of Zion. Like Delitzsch, he includes the Church within the “reward and recompense” (   , 40:10). Given that Young believes this way to be primarily eschatological, he draws the connection to the New Testament’s references to 40:3 with great ease. The comfort provided the people (in this case an eighthcentury audience) is an eschatological hope fullled in Jesus Christ. John Oswalt rejects the interpretation of Zimmerli and any others who posit that TI has reinterpreted SI’s original prophecy in spiritual and ethical terms. He recognizes that chs. 40–66 are unique in the Scriptures in that they address an audience centuries later than when they were rst proclaimed. Oswalt emphasizes the theological continuity of chs. 40–66 rather than the historical particularity of various oracles such that the theological overshadows the historical. He writes, “That these chapters [56–66] may have been addressed especially to conditions that would prevail after the return from exile in the years after 538 is less important than that they are written to show how the theology of ch. 40–55 ts into that of ch. 1–39.”23 For Oswalt, the chief difculty with Zimmerli’s interpretation is the assumption that 40:3 refers solely to the return from

22. Edward J. Young, The Book of Isaiah (3 vols.; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1965–72), 3:28 n. 14. 23. John N. Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40–66 (NICOT; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1998), 11, emphasis added. In n. 24 Oswalt goes on to cite Otto Eissfeldt’s Introduction as support for the impossibility of recreating the setting for chs. 40–55 and chs. 56–66, yet this is not completely accurate. Eissfeldt (The Old Testament: An Introduction [trans. P. R. Ackroyd; New York: Harper & Row, 1965], 337) does state, “It is hardly possible to determine exactly the moment to which the poems belong which give expression to such a hope.” Yet Eissfeldt goes on to date chs. 40–55 between 550 and 538 B.C.E. 1

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exile. According to him, the way of 40:3 cannot possibility refer to the road traversed by the exiles returning home, and he denies any allusion to the exodus in this passage. The language used to describe the return in SI was intended to be gurative, and it speaks of a return of Israel to God rather than God’s return to Israel. Thus Oswalt believes that Isaiah ben Amoz announced both a physical and spiritual way, in varying degrees, in Isa 40:1–11 as well as 57:14–21. He recognizes three legitimate interpretations for the image in 62:10,24 and ponders why the book contains seemingly conicting views. Oswalt concludes that all three views are correct since they bring several themes to a climax within the book. To summarize, scholars who hold to single authorship assume a unied message to BI, and by doing so rule out the possibility that the “way” could be reinterpreted by TI. The “way” is primarily to be understood as gurative, eschatological, theological, or allegorical. Some allow for a literal interpretation of the “way” as a road out of Babylon, while others are completely opposed to such a notion. The theological message of BI is emphasized and the historical context is minimized. Multiple interpretations of the “way” are considered consistent or even intended when they cannot be harmonized. Some acknowledge that BI addresses audiences that span from pre- to post-exilic ages, yet they would deny that the book necessitated various authors to accomplish this phenomenon.25 Composite Book, One Message The following scholars do not afrm the unied authorship of the book of Isaiah, yet still insist that TI’s message is consistent with that of SI. Charles C. Torrey was the rst to challenge the Duhmian hypothesis from a critical standpoint. He argues that chs. 34–66 (minus chs. 36–39, which are original to the Deuteronomistic Historian) form a homogeneous text written by a single author in Yehud, presumably in Jerusalem, near the end of the fth century. For Torrey, SI is the Prophet of the Dispersion, not of the Exile. He believes SI dwells on the wilderness motif for two reasons. First, it serves as a metaphor to represent the 24. Oswalt (Chapters 40–66, 588) provides the following options for the interpretation of the image: (1) it could speak of preparing the way for Yahweh to come and begin to realize his promises among his people (Young); (2) it refers to the highway over which the redeemed walk to enter the New Jerusalem (Delitzsch); (3) it could describe the highway over which the nations will ow to Zion as they come to worship (Alexander). 25. J. Alec Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 1993), 31. 1

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11

hindrances and difculties the Jews of the Dispersion faced as they sought to return home. Second, it reminded Israelites of God’s loving care and guidance for his people through evoking the ancient traditions of the Exodus from Egypt (cf. Deut 2:7; 8:2–4, 15–16; Amos 3:1–2; Hos 13:5). Torrey claims that SI continually refers to a return from the four corners of the earth, arguing that the ve references to Cyrus and Babylon/Chaldea (43:14; 44:28; 45:1; 48:14, 20) are not to be taken literally, but as reective of a person who was inuenced by the Chronicler’s pattern of destruction, exile, and restoration under the Persian king.26 When the wilderness/exodus imagery is viewed in this manner, the exhortation to ee Babylon is not be taken literally, but serves rather as a reminder of the supreme redemptive work of Yahweh in history, the rescue from Egypt. Since the prophet is a poet, it is unclear exactly what and who he is referring to. Torrey comments on 48:20: In the present passage it may be questioned whether the imaginary hearers whom he is addressing are the Jews who are soon to be saved, or the Hebrews of the time of Moses, about to y from Egypt. The dramatic habit of the writer, and the extraordinary vividness of his imagination, make the latter supposition quite possible.27

Torrey even includes the exhortations of SI, considered by most to be a direct address by SI to an exilic audience, as illustrative of the imaginative rhetoric of the poet. Likewise the mention of Jerusalem’s walls or gates in 62:6–11 do not describe actual historical conditions but rather the ideal city of Zion. All talk of a “way” is symbolic and possesses no historical referent. For Torrey, no transformation of meaning for SI to TI exists, since the language was symbolic from the start and penned by the same author. James Smart follows Torrey’s lead and considers chs. 35, 40–66 as the work of a single prophet and theologian in Yehud whose ministry ended by 538 B.C.E. According to him, the fundamental aw of those who posit a TI is their failure properly to identify the genre of SI’s writings. They interpret SI’s language as a kind of poetic hyperbole intended to describe prosaic historical circumstances, but in doing so they fail to recognize the eschatological character of the writings. Smart acknowledges that 35:8 and 49:11 describe the road the exiles traverse back to Yehud, but he believes 40:1–11 refer to a completely different setting. For him, these 26. Brooks Schramm, The Opponents of Third Isaiah: Reconstructing the Cultic History of the Restoration (JSOTSup 193; Shefeld: JSOT, 1995), 25. 27. Charles C. Torrey, The Second Isaiah: A New Interpretation (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1928), 379. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

verses describe a theophany and the language is not hyperbolic but eschatological in character. The desert is a not a geographical region but rather the spiritual state of the people prior to the advent of Yahweh. Smart comments on those who claim the “way” in 57:14 differs from that of 40:3: Those who deny these chapters to Second Isaiah and assert that the author of ch. 57 was imitating Second Isaiah must explain how such a second-rate prophet could speak with incisiveness and fearlessness for God into the desperate situation of his society, and if he was not Second Isaiah, show himself quite the equal of Second Isaiah in integrity and courage?28

Smart, then, nds no reason to suggest that the “way” in TI differed from that of SI. Even though Michael Fishbane employs an exegetical method similar to that of Zimmerli, he differs in his conclusions regarding the relationship between SI and TI. His goal is to isolate and identify the traditum, the content of tradition of biblical texts, from the traditio, the process of transmission. Whereas interpreters previously sought to uncover the early stages of this process, Fishbane attempts to understand the dynamic relationship between the traditum and traditio up to the nal process of canon formation. He agrees with Zimmerli that TI reused the vocabulary of SI, but rather than viewing these citations as reinterpretations of the xed traditum of SI, he believes these quotations merely reect shared phraseology of a school tradition. He writes, “Rather, a learned vocabulary may simply have been reapplied by later prophetic tradents in accordance with new tastes and circumstances; so that nothing would be proved with respect to the existence of deliberate exegetical revision in the cases in question.”29 At this point Fishbane does not claim whether TI interprets the “way” spiritually and whether SI does so literally, or vice versa. He merely states that the reuse of similar vocabulary need not indicate that TI reinterpreted SI’s prophecy. The recent prolicacy of scholarship surrounding the complex unity of BI has spurred several commentators to re-evaluate Zimmerli’s proposal. Jan Koole makes the unusual assertion that TI originated shortly after the catastrophe of 587/586 B.C.E. in Judah. In this view TI is composed before SI. Koole writes:

28. James D. Smart, History and Theology in Second Isaiah: A Commentary on Isaiah 35, 40–66 (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1965), 244. 29. Michael Fishbane, Biblical Interpretation in Ancient Israel (Oxford: Clarendon, 1985), 289, original emphasis. 1

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Yahweh’s (!) way in 40:3 must mean more than remigration from Babylon and in 57:14 the removal of the obstacles in the life of the people ushers in the return of the exiles (the way of the people!), who will then be ‘led and comforted’ (57:18) by their God, and 62:10 can be taken to mean that the people still living in destroyed Jerusalem should literally go out through the ruins of the gates to clear away the rubble from the roads to the city, so that the returning exiles can re-enter and repopulate Zion (62:12). 30

Koole reverses Zimmerli’s argument and asserts that the later passage, 40:3, refers to a spiritual way and 57:14 and 62:10 speak of literal, historical circumstances. For Koole, the “way” was always ethical, and always demanded a response of faith and repentance. Koole follows Delitzsch, Smart, and Young by interpreting this way as a return of Yahweh to his people in a theophany. This “way” leads to the holy mountain of Zion spoken of in 57:13 and those who traverse this highway include foreigners who maintain justice and do what is right (56:3, 6–7). Thus TI calls attention to the literal, physical road that leads to Jerusalem, yet the obstacles and response required by the people are ethical and spiritual in nature. The nal three proposals to be reviewed were all published in 2001 and demonstrate the wide variety of opinion still existing in regard to interpreting the book of Isaiah. Klaus Baltzer correctly identies a key issue in the interpretation of Isa 40:3–4: In interpretations of the passage, scholars have continually discussed whether these utterances are to be taken literally. Is this about the building of a real road connecting Babylon and Jerusalem, or are the statements meant to be understood metaphorically? I believe that these two possibilities are not necessarily mutually exclusive, if we take into account the function of the prologue as a summing up of the action of the whole drama.31

Although Baltzer has correctly identied the key interpretive issue, his solution to account for the multivalent language of SI, that it ought to be read as a drama, may not be as convincing.32 Even if one disagrees with Baltzer’s overall thesis, there still may be much to learn from his 30. Jan L. Koole, Isaiah Part 3, Volume 1: Chapters 40–48 (trans. A. P. Runia; HCOT; Kampen: Kok Pharos, 1997), 24. 31. Klaus Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah: A Commentary on Isaiah 40–55 (trans. M. Kohl; Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2001), 54. 32. John Watts’s earlier proposal that BI be read as a drama has met with little acceptance. See John D. W. Watts, Isaiah 1–33 (WBC 24; Waco, Tex.: Word, 1985), and Isaiah 34–66 (WBC 25; Waco, Tex.: Word, 1987). Baltzer’s commentary has received a similar response from reviewers. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

treatment of individual texts. He argues that the prologue of SI, 40:1–11, essentially reects an inaugurated eschatology. That is, it announces “what is going to happen in the future and what is already underway.”33 This pronouncement made in the heavenly sphere evokes the exodus tradition of Num 20:17, 19, the path Moses sought to lead the exodus generation through Edom. The topographical language within its own context may then be read ethically and spiritually rather than literally. Given this interpretation for 40:3–4, Baltzer traces a line of exegetical continuity between this ethical and eschatological notion of “preparing Yahweh’s way” with that of TI, Mal 3:1, and the New Testament (Mark 1:2–3 and parallel texts). For Baltzer, neither TI, nor the Gospel writers for that matter, appears to reinterpret SI. They only make explicit what was implicit in SI’s message. Brevard Childs rejects Zimmerli’s notion that TI is a spiritualizing Forschreibung of SI. He accuses Zimmerli of overinterpretation by reading SI within a reconstructed, “original” historical setting. For Childs, SI’s authority and message are assumed in TI and conjoined in a relationship of theological elaboration and continuity rather than one of correction or spiritualizing. Childs believes the deictic rather than midrashic is the primary relationship between TI and SI. Childs views the highway of 40:3 as part of a larger matrix of images: the transformation of the wilderness into a garden (41:18–19; 42:15–16) and a new exodus (11:16; 51:9–11; 52:11–12), which are fused into one single all-encompassing paradigm of divine deliverance. In addition, the strongest intertextual connection to 40:3 is ch. 35. Here the “highway is not just a means of improving the route home, but now is portrayed as a holy path reserved for the pure of heart”34 that “projects the divine plan beyond both these historical periods and focuses on the nal eschatological exaltation of Zion and the entrance into the ultimate joy of the kingdom of God (v. 10).”35 Childs believes that, from the very beginning, this “way” was never primarily a historical route; it possessed an ethical as well as an eschatological dimension all along. The one difference between SI and TI is a change in content and focus. Isaiah 40:3 describes a “way” for Yahweh and 57:14 speaks of a “way” of the people. Isaiah 62:10 contributes to this message by adding that the heavenly hosts are to make advance preparation for the people to enter Jerusalem.

33. K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 63. 34. Brevard S. Childs, Isaiah (OTL; Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 2001), 256. 35. Ibid. 1

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Like Childs, Christopher Seitz believes the primary intertextual link to ch. 40 is ch. 35. Chapter 35 plays a pivotal role in the book as it announces a reversal of the judgment declared in FI. Chapter 1 and chs. 24–27 provide the details of Israel’s punishment: desolation of the earth and its concomitant reduction to a desert. Seitz observes that the “wilderness tradition in BI was closely associated with God’s judgment and was distinctive over against the old exodus-wilderness tradition.”36 The primary signicance of the wilderness in BI is theological, and therefore to ask whether the wilderness is literal or metaphorical misses the point. Seitz believes the WOL signies a reversal of judgment and the transformation of all creation signaled by the appearance of God’s glory. He writes, “The way that leads to Zion does not stretch from Babylon; it is, rather, the way that erupts in the desert Zion had become but it is no longer, that gives right-of-way to all Israel wherever she had been cast forth in judgment.”37 Viewed in this manner, the “way” is neither primarily literal nor metaphorical but rather theological. Chapter 40 differs from ch. 35 in that in ch. 40 the theophanic “way” does not become the way via which the ransomed enter Zion. What ch. 40 does announce is the inception of Yahweh’s salvic plan. Seitz faults Zimmerli for naïvely assuming 40:3 was to be understood literally as a road for the exiles, rather than as a theophany of the LORD. For Seitz, the literal sense refers to the theophany. Given his interpretation of 40:3, the “way” of 57:14 refers to the same as that of 40:3, varying only due to different circumstances in light of the work of the servant.38 Conclusion What is the WOL in the book of Isaiah? This survey has identied several key issues that must be addressed in order properly to answer this question. Questions regarding the unity of BI as well as the nature of prophetic quotation must be addressed in order to determine the relationship between the various references to the “way.” Proper exegesis will need to account for the dynamics of prophetic speech and prophetic literature. Simplistic notions of literal vs. gurative fail to account for the complexities of language. Many of the interpretive differences stem from differences regarding the use of metaphor, guration and typology, and views regarding canonical literature. The relationship between biblical 36. Christopher R. Seitz, “The Book of Isaiah 40–66: Introduction, Commentary, and Reections,” in Keck, ed., The New Interpreter’s Bible, 6:378. 37. Ibid., 6:335. 38. Ibid., 6:492. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

myth, history, and eschatology will be examined so as to account for the multiplicity of genres and perspectives within the same book. Lastly, a theological perspective internal to BI will be sought after as a means to comprehend the diverse texts within one book. This work will attempt to dene to the “way” in Isaiah as well as to provide a coherent interpretation of this theme’s signicance within BI. Certainly Zimmerli’s proposal will be contested, but the critique will extend to his detractors as well. Much has been written to refute Zimmerli’s thesis, so why the need for another investigation into this topic? Zimmerli’s view continues to receive support. More importantly, Zimmerli’s detractors have not been able to form a consensus for an alternate interpretation. The proposals are wide ranging and inconsistent in their appeals for evidence. What is still required is a sustained examination of the WOL motif from the vantage point of the whole book. Following this introductory chapter, key interpretive issues will be dened and addressed in Chapter 2, along with an explanation of interpretative method. Since this work investigates whether TI has reinterpreted the message of SI, it addresses Isa 40–66 before Isa 1–39. Isaiah 34–35 are considered among the nal additions to BI and culminate the “way” theme within Isa 1–35, as well as within BI. Since the nal redaction of the following sections of BI developed in the chronological order SI, TI, and then FI, they will be addressed in this sequence within the present work. Chapter 3 is a treatment of the “way” theme in SI; Chapter 4 does with same in TI; and Chapter 5 investigates this theme within FI, focusing primarily on Isa 34–35. Chapter 6 is a review of various interpretations of the WOL or NE theme by New Testament scholars as they examine New Testament quotations of Isaiah. This study attempts to trace the development of the concept of the “way,” beginning with SI to the nal form of the book. Isaiah 40 announces that this way has been inaugurated. In this chapter the focus is upon Yahweh’s coming in a theophany, not the return of the people. SI combines Israel’s traditions of creation and exodus to produce a message of hope as well as repentance. This march of Yahweh can be transhistorical since it is rooted in Israel’s ancient Sinai traditions and has yet to be fully consummated. SI’s message is overtly ethical and eschatological. To the exilic generation, Cyrus fullls this “way” in history by allowing Israel to return home as long as the people are willing to ee Babylon and reject its idols. Since the “way” never completely materialized in the restoration under Cyrus, TI emphasizes the ethical and cultic demands of 1

1. Introduction

17

this way, as well as its eschatological goal. In Isa 56–66, the “way” provides a means for all nations to draw near to Yahweh and Zion. With the addition of chs. 34–35, the “way” theme spans all of BI. In FI, the cultic and eschatological aspects of the way are emphasized and it is envisioned as a highway leading to Zion for both dispersed Israelites as well as the nations. In the nal form of BI, the vision of Isaiah ben Amoz nds its fulllment in the WOL that began with the end of exile and leads to the eschatological Zion, known also as the New Jerusalem. Various redactions of BI emphasize different manifestations of the “way” throughout Israel’s history, yet this theme maintains a level of theological unity throughout all major phases of BI’s development.

1

Chapter 2

METHODOLOGY

I proceed on the assumption, as observed by Antti Laato, that “Biblical exegesis (of the Old Testament prophetic literature) is not a simple matter of interpreting texts, but is also a process in which the logical models or possible worlds are constructed to accommodate the validity of particular interpretations.”1 Interpreters, in order to justify any exegetical decision, assume a view of history, religion, composition, language and literature that supports their interpretation. Critical scholars set forth interpretations that cohere with the worldview of the text as well as the worldview of the modern world. Interpretations that address only one aspect of this view of reality are decient no matter how many arguments they can amass in their favor. What is required by scholars is a methodology that functions to bridge the modern with the ancient world. Each aspect of the possible worlds is not constructed in a vacuum. Rather, the view one holds in regard to one aspect of this reality frequently determines one’s view in regard to other aspects. Antti Laato believes the semiotic models of Charles Peirce provide the means to contrast differing theoretical models that undergird varying interpretations. The distinctive contribution of Peirce’s semiotics is its triadic nature, consisting of sign, object, and interpretant. As in Saussurean linguistics, a sign does not function without relation to an object, but in this case it does not function solely in relation to the object. Applying this semiotic model to the task of interpretation, a prophetic text (sign) can be connected to a particular socio-historical situation (object), and this connection produces an interpretation (interpretant). This interpretant then serves as a model to assess whether the interpretation is valid. Other interpreters may have a different rhetorical situation (object) in mind, as well as a different model (interpretant) undergirding 1. Antti Laato, History and Ideology in the Old Testament Prophetic Literature: A Semiotic Approach to the Reconstruction of the Proclamation of the Historical Prophets (ConBOT 41; Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 1996), 392. 1

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their exegetical conclusions. Differences in interpretations cannot be evaluated merely on one aspect of the assumed reality that stands behind an interpretation. Laato advises, “Real discussion between scholars can be achieved only when scholars have realized that it is not the interpretations themselves but the models behind these interpretations that are the real objects of disagreement.”2 This study attempts to employ Laato’s meta-theoretical analysis to the discussion regarding the WOL in Isaiah to compare and contrast the models that underlie the varying interpretations. Assumptions regarding the composition of the book, Israel’s religious history, the nature of language and literature, and the relationship between myth, history, and eschatology will be explored. The theological imagination will be used as the means to integrate the various concepts into a cohesive and plausible explanation of the text and reality. Isaiah as a Prophetic Book Amid the surge in unied readings of Isaiah, Blenkinsopp continues to maintain, in the tradition of Duhm, FI (chs. 1–39), SI (chs. 40–55), and TI (chs. 56–66). BI was, in his view, redacted into its present form in the second century B.C.E.3 Blenkinsopp’s objections to the canonical approach are twofold: (1) he objects to the literary coherence ascribed to the nal form of texts or the genre of a prophetic book; and (2) he objects to any notion of a normative theological inuence of the canon.4 For Blenkinsopp, there are biblical canons, and nal form need not imply normative form. He believes the primary factor in the canonical process was political and religious power, not a normative theology. Although he acknowledges the presence of opposing views, Blenkinsopp believes a “Zionist” movement determined the nal form of TI. For him, “A canon represents a resolution of ideological conict either by imposition of a particular dominant ideology or orthodoxy by force majeure or as a compromise between different ideologies.”5 Yet is it plausible that these Zionists would have been content to arrange their texts in a manner that 2. Ibid. 3. Joseph Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 19A; New York: Doubleday, 2002), 58. 4. Joseph Blenkinsopp, “The Prophetic Biography of Isaiah,” in Mincha: Festgabe für Rolf Rendtorff zum 75. Geburtstag (ed. E. Blum; Neukirchen–Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 2000), 26, and Isaiah 40–55, 55, 58. 5. Joseph Blenkinsopp, “The Formation of the Hebrew Bible Canon: Isaiah as a Test Case,” in The Canon Debate (ed. L. M. McDonald and J. A. Sanders; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 2002), 62. 1

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privileged their own rather than simply eliminating rival texts? Must a theological/ideological work such as Isa 56–66 or BI necessarily be partisan? Could it be possible that the authors of BI resisted total allegiance to particular religious-political movements within ancient Israel? Would they not learn this lesson from reading the prophetic literature? Perhaps instead the editors preserved prophecies that at times critiqued, at other times supported, various movements within ancient Israel, all the while never aligning themselves solely to any single one. Perhaps instead of a normative theology the prophecies found their cohesion through their association with Isaiah ben Amoz, albeit remote, involving several degrees of separation. The lack of a singular portrait of the prophet Isaiah within the book allows for a diverse set of texts to be associated with him. Odil Steck, in his provocative work, The Prophetic Books and Their Theological Witness,6 promotes a historical-synchronic reading in which the nal form of the text is prioritized such that the literary reading of the whole book supersedes diachronic analysis. This reects a reversal of the trend in historical-criticism which traditionally prioritized the isolation of original speeches from later editorial updating. According to Steck, the primary context in which to read individual pericopes is not a Sitz im Leben external to the text, but rather the Sitz im Text, the literary framework of the book itself. Any type of diachronic analysis must be done with the entire book in mind since the text’s primary context may be a network of internal literary references, not an external socio-historical event. Ehud Ben Zvi has recently provided a formidable argument for the legitimacy of “prophetic book” as a literary genre in ancient Israel, especially prevalent within the Achaemenid period. He provides the following denition for this genre: A book that claims an association with a prophetic personage of the past and that is presented to its readership as YHWH’s word. As such, the book claims to communicate legitimate and authoritative knowledge about YHWH… Prophetic books were not intended to be read only once, but to be read, reread, and meditated upon.7

Ben Zvi stresses the signicance of a work whose primary reception is through rereading rather than a one-time read. A text designed to be reread may possess a complex unity and depth and ought to be treated as 6. Odil Hannes Steck, The Prophetic Books and Their Theological Witness (trans. J. D. Nogalski; St. Louis: Chalice, 2000). 7. Ehud Ben Zvi, Micah (FOTL 21B; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2000), 187–88. 1

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such. Double entendre, ambiguity, and multidirectional intertextuality are the intention of the authors of prophetic books. Too often scholars do not allow for the possibility for prophetic books to possess these qualities and therefore ascribe what may be literary sophistication as conicting perspectives. According to Ben Zvi, prophetic books possess the following qualities: (1) they call for their readers to ascribe the book’s divine authority to the image of the prophet mentioned in the book; (2) individual pericopes have been “dehistoricized” through the process of being incorporated into the logic of the nal form of the book; (3) the nal form of the prophetic book within a xed canon would be ascribed a theological normativity by the community. What one scholar views as irreconcilable texts within one book, Ben Zvi sees multivalent texts within a complex work intended for an educated elite to interpret carefully for the purpose of instructing the wider community. The question remains whether this denition of a prophetic book is historically veriable or plausible. Various denitions of “prophetic books” exist. Terence Collins believes Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve each comprise a “prophetic book,” a distinct artistic and theological creation of the sixth century B.C.E. In this case BI is a dynamic work permeated by the literary gure of Isaiah ben Amoz and unied around exilic concerns with a later post-exilic modication. The creative hand of the redactor/author dominates the book such that “they certainly did not feel obligated to transmit the words intact as they found them. ‘The text was not sacrosanct, but was subjected to alterations in accordance with the tastes and needs of later times.’ ”8 For Philip Davies, prophetic books are the result of scribal archiving, commentary, or clarication.9 He believes the motivations underlying the formation of books may be haphazard, mere archival convenience, intentional political and social critique, or even national historiography. Yet, as Michael Floyd argues, “Davies seems to be projecting anachronistically onto ancient writers the agnosticism of modern academics, in accord with the scribal stereotype invented by Enlightenment theories of social development.”10

8. J. Lindblom, Prophecy in Ancient Israel (Oxford: Blackwell, 1962), 279, as quoted in Terence Collins, The Mantle of Elijah: The Redaction Criticism of the Prophetic Books (BS 20; Shefeld: JSOT, 1993) 28. 9. Philip R. Davies, “ ‘Pen of iron, point of diamond’ (Jer 17:1): Prophecy as Writing,” in Writings and Speech in Israelite and Ancient Near Eastern Prophecy (ed. E. Ben Zvi and M. H. Floyd; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2000), 65–81. 10. Michael H. Floyd, “ ‘Write the revelation!’ (Hab 2:2): Re-imaging the Cultural History of Prophecy,” in Ben Zvi and Floyd, eds., Writings and Speech, 140. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

After surveying scribal culture in the ancient Near East, Karel van der Torn casts a very different image of the ancient Israelite scribe. He believes they were deeply religious, drawn from the priesthood, and skilled in writing, speaking, interpreting, and teaching the Scriptures.11 From his analysis of Hab 2:1–5, Floyd demonstrates that in some cases writing was not a secondary activity following oral prophecy, but rather the principal means of disseminating the prophecy. He goes on to suggest the possibility of mantic scribal academies committed to the study and dissemination of prophecy.12 Given this portrait of scribes, it is difcult to accept the amount of creative license Collins affords his redactor. For Collins, BI lacks a pre-exilic message. All earlier material was reshaped to serve exilic or post-exilic interests. While certainly I would agree that earlier material was adapted to t the literary and theological concerns of later redactors, I would add that the redactors did not obliterate references to the past. If redactors exercised such a heavy editorial hand, one wonders why the book even continues to possess a Babylonian focus. Edgar Conrad provides a sustained argument that a prophetic “vision” () is a semiotic code designating a book written for later audiences. This vision is received in the temple through hearing and listening (e.g. Isa 1:2). Conrad distinguishes the prophetic visions of Isaiah, Joel, Obadiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah from the “words” () of Jeremiah and Amos, and the “visions” ( ) of Ezekiel. The former are conventional prophets, announcing comfort and salvation, employing the formula of salvation oracles (“fear not,”   , e.g. Isa 7:4) commonly spoken by prophets in the ancient Near East. The latter are unconventional in that they call for an end to Israel, do not originate from temple prophecy, and speak only to their contemporaries. A vision is written with a future intent, as demonstrated in Hab 2:2–3: Then the LORD answered me and said: Write the vision () make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it. For there is still a vision for the appointed time; it speaks of the end, and does not lie. If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay.

Visions contain not only speech addressed to the prophet’s contemporaries, but also words recorded in writing for later audiences. Because of their futuristic aim, visions include the expectation of a period of waiting. Whereas historical background is vital in understanding the “words” () of Amos and Jeremiah, the signicance of a “vision” () does 11. Karel van der Toorn, Scribal Culture and the Making of the Hebrew (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2007), 75–108. 12. Michael H. Floyd, “Prophecy and Writing in Habakkuk 2,1–5,” ZAW 105 (1993): 477–80. 1

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not lie in the prophet’s historical circumstances. In this case, “the book of Isaiah is more centrally focused on the  Isaiah saw than on the prophet himself.”13 In fact, BI makes clear that the contemporaries of Isaiah ben Amoz cannot understand his prophecy (Isa 6:9–10). They are blind and deaf and it is only a future community who will be able to see, hear, and understand Isaiah’s “vision.” Joseph Blenkinsopp even suggests that an early version of the BI once existed that contained a sealed testimony that could only be revealed following the decreed destruction (10:23; 28:22b). Evidence for this version can be found within FI: The vision of all this has become for you like the words of a sealed document. If it is given to those who can read, with the command, “Read this,” they say, “We cannot, for it is sealed.” And if it is given to those who cannot read, saying, “Read this,” they say, “We cannot read”… On that day the deaf shall hear the words of a scroll, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. (Isa 29:11–12, 18)

The vision can only be understood at a later time in a manner similar to the revelation of apocalyptic secrets in the book of Daniel. Blenkinsopp believes that, in its nal form, BI is to be interpreted as an apocalyptic eschatological prophecy.14 A vision is necessarily future oriented, assumes deferred fulllment, and is possibly eschatological. To read BI retrospectively rather than proleptically, as many redaction maximalists do, is in essence to read a book back to front and violate its visionary quality. Reading Isaiah as a prophetic book need not bracket out historical concerns altogether to produce merely a literary reading. For Brevard Childs, history is still important yet “the hermeneutic point to emphasize is that for Isaiah history is understood in the light of prophecy, not prophecy in the light of history.”15 The book, then, possesses the prerogative to dene history how it sees t. Prophetic books provide a metahistorical perspective in which “events come into view that initially occurred in the past and that potentially reappear as acts of God or human behavior according to the measuring rod of corresponding constellations 13. Edgar W. Conrad, Reading the Latter Prophets: Toward a New Canonical Criticism (JSOTSup 376; London: T&T Clark, 2003), 185. For a similar view, see Childs, Isaiah, 297. 14. Blenkinsopp, Opening the Sealed Book, 1–27. Oddly, Blenkinsopp considers apocalyptic to be at odds with a normative canonical theology because of its minority status. Yet here he confuses majority with normativeness. Throughout the canon, “minority” voices, those on the margins of society, have been included so that they are now normative. 15. Brevard S. Childs, “Retrospective Reading of the Old Testament Prophets,” ZAW 108 (1996): 373. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

of experience.”16 For Christopher Seitz, the version of history the prophetic canon provides is inherently gural. In this view, the past is seen as past, though it is preserved in such a manner that is provides a hermeneutical lens through which to view God’s present acts in history, as well as envision the future. Rather than produce a reconstructed history of the prophetic literature that may only mirror the ideologies of the scholar, interpretation should abide by the presentation of history outlined in the prophetic canon. Certainly the prophetic books lack historical markers to date every oracle, but, as Seitz observes, “One can see a rough movement from Syro-Ephraimite to Assyrian to Babylonian to Persian periods of international upheaval reected in the nal form of the prophetic collections.”17 Since a future orientation and delayed fulllment is embedded within early material, a proto-apocalyptic perspective need not be considered a modication or reinterpretation of prophecy, but rather a natural development of it. Walter Brueggemann observes that BI displays a purposeful design that corresponds with Yahweh’s “plan” in (meta)history. Central to this understanding are two key texts, Isa 14:24–27 and 55:6–9, that serve as transition points within BI and enclose the main Babylonian sections of BI.18 These texts are concerned with internal calamity within Judah in response to Yahweh’s plan for the nations. Notably absent in Brueggemann’s structure is an explicitly Persian or Greek redaction to the book, whereas the Babylonian inuence is demonstrably evident. Viewed in this manner, chs. 56–66 function in a role parallel to chs. 1–12. Brueggemann writes: Then we may suggest that 1–12 at the beginning and 56–66 at the end bracket the imperial agenda of the book with tasks and disputes that more directly concern the internal life of Judah (1–12) and nally of emerging Judaism (56–66). Thus the book has Judah characterized as an envelope around the trans-Judean imperial issues.19

The change in TI from SI may be understood as primarily one of focus and topic, rather than geography or historical circumstances. Literary afnities between SI and TI are to be expected, given that the servants are the “offspring” of the servant of SI. 16. Steck, The Prophetic Books, 55. 17. Christopher R. Seitz, Prophecy and Hermeneutics: Toward a New Introduction to the Prophets (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 2007), 201. 18. Walter Brueggemann, “Planned People/Planned Book?,” in Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah (ed. C. C. Broyles and C. A. Evans; VTSup 70/1; Leiden: Brill, 1997), 35. 19. Ibid. 1

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The Composition of Isaiah 40–66 The focus of the present study will be on the reading of a particular theme within three prophetic books. One of these books, consisting of Isa 1–52,* was composed late in the sixth century; another, consisting of chs. 1–66* minus chs. 34–35, can be dated to the middle of the fth century; and the third book, consisting of chs. 1–66 in their entirety, can be dated to the late fth century. I believe SI is essentially an exilic composition written intentionally to supplement portions of chs. 1–39. TI was then added to this prophetic book, followed later by additions within FI to create what is known today as the Vision of Isaiah ben Amoz. This study acknowledges that not all texts within FI possess pre-exilic origins, and that not all texts within TI originate from the postexilic period. Also recognized is the fact that FI and TI developed over stages. Rather than an investigation into the origins of individual texts or literary strata, the focus of this study will be on reading three distinct prophetic books. The objective of the present work is to attend to the differences in the “way” theme from SI to TI and BI, and to attempt to comprehend the theological forces at work in the formation of BI. If biblical prophecy is a “ ‘theology in the making’ in which images, ideas, and convictions about the relationship between Israel and God were tested in the res of historical reality,”20 then BI in its formation and nal form ought to reect the theologies of the exilic and post-exilic eras. Hugh Williamson, building upon the contributions of others,21 provides the most sustained argument that SI never circulated independently of FI. In addition to writing Isa 40–55 intentionally to supplement the prophecies of Isaiah ben Amoz, he believes SI wrote portions of FI and redacted this material. This compositional view accords with Nissinen’s observations that prophetic oracles in the ancient Near East were often preserved, stored in an archive or reinscribed, later copied, and compiled into collections of prophetic oracles to be often quoted, paraphrased, and reinterpreted according to the needs of interpreters.22 Contrary to Benjamin Sommer, who believes “Deutero-Isaiah displays no preference

20. Ronald E. Clements, Old Testament Prophecy: From Oracles to Canon (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1996), 13. 21. H. G. M. Williamson, The Book Called Isaiah: Deutero-Isaiah’s Role in Composition and Redaction (Oxford: Clarendon, 1994), 1–18. 22. Martti Nissinen, “Spoken, Written, Quoted, and Invented: Orality and Writtenness in Ancient Near Eastern Prophecy,” in Ben Zvi and Floyd, eds., Writings and Speech, 268. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

for Isaianic texts; indeed, he borrows more frequently from Jeremiah,”23 Risto Nurmela counts fourteen allusions in Isa 40–55 to Isa 1–39 and only three to Jeremiah. He concludes, “the invocation of the authority of earlier parts [of Isaiah], was a more central issue for the author(s) than a dialogue with other prophets.”24 TI also shares many afnities with FI, such that when read as a book the “post-exilic” Israel resembles the “preexilic” Israel. This study will follow a modied form of Williamson’s basic thesis and interpret chs. 1–52* as a prophetic book written and edited by an anonymous individual composed to address the exilic crisis at the time of the dawn of a Persian hope. Whereas the majority of American and British scholars consider SI a unied work, such is not the case in German scholarship.25 This study follows Seitz’s suggestion that the disciples of the servant of Isa 52:13– 53:12 authored chs. 53–66.26 In this model, SI is technically 40:1–52:12 and TI is 53:12–66:24. Given that the fourth Servant Song is narrated in the third person, for Seitz, the Servant’s death results in the multiplication of servants, the servants theme unies TI, and chs. 53–66 are the work of these servants. Important to note here is that a time gap is not necessitated between the composition of SI and TI. Rather than a change in perspective from Babylonian to Yehudite soil between chs. 55 and 56, this geographical transition appears to take place between chs. 48 and 49.27 The audience of Isa 40–48 experienced the return from Babylon and 23. Benjamin D. Sommer, A Prophet Reads Scripture: Allusion in Isaiah 40–66 (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1998), 180. 24. Risto Nurmela, The Mouth of the LORD has Spoken: Inner Biblical Allusions in Second and Third Isaiah (Studies in Judaism; Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 2006), 81. 25. For a summary of the various proposals regarding the composition of SI, see Rainer Albertz, Israel in Exile: The History and Literature of the Sixth Century B.C.E. (trans. D. Green; Studies in Biblical Literature 3; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2003), 376–433. 26. Seitz, “Isaiah 40–66,” 6:316–23, 472–74. Earlier, Karl Elliger had argued that Isa 56–66 was authored by one individual, a disciple of SI who edited Isa 40–55. See Karl Elliger, Die Einheit Des Tritojesaia (Jes 56–66) (BWANT 3/9; Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1928), and Deuterojesaja in seinem Verhältnis zu Tritojesaja (BWANT 63; Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1933). Elliger developed the thesis of Abraham Kuenen, who was the rst to suggest that Isa 50–51 and 54–66 were not the work of SI, but rather a group of SI’s disciples. See Abraham Kuenen, HistorischKritische Einleitung in die Bücher des alten Testaments hinsichtlich ihrer Entstehung und Sammlung: Zweiter Teil: Die prophtishcen Bücher (trans. C. Müller; Leipzig: Reisland, 1892). 27. In 49:12 the prophet speaks from the perspective of being in Zion, watching pilgrims descend upon her. After ch. 48 Babylon is no longer mentioned. 1

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this change in circumstances led to a change in focus or emphasis of the message, but not an alteration or a transformation of it. This continuity receives support if chs. 40–52 are to be understood as an address from the heavenly counsel.28 A message from the heavenly court provides a theological constraint to the prophecy such that the latter additions are not to depart from the original message. Rainer Albertz believes the rst edition of Deutero-Isaiah (DtIE1), consisting of 40:1–52:12* was written in 521 B.C.E. to encourage Judeans to embrace the rule of Darius and return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. This edition was then revised with the addition of 52:13– 66:24 at the end of the sixth, or early in the fth century. The second edition of Deutero-Isaiah (DtIE2) also involved several additions, including 40:6–8, which then provided the efcacy of God’s word as a new framework for the book. Isaiah 1–32* was joined to DtIE2 at this time, only to be revised again with the addition of TI in the mid-fth century. I agree with Albertz that Isa 40:1–52:12 is an exilic document, but I do not accept his argument for a two stage-redaction to SI. As mentioned above, Williamson has provided a strong case that the author of SI added chs. 40–55 to chs. 1–39*. Seitz observes the metaphors of the people as a ower of the eld, withering grass, and a fading ower ( ) in 40:6– 7 are a deliberate reference to the depiction of Ephraim as a fading ower in 28:1 (  ) and 28:4 (  ).29 Viewed in this manner, Isa 40:6–8 need not be assigned to a late redaction, and 40:1–11 ought to be read as a unied composition. Another issue of concern is the apparent incongruity between the announcement of a new exodus in which creation will be transformed, and the conquests of Cyrus within the same prophecy. Some scholars have sought to explain this dissonance through assigning the Cyrus texts to a later redactional stratum. For Torrey the agent of Yahweh was either Israel or Cyrus and for Smart the prophecy was either eschatological or historical; yet both agreed that the references to Cyrus were later glosses.30 Since the Cyrus material appears beyond 44:28–45:1 Kratz has proposed the addition of a “supplementary Cyrus stratum” to an already existing core of SI that consists of 41:1a (MT); 41:25 a (MT); 42:5–7; 44:28; 45:1*, 3*, 5*; 45:11a, 12–13b; 18, 22–23; 48:12–15; 51:4–5*; 28. See “The Divine Council in Isaiah 40:1–11” in Chapter 3. 29. Christopher R. Seitz, “The Divine Council: Temporal Transition and New Prophecy in the Book of Isaiah,” JBL 109 (1990): 242. Williamson (The Book Called Isaiah, 79) goes a step further and argues that 28:1–4 was written by SI himself. 30. Torrey, The Second Isaiah, 36; Smart, History and Theology, 105. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

52:11–12; 55:3–5.31 Albertz builds upon Kratz’s study and assigns Kratz’s “supplementary Cyrus stratum” to Darius rather than Cyrus.32 One questions whether Albertz’s assumption that “the book of DeuteroIsaiah is the only prophetic book of the exilic period that contains nothing but prophecy of salvation”33 ought to be determinative when assigning texts to different layers. It appears the question of dating the Cyrus texts remains open, judging by the fact that several recent commentators ascribe these texts to an early or original edition of SI.34 What is certain is that the Cyrus texts are not unrelated additions to SI, but rather embedded into its overall argument. Certainly the Cyrus texts could later apply to Darius as well, but within Isa 40–48 these texts clearly refer to Cyrus, since the perspective is one that captures Cyrus’s rise to power. Based primarily upon differences in style and vocabulary, as well as the repetition of what he views as inclusio text complexes, Klaus Kiesow postulates three redactional stages to SI: (1) 40:13–48:20 with 40:3–5 as an introduction; (2) 49:1–52:10 with 40:1–2, 9–11 as an introduction; (3) 52:13–55:13 with 40:6–7 as an introduction.35 Viewed in this manner, the NE theme undergoes a transformation from the “Way theology” of the Grundchicht (40:13–48:20) with the addition of the “Return theology” of the Erweiterungsschicten (49:1–52:10; 52:13–55:13). Since chs. 40–48 focus on Jacob/Israel and chs. 49–52 focus on Zion/Jerusalem, Kiesow believes chs. 40–48 originally contained a theology of the way out of Babylon and only later was Zion added as the goal of this way. Kiesow’s views have been challenged. Hans-Jürgen Hermisson questions whether SI’s audience would have embraced a journey into the wilderness with no destination. Moreover, Jacob and Zion are not incompatible, but rather

31. Reinhard G. Kratz, Kyros im Deuterojesaja-Buch: Redaktionsgeschichtliche Untersuchungen zu Entstehung und Theologie von Jes 40–55 (FAT 1; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1991). 32. Rainer Albertz, “Darius in Place of Cyrus: The First Edition of DeuteroIsaiah (Isaiah 40.1–52.12) in 521 BCE,” JSOT 27 (2003): 371–83. 33. Albertz, Israel in Exile, 380. 34. Childs, Isaiah; Seitz, “Isaiah 40–66”; Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55; Milton Eng, “What’s in a Name? Cyrus and the Dating of Deutero-Isaiah,” in Inspired Speech: Prophecy in the Ancient Near East: Essays in Honor of Herbert B. Huffmon (ed. J. Kaltner and L. Stulman; LHBOTS 378; London: T&T Clark International, 2004), 216–24; Lisbeth S. Fried, “Cyrus the Messiah? The Historical Background to Isaiah 45:1,” HTR 95 (2002): 373–93. 35. Kiesow, Exodustexte, 165–68. For Kiesow, the major discrepancies between the rst two complexes is the focus on Jacob/Israel in chs. 40–48 and Zion/Jerusalem in chs. 49–52. 1

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represent Israel from the perspective of departure and journey and the perspective of arrival, respectively.36 Rather than differentiate between Jacob/Israel texts and Zion/Jerusalem texts, Ulrich Berges believes SI is composed to two editions: (1) the “Transformation of the Wilderness and Nature” version that signaled a positive change in fortune for Zion and Jerusalem in the postexilic period (40:3–5, 6–8; 41:17–20; 43:14–21; 44:1–5; 51:1–3); and (2) the “Way– Departure–Exodus” redaction intended to encourage the homecoming of the Diaspora exiles (48:20–21; 49:7–12; 51:9–11; 52:11–12; 55:12–13).37 Berges’s scheme results from his observation that many of the purported NE texts do not describe a literal return to Zion from Babylon. He believes ch. 35 was designed to bridge these two versions of SI and itself went through a redaction from a “Transformation of Nature” edition (35:1–9a) with the addition of a “Return to Zion” (35:9b–10) strata. The transformation of the desert into paradise theme then became a formative paradigm in Israel’s interpretation and proclamation. Mark Smith believes that the traditions represented in Isa 40:1–11 do not demand the positing of various redactions. He argues instead that one motif, the pilgrimage paradigm,38 encompasses both a “Way theology” and “Return theology,” or “Transformation of Nature” and “Departure and Homecoming” motif. Jeremiah 31:1–14 captures the various components of this pilgrimage pattern evident in Isa 40:1–11 and chs. 40–55. It consists of travel through the wilderness (31:2), the revelation of Yahweh (31:3), a way for God’s people (31:1, 14), rejoicing and singing (31:4, 7, 13), the blind and lame as pilgrims (31:8), Zion, the dwelling place of Yahweh, as its destination (31:6), Israel called Jacob (31:7, 11), Yahweh as savior and redeemer (31:7, 11), Yahweh as shepherd and gatherer of his dispersed people (31:8, 10), Yahweh leading this procession (31:9) the transformation from wilderness into a watered garden (31:5, 12), and the announcement of comfort (31:13). It is noteworthy that this announcement of salvation is referred to in Jer 31:9 as a   (cf.    , Isa 40:3). The point to be made is that micro-themes 36. Hans-Jürgen Hermisson, “Einheit und Komplexität Deuterojejesajas. Problem der Redaktionsgeschichte von Jes 40–55,” in The Book of Isaiah. Le Livre d’Isaïe (ed. J. Vermeylen; Leuven: Leuven University Press, 1989), 303. 37. Ulrich Berges, “Der zweite Exodus im Jesajabuch. Auszug oder Verwandung?,” in Das Manna Fällt Auch Heute Noch. Beiträge zur Geschichte und Theologie des Alten, Ersten Testaments. Festschrift für Erich Zenger (ed. F.-L. Hossfeld and L. Schwienhorst-Schönberger; Freiburg: Herder, 2004), 77–95. 38. Mark S. Smith, The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus (JSOTSup 239; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1997), 127–29. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

such as wilderness, Jacob, and Zion need not compete with each other so as to warrant different redactions for the texts that contain them. Certainly, as in the case of Jer 31:1–14, these micro-themes may simply serve a macro-theme representing a unied text. Numerous scholars consider TI a disparate composition reecting the remains of competing ideologies in the Second Temple period.39 Yet if literary coherence can be observed within these chapters, then the need for a redactional scheme to explain the supposed disparity between the texts is not necessary. Willem Beuken and Marvin Sweeney have identied a unied, coherent message within chs. 56–66 that dispels the need to posit various redactions because of competing perspectives within the text.40 Likewise, if a coherent message between SI and TI can be demonstrated, a redactional division between the two books may be unnecessary.41 The religiously divided community described in chs. 56–66 is not unique to TI, since SI already reports of the conict between those who obey the words of the servant and those who face judgment for their refusal to do so: Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the voice of his servant, who walks in darkness and has no light, yet trusts in the name of the LORD and relies upon his God? But all of you are kindlers of re, lighters of rebrands. Walk in the ame of your re, and among the brands that you have kindled! This is what you shall have from my hand: you shall lie down in torment. (Isa 50:10–11)

39. Paul D. Hanson, The Dawn of Apocalyptic: The Historical and Sociological Roots of Jewish Apocalyptic Eschatology (rev. ed.; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1979), 201; Schramm, The Opponents of Third Isaiah; P. A. Smith, Rhetoric and Redaction in Trito-Isaiah: The Structure, Growth and Authorship of Isaiah 56–66 (VTSup 62; Leiden: Brill, 1995). 40. Willem A. M. Beuken, “The Main Theme of Trito-Isaiah: ‘The Servants of YHWH’,” JSOT 47 (1990): 68; Marvin A. Sweeney, Isaiah 1–4 and the Post-Exilic Understanding of the Isaianic Tradition (BZAW 171; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1988), 88. 41. A signicant minority of scholars has rejected the need to posit a separate TI. See, among others, Torrey, The Second Isaiah; Menahem Haran, “The Literary Structure and Chronological Framework of the Prophecies in Is. XL–XLVIII,” in Congress Volume: Bonn, 1962 (VTSup 9; Leiden: Brill, 1962), 127–55; Smart, History and Theology in Second Isaiah in Second Isaiah; Fritz Maass, “Tritojesaja?,” in Das ferne und nahe Wort: Fst. Leonhard Rost (ed. by F. Maass; BZAW 105; Berlin: Töpelmann, 1967), 153–63; Yehezkel Kaufmann, The Babylonian Captivity and Deutero-Isaiah (trans. C. W. Efroymson; New York: Union of American Hebrew Congregations, 1970); William L. Holladay, “Was Trito-Isaiah DeuteroIsaiah After All?,” in Broyles and Evans, eds., Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah, 194–217; Koole, Chapters 40–48; Sommer, A Prophet Reads Scripture. 1

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A fractured community is unfortunately an inevitable by-product of the Servant’s preaching, and therefore it is no surprise that TI captures the sentiments of those responsive and hostile to the Servant’s message. The best explanation to account for the seeming differences between SI and TI, as well as the purported disparate material within TI, is to acknowledge the major shifts in setting for the Judean community. TI combines both the idealism of the returning exiles from Babylon via Persian deliverance, yet the painful realities of actualizing these promises during the restoration in Yehud. Certainly it is beyond the scope of this study to provide a detailed analysis of the various proposals regarding the formation of TI. What follows is a brief explanation of my reading strategy for these chapters. The majority of commentators believe chs. 56–66 to be the work of tradents of SI in which chs. 60–62 form the center of a chiastic structure spanning this work. Chapters 60–62 are thought to be the work of a prophet or a group of disciples referred to as “Third Isaiah” who continues the legacy of SI. Since chs. 56–59 and 63–66 differ from chs. 60–62, these chapters are most often assigned to various redactions. What has resulted is a plurality of redactional schemes from which no consensus has been reached. The other result is that chs. 60–62 have been elevated as the pinnacle of TI’s message. If these chapters are considered the continuation of SI’s message, chapters which “contain a message of salvation and nothing but salvation,”42 then chs. 56–59 and chs. 63–66, which speak of adherence to Torah, condemnation of syncretistic worship and social injustice, divine judgment, communal lament, purication of the community, and apocalyptic imagery, are viewed as a religious downgrade. In this typology of the development of Israelite religion in the Second Temple period, prophecy is replaced by law (Wellhausen), or prophecy is replaced by (proto-)apocalyptic (Hanson). Chapters 56–66 are generally arranged according to the following structure: 61:1–3 60–61–62 59:15b–20 59:1–15a 56:9–58:14 56:1–8

63:1–6 63:7–64:11 65:1–16 66:18–2443

The end result of this redactional scheme is to privilege chs. 60–62 over and against the remaining material, as shown in the works of Hanson and Smith, who both interpret TI in a concentric manner beginning with 42. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 296. 43. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 61. 1

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these chapters.44 What this structure fails to take into account is the escalation of apocalyptic within the latter half of TI and the relationship between TI and the rest of BI, namely chs. 63–66 and chs. 1–2. Rather than assume a core TI collection, redactional maximalists such as Vermeylen and Steck propose that TI consists of only a series of layers.45 Unfortunately this view suffers from speculation regarding the dates of redactions, the penchant to assume that the least amount of discontinuity in a text indicates a different layer, and the assumption that political and social forces dominate the transmission of the text. Brevard Childs provides a critique of the theories of Fortschreibung as set forth by Zimmerli, O. Kaiser, and Steck in his article, “Retrospective Reading of the Old Testament Prophets,”46 in which he takes issue with what they consider conceptual consistency and their understanding of prophetic eschatology as a cipher for political empirical history. Nevertheless, Steck does highlight the important exegetical task of reading TI as part of BI. That is, chs. 56–66 originated as the extension of the prophecies of FI and SI rather than as an independent work that was added to BI at a later stage. Regarding the connection between SI and TI, Clements writes, “Nevertheless, it is reasonably clear that these eleven chapters [56–66], with their proto-apocalyptic character, were intended to be understood, not as a fresh and entirely self-contained declaration from Yahweh to the postexilic community, but rather as a carrying forward of the divine word as it had been declared on the eve of the overthrow of Babylon by the unnamed prophet of chapters 40–55.”47 Chapters 40–66 then provide a unied message exhorting the people of Jerusalem and Judah to embrace Yahweh’s eternal covenant with Zion.48 The fact that BI did not end with ch. 52 or ch. 55 demonstrates that its message at that point was incomplete and therefore any movement toward an apocalyptic eschatology ought to be viewed as an extension of SI’s message rather than a divergence from it. What is clear is that FI was redacted to foreshadow themes developed in SI and TI such that BI

44. Hanson, Dawn of Apocalyptic, 32–77; Smith, Rhetoric and Redaction, 22– 49. These two scholars depart from Blenkinsopp’s above scheme in that Hanson considers 57:14–21 to be closely related to chs. 60–62 and Smith believes 63:1–6 to be an integral part of chs. 60–62. 45. Jacques Vermeylen, Du Prophète Isaïe à l’Apocalyptique (Ebib; Paris: Lecoffre, 1977); Odil Hannes Steck, Studien zu Tritojesaja (BZAW 203; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1991). 46. Childs, “Retrospective Reading,” 362–77. 47. Clements, Old Testament Prophecy, 103. 48. Sweeney, Isaiah 1–4, 97. 1

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can be divided into rubrics of “Former Things” (chs. 1–39) and “New Things” (chs. 40–66).49 Only when BI is assumed to be a collection of three independent sources does the theology of TI appear to differ from SI. If the redactor of TI arranged its material in conscious dependence upon both FI and SI, then chs. 60–62 ought not be viewed as the nucleus of TI’s message since he built upon a tradition of both salvation and judgment rather than solely unconditional salvation. Oracles of judgment would be consistent with his literary and theological inuences. Steck offers the timely reminder that “texts appear to be composites because one observes them in isolation, and because one does not take into account a unied redactional text’s diversity of perspective over the entire revised writing.”50 When TI is read only with SI in mind, then certainly the non-salvic proportions of TI are going to be ascribed to a different hand. But if TI is read within the overall context of chs. 1–55, then the passages within TI usually assigned to later redactors do not appear to diverge from the previous prophetic tradition. Unlike SI, which makes historical references to Cyrus and Babylon, TI lacks any markers to date the text.51 The absence of a clear historical context and the intertextual connections between chs. 56–66 and 1–55 suggest the primary means of interpreting passages within TI is its Sitz im Text rather than Sitz im Leben. According to Nurmela, of the 53 allusions or quotations of other biblical material in Isa 56–66, eight of them refer to Isa 1–39 and fourteen to Isa 40–55. This indicates that the best means of understanding the message of TI is through its intertextual connections with the rest of BI, rather than via a hypothetical redactional scheme or reconstructed historical setting. Schramm concurs: Many of the concerns that surface in Third Isaiah are the very same concerns that shape the whole of Isaiah. This, in turn, implies that what is going 49. Brevard S. Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1979), 325–34; C. R. Seitz, “Isaiah, Book of (First Isaiah),” ABD 3:477. 50. Odil Hannes Steck, Old Testament Exegesis: A Guide to the Methodology (trans. J. D. Nogalski; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 1998), 87. 51. Schramm (The Opponents of Third Isaiah, 51) considers the only concrete historical reference in TI to be the mention of the destruction of the temple in 64:10. Yet this reference would place TI in a period immediately following 586, which would contradict the usual dating of TI to the postexilic period. Muilenburg (“Chapters 40–66,” 5:653) cautions against using the reference to the temple as a means of dating the text since TI is composed of poetic eschatology. Seitz (“Isaiah 40–66,” 6:474) expresses similar reservations and observes that the references to the temple in TI do not form a coherent picture. In 56:5 the temple is presumably intact, in 63:18 it is “trampled down,” and in 66:1 it is yet to be built. 1

34

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah on in Third Isaiah is an integral part of a process that eventually led to the creation of the entire book of Isaiah. Any interpretation of Third Isaiah that does not take this into account does not do justice to the material.52

With the rejection that chs. 60–62 form the nucleus of TI surrounded by retrogressions from this ideal, chs. 56–66 ought to be read in a linear fashion rather than according to a concentric structure. The fact that SI was never a prophet of unconditional salvation further supports this position. Based upon the arguments above, I will read chs. 56–66 in a linear manner as a continuation of SI and as a conclusion to BI. Innerbiblical Interpretation Those who posit multiple “ways” in Isaiah assume that the author(s) of TI quoted an existing text. This assumption ought to be scrutinized through the exegesis of texts, to determine whether it is justiable. Although they may differ on whether TI was written by a singular or multiple authors, scholars following Duhm generally assumed the following view articulated by Odeberg: “But there is no intrinsic relationship between Deut-Isa and Trito-Isa. Almost every term of Deut-Isa, made use of in Trito-Isa, in the latter has a different shade of meaning.”53 For this reason Volz is compelled to separate SI from TI as he confesses, “The frequent instances in which Deut-Isa is literally quoted, accompanied by a shift in meaning, provides compelling and conclusive evidence to separate these chapters, since Deut-Isa would certainly not have repeated nor contradicted himself.”54 As noted in Chapter 1, Zimmerli himself acknowledged that in some instances TI’s reuse of SI’s material contained no shift in meaning, although in his conclusion he emphasized TI’s freedom to reinterpret SI: No xed system for using Deutero-Isaiah’s sayings could be observed. In addition to the word-for-word quotation of entire phrases, we found roughly equivalent free reminiscences within individual sayings. In addition to the faithful adoption and analogous reuse of images, whether developed more fully or broken up from dramatic effect, we also found completely new associations or merely formulaic-gurative uses.55

52. Schramm, The Opponents of Third Isaiah, 43. 53. Hugo Odeberg, Trito-Isaiah (Isaiah 56–66): A Literary and Linguistic Analysis (Uppsala: A.-B. Lundequistska, 1931), 27. 54. Volz, Jesaia II, 198. 55. Zimmerli, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” 233, as cited in Richard L. Schultz, The Search for Quotation: Verbal Parallels in the Prophets (JSOTSup 180; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1999), 46 (Schultz’s translation). 1

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Yet it is precisely these claims, that TI dramatically changed the meaning of SI, that have recently been called into question. The question still remains whether TI is even quoting SI at all. In Sommer’s opinion, “The disjunctions and contradictions that allegedly establish the composite nature of prophetic texts often result from hypersensitive reading rather than genuine critical acumen.”56 Richard Schultz has demonstrated that the identication of prophetic quotation is an extremely complex task with meager textual data to support theories.57 Introductory formulae are absent, and unlike the forecast of an exile in ch. 39 to distinguish a new setting for ch. 40, no literary marker separates ch. 55 from ch. 56. Since quotations ought to be recognizable by readers, Schultz advocates restraint in postulating diachronic theories based upon purported reinterpretations. Likewise, to postulate what SI or TI would or would not write based upon a hypothetical reconstruction of their prophetic persona is tenuous. What Schultz nds lacking in the views of Duhm and his followers is the possibility of self-quotation, a legitimate and powerful literary device. Schultz surveys the role of quotation in Western literature and observes, “Self-quotation can result in an ‘allusive resounding’ not only ‘across a gap’ of many lines of text but between texts as well, often producing a ‘kind of dramatic and typological irony.’ ”58 This internal reference or self-echo can have “a force of guration much deeper than that of mere decorative patterning.”59 The present study will proceed to examine each purported occurrence of prophetic quotation on a case-by-case basis with self-quotation as one among many explanatory possibilities. Israelite Religion Whereas composition has been on the forefront of discussions regarding the interpretation of Isaiah, Israelite religion plays just as important a role. John Barton offers the timely reminder, “Most biblical historians turn out to be theologians in disguise.”60 Laato correctly identies the correlation between these two factors, and the difculty in properly relating them to each other: 56. Sommer, A Prophet Reads Scripture, 5. 57. Schultz, The Search for Quotation, 231. 58. Schultz, The Search for Quotation, 197, quoting John Hollander, The Figure of Echo (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981), 60. 59. Hollander, Figure of Echo, 60, as quoted in Schultz, The Search for Quotation, 198. 60. John Barton, The Nature of Biblical Criticism (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 2007), 38–39. 1

36

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah Any reconstruction of the proclamation of the historical prophets must be related to the structure of Israelite religion. However, the origin and development of Israelite religion is one of the most difcult problems of Old Testament exegesis… Our picture of Israelite religion is at best based on reconstructions which, in turn, generate different understandings of Old Testament prophecy in its religious-historical context.61

This study will assert that the compositional separation of TI from SI stems from a predisposition to a Wellhausenian view of Israelite religion that pits their theologies against each other. Wellhausen’s famed maxim, “the law is later than the prophets,” and its conjoined anti-cultic sentiment, was a view shared by German scholars at the time. These scholars magnicently expounded the social and eschatological vision of the prophets, but the cultic references in TI drew their ire. Bernhard Duhm’s contribution to Isaianic studies, the separation of chs. 56–66 from SI, stems from his romanticized conception of a prophet and a bias against the law. Zimmerli summarizes Duhm’s view of the law and the prophets: In the emphasis upon the personal experiences and individuality of the prophets we can discern the inuence of Herder, whilst the stress upon ethical spirituality betrays the inheritance of Idealism… Law is for Duhm something statutory, institutional, and external, whilst for him the prophets were men of freedom, spirituality, and a personal individualism in direction communion with God.62

Duhm’s assertion that the “lawgiver is the antithesis of the prophet”63 appears to have motivated him to assign chs. 56–66 to a completely different author than SI due to the numerous references to the cult in these chapters. The Jewish scholar Yehezkel Kaufmann argues that the separation of chs. 56–66 from chs. 40–55 reects the personal religious attitudes of Protestant scholars in a chapter entitled, “The LiberalProtestant Severance of Chapters 56–66.”64 Caution must be exercised in distinguishing literary layers based upon semantic dissonance, particularly when these seams purportedly reect differing religious theologies. It seems Zimmerli’s own theological views inuenced him to suggest a multiplicity of perspectives within the same canonical book. Clearly, as is evident in the following statement, Zimmerli doctrine of God corresponds to his doctrine of Scripture: 61. Laato, History and Ideology, 207. 62. Walther Zimmerli, The Law and the Prophets: A Study of the Meaning of the Old Testament (trans. R. E. Clements; Oxford: Blackwell, 1965), 28. 63. Bernhard Duhm, Israels Propheten (Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck], 1916), 39, as quoted in Zimmerli, The Law and the Prophets, 28. 64. Kaufmann, The Babylonian Captivity, 88. 1

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The prophet is never in control of Yahweh’s word; Yahweh remains free. The prophet can only await each new receiving message. When this has happened, then, of course, the message must be delivered with all certainty. The prophetic message is never xed.65

Zimmerli believes Yahweh is a Sovereign God, free to act out in new ways in history, unbound to his previous words, and a transformer of traditions.66 This view of God and his relationship to history corresponds with his interpretation of Isaiah. Scholars who argue in favor of the unity to BI frequently also do so based upon their religious commitments. For Christopher Seitz, the theological principle of canon provides parameters for his view of God. He believes Yahweh must act in history in ways consistent to his prior word genuinely to fulll previous prophecy. Even if a book exhibits diachronic differentiation, a unied theological message is assumed. Seitz does not believe that theological consistency necessitates the singular authorship of BI. For him, canonicity functions as a hermeneutical principle that suggests a divine perspective to all 66 chapters. He writes, “ ‘Unity’ is not a literary claim for a single, tightly constructed uniformity of perspective. Rather, it is a concept meant to constrain emphasis on multiplicity of perspectives in a single work.”67 I recognize that theological unity with allowance for multiplicity of perspectives is a vague principle prone to being subjectively dened, yet it remains a factor to consider in interpretation due to the unavoidably religious and complex nature of BI. Literalism, Metaphor, and Typology Whereas some scholars may argue for a fragmented text based upon purported discrepancies, contradictions, or tensions, others will interpret the same data as exhibiting the richness, complexity, and equivocal nature of poetry. Since the plain sense of Scripture may be the metaphorical,68 it is 65. Walther Zimmerli, “Promise and Fulllment,” in Essays on Old Testament Hermeneutics (ed. C. Westermann; trans. J. L. Mays; Richmond, Va.: John Knox, 1963), 107. 66. Walther Zimmerli, “Prophetic Proclamation and Reinterpretation,” in The Fiery Throne: The Prophets and Old Testament Theology (ed. K. C. Hanson; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2003), 12. 67. Christopher R. Seitz, Word Without End: The Old Testament as Abiding Theological Witness (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1998), 128. 68. Barton (Biblical Criticism, 101) denes the plain sense as “only indirectly concerned with the original, the intended, the historical, or literal meaning.” In the case of Dan 7–12, the allegorical is the plain sense of the Bible. 1

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necessary to understand metaphor and its function in Scripture and theology properly. Kevin Vanhoozer adopts the insights of Max Black and Paul Ricoeur and denes metaphors as “indispensable cognitive instruments that enable thought to perceive resemblances between things that would not otherwise be observable.”69 Central to Ricoeur’s view of metaphor is the need for diachronic analysis and the role of semantic impertinence. Diachronic dimension involves assessing whether an actual relationship between the vehicle and the subject exists. Semantic impertinence involves determining what new meaning is created by this conation of texts. In regards to this study, the diachronic element involves determining whether inner-biblical allusions are in fact related, and if so, dening the nature of this relationship. According to Ricoeur, the imaginative association of previously unrelated elements in metaphors forms “an instantaneous creation, a semantic innovation”70 from which “a new vision of reality springs up, one which is resisted by ordinary vision tied to the ordinary use of words.”71 For Paul Grifths, “Metaphor ‘provokes a shift of the gaze’ and ‘intimates a train of thought whose ending is unclear.’ In other words, it makes us look and move in a certain direction, provoking and unfolding patterns of thought and action not yet determined.”72 Metaphors carry the potential for imaginative creativity and persuasive power and therefore it is no accident that metaphor is the language of ethics and eschatology. Janet Soskice afrms the realistic quality of metaphorical speech yet species that this realism is not a naïve empiricism or positivism. She writes: The language used to account for them [faith experiences] is metaphorical and qualied, it stands within a tradition of use and is theory-laden, yet in so far as it is grounded on experience it is referential, and it is the theological realist’s conviction that that to which it refers, the source of these experiences, is God who is the source and cause of all that is.73 69. K. J. Vanhoozer, Is There a Meaning in This Text? The Bible, the Reader, and the Morality of Literary Knowledge (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1998), 129. 70. Paul Ricoeur, “Biblical Hermeneutics,” Semeia 4 (1975): 79, original emphasis. 71. Ibid., 84. 72. Brian D. Ingrafa and Todd E. Pickett, “Reviving the Power of Biblical Language: The Bible, Literature and Literary Language,” in After Pentecost: Language and Biblical Interpretation (ed. C. G. Bartholomew, C. Greene, and K. Moller; SHS 2; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 2001) 260, quoting P. J. Grifths, “Seeking Egyptian Gold,” The Cresset 63.7 (2000): 7. 73. Janet M. Soskice, Metaphor and Religious Language (Oxford: Clarendon, 1985), 159. 1

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The proper contexts for understanding biblical metaphors are their literary and canonical ones. Because of the religious nature of these texts, these metaphors may be referential both in history and eschatology. Biblical metaphor is the vehicle for communicating typology in Scripture, one which ascribes both a historical and eschatological signicance to events and texts. Auerbach provides the classic denition for the gural/typological interpretation of prophecy: Figural prophecy implies the interpretation of one worldly event through another; the rst signies the second, the second fullls the rst. Both remain historical events; yet both, looked at in this way, have something provisional and incomplete about them; they point to one another and both point to something in the future, something still to come, which will be the actual, real, and denite event.74

What is important to note in regard to biblical typology or gural interpretation is that, as Goldingay observes, “The events, acts, and people with which it concerns itself have a literal reference when they rst appear but come to have an increasingly metaphorical signicance as they reappear.”75 The “open” or indeterminate quality of Scripture provides the opportunity to expand the denition of the rst text through linking it in a typological relationship to a second one. The meaning of the rst text is later more fully dened through the addition of the second text, although the original meaning of the rst text is never displaced. Typology involves both constraint and creativity. As evidenced in the growth of prophetic books, it is possible to expand the meaning of the rst text as long as the second text is patterned after the rst. Fishbane categorizes inner-biblical typologies into four categories: (1) cosmological-historical correlations; (2) historical correlations; (3) spatial correlations; and (4) biographical correlations.76 Within each of these categories a literal, allegorical, spiritual, or moral typological application of an earlier traditum may apply. The exegetical task involves determining the manner of typology and typological correlation.

74. Erich Auerbach, “Figura,” in Scenes from the Drama of European Literature (ed. E. Auerbach; trans. R. Manheim; Gloucester, Mass.: Meridian, 1959), 58. 75. John Goldingay, Models for Interpretation of Scripture (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1995), 63–64. Yet in some cases the opposite is true. For example, the language of “sonship” rst appears in the Old Testament in metaphorical language denoting kingship (Ps 2) and later fulllment in Christ is increasingly literal (Heb 1:5). 76. Fishbane, Biblical Interpretation, 352–79. 1

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Imagination, Myth, and Eschatology If the task of exegesis, as dened by Laato, requires the construction of possible worlds, then the imagination is the means to construe a unied concept of this view of reality. Why consider the imagination the unifying principle? When interpreting a prophetic book containing mythic, cosmic, and eschatological elements, the use of imagination is the subject matter of the text extends beyond what can be immediately perceived. Not only is the imagination necessary to comprehend the worldview of the text, but it is the means of conceptualizing the text’s relevance to the world of the interpreter. It functions to understand the text’s imagery and metaphors, and is vital in the construction of meaning. Given that this study involves an ancient text, one borne out of an ancient Near Eastern cultural and historical setting, the imaginative study of BI requires the interpreter to properly grasp the mythical, historical, and eschatological dimensions of the text. In an essay on the theological signicance of myth in the Old Testament, Anderson observes, “These are precisely the theological dimensions found in the poetry of Second Isaiah, whose proclamation draws upon all Israelite traditions and fuses them in matchless synthesis.”77 Myth, history, and eschatology here are not set in contrast, but operate on a continuum in which cosmology and history coexist and extend from the beginning of creation to the recreation of a new heavens and earth. Viewed in this manner myths possess truth-claims, credibility, as well as authority,78 and function to provide meaning to the present. They do so by revealing the past, as well as providing a snapshot of the future. Mark Shipp, following the studies of Eliade and Lévi-Strauss, offers a succinct denition of myth: A myth is a narration of events which occurred at some point in the past or in the primordium in which the divine realm intrudes in such a way into the human realm that human behavior, institutions, or beliefs are forever altered. A myth is a story, but a story about the inbreaking of Eternity into history with implications for the future.79

Popular notions of myth as “ction” or “falsehood” are to be rejected, and instead myths are to be understood “largely of analogical thinking 77. Bernhard W. Anderson, “Mythopoeic and Theological Dimensions of Biblical Creation Faith,” in From Creation to New Creation (ed. B. W. Anderson; OBT; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994), 95. 78. See Bruce Lincoln, Discourse and Construction of Society: Comparative Studies of Myths, Ritual, and Classication (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989), 24–25. 79. Mark R. Shipp, Of Dead Kings and Dirges: Myth and Meaning in Isaiah 14:4b–21 (Leiden: Brill, 2002), 31, emphasis added. 1

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about what is perceived by the writer(s) as reality, specically historical, natural, geographical, cultural, economic, or social reality.”80 This study will utilize myth as a valid ancient Near Eastern historiographic genre,81 as well as a religious and philosophical concept,82 to help understand the eschatology of Isaiah. Certainly the use of the term “myth” is not without its problems83 since scholars dene “myth,” “history,” and “ction” differently. Even though confusion exists regarding the use of “myth,” the term does provide a link between the cosmic with the historical, and the Urzeit and Endzeit. Myth frequently describes divine action in the past, present, and the future. Viewed in this manner, myth contributes to the grand narrative of the Bible. The “mythic” elements in the Scriptures reveal that causality in history and reality is not bound merely to the forces of politics and nature. History’s events and goal are not merely determined by the will of humans or by natural processes, but according to the will and plan of Yahweh who acts in the present and the future in a similar manner as he has in the past. Following the suggestions of Richard Clifford,84 I propose that the WOL is an event that draws upon Israel’s mythic traditions to communicate that the salvation announced by SI is foremost a cosmic victory 80. Richard E. Averbeck, “Ancient Near Eastern Mythography as It Relates to Historiography in the Hebrew Bible: Genesis 3 and the Cosmic Battle,” in The Future of Biblical Archaeology: Reassessing Methodologies and Assumptions (ed. J. K. Hoffmeier and A. Millard; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2004), 332, original emphasis. 81. See Richard E. Averbeck, “Sumer, the Bible, and Comparative Method: Historiography and Temple Building,” in Sumer, the Bible, and Comparative Method: Historiography and Temple Building (ed. M. Chavalas and K. L. Younger, Jr.; JSOTSup 341; London: Shefeld Academic, 2002), 88–125, and “Ancient Near Eastern Mythography.” Kenton L. Sparks, “The Problem of Myth in Ancient Historiography,” in Rethinking the Foundations: Historiography in the Ancient World and the Bible: Essays in Honour of John Van Seters (ed. S. L. McKenzie and T. Römer; BZAW 294; Berlin: de Gruyter, 2000), 269–80. 82. See Kevin Schilbrack, ed., Thinking Through Myths: Philosophical Perspectives (London: Routledge, 2002), 1–17. 83. John W. Rogerson, in Myth in Old Testament Interpretation (BZAW 134; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1974), 174, provides twelve different denitions of “myth.” G. B. Caird offers seven denitions of the term divided into two categories (phenomenological and symbolic) in The Language and Imagery of the Bible (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1997). William Doty’s comprehensive denition involves seventeen components; see his Mythography: The Study of Myths and Rituals (Alabama University: University of Alabama Press, 1986), 11. 84. Richard J. Clifford, “The Unity of the Book of Isaiah and Its Cosmogonic Language,” CBQ 55 (1993): 1–17. 1

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over primordial forces experienced by Israel in history. This event is not exhausted in the return from exile and therefore the salvation announcement initiates the consummation of God’s redemptive plan for Israel, the nations, and the entire cosmos. Israel’s eschatology is forged within this dialectic between mythology and history.85 The means by which this eschatology is communicated is through biblical typology or guration, which is often derived through myths. The WOL in Isaiah originates in Israel’s mythic traditions and possesses a cosmological, historical, and eschatological dimension.

85. Hanson, Dawn of Apocalyptic, 17; Michael Fishbane, Biblical Myth and Rabbinic Mythmaking (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 56–57. 1

Chapter 3

THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN ISAIAH 40:1–52:12

This chapter begins with introductory matters so as to provide the proper context in which to interpret Isa 40:1–52:12. It addresses the semantics of “way,” the genre of these chapters, the extent of the NE motif in SI, 1 and whether a divine council provides the backdrop to 40:1–11. From there the argument of Isa 40:1–52:12 will be presented, organized around several prominent themes. The signicance of these motifs, especially as they relate to the presentation of Cyrus, will be explored in order to determine the rhetorical logic of the “way” within chs. 40–48. An examination of the development of the “way” motif within SI follows, along with a discussion of how it relates to the Servant theme. Denitions of “Way” The difculty with interpreting the reference to  in Isa 40:3, and all other references to a “way” within BI, is the word’s uid semantic range, its numerous synonyms, and determining the context of each usage. Within BI,  appears fty-eight times,   or   ten times,  eight times,   four times, and  twice. Given that  appears most frequently and possesses the broadest semantic range of the “way” lexemes, the present study will focus primarily on , along with   or  . HALOT provides the following denitions for  with its accompanying Isaianic reference under the following categories: (1) road (8:23); (2) distance; (3) journey (58:13)—enterprise, business; (4) manner, custom, behavior (55:7; 59:8); (5) divine ways—(a) God’s behavior, action, (b) conduct required by God; (6) condition, situation (40:27); (7) strength, power. Markus Zehnder has produced the most extensive study of the “way” lexemes in the Old Testament to date.2 Of the 696 1. When I present my own views, SI will refer to 40:1–52:12 and TI will designate 52:13–66:24. 2. Markus Philipp Zehnder, Wegmetaphorik im Alten Testament (BZAW 268; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1999). 1

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clear references to the noun  in the Old Testament, he observes sixty different uses of the word, dividing them into four semantic groups. He then assigns each denition a number that also indicates to which of the following four semantic groups it belongs: 1. Concrete spatial uses—127 references (No. 100–). 2. Emphasis on the aspect of movement—57 references (No. 200–). 3. Emphasis on the moral evaluation of one’s lifestyle—244 references (No. 300–). 4. References to the condition or direction of one’s life—34 references (No. 400–). Zehnder then provides the following denitions for  and categorizes each use of the word in Isaiah accordingly: 101 110 130 150 230 300 310 312 320 322 323 330 331 350 360 362/363 440

A road in the spatial static sense with a map reference (15:5). “Eschatological Miracle Road” (35:8b, 8c; 40:3; 42:16; 43:19; 49:9, 11; 57:14a, 14b; 62:10).3 A way in the sea (43:16; 51:10). A geographical area (8.23). Course (58.13). Undertaking/Enterprise (45:13; 48:15). Conduct; course of action (55:8a; 55:9b). Way and manner (10:24, 26). Moral conduct (8:11; 55:7; 57:17, 18; 65:2; 66:3). Life change (59:8). Cultic religious activity (57:10). Conduct commanded by God, explicit form (42:24; 58:2; 63:17; 64:4). Conduct commanded by God, implicit form (30:11, 21; 48:17). Life plan (53:6; 56:11). Work of God (40:14; 55:8b; 55:9a). God’s work of salvation; God’s work of work vengeance (2:3; 58:2). Fate/condition (40:27).

As in the case of the use of  in Isa 2:3 and 58:2, Zehnder recognizes that the word may possess several meanings, what he refers to as a Bedeutungskonglomerat.   or   occur more times in Isaiah (9×) than any other book in the Old Testament, thereby signifying its importance within BI. David Dorsey believes  /   is the most distinct of the “way” words 3. Zehnder believes this use of the word is unique to Isaiah, except for Jer 31:9 and Mal 3:1. 1

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since it lacks a metaphorical denition and almost always refers to a literal, physical road and rarely to a course or journey. According to him, it is not just any road, but a prepared and constructed major public thoroughfare.4 Tidwell recognizes that this word appears in every stratum of BI, thus providing an element of continuity within the Isaianic tradition. He believes that what started off as “a word denoting a via sacra in a ‘suburban’ location (Isa xxxv 8, vii 3) comes to denote an eschatological international thoroughfare (Isa. xi 16).”5 Whereas Dorsey believes the exhortation       refers to leveling and grading by clearing away obstacles, Tidwell argues that these words refer to the construction of a graded ascent. According to Tidwell, one never descends () a  /  —one only ascends ( ) this highway, signifying that its destination is always a city or temple. Certainly the relationship between cult, city, and  /   are signicant, but Zehnder criticizes Tidwell for overstating his case since the lexeme does not always appear in cultic contexts (e.g. Prov 16:17). He goes on to categorize the uses of  /

  in BI according to the following denitions: 101 102 110 320/420

A way in the spatial static sense with a map reference (Isa 7:3; 36:2) A way in the spatial static sense with an indenite locale (Isa 33:8) “Eschatological Miracle Road” (Isa 11:16; 19:23; 40:3; 49:11; 62:10) Moral conduct/life change (Isa 59:7)

Zehnder classies the “way” words, and  /  , of Isa 11:16; 19:23; 35:8; 40:3; 42:16; 43:19; 49:9, 11; 57:14; 62:10 under the semantic designation, “Eschatological Miracle Road” (Eschatologische Wunderstrasse). By this he means a way in the spatial static sense that traverses the desert with Zion as its destination, one that possesses eschatological and miraculous elements. Certainly Babylon may serve as the starting point for this road, but multiple origins may be in view. Zehnder recognizes that these “way” words possess more than one sense since they describe not only a road but also a course and journey for the people of God, the redeemed people, or God leading his people. He acknowledges that precise semantic certainty is impossible. The miraculous aspects of the road are difcult to specify and a metaphoric element may be in view in some cases. These texts cannot be dated with precision, so Zehnder 4. David A. Dorsey, The Roads and Highways of Ancient Israel (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991), 228–29. 5. N. L. Tidwell, “No Highway! The Outline of a Semantic Description of MESILLÂ,” VT 45 (1995): 256. 1

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calls for a case by case examination of each occurrence. It ought to be noted that Zehnder’s analysis is primarily synchronic and therefore his designation “Eschatological Miracle Road” applies to the use of the “way” lexemes in the nal form of the book, not an earlier recension. Given the wide semantic range of the “way” words, simplistic notions of “literal” or “gurative” fail to dene the word properly. For example, is the “Eschatological Miracle Road” literal or gurative? Not only will this study seek to dene each use of the “way” words in BI, it will also attempt to identify the tradition or concept underlying various uses of the word. In certain instances,  may evoke an exodus tradition (51:10), and other times a Wisdom/Torah motif (2:3). When  appears with Yahweh as a construct it can mean either God’s behavior or conduct required by God. Koole observes that, “The words ‘way’ and ‘water’ function as signposts, they have surplus value,”6 and operate as catchwords unifying BI’s argument. Therefore, each occurrence may be dened not only by its immediate context, but also by the context of the whole book. The Genre of Second Isaiah Whereas commentators viewed SI as a collection of short, independent units for much of the twentieth century, I interpret SI as a unied literary work composed of both speech forms and literary features. The author of SI is both a poet and a prophet who is steeped in Israel’s psalmody and uses stylistic devices for the purposes of persuasion in a public forum. SI was designed to be heard for its kerygmatic content as well as carefully read and studied as a literary work. Viewed in this manner, Isaiah is composed of literary units of “prophetic readings”7 which are to be read against the backdrop of the book as a whole rather than a hypothetical Sitz im Leben. That is, each pericope ought to be read primarily within what Roy Melugin refers to as the “textually portrayed setting.”8 As poetry, the logic of SI need not proceed in a linear and prosaic manner, since it may be communicating through images.

6. Koole, Chapters 40–48, 324. 7. Ehud Ben Zvi, “The Prophetic Book: A Key Form of Prophetic Literature,” in The Changing Face of Form Criticism for the Twenty-First Century (ed. M. A. Sweeney and E. Ben Zvi; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2003), 287. 8. Roy F. Melugin, “Recent Form Criticism Revisited in an Age of Reader Response,” in Sweeney and Ben Zvi, eds., The Changing Face of Form Criticism, 57–58, original emphasis. 1

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In sum, SI has proved to be a complex literary work functioning on a number of levels for both the hearer and the reader. The proper approach to such literature must then be multi-faceted. This view is dened by Miscall: “For me, reading is a sequential and multiple process that struggles with content and form, that moves both through and back and forth in the poem with asides and digressions into other texts and matters.”9 If SI is a rhetorical and kerygmatic work, then repetition need not necessitate a later redaction. The very nature of a parenetic work is to express the same exhortation in various creative manners in order to persuade the intended audience. Repetition is well known to be an effective pedagogical device, and the reuse of the same phraseology in a homiletic context frequently produces a powerful rhetorical effect. A New Exodus in Second Isaiah? The NE motif has been considered by scholars for nearly half a century to be not only a major motif within SI, but the overarching motif of SI. This has resulted in several studies devoted to cataloguing the various NE texts within SI.10 Generally these studies have proceeded in the following fashion: (1) delineating which texts in SI fall under the category of NE texts; (2) synthesizing the results of exegesis by relating these texts to a wider corpus of literature,11 a particular view of history/ eschatology,12 another theme within SI,13 or a compositional scheme for SI.14 Maximally, the NE texts are as follows: 40:3–11 41:17–20 42:14–17 43:1–7

The highway in the wilderness The transformation of the wilderness Yahweh leads his people in a way they know not Passing through the waters and the re

9. Peter D. Miscall, Isaiah 34–35: A Nightmare/A Dream (JSOTSup 281; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1999), 9. 10. Fischer, “Das Problem des neuen Exodus,” 111–30; Anderson, “Exodus Typology,” 177–95; Zimmerli, “Der ‘Neue Exodus,’ ” 192–204; Stuhlmueller, Creative Redemption, 59–98; Kiesow, Exodustexte. 11. Zimmerli, “Der ‘Neue Exodus.’ ” 12. Anderson, “Exodus Typology.” 13. Stuhlmueller, Creative Redemption; Bernhard W. Anderson, “Exodus and Covenant in Second Isaiah and Prophetic Tradition,” in Magnalia Dei, the Mighty Acts of God: Essays on the Bible and Archaeology in Memory of G. Ernest Wright (ed. F. M. Cross, W. Lemke, and P. D. Miller Jr.; Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1980), 339–60. 14. Kiesow, Exodustexte. 1

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

48 43:14–21 44:1–5 44:27 48:20–21 49:8–12 50:2 51:9–10 52:11–12 55:12–13

A way in the wilderness Water on the thirsty land Drying of the water deep Exodus from Babylon The new entry into the Promised Land Power to deliver New victory at sea The new exodus Israel shall go out in joy and peace15

The unfortunate result of approaching SI in this manner is that these texts have frequently been abstracted from their rhetorical contexts. For instance, Carroll Stuhlmueller begins his study of the NE theme by arguing against Fischer’s assertion that chs. 40–55 ought to be divided into the themes of “The Prophet of the release by Cyrus, the new exodus, and the reestablishment of Zion.”16 Stuhlmueller instead protests that NE is the dominant theme of SI, goes on to distinguish this motif over and against others, and relates it to the motif of creative redemption in SI. And yet, in his search for the main theme of SI, Stuhlmueller ignores how the NE texts relate to the Cyrus and Zion theme/texts. Klaus Kiesow recognizes that the NE motif is not as clearly denable as previously assumed by most scholars. He writes, “The ‘new exodus’ is not in a thematically closed complex of speech, but is scattered and often only in scarce allusions; furthermore, it is not always clear when it is to be interpreted.”17 Kiesow observes that the NE theme cannot be distilled from the text but rather is intertwined with other motifs. He also recognizes that certain purported NE motifs, such as “water” and “way,” may not fall under the classication of the NE, but function to support other themes. Motifs within SI hold complex relationships with one another, so each text much be carefully examined to see how it relates to other texts. The quest for a dominant theme in SI is unnecessary and may compromise the exegetical task. More important is to identify SI’s rhetorical aims and determine how each text and motif contributes to this purpose.

15. Stuhlmueller, Creative Redemption, 66, 272; Kiesow, Exodustexte, 17 n. 35; Anderson, “Exodus Typology,” 181–82. Although I do not include chs. 53–55 within SI, most commentators view SI as chs. 40–55. 16. Fischer, “Das Problem des neuen Exodus.” 17. Kiesow, Exodustexte, 17. It should be noted that much of Kiesow’s difculty in dening the NE theme in SI lies in his own form-critical methods, which cannot account for texts which are not in “einem thematisch geschlossenen Komplex die Rede.” 1

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The Divine Council in Isaiah 40:1–11 How one interprets the rst eleven verses has a dramatic effect on how the rest of SI is viewed. In 1953 Frank Moore Cross set forth an inuential proposal, suggesting that the prologue to SI (40:1–11) contains a heavenly court setting.18 Although this interpretation has been adopted by many, it continues to have its detractors. The objections to the divine council setting for ch. 40 come in two forms. First, as Wilson objects, “The idea that the group is the divine council, God’s advisory committee made up of lesser deities that do God’s will, is unlikely, since Second Isaiah devotes several oracles to arguing that these other deities are not deities at all and in any case are totally ineffective and unable to do anything in the cosmos.”19 Yet Min Suc Kee and Patrick Miller argue just the opposite, demonstrating that the concept of the incomparable Yahweh surrounded by a heavenly council consistently contributes to the Hebrew Bible’s monotheistic outlook.20 Whybray afrms the existence of heavenly counselors in 40:13–14 yet considers such references a polemic against Babylonian mythology.21 A clear distinction in genre ought to be made between the heavenly court setting of the prologue (40:1–11) and the idol polemic to follow, and thus different conventions may be operative in each. The more substantial objection to the concept of a divine court motif is the question whether Isa 40:1–11 possesses the elements of a heavenly court type-scene. Joseph Blenkinsopp and Kee argue that the prologue lacks the visual imagery, deliberative nature of the council, and quest for theodicy present in other heavenly court scenes (Isa 6:8; cf. 1 Kgs 22:20– 22; Job 1–2).22 Certainly they are correct to observe that in itself 40:1–11 18. Frank Moore Cross Jr., “The Council of Yahweh in Second Isaiah,” JNES 12 (1953): 274–77. 19. Robert R. Wilson, “The Community of Second Isaiah,” in Reading and Preaching the Book of Isaiah (ed. C. R. Seitz; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1988), 54. 20. Min Suc Kee, “A Study of the Heavenly Council in the Ancient Near Eastern Texts, and Its Employment as a Type-Scene in the Hebrew Bible” (Ph.D. diss., University of Manchester, 2003), 264–65; Patrick D. Miller Jr., “Cosmology and the World Order in the Old Testament: The Divine Council as Cosmic-Political Symbol,” in Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology: Collected Essays (JSOTSup 267; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 2000), 422–44. 21. R. N. Whybray, The Heavenly Counsellor in Isaiah xl 13–14 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1971), 80–81. 22. Kee, “A Study of the Heavenly Council,” 24–25; Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55, 179. Kee has more recently acknowledges that “Isaiah 40 exhibits a kind of literarily sophisticated allusion to the ‘heavenly council’ ”; see Min Suc Kee, “The Heavenly Council and Its Type-scene,” JSOT 31 (2007): 270. 1

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lacks the components of a heavenly court type-scene, yet they fail to appreciate the full signicance of this passage’s relationship to the undisputed divine court scene of Isa 6.23 Merely comparing individual motifs in Isa 6 and 40 does not do justice to the intertextual relationship between the two chapters. Brevard Childs observes, “In a conscious dependency on chapter 6, chapter 40 does not offer a new independent call narrative, but rather provides a reapplication of Isaiah’s call.”24 He believes Isa 40:1–11 is not a different, separate call of a prophet, but rather the extension of the same call that originated within the heavenly court. Isaiah 40:1–11 begins with divine speech (vv. 1–2) followed by the dialogue of heavenly attendants (vv. 3–6) in the manner of the seraphim in Isa 6:3. Just as “one called to another and said” (    ) among the heavenly host in 6:3, so once again in 40:6, from the same court, “A voice says, ‘Call out!’ And I said, ‘What shall I call?’ ” (     , author’s translation).25 If one accepts the divine court setting for the prologue, and if the prologue functions as a summary of SI, then Seitz is correct to suggest that all of chs. 40–48 is speech “from the divine council without need of prophetic agency.”26 This interpretation will have a dramatic impact on how the “way” is understood within SI. The primary context to understand these chapters is not geographical (Babylon or Yehud), but rather literary. That is, SI is an extension of the vision of Isaiah to changed circumstances as dictated by BI. Chapters 40–55 are “post-exilic” in the sense that they clearly signal that Yahweh’s judgment of exile has ended. The previous divine court scene of ch. 6 announced that the exile was yet to come. Within ancient Near Eastern literature, the divine council 23. See also the similarity between       (Isa 40:6) and         (1 Kgs 22:20). 24. Childs, Isaiah, 295, emphasis added. The point was made earlier by Peter R. Ackroyd in his “Isaiah 36–39: Structure and Function,” in Von Kanaan bis Kerala: FS fur Prof. Mag. Dr. J.P.M. van der Ploeg, O.P. zur Vollendung des siebzigsten Lebensjahres am 4. Juli 1979 (ed. W. C. Delsman and J. T. Neilis; AOAT 211; Neukirchen–Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1982), 6. 25. Following the translation of 1QIsaa, LXX, and Vulgate rather than the MT, “and he said.” Petersen, following the suggestion of Dean McBride, has argued  be understood as a Qal feminine singular participle, “and she said,” and that the speaker then is the feminine herald to Zion of v. 9 (  ); see David L. Petersen, Late Israelite Prophecy: Studies in Deutero-Prophetic Literature and in Chronicles (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1977), 20. Petersen appeals to 1QIsaa  for support, yet within 1QIsaa this same form appears in 41:9, where it is clearly to be understood as a rst person common singular form. 26. Seitz, “Isaiah 40–66,” 6:246. 1

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“represents the most authoritative decision-making agent in the universe and history.”27 Only another decision from within the divine council can reverse the previous decree of judgment (Isa 6) and the proclamation of SI functions in this manner, possessing the weight of enduring authority (cf. Isa 40:8; 55:11). The divine council motif also highlights the vast scope of SI’s message. In ancient Near Eastern literature the origins and destiny of creation, the maintenance of justice and righteousness in the cosmos, the moral and legal order of society, victory and defeat in war, the fate of nations and kings, and the control of history all originate from the divine council. If the message of SI originates from the heavenly council, its concerns are not merely political or spiritual. Its message is cosmic, historical, political, eschatological, and ethical in scope. The question has also been raised whether the “way” in Isa 40:3 is modeled after the Babylonian Akitu cultic procession of deities. In the Akitu festival statues of Babylonian deities would be transported from their native sanctuaries in a procession along a via sacra to the rural temple, and returned to Babylon amid tumultuous joy. Stuhlmueller nds congruence between SI and the Akitu festival, and concludes that SI transforms a Babylonian cultic ritual into a historical redemptive act for Israel. He believes a close relationship exists between the Akitu festival28 and the Enuma Elish. Viewed in this manner the announcement of a way, like the renewal of Marduk’s kingship through a re-enactment of creation, announces a recreative act in which Yahweh is enthroned as king and Israel’s kingdom is established through a new exodus.29 Westermann also believes the Babylonian cultic festivals serve as the background for 40:3. According to him, the passage offers the following polemic: “His [Yahweh’s] kbd, cannot possibly be manifested in the same way as that of the gods of Babylon; for what created the impression of majesty in the Babylonian processions—the images of the gods—is absent here. What reveals Yahweh’s glory is his action in history.”30 Rather than trace the similarity in language to common cultic origins, I believe both texts draw from a common royal motif. It is important to realize that language describing preparation for a road in the ancient Near East could be understood in various ways,31 and it need not be understood literally.

27. Kee, “The Heavenly Council and Its Type-scene,” 259. 28. See ANET, 331–34. 29. Stuhlmueller, Creative Redemption, 78–82. 30. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 39. 31. K. Baltzer (Deutero-Isaiah, 53) observes the royal motif in this passage, and concludes that the language of empire-building, rather than that of the cult, is present. 1

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The Way as the Reversal of Judgment It is important to remember from the outset that Isa 40:1–11 serves as a summation of the message of SI. The view that SI announced a complete fulllment of Yahweh’s salvation promises, only to result in unfullled prophecy, fails to account for the conict within SI as well as the theological implications of the theme of the fulllment of God’s word (40:8; 55:11). Therefore, as much as I argue that SI fullls the prophecies of FI, this does not mean that the prophecies were intended to reach their consummation within the rhetoric of these chapters. The prologue itself anticipates the peoples’ opposition to follow: “All people are grass, their constancy is like the ower of the eld. The grass withers, the ower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass” (40:6b–7). As noted in Chapter 2, in prophetic books prophecies are inscribed with the expectation that a waiting period is required before they are fullled in the future. Chapters 40–66 of Isaiah announce an inaugurated eschatology, the details of which will be explicated in the lengthy dialogue following the prologue. Seitz speaks of a deployment phase of communication in which “Comfort is not instantaneously experienced, and while the term has been served, the penalty has been paid, and the sins have been completely punished, it belongs to the mediation of the discourse of Isaiah 40–66 to drive that fact home.”32 Clearly the prologue announces that the long-sought promise of sight is being realized. Whereas previously in FI only the prophet Isaiah was able to see (, 6:1) the glory ( , 6:3) of the LORD within the environs of the heavenly court, SI announces that this same glory will now be revealed for all esh to see (, 40:5). In 42:16, Yahweh announces, “And I will lead the blind in a way () that they do not know (), in paths ( ) that they have not known () I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground ().” The people suffer for lack of knowledge of the way and the paths of the LORD. Since this offer of guidance is set within the larger promise of leveling (; cf. 40:4) a way through a transformed wilderness (42:15), the very aid offered to the blind is the promise of consolation in 40:1–11. Israel as Yahweh’s servant has been charged with the task of opening the eyes of the nations (42:6–7) and bringing back the blind and deaf from the diaspora (43:8). Yet Israel suffers from this same malady:

32. Seitz, “Isaiah 40–66,” 334. 1

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“Listen, you that are deaf; and you that are blind, look up and see! Who is blind but my servant, or deaf like my messenger whom I send? Who is blind like my dedicated one, or blind like the servant of the LORD?” (42:18–19). The immediate context of these verses is idolatry (42:17), and 44:18 makes explicit the connection between lack of sight and knowledge with idolatry: “They do not know (), nor do they comprehend (); for their eyes are shut, so that they cannot see (), and their minds ( ) as well, so that they cannot understand.” Israel is unable to recognize the emptiness of their idolatry, and therefore their blindness is spiritual. Just as 44:18 invokes the language of 6:9–10, 42:20 describes Israel’s condition using much of the same language: 6:9

         

42:20

         33

Isaiah’s ministry of judgment in Isa 6:9–10 is to a degree still in effect upon Israel. Even though forgiveness and the opportunity to see the glory of the LORD are offered, as long as Israel trusts in idols (42:17; 43:22– 28) it remains under the judgment of 6:9–10. SI’s audience can genuinely hope because they can be freed of their judgment and blindness through eeing Babylon along with its idols. The Way as Transformation of the Wilderness The rst explicit reference to the transformation of the wilderness theme occurs in 41:17–20. Although there is no mention of a “way” or “highway,” the references to  (40:3; 41:18, 19),  (40:3; 41:19),  (41:18), and  (40:4; 41:18) have close correspondence to the prologue. The reuse of these lexemes in 41:17–20 are intended to signify that the outpouring of water will take place along the “way” of 40:1–11. The benefactors of Yahweh’s provision are the poor () and needy () in 41:17. In FI the poor are the oppressed and disadvantaged by elders and princes (3:14–15; 10:2) and in SI  is synonymous with “my people,” referring to the returning diaspora generation (cf. 49:12–13). The “poor” and “needy” brings to mind 29:19, Isaiah’s prophecy of a future day in which Lebanon will be transformed into a fruitful eld (  ) and forest, the deaf and the blind will be healed, and the poor

33. Here it is better to follow the Kethib than the Qere, . This is supported by the second masculine singular form in 1QIsaa. The Qere seems to have arisen out of a desire to form parallel innitive forms. 1

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() and needy of humankind ( ) will rejoice ( ; cf. 51:11; 55:12). Since the wilderness transformation is collocated with the restoration of the poor and needy, this desert may not be physical, but rather a metaphor for the condition of God’s people. The mention of thirst (, 41:17), wilderness (, 41:18), and dry land ( , 41:18) recall the spiritual and political condition of exile announced earlier in Hosea 2:3 (5): “I will strip her naked and expose her as in the day she was born, and make her like a wilderness (), and turn her into a parched land ( ), and kill her with thirst ().” Wilderness, aridity, and thirst are much more than physical obstacles to the people of God; they describe Israel’s spiritual condition. Whereas the poor and needy suffer from thirst, Yahweh will go far and above offering the mere provision of water. From the heights to the valley, rivers, fountains, and a pool of water will transform the desert into a watery oasis lled with trees native to Lebanon. According to 41:20, the result is that the people will be able to do that which they were previously forbidden in Isa 6:9–10. Now they will see (), know (), and understand the creative acts of Yahweh. Given the similarities between ch. 29 and 41:17–20, which together elaborate on the announcement of the way in 40:1–11, the fulllment of these prophecies signies a reversal of the judgment of 6:9–10. Whereas water represents refreshment or symbolizes a mythic foe in SI, in 43:1–7 water and re threaten Israel’s welfare. This use of water and re as a threat appears rst in FI. As demonstrated by Beuken, in ch. 30 the diplomatic mission to Egypt is likened to Israel’s captivity in Egypt (vv. 1–17) resulting in a journey home (vv. 18–26) followed by a theophany on the mountain of Yahweh (vv. 27–33).34 Unlike the exodus traditions, this return of Yahweh takes place not at Sinai but in Zion (vv. 19, 27). It is here that Yahweh will judge the nations (v. 28), specically Assyria (v. 30) by ood (v. 28, 30) and consuming re (v. 27, 30, 33), yet Israel will be kept safe (v. 29). Although water does not appear in 33:10–14, here Yahweh rises to judge the nations (v. 12) as well as sinners in Zion (v. 14) with consuming re and everlasting burning (vv. 11–12, 14). As in 43:2, the people may pass through the re unscathed if they die among the righteous inhabitants of Zion (33:15– 16). These prophecies of judgment incite fear among the people of Zion (33:14), so it is tting that SI reassures Israel not to fear, and reminds her 34. See Willem A. M. Beuken, “Isaiah 30: A Prophetic Oracle Transmitted in Two Successive Paradigms,” in Broyles and Evans, eds., Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah, 395, as well as his Isaiah Part II Volume 2: Isaiah Chapters 28–39 (trans. B. Doyle; HCOT; Leuven: Peeters, 2000), 145–47. 1

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that she is among God’s redeemed and chosen (43:1). Israel will be among those mentioned in 30:29 and 33:14–16 who will pass through the ood and re but are spared from destruction. This event occurs in conjunction with the ingathering of God’s elect from the far corners of the earth (43:5–6). The “way” in 43:1–7, then, is exemption from Yahweh’s judgment of the nations and the sinners within Zion. This is a judgment those on the “way” will witness, but not undergo themselves. Although the exodus motif is not explicit, the mention of Egypt in v. 3 along with the passing through water evokes the Exodus tradition. The references to water and re have been interpreted as representative of dangers in general in Ps 66:12,35 yet Sarah Dille demonstrates the that the context of Ps 66 is also one of exodus.36 Psalm 66 reads: He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. There we rejoiced in him… For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid burdens on our backs; You let people ride over our heads; we went through re and through water; yet you have brought us out to a spacious place. (Ps 66:6, 10–12)

Given the shared motifs of water, re, and the passage through water, it appears Isa 43:2 shares in the same exodus tradition as Ps 66. Consequently, the references to water and re in Isa 43:2 function as images of testing and purication (cf. Isa 48:10). Dille summarizes: “The reading of Isa. 43.2 as a renement thus depicts the exile itself as a purifying experience. The sins and impurities of Israel have been burned away and washed away. YHWH now gathers his now-purged children.”37 Isaiah 43:16–20 clearly has the exodus in view. The reference to a way through the sea and the destruction of chariot, horse, army, and warrior, clearly evoke the victory at the Yam Suph (Exod 15:1–21). This event, in conjunction with creation, would continue to serve as the paradigm for Yahweh’s foremost cosmic, historical, creative, and redemptive act for the people of Israel (e.g. Josh 2; Pss 78; 89; 106). The exodus is tting to serve once again in this function for the exilic generation since it again involves liberation from a foreign oppressor, deliverance for the 35. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 118. 36. Sarah J. Dille, Mixing Metaphors: God as Mother and Father in DeuteroIsaiah (JSOTSup 398; London: T&T Clark International, 2004), 91–96. 37. Ibid., 93. 1

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purpose of worship, entry into a good land, and an act of divine warfare to be celebrated in song. Yet whereas Israel was instructed to remember continually the rst exodus as its dening moment, now Yahweh commands Israel not to remember this event any more. The rst exodus is among the former () and ancient () things, as opposed to the new things springing forth.38 Israel is no longer to trust in the Yam Suph event, but rather look to the new thing as the dening event for a new people created from amid exile. This new thing has already been initiated and ought to be observable by SI’s audience, as indicated in 43:19, “now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” In contrast to the rst exodus where water threatened the existence of Israel at the Yam Suph, this “way” is set in the wilderness where rivers ow to provide drink for God’s elect people.39 Claire Mathews observes, “Thus two events— the crossing of the sea and God’s provision for his people during the wilderness wanderings—have here, in the new exodus, been conated into one.”40 Viewed in this manner this description of the “way” is an elaboration of the transformation of the wilderness in 41:17–20. Like 43:17–20, Isa 44:3 describes the outpouring of water on a dry and thirsty land. This imagery appears within the broader context of Yahweh’s election of Jacob. Rather than provide an extended description of a transformed wilderness, the motif functions as a metaphor for the gift of the Spirit and Yahweh’s blessing upon the offspring of Jacob. This is evident in the following parallelism: For I will pour water on the thirsty land,    

I will pour my spirit upon your descendants,    

and streams on the dry ground;    

and my blessing on your offspring.    

38. Childs (Introduction, 328–29) has argued that the “former things” ( ) in SI refer to the prophecies of Isaiah ben Amoz. Yet, as demonstrated above, they do not exclusively do so. Benjamin D. Sommer makes the case that the “former things” refer to older prophecies in general in “Allusions and Illusions: The Unity of the Book of Isaiah in Light of Deutero-Isaiah’s Use of Prophetic Tradition,” in New Visions of Isaiah (ed. R. F. Melugin and M. A. Sweeney; JSOTSup 214; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1996), 184. 39. In SI the other two instances of  describe the Servant (42:1; 45:4) and in TI all three occurrences refer to the Servants (65:9, 15, 22). 40. Claire R. Mathews, Defending Zion: Edom’s Desolation and Jacob’s Restoration (Isaiah 34–35) in Context (BZAW 236; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1995), 125. 1

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Clearly the outpouring of water mirrors the outpouring of the Spirit and the streams mirror the blessing. According to this imagery, water is to be equated with the Spirit and the land, while dry ground represents the descendants of Jacob. The blessing ( ) and the reference to Jacob allude to the patriarchal narratives, and signify that the blessing given to Abraham (Gen 12:2–3) will continue to live on in the exilic generation. This blessing to all the families of the earth correlates with the gift of the Spirit, which earlier had been bestowed upon the Servant (42:1) so that he might bring justice to the nations. The gift of the Spirit and the blessing in 44:3 are to be understood as a fulllment of the initial Abrahamic promise. Klaus Baltzer may be correct in drawing a close comparison between the activity of the Spirit in Isa 44:3 and Ezek 37.41 In Ezekiel, the valley of dry bones represents the house of Israel, which has been cut off from the land (37:11) and which gains new life through the  of the LORD (37:5). When the election of Jacob (, 44:1–2), Yahweh’s role as creator (44:2), and the naming of the people (44:5) are taken into consideration, it is clear that the outpouring of the Spirit in 44:3 signies the regeneration of the people of God as Yahweh’s Servant.42 Earlier, SI lamented the fact that the people wither and fade as in the manner of the grass when the   blows on it. The text makes clear that the vegetation symbolizes the people (40:7). In 44:3 the LORD once more extends his . This time it descends upon Jacob, resulting not in fading and withering, but rather sprouting up (, 44:4) like willows near owing streams. The two previous uses of  in SI (42:9; 43:19) both refer to the new things () Yahweh is doing in contrast to the former things (). This revivication of Israel is among the new things and therefore this prophecy coincides with the previously discussed prophecies of a transformed wilderness in 41:17–20; 43:1–7, and 43:16–20. Whereas the people remain as but withering grass (40:7), 44:4 indicates that the offspring of Jacob, this new Israel created from amid exile, will ourish like willows nourished by water though the outpouring of the Spirit.43

41. K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 186. Baltzer attributes this insight to Kutsch, “Ich will meinen Geist ausgiessen auf deine Kinder,” in Das Wort, das weiter wirkt. FS K. Frör (1970): 124–25; R. Bartelmus, “Ez. 37,1–14, die Verbform weqatal und die Anfänge der Auferstehungshoffnung,” ZAW 97 (1985): 366–89. 42. See Koole, Chapters 40–48, 361; Mathews, Defending Zion, 125–27. 43. Here it is better to follow the MT and read the unique compound preposition   as  ! or simply  : “Therefore the willows sprout up among the grass.” 1

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Isaiah 51:3 makes explicit what has been previously argued. That is, the wilderness separating Israel from Yahweh is not primarily the terra intermedia between Babylon and Yehud, but it is the physical condition of Jerusalem as well as the spiritual state of its former and present inhabitants. The dual mention of comfort () in 51:3 recalls the prologue ( , 40:1) and indicates that Yahweh’s actions described in this verse fulll the announcement of 40:1–11. Contrary to Westermann, this verse is not a misplaced fragment from a hymn,44 since it contributes to the overall message of the larger pericope (51:1–52:12). Zion is the object throughout 51:3 and described as possessing waste places (), which are in turn described as a wilderness () and desert (). Earlier,  was used to described the ruins of Jerusalem (44:26; 49:19), yet in 48:21 the word recalls the place of the wilderness wanderings.45 Isaiah 51:3 evokes both senses of the word since it follows the description of Zion’s ruins (49:19), and goes on to describe these ruins as  and —two words that when collocated appear only in the context of the transformation of the wilderness (40:3; 41:19). Since the same feminine possessive particle is attached to , , and  in 51:3, it is safe to assume these words are here used interchangeably. In Isa 51:3 the joy, gladness, thanksgiving, and song are found in Zion, sounding forth from a redeemed people. Isaiah 51:3 observes that Zion, both as a city and as a people, in its desolation has become a wilderness and announces its redemption through the comfort of Yahweh. As in 44:3, this passage connects the transformation of the wilderness with the blessing of offspring rooted in the promises to Abraham (51:2). Like Sarah, who received the blessing of many offspring even though she was barren, so too Yahweh will revive and repopulate the desolate city of Zion. An eschatological goal is explicit here since Yahweh’s intention is not merely to restore Zion to her former glory, but to restore her to the glory of the garden in Eden. One need not turn to so-called proto-apocalyptic passages in TI to nd a utopian vision of a new creation paradise. Clearly SI had much more in view than a return from Babylon by Cyrus. In order for Zion to be redeemed, Yahweh must arise and defeat the powers of chaos once again in order for the transformation of the wilderness to take place. Cyrus is incapable of completing such a task. The scope of this redemption is cosmic and therefore Yahweh the divine warrior is called upon to arise in 51:9–10. In the manner of a communal 44. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 233, 237. 45. HALOT distinguishes between "  " , “site of ruins” with " " # " , “the dry land,” yet even then recognizes that the form in 51:3 is "  " .

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lament, he is called upon to rouse himself (, Pss 44:24; 80:3), don clothing in preparation for war, and awaken his arm of salvation (33:2; 51:5), of strength (40:10), and of battle (48:14). This very arm of the LORD had previously delivered his people out of Egypt (Deut 4:34). Since the context in Isa 51:9 is the days of old and generations long ago, Rahab (; cf. Job 26:12; Ps 89:11), the dragon ( ; cf. Ps 74:13–14; Isa 27:1), the sea (; cf. Pss 74:13; 89:10), and the great deep (  ; cf. Gen 1:2; 7:11) represent the primordial mythic creatures and foes present at creation. Psalms 74 and 77 convey themes similar to Isa 51:9–10: Yet God my King is from of old (; cf. 51:9), working salvation in the earth. You divided the sea (; cf. 51:10) by your might (; cf. 51:9); you broke the heads of the dragons ( ; cf. 51:9) in the waters. You crushed the heads of Leviathan; you gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness. You cut openings for springs and torrents; you dried up ever-owing streams… Rise up, O God, plead your cause; remember how the impious scoff at you all day long. (Ps 74:12–15, 22) You are the God who works wonders; you have displayed your might among the peoples. With your strong arm (; cf. 51:9) you redeemed ( ; cf. 51:10) your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Selah When the waters saw you, O God, when the waters saw you, they were afraid; the very deep ( ; cf. 51:10) trembled… Your way (; cf. 51:10) was through the sea (; cf. 51:10), your path, through the mighty waters ( ; cf. 51:10); yet your footprints were unseen. You led your people like a ock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (Ps 77:14–15, 19–20)

Not only were these forces of chaos defeated at creation and the ood, but again at the Yam Suph Yahweh fought against the sea and Pharaoh’s forces as a warrior (Exod 15:3) and defeated them in the manner he conquered the forces of chaos at creation.46 Just as the defeat of chaos led 46. See Frank Moore Cross, Jr., Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1973), 112–44; Patrick D. Miller, Jr., The Divine Warrior in Early Israel (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1973), 113–17; Bernard F. Batto, Slaying the Dragon: Mythmaking in the Biblical Tradition (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1992), 102–27; Thomas B. Dozeman, God at War: Power in the Exodus Tradition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996), 1

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to the creation of Israel at the rst exodus, again Yahweh conquers chaos to create a new Israel. Furthermore, this time he cares for his ock with greater tenderness (Isa 40:10–11). Creation, the defeat of chaos, and redemption are all intertwined. SI does not merely repeat the exodus tradition. Clearly the exodus is in view, but it is now applied in a new manner. The sea is no longer the threat. Chaos now comes in the form of the wilderness. No longer is Yahweh required to defeat the forces of chaos by a way through the sea, now Yahweh defeats chaos by means of a way through the wilderness. Richard Clifford writes: In Second Isaiah, Yahweh creates by vanquishing Desert (embodying death-dealing aridity and inertness) as he once did by vanquishing Sea. Both Desert and Sea were seen as obstacles to human existence because they blocked the entrance to Yahweh’s land, the only place where people could truly live. Yahweh vanquished the forces by building a path through them, so that the people could enter the land. Vanquishing or taming a primordial foe by putting a road through it is a special Deutero-Isaian view of creation.47

The establishment of a “way,” then, is an act of creation, divine warfare, and redemption. The announcement of a “way in the wilderness” is cosmic, historical, political, and spiritual in scope. SI combines notions of cosmic warfare, the theme of NE, and the motif of the procession to Zion into one multi-faceted root metaphor referred to as the WOL. Childs chooses to synthesize these elements in the following manner: “Because the content of God’s redemptive intervention, that is, its substance, is the same, the three events [creation, exodus, release from Babylon] have been fused together as a unied ontological witness to the one purpose of God concerning his people.”48 The exile had reversed everything the exodus had accomplished. Only a similar act by Yahweh could redeem a people for himself once again. Clifford goes on to

153–59; Carola Kloos, Yhwh’s Combat with the Sea: A Canaanite Tradition in the Religion of Ancient Israel (Leiden: Brill, 1986), 127–214. Jeremy Hutton argues that 51:9–10 expresses the exiles’ misguided expectation that Yahweh would enact salvation through outmoded mythological combat and that SI’s intent is to chasten such disbelief in God’s ability to redeem through more mundane means; see Jeremy M. Hutton, “Isaiah 51:9–11 and the Rhetorical Appropriation and Subversion of Hostile Theologies,” JBL 126 (2007): 271–303. Hutton does not address the re-emergence of the cosmic warrior in TI (59:16–18; 63:1–6). There, a cosmic battle is not the request of the community, nor is it considered necessary to accomplish Yahweh’s plan. 47. Clifford, “The Unity of the Book of Isaiah,” 8. 48. Childs, Isaiah, 403–4. 1

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comment, “Cosmogony//journey through the Sea is the original founding event for Israel. The new founding event is cosmogony//journey through the Desert.”49 The WOL, described as a transformation of the wilderness, recreates and liberates a new Israel to repopulate a new Jerusalem. The Way as Eschatological and Ethical In Isa 40:1–11 an anonymous voice from the divine council announces the revelation of the glory of Yahweh for all esh to behold. In order to experience God’s majesty preparations must be made. The   must be cleared of obstacles, and the     must be made straight.50 Isaiah 40:3 forms a chiasmus and parallelism that equates the “way of the LORD” with the “highway of our God” and the  with the :  

 

¯

¯

   

 

Many have supposed the reference to way and highway refer to a physical road from Babylon to Yehud, yet this is not likely given the verse to follow. Based upon the continuation of subject matter, speech concerning terrain, and the paronomasia in vv. 3–4 (—), v. 4 clearly elaborates upon v. 3. It is signicant that the imperatives cease with v. 3 and v. 4 follows with indicatives. That is, the audience is not commanded to lift up valleys or lower mountains and hills. This phenomena is not induced by the people, rather another unnamed agent is responsible for the leveling of terrain. The fact that this type of topographical transformation is a common biblical response to a theophany indicates that   is not a literal highway.51 Just as the temple shook and lled with smoke when Isaiah saw Yahweh’s glory (6:1–5), the

49. Clifford, “The Unity of the Book of Isaiah,” 9, emphasis added. 50. Dorsey (Roads and Highways, 31) considers this the language of road building. The picture presented is the clearing and grading of a roadway and the leveling or smoothing out of the roadbed in preparation for the arrival of a king. For example, Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562) records regarding this expedition to Lebanon, “I cut through steep mountains, I split rocks, opened passages and (thus) I constructed a straight road for the (transport of the) cedars.” See ANET, 307. 51. As outlined by J. J. Niehaus (“Theophany, Theology of,” NIDOTTE 4:1247– 250), the text of SI contains many of the characteristics of biblical theophanies: divine initiation, salvation and judgment, impartation of holiness, revelation and concealment, human fear, natural upheaval, adumbrated eschatology, and theophanic words. 1

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rough and crooked terrain is leveled and straightened when all esh now see the   . A similar phenomenon occurs in Hab 3:3–6: God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. The brightness was like the sun; rays came forth from his hand, where his power lay hidden. Before him went pestilence, and plague followed close behind. He stopped and shook the earth; he looked and made the nations tremble. The eternal mountains () were shattered; along his ancient pathways the everlasting hills () sank low.

The way of Isa 40:3 is rst and foremost Yahweh’s way, his manifestation of glory. Even though the people are commanded to clear a road, the whole landscape is leveled and smoothened due to a theophany, and therefore it is highly unlikely Yahweh requires a paved highway to traverse. If the   is associated with an ancient Israelite theophanic tradition, then 40:3–5 or 40:1–8 need not necessitate a postexilic and Yehudite provenance. Rudolf Kilian, following the studies of Rosario Merendino and Dieter Baltzer, argues that 40:1–8, particularly vv. 3–5, must be postexilic since its concept of Yahweh’s glory revealed for all esh is unrelated to the return of the Judean exiles in 40:9–11.52 Kilian believes 40:1–11 follows the pattern in Ezekiel where the return of Yahweh’s glory to Jerusalem is clearly differentiated from a return of the people, and concludes that these verses must represent a later redaction. Yet, as demonstrated above, this,   is representative of the ancient Israelite theophanic tradition of Yahweh’s march in the south. Unlike Ezekiel, in Isaiah Yahweh’s glory does not depart from Jerusalem to dwell in Babylon during the exile. SI need not correspond or mimic the tradition history associated with other prophetic books. If the universalism of SI is unique, why not other aspects of its message? In Isaiah,

52. Rudolf Kilian, “ ‘Baut eine Strasse für useren Gott!’ Überlegungen zu Jes 40,3–5,” in Künder des Wortes: Beiträge zur Theologie der Propheten (ed. L. Ruppert, P. Weimar, and E. Zenger; Würzburg: Echter, 1982), 53–60; Dieter Baltzer, Ezechiel und Deuterojesaja: Berührungen in der Heilserwartung der beiden großen Exilspropheten (BZAW 121; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1971); Rosario Pius Merendino, Er Erste und der Letzte: Eine Untersuchung von Jes 40–48 (VTSup 31; Leiden: Brill, 1981). 1

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Yahweh’s glory emanates from his heavenly temple onto the earth (6:3), is revealed in a via sacra (35:2), and will extend to the nations from Zion in the eschatological age (4:5; 11:10; 60:1–2, 13; 61:6; 62:2; 66:11–12, 18–19). For SI, the initial announcement of the revelation of the   , coupled with the people’s return to Zion in 40:9–11, is part of his rhetorical strategy to convince the exiles to embrace Cyrus’ decree. Isaiah 40:9–11 elaborates on the military image of this theophany. A messenger is called upon to go up to Zion and announce this parousia of Yahweh.53 Heralds were commonly dispatched from the front lines of warfare to bear the good news of victory (cf. 1 Sam 4:17; 2 Sam 18:19– 31). Yahweh is pictured as a warrior, returning from battle with the spoils of war. “Might” (), “arm” (), and “rule” ( ) in 40:10–11 represent the kingship of Yahweh as a warrior savior (Isa 33:2) who, through the use of such means, redeems his people in the exodus (Deut 4:34), defeats the forces of chaos (Ps 89:9–10), and liberates his people from Babylon (Jer 50:34). Although  and   connote wages and work done for wages, respectively, they can also be used in a more general sense of recompense or reward (cf. Gen 15:1; Pss 109:20; 127:3; Isa 61:8; Jer 31:16). Booty and the spoils of war may also serve as the wages ( ) given to an army (Ezek 29:18–20). What exactly is the reward and recompense that accompany Yahweh in his procession to Zion? Isaiah 40:11 describes Yahweh’s booty as none other than his own people. He is portrayed as a shepherd who has rst gathered his ock, and now gently leads and carries them home to Zion. Although the title “shepherd” was commonly used to designate kings in the ancient Near East (2 Sam 5:2), here Yahweh is depicted as a true shepherd (cf. Ps 23; Ezek 34) who cares intimately for his people. He has accomplished the task of gathering his people, a motif mentioned earlier in FI in the form of a new exodus (cf. 11:12). Psalm 78 recalls how Yahweh in Israel’s past acted as both warrior and shepherd on Israel’s behalf, leading the people to Zion, which receives this good news:

53. Commentators are divided over whether    and     ought to be taken as an appositional or epexegetical genitive, “O Zion, herald of good tidings… O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings” (NRSV), or as an objective genitive, “You who bring good things to Zion… You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem” (NIV, NJPS). Even though both are grammatically possible, the latter is to be preferred since, as Seitz observes, nowhere else in chs 40–66 is Zion/Jerusalem depicted as a messenger. In addition, other similar passages (41:27; 52:7) speak of a message to Zion. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah He struck all the rstborn in Egypt, the rst issue of their strength in the tents of Ham. Then he led out his people like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a ock. He led them in safety, so that they were not afraid; but the sea overwhelmed their enemies. And he brought them to his holy hill, to the mountain that his right hand had won. (Ps 78:51–54)

Just as Yahweh acted on behalf of the exodus generation, Isa 40:1–11 announces that Yahweh will do similarly for a people in exile. There was been much discussion around the question whether 40:3 describes a way of Yahweh to his people or a way of Yahweh with his people.54 The evidence clearly points to the latter view, although this way leads to Zion, who receives this good news. If  and   do not refer to an actual road or highway, how is the command to prepare and clear the way to be understood? Clearly the references to valleys, mountains, hills, and crooked places in v. 4 function primarily to describe a theophany. Yet these topographical features may also signify much more.  is associated with a place of death, literally (Deut 34:6) as well as symbolically (Ps 23:4), and in FI this word recalls the mysterious valley of vision ( ) of ch. 22. Since no geographical valley with this name exists, Childs is correct to interpret this reference symbolically.55 This valley is representative of Yahweh’s judgment upon Jerusalem: “For the Lord GOD of hosts has a day of tumult and trampling and confusion in the valley of vision, a battering down of walls and a cry for help to the mountains” (22:5). The valley of vision would be a place of death without the forgiveness of sins as Yahweh declares, “Surely this iniquity will not atoned for until you die” (       , 22:14). Since the text does not use the more traditional word   to convey a lling up of the valley (cf. Ezek 32:5), Koole believes  ought to be taken guratively.56 Since Jerusalem has just been told that its iniquity () is expiated (40:2), it is very possible that 40:4 reverses the judgment of the valley of vision. Whereas previously the prophet requested only bitter tears and no comfort because of the destruction of his people (       , 22:4), now comfort is offered through the restoration of God’s people (      , 40:1). Here   may have been used intentionally 54. For an extended description of the various views, see Koole, Chapters 40–48, 58–60. 55. Childs, Isaiah, 160. The poem appears to address the events following the assaults on Jerusalem in both 701 and 586. 56. Koole, Chapters 40–48, 60. 1

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not only to convey the notion of “to lift up.” Given its context,   may also contain an echo of its alternative denition, “to forgive.” To Jerusalem, the valley of vision to which Yahweh had previously pronounced no forgiveness until death, 40:1–11 now announces that every valley is   (“lifted up”), all iniquity being   (“forgiven”). The phrase to follow,     , ought not to be taken literally since  and  serve as symbols of pride in FI.57 The key indication that the mountains and hills function in this manner lies in the use of the verb . Eighteen of the thirty occurrences of this verb in the Old Testament appear in Isaiah, signifying its important function within the book. Including 40:4, all but one usage of this verb in BI refers to Yahweh’s threat or promise that the arrogant will be humbled, or functions within the context of the proud brought low.58 Its use is notable in ch. 2, which contrasts the mountain () of the LORD’s house, highest of the mountains ( ), raised above the hills ( , 2:2), with the idolatry of the house of Jacob (2:6–9). To this latter house Isaiah declares: For the LORD of Hosts has ready a day against all that is proud and arrogant (), against all that is lofty (  )—so that it is brought low ( )59 against all the cedars of Lebanon, Tall and stately, and all the oaks of Bashan; against all the high mountains ( ) and all the lofty hills (   ). (2:12–14, NJPS) 57. Cf. Zech 4:7: “What are you, O great mountain ()? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain ($).” 58. Isa 57:9 is the exception which speaks of the envoys being sent away (  ). Besides 40:4, HALOT lists 10:33 and 32:19 under the literal denition “to be (become) low, fall.” Isa 10:33 speaks of the lofty (; cf. 40:4) brought low, which refer to trees, but the larger context is clearly one discussing the pride of Jerusalem. In 32:19  is amplied by the use of the innitive construct %'  &! , a hapax legomenon which together may be translated “utterly laid low” (NRSV) or “leveled completely” (NIV). There the verb describes the downfall of a city, though the context is clearly the establishment of Yahweh’s righteousness and justice as king (32:1–20). In 25:12  describes the bringing down of secure fortications within the greater context of humbling the pride of Moab (25:10–11). 59. This last adjectival phrase breaks up the parallel structure of the verse, and BHS suggests deleting it. Other translations replace it with a synonym to “lifted up” to retain the parallelism (e.g. NRSV reads: “For the LORD of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up and high”). The LXX appears to follow this reading, although it retains the phrase, “against every one that is proud and haughty, and upon every one that is high and towering, and they shall be brought down.” 1

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Clearly, one of Yahweh’s main concerns in Isaiah is to humble the proud, who are frequently depicted as lofty mountains and hills. The primary purpose of Yahweh’s leveling of mountainous terrain in 40:4 is not for building an international highway. Bringing low every mountain and hill is Yahweh’s way of communicating to Israel that the arrogant would be humbled at the revelation of his glory. Viewed in this manner, vv. 6–8 are not an unrelated pericope added at a later stage. These verses contrast the “power and permanence of the prophetic word with the impermanence of political power and human pretensions”60 mentioned in v. 4. Since   is a hapax legomenon with a questionable etymology, little signicance can be attached to this word,61 but such is not the case with . Koole and Klaus Baltzer observe the possibility here of a word-play between the word , which here primarily refers to “uneven, bumpy terrain,” and the name Jacob (), which features so prominently in chs. 40–49 (21×).62 Klaus Baltzer points out that in 44:2 Jacob is given the name Jeshurun (), signifying that Jacob is no longer the cheat (cf. Hos 12:4–7). In SI, Yahweh transforms the character of his Servant, who was formerly the “deceitful, sly” () Jacob, to the “straight, right” () Jeshurun. In order for the nation to fulll its role as Yahweh’s servant, the people, like their ancestor, must undergo discipline and come face to face with their creator. In contrast to the views of Zimmerli, Klaus Baltzer believes, “The ethical understanding of the motif ‘prepare Yahweh’s way’, developed in later interpretation from Trito-Isaiah (Isa 57:14–21; cf. 62:10–12) by way of Malachi (3:1) down to the New Testament (Mark 1:2–3 and par.), would then be already implicit in DtIsa’s poetry.”63 If Isa 40:3 refers simply to a literal highway, then it would be the only mention of   in the Old Testament that does not possess an ethical meaning. Genesis 18:19 demonstrates the ethical connotations of this phrase: “No, 60. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55, 180. 61. Aelred Cody believes  , “rough places,” ought to be emended to “heads; mountaintops,” . By doing so a perfect palindrome with a central pivotal waw is created:   $  and the occurrence of a hapax legomenon is eliminated. This emendation provides a reading appropriate to the context: “the rough land will become a smooth land and mountaintops will become a valley.” See Aelred Cody, “A Palindrome in Isaiah 40:4b: Allowing Restoration of an Original Reading,” CBQ 66 (2004): 551–60. 62. K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 54–55; Koole, Chapters 40–48, 61. Koole attributes this view to Bacher in R. Levy, Deutero-Isaiah: A Commentary Together with a Preliminary Essay on Deutero-Isaiah’s Inuence on Jewish Thought (London: Humphrey Milford, 1925). 63. K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 55, emphasis added. 1

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for I have chosen him, that he may charge his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD ( ) by doing righteousness and justice.”64 Similarly, Ps 5:8 (9) states, “Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me (   ).” Therefore, to “prepare the way of the LORD” is to practice righteous and justice in response to Yahweh’s parousia. Klaus Koch traces a linear development of the concept of the divine way that begins with the patriarchs and continues through the exodus generation into the Davidic kingdom. As demonstrated from Gen 18:19 and Exod 33:12–14, the physical route from Egypt to Canaan also involves divine presence and righteous conduct. For Koch, exodus and ethics are conjoined: It [(* )* ] begins with the patriarchal period and ends perhaps with the rise of David’s kingdom. As in Ex. 33, derekh denotes a historical development from a fundamental promise to its nal accomplishment in external reality—a development which is brought about by God and which spans for centuries. It cannot be abstracted from the conduct of the group of people concerned.65

This is ongoing since it is salvation-historical, ethical, and eschatological. What is ultimately at stake is not whether the road is paved or unpaved. Isaiah 40:1–11’s main concern is Yahweh’s presence among his people (Exod 33:3, 12–14), which is conditional upon his people’s demonstration of righteousness and justice (Gen 18:19). This concern for Yahweh’s presence, in this case his  (Isa 40:6), and the required response of obedience (Isa 40:3–4) continue from SI into TI. Isaiah 40:4 claries the commands of 40:3. Israel is to humble itself and reform its crooked ways. Israel is to conform to the pattern of righteousness set forth earlier by Isaiah:

64. See also Judg 2:22; Prov 10:29; Jer 5:4–5. 65. K. Koch, “derekh,” TDOT 3:284. John Goldingay and David F. Payne (A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Isaiah 40–55 [2 vols.; ICC; London: T&T Clark International, 2006], 1:75) observe the multidimensional use of  in the Old Testament, recognize the supernatural description of 40:3–4, caution against literalistic interpretations of poetry, and correctly conclude that a theophany is in view here. They go on to exclude any possibility of an ethical interpretation: “In this context ‘Yhwh’s way’ can hardly mean the way of life Yhwh approves. The road is a metaphorical material one, not an ethical one.” Such a dogmatic conclusion is a little odd given that earlier they assert that 40:1–11 likely originates from the same author(s) who produced chs 56–66. If this is the case, then an ethical sense of ‘Yhwh’s way’ could certainly be on the near or far horizon of this expression given that such a meaning clearly appears in TI. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah The way of the righteous is level (); O Just One (), you make smooth the path of the righteous. In the path of your judgments, O LORD, we wait for you; your name and your renown are the soul’s desire. (26:7–8)

In the same manner the Holy One of Israel requires those he encounters to be holy (cf. 6:1–7), the Just One requires his people to be just and righteous when he comes in glory. In Isa 2 Yahweh announced that he would humble the proud and in particular bring low their idols (2:6–9, 17–18). Once again, Israel is called upon in chs. 40–48 to do exactly that. Viewed in this manner Delitzsch’s own admission of an allegorical or “spiritual” interpretation is the literal interpretation of the passage: The command, according to its spiritual interpretation, points to the encouragement of those that are cast down, the humiliation of the selfrighteous and self-secure, the changing of dishonesty into simplicity, and of unapproachable haughtiness into submission. In general, the meaning is that Israel is to take care, that the God who is coming to deliver it shall nd it in such an inward and outward state as bets His exaltation and His purpose.66

TI, as well as the New Testament writings, does not allegorize this passage. In Isaiah, the WOL is to be the way for Israel and the nations in more ways than one. The Way of Cyrus After the announcement of the manifestation of the glory of the LORD and the coming of a warrior-shepherd in the prologue, the rst actor to appear on stage in the drama of SI is an unnamed conqueror from the east in 41:2–3. Certainly the audience would wonder who this man is, and, more importantly, who he represents. It is clear that Yahweh makes the claim to raise this conqueror from the east, but what do these verses communicate as to the identity of this victor?     is a difcult phrase to translate since  can be translated as “victory” or “righteousness,” and may be the subject of  (“righteousness called him”) or its object (“he called him righteousness”).67 In keeping with 66. Delitzsch and Keil, Biblical Commentary, 7/2: 142, emphasis added. 67. Oddly, the NRSV and NJPS have included  with the previous clause, “Who has roused a victor from the east,” yet this reading is unwarranted given the disjunctive accent (zaqep qaton) above . However, Marjo Korpel and Johannes de Moor argue that the Masoretic division seems to have been determined by rabbinic exegesis which interpreted the conqueror as Abraham and therefore they include  with the rst colon. Korpel and de Moor point out that the disjunctive 1

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the larger theme of +,68 “righteousness” or “order” is the preferable reading which suggests that this one from the east will establish justice and order within his rule: “righteousness meets him at every step.” Certainly “victory” is a viable option since the following verses describe a complete conquest of the nations and kings, so one cannot be dogmatic here.69 Verse 2 clearly characterizes this one from the east as a successful international military conqueror whose suppression of nations and kings suggests he is an empire builder. His instruments of righteousness, the sword and bow, are likened to threshing implements—signifying that he is a man of war.70 In v. 3, another mention of this conqueror’s “feet” and “path” are provided:     . Here a comparison to Babylonian royal inscriptions is helpful. Here, Nebuchadnezzar recounts how, on his way to defeat his enemies, he traversed “narrow ways, closed paths, where the walking is hindered and where the foot cannot rest, difcult paths.”71 Based upon this parallel, this phrase appears to describe the ease of the victor’s conquests and may be translated, “a way—he does not touch it with his feet.”72 What is notable is the emphasis placed on the conqueror’s swift travel, military might, and righteousness. Given the expectation of a highway of the LORD and the coming of a warrior in the prologue, it is natural for the audience to assume that this victor represents Yahweh as the mighty and gentle shepherd swiftly traversing along the “way.” accent is not supported by any of the ancient versions; see Marjo C.A. Korpel and Johannes C. de Moor, The Structure of Classical Hebrew Poetry: Isaiah 40–55 (Leiden: Brill, 1998), 75. 68. Beuken provides convincing evidence that 40:12–42:17 revolve around the common concern for +; see Willem A. M. Beuken, “Mišpat: The First Servant Song and its Context,” VT 22 (1972): 1–30. Note that the repetition of the phrase    (40:31; 41:1) links chs. 40 and 41. 69. Even though  possesses different meanings in SI—“order, salvation, power”—I translate the word as “righteousness” since the word functions in a key role within SI’s argument. Goldingay and Payne (Isaiah 40–55, 1:143) summarize the use of the word in SI as “Yhwh’s doing the right thing in the exercise of power in the world in a way that pays due recognition to Israel’s ‘rights’ as Yhwh’s people.” 70. Cf. “So Jehoahaz was left with an army of not more than fty horsemen, ten chariots and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Aram had destroyed them and made them like the dust ( ; cf. 41:2) at threshing” (2 Kgs 13:7). Note also Isa 29:5: “But the multitude of your foes shall be like small dust ( ), and the multitude of tyrants like ying chaff ( ; cf. 41:15).” 71. Antti Laato, The Servant of YHWH and Cyrus: A Reinterpretation of the Exilic Messianic Programme in Isaiah 40–55 (ConBOT 35; Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 1992), 57–58. 72. Koole, Chapters 40–48, 140. 1

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Earlier exegetes, as well as some modern ones have identied this conqueror from the east to be Abraham.73 Abraham’s conquest of foreign kings (Gen 14:1–16) would certainly t the conqueror’s description in 41:2, as well as the use of , since Abraham was known for his righteousness (Gen 15:6). Certainly too the mention of the seed of Abraham in 41:8 would further bolster this interpretation. Israel, as the Servant, can receive encouragement even though the people are dispersed, oppressed, and helpless. Yahweh still considers the Israelites his elect and therefore will strengthen and uphold them (41:8–13). In vv. 15–16, Yahweh tells Israel that it will become a conqueror in a manner similar to the conqueror from the East: “Now, I will make of you a threshing sledge, sharp, new, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains () and crush them, and you shall make the hills ( ) like chaff” (Isa 41:15). The mention of mountain and hills recalls the announcement of 40:3–4 and further supports the interpretation that these topographical features ought not to be taken literally. The mountains and hills are those powers that stand in opposition to Yahweh and his people, and in this instance they are overcome with military force. This description of Israel actively engaging in military force is unique to this brief, enigmatic passage. The trial scene genre reappears in Isa 41:21, employing judicial terminology similar to the initial trial scene in 41:1–7:  (41:1, 21) and  (41:1, 21, 22). This speech reproduces much of the argumentation used in the rst scene. Yahweh alone has roused the conqueror (41:2, 25), he is God to the exclusion of all others (41:4, 26), and he has foretold these events from the beginning (41:4, 22, 26). Although this individual is stirred up from the north, the subsequent mention of the rising of the sun indicates that he can also arrive from the east like the unnamed conqueror of 41:2. In Isa 14:31, the north is the origin of Judah’s deliverance, yet in Jeremiah it is the direction from which a disaster would befall Judah (Jer 1:14; 4:6). The north, then, signies this deliverance rather than a xed geographical point of origin.74 Based upon the close ties to 41:1–3, the conqueror is undoubtedly the same in both passages. At this point in the discourse one would assume the author of SI would reveal the identity of this conqueror; instead, however, he provides an elaborate description of the Servant’s mission and installation. Whereas the Duhmian hypothesis interpreted 42:1–9 not within its immediate literary context but collocated with purported Servant Songs, 73. This interpretation is well attested in the Rabbinic tradition. See Jacob Neusner, The Talmud of Babylonia (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1996), 22:56. 74. Seitz, “Book of Isaiah 40–66,” 353. 1

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Beuken has demonstrated that the most natural way to read this text is within the context of chs. 40–42.75 Laato provides the following chiastic arrangement for the rst discourse unit of SI.76 a

40:3–11 The new exodus and hymn 40:12–20 YHWH is the God of the universe c 40:27–31 Israel will be restored d 41:1–7 The chosen one of YHWH e 41:8–20 Babylonia will be destroyed and the people will be released d 41:21–29 The chosen one of YHWH c 42:1–4 Israel will be restored through the loyal servant b 42:5–9 YHWH is the God of the universe who calls the loyal servant to fulll his universal mission 42:10–17 Hymn and the new exodus

b

a

According to this structure, central to the redemptive plan of Yahweh is Israel’s acceptance of the chosen one of Yahweh who will bring an end to the oppression of Babylon. The Servant, then, is inextricably tied to Cyrus and much overlap exists between their identity and roles. Some commentators have gone on to identify the Servant of 42:1–9 as Cyrus.77 It is beyond the scope of this study to provide a full discussion regarding the identity of the Servant. What is pertinent to this study is that because the identities of the Servant and Cyrus at this point in the discourse are undisclosed, the emphasis of SI’s instruction is on Yahweh’s actions rather than his agents. The focus of this passage is on the word “justice” not “servant.”78 That is, at this point it is more important for Israel to know what Yahweh will do, rather than through whom he will accomplish it. What is signicant to observe in 42:1–9 is the absence of military imagery prevalent in the prior descriptions of the unnamed conqueror (41:2–3, 25) and Israel (41:15–16). This imagery once again appears in 42:13–17 in dramatic fashion and here it is solely assigned to Yahweh. Yet Yahweh and the Servant possess overlapping roles. Both Yahweh and the Servant will liberate the blind (, 42:7, 16) and bring light 75. Beuken, “Mišpat.” Korpel and de Moor (Structure of Classical Hebrew Poetry, 156) divide ch. 42 into three sub-cantos consisting of A (42:1–9), B (42:10– 17), and C (42:18–20). Blenkinsopp (Isaiah 40–55, 214) observes numerous links between vv. 1–9 and 10–17: the glory and praise of Yahweh (vv. 8, 10), the motif of blindness and darkness (vv. 7, 16), the islands and coastlands (vv. 4, 10, 12), the abjuration of idols (vv. 8, 17), and the “new things” and “new song” (vv. 9–10). 76. Laato, Servant and Cyrus, 206. 77. See Watts, Isaiah 34–66, 210. 78. Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40–55, 1:213. 1

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(, 42:6, 16) to those in darkness (, 42:7, 16). Both act in “leading/ going out” (, 42:1, 3, 7, 13), a term used to describe marching out into battle. In the Hiphil form, as in the case of 42:1–9,  is the most frequent term used to describe the bringing out of Israelites from Egypt. Although the explicit declaration of war in 42:13 recalls the conqueror passages associated with Cyrus in ch. 41, the description evokes the theophanic Sinai traditions introduced earlier in 40:4. Yahweh’s battle as a warrior and a man of war is rst and foremost his ancient, mythic march from Edom, an event which brings judgment through theophany. Richard Clifford surveys all the “March in the South” passages (Deut 33:2–3; Judg 5:4–5; Ps 68:8; Hab 3:3–6) and concludes that all share archaic meter, vocabulary, and ideas.79 From these common sources an ancient Israelite tradition can be reconstructed. Yahweh begins a march in the mountain country of Sinai, Seir, Paran, or Teman. He leads an army of  (Deut 33:2–3; Ps 68:18) through the desert and mountainous area of Edom, and overturns nature in the process of trampling nations (Hab 3:3–15). Axelson observes in the case of the theophany in Hab 3:3, “Here the coming of Eloah is an ongoing phenomenon, that is, unnished. The prophet is thinking and speaking in the future or the present, but in doing so he makes use of ‘age-old conceptions of living and the nature of the divinity’ as his means of expression.”80 Since this march is on-going or unceasing, Yahweh may reappear in history in a theophany that is consistent with his ancient march from Edom. Yahweh’s actions in 42:15 appear to contradict his transformation of the wilderness prevalent in Isaiah, since in this instance he dries up pools rather than creates them (cf. 35:7; 41:18). Yet this phenomenon is consistent with God’s acts of judgment against oppressors and blessing for the oppressed in Ps 107: He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the wickedness of its inhabitants. 79. Richard J. Clifford, The Cosmic Mountain in Canaan and the Old Testament (HSM 4; Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1972), 119. Lars Axelsson attributes the origins of this tradition to the Sinai pericope. Lars Eric Axelsson, The Lord Rose Up from Seir: Studies in the History and Traditions of the Negev and Southern Judah (ConBOT 25; Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 1987), 64. 80. Axelsson, The Lord Rose Up from Seir, 53. Axelsson bases his interpretation on the use of the Qal imperfect form used in Hab 3:3 (," ), which differs from the Qal perfect form in Deut 33.2 (" ). Similar to Hab 3:3, the Qal imperfect form is used in Isa 42:13 (  ). 1

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He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. (Ps 107:33–35)

Viewed in this manner 42:15 need not be considered contradictory to passages such as 41:17–20 or as a separate act of redemption. This interpretation is supported by the fact that in both passages Yahweh declares the exact same phrase, “I do not forsake them” (  , 41:17; 42:16). Goldingay and Payne consider these “tensive” as opposed to “steno” symbols.81 That is, SI’s imagery is exible and porous rather than precise and bounded, so it ought not to be interpreted in a positivistic manner. Including the links mentioned above, Ps 107:7 also recalls how in the rst exodus “he led them ( ) by a straight way ( ), until they reached an inhabited town.” By the use of similar terminology, SI announces that a second, new exodus is taking place. This desiccation of the landscape is not a reversal of the Transformation of the Wilderness theme, but instead contributes to the larger image of converting untraversable terrain into level ground for the purposes of extending a road for travel. In order to accomplish this task in 42:15–16, the mountains () and hills ( ) need to be laid waste and the crooked places made into level ground () for a road () to be established. Such language recalls vv. 3–4 of the prologue to SI. Since a theophanic appearance is also depicted, 42:15–16 describe Yahweh’s commitment to what was previously announced in the prologue. He is willing to march out in battle and return to Zion with a redeemed people. Blenkinsopp believes that the catastrophic effects of this upheaval of nature in these verses—mountains, hills, rivers, pools—is reminiscent of the anti-Babylonian oracle of ch. 13: See, the day of the LORD comes, cruel, with wrath and erce anger, to make the earth a desolation, and to destroy its sinners from it. For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light. I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant, and lay low the insolence of tyrants. (Isa 13:9–11)

Blenkinsopp concludes that 42:14–16 must point to the same historical referent as ch. 13, with God’s silence in v. 14 corresponding to the 81. Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40–55, 1:246. 1

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period of Babylonian conquest.82 If Blenkinsopp is correct, the mythic and cosmic language of 42:13–16 is fullled historically in Cyrus’s overthrow of Babylonian powers and his release of Judean exiles.83 Klaus Baltzer interprets 42:13 as the description of events in the heavenly sphere which parallel the earthly realm similar to Judg 5:19–20 and Dan 10–11. He then concludes, “So if in the context of DtIsa’s book Yahweh goes forth to battle, this will hardly be any battle other than the one that Cyrus wages in the earthly sphere to bring about the downfall of Babylon.”84 Cyrus, then, in this instance, represents Yahweh as a warrior and a man of war who leads and guides the blind on a “way.” The Persian conqueror is the means by which Yahweh returns to Zion leading his people as a shepherd as announced previously in the prologue (40:10–11). Isaiah 44:24–45:13 makes clear that the previously unnamed conqueror is none other than the Persian king Cyrus. Yahweh asserts himself as the Sovereign Creator who possesses the prerogative to choose whomever he wishes, in this case a pagan king, to carry out his plan. At this point it is worth listing the linguistic afnities between the Cyrus texts and the Servant texts within SI. Laato provides the following observations regarding the shared phraseology in the Cyrus and Servant passages:85 41:2 46:11 41:2 45:13

Cyrus Passages Who has roused a victor from the east calling a bird of prey from the east calling him in righteousness to his service? I have aroused Cyrus in righteousness

43:5

42:6

Servant Passages I will bring your offspring from the east

I have called you in righteousness

82. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55, 215. 83. Hans Barstad (A Way in the Wilderness: The “Second Exodus” in the Message of Second Isaiah [JSSM 12; Manchester: University of Manchester, 1989], 53) acknowledges the image of Yahweh as warrior-shepherd portrayed in 40:10 and 42:13, but objects to the notion that these verses describe the return of the Judeans from Babylon in a New Exodus. Although Barstad’s criticisms of literal interpretations of a “way” is timely, his constructive proposals are not as helpful. In keeping with his belief that the exile was a myth, he assumes that metaphorical language cannot possess historical referents and must refer to a general message of salvation. 84. K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 141. 85. This is an abbreviated list from Laato, The Servant of YHWH and Cyrus, 45–46. 1

3. The “Way of the LORD” in Isaiah 40:1–52:12 41:2

45:1

He delivers up nations to him, and tramples kings under foot to subdue nations before him and strip kings of their robes

49:6

I will give you as a light to the nations

49:7

Kings shall see and stand up, princes, and they shall prostrate themselves so he shall startle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths

52:15

41:25 45:3

one from the rising sun who calls on my name who call you by your name

42:6

45:4

I call you by your name

43:1

48:15

and I called him

43:7

44:28

and he shall fulll all my purpose I will do all I have purposed

53:10

46:10 48:14

he shall perform his purpose on Babylon

45:1

whose right hand I have grasped

75

41:9

53:10

41:10 41:13 42:6

from its farthest corners I called you I have called you in righteousness I have called you by name, you are mine. everyone who is called by my name Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand

I will uphold you with my victorious right hand For I, the LORD your God, grasp your right hand I have grasped you by the hand

48:14

The LORD loves him

41:8

the offspring of Abraham, whom I have loved

48:15

and he will prosper in his way

53:10

the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand

Based upon the fact “that almost every concrete statement about Cyrus has parallels in the servant passages,”86 it is fair to assume that Cyrus and the Servant are related in some way within the argument of SI. Not only are Cyrus and the Servant connected through common lexemes, but they are tied together structurally as well:

86. Ibid., 37. 1

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1.

2.

3. 4.

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

Both the introduction of Cyrus and the introduction of the Servant begin with similar disputative speech:       (41:1);       (49:1). Hymns or hymnic fragments conclude the presentation of the Servant (42:10–13; 49:13) as well as presentation of Cyrus (45:8). 41:1–42:17 form a distinct pericope in which the introduction of the Servant is intertwined with the introduction of Cyrus. Both 42:5–8 (    ) and 45:11–13 (      ) begin with similar introductory formula.

Yahweh holds both the Servant Israel and Cyrus by their right hand, calls upon them by name, and calls them in righteousness. The mission of the Servant and the unnamed conqueror fullls the announcement of the end of exile in the prologue. It is no surprise, then, to observe that the language of the prologue is once again alluded to in this commissioning speech of Cyrus. Earlier the prologue demonstrated the concern to repopulate and rebuild Jerusalem and the cities of Judah (40:2, 9–11), which are assumed to be devastated and uninhabited. Cyrus’s mission is to return the people to Jerusalem, rebuild the city, and restore the Temple (44:26, 28). It is for these reasons that Cyrus subdues nations and kings and the mountains87 are leveled before him. In the same manner the prologue spoke of leveling high or crooked terrain, Yahweh now makes level the exalted places on behalf of Cyrus in 45:2. For Cyrus, the exalted places clearly include the powers of Babylon, and their subjugation of Israelites.88 In 45:13 Yahweh makes straight Cyrus’s ways (   ). The choice of  and  clearly evoke the announcement of a level way in the prologue as well as the exodus tradition. As in 40:1–11, the speech involving exalted places and a way may include the literal, but is 87. In 45:2 the hapax legomenon - !  . can be read as a passive participle of , “to honor.” The difculty with this word is clearly its use with . Westermann observes a link between this verse and 40:3 and therefore emends the text to  , “ways.” Laato and K. Baltzer believe the word is a cognate of the Akkadian

term dru, “inner wall,” which is supported by the immediate context. The LXX and 1QIsa read “hills” , which suggests the very plausible daleth–resh confusion. Emanuel Tov believes this to be the original reading and the waw to be an addition; see his Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible (rev. ed.; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2001), 254. Even if one adopts the lectio difcilior of the MT (“exalted places”), this reading includes the notion of “hills” or “ways” because of the strong connection with 40:3–4. 88. K. Baltzer (Deutero-Isaiah, 225) observes that the vivid details of v. 2 can be viewed as a description of the capture of Babylon. 1

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not restricted to it. What is noteworthy is that it is Yahweh himself who prepares the “ways” and numbers the proud on Cyrus’s behalf. Within the rhetorical argument of SI, Cyrus is initially portrayed as the shepherd of 40:9–11 who returns to Jerusalem and its cities (44:26–28). If this is the case, then the command to prepare a way in 40:3–4 for the arrival of Yahweh is to be understood as a command to receive Cyrus as Israel’s liberator, shepherd, and anointed one. Yahweh himself responds to the command from the anonymous heavenly voice to prepare a way and humbles the proud and exalted powers on Cyrus’ behalf. SI adamantly insists that Cyrus’s victories are granted him not because of his military prowess but because of Yahweh’s prerogative. What is shocking is that the one to come initially to Israel is not Yahweh himself or a Judean king, but instead Yahweh’s representative, the pagan king Cyrus. Therefore the arrival of Cyrus immediately creates a tension in Israel’s eschatological expectations. A way in the manner of 40:3–4 is prepared for Cyrus and he returns the exiles in the manner of the warrior-shepherd of 40:9–11. Yet what is quickly evident is that he certainly does not fulll the prophecy of a theophanic revelation in 40:5. Therefore, even as the faithful embrace Cyrus as Yahweh’s anointed, they know SI’s pronouncement is yet to be completely fullled.89 In response to those who may object to Yahweh’s methods, Yahweh makes clear that this “stirring up” of Cyrus (cf. Isa 13:17; 41:2, 25; Ezra 1:1; 2 Chr 36:22) is in continuity with righteousness (, 45:13). That is, Yahweh’s methods of redemption, however outrageous they may initially appear, do not violate his sense of order.90 89. Speculation upon the reception of SI’s message ought not to dominate the exegesis of these chapters. Based upon the historical information that Cyrus re-established the worship of Marduk, Blenkinsopp concludes that the golah community grew disillusioned with the Persian king, who they initially viewed as a Messianic gure (42:1–9). He believes chs. 49–55, with its focus on an individual prophet as the Servant, results from this disappointment; see Joseph Blenkinsopp, “Second Isaiah—Prophet of Universalism,” JSOT 41 (1988): 90–91. Rikki E. Watts assumes that SI intended his prophecies to be completely realized by the golah community and believes that chs. 40–55 have been written as an apologetic for the failure of the return from exile. He believes the ambiguity of the Servant’s identity in 42:1–9 results from Israel’s rejection of Cyrus as an agent of Yahweh; see Rikki E. Watts, “Consolation or Confrontation? Isaiah 40–55 and the Delay of the New Exodus,” TynBul 41 (1990): 55–59. Blenkinsopp and Watts emphasize the discontinuity between Cyrus and the Servant and base their interpretations of disappointment on an argument from silence. Interpretations that suggest disappointment as the primary motivation behind SI’s prophecy run against the theological grain of the work, since according to 40:8 and 55:10–11 Yahweh’s plans do not fail. 90. See n. 69 for the use of  in SI. 1

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Following a brief mention in 46:11, Cyrus’s nal appearance in BI is within the concluding exhortation to ee Babylon in 48:12–22. These Cyrus texts occur within the context of the anti-Babylonian polemic (chs. 46–48). Once again, Yahweh prefaces his choice of Cyrus with his selfassertion as Sovereign creator (48:12–13). In disputational speech directed toward Israel (48:12, 14), Yahweh once again reafrms his choice of Cyrus as his agent of redemption. Just as Yahweh declared his love for Abraham (41:8) and Israel (43:4), in 48:14 he announces his love () for Cyrus.91 Rather than emending the text to clarify exactly whose love, desire, and arm (or “seed”) the text refers to, the MT ought to be preferred and the ambiguity maintained. In 48:15 the election of Cyrus is once again afrmed as a manifestation of Yahweh’s enduring word (; cf. 40:8; 44:26; 45:19, 23; 46:11) and therefore Cyrus will succeed ( ; cf. 55:11) in his way ( ). Since Yahweh’s enduring word cannot fail (cf. 40:8; 55:10–11) Cyrus is guaranteed success because it is Yahweh who makes level Cyrus’s way (cf. 45:13). What, then, is Cyrus’s “way”? Is it ethical, cultic, or eschatological? Cyrus’s “way” differs from that of Israel and the Servant. Cyrus’s way is clearly his victory over the Babylonians (v. 14). Therefore the leveling of Cyrus’s ways (45:13) has nothing to do with his pride or a straight highway. Instead, it refers to his military conquest of other powers which are explicitly identied as the Babylonians. Cyrus serves no other purpose in SI than this: to rid Israel of Babylon and initiate the restoration of Zion and the Temple. No apology needs to be made on his behalf for any purported failures because, as SI eventually makes clear, his is a limited role in the redemption of Israel. After ch. 48, all talk of Cyrus and the “former things” and “new things” comes to an end. After speaking about the success of Cyrus’s way (48:15), Yahweh reminds Israel that he instructs the people for their own welfare, the purpose being for them to walk in the way he has prepared for them (          , 48:17). Westermann is correct to observe that “this is the same preparing of the way as is spoken of in the prologue (40.3f.),”92 but he incorrectly interprets  as a literal highway stretching from Babylon to Yehud. The “way” that Israel is diligently to pursue is an ethical manner of life, the practice of justice and righteousness. This interpretation is supported by the fact that in the 91. The variants—“loves me” (1QIsaa), “because he loves Israel” (Targ.), “out of love for you” (minus the divine name) (LXX), and “he brings him” (BHS)—all reect a penchant to preserve orthodoxy, and therefore ought to be considered the emendations of subsequent tradents. 92. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 202. 1

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very next verse, in 48:18, Yahweh expresses his longing for Israel to heed his commands (    )93 so that they might receive his blessings. In this vein Koch writes, “The derekh on which Yahweh will lead Israel means much more, of course, than the actual road on which the exiles will return to Palestine. It includes divine commandments (misvoth) which come from afar and into which salvation comes to be integrated (48:17–19).”94 Preparation for the parousia of the LORD requires Torah obedience. The resulting blessing from obedience includes the Abrahamic promise of proliferation of descendants (Gen 22:17). The description of a river and waves of the sea in 48:18 suggests an overowing abundance, a reversal of Yahweh’s judgment on Egypt to dry up the river and sea (19:15; 50:2). The association of righteousness with water in 48:18 recalls Yahweh’s moral expectation for his kingdom prior to the exile: “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everowing stream” (Amos 5:24). Although the imagery differs here, the blessing of peace and righteousness recalls the eschatological promise of 32:15–18, which tells of the Spirit being poured out: Until a spirit from on high is poured out on us, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful eld, and the fruitful eld is deemed a forest. Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness abide in the fruitful eld. The effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever. My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places. (Isa 32:15–18)

In 48:16b Yahweh commissions his Servant along with his Spirit so that Israel might keep Yahweh’s commandments and in doing so practice justice and righteousness. Because this emphasis on Torah obedience is inconsistent with a Wellhausenian form of Israelite religion and the Duhmian hypothesis, commentators have considered these verses a 93. Whether or not &"  '  ! should be understood in the past tense, “O that you had paid attention to my commandments!” (NRSV, NIV), or the present tense, “If only you would heed My commands!” (NJPS), the following clause indicates that the yiqtol expresses “a wish that something expected in the future may have already happened” (GKC §151e, 477; also Waltke and O’Connor 40.2.2d, 680). Or as Christopher R. North paraphrases the sentence (The Suffering Servant in DeuteroIsaiah [2d ed.; Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1956], 182), “Would that you had (but you did not), and yet you still may.” 94. K. Koch, “derekh,” TDOT 3:290. 1

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post-exilic addition.95 Such a view is unnecessary since Yahweh’s concern in SI is for the establishment of justice and righteousness through his law (42:4, 21; 51:4, 7). Also, 48:16b–22 functions as a transitional text bringing an end to the “exilic age” and initiating the “post-exilic age.” That is, the exhortation to ee Babylon in vv. 21–22 assumes that Babylon will soon be no more, Cyrus will be able to fulll his mission, and Israel will be free to return to Jerusalem. It is this coming event that now prompts the Servant-prophet to come forward and prepare the people to act rightly as they restore Jerusalem. The urgent exhortation to depart from Babylon in 48:20–21 is patterned after the command to ee Egypt in the exodus. The verb  functions as a key-word associated with the exodus narratives (e.g. Exod 11:8; 12:41; 13:3–4; 16:1).96 The mention of thirsting in a desert and the provision of water from a rock undoubtedly recall the test in the wilderness (Exod 17:1–7) and Moses and Aaron’s failure to trust (Num 20:1– 13; see also Ps 78:15–20). This memory provides a sober expectation for the exiles in their plight. Certainly 48:17–19 indicate that redemption from Babylon is not entirely unconditional. Yahweh expects this generation to keep his commandments, unlike past generations that failed to do so. Yet this memory is not intended to be ominous in tone but rather reassuring. Yahweh reminds Israel that the exodus generation did not thirst and the mention of the cessation of thirst signies once again that the exile is over. Isaiah earlier dened the exile as a state of hunger and thirst: “Therefore my people go into exile without knowledge; their nobles are dying of hunger, and their multitude is parched with thirst” (5:13). By mentioning thirsting in the desert and the subsequent provision of water, the previous promises to transform the desert are once again evoked (41:17; 44:3). This generation need not fear the desert because SI makes clear that Yahweh overcomes the forces of chaos embodied in the wilderness. Israel can now ee Babylon not in fear, but with shouts of joy (48:21). Laato argues that the parallels between the Servant and Cyrus passages originate traditio-historically from the same royal tradition as evidenced in Akkadian royal inscriptions.97 Richard Schultz also observes a royal 95. E.g. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 204. 96. See H. D. Preuss, “,” TDOT 6:233–49. 97. Laato nds the following motifs or themes present within the Servant and Cyrus passages of Isa 40–55 and Akkadian royal texts: (1) the king’s name is called or proclaimed by the gods; (2) the king is loved and favored by the gods; (3) the king is chosen by the gods; (4) the king is shepherd; (5) the king is servant; (6) the creation and destiny of the king; (7) the divine predestination and election of the 1

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motif common to Cyrus and the Servant. However, rather than originating from an Akkadian tradition, he believes “the ‘Servant’ of Isaiah 40– 55 can be understood as a complementary portrait to the King of Isaiah 1–39.”98 Gwilym Jones believes that SI draws a typological connection between Abraham and the Persian king.99 For him, Isa 41:2–4, along with 41:25, contain a double allusion to both Abraham and Cyrus. He believes the “former things” of SI refer to Israel’s past and ch. 41 is linked typologically with the sacred history of the patriarchs. In a similar manner Graham Ogden argues that the literary afnities between the Cyrus Song of 44:24–45:13 and the presentation of Moses in Exod 6–13 demonstrates that Cyrus functions in a role analogous to Moses.100 Viewed in this manner the transformation of the wilderness described in Isa 41:17–20 initially refers to the military victories of Cyrus. Craig Broyles suggests Isa 44:27–28 contain an echo of Ps 77:16–20 (17–21), which then creates a Moses–Cyrus nexus:101 When the waters saw you, O God, when the waters saw you, they were afraid; The very deep trembled. The clouds poured out water; the skies thundered; your arrows ashed on every side. The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lit up the world; the earth trembled and shook.

king in the womb of his mother; (8) the king is the one to whom gods stretched out their hands; (9) the king walks safely on treacherous ways with the aid of deity; (10) the deity will be with or walk with the king. See Laato, Servant of YHWH and Cyrus, 47–68. 98. Richard Schultz, “The King in the Book of Isaiah,” in The Lord’s Anointed: Interpretation of Old Testament Messianic Texts (ed. P. E. Satterthwaite, R. S. Hess, and G. J. Wenham; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 1995), 159. 99. Gwilym H. Jones, “Abraham and Cyrus: Type and Anti-type?,” VT 22 (1972): 316. 100. Graham S. Ogden, “Moses and Cyrus,” VT 28 (1978): 195–203. Gordon Hugenberger views the Servant as a Second Moses and Cyrus as a Pharaoh gure in “The Servant of the Lord in the ‘Servant Songs’ of Isaiah,” in Satterthwaite, Hess, and Wenham, eds., The Lord’s Anointed, 105–40. While the Servant may be a Second Moses gure, Cyrus cannot be equated with Pharaoh in any way. Unlike Pharaoh, Cyrus does not prevent a new exodus. Rather, he is the initial agent to bring it to pass. 101. Craig C. Broyles, “The Citations of Yahweh in Isaiah 44:26–28,” in Broyles and Evans, eds., Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah, 409–10. 1

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Your way was through the sea, your path, through the mighty waters; yet your footprints were unseen. You led your people like a ock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (Ps 77:16–20 [17–21])

Klaus Baltzer has gone on to identify the Servant of 42:1–9 as Moses.102 Even though great overlap exists between Cyrus and the Servant, as the discourse progresses the roles of these agents are clearly distinguished. The Cyrus speech functions in a central role within chs. 40–48, yet after ch. 48 the Persian conqueror is displaced by the Servant as the focal gure. SI distinguishes the identity and role of Cyrus and the Servant beginning with ch. 44. In 44:22c Yahweh exhorts Israel, “Return () to me, for I have redeemed you.” Laato correctly observes that  communicates that the “disloyal Israel must turn to YHWH and believe the proclamation of his loyal servant and return to Judah where YHWH will establish the new marvelous era for his people (51:4– 52:6).”103 The redemptive work of YHWH proclaimed to Israel in SI contains two facets: a geographical  and a spiritual . This same idea is captured in Jer 31:21: “Set up road markers for yourself, make yourself guideposts; consider well the highway ( ), the road () by which you went. Return (), O virgin Israel, return () to these your cities.” Here Markus Zehnder classies   and  as concrete spatial uses of the word referring to the road from Babylon to Yehud. Yet he recognizes that it also includes an eschatological and moral meaning given its close proximity to what he considered an Eschatologische Wunderstrasse use of  in Jer 31:9, as well as the moral connotations of the phrase, “the road/way by which you went.”104 Israel is to return both to Yahweh and to Judah. Previously the Davidic king of Israel led the nation both spiritually and politically. In Isa 40–52 these roles have been divided between the pagan king Cyrus and the Servant. Whereas Cyrus’s task is merely political, the Servant’s task embraces both (cf. 42:1, 49:5–13). The transference from Cyrus to the Servant within the discourse of SI is on a political–spiritual continuum rather than a disappointment–fulllment one. Moreover, whereas Israel is to place its trust in the rule of Cyrus, it is actively to take on the role of the Servant. Hermisson summarizes the relationship between Israel, Cyrus, and the Servant as follows:

102. 103. 104. 1

K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 124–37. Laato, Servant and Cyrus, 104. Zehnder, Wegmetaphorik, 298–99.

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Each of these three entities is given a function in the eschatological turning point of salvation, and each in its own way plays a part in effecting universal salvation: Cyrus in world conquest and the subjection of the nations, and therefore in a temporally limited kingdom; Israel as Yahweh’s passive witness, the object of his saving activity; and the Servant as his active witness, who through his proclamation establishes Yahweh’s salutary order to the ends of the earth.105

Since the nature of their tasks varies, the means by which these agents of Yahweh accomplish their goals differ dramatically. Whereas Cyrus carries out the will of Yahweh through military conquest, the Servant accomplishes Yahweh’s will through suffering and death. The reason for initially withholding the identity of the unnamed conqueror and the conation of the descriptions of the Servant and Cyrus is to demonstrate the sovereign will of Yahweh. The repeated refrain, “I am Yahweh, I am he” throughout the Servant and Cyrus passages reiterates this fact: Yahweh as creator is free to choose who he so desires to carry out his redemptive plan. Yahweh’s agents are dispensable. The similarity between the Servant and Cyrus communicates to Israel that it does not possess the sole claim as Yahweh’s instrument. Even though Yahweh in a brief moment announces to Israel that it will be a military force (41:15–16), quickly this role is reassigned solely to Cyrus rather than to the Servant. The very task Israel assumed to be uniquely its own, Yahweh has transferred to another agent. The exile conrms the fact that Israel has forfeited its privileged status in Yahweh’s plan. In his “new things,” Yahweh is free to choose new agents for his service. Given that mention of the “former things” and “new things” end with ch. 48, it is clear that Cyrus is inextricably linked to the “new things.” For this reason Cyrus is not a parenthesis in the economy of salvation. The election of Cyrus is an eschatological event. In a real, yet incomplete sense, Cyrus’s deliverance is the NE, the transformation of the wilderness. Why delay the name? Yahweh knew Israel would have difculty accepting Cyrus as his “servant” so he initially kept him unnamed. By associating him with such legendary gures as Abraham, Moses, and David, Israel would have no choice but to accept him once his identity was revealed. Cyrus embodies the best of patriarchal, Mosaic, and royal ideals. As a righteous conqueror Cyrus demonstrates a correspondence with Abraham; as the liberator of a new exodus Cyrus resembles Moses; 105. Hans-Jürgen Hermisson, “The Fourth Servant Song in the Context of Second Isaiah,” in The Suffering Servant: Isaiah 53 In Jewish and Christian Sources (ed. B. Janowski and P. Stuhlmacher; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2004), 45, original emphasis. 1

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and as a temple builder Cyrus follows the pattern of the Davidic king.106 SI in effect is telling Israel that they are being recreated through a New Abraham, New Moses, and New David/Solomon. A new history has begun with the astonishing news that the pagan king Cyrus will found this new Israel. Carol Myers observes that the construction of the First Temple was linked to creation: “The foundation of the Temple thus becomes a protological event, going back to the beginnings of time and established by God, not by either David or Solomon (see Ps 78:69– 70).”107 So too the commission of Cyrus as a temple builder in SI is prefaced and concluded by Yahweh’s self-assertion as creator (44:24; 45:8, 12, 18). The election of Cyrus is a moment of Urzeit in which he functions as an agent of creation in forming a new people and new temple through a new exodus. Yet like David, Cyrus does not complete the task of temple construction (cf. 1 Kgs 5:1–5). That project is completed by the faithful servants of the post-exilic generation (cf. Neh 1:4–11) led by Sheshbazzar, Zerubbabel, and Nehemiah. The announcement of Cyrus as a messianic gure is received with shock and disbelief as evidenced in SI’s rebuke of a stubborn people (46:8–11; 48:12–16) who hear the conqueror’s name, yet still choose to disbelieve. This doubt is understandable, as Schoors points out: To Ezekiel, the expected ‘good’ shepherd is a David redivivus. Thus the utterance of Dt.-Is. is more shocking. He gives the epithet to a pagan king, who obtains a place, appointed by God, in his salvic order. The expected liberator will not be a scion of the Davidic house but the pagan Cyrus.108

Although much overlap exists between the Servant and Cyrus, and Cyrus and David, SI makes clear that they are dissimilar as well. SI’s discourse demonstrates that Yahweh will accomplish his act of redemption ultimately through his Servant, although in an unexpected manner. Not only will his Servant suffer and die vicariously, but in doing so generate offspring who will complete Yahweh’s plans. 106. As a temple builder, David/Solomon and Cyrus follow the general pattern of ancient Near Eastern royal expectations, as noted by Keith Whitelam: “One of the major responsibilities of ancient Near Eastern kingship was the provision of a temple for the god of the state. This act of temple building provided the symbolic expression of the god as the guarantor of the state and the dynasty (2 Sam 5:12)… It [the temple] was, thereby, a symbolic statement of the king’s relationship with the god and his divine right to rule.” K. Whitelam, “King and Kingship,” ABD 4:46–47. 107. C. Myers, “Temple, Jerusalem,” ABD 6:360. 108. Antoon Schoors, I am God Your Saviour: A Form-Critical Study of the Main Genres in Isa XL–LV (VTSup 24; Leiden: Brill, 1973), 270. 1

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The Way of the Servant Given the shared language regarding the Servant of 42:1–9 and the Cyrus passages, it is no wonder that several scholars have identied the Servant of 42:1–9 as Cyrus.109 Yet, as noted above, signicant differences exist between the description of the Servant in ch. 42 and the overall portrayal of Cyrus. As ch. 48 draws to a close the identity of the Servant remains open. Immediately after the nal remarks regarding Cyrus, an anonymous individual prophet is commissioned as the Servant in ch. 49. This prophet will speak in 49:1–52:12, and be spoken of in 52:13–53:12. By granting this prophet the title “Servant,” a continuity is created between the ministry of the Servant of chs. 49–53, and the Servant and Cyrus of chs. 40–48. The voice of the prophet Servant of chs. 49–53 speaks for the rst time when he states, “And now the Lord GOD has sent me and his spirit” (48:16b). It may be possible that this short fragment of the prophet’s speech may have been added to the end of ch. 48 to strengthen the continuity between chs. 40–48 and 49–52. This Servant is endowed with the Spirit and appointed the task of reminding Israel to walk in the “way.” The rhetorical function of ch. 49 is to clarify that though Cyrus may have played a role as a servant of Yahweh, it is the Servant-prophet of chs. 49–53 who truly fullls the role of the Servant of chs. 40–48. As much as semantic overlap exists between 42:1–6 and the Cyrus texts, the verbal similarities between 42:1–6 and 49:1–12 are much more pronounced: Isaiah 42

Isaiah 49

v. 1

he will bring forth justice to the nations

v. 6

I will give you as a light to the nations

v. 1

he will bring forth justice to the nations he will faithfully bring forth justice until he has established justice in the earth

v. 4

yet surely my justice is with the LORD

and the coastlands wait for his teaching

v. 1

Listen to me, O coastlands

v. 3 v. 4 v. 4

109. Watts, Isaiah 34–66, 186–19; Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55, 300–301; Philip R. Davies, “God of Cyrus, God of Israel: Some Religio-Historical Reections on Isaiah 40–55,” in Words Remembered, Texts Renewed: Essays in Honour of John F.A. Sawyer (ed. J. Davies, G. Harvey, and W. Watson; JSOTSup 195; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic Press, 1995), 219; Fried, “Cyrus the Messiah?” 1

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v. 6

I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations

v. 6

I will give you as a light to the nations

v. 6

I have given you as a covenant to the people

v. 8

and given you as a covenant to the people



The individual prophet who speaks in 48:16 and 49:1–52:12 now functions as the faithful embodiment of the nation of Israel (49:3) that failed to fulll its role (cf. 48:1–2). Yahweh’s intention to bring forth justice to the nations will now be realized through an individual. Because of Israel’s failure and Cyrus’s inadequacies, this prophet is given the additional task of restoring Israel. Whereas Cyrus’s means of accomplishing righteousness are the sword and the bow, these weapons are merely metaphors to describe the prophet’s tools—his speech: “He made my mouth like a sharp sword (; cf. 41:2), in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he hid me away” (49:2). This verse highlights the difference between the two agents of Yahweh. Both seek political goals (42:1, 6–7; 49:5–6), but whereas Cyrus accomplishes this feat through military conquest, the prophet does so through preaching and suffering. Many have recognized that a signicant transition occurs between chs. 48 and 49 in the discourse of SI. I believe a change in rhetorical perspective or setting takes place with the start of ch. 49. Like Cyrus, this Servant is called upon to bring back Israel. Yet he is also to “apportion the desolate heritages” (49:8), a role never assigned to the Persian king. This prophet like Moses leads his people in a new exodus (49:9–11), and like Joshua divides the land among the tribes (49:8; cf. Josh 13–19). Given his similarity to Joshua, he stands in a later stage of redemptive activity than the Servant of ch. 42 who was not assigned this role. The undertaking of the new exodus still stands, yet it no longer involves Babylon and is now focused solely on Zion. Kiesow observes a change in perspective in 49:7–12 from chs. 40–48, and posits a separate redaction for chs. 49–52. He recognizes that 49:7–12 lacks the extent to which Yahweh miraculously provided for his people in the wilderness and the radically transformed topography contained in chs. 40–48. Kiesow nds it signicant that the word “desert” does not appear in 49:7–12, and since the scope of the return is the diaspora (49:12), he concludes that these verses function to introduce the “return” texts of chs. 49–52, over against the “way” texts of chs. 40–48.110 Clearly the focus of chs. 49–52 is no

110. 1

Kiesow, Exodustexte, 183–84.

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longer on Babylon but on the resettlement of Judah. In order to maximize the potential to repopulate, appeal is made to north and west, as far as the land of , which is likely Aswan on the southern boundary of Egypt (49:12). The returnees, in response to Cyrus’ decree, have initiated a return of the diaspora that fullls the earlier promise of 43:5–6 that Yahweh will gather his people from the remotest parts of the world. Even though chs. 49–52 were added to chs. 40–48, they ought not to be read as disparate sources. Isaiah 49:7–12 includes NE language, signifying that the WOL of chs. 40–48 remains in effect even after the rst wave of returnees to Jerusalem. As the Servant of ch. 42 sought the release of prisoners and those who sit in darkness (42:7), the prophetServant of ch. 49 is called upon to complete this mission (49:9). The command to ee Babylon () in 48:20 is once again repeated, yet with no reference to any specic location (49:9). Earlier Yahweh declared that he would provide food and drink for the returnees (41:17–18; 43:20; 48:21) by means of irrigating the bare heights (, 41:18). The prophet-Servant likewise promises food along the way home because now the bare heights are a place of pasture (   , 49:9). The returnees are no longer prisoners; they are now a ock, led and guided by a shepherd (cf. 40:11). Whereas it is difcult to determine whether   in 49:9 is a deliberate reference to  in the prologue, it is clear that 49:11 alludes to 40:3–4 since , , and   all reappear: “And I will turn all my mountains into a road, and my highways shall be raised up.” This imagery differs slightly from chs. 40–48 in that, rather than mountains being made low, now they will be transformed into the way; and whereas the highway was not elaborated upon in 40:3, it is now described as being raised up. Overall, the image and message is consistent with 40:3– 4, and therefore in 49:11 the prophet once again announces a way in the wilderness. Here the emphasis is placed on Yahweh’s initiative to establish this way. Since the rhetorical situation is one in which the prophet stands in Zion or on the verge of entering the city,  obviously cannot refer to a literal road extending from Babylon to Yehud. Isaiah 49:12 makes this clear as travelers from opposing directions may travel on this “way” to Zion. Cyrus is now in the past, as well as the downfall of Babylon. From now on, the Servant will focus primarily on the ethical and eschatological implications of this way of the LORD along with an exhortation to return from the ends of the earth. Because the people are on the verge of returning and repopulating Zion, a hymn declaring that Yahweh has comforted his people (   , 49:13) in fulllment of the prologue (      , 40:1) can be now sung. 1

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Isaiah 52:1–12 brings closure to the announcement of comfort and redemption begun in 40:1–11. Roy Melugin views 51:9–52:12, on the basis of its form and content, as a genre unit that is capable of standing alone, and it is this unit that concludes chs. 49–52, as well as chs. 40– 52.111 Just as hymns brought to a close earlier sections of SI (cf. 42:10– 12; 44:23; 49:13), once again a hymn in 52:7–10 concludes this pericope. The following is a list of allusions in 51:9–52:12 to the opening prologue in 40:1–11: 1. 51:10–11 and 52:9–12 contain language associated with the Exodus (cf. 40:3–4); 2. 51:12 and 52:9 employ the verb  (cf. 40:1); 3. 52:7–10 is a vision of messengers announcing Yahweh’s victorious return to Zion (cf. 40:9–11); 4. 51:9 and 52:10 speak of the might of Yahweh’s arm () (cf. 40:10–11); 5. 52:10 envisions a time when all esh or nations will see the glory or salvation of Yahweh (cf. 40:5). By deliberately recalling the prologue, it can be assumed that 51:9–52:12 seek to address the same dilemma in chs. 40–48. That is, even though a change in geographical perspective or setting may have taken place between the initial proclamation of a way in ch. 40 and the announcement in ch. 52, there is no change in the spiritual problem plaguing Israel. Fleeing Babylon is not the fulllment of the salvation promises of 40:1–11, and neither is the physical return to Jerusalem. As will be elaborated on below, the creation of a holy people in Zion coupled with Yahweh’s return is the ultimate goal of the WOL. As mentioned previously, 51:9–52:12 bring to a nale the argument of chs. 49–52. The hymn of 49:13 earlier announced that Yahweh has comforted his people (   ), whose home had become a waste, desolation, and devastated land (      , 49:19). To this people 51:3 reiterates Yahweh’s comfort () upon the desolations ( ) of Zion; 51:12, 19 identies Yahweh as comforter (); and 52:9 once again proclaims in hymn Yahweh’s comfort () to the desolations of Jerusalem (  ). The expression in 52:10, “all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God,” builds upon the phrase in 49:7, “Kings shall see and stand up, princes, and they shall prostrate themselves.”

111. Roy F. Melugin, The Formation of Isaiah 40–55 (BZAW 141; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1976), 164. 1

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Earlier, in 51:9–11, Zion had cried out in a communal lament, urging Yahweh to wake and transform the wilderness so that the redeemed could return to Zion. Chapter 52 assumes that this redemption has taken place. Whereas Yahweh was called upon to put on strength for divine warfare (  , 51:9), now Zion is exhorted to put on strength (   , 52:1) through donning beautiful garments. According to Melugin, “The reference to the putting on of clean garments may be viewed as a reference to the end of a period of mourning.”112 The period of exile is over, the era of eschatological joy is about to begin. Exactly who are the uncircumcised and unclean of Isa 52:1? Duhm is certain that, “The uncircumcised, who are never again to enter again into the ‘holy city,’ are naturally the ‘destroyers’ in general from 49:17. They are the Chaldeans (cf. Nah 2:1) and not the Jews, because DI knows nothing of the cultic purity of later Judaism.”113 For him, 52:1 cannot refer to cultic purity since that would be anachronistic. Fohrer, following Duhm’s critical theory, also observes the dilemma caused by the language, but resolves it by dating the text in the post-exilic era.114 Westermann believes that later, when 52:11 speaks again of cultic matters—“Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; go out from the midst of it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the LORD”—such is not literally true. He writes, “Instead, his [SI’s] intention is to make clear that this miraculous departure is distinctive in its holiness. Separation from all that is unclean is therefore to be taken as meaning the nal and complete severance from the unclean land of the foreign gods.”115 Westermann takes specic, detailed exhortations by SI and interprets them as, in the words of Zimmerli, “allgemeinen frommen Paränese.”116 Besides identifying oneself within a “father’s house” (  ), the primary means of distinguishing oneself as a Judean were circumcision, dietary laws, and Sabbath observance.117 Not only were these cultic practices in existence during in exile, but they were vital to the Judean community prior to the restoration of Jerusalem. Therefore, it is certainly

112. Ibid., 162. 113. Duhm, Jesaja, 389. 114. Georg Fohrer, Das Buch Jesaja. Kap. 40–66 (ZBK; Zurich: Zwingli, 1964). 115. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 252–53. 116. Zimmerli, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” 224. 117. Nick Wyatt labels these three cultic practices as “Symbols of Exile.” See Nick Wyatt, The Mythic Mind: Essays on Cosmology and Religion in Ugaritic and Old Testament Literature (London: Equinox, 2005), 55–71. 1

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within the bounds of SI to raise these religious concerns as the people returned to Jerusalem. Circumcision, dietary laws, and Sabbath observance are not the inventions of the post-exilic community; they were the concerns of the exilic community. Contrary to the view of Duhm, the Servant-prophet did not only know about, but cared deeply for the cultic purity of the returnees as well as the reconstituted Jerusalem. The ban on the uncircumcised and unclean in Zion in 52:1 and the exhortation to touch no unclean thing and to purify oneself in 52:11 can be understood as cultic in nature. This concern is also reected in the reference to carrying the vessels of the LORD (   , 52:11). These utensils are likely a reference to the sacred vessels of the Temple conscated by the Babylonians. The vessels of the LORD function as a means of sustaining Israelite religion through an event as disruptive as the exile.118 The introduction of cultic elements in ch. 52 is therefore not a preview of their future, as argued by Fohrer. Rather, it is an attempt on the part of SI to reconnect Israel with its past. It is unclear whether the people charged with carrying these vessels are the priests or the people in general, yet what is clear is that a cultic procession is envisaged. Cultic holiness has been a subject absent in the prior discourse of SI, yet now that the redeemed have reached their destination and are about to enter the holy city, the topic is introduced. Rainer Albertz argues that due to the dissolution of the state, absence of a king, and the destruction of the Temple, “membership in the Judean community was no longer a given; it had to be demonstrated repeatedly by individual decisions.”119 After conducting a sociological analysis of several exilic communities, Daniel Smith concludes, “The survival of a minority as a group depends on their success in creating a solid community with social boundaries.”120 It is therefore unsurprising that the Judean exiles would set strict guidelines, ethical and religious, to dene membership within their own community. Westermann observes that the oracle of 52:7–10 describes “not the event itself but the coming tidings of it… He [SI] proclaims the hour of fulllment by giving a picture of the moment when the messenger announcing the triumph arrives.”121 The image is of a runner returning from the eld of battle to announce the good news of victory in the 118. Peter R. Ackroyd, “The Temple Vessels—A Continuity Theme,” in Studies in the Religion of Ancient Israel (VTSup 23; Leiden: Brill, 1972), 181. 119. Albertz, Israel in Exile, 137. 120. Daniel L. Smith, The Religion of the Landless: The Social Context of the Babylonian Exile (Bloomington, Ind.: Meyer-Stone, 1989), 64. 121. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 249–50, original emphasis. 1

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manner David awaited news of Absalom’s defeat in 2 Sam 18. Westermann distinguishes between a future time in which this vision of Yahweh’s return to Zion is actually fullled, and the present in which it currently is not taking place. The oracle does not offer any chronological markers to indicate whether the vision is to be understood as future, yet the fact that SI describes the event in the third person does distance his initial audience from the event. The prophet does not directly address Zion saying, “Your God reigns.” Rather, a description is given of that event taking place. Viewed in this manner it appears that the exhortation to the messenger to announce the advent of Yahweh in 40:9–11 is left unfullled. SI recognizes that the vision of 40:9–11 and 52:7–10 is eschatological and remains to be completely fullled. The repetition of  (51:12; 52:9) and  (51:10; 52:9), the movement from lament (51:9–11) to comfort (52:1–2, 9), and the use of the perfect tense in vv. 7–10 suggest that this prophecy is already accomplished.122 Blenkinsopp makes the same observations but concludes, “What is announced lies in the future even though stated as a fait accompli in the prophetic past tense.”123 Muilenburg believes the ancient conception of the day of the LORD stands behind the oracle of 52:7–10124 and this view is strengthened by the fact that v. 6 speaks of “that day” ( ). Isaiah 52:3–6 need not be viewed as a later insertion, as suggested by most commentators, since it harmonizes with the eschatological outlook of 52:1–12. Clearly Israel is called upon to respond to the reality of the vision (52:1–2, 11–12). So, even though the prophecy may possess eschatological implications, the announcement itself is clearly intended for the prophet’s contemporaries. The heart of SI’s proclamation, that Yahweh reigns, is both a historical and mythical reality. Blenkinsopp observes that the reign of Yahweh within the Enthronement psalms (Pss 93–99) is set in mythic patterns: the primordial victory over the forces of Chaos (93:1), the placing of the earth on its foundations (96:10), and the theophany in thunder and lightning (97:1).125 Also well known are the mythic traditions of Yahweh’s commitment to Zion (Pss 46; 48; 76). This passage ought not to be reduced to a liturgical function within the cult since Israel is called upon to respond in a concrete way to its proclamation (52:11–12). The return of the exiles to Jerusalem conrms that the vision of Yahweh’s return to reign in Zion (40:9–11) has been

122. 123. 124. 125. 1

Melugin, Formation, 165. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55, 341. Muilenburg, “Isaiah: Chapters 40–66,” 5:610. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 40–55, 343.

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fullled in the restoration initiated by Cyrus.126 Yet, given that the extent of the vision in 52:10 (“all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God”) resembles the theophany of 40:5 (“Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together”), its fulllment is extended into the future since the return of the Babylonian exiles did not produce such far-reaching results. The fact that “every eye shall behold” (52:8, NJPS) demonstrates that the period of judgment announced in 6:9– 10 has ended, as evidenced by the removal of blindness. Viewed in this manner, God’s reign has come but yet is also to come in totality. It is both a historical and an eschatological reality. Rather than end on the celebratory note of 52:10, this section closes with an exhortation to ee. The urgency of the commands indicates that the reign of God depicted earlier in vv. 7–10 has not been fully consummated. Clearly 52:11–12 makes an intentional allusion to 48:20–21: Go out () from Babylon, ee from Chaldea, declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it, send it forth () to the end of the earth; say, “The LORD has redeemed his servant Jacob!” They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts; he made water ow for them from the rock; he split open the rock and the water gushed out. (Isa 48:20–21) Depart, depart, go out () from there! Touch no unclean thing; go out () from the midst of it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the LORD. For you shall not go out in haste, and you shall not go in ight; for the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. (Isa 52:11–12)

Both passages conclude a pericope by ushering a command to ee, and both recall the exodus traditions of Yahweh’s provision and protection for his people. Many have assumed that 52:11–12 in essence repeats the message of 48:20–22, but such is not the case due to several differences. Babylon is noticeably absent in 52:11–12. From where Israel is to depart in 52:11 is not specied; it is merely referred to as “from there” () and “from her midst” (  ). Now that all the nations and the ends of the earth have witnessed the return of the rst wave of exiles, an invitation is extended for all Israel scattered among the diaspora to do the 126. Even though on grammatical grounds 52:8d can be translated, “When the LORD restores Zion,” the context implies Yahweh’s return to Zion as observed by virtually all other translations and commentators. 1

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same (cf. 43:5–7). The NE consists of both the returnees from captivity as well as a worldwide conversion. The return under Cyrus serves as an object lesson for those living at the ends of the earth that the eschatological ingathering has begun. Exodus imagery is evoked in 52:11–12 by the use of the imperative form of , coupled with Yahweh’s promise to act as both vanguard and rearguard in the manner of the pillar of cloud and re in the rst exodus (Exod 14:19). Yet in this new exodus haste is not required, and rather than plundering Babylon, Israel is only to carry away the vessels of the LORD. Is the exhortation of 52:11–12 to be understood as literal or metaphorical? The answer is both. The dispersed are called to return and safe passage is promised to them. However, the emphasis on purity and holiness indicates that a particular ethical and cultic manner of life is required. Viewed in this manner, 52:1–12 can be seen as both a fulllment and continuation of the “way” announced in 40:1–11. Summary and Conclusion In SI the transformation of the wilderness, couched in the mythic language of creation and exodus, describes much more than merely a return from Babylon. The cosmic and universal scope of the salvation extends far beyond the political concerns of the Judean community in exile. The difculty interpreting 40:1–52:12 is that an eschatological promise is fullled for a particular community in history. This group of people is called genuinely to receive these promises through responding to the message of the Servant. In concrete terms, they are asked to leave Babylon and forsake Babylonian idols; in return they will receive not merely passage to Yehud, but instead participate in Yahweh’s cosmological victory. The announcement of the way originates in the divine council and therefore it refers primarily to the theophanic revelation of the glory of God which by its very nature transforms the topography. The primary purpose of the WOL within FI and SI is to humble the arrogant of the earth, and exalt Yahweh as divine king. The human response of preparing the way is not a reference to highway construction, but rather the humility and uprightness required in the presence of the divine warrior and shepherd. The WOL is both a historical and eschatological reality, and participation in this an act of salvation requires moral and cultic purity. SI announces that the Persian conqueror Cyrus is the agent of Yahweh who will fulll the promise of the “way” on behalf of the Jews in exile. Cyrus functions as the servant of the LORD by bringing righteousness 1

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to the nations through his military conquests. He is portrayed acting as Yahweh’s representative in liberating the people of Israel from their Babylonian oppressors, battling Israel’s enemies on its behalf, and leading the Israelites back to Zion. Cyrus creates a tension in Israel’s eschatological expectations since he only partially fullls the redemptive promises of chs. 40–52. He initiates the NE but does not consummate it. After ch. 48 Cyrus disappears from SI’s speech, never to reappear. It is the prophet Servant of chs. 49–53 who fullls the role of the Servant announced in ch. 42. Even after Israel has return to Jerusalem from Babylon, the announcement of a “way” continues to be proclaimed. This indicates that the return to Yehud, while consistent with the WOL, does not consummate it. The eschatological promises of the “way” remain unfullled and its ethical and cultic expectations remain in effect.

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Chapter 4

THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN ISAIAH 52:13–66:24

The Death of the Servant as the Beginning of Third Isaiah Although the WOL and the NE have been presented as a redemptive act in the form of a theophany and divine warfare, amazingly SI lacks any concrete description of a battle. Cyrus’s military prowess is acknowledged, yet for the Servant, the key agent of this NE, suffering and death become his most distinguishing marks. The symbol of divine strength, the   (40:10; 48:14; 51:5, 9; 52:10) now reveals shocking details of a man suffering rejection, torture, and death (53:1). Within the rhetorical scheme of SI, it is these very actions which accomplish the eschatological promises contained in chs. 40–52. It is the suffering and death of the Servant-prophet that establishes the WOL. The placement of the fourth so-called Suffering Servant Song (52:13–53:12) demonstrates this fact: it follows the concluding announcement regarding the good news of the NE (52:1–12) and precedes the betrothal of Zion and establishment of the heritage of the servants of the Lord (54:1–17). Viewed in this manner, the identity of the Servant of 52:13–53:12 is primarily literary, rather than historical. That is, the Servant is to be understood by his role within the rhetorical argument of chs. 40–66, rather than in a hypothetical Sitz im Leben. Based on its placement, the Servant Song of 52:13–53:12 embodies and culminates the Servant discourse of chs. 40–52. Christopher North observes that “the Anonymity of the Servant in the Songs is accompanied by heightened individualization in the portrait of the Servant.”1 The Servant of 52:13–53:12 ultimately fullls the role of the Servant (42:1–9; 49:1–6; 50:4–9) such that all other “servants” (i.e. Israel or Cyrus) are superseded by this gure. The striking feature of this Servant is that he remains unnamed and lacks historical specicity. Brevard Childs observes similarity in language between this text and texts describing the suffering of the righteous in the

1. North, The Suffering Servant of Deutero-Isaiah, 180, original emphasis. 1

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Psalms (cf. 22:6–7; 88:8) and the suffering experienced by the prophet Jeremiah (cf. 15:17; 20:7, 10). He concludes that the text may function not in a literal or historical manner, but rather in a typical one.2 The overall discourse of SI is eschatological in orientation, such that an idealized event described in the past tense is now transformed into a prophecy of the future. The very fact that this Suffering Servant cannot be completely identied with any person in history3 suggests that the WOL/NE is yet to come. In Chapter 6 I will discuss how the New Testament authors understood this gure to be Jesus and how he inaugurates the WOL. Isaiah 55 as Conclusion and Continuation of the New Exodus Even though it was previously argued that 52:7–10 functions as a conclusion to chs. 40–52, it can also be argued that Isa 55:6–13 provides yet another conclusion to SI. This text recapitulates the argument of chs. 40– 54, and many of the themes or images within 40:1–11 reappear in ch. 55. The use of  is clustered together within this short passage (55:7, 8 [2×], 9 [2×]; cf. 40:3, 27). Isaiah 55:7 describes Yahweh’s compassion and his abundant forgiveness (cf. 40:2). The reference to the efcacy of the word of Yahweh (55:10–11) most certainly reafrms the message of 40:8. Although there is no mention of a “way” or “highway” in 55:12– 13, this passage evokes the transformation of nature theme so prominent throughout chs. 40–52. The mention of mountains and hills ( , 55:12) recalls the announcement in the prologue that Yahweh would bring low mountains and hills (40:4), that Israel itself would be the very threshing sledge to thresh and crush the mountains and hills (41:15), and Yahweh’s promise to lay waste mountains and hills (42:15). Likewise the topographical transformation of thorns and briers to cypress and myrtle trees in 55:13 contribute to the image of “Paradise Regained,”4 a theme present earlier in FI. Christopher Seitz believes 55:12–13 is the fulllment of the vision of a rejuvenated “pleasant vineyard” in 27:2–4.5

2. Childs, Isaiah, 414. 3. Here theories abound. Most popular among them is to identify the Suffering Servant as the prophet SI himself. For a full discussion, see North, The Suffering Servant of Deutero-Isaiah, 6–120, 220–39; and more recently Henning Graf Reventlow, “Basic Issues in the Interpretation of Isaiah 53,” in Jesus and the Suffering Servant: Isaiah 53 and Christian Origins (ed. W. H. Bellinger and W. R. Farmer; Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 1998), 23–38. 4. R. N. Whybray, Isaiah 40–66 (NCBC; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1975), 195. 5. Seitz, “Isaiah 40–66,” 6:482. 1

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Within SI, Yahweh promises to hydrate the wilderness and transform it into a forest where cypress and myrtle grow (41:19). As is the pattern of SI (42:10–12; 44:23; 49:13; 52:7–10), another hymn (55:12–13) concludes a pericope within the prophecy. Even though there is no mention of a highway in this passage, the connections between this passage and the rhetoric of SI, as well as the use of the verb , indicate the presence of the WOL and NE themes. Earlier, Israel was exhorted to go forth from Babylon (48:20) and from “there” (52:11). Now, because of the efcacy of Yahweh’s word (55:11), Yahweh declares that this exodus will become a reality: “For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace” (55:12). Whereas previously no peace was extended toward the wicked (48:22), now the wicked are granted the opportunity to repent and receive Yahweh’s pardon (55:7) and peace (55:12). Isaiah 55:6–13 possesses several traits similar to both 48:20–22 and 52:7–10, two passages that conclude major sections of the announcement of the WOL in SI. The passage appears to function in a similar manner to conclude the WOL theme in chs. 40–55. Susan Niditch observes many of the elements of the ritual conquest or victory enthronement pattern common in ancient Near Eastern literature within SI. At its fullest extent this motif contains: (1) a challenge to a male warrior; (2) the preparation of weapons; (3) the battle; (4) the victory of the hero; (5) a victory shout; (6) a procession; (7) house building; (8) a banquet or gathering the house; and (9) the young warrior’s enthronement.6 Since SI possesses many of these elements, it is likely chs. 40–55 follows this pattern, with ch. 55 serving in a penultimate position. The announcement of a banquet in ch. 55 signals the end of this ritual conquest motif. Since the warrior’s enthronement concludes the pattern, the banquet motif anticipates the exaltation of the divine warrior, Yahweh himself. The two conclusions to the WOL sections within SI (48:20–22; 52:11– 12) consist of commands to prepare the way, ee Babylon, and go forth. Yet in the case of 55:6–13, the command to seek Yahweh serves as the nal imperative. Wagner observes that the phrase   is a technical expression for cultic worship which later acquired a spiritual or moral sense.7 Klaus Baltzer believes the invitation to a free feast in 55:1, as 6. Susan Niditch, Oral World and Written World: Ancient Israelite Literature (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1996), 21–22; Cross, Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic, 91–111, 144. Cross observes that this pattern mirrors that of Baal’s victory over Yam in Canaanite religion, as well as Marduk’s triumph over Tiamat in Babylonian religion. 7. S. Wagner, “' )" drash,” TDOT 3:298. 1



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well as the exhortation to seek Yahweh in 55:6, are both commands to come worship at the sanctuary. He supports this claim by appealing the use of  in texts such as Deut 12:5: “But you shall seek () the place that the LORD your God will choose out of all your tribes as his habitation to put his name there. You shall go there.” In Amos 5:4–15 Israel is exhorted to reject the sanctuaries of Bethel and Gilgal and to seek Yahweh by making Jerusalem the goal of pilgrimage: “Seek good (+) and not evil, that you may live” (Amos 5:14). Baltzer appeals to the use of this word in entrance liturgies such as Ps 24:6: “Such is the company of those who seek him (), who seek the face of the God of Jacob.” Hans-Joachim Kraus believes the expression “to seek God” refers to the pilgrims in the sanctuary that comprise the true cultic community.8 Seeking Yahweh, then, functions as a technical term for the worthy to engage in cultic worship. Wagner observes that within Chronicles  is broadened to dene the true community of Israel.9 Many have observed the intertextual connections between Isa 55:6; Deut 4:29, and Jer 29:10–14: Seek () the LORD while he may be found (), call upon () him while he is near. (Isa 55:6) From there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will nd () him if you search after () him with all your heart and soul. (Deut 4:29) Then when you call upon () me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will nd () me; if you seek () me with all your heart, I will let you nd me (), says the LORD… (Jer 29:12–14a)

It is likely that SI drew upon these texts, and based upon these connections, it appears that the prophet of SI believes that these texts nd their fulllment in his ministry (Isa 49:8). Deuteronomy 4:29 and Jer 29:10– 14 indicate that Israel can seek Yahweh from exile. Seeking Yahweh can be done from Babylon or wherever an Israelite would nd him/herself, and the reward for doing so is return from exile. The verses that follow 55:6 obviously provide the best means of dening what it means to “seek Yahweh.” Throughout vv. 7–9, ways () and thoughts () parallel each other:

8. Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 1–59 (trans. H. C. Oswald; CC; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1988), 197. 9. Wagner, “' )" drash,” 3:300.

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Let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts… For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways… so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isa 55:7a–b, 8, 9b–c)

The wicked and righteous do not seek Yahweh because they reject the ways and thoughts of Yahweh. The ways and thoughts of Israel are not those of God because they do not originate from the heavenly council. Only the ways and thoughts of Yahweh that are announced from the heavenly council will go forth and succeed (55:10–11). The remaining verses make clear that the word of God effectually accomplishes divine ways and thoughts (55:7–11). HALOT denes  in 55:7 as “manner, custom, behavior.” Zehnder denes the word in 55:7 as “a way of life” and in 55:8a as a “way of acting or course of action.” Although the “ways of the LORD” in 55:6–13 are clearly not roads or highways, nevertheless they are still related to the theme of the WOL in SI. In 40:27, Jacob’s complaint is reiterated, “My way is hidden from Yahweh and my justice ignored by my God” (author’s translation). To Israel’s predicament, Yahweh’s responds with the proclamation of the WOL in SI. The wicked and unrighteous are characterized by their lack of trust in the word of Yahweh and their rejection of the way of the LORD (48:22). A return to Yahweh is called for in 55:7, and since the verb  is featured prominently in the argument of SI (44:22; 49:5–6; 51:11), this return can be associated with the theme of the WOL. When read in the context of the prophetic book, the command to seek Yahweh in 55:6 ultimately calls upon Israel to trust in the message of the WOL in SI. The collocation of the two divine names, Yahweh and “our God,” within such close proximity in 55:7 occurs elsewhere in Isaiah only in 40:3 and 52:10, two passages which announce the NE. Based upon this connection, especially to 40:3, it can be assumed that the command to seek Yahweh in 55:6–7 is in essence the same command of 40:3 to prepare for the way of the LORD. Whybray’s interpretation of 55:7, namely, that the verse is to be seen “as a call to the exiles to prepare themselves through personal repentance for the awesome approach of the holy God,”10 could also be said of 40:3. Because Isa 55:7 appears to set conditions on what some assume to be a message of unconditional salvation, several commentators consider it to be the interpolation of a pious reader. Bernhard Duhm’s belief that v. 7 cannot be harmonized with its

10. Whybray, Isaiah 40–66, 193. 1

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immediate context, as well as the artistry and theology of SI, is the result of his belief that law and gospel do not mix.11 Oddly, Muilenburg, using a similar modus operandi, makes the opposite claim, concluding that “religious experience supports its retention.”12 It appears that appealing to constructs of Israelite religion, which is well recognized to be a highly speculative endeavor, may result in specious interpretations. Isaiah 55:6–13 provide a more detailed description of the command given earlier in 55:1: “Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” H. Spykerboer believes these imperatives “are most appropriately understood as an invitation to come to the new Jerusalem where Yahweh reigns and to share in its wealth.”13 If he is correct, then Baltzer is correct to interpret this exhortation as a call to embark on a cultic pilgrimage. Nevertheless, the notions of ethical exhortation (cf. Amos 5:14) are not lost since the use of  carries the idea of repentance.14 SI has already announced that Yahweh will reveal his presence to his people in the form of a theophany and therefore a response of repentance is required. Spykerboer recognizes that if “to come to Jerusalem or to God is one and the same thing,”15 then cultic and moral purity is required of God’s people. The references to moral and cultic obedience in 55:6–13, themes prominent in TI, reect the fact that ch. 55 functions as a transitional text linking SI with TI. Klaus Kiesow believes 55:12–13 introduces for the rst time an eschatological quality to the NE motif.16 He observes that there is no longer any mention of a way, a wilderness, the need for protection, or a people for that matter. According to him, the NE motif no longer refers to ight from Babylon but beginning here extends to the return of the diaspora. Claus Westermann considers the return from exile to be still in view and concludes that vv. 12–13 are an exaggeration of the deliverance under Cyrus.17 I believe the NE all along possessed an eschatological quality, and therefore 55:12–13 only highlight its consummation. Viewed in this manner, vv. 12–13 are not a complete break from previous passages and 11. Duhm, Jesaia, 416. 12. Muilenburg, “Isaiah: Chapters 40–66,” 5:647. 13. H. C. Spykerboer, “Isaiah 55:1–5: The Climax of Deutero-Isaiah,” in Vermeylen, ed., The Book of Isaiah. Le Livre d’Isaïe, 358. 14. K. Baltzer (Deutero-Isaiah, 478) agrees, “At this point I must once more stress that the text of vv. 6–7 can be understood even if ‘seek Yahweh’ does not only mean the seeking of the sanctuary and covers the whole range of terms.” 15. Ibid., 359. 16. Kiesow, Exodustexte, 186. 17. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 292. 1

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they make a distinctive contribution to the argument of the chapter. This new element is a vision of consummate joy experienced by those who are led on the “way.” No longer is Israel exhorted to prepare the way, go forth, or ee Babylon. Verses 12–13 only picture those who have decided to depart from their present situation, repent, and return to Zion. According to SI the fulllment of the NE was never in doubt because from its initial announcement it was based upon the word of God that never fades (40:8). Isaiah 55:11 reafrms this truth, evidenced by the fact that the eschatological goal of the WOL is described as a reality in vv. 12–13. Since Zion was previously described as a wilderness and a desolate place (51:3; 52:9), the transformation in 55:12 of thorns into a forest may be a description of Zion itself. Earlier, in 44:23, the forest, along with other elements of creation, celebrate the return and redemption of Israel. Yet in 55:12 trees are personied with the ability to clap their hands. Later in TI the eunuch, who refers to himself as a “dry tree” (56:3), will be able to rejoice because he will gain entrance into the mountain and temple of Yahweh. Jan Koole observes that “trees of the eld” (  , 55:12) usually refers to fruit trees. Since fruit trees are not typically associated with a desert, he believes this motif “has an eschatological tone, so this line also refers back beyond the liberation of the exiles to the eschaton of ‘new heavens and a new earth.’ ”18 Since Eden, thorns and thistles have overgrown the earth and turned it into a wilderness. The announcement of fruit trees signies a return to paradise. The scope of the WOL extends much further than a return from Babylon; the goal of the NE is a new creation. Chapter 55 concludes with its message open, unfullled, and oriented towards the future. Viewed in this manner, ch. 55 does not merely serve as a “conclusion” to chs. 40–55, but rather it offers an “introduction” to the message of chs. 56–66. The verb “to be led back” ( , 55:12) is frequently used to describe those escorted in a procession.19 The use of this verb, coupled with descriptions of hymnic praise in v. 12, forms an image of a pilgrimage to a sanctuary. Since this pericope began with this motif in v. 6, it is appropriate that this same image concludes this section. Just as a procession concludes the prologue to SI in 40:10–11, the image of Yahweh’s return to Zion leading his people in triumph concludes ch. 55. The wicked lack peace because they have not put their trust in the salvation 18. Jan L. Koole, Isaiah Part 3, Volume 3: Chapters 56–66 (trans. A. P. Runia; HCOT; Kampen: Kok Pharos, 1998), 445. 19. Cf. Pss 45:14–15 (15–16); 60:9 (11); 108:10 (11). See H. A. Hoffner, “  ybl,” TDOT 5:364–67. 1

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plan announced by SI (48:22). But those who have abandoned their own way and instead placed their faith in the “way of the LORD” (55:7) will be led forth in peace (55:12). Isaiah 55 recapitulates many themes mentioned in SI. Even though there is no mention of a “way” in this chapter, the transformation from thorns to forests, the peoples’ joy and singing, and the efcacy of the word of the LORD carry the net effect of signifying the WOL of SI. The banquet motif reinforces the image of Yahweh as divine warrior and signies the climax of his victory as in accordance with the pattern of other ancient Near Eastern ritual-conquest texts. The post-exilic generation that has witnessed the death of the Servant-prophet participates in both the blessings and challenges associated with this eschatological act of God. The death of the Servant-prophet serves as the means by which the WOL extends beyond the return from exile to subsequent generations of returnees. Chapter 55 once again reinforces the fact that the eschatological promises of the WOL will be fullled in the future. The emphasis on seeking Yahweh demonstrates that the goal of this “way” is not merely the physical city of Jerusalem. The new creation themes in ch. 55 drawn from Isa 40–52 anticipate the eschatological orientation of chs. 56–66. When read as both a conclusion to chs. 40–55 and an introduction to chs. 56–66, ch. 55 alerts the reader that TI is to be read as the conclusion to SI. Is Isaiah 56–66 the Result of Failed Prophecy? Because the historical reality of the return from exile did not match the glorious description announced by SI, two explanations for SI’s exalted language have been proposed. The traditional Christian interpretation is that SI’s prophecies are fullled in the advent of Christ. The second is to politicize SI’s message and reduce his exalted language to hyperbolic rhetoric. Richard Clifford believes SI’s words were intended only to persuade, meaning that the substance of his speech ought not be taken too seriously. He writes, “His is a program, not a theology; ideas are arranged to persuade, not to make a system.”20 Similarly Carroll is doubtful “whether he envisaged such an actual return or only attempted to encourage the exiles to seize their opportunity by turning to the events of their time into the great act of salvation cannot now be determined.”21 He

20. R. J. Clifford, “Isaiah, Book of (Second Isaiah),” ABD 3:498, emphasis added. 21. Robert P. Carroll, When Prophecy Failed: Reactions and Responses to Failure in the Old Testament Prophetic Traditions (London: SCM, 1979), 151. 1

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believes that the elaborate descriptions of the earth trembling at the approach of Cyrus (41:5), Israel’s crushing of the mountains (41:15), the transformation of the desert into a pool of water (41:18; 43:19–20), Israel as covenant to the nations (42:6), and the transformation of nature (55:12–13) were nothing more than inated language signifying the end of captivity and the possibility for repatriation. Carroll concludes, “These extravagant metaphors add up to very little: no more than ‘your time of exile is over, you may return home if you wish.’ ”22 Viewed in this fashion, the prophecy of SI is ultimately empty kerygma since it failed to actualize a salvation program in history. For Whybray, the dissonance created by SI’s proclamation and the historical reality of the return results in a politicization of the salvation pronouncements.23 For Carroll, this disappointment represents a time when prophecy failed. The reinterpretation of failed prophecy is nothing new in biblical studies. Although he denies any experience of disappointment or disillusionment, Zimmerli holds to a view similar to that of Carroll. He believes prophecy lacks a predictive element, possesses an indeterminate meaning, is beyond the control of the prophet himself, and is full of contradictions.24 Nevertheless, Zimmerli afrms a genuine fulllment of SI’s message due to the freedom of Yahweh to bring about a prophecy’s fulllment in whatever manner he wishes within history. He observes a change from eschatological promises to a historical fulllment within chs. 40–45: “Deutero-Isaiah’s message apparently changed from the announcement of the eschatological coming of Yahweh, who miraculously leads his people back through the desert, to the concrete historical assertion of the liberation through Cyrus.”25 For Zimmerli, the initial pronouncement in the prologue to SI possessed an eschatological purview, yet its fulllment would essentially be historical and political in scope. In this model, prophecy is only fullled when later tradents recall and readapt older traditions. These tradents determine whether or not a previous prophecy has been fullled, and if so, they determine the nature of its fulllment. Von Rad takes Zimmerli’s position one step further and believes the inability of SI’s proclamation to be actualized in history resulted in its reassignment to the eschaton.26

22. Ibid., 65. 23. R. N. Whybray, The Second Isaiah (OTG; Shefeld: JSOT, 1983). 24. Zimmerli, “Promise and Fulllment,” 106–7. 25. Ibid., 106. 26. Gerhard von Rad, Old Testament Theology (trans. D. M. G. Stalker; 2 vols.; New York: Harper & Row, 1962–65), 2:285. 1

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Contrary to the views of Zimmerli and von Rad, Steck argues that the additions to previous prophecy are not creative reinterpretations but rather the continuation of transmitted writings (Fortschreibung). Viewed in this manner, existing material remains essentially unaffected through the transmission process and tradents never intend to correct the text. Within the purview of the prophetic book, a text originally addressed to a particular historical situation in the past now functions on a metahistorical level. Contrary to Zimmerli, who believed that speech is limited to its original context,27 Steck asserts that the tradents knew prophetic words are not bound by chronology. Steck describes the manner in which prophecy operates within BI: For example, for them [the scribes], YHWH speaks the book of Isaiah through Isaiah in its entirety. For them, Isaiah is not contradictory. He only continues to speak with respect to different times and aspects. For them, the entire developing book is a single, continuous self-explication and self-actualization of Isaiah, or more precisely, a self-actualization of YHWH through Isaiah.28

Whereas other scholars may only consider human factors in the process of transmission, Steck believes the prophetic book ultimately coheres because “God institutes the higher unity of the textual relationships!”29 Yet this last point appears quite deistic since he never elaborates upon how God institutes this textual unity. Also, his notion of learned scribal prophecy (Schriftgelehrte Prophetie) is an anachronism from later rabbinical practice. Yet his observation that individual prophecies primarily function on a metahistorical level within the context of the prophetic book, rather than against the backdrop of a reconstructed history of Israelite religion, is a helpful insight that needs to be explored. Childs forges a via media between the view that chs. 56–66 are the product of learned scribes (Steck) and the view that they are the result of an individual historical personality (Duhm). He believes “it is essential to maintain them [chs. 56–66] as genuine prophecy that responds to the divine word.”30 With this in mind, TI need not be viewed as mere scribal literature, but as prophetic testimony. Furthermore, the primary context in which to interpret these chapters is within the literary context of BI. Viewed in this manner, TI is a continuation of SI, which is to be

27. 28. 29. 30. 1

Zimmerli, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” 217. Steck, The Prophetic Books, 157, original emphasis. Ibid., 148. Childs, Isaiah, 443.

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understood as a divine word spoken from the heavenly counsel (40:3, 6) that is enduring and effective (40:8; 55:11). An amount of constraint is placed upon the authors of TI such that they lack the authority to reinterpret SI in a creative manner. According to Childs, the relationship between TI and SI ought to be considered as deictic—pointing, identifying, and focusing—rather than midrashic.31 That is, TI functions to clarify and expand upon the message of SI, rather than revise or reinterpret it. Christopher Seitz faults von Rad for imposing a hermeneutical grid of evolving tradition history that fails to acknowledge that the “presentation of the Major and Minor Prophets is its own kind of theological and historical statement.”32 He believes that the kind of historical and theological statement made by BI is a gural one. Historical interpretation must take into consideration the mode of history as presented in the prophetic literature. Certainly gural interpretations are open to the charge of deism or being confessionally motivated, but one must ask whether interpreters today possess access to the psychological state of the prophets or original historical situation so as to verify whether prophecies were actually fullled or not. What the interpreter can account for is the prophetic literature, which in its nal form provides gural interpretations of its own prophecy. A gural interpretation allows for a broader sense of prophetic fulllment than a simplistic punctilious model and respects both the historical and theological dimensions of the text. Seitz writes, “Appeal to the gural sense does not rely as heavily on human prediction and a one-to-one literal fulllment, and because of this its view of providence and divine sovereignty allows for a more central place for retrospective accordance and typological t.”33 Even modern literary theorists have demonstrated that a “text’s career escapes the nite horizon lived by its author.”34 It is no surprise, then, that prophetic literature may possess the ability not only to speak relevantly to audiences beyond the original, but also to nd fulllment in a subsequent era since the very nature of such writings to instruct subsequent generations. By its inclusion within a prophetic book, a prophecy spoken

31. Ibid., 445. 32. Seitz, Prophecy and Hermeneutics, 90, emphasis added. 33. Seitz, Prophecy and Hermeneutics, 69. 34. Paul Ricoeur, A Ricoeur Reader (ed. Mario J. Valdés; New York and London: Harvester Wheatseaf, 1991), 325, as quoted by Vanhoozer, Is There a Meaning in This Text?, 215. 1

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or written at one particular time and place possesses the ability to transcend its original setting through its new role within the prophetic book. By its inclusion within BI, the message of SI cannot be the mere wishful thinking of an exilic poet, but is rather part of “the word of God [which] will stand forever” (Isa 40:8). Later redactors are not required creatively to reactualize a past prophecy in order to speak afresh to a new situation since this phenomena of multiple applications of a single prophecy is itself part of the very nature of prophetic books. Did Cyrus Lead a New Exodus? Before turning to late Second Temple Jews or New Testament writers, one must ask whether the post-exilic writers viewed the return from exile and resettlement of Jerusalem as the fulllment of SI’s prophecy. As noted above, many Christian scholars assume that SI’s prophecies were not fullled following the exile, and believe that either they were deferred until the advent of Christ or reinterpreted by TI. The question often neglected is whether Cyrus did in fact lead a NE to any degree. Frequently it is simply assumed that Cyrus could in no way be the genuine fulllment of SI’s prophecies. Klaus Koch argues that the biblical authors believed SI’s prophecies were fullled in the resettlement of Judah following and exile. He writes, “Ezra’s march from Babylonia to Jerusalem was a cultic procession which Ezra understood as a second Exodus and a partial fulllment of prophetic expectation.”35 He justies this thesis by means of the following arguments: 1. Ezra’s refusal to leave Babylon without the company of Levites is in agreement with the exhortation of SI, “Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; go out from the midst of it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the LORD” (Isa 52:9). 2. The guiding force in Ezra’s return march, “the good hand of his God” (Ezra 7:6, 28; 8:22, 31), is a demythologization of Yahweh’s promise to lead the procession from Babylon to Yehud according to SI (Isa 40:9–11; 51:9–11; 52:12). 3. Koch believes Ezra’s prayer, “But now for a brief moment favor has been shown by the LORD our God, who has left us a remnant, and given us a stake in his holy place, in order that he may

35. Klaus Koch, “Ezra and the Origins of Judaism,” JSS 19 (1974): 184. 1

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brighten our eyes and grant us a little sustenance in our slavery” (Ezra 9:8), reveals that Ezra has in mind a great renewal in the future.36 Koch believes that only ve thousand of the estimated twenty thousand exiles in Babylon resettled Yehud, and so he recognizes that the prophetic expectation of a second Exodus far surpassed the historical reality. Nevertheless, he believes Ezra’s march to be a genuine fulllment of the prophetic word in the category of Heilsgeschichte rather than geschichte. He writes: So the return could not be the perfection of the eschaton, but only one pre-eschatological step, a sign of a coming fullment and not the eschatological fullment itself. It seems to be that Ezra was thinking of just this state between the abandoned past and the outstanding salvation in the future when he prayed.37

What is signicant to note in Koch’s argument is his assertion that the text indicates both a genuine fulllment as well as an incomplete, partial one.38 Viewed in this manner, Ezra need not observe the fulllment of the sweeping social, political, and cosmological transformations in order for there to be an actual fulllment of SI’s prophecies. Contrary to Hanson’s belief that within this period “eschatological expectations have disappeared,”39 Koch argues that the writer of Ezra continued to hold out hope for the consummation of prophetic expectations. The period in which Ezra and Nehemiah ministered is then to be understood within a continuum of an inaugurated prophetic eschatology. J. G. McConville and H. G. M. Williamson have expanded on Koch’s thesis, although differing on various points. According to McConville, the prayers of Ezra 9 and Neh 9 demonstrate that Persian occupation was incompatible with the full realization of the community’s hopes.40 As

36. Ibid., 184–89. 37. Ibid., 189. 38. Certainly Koch has his detractors. Childs believes Koch’s argument for a reuse of the “spoiling the Egyptians” theme lacks evidence from the literature itself. Childs, Introduction, 634. Yet it appears the text does support the validity of such a theme (see Ezra 1:4, 6). Childs’s comments appear to stem from his doubts regarding the historicity of the Ezra–Nehemiah narratives. 39. Paul D. Hanson, “Israelite Religion in the Early Postexilic Period,” in Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of Frank Moore Cross (ed. P. D. Miller Jr., P. D. Hanson, and S. D. McBride; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1987), 499. 40. J. G. McConville, “Ezra–Nehemiah and the Fullment of Prophecy,” VT 36 (1986): 208. 1

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long as the Persians ruled Yehud, the Israelites knew that the eschaton had not arrived. He likens the role of Persia in Ezra–Nehemiah to that of Assyria in Isaiah. In both cases a foreign power is an enemy of, and an instrument for, the people of Yahweh. For McConville, the seemingly misplaced reference to the king of Assyria in Ezra 6:22 may be explained as a reference to Isa 10. He observes numerous similarities in theme and vocabulary between Ezra 7–9 and Jer 31, and concludes that a relationship of prophecy and fulllment exists between them. Jeremiah 31 predicts the return of a remnant from a distant land, and Ezra leads such a return. The fact that both Jer 31 and Ezra make explicit that repentance is required in order for restoration to take place indicates, for McConville, that the fulllment of prophecy “is in the process of happening, rather than that it has happened once and for all.”41 He goes on and lists the lexical similarities between Ezra and Isaiah: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Isaiah 2:3 ( )   11:1242  40:3 … 6:13   10:20 +  49:19; 51:3; 52:9;  58:12; 61:4

Ezra 7:9 8:15 8:21 9:2 9:8, 13 9:9

  ()      +   

Of these, McConville believes items 1, 4, and 6 demonstrate that Isaiah’s prophecy is in the process of fulllment in Ezra. He also views the use of   in Ezra 8:21 as a deliberate reference to the prophecy of a straight way both in Jeremiah and Isaiah. He believes Jeremiah’s reference to a   (Jer 31:9), a way that was originally understood to be metaphorical, has now become the route Ezra traveled from Babylon to Jerusalem. According to McConville, this same manner of inner-biblical reading takes place with Isa 40:3: Indeed, the use of " "  (* )* in Ezra viii 21, in the sense of a safe journey, gives a meaning to " " which is unique and which is probably explicable only in terms of the desire in Ezra to relate the return to prophecy. Ezra’s prayer is not simply that the returned exiles should have a safe journey, but that their return should in fact be that “making straight a highway” of which the prophet speaks.43

41. Ibid., 217. 42. McConville lists 10:11, but it appears he meant 11:12. 43. Ibid., 219. 1

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Rather than interpret 40:3 as a literal highway which is later to be understood metaphorically in the manner of Zimmerli, McConville argues the opposite is the case. For the post-exilic community, SI’s WOL is a call to depart from Babylon with Ezra and return to Yehud. Williamson also believes that the author of Ezra views the restoration under Cyrus as a NE in fulllment of the prophecies of Jeremiah and Isaiah. Rather than associate the edict of 1:2–4 with passages in Jeremiah that predict the fall of Babylon and end of exile in general terms (25:11– 12; 29:10), Williamson observes the following parallels between Ezra 1:1, “the LORD stirred up () the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia,” and passages in SI:44 Who has roused () a victor from the east, summoned him to his service?… (41:2) I stirred up ( ) one from the north, and he has come… (41:25) Who says of Cyrus, “He is my shepherd, and he shall carry out all my purpose”; and who says of Jerusalem, “It shall be rebuilt,” and of the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” (44:28) Thus says the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus… (45:1) I have aroused ( ) Cyrus in righteousness, and I will make all his paths straight. (45:13)

Based upon these connections, Williamson concludes that author of Ezra had SI’s prophecies at the forefront of his mind when he wrote the introduction to Cyrus’s edict. As to why he named Jeremiah as the source of the prophecy, Williamson observes that Jer 51:1, “Thus says the LORD: I am going to stir up () a destructive wind against Babylon,” is similar to Isa 13:17, “See, I am stirring up () the Medes against them [Babylon].” Based upon these linguistic links and the close ties between the prophecy of Jeremiah and Isaiah, Williamson concludes that in the author’s mind Jer 51; Isa 41, and Isa 44–45 function as one and the same prophecy. He concludes, “The rescript [Ezra 1:1–4] marks therefore a very special moment of grace, the historical realization of a new dispensation brought about by divine agency in fulllment of the prophecies.”45 The return under Cyrus marks the dawn of a new era of divine activity in Israel. 44. H. G. M. Williamson, Ezra, Nehemiah (WBC 16; Waco, Tex.: Word, 1985), 9–10. 45. Joseph Blenkinsopp, Ezra–Nehemiah (OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1988), 74–75, emphasis added. Blenkinsopp on the whole agrees with Williamson’s thesis, but differs by conating the Isaianic prophecies with Jer 25:11–14; 29:10–14. 1

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In addition to the observations by McConville and Williamson, several other connections between Ezra and Isaiah are important. In fulllment of Yahweh’s promise to go before Israel and be their rearguard in Isa 52:12, Ezra in all his journeys lacked any other escort, armed or unarmed, except Yahweh alone. As will be explained in Chapter 5, the WOL in BI is a via sacra ( , 35:8; 52:1) reserved only for the holy, and excluding the unclean and uncircumcised. This concern for religious purity is reected among the returnees in Ezra. In Ezra 2:61–63, those not found among the genealogies were excluded from the priesthood, deemed unclean, and forbidden from eating the most holy food ( ). Ezra 6:21 recounts how the Passover feast was only observed by the returnees who separated themselves from the uncleanness of the peoples of the land. In 9:11, Ezra recalls explicit instruction from the servants, the prophets ( ), commanding the returnees to seize possession of land lled with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands. Goldingay and Payne go as far as to say, “The authors [of Ezra– Nehemiah] believe that the Second Temple community’s life began as a fulllment of this prophecy. Isaiah 40–55 thus constituted part of the charter of the Jerusalem community in that period in a fashion analogous to the role played by the narrative in the Torah.”46 Not only does Ezra–Nehemiah demonstrate an afnity to SI, it also in many instances presupposes the message of Isa 56–66. McConville observes that the lingering presence of iniquity in Ezra (9:6, 7, 13) matches the tensions represented within a struggling community of “servants” in Isa 56–66. He believes Ezra deliberately appeals to the last chapters of Isaiah in order to cast the hope of a brighter future for a community that is in the midst of a conict over proper righteousness.47 The objection to the mixing of “holy seed” ( ), the marrying the peoples of the lands in Ezra 9:2, may be a result of the inuence of Isa 60–62. This passage envisions the subordination of foreigners and strangers under the “holy people” (, 62:12) who resettle Jerusalem. Kenton Sparks offers a sustained argument that the authors of the Old Testament considered religious identity rather than ethnic identity as the most important issue for determining acceptance into the Israelite community.48 Viewed in this way, Sparks sees no contradiction between

46. Goldingay and Payne, Commentary on Isaiah 40–55, 1:26, emphasis added. It appears that they meant to say, “…to the role played by the Torah in the narrative.” 47. McConville, “Ezra–Nehemiah,” 221–22. 48. Kenton L. Sparks, Ethnicity and Identity in Ancient Israel: Prolegomena to the Study of Ethnic Sentiments and their Expression in the Hebrew Bible (Winona 1

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the passages such as Isa 56:3–7, which encourage inclusion of the foreigner within the worshipping community, and passages such as Ezra 9:1–2, which call for the expulsion of foreigners, even including the wives of mixed marriages. Whereas most modern commentators consider Ezra’s treatment of foreigners to be “among the least attractive parts of Ezra–Nehemiah, if not of the whole Old Testament,”49 Sparks considers interpretations that assume Ezra displays racist attitudes are overly simplistic. He points out that Ezra also testies to the inclusion of the foreigner in Israelite worship: It [the Passover feast] was eaten by the people of Israel who had returned from exile, and also by all who had joined them and separated themselves from the pollutions of the nations of the land to worship the LORD, the God of Israel. With joy ( ) they celebrated the festival of unleavened bread seven days; for the LORD had made them joyful ( ), and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria to them, so that he aided them in the work on the house of God, the God of Israel. (Ezra 6:21–22, emphasis added)

The joy of this feast, which was celebrated by both Israelites and foreigners, mirrors the joy offered to foreign proselytes in Isa 56:6–7: And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, all who keep the sabbath, and do not profane it, and hold fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful (  ) in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.

Sparks credits SI for this inclusive attitude (cf. Isa 42:6–7; 44:5; 49:1–6), and concludes that this intra-community conict regarding the inclusion/exclusion of foreigners stemmed from a conict between those who embraced the message of SI and those who rejected or ignored it. He writes, “In my view, the core of this debate was the theology of Deutero-Isaiah and his followers, which was so xed on the religious

Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1998). See Blenkinsopp, Ezra–Nehemiah, 176; Rainer Albertz, A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period (trans. J. Bowden; 2 vols.; OTL; Louisville, Ky.; Westminster John Knox, 1994), 2:449; and Schramm, The Opponents of Third Isaiah, 61. 49. Williamson, Ezra, Nehemiah, 159. David J. A. Clines (Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (NCBC; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1984), 116) says he is “appalled by the personal misery brought into so many families by the compulsory divorce of foreign wives [and] outraged at Ezra’s insistence on racial purity, so uncongenial to modern liberal thoughts.” 1

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status of one’s heart toward Yahweh that a preoccupation with one’s ethnic origins seemed unimportant.”50 Baltzer argues that the comfort SI offers ought not to be understood simply as a poetic metaphor, but as a political and economic reality. According to him, the words used to describe Yahweh as master and Israel as servant are more than just sociomorphemes, language which draws on societal models to express the nature of the relationship between God and human beings. Israel’s service (40:2) and captivity (52:2) do not merely describe the spiritual and political conditions experienced in Babylon, but also accurately portray the oppression within Judah upon resettlement. “Ransom” () in 51:11—“So the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing”—is to be understood as “a terminus technicus for freeing in the context of the institution of debt slavery.”51 Just as the redemption experienced in the rst exodus served as an ethical model for Israel upon entrance into the land (Exod 22:21; 23:9; Deut 5:14–15; 10:19; 23:7; 24:17–22), Baltzer believes that the inuence of SI’s teaching led Nehemiah to urge the nobles and ofcials to release the poor of their debts (Neh 5:1–13). Baltzer goes on to suggest that the Servant of Isa 42:1–9 and 49:1–12 in a literary and theological sense is identied with Moses,52 while the historical person SI has in mind is Nehemiah. In the same prayer that Nehemiah refers to Moses as “your servant” (, 1:7, 8), he assigns himself the same title (1:6, 11) and describes the people he represents as “your servants” (, 1:6, 10, 11). Based upon the signicance of this lexeme, Baltzer concludes: The important role played by the sociomorpheme Lord-Servant in Nehemiah also reveals a link to Deutero-Isaiah. The connection between “servant” (sg.) and “servants” (pl.) in the Prayer of Nehemiah corresponds to the theological stance of Deutero-Isaiah. With the aid of the familiar sociomorpheme Lord-servant, the community is able to articular [sic] its self-understanding in a fresh way and to achieve a better conception of the relationship to God and neighbor.53 50. Sparks, Ethnicity and Identity, 318. 51. Klaus Baltzer, “Liberation from Debt Slavery After the Exile in Second Isaiah and Nehemiah,” in Miller, Hanson, and McBride, eds., Ancient Israelite Religion, 481. 52. K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 305–17. 53. Klaus Baltzer, “Moses Servant of God and the Servants: Text and Tradition in the Prayer of Nehemiah (Neh 1:5–11),” in The Future of Early Christianity: Essays in Honor of Helmut Koester (ed. B. A. Pearson et al.; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1991), 129. Baltzer also doubts it is coincidental that the root , which plays such a signicant role in SI (40:1; 49:13; 51:3; 52:9), forms the basis of the name 1

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Although I disagree with Baltzer that Nehemiah is to be equated with the Servant of SI, it does appear that Nehemiah and the faithful Israelites considered themselves the “servants” of SI, that is, the followers of SI’s teaching (cf. Isa 50:10–11; 54:17). The above survey of the impact of SI upon Ezra–Nehemiah, as well as TI’s close relationship with this literature, suggests that in many ways the restoration of Jerusalem under Persian sponsorship fullled the prophecies of a NE in SI. This fulllment was only partial and therefore this period experienced only an inaugurated eschatology. The pronouncement of the WOL by SI, a NE of cosmic proportions, manifested itself in history as the restoration of a relatively small number of exiles to their homeland in Jerusalem through the decree of a pagan ruler. Ezra 1:1–4 clearly demonstrates that the writer of Ezra considered the decree of Cyrus to be a fulllment of the prophecies of SI. Whereas some scholars contend that SI’s prophecies failed to materialize, the witness of Ezra– Nehemiah testies that these prophecies were fullled in part and that the post-exilic community knew that the consummation of the prophetic vision was yet to come. Goldingay and Payne believe that this dual aspect of the prophecy led to its preservation as part of Israel’s canonical literature: “The fact that their vision was partly fullled provided grounds for holding onto it. The fact that it was not wholly fullled also provided reasons for holding onto it.”54 That is, Israel’s prophetic books are inherently historical and eschatological, and the texts that met both criteria were preserved. PeterAckroyd recognizes that Ezra 1 deliberately alludes to the exodus. Since, however, the actual return from Babylon was small in scale, Ackroyd concludes that Ezra 1:1–4 must be a pious aggrandizement of the actual facts.55 I nd myself in agreement with Ackroyd that the return was relatively small in scale,56 yet nevertheless I believe this unimpressive return fullled the word of the prophets according to Israel’s canonical testimony. Perhaps the difference in ideological/theological Nehemiah (). He wonders, “Is the name a reection of the program represented in Second Isaiah, or does Second Isaiah play on the name for programmatic reasons?” K. Baltzer, “Liberation from Debt Slavery,” 484 n. 27. The evidence seems to suggest the former to be the case. 54. Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40–55, 1:27. 55. Peter R. Ackroyd, Exile and Restoration (OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1968), 144–45 n. 29. Smith (Religion of the Landless) also holds this view based on his application of sociological models of forced migration. 56. Ezra–Nehemiah reports that the whole assembly numbered 42,360 (Ezra 2:64; Neh 7:66). Albertz (Israel in Exile, 127–28) estimates that no more than ten thousand returned between 538 and 520. 1

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perspective regarding the same historical events lies in the interpreter’s faith orientation. Williamson recognizes that this Second Exodus ought to be understood typologically. Concerning Ezra’s portrayal of this NE, he writes: There may have been a temptation to play down what had happened, and from a historical point of view it was probably a slow, drawn-out process. Yet typology opens the eye of faith to the hand of God behind the historical process, inviting an appreciation of his action in bringing his people to a point of rebirth no less wonderful than that which had been accomplished in the deliverance of Israel from the slavery of Egypt.57

When viewed as canonical literature, Ezra does not contain mythological projections of a non-existent reality,58 but rather a theological perspective on historical events. For the returnees following Cyrus’s decree, their experience of traveling home, rebuilding the Temple, and reconstructing the walls was a type of the nal exodus, the nal temple, and the nal Jerusalem. Exegesis of Isaiah 57:14–21 A linear reading of chs. 56–66 will obviously treat 57:14 prior to 62:10, an exegetical decision contrary to most treatments of TI, which prioritize chs. 60–62 over against the rest of chs. 56–66. While it is probable that 62:10–12 was written prior to 57:14–21, I will still treat the latter text rst in this study. Even if the author of 57:14–21 possessed knowledge of 62:10–12, the nal redaction of TI provides little evidence to demonstrate in what manner 57:14–21 reinterprets 62:10–12, if at all. As these texts stand, they both undoubtedly draw from 40:3, but demonstrate little dependence upon each other. Thus they are both to be read as a commentary upon SI, and as part of the same prophetic book. Interpretations that assert that 57:14–21 provided a realistic corrective to the idealism of 62:10–12 may historically be true, but the redaction at the level of the prophetic book lacks such an understanding. As discussed in Chapter 2, the focus of this study is on the scale of prophetic books, so these texts

57. Williamson, Ezra, Nehemiah, 20, emphasis added. See the discussion regarding typology in Chapter 2. Blenkinsopp also observes a typological portrayal of events by the author yet he believes typology to be incongruent with the literal, historical meaning of the events. He recognizes an intentional canonical shaping to the text but he believes this reading may not be compatible with the historical-critical reconstruction of the events. See Blenkinsopp, Ezra–Nehemiah, 41–42. 58. See Smith, Religion of the Landless, 63–64. 1

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will be read according to how they function once a complete version of TI was added to SI. Commentators are unanimous in distinguishing 57:14–21 as a distinct pericope within chs. 56–66. Several scholars consider this text to be of a composite nature because they follow the redactional proposal of Westermann and rule out the possibility that oracles of salvation and judgment could have originated from the same hand.59 These interpretations assume the following religious development in Yehud from exilic to post-exilic period: the unconditional message of salvation by Second Isaiah  a prophet deemed “Third Isaiah” who revives the message of SI  a fracture in the community between the pious and apostates. I have argued in Chapter 3 that SI’s message was not unconditional and that opposition existed within the community during the time of SI, so these criteria ought not to be used to date texts that possess these elements to a later period. This passage can be read as a unity and as the natural continuation of 56:9–57:13. In 57:14 the command to prepare a way () is repeated verbatim from 40:3, and rather than mention a highway ( ), the verbal form is repeated,   , with no object. Instead of the idea of building or heaping up, as most translations suggest (NRSV, NIV, NJPS: “Build up, build up a highway!”), David Dorsey suggests that the verb connotes the action of leveling by clearing away obstacles and stones by grading.60 Richard Schultz is likely correct to see in the double imperative an imitation of   in 40:1.61 Since 40:1–11 serves as a microcosm of chs. 40–55,62 when the author of TI alludes to 40:3 he not only repeats one verse but invokes the whole message of SI regarding the WOL. N. Tidwell offers the reminder that “words do not have simply a lexical value or ‘dictionary’ meaning; they have associations which are often difcult to dene in dictionary terms and they have emotive value. They have power not only to ‘refer’ but also to evoke.”63 Susan Niditch argues that repetition serves to unify a literary work and to reiterate essential messages or themes. She follows the argument by Foley that these formulaic phrases function as a “metonymy” such that the formula, in this 59. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 330–31; Smith, Rhetoric and Redaction, 87–88. Even though Smith accepts the notion of a core TI nucleus (in his case 60:1–63:6) surrounded by redactional additions, he believes 57:14–21 to be a coherent and carefully constructed whole. See Smith, Rhetoric and Redaction, 89–90. 60. Dorsey, Roads and Highways, 231. 61. Schultz, Search for Quotation, 274. 62. Melugin, Isaiah 40–55, 85. 63. Tidwell, “No Highway!,” 61. 1

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case the command “prepare the way” (, 40:3; 57:14; 62:10), is a signier of a rich tradition.64 Therefore the repetition of the phrase “prepare the way” in TI calls to mind the whole prophecy of SI since this theme functions as a root metaphor within chs. 40–52. Whereas some commentators omit ' "  (“and he said”) from 57:14 altogether,65 or else emend it to ' /  (“and I said”),66 the MT is to be maintained since this phrase plays a vital role within the text. The reuse of ' "  recalls the previous voices from within the heavenly council in 6:3 and 40:6 and indicates that the words to follow, like the prophecy of SI, possess divine authority and efcacy. The reference to “my people” in 57:14 and the introductory formula to follow,       , indicate that a heavenly host is speaking on Yahweh’s behalf in 57:14 and beginning in 57:15b Yahweh directly speaks. More difcult to determine is the audience of this address. Childs, following the proposal by Klaus Koenen, believes the imperatives are addressed to the heavenly host of ch. 40, and that therefore the “focus is completely theocentric and God is at work in removing all obstacles that block his salvation.”67 This interpretation refutes Zimmerli’s proposal that 57:14 is an exhortation directed to the people. Jan Koole interprets the audience in 40:1–11 as prophets and believes this same group of people is addressed here.68 Because of the introductory formula, “And he said” (' "  , 57:14), I agree with Koenen and Childs that the voice originates from the divine council and that therefore the emphasis of this text is on Yahweh’s act of salvation. Nevertheless, as in 40:3–4, an ethical response from the community is implied.69 The people, like Isaiah in ch. 6, are invited to listen in on the conversation within the heavenly council. That is, as much as this speech takes place within the divine council, it is by no means secret deliberation. It is disclosed to the community so that they might respond to Yahweh’s words of comfort and warning. Although clear reference is made to 40:3, this verse is not repeated verbatim. Signicant differences exist between the two texts. Whereas the preparation for the way in 40:3–4 required the transformation of uneven terrain, in 57:14 specic obstacles are blocking the establishment 64. Niditch, Oral World and Written World, 10–11. 65. Duhm, Das Buch Jesaja, 432. 66. Klaus Koenen, Ethik und Eschatologie im Tritojesjabuch (Neukirchen– Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1990), 48. Koenen follows the Vulgate. 67. Childs, Isaiah, 470; Koenen, Ethik und Eschatologie, 54. Koenen concedes TI reinterprets 40:3, but not in the manner suggested by Zimmerli. 68. Koole, Chapters 56–66, 95. 69. See Chapter 3. 1

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of this way. “Stumbling block” (  ) appears only once within Isaiah in 8:14 and there it refers to an obstacle or a trap: “He will become a sanctuary, a stone one strikes against; for both houses of Israel he will become a rock one stumbles over (   )—a trap and a snare for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” C. Barth goes to great lengths to refute any notion of dening the word in categories of literal vs. metaphorical, or according to a hierarchical scale differentiated by proper and improper usages. He prefers to dene the word broadly as signifying “drastic disaster on the way,” while suggesting that it has a “narrower” usage (“disaster on the road”) and a “wider” usage (“disaster in life”).70 Interestingly, Barth nds a similar lexical phenomenon occurring with the root . Since Zimmerli characterized TI’s reinterpretation of SI’s material as an “improper formulaic use,” one wonders if Zimmerli employed the very naïve understanding of metaphor Barth criticizes.71 What, then, does the stumbling block in 57:14 refer to? Isaiah 57:3–13 describes how Israel, in the same manner of their ancestors in pre-exilic times, continued to indulge in idolatrous practices. Isaiah 57:15 presupposes the sin of hubris among God’s people and 57:17 the sin of avarice. Whybray is likely correct when he observes that the word   is “most frequently used in the Old Testament not in the literal sense but, especially in Ezekiel, of sin (especially idolatry) or guilt leading to divine punishment.”72 Within the larger context 57:14 can in many ways reiterate the exhortation of Ezek 18:30, “Repent and turn back from your transgressions; let them not be a stumbling block of guilt (  ) for you” (NJPS). Lena-Soa Tiemeyer observes that the root  is frequently associated with idolatry (Ps 119:165; Ezek 3:20; 7:19; 14:4; 44:12; Jer 6:21), and in the case of Jer 18:15 it is also conjoined with the roots  and

: “But my people have forgotten me, they burn offerings to a delusion; they have stumbled in their ways (    ), in the ancient roads, and have gone into bypaths, not the highway (    ).”73 To stray from the “way” and “highway” can serve as a metaphor for the sin of idolatry. The verbal form  occurs eleven times in Isaiah and on several occasions it clearly describes Israel’s failures: 70. C. Barth, “ ' 0" kšl,” TDOT 7:358. 71. See Chapter 2 for a discussion on literalism and metaphor. 72. Whybray, Isaiah 40–66, 209.   appears eight times in the book of Ezekiel (3:20; 7:19; 14:3, 4, 7; 18:30; 21:20; 44:12), frequently as a synonym for . 73. Lena-Soa Tiemeyer, “The Watchman Metaphor in Isaiah LVI–LXVI,” VT 55 (2005): 388–89. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah For Jerusalem has stumbled (  ) and Judah has fallen, because their speech and their deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence. (3:8) Strengthen the weak hands, and make rm the feeble (   ) knees. (35:3) Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted (    ). (40:30) We grope like the blind along a wall, groping like those who have no eyes; we stumble (  ) at noon as in the twilight, among the vigorous as though we were dead. (59:10)

To a people who are prone to stumble because they are feeble and weary, Yahweh orders the removal of the obstacles that are the root of the problem. Based upon the larger context of Isaiah and the immediate context of ch. 57,   refers to the sins of the people, particularly idolatry, injustice, and pride, but also their inability to overcome their sin as demonstrated in the above uses of  within Isaiah. In order to turn his people from their iniquity and the backsliding of their hearts, Yahweh in his anger chastised his people, removed his presence from them, and even struck them (57:16–17). Although the language probably originates from cultic lamentations,74 within the context of BI, these words are likely a reference to the exile since echoes of 54:8 reverberate in 57:16–17: In overowing wrath (1) for a moment I hid (  ) my face from you… (54:8) Because of their wicked covetousness I was angry ( ); I struck them, I hid ( ) and was angry (1)… (57:17)

For those who returned to Jerusalem following the exile, this verse indicates that Yahweh continues to contend with his people in the same manner that rst brought about the catastrophe. The idolatry described in 57:3–13 is of a form that rst brought on the exile, and it is these practices which bar Yahweh from fully dwelling among his people. Yet more than discipline is required to remedy the people’s problem; they require revival. The spirit of men grow faint (1+    , 57:16), and their hearts are prone to backsliding (    , 57:17). It is no wonder, then, that Yahweh reveals himself as the one who comes “to revive the spirit () of the humble, and to revive the 74. Cf. Pss 44:23–24; 74:1; 79:5; 85. Following the suggestion of Whybray, Isaiah 40–66, 208, and Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 171. 1

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heart ( ) of the contrite” (57:15). God’s people are wounded and disabled and therefore God declares, “But I will heal them; I will lead them and repay them with comfort” (57:18). The mention of “comfort” () certainly invokes the message of SI in which this theme plays a major role (40:1; 49:13; 51:3, 12, 19; 52:9; 54:11), most notably in its opening lines:        (40:1). Through comfort and healing Yahweh seeks once and for all to remedy the people’s proneness to sin, and their helplessness and transience like grass (40:7). All of Yahweh’s actions here collectively serve to bring about the promise of 6:10 that the people would “understand with their hearts ( ), and turn and be healed ()” (NIV). Koenen is rightly observes, “The demand to clear the way for the people corresponds to the message in v. 15ff. that Yahweh will revive, heal, and lead the suffering.”75 In other words, the “way of the people” in v. 14 is rst and foremost the “way of the LORD” as it primarily refers to Yahweh bringing redemption to his people. Still, the change from the “way of the LORD” ( ) in 40:3 to the “way of my people” ( ) in 57:14 is signicant. This alteration does not signify that the way of TI is of a different sort, since 40:9–11 indicates that Yahweh will lead his people back to Zion along the way. As mentioned earlier,  functions as a metonymy invoking earlier passages regarding the theme of the WOL. The change to “way of my people” is rather one of theological and rhetorical emphasis. The very denition of “my people” has both expanded and contracted since Isa 40:1. In SI, God’s people comprised all of Israel, including those of the diaspora.76 TI broadens this denition such that the foreigner and eunuch are now considered part of God’s people who may worship within a house of prayer for all nations (56:1–8). At the same, time the demands for entrance into the community of God’s people have become more restrictive as well. Not any Jew or returnee, but only the righteous who observes justice can worship at God’s holy mountain (56:1; 57:13) and the wicked who practices idolatry will be cut off (57:13). As Koole observes, “The ‘people’ comprises less and at the same time more than the nation of Israel. This is not irrelevant to the question whether ‘the way of my people’ refers only to the return from exile and diaspora, or to the way of salvation leading to full fellowship with God.”77 Within chs. 56–59  appears a signicant number of times (10×), and in each instance it possesses an ethical denition, as exemplied in 59:8: “The way () of peace they do not know, and there is no justice 75. Koenen, Ethik und Eschatologie, 54. 76. “Jacob” appears 23 times and “Abraham” twice in chs. 40–52. 77. Koole, Isaiah 56–66, 94. 1

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in their paths. Their roads they have made crooked; no one who walks (( )/ ) in them knows peace.” It is this denition (“course of one’s life”) that is used in 57:17b–18a: “But he went on backsliding in the way () of his own heart. I have seen his ways ( ), but I will heal him” (RSV). In Isa 40–66, the verb  occurs in 40:3; 45:22; 53:6; 56:11; 57:14; 62:10. In 53:6, the people’s problem is that, like sheep, they go astray and they confess that each turns to his/her own way (    ). This problem continues to plague the leaders of Israel in TI, and in their drunken idolatry and greed they each persist in turning to his/her own way (    , 56:11). Israel is not to “turn to its own way”; rather, the way needs to be cleared of obstructions in the manner announced in 57:14. Isaiah 40:3; 57:14, and 62:10 all contain the same Piel imperative -2%' , “to prepare,” yet in 45:22 the verb occurs in the Qal imperative -% , “to turn.” In this case, the turning is not to a way or highway, but to Yahweh himself, resulting in salvation: “Turn to me and be saved (  ), all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.” The “way” is to be understood as the manner in which the salvation of Yahweh is received. Viewed within their larger context, vv. 20–21 need not be considered a later addition. Since Isa 57:14 already quoted 40:3, it is not surprising to nd another quotation of SI, in this case a verbatim quotation of 48:22 in 57:21. Just as 48:22 was set in a context in which Yahweh exhorted his people to live according to the ethical demands of his “way” (48:17), so too 57:21 appears in a context that speaks of a moral response to the way of God’s people. In both cases the wicked are granted no peace with the understanding that they are excluded from Yahweh’s “way.” The third major difference between 57:14 and 40:3 is that no longer is there any mention of a desert, sea, or any mythical enemy as was present in the WOL or NE passages in SI. Usually this change is ascribed to a change in geographical location: TI is set in Yehud and therefore the desert no longer poses the threat to God’s people that it did to an audience about to depart Babylon. In Chapter 3 I argued that the wilderness primarily symbolizes the spiritual and physical state of Jerusalem and its inhabitants. Its absence now need not imply that TI possesses a different theology, but rather a different emphasis. The focus of chs. 56–59 is not Yahweh’s mighty acts within history and beyond, as in chs. 40–55; these chapters are concerned about the conduct of God’s people. As argued above, the exhortation of 57:14 is not a command directed to the people to repent. Instead, the verses to follow describe what Yahweh will do for the people, rather than what the people must do for God. While repeating the language of SI, 57:14–21 revives certain themes within SI but not others. In this instance the ethical dimension of the WOL is elaborated 1

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upon but the NE theme is ignored. This need not imply that the “way” has been reinterpreted, but rather that the NE theme may already be assumed as common knowledge to the author and his audience. Certainly the theme of repentance is present in 57:14–21, yet it is implied rather than directly commanded. What is to be the response of God’s people to the way announced in 57:14? Isaiah 57:15 describes Yahweh as high and lifted up (  ), which should naturally elicit humility and contrition. These exact words,   , describe Yahweh in Isaiah’s vision in the temple (6:1). The reference to Yahweh’s name as holy in 57:15 recalls the refrain, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory” (6:3). There is no need for the temple to be mentioned in 57:15 to link the passage to Isa 6 since Yahweh’s declaration that he inhabits eternity and dwells in the high and holy place supersedes any earthly temple (cf. 66:1–2). In fact, in Isaiah’s vision the earthly temple is so overshadowed by the exalted position of Yahweh’s abode that it only contains the hem of his robe (6:1). By evoking images of Isa 6 in 57:15, TI links the “way of the people” to the eternal dwelling place of Yahweh. That is, the nal destination of the WOL is not an earthly Jerusalem nor an earthly temple. Rather, the goal of this way is to dwell in the midst of the Holy One of Israel. Yet, for all the emphasis on Yahweh’s transcendence, S. Flynn is correct to recognize that in chs. 56–57 the earthly temple is in view. In contrast to idolatrous oppressors, Yahweh grants entry to his sacred mount and house of prayer to the foreigner, the eunuch, the lowly, and the contrite. Given that the sacred mount () is mentioned in 57:13, the “way” of 57:14 is clearly the road to this temple. The idolatrous actions described in 57:3–13 are akin to those that brought on the exile, and such practices now prevent Yahweh from fully dwelling among his people in the restoration. These chapters then function to uplift the marginalized and condemn the present leaders in the post-exilic community. Flynn concludes: In the context of Trito-Isaiah the road could lead to the temple and conrm the access granted in Isaiah 56. Also the road can simultaneously refer to the moral actions of those who are on their way to the temple and of the community before they can build their temple. The point is that both the literal and gurative readings can assume that an earthly temple could be in the mind of the composer of 57,14–15 or in the mind of the redactor who gave it its place in the text.78

78. S. W. Flynn, “Where is YHWH in Isaiah 57,14–15?,” Biblica 87 (2006): 368–69. 1

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Flynn is correct to recognize that this way is physical and ethical. Yet I would add that this way is also eschatological given the placement of chs. 56–57 in BI.79 As argued above, by quoting 40:3 TI appropriates the whole Wegtheologie of SI, which is eschatological in character. Flynn correctly observes that the author of 57:14–15 had the earthly temple in view. Yet the nal form of the prophetic book acknowledges the provisional nature of the earthly temple and recognizes that the WOL is ultimately eschatological since the imperative to prepare the way reappears in 62:10–12 and there an eschatological city is clearly in view. Childs observes, “The historical event of the end of exile serves for Third Isaiah as only an instance of God’s mercy. However, true salvation is to enter into the holy presence of God. It is the path to his holy mountain offered only to those who take refuge in him.”80 Rather than viewing the way of 57:14 as having a nature different from that of 40:3, the way in 57:14 is a more advanced stage towards attaining the goal of the way announced earlier in SI. Isaiah 40:1–11 announced the Sovereign Lord coming in glory and power to dwell with his people in Zion. In 57:14–21, Yahweh as the Holy One draws extremely near, such that contrition and humility is required lest one be cut off from his presence along with the wicked. This response to Yahweh’s coming is the same one announced by SI in 40:3–4. As described in Chapter 3, the “mountains and hills” in 40:4 serve as symbols of arrogance. Similarly, when 57:14 and 57:15 are read together one can conclude that to prepare the way means to remove the stumbling block of pride from one’s heart. Since the “way” never primarily referred to a road from Babylon to Yehud for the exiles, any so-called “spiritualized” depiction of the way in TI is consistent with that of SI. Blenkinsopp observes that this course of life is “not just a way of life in general but a way of life in conformity with prophetic example and teaching and, in the context of Isa 40–66, the example and teaching of the Servant-prophet of ch. 53.”81 To be contrite ( , 57:15), one then needs to embrace the example of the Servant who was crushed for our iniquities (   , 53:5) and who Yahweh chose to crush (   , 53:10). Yet, in doing so there is the hope of being, like the Servant, high, lifted up, and exalted (    , 52:13). 79. Zehnder (Wegmetaphorik, 470) acknowledges that this use of  in 57:14 falls under his ethical semantic categories “life way” or “life change.” Nevertheless, he recognizes that the use of  in 40:3; 57:14; 62:10 ought to be grouped together under Eschatologische Wunderstrasse texts. 80. Childs, Isaiah, 472. 81. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 169. 1

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Exegesis of Isaiah 62:10–12 Although 57:14 and 62:10 do not begin with the anonymous ' "  , as in 40:3, the connection between these texts is obvious given the exhortation to prepare a way ( ) and clear a highway (     ). As will be demonstrated below, 62:10–12 contains a “catena of quotations from Second Isaiah,”82 as well as many connections with FI. Steck has expanded on the proposal set forth by Vermeylen that 62:10– 12 was never intended to conclude chs. 60–62, but was later added as part of the Heimkehrredaktion to the Großjesajabuch, which consisted of 1:1–62:12* in the Hellenistic period.83 He nds a stronger connection between 62:10–12 and 11:11–16; 27:12–13; 35:8–10; 40:1–11 than the preceding verses in ch. 62. Steck’s proposal has not received much support, and most commentators continue to view chs. 60–62 as a unity, with 62:10–12 the conclusion to this text.84 Smith criticizes Steck for imposing a criterion of logical consistency and progression that cannot be maintained even within his own reading of chs. 60–62, and for seeking a precision in thought unknown to the poet himself. TI clearly is comprised of poetry and therefore a level of uidity and multivalence in imagery and thought should be expected. The absence of ' "  and any other indications of a divine council scene suggests that, though these verses are an extension of the announcement of a way in ch. 40, in this case the proclamation appears directed to the inhabitants of Zion rather than to the heavenly host. That is, it is the people of Zion who are to prepare the way so that those intending to inhabit the city may pass through the gates. Those speaking are not the watchmen of v. 6. As Zion’s protectors they announce the coming of Yahweh in vengeance in 63:1–6.85 Instead, it is the Servant-prophet of ch. 61 who in 62:10–12 announces both to Zion and to the ends of the earth the preparation necessary for the advent of Yahweh and the repopulation of Zion by the nations. Isaiah 62:10–12 is difcult to interpret because it is unclear whether aspects of the prophecy should be taken literally or guratively. Steck points out that every instance of  in the Old Testament refers to death by stoning except the two instances in Isaiah.86 Besides 62:10, this verb 82. Muilenburg, “Book of Isaiah,” 5:722. 83. Vermeylen, Du Prophète Isaïe, 2:489; Steck, Bereite Heimkehr, 60–64, and “Jes 62, 10–12 als Abschluß eines Großjesajabuches,” 143–66. 84. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 378; Smith, Rhetoric and Redaction, 26–38; Koenen, Ethik und Eschatologie, 136; Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 241–42. 85. Seitz, “The Book of Isaiah 40–66,” 515. 86. Steck, “Jes 62, 10–12 als Abschluß eines Großjesajabuches,” 147. 1

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appears in 5:2 in which it describes Yahweh’s cultivation of a vineyard: “He dug it and cleared it of stones ( ), and planted it with choice vines.” Here the verb clearly refers to the removal of rocks from a garden, but the poem as a whole describes Yahweh’s cultivation of Israel’s moral and spiritual state. Within the imagery of the poem   refers to the removal of literal stones, especially since in 62:10 it is coupled with  rather than the more loosely dened  . In this instance it appears that the verb simply refers to the clearing of stones, and its denition within Isaiah is determined more by its Piel verbal form rather than anything else. This “way” is to be the actual road followed by the people to return to God’s presence.87 Zimmerli, on the basis of the identication of redeemed people with Yahweh’s recompense and reward in vv. 11–12, believes TI diverges from the message of SI. He writes: Here too…the concrete discourse regarding Yahweh accompanying the procession is spiritualized into discourse regarding the coming help. The gurative language regarding the “reward” and “recompense” which he has brought along…has been removed from the original complete image in 40.10 to become mere gurative expressions within the religious speech.88

However, if Yahweh’s “reward” ( ) and “recompense” ( ) in 40:10 refers to those whom he leads as a ock in his march towards Zion, then the “way” is not a “spiritualized” version of the way of 40:1– 11. It is the same way. The only difference between TI and SI in regard to this way is one of perspective. Whereas in SI the people were encouraged to embark on the journey along the way (48:20; 52:11), now in 62:10–12 the prophet speaks from within Zion, the nal destination of this trek. And while previously the exhortation was to “Go out from Babylon, ee from Chaldea” or “Depart, depart, go out from there!” (48:22), now the command is to “Go through, go through the gates” (62:10). Even though this command may be understood as a command to the inhabitants of Zion to leave the city so that they may facilitate travel for pilgrims seeking entrance,89 every indication is that the command   refers to entrance into the city rather than exit out of it.  appears twelve times within BI, and never does it signify a means of exit.90 In chs. 60–62, every indication is that the gates of Zion are the 87. Koole, Isaiah 56–66, 322. 88. Zimmerli, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” 221–22 (trans. R. Schultz, The Search for Quotation, 287). 89. Koole, Isaiah 56–66, 320–22. 90. Isa 14:31; 22:7; 24:12; 26:2; 28:6; 29:21; 38:10; 45:1; 54:12; 60:11, 18; 62:10. 1

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entry point for the nations to come and dwell in Jerusalem: “Your gates () shall always be open; day and night they shall not be shut, so that nations shall bring you their wealth, with their kings led in procession” (60:11). Blenkinsopp writes, “The city gate has a religious signicance as the point of entry for the procession that will end in the temple (62:10), through which ‘the King of glory’ will pass (Psa 24:7–10).”91 If the nations are exhorted to enter into the city, who then are to prepare the way? This command may be directed to travelers heading toward Zion or even to the heavenly host. This proclamation is certainly for the present inhabitants in Zion, yet this proclamation extends “to the end of the earth” (  , 62:11). The wide scope of the proclamation is not unique since earlier SI commanded those eeing Babylon to proclaim “The LORD has redeemed his servant Jacob!” to the end of the earth ( , 48:20). It has been widely observed by commentators that chs. 60–62 conrm and expand upon previous Isaianic prophecy and biblical material regarding the fate of Zion. Since the intertextual development between these chapters, chs. 1–55, and the Zion psalms have been covered elsewhere,92 only those passages that directly pertain to the theme of the WOL will be addressed here. Earlier, Isa 40:5 announced that the revelation of the glory of the LORD would be manifest for all esh to see, now the   reveals itself as light to attract all the nations to Zion (60:1, 3). Such an image recalls the exaltation of Mt. Zion in 2:2–5, in which the nations stream into Zion to learn of God’s “ways” () and “paths” () and to “walk in the light of the Lord” ( ). Later, the Servant is endowed with the role as   (42:6, 49:6), and the deliverance offered to Israel in the NE is one in which Yahweh turns the “darkness before them into light” (  , 42:16). In ch. 60, the glory of God, manifested as light, will be seen within the inhabitants of Zion (60:2) such that the nations will not only bring tribute but also return the Israelites to Jerusalem (60:3–9). This is in fulllment of the prophecy of SI:

91. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 214, emphasis added. 92. Westermann, Isaiah 40–66, 356–71; Hanson, Dawn of Apocalyptic, 60–61; Willem A. M. Beuken, “Servant and Herald of Good Tidings: Isaiah 61 as an Interpretation of Isaiah 40–55,” in Vermeylen, ed., The Book of Isaiah. Le Livre d’Isaïe, 411–42; Ronald E. Clements, “Arise, Shine; For Your Light has Come,” in Broyles and Evans, eds., Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah, 441–54; Childs, Isaiah, 496–506; Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 207–31. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you; I will say to the north, “Give them up,” and to the south, “Do not withhold; bring my sons from far away and my daughters from the end of the earth. (Isa 43:5–6) Lo, these shall come from far away, and lo, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene… Lift up your eyes all around and see; they all gather, they come to you… …I will soon lift up my hand to the nations, and raise my signal to the peoples; and they shall bring your sons in their bosom, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. (Isa 49:12, 18, 22)

Isaiah 60:17–22 makes clear that this city is no earthly city since the language becomes increasing hyperbolic. As Childs observes, “In vv. 19ff. a new dimension is reached in the eschatological portrayal of Zion that enters into the realm of the apocalyptic. Zion is not puried and restored, but takes on the features of the heavenly city.”93 Later this city is revealed as the “new heavens and earth” (65:17–25) to which people of all nations and tongues will come to see the glory of God (66:18–22). In chs. 60–62 the goal or end of the WOL is revealed in greater detail. The Zion of chs. 60–62 is then not merely the rebuilt Jerusalem following the exile, but rather the new heavens and the new earth. Although I do not accept Steck’s proposal that 62:10–12 is the result of a Heimkehrredaktion to the Großjesajabuch, he is correct to highlight the manner in which the theme of the way unies chs. 1–62. Steck categorizes the following passages as “homecoming” texts: 11:11–16; 27:12–13; 35:8–10; 40:1–11; 62:10–12. Even though a “standard” () frequently served as a signal for warfare and judgment (5:26; 13:2; 31:9), it also can announce victory, or represent a focal point (Num 21:8).94 Clearly the standard raised over the peoples in 62:10 is not of warfare since its context in 62:10–12, and the context of its other uses in 11:12 and 49:22, contains no elements of such a motif. The signal clearly announces the start of a great ingathering of the dispersed Jews, and in some cases assisted by Gentiles:

1

93. Childs, Isaiah, 498–99. 94. E. A. Martens, “,” NIDOTTE 3:110–11.

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He will raise a signal () for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. (11:12) Thus says the Lord GOD: I will soon lift up my hand to the nations, and raise my signal () to the peoples; and they shall bring your sons in their bosom, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. (49:22) Go through, go through the gates, prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway ( ), clear it of stones, lift up an ensign () over the peoples. (62:10)

Isaiah 11:11–16 possesses a NE theme since it speaks of Yahweh extending “his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people” (11:11), a highway ( , 11:16), the conquest and crossing of the sea of Egypt (11:15), and the rst exodus (11:16). Yet it is noteworthy that this highway does not extend out of Egypt or Babylon, as in SI. The return begins in Assyria and consists of a worldwide repatriation (11:11– 12, 16). Because of its diaspora motif, this passage is usually dated to either the time of Ezra or the Maccabees. Yet Geo Widengren points out that the notion of the king as gatherer of dispersed peoples from the far reaches of the earth was a common royal ideology of Mesopotamian kings going back to the time of Hammurabi.95 Blenkinsopp observes that within its immediate context the hymn of thanksgiving in 12:1–6 celebrates the NE (11:12–16) over the defeat of Assyria, but within the logic of BI it gives thanks for the downfall of Babylon (ch. 13).96 In its present position this hymn celebrates both an exodus from Assyria as well as from Babylon. Since these motifs of a highway, a standard, the gathering of the dispersed, and the NE resurface in 49:22 and 62:10, a typology of exodus from Assyria, then from Babylon, and then from the ends of the 95. Geo Widengren, “Yahweh’s Gathering of the Dispersed,” in In the Shelter of Elyon: Essays on Ancient Palestinian Life and Literature in Honour of G. W. Ahlström (ed. W. B. Barrick, J. R. Spencer, and G. W. Ahlström; JSOTSup 31; Shefeld: JSOT, 1984), 325. Sweeney dates the passage to the time of Josiah; see Marvin A. Sweeney, Isaiah 1–39 With an Introduction to Prophetic Literature (FOTL 16; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1996), 211. 96. Joseph Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 1–39: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 19; New York: Doubleday, 2000), 270. 1

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earth to the New Jerusalem is formed. That is, the initial NE and highway in Isaiah extends out of Assyria (11:16), and later provides escape from Babylon (48:20; 49:22), while in 62:10 no earthly place or foe is mentioned. Given that 60:17–22 already described the destination of the way in eschatological terms, and since 62:10–12 serve as a conclusion for chs. 60–62, “the signal now indicates the beginning of the great eschatological procession to the city and the temple.”97 The commands to enter through the gates and to build a highway are now clearly invitations to enter into Yahweh’s eschatological city. SI earlier announced that the deliverance from Babylon by Cyrus would initiate a worldwide ingathering of the dispersed (43:5–6); TI is now envisioning its consummation. The fact that 62:10–11 directly quote from 40:9–10 further supports the idea that the “way” functions as a metonymy. Notably, ch. 62 draws from not just one verse, but from several throughout the prologue. The following chart demonstrates the verbal links between the two passages: 40:9–10 9 10 10

                

62:10–11 10 11 11

    98       

Based upon the similarities, the quotation of 40:9–10 by 62:11 is undeniable and signies to the reader of BI that 40:9–11 nds its fulllment in 62:10–12. That is, the Jerusalem of 40:9 is not the earthly city and the high mountain of 40:9 is not the physical Mt. Zion. The Jerusalem of 40:9 ultimately points to the eschatological city described in 60:17–22; 65:17–25; and 66:18–22; and the “high mountain” () of 40:9 is the eschatological holy mountain of God (65:25; 66:20). Viewed in this way, the “reward” and “recompense” may include the exiles returning from Babylon, but in 62:11 they now represent the nations streaming into Jerusalem bringing their wealth as well as diaspora Jews with them. Isaiah 62:10–12, within the context of BI, can be understood as fullling the enigmatic prophecy of 27:12–13: 97. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66, 242–43. 98. Rather than placing these two clauses in a parallel relationship, Steck (Bereitete Heimkehr, 66) believes 40:10a, “See the Sovereign Lord comes with power and his arm rules for him,” corresponds to 62:11a, “See the Lord has made himself heard to the ends of the earth,” while 40:10a, “Say to the towns of Judah, ‘See here is your God!’ ” corresponds to 62:11a, “See your salvation comes.” I choose to have 40:10a correspond with 62:11a because of the common verb , and because in each instance both phrases precede the exact same line, “his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.” 1

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On that day the LORD will thresh from the channel of the Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt, and you will be gathered one by one, O people of Israel. And on that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lost in the land of Assyria and those who were driven out to the land of Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain ( ) at Jerusalem.

Although critical commentators speculate as to which diaspora the author of this text referred to, Childs offers the following corrective: “Nor can the fact of a Jewish diaspora provide any real historical specicity. The hope of the nal return to Zion of all Israel, one by one, remains the enduring goal of every Jew in every generation whose identity is still shaped by the promise of scripture.”99 Ingathering of dispersed peoples is an eschatological motif and therefore should not be subjected to the criteria of social-scientic historiography, nor assumed to be a cipher for Jewish political aspirations. The ingathering theme concludes the so-called Isaiah Apocalypse of chs. 24–27, the eschatological vision of chs. 60–62, and the last chapter of BI (66:18–22), and therefore ought to be understood as representing an eschatological hope. The shared motifs found within the WOL texts (primarily 40:3; 57:14; 62:10–12) are summarized in the eschatological psalm of 26:1–7. The command to “open the gates” (  ) in 26:2 is essentially the same exhortation of 62:10, “Go through, go through the gates” (  ), and corresponds to the description of Jerusalem in 60:11, “Your gates shall always be open” (   ). Clearly this is the eschatological city, since not just any people, but only a righteous and faithful nation, is allowed entrance (26:2). This idea is consistent with the requirement of justice and righteousness for God’s servants, as well as the inclusion of the foreigner among those who worship at the holy mountain within TI. Yahweh’s action to humble the proud in 26:5 recalls the prophecy in 2:11–12 of a day in which Yahweh of hosts will debase the arrogant. As demonstrated in Chapter 3, a common phenomenon of a theophany is the attening of hills and mountains, which function as symbols of pride. In 57:15 it is Yahweh who alone is exalted, yet he chooses to dwell among the lowly. The lexemes of “high” and “low” function in an inverse relationship throughout BI depending upon whether they describe God or humankind: The haughty eyes of people shall be brought low ( ), and the pride () of everyone shall be humbled (); and the LORD alone will be exalted ( ) in that day. For the LORD of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty (), against all that is lifted up ( ) and high ( ). (2:11–12) 99. 1

Childs, Isaiah, 198.

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah For he has brought low () the inhabitants of the height (); the lofty ( ) city he lays low ( ). He lays it low ( ) to the ground, casts it to the dust. (26:5) Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low ( ). (40:4a) For thus says the high () and lofty one ( ) who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high () and holy place, and also with those who are contrite and humble in spirit ( ), to revive the spirit of the humble ( ), and to revive the heart of the contrite. (57:15)

The humbling of the proud and the exaltation of the humble are then an integral part of the WOL. The depiction of the righteous in 26:7, “The way of the righteous is level; O Just One, you make smooth the path of the righteous,” is not merely a general description of Israelite piety or simply a Wisdom saying. This way and path are certainly ethical, requiring deep humility. But this way is eschatological as well, since humility provides access to the gates of Zion and entrance to the holy mountain where the righteous can dwell with the exalted Yahweh. Only when Israel and the nations invert the posture of their relationship to Yahweh can they gain access to the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 62:12 concludes the description of the eschatological city in chs. 60–62, brings a nale to the theme of the WOL within chs. 1–62, and anticipates the New Heavens and Earth (chs. 65–66). The immediate context (v. 10), as well as intertextual references (40:10), suggest that the procession comprised of both Jews and Gentiles traveling to Zion. It is this people who are redeemed, holy, sought out, and not forsaken. SI acknowledges for a short time Israel was forsaken and abandoned as a bride (49:14; cf. 54:6–7), all the while reminding her that Yahweh would never truly forsake her (41:17; 42:16). TI announces an eschatological reversal, so whereas Israel was forsaken in the past (60:15), now Zion will be called “A City Not Forsaken” (62:12; cf. 62:4). Since within 62:10–12 one verse places an emphasis upon the coming of Yahweh (v. 11) and another upon the coming of the people (v. 12), a sharp distinction ought not to be made between the “way of the LORD” and the “way of my people,” especially since 62:10–12 concludes the “way” texts of chs. 1–62. In other words, the way of the LORD is the way of the people. 1

Chapter 5

THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN ISAIAH 34–35

Within Isaiah 1–39 the theme of the WOL is featured most prominently in Isa 34–35. The present chapter will be devoted to the interpretation of chs. 34–35 and how they relate to BI. I have chosen to treat chs. 34–35 after SI and TI because, as stated in Chapter 2, these texts are among the latest additions to BI. Since this study approaches texts at the level of how they function within prophetic books, the focus of this chapter will be upon how chs. 34–35 contribute to the “way” theme within FI and BI rather than examine the origins of every single “way” text in FI. Isaiah 34–35 serve a strategic role within BI as it both concludes the argument of chs. 1–33 and introduces the latter half of the book. Therefore ch. 35 cannot be interpreted in isolation from FI or BI, and chs. 34–35 must be interpreted as a unit since these two chapters are so closely interrelated. In this chapter I will examine the relationship between ch. 34 and ch. 35, how they both relate to Isa 1–33, and the manner in which chs. 34–35 anticipate the message of chs. 36–66. In doing so, I argue that the WOL serves as a metaphor for the reversal of the judgment announced in earlier in FI. These chapters play a vital role in highlighting the cultic and eschatological elements of the WOL and help unify BI. Chapters 34–35 as a Diptych Certainly a full-scale evaluation of the various redactional schemes for chs. 34–35 is beyond the scope of this study, yet a survey of the major proposals is important in determining how these chapters relate to the rest of BI. Before the role of Isa 34–35 within the book can be examined, it must rst be determined whether they are even to be read in tandem. Because of the apocalyptic character of these texts, Bernhard Duhm considered them to be among the latest additions to BI. Soon scholars began to observe the afnities between ch. 35 and SI, and argued that 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

ch. 35 was a displaced work of SI and that ch. 34 was post-exilic addition.1 Since the graphic destruction of Edom in ch. 34 did not match the tone, vocabulary, and message of SI, by default it was relegated to a later period. Charles Torrey’s study challenged this hypothesis and initiated a debate that led to a complete re-evaluation of the book as a whole.2 He considered chs. 34–35 inseparable and believed that they serve as the beginning of the prophecy of SI, a book that always existed in the form of an independent work comprising of chs. 34–35 and 40–66 written in c. 400 B.C.E. Unlike SI, FI never circulated as a unied, independent work, but was conjoined to SI in the third century. When chs. 1–33 were added to SI, chs. 36–39 were inserted in between chs. 35 and 40 such that the historical narratives would serve as a bridge for two blocks of material. What is signicant in Torrey’s proposal is his emphasis upon the unity of chs. 34 and 35, and his decision to assign them to SI, rather than TI. He not only considered chs. 34 and 35 indivisible, but he observed a consistent message in chs. 34–35 and 40–66. In his intricate work, Bereitete Heimkehr,3 Odil Steck denies the unity of chs. 34–35 and argues that ch. 35 was written as a redactional bridge to ease the tensions between FI and SI. In contrast to Duhm and early twentieth-century proposals, in Steck’s schema ch. 34 precedes ch. 35. He includes ch. 34 (minus vv. 2–4) in the exilic redaction of FI and assigns ch. 35 to the Persian period. By doing so he breaks from midtwentieth-century proposals that argue ch. 35 was the work of SI.4 According to Steck, the correspondence between these two chapters results not from the same author, but the fact that the author/redactor of ch. 35 drew upon the material in ch. 32–34 and ch. 40 when he inserted the chapter. The large time gap between the insertion of these two chapters results in many inconsistencies between the two texts. For example, he observes that ch. 34 depicts the eternal desolation of creation and ch. 35 describes its renewal. Thus the similarity and dissimilarity between these two chapters reveals ch. 35’s redactional origins and purpose. According to Steck, the conjoining of FI and SI resulted in tensions or contradictions embedded within the nal form of the text. Chapter 33 speaks of Yahweh’s presence already in Zion, whereas 40:1–11 announce 1. H. Grätz, “Isaiah xxxiv and xxxv,” JQR 4 (1891): 1–8; A. T. Olmstead, “The Earliest Book of Kings,” AJSL 31 (1915): 169–214; R. B. Y. Scott, “The Relation of Isaiah, Chapter 35, to Deutero-Isaiah,” AJSL 52 (1935): 178–91. 2. Torrey, Second Isaiah. 3. Steck, Bereite Heimkehr. 4. Smart, History and Theology, and J. L. McKenzie, Second Isaiah (AB 20; Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1968). 1

5. The “Way of the LORD” in Isaiah 34–35

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his return to Jerusalem along with those in exile. Chapters 40–55 envision an eschatological salvation extending to all nations, whereas 34:2–4 speak of the nal destruction of foreign nations. Isaiah 33:24 describes a guiltless people in Zion, whereas 40:1–2 proclaim forgiveness and an end to judgment. Chapter 34 describes the devastation of the world’s mountains, yet 40:1–11 proclaim the leveling of these mountains. According to Steck ch. 35 and SI possess similarities because ch. 35 was intended to bridge two xed texts, FI and SI, with each possessing quite different theological perspectives. What becomes evident from Steck’s argument is the importance of properly reading metaphors and intertextual links within BI since “the ‘little Apocalypse’ was not written for its own sake, but for its function in the rest of the book.”5 Decisions regarding the composition of the BI frequently dictate how scholars approach chs. 34–35. Torrey observes that interpretations which separate ch. 34 from ch. 35 result from a prior decision to detach TI from SI. This is exemplied in John Barton’s characterization of SI and TI as distinct personalities, which in turn inuence him to assign ch. 34 to a later date than ch. 35. He writes, “What is more, whereas Isaiah 35 is so like Deutero-Isaiah that it could even be by him, Isaiah 34 seems to me not like him at all, nor like Trito-Isaiah.”6 Redactions are postulated to solve problems of literary dissonance. Yet if it can be demonstrated that “Chs. 34 and 35 therefore form a coherent unit that juxtaposes the fate of hostile powers with the ultimate salvation of Zion, a juxtaposition found elsewhere in the book, especially in the last eleven chapters (e.g. 59:15b– 20; 62:1–63:6),”7 then the need to assign these chapters to different redactions evaporates. I believe chs. 34–35 are a unied work dating to the last stage of the composition of BI. This view is based upon the literary connections between ch. 34 and chs. 1; 13; 30; and 63; the links between ch. 35 and FI, SI, and TI; and the cohesiveness between these two chapters. The purpose of these chapters is not merely to offer a general conclusion to the book (Vermelyen) or ease tensions between FI and SI (Steck); rather, their purpose is to extend the prophecies of chs. 1–33 into chs. 36–66 and beyond. By their placement within the nal form of BI, they serve as a conclusion to the prophecies of Isaiah ben Amoz, prophecies understood by the redactors to have found fulllment in the ministry of SI and TI. Chapters 34–35 were written to conclude Isa 1–33 and in doing so 5. Vermeylen, Du Prophète Isaïe, 1:446. 6. John Barton, Isaiah 1–39 (OTG; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1995), 94, emphasis added. 7. Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 1–39, 450. 1

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project Isaiah’s vision into the rest of the book. These chapters, then, are intended to serve as both a conclusion to chs. 1–33 as well as provide a proleptic vision for chs. 36–66. Because of chs. 34–35, Isa 40–66 can be viewed as the fulllment of the prophecies of Isaiah ben Amoz and considered among the “new things” to pass (42:9; 43:19). Jeffrey Kuan, who assigns these chapters to Isaiah ben Amoz, asks, “If indeed the function of chs. 34–35 was to articulate in futuristic terms how YHWH will deal with Israel’s enemies, with its implied sense of nality, would not the chapters be more appropriately inserted at the end of the Isaianic collection?”8 Yet, if these chapters concluded BI, then they might not be closely identied with Isaiah ben Amoz. In their present position they are read as the prophecies of the eighth-century prophet, stamping the second half of the book with Isaianic authority since they introduce chs. 36–66. Chapters 34–35, with their focus on the abiding and nal comforting and vindication of Zion, are related to the Hezekiah narratives that immediately follow. Isaiah 36–39 then function as a “type’ that foreshadows God’s nal restoration of Zion and comforting of Jerusalem spoken of in chapters 40–66.”9 This juxtaposition between a mythological vision in chs. 34–35 and a historical interlude in chs. 36–39 provides the impetus for reading SI as both historical and eschatological. Viewed in this manner, the fulllment of chs. 34–35 may take place within history but need not be restricted to it. Chapters 34–35 as a Conclusion to Isaiah 1–33 Chapter 34 displays a host of literary links to FI, as well as TI. C. A. Evans develops William Brownlee’s thesis that BI was consciously edited and arranged as a two-volume work consisting of chs. 1–33 (vol. 1) and 34–66 (vol. 2).10 This proposal is supported by the observation of a three line gap between chs. 33 and 34 in the Great Isaiah Scroll. Marvin Sweeney observes that “when the book of Isaiah is considered as a literary whole, there is no evidence that Duhm’s divisions of First, Second, and Third Isaiah constitute the structure of the book.”11 According to Sweeney, the structure of the book falls into two parts: chs. 1–33, which anticipate the judgment of Jerusalem and a subsequent restoration with 8. Jeffrey K. Kuan, “The Authorship and Historical Background of Isaiah 35,” Jian Dao (1996): 8. 9. Christopher R. Seitz, Isaiah 1–39 (IBC; Louisville, Ky.: John Knox, 1993), 236. 10. Craig A. Evans, “On the Unity and Parallel Structure of Isaiah,” VT 38 (1988): 129–47. 11. Sweeney, Isaiah 1–39, 42. 1

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the establishment of Yahweh’s worldwide sovereignty, and chs. 34–66, which focus on the realization of this prophecy. Viewed in this manner these two volumes interpret each other and present a dialectic of “ruin and future blessedness.”12 If BI possesses a bid structure, chs. 1–5, with their theme of ruin and the restoration of Judah, nd their counterpart in chs. 34–35 and their theme of paradise lost and regained. As Evans points out, both sections begin with a call for the heavens and the earth to hear (, 1:2; 34:1), the Lord threatens vengeance (, 1:24; 34:8; 35:4), and promises to ransom (, 1:27; 35:10) Zion with unquenchable burning ( /, 1:31; 34:10). In ch. 1 the LORD is weary of the blood (, 1:11; 34:6, 7) and fat ( , 1:11; 34:6–7) of the bulls (, 1:11; 34:7), lambs, rams ( , 1:11; 34:6), and goats ( , 1:11; 34:6) and in ch. 34 his sword is lled with the blood and fat of rams, goats, and bulls such that the mountains ow with blood (34:3) and the land is saturated with blood and fat (34:6–7). Bert Dicou observes the connections between ch. 1 and ch. 34 and concludes, “Chapter 34 can also be looked upon as a new beginning. The message in the rst part of the book is the condemnation of Israel. The chapters 34–35 give a picture of Israel’s restoration—and its consequences for ‘the nations.’ ”13 Not only does ch. 34 share links with chs. 1–5, but it also recapitulates the judgment against Babylon in ch. 13, though now it is directed toward Edom. Jacques Vermeylen lists the following similarities between the passages:14 Common Themes or Words preparation for combat carnage of the nations cosmic upheaval taking of the city and the massacre of its inhabitants country turned to desert savage animals divine sword “from generation to generation” “Day of YHWH”15

Chapter 13 2–4 5–9, 14–16 10–13 17–19

Chapter 34 1 2–3 4–5a 5b–8

20 21–22 15 20 8

9–10 11–15 5–6 10 6

12. William H. Brownlee, The Meaning of the Qumran Scrolls for the Bible (New York: Oxford University Press, 1964), 255. 13. Bert Dicou, “Literary Function and Literary History of Isaiah 34,” BN 58 (1991): 32. 14. Vermeylen, Du Prophète Isaïe, 1:440. 15. Observation by Sweeney, Isaiah 1–39, 443. 1

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These connections between the two chapters represent a typological relationship between Babylon and Edom. Given this typological relationship and the verbal ties between chs. 13 and 34, when 34:16 exhorts, “Seek and read from the book of the LORD,” this book refers to none other than BI. Within FI, Assyria (ch. 10) is displaced by Babylon (chs. 13–14) as the arch-enemy of Israel. FI concludes with Babylon being displaced by Edom in this role, a pattern that takes place again within chs. 40–63. Christopher Seitz observes the strong correlation between ch. 34 and the Song of the Vineyard in 27:1–6, and concludes, “we have in chapter 34 a fairly clear instance of inner-biblical exegesis, where a prior text (27:1–6) is interpreted as being fullled in a new situation.”16 Like chs. 24–27, ch. 34’s proclamation is cosmic in scope, involving the nations (, 25:3, 7; 26:2; 34:1, 2), the earth (, twenty-nine times in chs. 24–27; four times in ch. 34), and the world (  , 24:4; 26:9, 18; 27:6; 34:1). Whereas in 27:1 the sword () punishes Leviathan, in 34:5–7 it slaughters the people and beasts of Edom. In 27:4, thorns and briers are set in opposition to Yahweh, and in 34:13 Edom’s fortresses are overgrown with thorns, nettles, and briers. In 27:4, Yahweh threatens to burn this overgrowth, and in 34:9 Edom’s streams are turned into pitch, its soil into sulfur, and its land burning pitch. Whereas the song ends with a promise of agricultural prosperity—“In days to come Jacob shall strike root, Israel shall sprout and blossom (), and the face of the world shall be covered with fruit” (27:6, NJPS)—ch. 34 ends with Edom as a wilderness full of thorns, wild beasts, and shadowy creatures (34:13–15). Seitz believes an intertextual reading of these texts suggests “Edom is being depicted as representative of any nation that might choose to violate God’s restored vineyard, over which God now stands watch ‘night and day so that no one can harm it’ (27:3).”17 The promise of 27:6 is fullled in 35:1–2 with the wilderness and dry land set to rejoice and blossom (, 27:6; 35:1, 2). Just as the LORD promised to water his vineyard at every moment (27:3), waters break forth in the wilderness and streams ow in the desert (35:6, 7). This intertextual reading between ch. 27 and chs. 34–35 once again supports the theory of a unied composition for chs. 34–35. Whereas commentators previously only noted the manner in which ch. 35 introduced the argument of SI, Steck observes how ch. 35 summarizes themes present in FI. The homecoming for the dispersed and banished

16. Seitz, Isaiah 1–39, 238. 17. Ibid. 1

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137

returning via a highway ( , 11:16) “on that day” ( , 11:10– 11; 34:8) rst appears in 11:10–16. In 11:15 exodus imagery is applied to the Euphrates () with the result that it is broken into seven wadis ( , 34:9; 35:6). Although  nor   appear in 27:12–13, this passage describes a situation similar to the one in 11:10–16. Here the banished (, 11:12; 27:13) and the abandoned will be gleaned from Egypt (11:11, 16; 27:13) and Assyria (11:11, 16; 27:13), and together they will come and worship the LORD at Mt. Zion. Because of the similarities in theme and their strategic placement within FI, Steck assigns these homecoming passages to the same editorial strata as ch. 35. He believes Isa 11:11–16 and 27:13 conclude three divisions of a prophetic book where 11:11–16 complete 1:1–11:10, 27:13 concludes 13:1–27:12, and ch. 35 brings to a close chs. 28–34. Steck nds it remarkable that the author of ch. 35 utilized words and idioms from chs. 32–34 and ch. 40 to compose ch. 35. He observes the following connections between chs. 34–35 and chs. 32–33:18 Commonalities Hasty heart Wilderness, fruitful eld/ Carmel Highway(s) Passing by

Chapters 32–33 32:4 32:15

Chapters 34–35

 

 

33:8 33:8

 

LebanÎon, Sharon, 33:9 Carmel Desert/Arabah 33:9

  





35:4 35:1 35:2 35:8 34:10 35:8 35:2

Rivers/streams

33:21

 

Yahweh’s Deliverance The Lame

33:22



35:1 35:6 34:9 35:6 35:4

33:23



35:6

 



 

   

 

         

Not only do lexical and thematic links exist between chs. 32–33 and ch. 34, but also between chs. 32–33 and ch. 35. These connections may indicate that chs. 34–35 are a unied composition written in conscious dependence on chs. 32–33. Willem Beuken recognizes that “ch. 35 appears in a number of ways, terminology included, to bring closure to

18. Steck, Bereite Heimkehr, 24–26. 1

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PI,”19 and interprets the mention of fools ( ) in 35:8 as a reminder of the “foolish” ( , 19:11) princes of Egypt who led Judah astray ( , 19:13; 35:8) through political alliances (30:1–7; 31:1–3). Chapter 35 once again afrms that, “for those whose ultimate destination is Egypt, the road to Zion is clearly the wrong road.”20 Whereas the people of Israel in their stupidity (1:3) possessed a penchant for going astray, on the highway to Zion such foolishness will be eliminated (35:8). From Blindness and Deafness to Seeing and Hearing Isaiah 6:9–10 provides a summary of anticipatory themes to be more fully explored in FI and SI. As a call narrative, Isaiah’s commission to cast judgment upon Israel by goading it into further spiritual indifference encapsulates the challenge of Isaiah ben Amoz: And he said, “Go and say to this people: ‘Keep listening (), but do not comprehend (); keep looking (), but do not understand ().’ Make the mind ( ) of this people dull, and stop their ears, and shut their eyes (), so that they may not look () with their eyes (), and listen () with their ears, and comprehend () with their minds ( ), and turn and be healed.” (Isa 6:9–10)

Ronald Clements observes, “Clearly the imagery of blindness and deafness in this context is intended metaphorically to describe the situation of people who fail to sense the urgency and truth that lies in the prophetic message.”21 This interpretation is clear from the fact that the result of the blindness and deafness is the heart/mind’s inability to know, repent, and be healed. Isaiah 29:10–12 describe how this judgment continues to blind Israel’s prophets and seers such that they are unable to comprehend the book of the LORD: For the LORD has poured out upon you a spirit of deep sleep; he has closed your eyes (), you prophets, and covered your heads, you seers.

19. Beuken, Isaiah Chapters 28–39, 324. 20. Ibid. 21. Ronald E. Clements, “Patterns in the Prophetic Canon: Healing the Blind and the Lame,” in Canon, Theology, and Old Testament Interpretation (ed. G. M. Tucker, D. L. Petersen, and R. R. Wilson; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1988), 193. 1

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The vision of all this has become for you like the words of a sealed document. If it is given to one who knows () how to read, with the command, “Read this,” they he says, “I cannot, for it is sealed.” And if it is given to one who does not know () how to read, saying, “Read this,” then he says, “I do not know () how to read.” (Isa 29:10–12, author’s translation)

Like the judgment of 6:9–10, the seers and prophets are placed in a no win situation. If they know how to read, the book is sealed to them; and if it is unsealed, it is given to others who do not know how to read. Yet the oracle to follow proclaims a reversal of fortune. Isaiah 29:18 announces, “On that day () the deaf () shall hear () the words of a scroll, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind () shall see ().” This blindness and darkness is not physical but spiritual in nature. Isaiah announces that a future time will come when the judgment of spiritual dullness will be removed. As demonstrated by the table above, chs. 32–33 and 34–35 are linked through shared vocabulary and images. Isaiah 32:3 connects the reversal of blindness and deafness with the advent of the righteous king and princes (32:1–2): “Then the eyes of those who have sight () will not be closed,22 and the ears of those who have hearing () will listen.” Gary Stansell observes that here the eyes and ears are opened to allow for the people to see the king (33:17) and Zion (33:20). Isaiah 32:4 goes on to describe how the advent of the king will also allow the hasty of heart (  ; cf. 35:4,   ) to now understand () and know (). This king will save (, 33:22) his people and therefore “sight thus means salvation.”23 More important than determining whether the blindness and deafness is literal or gurative in Isa 35 is to grasp properly how this theme functions theologically within BI. Clements observes, “Isaiah’s commission to render Israel blind and deaf have provided a convenient image with which to describe Israel living under judgment. Only when the judgment is past will the blindness and deafness come to an end.”24 Blindness and 22. Commentators have long observed that the MT reading “will not see,” the Qal form of , cannot be correct given that v. 3b speaks of the ears now being able to listen. Given that the Vulgate (caligabunt, “They will be dark”) and Symmachus (BNBVSXRITPOUBJ, “they will be in darkness”) both support the reading  (BDB: “be smeared over, blinded”; HALOT: “be sealed tight, pasted together, blinded”). BHS, HALOT, Wildberger, and Beuken all suggest reading  either in the Qal form  "  *  ! or the Hophal form  "  *  " &! . Viewed in this manner the judgment of 6:10, “shut  their eyes,” is reversed. 23. Gary Stansell, “Isaiah 28–33: Blest Be the Tie that Binds (Isaiah Together),” in Melugin and Sweeney, eds., New Visions of Isaiah, 77. 24. Clements, “Patterns in the Prophetic Canon,” 194. 1

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deafness function as theological markers within BI to indicate a dispensation of judgment. Since 35:6 continues with a description of the healing of the lame and mute, most commentators correctly interpret the blindness and deafness in v. 5 as literal inrmities. Yet since ch. 35 was intentionally written to conclude chs. 1–33, one cannot help read 35:5 in light of 6:9–10; 29:18; and 33:23, which all equate sight and hearing with knowing and understanding. What all these passages have in common is that sight and hearing signify the advent of Yahweh’s salvation and the end of judgment. Isa 35:5 differs from the other passages in that it elaborates on the description of the day of salvation: “The dawning of the age of salvation will be a time when even the lame and the blind will enjoy the fruits of full physical health.”25 Sight will be restored so that they will be able to see the glory of the LORD (35:2) and come to know him. From No Roads to a Highway to Zion This judgment of spiritual blindness is manifested later in the peoples’ request for their seers and prophets to speak falsehoods and delusions intentionally (30:10). They want only to depart from the way () and path (), that is, the knowledge of the Holy one of Israel (30:11). The word pair  and 26 clearly refers to ethical behaviour, as exemplied in the following passages: …“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways ( ) and that we may walk in his paths ( ).” (2:3) The way () of the righteous is level; O Just One, you make smooth the path of the righteous. (26:7)

Other Wisdom terminology is present, such as the reference to rebellious and lying sons (, 30:9) who are unwilling to hear Yahweh’s instruction (  , 30:9) and instead trust in oppression and perverseness (  , 30:12). Sweeney summarizes the net effect of this speech: “Altogether, this language points to the people’s refusal to hear YHWH’s word and thereby establishes the cause for YHWH’s decision to delay deliverance.”27 Viewed in the scope of FI, the judgment of spiritual dullness in Isaiah’s commission (6:9–10) continues to plague Israel as 25. Ibid., 198. 26. Isa 2:3; 3:12; 26:7–8; 30:11; 40:14; Mic 4:2; Pss 25:4; 27:11; 139:13; Job 22:15; Prov 2:8, 13, 20; 3:6; 4:14; 9:15; 12:28; 15:19. 27. Sweeney, Isaiah 1–39, 393. 1

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demonstrated by the people’s request to be deceived (30:10) and depart from the “way” of the Holy One of Israel (30:11). Hope exists since ch. 30 contains both the genres of Prophetic Judgment Speech and the Prophecy of Salvation (30:18–26). As much as ch. 30 demonstrates the judgment of 6:9–10 is still valid, the passage goes on to proclaim a future salvation in which this condemnation will be revoked. Isaiah 30:20–21 announce a time in which their eyes will no longer be shut so that they may see their teacher, and their ears opened so that they may hear his instruction. Isaiah 30:20 has perplexed interpreters since the LORD’s provision of “bread of adversity and water of afiction” (    ) seems misplaced within an oracle of salvation, and the dual mention of “your Teacher” () may indicate the singular or plural.28 Genre here ought to provide guidance in interpreting this enigmatic phrase. Since this verse is part of an oracle of salvation, “the promise of ‘the bread of adversity and the water of afiction’ (v. 20a) does not constitute a punishment but describes, rather, God’s concern for the vital needs of oppressed people.”29 Given that 1 30 is singular, the better option is to translate  as “your Teacher,” that is, Yahweh. Yet even if the plural is correct, from the context it is clear that Yahweh is speaking.31 Therefore the verse announces a future time in which the blindness will be removed so that the people will be able to behold their God (cf. 35:4; 40:9; 62:11). The oracle also promises that their ears will be able to hear Yahweh’s instruction, “This is the way (), walk in it” (30:21). Virtually all commentators interpret this phrase as a moral exhortation in the Wisdom/ Torah tradition. Zehnder classies the use of  as an implicit form of Von Gott gebotener Lebenswandel.32 Yet  may also be understood as 28. Fohrer solves this difculty by interpreting  ' "  as a preterit, “and he gave,” but this goes against normal Biblical Hebrew grammar (see IBHS 32.1; BHRG 21.3). BHS and Hans Wildberger (Isaiah 28–39 [trans. T. H. Trapp; CC; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2002], 167) emend the text to read “bread without adversity and water without afiction” (haplography of ) and Kaiser considers as  and  as glosses—yet this is not necessary. Neither is there need to read the clause as concessive, “though the LORD give you” (RSV). 29. Beuken, Isaiah Chapters 28–39, 172. 30. The verb 1 is a hapax legomenon. BDB translates it as “thrust into a corner,” which Beuken follows with “shall not be pushed aside any more.” Virtually all other commentators and HALOT translate the Niphal form as “hide oneself.” 31. 1QIsa reads  , which requires  to be interpreted as “teachers.” The LXX similarly understood the plural to be in view. 32. Blenkinsopp interprets the verse in this manner and believes “way” here can also refer to the specic teaching of a school of prophetic disciples. He observes that in the Second Temple period great emphasis was placed on the teaching role of the 1

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a reference to a journey, in both a physical and spiritual sense. Beuken explains: In a schematic and undetailed fashion we are confronted with the image of a journey, a journey, moreover, which nds its roots in the will of YHWH and not in Israel’s former stubbornness. The context invites us to interpret this journey as a return to Zion… In the Scriptures, the concept of “way” () encompasses both Israel’s salvation history from the exodus out of Egypt to the entry into the land, and the lifestyle which YHWH holds up to his people as a guarantee to happiness in the land. This dual horizon of meaning is also present in v. 21.33

The way is the salvation-historical exodus which occurred in the past and continues on in the present, leading to Zion. Out of Egypt this was a literal trek through a desert, but once in the land this way became a lifestyle. The “bread of adversity and water of afiction” (30:20) is therefore an act of grace and the very means of survival (cf. 1 Kgs 22:27; 2 Chr 18:26) for this journey. Since the eyes of the people are xed on the Teacher (30:20), he is portrayed as a shepherd guiding his ock on the road. In this instance he leads from behind in the same manner Yahweh is later portrayed: “For you shall not go out in haste, and you shall not go in ight; for the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard” (52:12; cf. 58:8). The language of turning to the right or to the left (      , 30:21) carries a literal meaning in the context of Israel’s encounter with Edom in their exodus from Egypt (Num 20:17; Deut 2:27), as well as a metaphorical meaning to convey strict obedience to Torah (Deut 5:32; 17:20; 28:14; Josh 1:7; 2 Kgs 22:2; 1 Macc 2:22). Isaiah 30:22 adds that obedience to the WOL requires the removal of foreign gods and idols, as previously mentioned in Josh 23:6–7: “Therefore be very steadfast to observe and do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right nor to the left (   ), so that you may not be mixed with these nations left here among you, or make mention of the names of their gods, or swear by them, or serve them, or bow yourselves down to them.” This imagery of Yahweh as a shepherd (v. 11) about to embark on a journey (, v. 3), with the eyes of the people beholding him (vv. 5, 9–10), reappears in 40:1–11. In addition, the removal of idols serves as a dominant theme throughout chs. 40–48 and resurfaces in TI as well. prophet modeled after Moses, the proto-prophet. He believes this sense of the “way” came into use in early Christianity (PEP K, Acts 9:2; 18:25–26 etc.), Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 1–39, 421. 33. Beuken, Isaiah Chapters 28–39, 142, emphasis added. 1

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Chapter 33 provides a description of the land of Israel prior to the advent of Yahweh and its subsequent transformation. Isaiah 33:8 states that “The highways ( ) are deserted (), travelers () have quit the road.” Although the reference to highways is not directly linked to the salvation-historical way of 30:21 or the international thoroughfare of 11:16 or 19:23, this does not mean that this verse is completely unrelated. Beuken observes that the focus of v. 8 is not depopulation, but rather broken lines of communication. He conceives that “it is possible that the verse is implying that the city is no longer being visited (the contrast of 2:2–5?).”34 With the highways desolate and travel halted, none visit Zion, including Yahweh himself. Eugene Merrill observes that the prophets view travel not solely within the framework of an exodus motif but also in relation to pilgrimages.35 This pilgrimage theme appears often in the Psalms, as exemplied in Ps 84:6–7 (5–6): “Happy are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways ( ) to Zion. As they go through the valley of Baca they make it a place of springs (, cf. 41:18); the early rain also covers it with pools.” Here the highways are the pilgrimage routes and the provision of water symbolizes the LORD’s blessing upon the journey. Isaiah 33:8–9 describe a helpless situation. Pilgrimage is impossible and the depressed “state of the earth reects the state of the human community.”36 As travel ceases, so too does worship, which means the cessation of instruction. In ch. 34 Edom too will experience a similar devastation, one in which all travel (, 34:10) ceases, resulting in the desolation of the land. Chapter 35 announces that in the midst of the transformed desert lled with water, streams, pools, and springs of water (vv. 6–7) will be a highway (  ) called the “way of holiness” ( ) along which pilgrims will travel (), unimpeded, to Zion (v. 8). Whereas 33:8 announced the end of all travel (), 35:8 proclaims that the holy will be allowed safe passage (). The difcult phrase in 35:8, “it is for those who walk on the way” (    ), may be a reference to the way in 30:21, “this is the way, walk in it” (   ). If this is so, as argued by Beuken, then the way announced in 35:8 is both ethical and salvation-historical. The holy are literally to travel to Zion, but also 34. Ibid., 261. 35. Eugene H. Merrill, “Pilgrimage and Procession: Motifs of Israel’s Return,” in Israel’s Apostasy and Restoration: Essays in Honor of Roland K. Harrison (ed. Avraham Gilead; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 1988), 261–72. 36. Katherine M. Hayes, The Earth Mourns: Prophetic Metaphor and Oral Aesthetic (Boston: Brill, 2002), 169. 1

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are to live according to the word of the LORD proclaimed from Zion (2:3). Just as the Israelites were called continually to keep from the “right or to the left” on their journey to Canaan, as well as when they lived in the land, so too the WOL signies both a journey and a lifestyle for Israel within BI. From a Wilderness to a Garden In addition to the juxtaposed motifs of blindness/sight, deafness/hearing, not understanding/knowing, we also nd the theme of desolation/restoration. In ch. 1 Yahweh indicts Israel for its lack of knowledge—“But Israel does not know (), my people do not understand ()” (1:3)— and for this reason the land is desolate and burnt (1:7) and the people likewise are reduced to a desert experience: “For you shall be like an oak whose leaf withers, and like a garden without water” (1:30). In ch. 5 Yahweh makes clear that the people of Israel and Judah are his vineyard (5:7), and yet, because of their inability to see Yahweh’s works (5:12) and know him (5:13), he sends them into exile (5:13). The exilic experience is a state of desolation involving the overgrowth of briers and thorns (  , 5:6), a lack of rain and water (5:6), and the onset of hunger and thirst (5:13). This motif of Israel as a parched wasteland overgrown with thorns is later reversed within FI. Isaiah 27:1–6 has long been recognized as a reversal of the judgment in 5:1–7. Yahweh declares that he will water his vineyard (27:3) and burn briers and thorns (  , 27:4) so that Israel will blossom and put forth shoots () and ll the whole world (  ) with fruit (27:6). John Watts observes that the reversal of judgment is not simply a return to a replenished land. He writes, “He promises to plant and cultivate his vineyard but there is no reference to the land. A return to live in the land of Canaan is not included here. The omission is not an oversight. Rather, they will ll the world’s surface (v. 6). Israel’s destiny, still under God’s watchcare, has changed.”37 Whereas judgment involved the destruction of the land of Israel and Judah, salvation involves the renewal of all creation. In a passage aptly entitled “Perversion Reverted” by Beuken,38 Yahweh announces the restoration of Lebanon: “Shall not Lebanon in a very little while become a fruitful eld, and the fruitful eld (    ) be regarded as a forest?” (29:17). Beuken wonders whether the verb “turn back” () in 29:17 ought to be taken in a literal 37. Watts, Isaiah 1–33, 350, original emphasis. 38. Willem A. M. Beuken, “Isa 29, 15–24: Perversion Reverted,” in The Scriptures and the Scrolls (ed. F. García Martínez, A. Hilhorst, and C. J. Labuschagne; VTSup 49; Leiden: Brill, 1992), 51–52. 1

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or metaphorical manner. He observes that a number of Old Testament texts build on the Mesopotamian and Canaanite mythologoumenon of an endangered divine garden on Mt. Lebanon. In Israel, Jerusalem could be conceived of as Lebanon and her inhabitants as trees, with Yahweh as her owner (cf. Ezek 31). Beuken argues that this same mythological and metaphorical notion appears in Isaiah, such that  means both the recovery of the ideal proto-creation and the recovery of a correct attitude and behavior by the people. Both the land and the people of Israel are to be restored into  .39 Chapters 32 and 33 are to be read in tandem since 33:17–24 culminates the initial announcement of a coming king in 32:1–5. Whereas the land was previously an arid desert (33:9), because of Yahweh’s presence the land will be a place of broad rivers and streams ( , 33:21). The lame (), who are normally excluded from acquiring booty (cf. Deut 15:21), are now given their share of the spoils (Isa 33:23; cf. 35:6). The nal verse of Isa 33, “And no inhabitant will say, ‘I am sick’; the people who live there will be forgiven ( ) their iniquity ()” (33:24), serves both a retrospective and prospective function. From the outset of Isaiah’s vision, it is the people’s iniquity that has separated Israel from Yahweh (1:4; 22:14; 26:21) as well as their uncleanness (1:16). Isaiah the prophet confesses that his own lips are unclean (   +, 6:5), and that he lives amid an unclean people (+   , 6:5). K. Aitken observes that embedded within Isaiah’s call narrative lies the solution to his problem, as well as that of his people. He writes, “Just as Isaiah’s vision led to the atonement ( , 6:7) of his iniquity (, 6:7), so too Israel’s iniquity (, 33:24) will now be forgiven ( , 33:24).”40 Isaiah 33:24 also points forward to the pronouncement of the forgiveness of sins in the prologue to SI: “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity () is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins” (40:2). Just as the healing of blindness and deafness signies that judgment is replaced with salvation, similarly the transformation of the desert represents the new dispensation of salvation. The judgment on Edom recapitulates the judgment upon Israel in chs. 1 and 5, as well as the state of the whole world prior to its recreation in ch. 27. Whereas the vineyard 39. Beuken, Isaiah Chapters 28–39, 119. 40. K. T. Aitken, “Hearing and Seeing: Metamorphoses of a Motif in Isaiah 1–39,” in Among the Prophets: Language, Image and Structure in the Prophetic Writings (ed. P. R. Davies and D. J. A. Clines; JSOTSup 144; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1993), 36. 1

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representing the house of Israel is overrun with briers () and thorns ( ) (5:6; 27:4), so too is Edom under the judgment of Yahweh (34:13). Prior to ch. 35 the land is in a state of mourning. No travel exists because “the land mourns and languishes; Lebanon is confounded and withers away; Sharon is like a desert (); and Bashan and Carmel (  ) shake off their leaves” (33:9). In ch. 35 travel to Zion is restored because of the transformation of the land. The prophecy in 29:17 of a future restoration of Lebanon—“Shall not Lebanon in a very little while become a fruitful eld (  ), and the fruitful eld (  ) be regarded as a forest?”—nds its fulllment in ch. 35. The land’s period of mourning is replaced by joy, singing, and gladness (35:1–2). The glorious fruitfulness of Lebanon, once disgraced and withered, is now not only restored but its glory extends to the wilderness, dry land, and desert (, 35:1, 6). Likewise the majesty of Carmel is renewed not only in Lebanon but also distributed throughout the wilderness (35:2). The transformation of the wilderness, the extension of healing to the inrm, and the highway re-established all demonstrate that the period of judgment is over and salvation has come. Isaiah 34–35 as a Reversal of Judgment Frequently neglected in the discussion of the role of chs. 34–35 within BI, is a close reading of the chapters themselves. Certainly it is beyond the scope of this study to provide an exhaustive examination of all the exegetical features of this text; thus, particular attention will be paid only to the theme of the WOL. Claire Mathews and Peter Miscall are correct to identify chs. 34–35 as a poetic vision.41 In poetry, greater attention is paid to every textual detail, conventional rules of literality and chronology are disabled, narrative is unnecessary, and images communicate. When read as poetry, inconsistencies within the text need not require positing a different literary source or editorial layer. Miscall describes how imagery functions within BI: Imagery is another ne illustration of the poet’s drive to be all-inclusive. Isaiah does not offer just individual images, since he develops an image by looking at its different aspects and relations to other images, by giving many examples of it and by using an image or imagery in a variety of settings and with a variety of themes so that it can have different and even opposed meanings.42

41. Mathews, Defending Zion, 52–53; Miscall, Isaiah 34–35, 9–27. 42. Miscall, Isaiah 34–35, 42. 1

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Imagery allows seemingly contradictory or unrelated passages to communicate different nuances of the same message. Miscall describes the poetry of chs. 34–35 as “impressionistic since the poet proceeds by putting together scenes and images that both complement and clash with each other; his landscape is not deployed in a tight logical or narrative mode.”43 This literary phenomenon can be seen in the texts containing the themes of blindness, deafness, wilderness, and way/highway in FI. In a number of passages, such as 29:17–18; 30:20–21; 33:8–9, 20–23, these motifs are conated, as is the case with chs. 34–35. Despite their differing redactional views, commentators are virtually unanimously agreed that ch. 35 provides a reversal of the judgment in ch. 34. Mathews believes chs. 34 and 35 function as a diptych because of the contrast brought about through the common use of imagery, language, literary technique, and the juxtaposition of judgment and salvation themes found in prophetic literature. The following lexemes are common to both chapters:  (34:8; 35:4),  (34:9; 35:6),   (34:13; 35:7),  (34:13; 35:7),  (34:10; 35:8); / (34:12, 14, 15; 35:8, 9). H. Peels outlines the contrast between judgment in ch. 34 and salvation in ch. 35:44 Chapter 34 Wrath/judgment (vv. 2–8) Fall of Nature (vv. 4, 9–15) Sword upon Edom (vv. 5–6) Fall of the strong (v. 7) Water disappears (v. 9) Thorns, nettles, thistles, jackals (v. 13) Land unclean and dangerous (vv. 10–15) No travel through Edom (v. 10) Enduring destruction (vv. 10, 17)

Chapter 35 Joy/deliverance (vv. 1–4) Blossoming of nature (vv. 1, 7) Way to Zion (vv. 8–10) Restoration of the weak (vv. 3–6) Water appears (vv. 6–) Reeds, papyrus, no jackals (v. 7) Way without uncleanness and danger (vv. 8–9) Open travel to Zion (v. 8) Enduring joy (v. 10)

As Peels observes, a transformation takes place from life to death in ch. 34 and from death to life in ch. 35. In ch. 34 the world degenerates into a wilderness overrun by hostile creatures, and in ch. 35 the world is transformed into a garden suitable for the habitation of God’s redeemed people. Given the sharp contrasts and strong connections between these two chapters, Miscall entitles this text “A Nightmare/A Dream.” 43. Ibid., 86. 44. H. G. L. Peels, The Vengeance of God: The Meaning of the Root NQM and the Function of the NQM-Texts in the Context of the Divine Revelation in the Old Testament (OTS 31; Leiden: Brill, 1995), 149. 1

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The question remains how 34:1–4, a passage directed at the nations, relates to the following verses, which concentrate on Edom alone. Hans Wildberger rightly rejects the interpretation that asserts that Edom serves only to designate Israel’s enemies symbolically. Yet his proposal that vv. 1–4 solely function to provide a “rhetorical background for that which is actually going to take place specically against Edom alone”45 does not explain the wider role Edom plays within BI (cf. 63:1–6). Beuken astutely observes, “The execution of judgment against Edom is not conceived from the perspective of ethnic contrast (Israel verses Edom) but from the theological perspective of the composition of the book as a whole.”46 Within BI, Edom is both symbolic and concrete. Just as Assyria (ch. 10), Babylon (chs. 13–14), and other nations (chs. 14–23) experience the wrath of Yahweh, so too will Edom. Yahweh’s judgment (+, v. 5) and vengeance (, v. 8) upon Edom is displayed for the whole world to witness (v. 1). His wrath and anger extend to it and it has already been devoted to destruction (, v. 2). Edom then serves as an example to the world of what will surely happen to them should they resist or forsake the cause of Zion. Just as it is improper to draw a stark contrast between Edom (34:5–17) and the nations (34:1–4), it is also unjustiable to restrict the prophecy of ch. 34 to Edom alone and ch. 35 to Israel alone. In both chapters Yahweh’s motivation for his actions is the same: vengeance () for the sake of Zion (  , 34:8; cf. 35:10). Peels believes the most natural understanding of ,3! !  is to view ! in the construct state coupled with the preposition, “concerning the lawsuit of Zion.” Viewed in this manner, “The description behind vs. 8 is that of God as Judge, who concerns himself with injustice and takes up the case of helpless Zion. The sword descending from (vs. 5f.) in this case is more the sword of the judge or executioner rather than the sword of war.”47 It is for Zion’s cause that Yahweh slaughters Edom in ch. 34 and it is for Zion’s cause that he redeems Zion in ch. 35. Only as one reads ch. 34 retrospectively after reading ch. 35 can the day of vengeance ( , 34:8) and God’s coming in vengeance (    , 35:4) be seen as two manifestations of the same . Only through the means of Yahweh reversing the judgment upon Edom within Zion can the redeemed experience salvation. When BI is read as a book, the reader makes the inference that he/she presently exists in the desolate state ascribed to Edom in ch. 34. As he/she reects upon the 45. Wildberger, Isaiah 28–39, 318. 46. Beuken, Isaiah Chapters 28–39, 285, emphasis added. 47. Peels, The Vengeance of God, 153. 1

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larger context of BI, he/she realizes that the devastation of Edom describes Jerusalem’s present existence set forth in the opening chapter of the vision. Both ch. 1 and ch. 34 begin with a call for the heavens and the earth to hear (, 1:2; 34:1), as well as references to the LORD threatens vengeance ( 1:24; 34:8; 35:4), and promises to ransom (, 1:27; 35:10) Zion with unquenchable burning ( /, 1:31; 34:10). In ch. 1 Yahweh is weary of the blood (, 1:11; 34:6, 7) and the fat ( , 1:11; 34:6, 7) of the bulls (, 11:11; 34:7), lambs, rams ( , 1:11; 34:6), and goats ( , 1:11; 34:6), and in ch. 34 his sword is lled with the blood and fat of rams, goats, and bulls such that the mountains ow with blood (34:3) and the land is saturated with blood and fat (34:6, 7). Dicou describes the effect of the literary connections: “The desert that will blossom in ch. 35 is the desert that Israel’s land has become. Secondly, the changes in the stricken land from ch. 34 reect the devastation of Israel’s land. ‘The nations’ suffer the same fate as Israel.”48 Israel is not allowed to gloat over the destruction of Edom in the same manner Edom did when Jerusalem fell (cf. Ps 137:7). Instead, it needs Yahweh to deliver them from a judgment similar to that which will befall Edom. Nevertheless, Edom and Zion are distinct entities. That is, ch. 34 and ch. 35 are not the same vision. A narrative progression does take place between the two texts in which Edom stands as an obstacle for the deliverance of Zion. Peels writes, “The ‘way to Zion’ (Isa. 35:8ff.) is blocked as long as the ‘sword over Edom’ (Isa. 34:5ff.) has not cleared the impediments from the way.”49 In order from the redeemed to walk on the highway to Zion, Yahweh must remove the obstacle Edom from the path. The “Way of the LORD” in Chapter 34 The reason most scholars date ch. 34 to a post-exilic era is simple: the focus on Edom as the arch-enemy of Israel, as reiterated in 63:1–6, would reect the historical situation that immediately followed the exile. Obadiah, Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–17, and Ps 137:7 all record how the Edomites assisted in, and gloated over, the destruction of their Israelite neighbors. Chapter 34 poses chronological problems because the eschatological judgment is announced rst to the nations (vv. 1–4) and second to Edom (vv. 5–17). Mathews examines various form-critical proposals and considers vv. 1–4 unclassiable as to form, and believes the suggestion that a redactor added an Edomite emphasis to what was 48. Dicou, “Literary Function,” 36. 49. Peels, The Vengeance of God, 155. 1

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originally a universalistic announcement of judgment is unwarranted. She aptly observes “the question to be asked is not, ‘How can a judgment against Edom follow a judgment of worldwide, even cosmic proportions?’ but, ‘Why has this judgment against Edom been set in a broader context, and why does it appear here?’”50 It is this question that will be explored in conjunction with Yahweh’s reappearance as conqueror from Edom in 63:1–6. Rather than assume Edom’s purported taunts following the exile provided the primary motivation for the judgment oracles against it in chs. 34 and 63, Edom as a perpetual antagonist throughout Israel’s history may instead be the primary motivation for these pronouncements. Unlike Obadiah, Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–17, and Ps 137:7, Isa 34 and 63 do not make any reference to the historical situation that followed the destruction of Jerusalem. Instead, the ancient traditions that view Edom as a brother and enemy throughout Israel’s history are appealed to.51 The “March in the South” passages of Deut 33:2–3; Judg 5:4–5; Pss 68:8, 18, and Hab 3:3–6 draw from a similar ancient Israelite tradition that speaks of Yahweh marching through Sinai, Seir, Paran, and Teman. These texts describe Yahweh leading an army of “holy ones” through the desert and mountainous area of Edom, overturning nature and overthrowing nations in the process. Richard Clifford is quick to point out that this march begins and ends in the south, not in Canaan.52 Numbers 20:14–21 recalls the historical incidence when Edom refused to allow Israel to pass through Edom on their march toward Canaan. The mention of the  in Isa 35:1 may simply be translated “dry land,” but it can also refer geographically to the dry, desolate portion of the Jordan rift that extends from the southern end of the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. This  runs parallel to the Edom’s territory described in ch. 34. If this is the case, 34 envisions Yahweh marching in military might through the South, and ch. 35 describes the transformation of a southern road that leads to Zion (vv. 8– 10). Given the return to Zion in chs. 35 and 62, Isaiah’s mention of a march through Edom may evoke both the mythological traditions of Yahweh’s march in the South and the wilderness traditions of Edom’s refusal to allow Israel to march through the South on the way toward Canaan. Therefore Edom in Isa 34 and 63 does not serve as a representative of all nations. What surfaces in chs. 34–35 is a vision of Yahweh’s

50. Mathews, Defending Zion, 53. 51. Edom as an ancient foe of Israel was discussed earlier, in Chapter 3. 52. Clifford, The Cosmic Mountain, 119. 1

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march to Zion as a Divine Warrior, accompanied by a transformation of the wilderness that follows a sequence: rst, nations, then Edom, and nally Zion.53 In its present location in the book this ancient myth regarding Edom is projected forward into the future as a necessary step in Yahweh’s plan to redeem Zion. Edom’s abuse of Judeans eeing Jerusalem conrms the ancient myth regarding Edom, and provides a historical reference point from which to view the nal judgment of the nations. Cyrus comes onto the scene of history marching in military might toward Zion (41:2–3, 25), yet lacks the ability to complete this march of Yahweh to Zion. Therefore in ch. 63 Yahweh marches in vengeance again to consummate the vision of ch. 34 and vindicate Zion. In the nal shape of BI the message of the WOL (40:1–62:12) is bracketed on both ends with the announcement of a march to/from Edom. BI itself reects the pattern of desolation of Edom/exaltation of Zion found in chs. 34–35. Only following Yahweh’s march from Edom in 63:1–6 does TI announce the hope for a new heaven and new earth. The eschatological expectations regarding the WOL are then tempered by the need for the divine warrior to enact vengeance in order to bring this “way” about. The “Way of the LORD” in Chapter 35 Since ch. 35 is not a historical narrative, but rather a poetic vision, the wilderness mentioned in the poem need not be a reference to Judah’s desolate topography in 701. Also, the threefold repetition of “there” () in vv. 8–9 signies that the highway is to be found within the transformed wilderness. The poem conates the images of wilderness and pilgrims with the net effect that the wilderness is the spiritual condition of the inhabitants of Zion.54 Within the poem the people respond to Yahweh in the same manner as the topography. Just as the wilderness, dry land, and desert will be glad (  ), rejoice, and sing (, vv. 1–2), so too the mute sing for joy (, v. 6), and the ransomed of the LORD will return to Zion with singing (), everlasting joy (

), and gladness (v. 10). As Mathews observes, it does strain the imagination to conceive of a desert with vision, so the “they” who will see the glory of the LORD in v. 2 most likely serves to link the metaphor of the wilderness to the people themselves in v. 3. Zion then functions as a metaphor for both the people as well as the goal of their hopes. In its current placement within

53. Mathews, Defending Zion, 118. 54. Ibid., 137. 1

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BI, ch. 35 sets the expectation for the WOL to be both a transformation of the people as well as a transformation of creation. The revivication of the desert into a swamp, described in 35:6–7, is portrayed as a recreative act. This creation theme rst appears in 34:11b when Yahweh stretches a line of confusion ( ; cf. Gen 1:2) and plummet of chaos (; cf. Gen 1:2) over Edom. As Beuken observes, such language “implies that YHWH intends to return Edom to the state of disorder and hostility which existed on earth prior to his creative intervention.”55 Chapter 35 once again alludes to the Genesis creation event by recalling the breaking forth of water from the ground. The Niphal form of  in 35:6 appears in the Old Testament in only three other occasions, two of which refer to how the waters of the great deep ( ) broke forth (cf. Gen 7:11; Prov 3:20). Since Prov 3:20 describes how the ancient waters broke forth at the time of creation (cf. Gen 2:6), it appears ch. 35 announces another protological event. The creation motif does not rule out the presence of an exodus tradition, since the reeds () and rushes () mentioned in 35:7 are typically plants that grow in the Nile delta. The reversal of judgment, the wilderness rejoicing, and the desert rehydrated all function in a metaphorical manner to describe the people’s return to Zion. The poetic images of chs. 34–35 function to describe the removal of Israel’s arch-enemy Edom and the glorious return to Zion as another act by which Yahweh takes that which is “unformed and unlled” and makes it “good.” What is the highway of 35:8? In the context of the vision, a road is imagined that extends through the renewed wilderness leading to Zion. This is a path set apart only for the redeemed to traverse. The unclean are not allowed access and every traveler, once on the path, will never stray from it again. The travelers are kept safe from hostile beasts and their disposition is one of joy, gladness, and song. Any notion of sorrow has dissipated. The image presented is one of pilgrimage, one in which the inrm can now travel because the wasteland has been renewed and a highway (  ) makes travel to Zion possible. Although   is a hapax legomenon, it almost certainly is another form of the more common  , signifying a sacred procession since it is immediately designated the “holy way” ( ). Chapter 35 emphasizes that this road is for the people, the pilgrims, and the travellers, whereas other passages in BI place the emphasis on Yahweh’s passage (cf. 40:3). No preparation is required for the people;



55. Beuken, Isaiah Chapters 28–39, 301.  and  only appear together in Gen 1:2 and Jer 4:23. 1

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the highway will simply be “there.” The procession is holy because the pilgrims are set apart in their religious and ethical behavior. The fact that the unclean (+) are barred from the way indicates the procession’s cultic holiness. The blind and the lame who were formerly excluded from the cult because of their deformities (Lev 21:18) are now healed so that they can enter into the presence of the glory of Yahweh. The enigmatic phrase in 35:8, “it is for those who walk on the way” (    , author’s translation),56 signies the strict requirements for travelers on this road. Even though the primary motif is one of holy pilgrimage, the mention of a holy way and those who walk on the way leading to Zion (v. 8) recalls the formative image in FI of the international pilgrimage to Zion in which Israel and the nations are called to walk in the ways of Yahweh. In Isa 2:3 the people are committed to the ethical way of life proclaimed from Zion (      , 2:3), communicated through the Torah and the word of Yahweh. Whereas previously the people departed from the “way” (30:11), now they will be dedicated to it (cf. 30:21). If this is the same way of 30:21, then this way began in Egypt and perpetually leads to Zion. One must literally travel on this way to Jerusalem yet once there continually live according to the ways of Yahweh. The travelers’ holiness is dependent upon the redemptive work of Yahweh. Only because Yahweh has come to save (, v. 4) and because the pilgrims are redeemed (, v. 10) has the transformation of the wilderness taken place. Immediately following the announcement of Yahweh’s salvation (v. 4), the next two verses begin with “then” (, vv. 5–6), signifying the conditional nature of the transformation. The need for salvation in ch. 35 sets up an expectation for Yahweh rst to bring salvation to his people before the holy procession can take place in BI. That is, only after the “way of the LORD” has taken place is the “way of the people” a possibility. BI follows this pattern rst with an announcement of the “way of the LORD” in 40:3 and then with the “way of my people” in 57:14 and 62:10. 56. This phrase has caused much difculty for translators. BHS proposes replacing this phrase and the one to follow,     , with  ( )    (“and the fool going on his way”). Yet the phrase      parallels 

+ and forms a chiastic line, meaning that the BHS emendation is unnecessary. Duhm, Wildberger, and RSV propose deleting      altogether. Alexander, Motyer, NRSV, and NJPS believe the athnach functions to create an antithesis: “The unclean will not pass over it but it shall be for them. No traveler, not even fools shall go astray.” The best option is to keep the phrase and ignore the athnach. The phrase emphasizes the exclusive nature of this road (cf. “But it shall be for them,” NJPS).



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Clearly, ch. 35 has been intentionally composed to correspond to SI, as demonstrated by the common lexemes between 35:4 and 40:9–11: / (35:4; 40:9),  (35:4; 40:10),    (35:4; 40:9),     (35:4; 40:9),  (35:4; 40:10). The following table provides a list of the common lexemes, phrases, or motifs between ch. 35 and chs. 40–55:57 Chapter 35 Transformation of the Wilderness (vv. 1–2, 6–7, 9) Rejoicing of the Wilderness (v. 1) The Glory of the LORD manifest (v. 2) “Be strong! Do not fear!” (vv. 3–4) Healing of inrmities (vv. 5–6) The Holy Way (v. 8) Yahweh come to save (v. 4)

Chapters 40–55 41:17–20; 43:14–21; 44:1–5; 48:20– 21; 51:1–3; 55:12–13 42:11; 51:3; 52:9 40:1–11 41:10, 13; 43:1, 5; 44:2–5; 51:7; 54:4, 54:14 42:7, 16–19; 43:8; 44:18 40:1–3, 11; 49:11; 51:1–3, 9–11 43:3, 11–12; 45:8, 15–22; 49:25–26; 51:5

When read within the context of BI, the fearful of heart (  , 35:4) are the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the cities of Judah to whom tender words of comfort are spoken (     ) in 40:2. The relationship between the texts is one of prophecy and fulllment since in 35:4 God’s coming is still future, while in SI Yahweh’s return to Zion (40:9– 11) is a present reality. Isaiah 40:8 reassures God’s people that the blessings of ch. 35 will come to pass despite the inertness of the people (vv. 6–8) because the “word of our God is always fullled!” (NJPS). Commentators have observed that the “way” of ch. 35 differs from that of both FI and SI. Unlike FI, the “way” of ch. 35 is not an international thoroughfare, as in 11:16; 19:23; 27:13; and it differs from SI in that it lacks the Exodus motif prevalent throughout SI. Yet, even so, by virtue of its placement within the book ch. 35, it culminates the “way” motif in FI. This is evident due to its close relationship to 30:21, a passage that contains the salvation-historical exodus motif. The connection between ch. 35 and chs. 40–66 is not the exodus motif, but the shared eschatological expectations and the commitment to cultic and moral purity.

57. The following connections are listed in Scott, “The Relation of Isaiah, Chapter 35,” 178–91, and Mathews, Defending Zion, 120–56. In addition to common themes, Scott lists common vocabulary, word-forms, style, and usage between the two texts. 1

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When read in the context of a prophetic book, Isa 51 creates an intertextual connection to ch. 35. Isaiah 51:3 and 35:1–2 both describe how the  and  break forth in song and rejoicing because they are transformed into a lush garden in the presence of Yahweh. The fact that the compound expression   

occurs only once outside these two chapters (22:13; in addition to 35:10; 51:3; 51:11) demonstrates the likelihood of a literary dependence between the texts. Isaiah 35:10 is virtually a verbatim quote of 51:11. Yet when read within the natural ow of BI, 51:11 conrms that the WOL in 40:1–51:11 is the eschatological via sacra of ch. 35. The exilic generation can be considered among the redeemed of the LORD ( , 35:10; 51:11;  , 35:9; 51:10) who travel along the way (, 35:8; 51:9) to Zion. The establishment of the way implies an eschatological nale with the description of everlasting joy and the disappearance of sorrow and sighing. Chapter 35 also creates the anticipation for the “way” to be portrayed as a cultic processional in SI. Isaiah 35 identies the highway as a via sacra ( , 35:8) requiring holiness of its travelers, and along the same lines 52:1 emphasizes that purity is a prerequisite for the inhabitants of the holy city ( ). In the context of BI, the holy city Zion of ch. 52 is the destination of the holy way of ch. 35 that was inaugurated with the proclamation in 40:1–11. Just as the unclean (+, 35:8) are barred from the holy way, so too the uncircumcised and the unclean (+ , 52:1) are refused entry into the holy city. The insertion of ch. 35 strengthens the cultic motif of the “way” in a manner consistent with not only SI, but also TI. Eschatology, ethics, and cult do not conict with each other in BI, but rather they complement one another. As discussed in Chapter 4, Isa 60–62 describe the “way” from the perspective of the inhabitants of Zion who experience it at as a completed reality. Because these chapters provide a view of the “way” from this perspective, they display similarity and dissimilarity with ch. 35. Isaiah 35:2 describes a future time in which the  will be given the glory of Lebanon (   ) and the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. This glory of Lebanon can certainly be viewed as synonymous with the glory of the LORD because of the parallel expressions in 35:2: The glory ( ) of Lebanon

the majesty () of Carmel and Sharon.

The glory ( ) of the LORD

the majesty () of our God.

The glory of Lebanon will be given to the , resulting in the manifestation of the glory and majesty of God. Mention of the glory of Lebanon occurs again in 60:13, yet clearly here it refers to the tribute of 1

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lumber dedicated to the beautication of the sanctuary. Like 35:2, this glory is a means to magnify the glory of Yahweh, since 60:13 testies, “I will glorify ( ) where my feet rest.” Isaiah 60:13, then, provides more detail about how the glory of Lebanon will lead to the glory of the LORD. In the glory of a rebuilt Zion, Yahweh will be gloried. As discussed in Chapters 3 and 4, the WOL within BI serves as a trope for humbling the proud and exalting the lowly. Within BI, Zion has been humiliated and forsaken, yet by chs. 60–62 it is redeemed, restored, and once again exalted among the nations. In accordance with the pattern of the WOL in BI, this “high” point for Zion serves as a “low” point for its oppressors. In BI, the fate of the proud and haughty is to be brought low (, 2:9, 11, 17; 5:15; 25:12; 26:5) and the nations are to prostrate (, 27:13; 45:14; 49:7, 23; 66:23) themselves before Yahweh in Zion. This phenomenon of the WOL comes to a climax in 60:14: “The descendants of those who oppressed you shall come bending low () to you, and all who despised you shall bow down () at your feet; they shall call you the City of the LORD, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” When Isaiah is read as a book, the “way” of ch. 35 nds its fulllment in the “way” of ch. 62. The holy procession leads to a rebuilt Zion that is exalted among the nations. As indicated above, this Zion is the New Jerusalem, the New Heavens, and New Earth, and therefore the promise that “sorrow and sighing shall ee away” (35:8; 51:11) is fullled in the establishment of a city in which “no more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it, or the cry of distress” (65:19). Summary and Conclusion Since the WOL involves both chs. 34 and 35, it entails both judgment and salvation. Within FI Edom culminates the judgment of Yahweh on the nations following BI’s pattern of rst the Assyrians, then the Babylonians, and nally the Edomites as the arch-enemy of God. Yet Israel identies itself with the destruction of Edom since in ch. 1 Jerusalem is described in the same language as the desolation of Edom in ch. 34. To this city, Isaiah ben Amoz announces that the people of God undergo a wilderness experience in the form of exile. A desolate desert overgrown with thorns and briers serves as a symbol to describe the spiritual state of the people of God in exile as well as the judgment that is to befall Israel’s enemies. The “way” or “highway” within FI functions as a root metaphor to signify the reversal of this judgment. Included in this “way” is the offer of sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and understanding to the dumb. Whereas previously no roads existed and travel ceased because the land 1

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had become a wilderness, ch. 35 signals the end of this era of judgment due to the creation of a highway. Whereas before the landscape had become parched and overrun with thorns and briers, now this “way” overows with water, resulting in the growth of lush vegetation and forests. The “way” transforms Israel into persons who will rejoice and sing for joy because they have been redeemed by Yahweh (35:1, 10). This transformation involves the recreation of the earth and therefore the vision of chs. 34–35 is to be understood eschatologically. The “way” in FI is not merely symbolic, it also refers to the actual pilgrimage to Zion and the reinstitution of cultic worship in Jerusalem. Throughout FI the language of “way” is used to signify moral instruction in the Wisdom/Torah tradition. Therefore the “way” signies obedience to Torah, the rejection of idolatry, and proper cultic observance. This “way of holiness” (35:8) is only possible through the redemptive act of Yahweh who takes a sinful and unclean people and redeems them such that they can once again return to Jerusalem to worship properly. Those who were previously excluded from cultic worship—the blind, lame, deaf, and dumb—are healed so that they too can embark on this journey. This “way” will take place in a new exodus, an ingathering of God’s people dispersed among the four corners of the earth. Depicted in this manner, the WOL summarizes the eschatological vision of FI in which people from the ends of the earth (11:10–16; 19:23–25; 27:12–13) stream to Zion in order to learn and live according to the instruction of Yahweh (2:2–5). Chapter 34 announces that Yahweh will once again reveal himself in a theophany as the divine warrior. Edom then serves as a reference to the origin of Yahweh’s mythical “March in the South” in which he travels through the  toward Zion and in so doing overturns nature and tramples nations. Within the argument of BI, this prophecy of the coming of Yahweh as the divine warrior is fullled in chs. 40–66. Cyrus to a degree fullls this “way” by trampling nations in his conquests. However, due to Israel’s inability to respond faithfully to the word of the LORD, the fulllment of the WOL requires Yahweh to march out in vengeance from Edom in ch. 63. Only through the actions of Yahweh as the divine warrior will the WOL be fullled.

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Chapter 6

THE “WAY OF THE LORD” IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

As noted in the introductory chapter, in the past several decades numerous New Testament scholars have given serious attention to the signicance of the motif of the WOL or the “Isaianic/Isaiah’s New Exodus” (INE) in the New Testament. Because of the widespread inuence of the Isaiah upon Second Temple Judaism and the Early Church,1 for a full appreciation of BI it is incumbent to engage both Old Testament and New Testament scholarship on this matter, particularly for those who consider both testaments as Christian Scripture.2 Whereas New Testament scholars have employed the work of Old Testament scholars, few Old Testament scholars have ventured beyond the Old Testament and engaged New Testament interpretations of Isaiah.3 Given that Old Testament scholars appeal to New Testament understandings of Isaiah within their own writings,4 not only will New Testament scholars benet from 1. Broyles and Evans, eds., Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah; Steve Moyise and Maarten J. J. Menken, eds., Isaiah in the New Testament (The New Testament and the Scriptures of Israel; London: T&T Clark International, 2005); Claire Mathews McGinnis and Patricia K. Tull, eds., “As Those Who Are Taught”: The Interpretation of Isaiah from the LXX to the SBL (SBLSymS 27; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2006). 2. Brevard S. Childs (Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments: Theological Reection on the Christian Bible [Minneapolis: Fortress, 1993], 85) recognizes that when viewed as canon, it is not “adequate to understand interpretation as moving only in the one direction of Old Testament to New.” 3. Exceptions to this would be John F. A. Sawyer, The Fifth Gospel: Isaiah in the History of Christianity (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996); Brevard S. Childs, The Struggle to Understand Isaiah as Christian Scripture (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2004); Blenkinsopp, Opening the Sealed Book. 4. For example, Volz, Jesaia II, 217; Muilenburg, “Isaiah 40–66,” 5:671; K. Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 63. All three of these scholars appeal to the New Testament in support of their interpretation of 40:3, yet they hold different interpretations of the “way.” 1

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an informed reading of Isaiah, but Old Testament scholars will benet from an informed reading of the New Testament use of Isaiah. This chapter will focus on the manner in which New Testament authors read the WOL motif in Isaiah. I will summarize the arguments of several studies devoted to this topic, examine their exegesis of Isaiah, and critique their interpretation of the “way” texts in BI. Shorter Treatments of the “Way of the LORD” and the Isaianic New Exodus S. McCasland, writing in 1958, provides the rst sustained attempt to determine the origins of the title of “the way,” used to describe the early Christian movement in the book of Acts (9:2; 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22).5 Others had linked this title to the prophetic announcement of a way in Isa 40:3 and Mal 3:1, and their fulllment in the ministry of John the Baptist and Jesus. But this view lacked supporting evidence. The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls provided McCasland the means to gain a fuller understanding of “the way.” He observed references to “the way” in the following quote from the Community Rule: When these things come to pass for the community in Israel, by these regulations shall they be separated from the midst of the men of error to go to the wilderness to prepare there the way of the LORD; as it is written, “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” This is the study of the law as he commanded through Moses, to do all that has been revealed from time to time, and as the prophets revealed by his Holy Spirit. (1QS VIII 13–16)6

In fulllment of Isa 40:3, the Qumran community envisions a time when the righteous will separate themselves from those in error, go into the wilderness, prepare there the “way of the LORD,” and observe Mosaic Torah. In a similar manner, early Christians appealed to Isa 40:3, believing that they were preparing the “way of the LORD” in the wilderness. They viewed their piety as the “way,” and shortened the title “Way of the LORD” to simply “the Way.” Besides their different approaches to Torah, 1QS differs from the New Testament in that the former lacks the phrase, “the voice of one crying.” McCasland believes this omission in 1QS implies that the whole community is in the wilderness, whereas in the Gospels the focus is on John the Baptizer. McCasland observes that 5. McCasland, “The Way,” 222–30. 6. McCasland cites the translation by Millar Burrows, The Dead Sea Scrolls (New York, Viking, 1955), 382. 1

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Acts 18:25 describes the ministry of Apollos, who only knew the baptism of John, as one who was instructed in “the way of the LORD” (UI=O PEP=O UPV LVSJPV). He believes Apollos’ understanding of the “way” was in the manner of Qumran and that he required the instruction of Priscilla and Aquila to grasp fully the Christian understanding of it. Klyne Snodgrass traces the various streams of tradition emanating from Isa 40:1–5 into Judaism and Christianity and concludes that these groups share a midrashic interpretation of this text. He analyzes the translation and interpretation of Isa 40:1–5 in the LXX, the Targum, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, Rabbinic literature, and the Gospels of Mark and Luke. Based upon his examination of these texts, Snodgrass nds a midrashic interpretation of Isa 40:1–5 common among these writings. In regards to the Qumran community, Snodgrass agrees with others that Isa 40:3 serves as a dening text for their whole movement.7 Concerning this Jewish sect he writes, “It is clear in both these texts that the Qumran community viewed their right living in the wilderness as the means of preparation for the soon coming of God.”8 According to Snodgrass, the Synoptics similarly possess this ethical interpretation of the WOL by emphasizing the theme of repentance, especially the necessity of good works (cf. Matt 3:8–10; Luke 8–14). The conation of Exod 23:20; Mal 3:1, and Isa 40:3 in Mark 1:2–3 results from a common stream of tradition within Old Testament and preChristian Judaism. Thus for Mark the “way” (PEP K) functions as an important redactional motif to dene discipleship. Jesus not only teaches the “way of God” (12:14) but his disciples “follow in the way” (10:52). Snodgrass observes that the use of Isa 40:3–5 is much more subtle as well as widespread in the Gospel of Luke. He cites the following texts as owing at least part of their wording to Isa 40:3–5: Luke 1:17, 76–79; 2:30–31; 3:3–6; and 9:52. In addition, the use of “the consolation of Israel” (QBSBLMITJO UPV ’*TSBIM, 2:25) and “other exhortations” (FUFSB QBSBLBMXO, 3:18) may be derived from Isa 40:1–11 and its understanding in Judaism. For Snodgrass, Luke’s quotation of Isa 40:4 in Luke 3:5 ought to be understood metaphorically as the humbling of the proud and crooked men. Viewed in this manner, the preparations for Jesus’ way in Luke 9:52 and 10:1 have in view the eschatological appearing of Jesus.

7. In addition to McCasland, “The Way,” Snodgrass cites Eero Repo, Der “Weg” als Selbstbezeichnung des Urchristentums (Helsinki: Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia, 1964), in Klyne R. Snodgrass, “Streams of Tradition Emerging from Isaiah 40:1–5 and Their Adaptation in the New Testament,” JSNT 8 (1980): 28. 8. Snodgrass, “Streams of Tradition,” 30. 1

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In summary, Snodgrass concludes that Isa 40:1–5 was cited in Jewish and Christian texts for the following reasons: 1) it was a classic statement of the consolation that comes from God and was understood specically in the context of God’s eschatological comfort; 2) the focus on the preparation of the way gave specic focus to the eschatological orientation by being interpreted of the return of the exiles or by being understood specically of a group that viewed themselves eschatologically and expected their ethical behavior to prepare the way of God’s coming.9

Mark Strauss, in his examination of the fulllment of prophecies concerning the Davidic Messiah within Luke–Acts, surveys the signicance of the theme of the INE. He believes Luke presents Jesus as the eschatological deliverer who through his miracles and preaching defeats the forces of sin and Satan, and leads God’s people in an eschatological new exodus. This eschatological new exodus in reality is a new period of salvation-history. Strauss follows the interpretation of Watts10 and believes that the INE was never fullled in the return under Cyrus and was subsequently postponed with the Servant replacing Cyrus as the true agent of deliverance. He goes on to stress the Davidic identity of this deliver based upon Jer 23:5–6 and Isa 11:11–16 and 55:3. He recognizes that if Isaiah is read as a unity, the leader of this NE may be viewed as the Davidic king. For Strauss, Isa 40–55’s emphasis is on the kingship of Yahweh rather than on a messianic envoy, and Luke’s claim is that it is Jesus who is enthroned following this exodus. Therefore the indirect claim made is that Jesus is Yahweh.11 The quotation of Isa 40:3–5 in Luke 3:4–6 indicates that the time of salvation commences with Jesus’ public ministry. Jesus’ approach to Jerusalem completes this exodus (cf. 9:31), yet it continues in Acts as the disciples follow the “way” of Jesus. In a similar manner to Strauss, Carl Davis approaches the text of Isa 40:3 and the theme of the WOL in relation to New Testament Christology. Like Snodgrass, Davis provides a thorough examination of how this text is understood within the LXX, Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, Qumran literature, Targums, and New Testament. Unlike Snodgrass and Strauss, Davis provides a sustained interpretation of Isa 40:3

9. Ibid., 31. 10. Watts, “Consolation or Confrontation?,” 31–59. 11. Mark L. Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke–Acts: The Promise and Its Fulllment in Lukan Christology (JSNTSup 110; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1995), 301. 1

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within the context of the MT. In doing so he observes, “The basic issue is whether these words point to a highway straight from Babylon, one traversing the normal Babylonian roads to Jerusalem, or one unrelated to Babylon.”12 He concludes that Isa 40:3–5 describes a theophany which takes place at a future time when “God’s glory would appear at the head of his people and lead them to victory over their enemies.”13 According to the Gospels, the coming of Jesus is the theophanic presence of God in a new exodus. This interpretation is supported by his belief that the “sunrise” (BOBUPMI=) of Luke 1:78 refers to the eschatological visitation of God in Isa 60:1–2. Davis concedes the possibility that Isa 40:3 referred to a Babylonian captivity, but believes that in the minds of New Testament writers its ultimate fulllment lay in the ministry of Jesus. This WOL continues on after Christ’s ascension since the conquest of nations associated with this new exodus is fullled as Christianity spreads to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (cf. Acts 1:8). Programmatic Treatments of the “Way of the LORD” and the Isaianic New Exodus The next four studies by Marcus, Watts, Pao, and Litwak differ from the previous studies in that they do not merely address the WOL/INE theme within the Gospels and Acts. Instead, they examine how these New Testament books themselves are shaped by this motif. According to Joel Marcus, the WOL is the locus classicus for the concept of the gospel and functions as not only the double theme of Mark’s Gospel, but also as the controlling paradigm for his view of life in the community. The function of the quotation at the beginning of Mark’s Gospel signals to readers that they cannot understand Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection without the knowledge of Isaiah.14 Not only is Isa 40:3 linked to the prologue of

12. Carl Judson Davis, The Name and Way of the LORD: Old Testament Themes, New Testament Christology (JSNTSup 129; Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1996), 63. 13. Ibid., 70. Davis connects the “way of the LORD” with the way of Cyrus (45:2, 13) and concludes, “The idea, then, according to the MT is that God will prepare Cyrus’s way who in turn is preparing a way and leading Israel along this way.” Ibid., 82. Unfortunately, Davis does not go one step further and relate this way of Cyrus and the people to the eschatological “way of the LORD.” 14. Joel Marcus, “Mark and Isaiah,” in Fortunate the Eyes That See: Essays in Honor of David Noel Freedman in Celebration of His Seventieth Birthday (ed. A. B. Beck et al.; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1995), 450. 1

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Mark’s Gospel, but Isa 40:9–10 as well. Marcus agrees with Guelich15 that the whole story of “the beginning of the gospel” is to be understood against the backdrop of Isaian themes.16 Mauser is correct to recognize that the mention of “the green grass” upon which the people sit at the feeding of ve thousand signies the eschatological transformation of the wilderness as part of the INE.17 Mark’s use of SI’s prophecy of an eschatological manifestation in the wilderness appears against the backdrop of Jewish hopes for an apocalyptic holy war that begins in the Judean desert and climaxes in the liberation of Zion. In support of this view, Marcus adopts Frank Cross’ reading of Isa 40:3–6 as the description of the Divine Warrior engaged in proto-apocalyptic cosmic battle. Ultimately, the WOL represents “his CBTJMFB, his own extension of kingly power.”18 The attening of mountains and raising of valleys is the reaction of creation to the revelation of Yahweh’s glory. John the Baptizer and Jesus are thus eschatological gures signifying the fulllment of eschatological events.  Whereas Snodgrass emphasizes the human response to the WOL, Marcus prioritizes the LORD’s own creation of his “way,” with only a secondary emphasis on any human “way.” He agrees with Lohmeyer that John’s baptism of repentance is not primarily a human action, but rather an act of divine grace.19 In this view, baptism serves as an eschatological sacrament signifying the forgiveness of sin which leads to repentance. The ethnical response is seen as derivative upon the eschatological gift of forgiveness of sin. Marcus recognizes that the WOL includes the healing of the blind (Isa 35:1–7; 42:10–16) and therefore the healing of Bartimaeus is not an unrelated miracle but an extension of the WOL. Crucial to Mark’s argument is that Jesus’ journey with his disciples to Jerusalem in 8:22–10:52 is the WOL of SI. Yet, it results in a strange reversal of the triumphal entry due to its intersection with Mark’s theology of the cross. Mark 10:32–34 illustrates this point:

15. R. A. Guelich, “‘The Beginning of the Gospel’: Mark 1–15,” BR 27 (1982): 5–15, and Mark 1–8:26 (WBC 34A; Dallas: Word, 1989), 3–46. Whereas Guelich views 1:1 as an introduction to vv. 1–15, Marcus sees it as introducing much more. 16. Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 20. 17. U. Mauser, Christ in the Wilderness (SBT 39; Naperville: Alec R. Allenson, 1963), 136–37, as cited in Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 24. 18. Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 33, original emphasis. 19. E. Lohmeyere, Das Evangelium des Markus (MeyerK; 11th ed.; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1951), 13–15, as cited in Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 31. 1

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The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah They were on the road (FO UI] PEX), going up (BOBCBJOPOUFK) to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, “See, we are going up (BOBCBJOPNFO) to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the Gentiles; they will mock him, and spit upon him, and og him, and kill him; and after three days he will rise again.”20

Marcus recognizes that BOBCBJOX (“to go up”) is a technical term for the festal ascent to the holy city. Like SI, Jesus leads a procession to the holy city. Yet, unlike SI, Mark does not assume that this victory comes through the military conquests of the Divine Warrior. For Mark, “the true fulllment of the prophecy of Yahweh’s triumphant march through the wilderness lies not in the military campaigns of the revolutionaries but in the weary trek of Jesus and his disciples up to Jerusalem.”21 Marcus believes the author of Mark closely aligned Jesus with God, especially in 1:2–3, yet 12:36–37 preserves a distinction between the two. Jesus’ apparent defeat is the occasion for God’s victory. He concludes that in Mark apocalyptic eschatology collides with the theology of the cross and results in a new, transformed version of apocalyptic eschatology. He writes, “The main point of this portrayal is to show that Jesus’ journey up to suffering and death in Jerusalem is, in the strange logic of a cruciform apocalyptic theology, the victorious assault of the divine warrior on the resistant cosmos.”22 If the WOL is the way of the cross, then the call to prepare the LORD’s way is not merely a general call to repentance or baptism, but it is a call to discipleship. This interpretation is supported by Marcus’ observation that the term “Servant” in SI oscillates between an individual and collective reference. He writes, “Christian discipleship is a matter of following Jesus in the way of the cross (8:34; 10:52) or of being with him (cf. 3:14), not of going before him or of preparing his way.”23 In this manner the WOL does not end with Jesus’ death and resurrection. It continues to possess an eschatological import since Jesus

20. Besides the numerous references to the “Suffering Servant” passages of SI in Mark 14–16, Marcus (“Mark and Isaiah,” 460) highlights within these verses the concentrated collection of Suffering Servant motifs: handed over (Isa 53:6, 12); appears before Gentile authorities (Isa 52:15); condemned to death (Isa 53:8); spat upon and scourged (Isa 50:6); killed (Isa 53:8–9); raised up (Isa 52:13). 21. Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 37. 22. Ibid., 40. 23. Ibid., 42–43, emphasis added. 1

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will come again, this time on the clouds of heaven. The Church’s preaching of the gospel “prepares the way” for Jesus’ return.  Instead of using the term WOL, Rikki Watts refers to this same motif as the INE in his study of Mark. Working independently of Marcus, Watts comes to similar conclusions concerning the function of this same theme in Mark. He, like Marcus, believes Isa 40:3 functions in a programmatic manner, and criticizes previous approaches for seeking explanations merely in textual terms without giving due attention to the role of ideology and its inuence upon the shaping of texts. For Watts, the INE forms the Weltanschauung of Mark. That is, it “is the ideologically shaped schema of Israel’s history cast in terms of Yahweh’s and Israel’s relationship in which various texts act as hermeneutical points evoking sections of this schema.”24 Whereas Marcus looks only to how the Isaianic texts shape the theme of the INE, Watts goes to great lengths to include the texts from Malachi (3:1) and Exodus (23:20) as contributing to Mark’s conception of the INE. He believes Malachi not only had Isa 40:3 in mind, but also 57:14 and 62:10, since these texts share features with Malachi, in addition to a common post-exilic context. For him, the INE had already become a unied and pervasive motif of Jewish hopes by the time of Malachi such that a single key word or phrase such as  (Mal 3:1) might evoke Isaiah’s entire eschatological program. Mark’s addition of Mal 3:1 and Exod 23:20 serves as a warning to the people that Yahweh’s coming also requires a right response to John if the nation is to avoid a purging of the temple. For Watts, the quotation of Isa 40:3 functions in an iconic manner and “suggests for Mark [that] the long-awaited coming of Yahweh as King and Warrior has begun, and with it, the inauguration of Israel’s eschatological comfort: her deliverance from the hands of the nations, the journey of her exiles to their home and their eventual arrival at Jerusalem, the place of Yahweh’s presence.”25 Within the prologue (Mark 1:1–15), Mark’s use of FVBHHFMJPO (1:1, 14) is to be understood in terms of the Isaiah’s announcement of comfort, which involves Yahweh’s INE coming to his people. Also, the rending of the heavens and the descent of the Spirit (1:10) over what Watts deems the delay of the INE in Isa 63:7–64:12 also suggests that Yahweh’s intervention “in strength” (Isa 40:9) has come. Lastly, 1:11 carries an allusion to Isa 42:1, signifying that Jesus is the Servant and therefore the true representative of Israel.

24. Watts, Isaiah’s New Exodus, 51. 25. Ibid., 90. 1

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Watts conceives of the NE in Isaiah as following a schema that involves three stages: (1) Yahweh’s deliverance of his exiled people from the power of the nations and their idols; (2) the journey along the “Way” in which Yahweh leads his people from their captivity among the nations; (3) arrival in Jerusalem, the place of his presence, where Yahweh is enthroned in a gloriously restored Zion. The structure of Mark mirrors these stages: Jesus’ ministry in “Galilee and beyond” (1:16–26), the “Way” (8: 27–10:45), and “Jerusalem” (10:46–16:8). In both Mark and Isaiah Jerusalem is the goal of the way. Watts observes that the Divine Warrior motif spans both Isa 40–55 and Isa 56–66 and involves Yahweh’s supremacy over the gods and idols of the nations. He then sees in the rst section of Mark (1:16–8:26) Jesus acting as Yahweh the Creator-Warrior who liberates his people from their captivity to unclean spirits and demons and in doing so inaugurates the INE. Similarly, Jesus’ healing of the blind, deaf/dumb, and lame, the offer of forgiveness of sin, and his feeding of the people who are like sheep without a shepherd reverberate the INE motifs. Watts recognizes that the WOL requires a right response from the people since it is a holy “way.” He believes the language of “sight,” “hearing,” and “understanding” prevalent throughout Mark are Wisdom motifs and therefore the “way” is a rejection of human wisdom and the acceptance of Yahweh’s counsel. Jesus’ confession that he came to serve and give his life as a ransom for many concludes the “way” section of 8:22–10:45. Watts’s argument that Isa 53 serves as the basis for understanding Mark 10:45 is based primarily on the fact that Isa 40–55 serves as the structuring device for Mark. Here Watts agrees with Marcus that the INE is accomplished through the suffering and death of Jesus. Watts follows most commentators who assume Isa 56–66 reect the disappointment following the failure of SI’s promises to materialize upon returning from exile. He recognizes the movement from the Servant to the Servants within chs. 40–66 and observes that a sharp division exists between the servants and a group of apostates. Jesus’ cursing of the gtree, representative of his rejection of the present Temple authorities, recalls the laments of TI, which describe the desolation and withering of the sanctuary. Mark’s progression of Jesus as the messianic King to “cleanse the Temple” (11:1–1), announce the present Temple’s demise (11:12–25), and proclaim its replacement with himself (11:26–12:12) fullls of the INE hopes of Isa 2:2; 11:16, and 56:7.26 The quotation of

26. Ibid., 346. 1

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Isa 56:7, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations,” in Mark 11:17 demonstrates that the INE inaugurated by Jesus is not the nal consummation of Isaiah’s eschatological hopes. Watts observes: The Markan Jesus, as Israel’s messianic king and inaugurator of the INE [Isaianic New Exodus], is neither as many have assumed merely protecting the somewhat minimal access of Gentiles to the house of God, nor is he against the profanation simpliciter of the Temple, nor is he making a statement about the eschatological replacement of the Temple. Instead, the LORD of the Temple having arrived, now orients the Temple toward its nal goal.27

Even though the INE in Mark is eschatological, it is not the complete fulllment of Isaiah’s hopes for the NE. As Watts observes, it advances Yahweh’s redemptive agenda for the cosmos and points toward his nal goal, but it is not the goal itself. Like the rst exodus, on the eve of the Passover Jesus integrates the INE with the rst Exodus through the covenant act of the Passover meal. The short ending of Mark reminds the followers of Jesus that they, like the rst audience to hear SI, ought not to fear so that they might experience the full realization of God’s promised deliverance. David Pao approaches Luke much in the same manner Watts interprets the Gospel of Mark. He argues that Isa 40:3–5 functions as a hermeneutical lens without which the entire Lukan program cannot be properly understood… The citation itself presupposes the knowledge of the wider context of Isaiah 40–55. The prominent themes in Isaiah 40– 55 become the organizing principles for the second volume of the Lukan writings.”28

Isaiah 40:3–5 not only introduces the Gospel of Luke, but it serves to unify Luke and Acts into a continuous work. In addition to Luke 3:4–6, Luke 1:17; 2:30; Acts 13:23–26, and 28:28 share allusions to Isa 40:3–5. These passages do not serve to indicate the fulllment of individual events, but work together as a means to understand the entire narrative. Pao interprets the INE as initially a literal reference to the return of exiles from Babylon followed later by a more metaphorical meaning. Even then, he recognizes that the cosmic impact of the INE underlies the entire Isaianic program. He writes, “When the return of the Babylonian exiles failed to fulll such hopes, the exact denition of ‘exile’ underwent a transformation. The physical sense was substituted by a moral if not a

27. Ibid., 324, emphasis added. 28. Pao, Isaianic New Exodus, 37. 1

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cosmic sense.”29 The NE has been radically “eschatologized” without carrying the overtones of an otherwordly reality as in apocalyptic.30 Pao observes that the PEP K terminology used in an eschatological sense in Acts is dependent upon the context of Isa 40:3–5. He examines the rhetorical use of the PEP K terminology and concludes that it “is used in polemical contexts where the identity of the ‘true’ people of God is at stake.”31 For early Christians, the “way” functioned as a means of distinguishing themselves over and against other communities. In Acts 22:3–21, the “way” serves to link Paul as the legitimate heir of the ancestral traditions, as opposed to those who do not belong to this “way.” In Acts 9:2, the term functions to identify those who separate themselves from the synagogue. Pao sees Luke’s use of Isa 40:3 as similar to the interpretation of the verse within the Qumran community. In both cases the term is used as an identity marker for a marginalized group that attempts to defend itself against the majority culture.32 In Acts 13:10, the one who opposes Christians, people of “the Way,” is the one who makes “crooked the straight paths of the LORD” (EJBTUSFGXO UB=K PEPV=K UPV LVSJPV UB=K FVRFJBK), an obvious allusion to Isa 40:3.  Luke’s quotation of Isa 61:1–2, the announcement of a new age of salvation that includes the salvation of the Gentiles, is supported by the overall narrative of Luke 4:16–30. In this passage the identity of the people of God is a major concern, as it is in Acts 10:35–38, which again evokes Isa 61:1. Later, in Luke 24:44–49, the Isaianic program introduced in 4:16–30 advances a step further with the introduction of the theme of the inclusion of Gentiles. Pao sees Isa 49:6 and 32:15, texts signifying the coming of the Spirit in the NE, as the backdrop for Acts 1:8. He believes that the programmatic statement of Acts 1:8 ought to be understood not in geographical terms but in a theopolitical sense. The three categories of Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and the ends of the earth now signify varying stages in the arrival of a new era of salvation: (1) the dawn of salvation upon Jerusalem; (2) the reconstitution and reunication of Israel; (3) the inclusion of the Gentiles within the people of God. Acts 13:46–47 inserts the quotation of Isa 49:6 strategically within the narrative to highlight the connection between the themes of

29. Ibid., 145. 30. Pao, Isaianic New Exodus, 56 n. 63. Here Pao is correct to view Isa 40–55 as “prophetic eschatology” rather than apocalyptic or even proto-apocalyptic since SI’s hopes are to be realized within history. 31. Ibid., 60. 32. Ibid., 67. 1

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the rejection by the Jews and the offer of salvation to the Gentiles. The quotation of Isa 6:9–10 in Acts 28:26–27 indicates that a dramatic reversal of Isaiah’s pattern of judgment followed by salvation has taken place. Pao writes, “In the Lukan writings, therefore, instead of ‘judgment–salvation’ one nds the proclamation of the scheme of ‘salvation– judgment’ upon the people of God.”33 Pao observes that the restoration of Israel lies at the center of the Lukan program even though it remains unfullled. The reconstitution of Israel is an important aspect of the INE (Isa 49:6; 63:17b; also 11:13), and the election of Matthias signals the beginning of the restoration of Israel since the twelve apostles symbolize the twelve tribes of Israel. This eschatological hope is further realized at Pentecost in Acts 2, fullling the promise of ingathering in Isa 11:11. The conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8:26–40 corresponds to the inclusion of the outcasts in Isa 56:3–5 and is therefore another fulllment of the INE. Pao acknowledges that within the book of Acts the Gentile inclusion has redened the people of God in a manner that goes beyond what which was anticipated in Isaiah. Whereas the submission of the nations to Israel remains a signicant element of the NE in Isaiah, in Acts the narrative moves in the direction of universal salvation. Pao believes a transformation of the NE motif here takes place, one that was unforeseen by Isaiah. So radical is the equality between Jew and Gentile that circumcision is no longer a requirement for initiation into the people of God. Paul’s initial call to minister to both Jews and Gentiles, the rejection of the gospel by the Jews, and the narrowing focus of Paul’s mission to the Gentiles demonstrates that the narrative of Acts has moved far beyond the paradigm offered by Isaiah. A unique element of Pao’s argument is his claim that the anti-idol polemic in Acts is rooted in Isa 40–55, and therefore these passages contribute to the notion that the early Christian mission fullls the INE. He writes, “As in the ancient Exodus traditions, power becomes the focus of the New Exodus in Acts. The establishment of a new community is intricately tied to the denial of the authority and legitimacy of other competing communities and sovereign bodies.”34 Pao follows the interpretation of Clifford,35 arguing that Isa 46:13 should be understood in light of the beginning of the chapter, with this nal verse conrming

33. Ibid., 108. 34. Ibid., 182. 35. Richard J. Clifford, “The Function of Idol Passages in Second Isaiah,” CBQ 42 (1982): 456, as cited in Pao, Isaianic New Exodus, 188. 1

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that the rejection of idols is in effect the condemnation of nations. The afrmation of Yahweh’s power over idols is a declaration of deliverance for the Israelite community. Pao goes on to assert that, like Isa 40–55, the focus in Acts is not on religious assimilation but rather the sovereignty of Yahweh/Lordship of Christ. The resurrection and exaltation of Jesus in Acts provides the ultimate demonstration that Jesus is Lord of all. Statements in Acts that afrm Christ’s Lordship provide the hermeneutical key for understanding the anti-idol passages.36 Viewed in this manner, both Acts and Isa 40–55 use the anti-idol polemic for the same rhetorical purpose. That is, “It is precisely because Jesus is Lord of all that no one can resist the advancement of the word and the early Christian movement. Behind the anti-idol polemic is the claim that the early Christian community is the sole possessor of divine truth.”37 Pao demonstrates a number of similarities between the language of the Areopagus narrative (17:16–34) and the narrative of Philip’s encounter with Simon Magus (8:4–24), with the anti-idol speeches in Isa 40–48. In particular, Pao believes the Areopagus narrative was constructed in keeping with the INE program in Isa 40–55. The narrative concerning Herod’s death (12:20–23) shares similarities with the oracle against the King of Babylon in Isa 14:4–20, as well as the description of the evil actions of Pharaoh in Exod 3. In Acts, the death of Herod is portrayed as the death of Pharaoh.38 Gentiles are not alone in their proneness to idolatry, according to Pao, who interprets the quotation of Isa 66:1–2 in Stephen’s speech as part of his argument that the Jews’ misuse of the temple is an act of idolatry. The language of idolatry functions as a boundary-marker that separates those who are within and outside the early Christian community.39 According to Isaiah and Luke, the true people of God reject the power of the nations and submit instead to the Lordship of Yahweh. Rather than adopt a promise–fulllment, proof-from-prophecy, imitation/continuity, or typology model for approaching the Scriptures of Israel in Luke–Acts, Kenneth Litwak employs a mode of intertextuality

36. Pao, Isaianic New Exodus, 210–11. 37. Ibid., 192–93. 38. Pao here follows the studies of O. Wesley Allen, Jr., The Death of Herod: The Narrative and Theological Function of Retribution in Luke–Acts (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1997), 98–101; Susan R. Garrett, “Exodus from Bondage: Luke 9:31 and Acts 12:1–24,” CBQ 52 (1990): 656–80, as cited in Pao, Isaianic New Exodus, 201. 39. Ibid., 208. 1

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that he refers to as “framing discourse.”40 “Frames” consist of cues or markers in the text that indicate to the reader how they are to interpret the statements. In the case of Luke–Acts, he argues that the beginning, middle, and end of the book possess cues to indicate that the present followers of Jesus are to be identied as God’s people, in continuity with Israel of the past. Viewed in this way, the Old Testament functions primarily in an ecclesial manner by announcing God’s coming to gather together a people who will experience his salvation. Litwak interprets the quotation of Isa 40:3–5 in Luke 3:4–6 as a clear reference to the proclamation of the NE. His focus is on the beginning and end of Luke–Acts, and in regard to the latter he observes that Acts 28:26–28 contain an explicit quotation of Isa 6:9–10, as well as an echo of Isa 40:5, “salvation of our God.” Litwak acknowledges the difculty in determining the origins of the phrase UP= TXUISJPO UPV RFPV(Pss 49:23; 97:3; Isa 38:11; 40:5; Luke 2:30; 3:6), but believes it to be an echo of Isa 40:5 since the two other occurrences of this phrase in Luke both have Isa 40 within its immediate co-text. Taken together, both Isaianic references in Acts 28:26–28 highlight the inclusive and exclusive nature of the Church. The citation of Isa 6.9– 10 signies that only the remnant will participate in Yahweh’s announcement of salvation, and the reference to Isa 40:5 recalls the universal scope of salvation that includes Gentiles. Luke–Acts follows the narrative logic within BI and alludes to two programmatic passages within the book: Isa 6 announcing an era judgment and Isa 40 announcing the dawn of salvation. In this instance, Luke–Acts alludes to Isa 40:5 rather than Isa 40:3, as in other WOL/INE passages in the New Testament. As such, there is no mention of a wilderness or a “way.” Nevertheless, Litwak considers this a NE reference and denes the INE as the offer of salvation to both Israel and the nations. Viewed in this manner, the dual Isaianic references in Acts 28:26–28 function in tandem and have “the effect of suggesting that the new Exodus is only for a faithful remnant, a faithful community of those who are saved and gathered like lambs (Isa 40:11).”41

40. Kenneth D. Litwak, Echoes of Scripture in Luke–Acts: Telling the History of God’s People Intertextually (JSNTSup 282; London: T&T Clark International, 2005), prefers this designation to “Old Testament” or “Hebrew Bible” since it acknowledges that early Christians and Jews considered these texts as authoritative in religious and theological matters. 41. Ibid., 194. 1

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Evaluation and Critique The thesis of this book nds support in the Qumran writings and the New Testament understanding of WOL. They all view the WOL/INE primarily as an eschatological revelation of Yahweh in the form of a theophany. The WOL/INE requires an ethical response on the part of the people who, through their piety, identify themselves as the true people of God. This interpretation of the WOL is consistent with my interpretation of the “way” discussed in Chapter 4 and 5. Only one of the works examined suggests that Isa 40:3 was originally understood to refer to an actual highway and that it was later reinterpreted in an ethical manner. Second, in the Dead Sea Scrolls, Mark, and Luke–Acts, Isa 40:3 functions in a programmatic manner to dene the identity and mission of the community. By quoting this passage, the authors do not refer merely to one verse, but rather the whole Isaianic program of salvation as dened in chs. 40–55 or 40–66. Just as Isa 40:3 plays a vital role in shaping the Qumran community’s identity, or in structuring Mark’s and Luke’s Gospels, it becomes a means of dening the identity of the early Christian community in Acts. If 40:3 constantly functions in a programmatic manner, it is likely that the quotation of 40:3 by 57:14 and 62:10 was intended to be much more than “religiously sancted vocabulary”42 or “the shared phraseology of a school tradition.”43 If, in Mark and Luke– Acts, the quotation of one verse invokes the whole salvation program of Isa 40–55/66, then it is reasonable to assume it can function similarly in 57:14 and 62:10. Marcus, Watts, Pao, and Litwak have certainly provided a compelling case that the WOL/INE functions as the organizing principle of Mark and Luke–Acts, a principle which subsumes the subthemes of healing the blind and lame, the anti-idol polemic, the return to Zion, and the Servant. Luke–Acts does not reinterpret Isa 40:3 in an ethical manner and therefore it is unlikely the author of 57:14 and 62:10 would have done so as well. If 40:3 originally referred to a literal road, and 57:14 and 62:10 were ethical reinterpretations of 40:3, why did the New Testament authors not instead quote 57:14 or 62:10, since 40:3 would only conjure up images of road construction? It is likely that the New Testament authors understood 40:3; 57:14, and 62:10 as related texts all describing the same salvation program, with 40:3 serving as an introduction or metonymy of this theme. Even though for Christians, New Testament readings do not provide the only authoritative interpretation of Old 42. Zimmerli, “Zur Sprache Tritojesajas,” 220. 43. Fishbane, Biblical Interpretation, 289. 1

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Testament passages, nevertheless it is striking that they overwhelmingly favor eschatological interpretations of Isaiah’s WOL. Lastly, the fulllment of Isa 40:3 in Mark and Luke–Acts is congruent with the eschatological scheme set forth in Chapter 5. Earlier it was argued that the return from exile was an eschatological event fullled in history, yet only in a partial manner. Similarly, Jesus’ rst advent is, according to the New Testament, an eschatological event. As Marcus and Watts suggest, in Jesus’ ministry he acts as the Divine Warrior conquering cosmic forces of evil, particularly through his death on the cross. Yet, as Pao and Strauss observe, Mark and Luke–Acts by no means offer an apocalyptic eschatology. These actions take place within history, and even after the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, the consummation of Israel’s hopes are not realized. Jesus’ eschatological acts contribute rather to a scheme of salvation-history in which a new phase of redemption has been inaugurated. According to Pao, this new phase includes the conversion of the Gentiles in a manner unforeseen even in Isaiah. In general I afrm how these authors interpret Isaiah and the theme of the WOL and INE in the New Testament. The only signicant disagreement I have is with Pao’s work.44 Pao appears to follow Zimmerli’s interpretation that Isa 40:3 initially referred to a literal highway only to be later reinterpreted. In addition, he appears to adopt Hanson’s view that the failure of SI’s vision to materialize following the exile led to an apocalyptic reinterpretation of these chapters.45 Yet the greatest weakness in Pao’s argument is his failure to address the relationship between chs. 40–55 of Isaiah and chs. 56–66. He provides a denition of the INE based solely on Isa 40–55, yet throughout his work he constantly appeals to texts within chs. 56–66, since Luke–Acts quotes from these passages as well. This is signicant since according to him, the INE extends beyond the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus into the early Christian community. As indicated in Chapters 4 and 5 of this study, a prominent theme within Isa 40–66 is the transference in leadership from the Servant of the LORD to a community of servants who carry on the legacy of their persecuted leader. It is unfortunate that although Pao traces the progression of the INE from Jesus as the LORD’s Servant in Luke–Acts to the early Christian movement of the “way,” he does not observe the transition from the Servant to the servants within Isa 40–66. 44. As discussed in Chapter 3, I disagree with Watts’s contention that the INE was delayed due to the unbelief of the exilic community. 45. Pao, Isaianic New Exodus, 145. Pao’s favorable references to Hanson’s work throughout his monograph appears to conrm this. 1

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Pao highlights the distinct manner in which this “way” functions as an identity marker sharply distinguishing the true people of God from imposters in Acts, yet he fails to observe that this same type of phenomenon also occurs within Isa 56–66, where the servants are dened over and against the apostate. While only limited textual evidence exists to link Isa 56–66 with Acts (although Pao correctly observes that the salvation of the Ethiopian eunuch fullls Isa 56:3–5), certainly thematic correspondence exists. Perhaps it is safe to say that just as Isa 40–53 focus on the Servant and Isa 54–66 focus on the subsequent theme of the servants, this same pattern is reected in the transition from Luke to Acts. If read in this manner, the community described in Isa 56–66 is the natural result of the INE of chs. 40–55, and the radical redenition of the people of God that occurs in the book of Acts may not be, as Pao describes, beyond the vision of Isaiah. Chapters 56–66 redene the servants of Yahweh and Israel such that their religious rather than their ethnic identities determine their inclusion among the people of God. What certainly is new in Acts is the degree to which the Jews reject the gospel as indicated by the reversal of the salvation program in Acts 28:26–27. This reversal indicates to the reader that the INE is to come again in the future and onceand-for-all reverse the judgment of Isa 6:9–10. Viewed in this manner, the eschatological vision of Isaiah is kept intact. Those disappointed that the fullness of the eschatological promises of the INE did not occur in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ can nd comfort in the fact that a similar experience occurred with the post-exilic community. So the Church, like the post-exilic community, awaits another exodus that will this time lead to the nal Zion, the nal Jerusalem—the New Heavens and the New Earth (cf. Rev 21–22).

1

BIBLIOGRAPHY Ackroyd, Peter R. Exile and Restoration. Old Testament Library. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1968. ———. “Isaiah 36–39: Structure and Function.” Pages 3–21 in Von Kanaan bis Kerala: FS fur Prof. Mag. Dr. J.P.M. van der Ploeg, O.P. zur Vollendung des siebzigsten Lebensjahres am 4. Juli 1979. Edited by W. C. Delsman and J. T. Neilis. Alter Orient und Altes Testament 211. Neukirchen–Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1982. ———. “The Temple Vessels: A Continuity Theme.” Pages 166–81 in Studies in the Religion of Ancient Israel. Vetus Testamentum Supplements 23. Leiden: Brill, 1972. Aitken, K. T. “Hearing and Seeing: Metamorphoses of a Motif in Isaiah 1–39.” Pages 12–41 in Among the Prophets: Language, Image and Structure in the Prophetic Writings. Edited by P. R. Davies and D. J. A. Clines. Journal for the Study of the Old Testament: Supplement Series 144. Shefeld: Shefeld Academic, 1993. Albertz, Rainer. “Darius in Place of Cyrus: The First Edition of Deutero-Isaiah (Isaiah 40.1–52.12) in 521 BCE.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 27 (2003): 371–83. ———. A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period. Translated by J. Bowden. 2 vols. Old Testament Library. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1994. ———. Israel in Exile: The History and Literature of the Sixth Century B.C.E. Translated by David Green. Studies in Biblical Literature 3. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2003. Alexander, Joseph A. The Earlier Prophecies of Isaiah. New York: Wiley & Putnam, 1846. ———. The Later Prophecies of Isaiah. New York: Wiley & Putnam, 1847. Anderson, Bernhard W. “Exodus and Covenant in Second Isaiah and Prophetic Tradition.” Pages 339–60 in Magnalia Dei, the Mighty Acts of God: Essays on the Bible and Archaeology in Memory of G. Ernest Wright. Edited by F. M. Cross, W. Lemke, and P. D. Miller Jr. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1980. ———. “Exodus Typology in Second Isaiah.” Pages 177–95 in Israel’s Prophetic Heritage: Essays in Honor of James Muilenburg. Edited by B. W. Anderson and W. J. Harrelson. New York: Harper & Row, 1962. ———. “Mythopoeic and Theological Dimensions of Biblical Creation Faith.” Pages 75–96 in From Creation to New Creation. Edited by B. W. Anderson. Overtures in Biblical Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994. Auerbach, Erich. “Figura.” Pages 11–76 in Scenes from the Drama of European Literature. Edited by E. Auerbach. Translated by R. Manheim. Gloucester, Mass.: Meridian, 1959.

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Muilenburg, James. “The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40–66.” Pages 381–773 in vol. 5 of The Interpreter’s Bible. Edited by George A. Buttrick. New York: Abingdon, 1956. Myers, C. “Temple, Jerusalem,” ABD 6:360. Neusner, Jacob. The Talmud of Babylonia. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1996. Niditch, Susan. Oral World and Written Word: Ancient Israelite Literature. Library of Ancient Israel. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1996. Nissinen, Martti. “Spoken, Written, Quoted, and Invented: Orality and Writtenness in Ancient Near Eastern Prophecy.” Pages 235–71 in Ben Zvi and Floyd, eds., Writings and Speech. North, Christopher R. The Suffering Servant in Deutero-Isaiah. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1956. Nurmela, Risto. The Mouth of the LORD has Spoken: Inner Biblical Allusions in Second and Third Isaiah. Studies in Judaism. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 2006. Odeberg, Hugo. Trito-Isaiah (Isaiah 56–66): A Literary and Linguistic Analysis. Uppsala: A.-B. Lundequistska Bokhandeln, 1931. Ogden, Graham S. “Moses and Cyrus.” Vetus Testamentum 28 (1978): 195–203. Olmstead, A. T. “The Earliest Book of Kings.” AJSL 31 (1915): 169–214. Oswalt, John N. The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40–66. New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1998. Pao, David W. Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 130. Tubingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2000. Peels, H. G. L. The Vengeance of God: The Meaning of the Root NQM and the Function of the NQM-Texts in the Context of the Divine Revelation in the Old Testament. Old Testament Studies 31. Leiden: Brill, 1995. Petersen, David L. Late Israelite Prophecy: Studies in Deutero-Prophetic Literature and in Chronicles. Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1977. Rad, Gerhard von. Old Testament Theology. Translated by D. M. G. Stalker. 2 vols. New York: Harper & Row, 1965. Reventlow, Henning Graf. “Basic Issues in the Interpretation of Isaiah 53.” Pages 23– 38 in Bellinger and Farmer, eds., Jesus and the Suffering Servant. Ricoeur, Paul. “Biblical Hermeneutics.” Semeia 4 (1975): 29–148. Rogerson, John W. Myth in Old Testament Interpretation. Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 134. Berlin: de Gruyter, 1974. Satterwaithe, P. E., R. S. Hess and G. J. Wenham, eds. The Lord’s Anointed: Interpretation of Old Testament Messianic Texts. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 1995. Sawyer, John F. A. The Fifth Gospel: Isaiah in the History of Christianity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Schilbrack, Kevin, ed. Thinking Through Myths: Philosophical Perspectives. London: Routledge, 2002. Schoors, Antoon. I Am God Your Saviour: A Form-Critical Study of the Main Genres in Isa XL–LV. Vetus Testamentum Supplements 24. Leiden: Brill, 1973. Schramm, Brooks. The Opponents of Third Isaiah: Reconstructing the Cultic History of the Restoration. Journal for the Study of the Old Testament: Supplement Series 193. Shefeld: JSOT, 1995. Schultz, Richard. “The King in the Book of Isaiah.” Pages 141–63 Satterwaithe, Hess and Wenham, eds., The Lord’s Anointed.

184

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Bibliography

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Bibliography

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INDEXES INDEX OF REFERENCES HEBREW BIBLE/ OLD TESTAMENT

21:8

126

18 18:19–31

91 63

Genesis 1:2 2:6 7:11 12:2–3 14:1–16 15:1 15:6 18:19 22:17

59, 152 152 59, 152 57 70 63 70 66, 67 79

84 49 50 142

2 Kings 13:7 22:2

69 142

170 81 80 80 80 93 7 55 59 80 80 112 112 160, 165 67 67

11 142 98 59, 63 112 142 11 11 112 98 145 142 112 112 142 72, 150 72 64

1 Kings 5:1–5 22:20–22 22:20 22:27

Exodus 3 6–13 11:8 12:41 13:3–4 14:19 15 15:1–21 15:3 16:1 17:1–7 22:21 23:9 23:20 33:3 33:12–14

Deuteronomy 2:7 2:27 4:29 4:34 5:14–15 5:32 8:2–4 8:15–16 10:19 12:5 15:21 17:20 23:7 24:17–22 28:14 33:2–3 33:2 34:6

2 Chronicles 18:26 36:22

142 77

Joshua 1:7 2 13–19 23:6–7

142 55 86 142

Leviticus 21:18

Judges 2:22 5:4–5 5:19–20

67 72, 150 74

153 1 Samuel 4:17

63

2 Samuel 5:2 5:12

63 84

Ezra 1 1:1–4 1:1 1:4 1:6 2:61–63 2:64 6:21 6:22 7–9 7:6 7:9 7:28 8:15 8:21 8:22 8:31 9 9:1–2 9:2 9:6

113 109, 113 77, 109 107 107 110 113 110 108 108 106 108 106 108 108 106 106 107 111 108, 110 110

Numbers 20:1–13 20:14–21 20:17 20:19

80 150 14, 142 14

Index of References 9:7 9:8 9:9 9:11 9:13 10:11

110 107, 108 108 110 108, 110 108

Nehemiah 1:4–11 1:6 1:7 1:8 1:10 1:11 5:1–13 7:66 9

84 112 112 112 112 112 112 113 107

Job 1–2 22:15 26:12

49 140 59

Psalms 2 5:8 5:9 EV 22:6–7 23 23:4 24:6 24:7–10 25:4 27:11 44:23–24 44:24 45:14–15 45:15–16 EV 46 48 49:23 60:9 66 66:6 66:10–12 66:12

39 67 67 96 63 64 98 7, 125 140 140 118 59 101 101 91 91 171 101 55 55 55 55

68:8 68:18 74 74:1 74:12–15 74:13–14 74:13 74:22 76 77 77:14–15 77:16–20 77:17–21 EV 77:19–20 78 78:15–20 78:51–54 78:69–70 79:5 80:3 84:5–6 EV 84:6–7 85 88:8 89 89:9–10 89:10 89:11 93–99 93:1 96:10 97:1 97:3 100:4 106 107 107:7 107:33–35 108:10 108:11 EV 109:20 118:19–20 119:165 127:3 137:7 139:13

72, 150 72, 150 59 118 59 59 59 59 91 59 59 81, 82 81, 82 59 55, 63 80 64 84 118 59 143 143 118 96 55 63 59 59 91 91 91 91 171 7 55 72 73 73 101 101 63 7 117 63 149, 150 140

189 Proverbs 2:8 2:13 3:6 3:20 4:14 9:15 10:29 12:28 15:19 16:17 Isaiah 1–66 1–62 1–55 1–52 1–39

1–33 1–32 1–12 1–5 1–2 1

1:1–62:12 1:1–11:10 1:1 1:2–4 1:2 1:3 1:4 1:7 1:11 1:16 1:24 1:27 1:30 1:31 2

140 140 140 152 140 140 67 140 140 45

25 126, 130 33 25, 26 2, 6, 9, 16, 19, 25–27, 33, 81 131, 132, 134, 140 27 24 135 32 133, 135, 144, 145, 149, 156 123 137 149 109 22, 135, 149 138, 144 145 144 135, 149 145 135, 149 149 144 135, 149 65, 68

190

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

Isaiah (cont.) 2:2–5 143, 157 2:2 65, 166 2:3 44, 46, 108, 140, 144, 153 2:5 153 2:6–9 65, 68 2:9 156 2:11–12 129 2:11 156 2:12–14 65 2:17–18 68 2:17 156 3:8 118 3:12 140 3:14–15 53 4:5 63 4:16–30 168 5 144, 145 5:1–7 144 5:2 124 5:6 144, 146 5:7 144 5:12 144 5:13 80, 144 5:15 156 5:26 126 6 50, 116, 121, 171 6:1–7 68 6:1–5 61 6:1 52, 121 6:3 50, 52, 63, 116, 121 6:5 145 6:7 145 6:8 49 6:9–10 23, 53, 54, 92, 138–40, 169, 171, 174 6:9 53 6:10 119

6:13 7:3 7:4 8:11 8:14 8:23 10 10:2 10:20 10:23 10:24 10:26 10:33 11:10–16 11:10–11 11:10 11:11–16

11:11–12 11:11 11:12–16 11:12

11:13 11:15 11:16

12:1–6 13–14 13

13:1–27:12 13:2–4 13:2 13:5–9 13:8 13:9–11 13:10–13 13:14–16 13:14

108 45 22 44 117 43, 44 108, 148 53 108 23 44 44 65 137, 157 137 63 123, 126, 127, 137, 161 127 127, 137, 169 127 63, 108, 126, 127, 137 169 137 8, 14, 45, 127, 128, 137, 143, 154, 166 127 136, 148 73, 127, 133, 135, 136 137 135 126 135 135 73 135 135 73

13:15 13:17–19 13:17 13:20 13:21–22 14–23 14:4–20 14:24–27 14:31 19:11 19:13 19:15 19:23–25 19:23 22 22:4 22:5 22:7 22:13 22:14 24–27 24:4 24:12 25:3 25:7 25:10–11 25:12 26:1–7 26:2 26:5 26:7–8 26:7 26:9 26:18 26:21 27 27:1–6 27:1 27:2–4 27:3 27:4 27:6

135 135 77, 109 135 135 148 170 24 70, 124 138 138 79 157 8, 45, 143, 154 64 64 64 124 155 64, 145 15, 129, 136 136 124 136 136 65 65, 156 129 124, 129, 136 130, 156 68, 140 130, 140 136 136 145 136, 145 136, 144 59 96 136, 144 136, 144, 146 136, 144

Index of References 27:12–13

27:13 28–34 28:1–4 28:1 28:4 28:6 28:22 29 29:10–12 29:11–12 29:17–18 29:17 29:18 29:19 29:21 30 30:1–17 30:1–7 30:9 30:10–14 30:10 30:11–12 30:11 30:12 30:14 30:18–26 30:19 30:20–21 30:20 30:21 30:22 30:27–33 30:27 30:28 30:29 30:30 30:33 31:1–3

123, 126, 128, 137, 157 137, 154, 156 137 27 27 27 124 23 54 138, 139 23 147 144, 146 23, 139, 140 53 124 54, 125, 133, 141 54 138 140 54 140, 141 54 44, 140, 141, 153 54, 140 54 54, 141 54 141, 147 141, 142 44, 141– 43, 153 142 54 54 54 55 54 54 138

31:9 32–34 32–33 32 32:1–20 32:1–5 32:1–2 32:3 32:4 32:5 32:15–18 32:15 32:19 32:23 33 33:2 33:8–9 33:8 33:9 33:14–16 33:15–16 33:17–24 33:17 33:20–23 33:20 33:21 33:22 33:23 33:24 34–66 34–35

34

34:1–4

126 132, 137 137, 139 145 65 145 139 139 137, 139 64 79 137, 168 65 140 132, 134, 143, 145 59, 63 143, 147 8, 45, 137, 143 137, 145, 146 55 54 145 139 147 139 137, 145 137, 139 137, 145 133, 145 10, 134, 135 16, 17, 25, 131– 37, 139, 146, 147, 150–52, 157 131–37, 143, 147–50, 156 148, 149

191 34:1 34:2–8 34:2–4 34:2–3 34:2 34:3 34:4–5 34:4 34:5–17 34:5–8 34:5–6 34:5 34:6–7 34:6 34:7 34:8 34:9–15 34:9–10 34:9 34:10–15 34:10

34:11–15 34:11 34:12 34:13–15 34:13 34:14 34:15 34:16 34:17 34:35 35

135, 136, 148, 149 147 132, 133 135 136, 148 135, 149 135 147 148, 149 135 135, 147 148, 149 135 135, 149 135, 147, 149 135, 137, 147–49 147 135 136, 137, 147 147 135, 137, 143, 147, 149 135 152 147 136 136, 146, 147 147 147 136 147 147 7, 11, 14, 15, 29, 131–33, 136–40, 143, 146–52, 154, 156, 157

192 Isaiah (cont.) 35:1–9 35:1–7 35:1–4 35:1–2

35:1

35:2

35:3–6 35:3–4 35:3 35:4

35:5–6 35:5 35:6–8 35:6–7 35:6

35:7 35:8–10 35:8–9 35:8

35:9–10 35:9

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah 35:10 29 163 147 136, 146, 151, 154, 155 136, 137, 146, 147, 150, 154, 157 63, 136, 137, 140, 146, 151, 154–56 147 154 118, 151 135, 137, 139, 141, 147–49, 153, 154 153, 154 140 154 143, 152, 154 136, 137, 140, 145–47, 151, 152 72, 136, 147, 152 123, 126, 147, 150 147, 151 11, 44, 45, 110, 137, 138, 143, 147, 149, 152–57 29 137, 147, 154, 155

36–66 36–39 36:2 38:10 38:11 39 40–66

40–63 40–55

40–54 40–53 40–52

40–49 40–48

40–45

135, 147–49, 151, 153, 155, 157 131, 134 10, 134 45 124 171 35 5, 8, 9, 11, 16, 32, 33, 52, 63, 95, 120, 122, 132, 134, 154, 157, 166, 172, 173 136 2, 6, 9, 19, 26, 27, 29, 32, 33, 36, 48, 50, 77, 80, 81, 97, 101, 102, 115, 120, 133, 154, 161, 166, 168–70, 172–74 96 174 27, 82, 88, 94– 96, 102, 116, 119 66 26, 28, 50, 68, 82, 85– 88, 170 103

40–42 40

40:1–62:12 40:1–52:12 40:1–51:11 40:1–52 40:1–11

40:1–8 40:1–5 40:1–3 40:1–2 40:1

40:2 40:3–11 40:3–6 40:3–5

40:3–4

71 15, 49, 50, 69, 88, 116, 123, 132, 137, 171 151 26, 27, 43, 93 155 43 6, 10, 11, 14, 27, 29, 43, 49, 50, 52–54, 58, 62, 64, 65, 67, 76, 88, 93, 96, 115, 116, 122–24, 126, 132, 133, 154, 155, 160 62 160, 161 154 28, 50, 133 58, 64, 87, 88, 112, 115, 119 64, 76, 96, 112 47, 71 50, 163 3, 28, 29, 62, 160– 62, 167, 171 13, 14, 61, 67, 70, 76,

Index of References

40:3

40:4–5 40:4

40:5

40:6–8 40:6–7 40:6 40:7 40:8

40:9–11

77, 87, 88, 116, 122 1, 2, 5–9, 12, 14, 15, 29, 43–45, 51, 53, 58, 61, 62, 64, 66, 67, 76, 78, 87, 96, 99, 105, 108, 109, 114–16, 119, 120, 122, 123, 129, 142, 152, 153, 158–62, 165, 168, 171–73 1 52, 53, 61, 64– 66, 72, 122, 160 52, 77, 88, 92, 125, 142, 171 27, 29, 66 27, 28, 52 50, 67, 105, 116 57, 119 51, 52, 77, 78, 96, 101, 105, 106 28, 62, 63, 76, 77, 88,

40:9–10 40:9

40:10–11

40:10

40:11

40:12–42:17 40:12–20 40:13–48:20 40:13–14 40:14 40:27–31 40:27 40:30 40:31 41 41:1–42:17 41:1–7 41:1–3 41:1 41:2–4 41:2–3 41:2

41:3 41:4 41:5 41:8–20 41:8–13

91, 106, 119, 154 128, 142, 163 50, 128, 141, 154, 165 60, 63, 74, 88, 101 9, 59, 74, 95, 124, 128, 130, 154 63, 87, 142, 154, 171 69 71 28 49 44, 140 71 43, 96, 99 118 69 69, 72, 81, 109 76 70, 71 70 27, 69, 70, 76 81 68, 71, 151 69, 70, 74, 75, 77, 86, 109 69 70 103 71 70

193 41:8 41:9 41:10 41:13 41:15–16 41:15 41:17–20

41:17–18 41:17

41:18–19 41:18

41:19 41:20 41:21–29 41:21 41:22 41:25

41:26 41:27 42 42:1–9

42:1–6 42:1–4 42:1

42:3–4

70, 75, 78 50, 75 75, 154 75, 154 70, 71, 83 69, 70, 96, 103 29, 47, 53, 54, 56, 57, 73, 81, 154 87 53, 54, 73, 80, 130 14 53, 54, 72, 87, 103, 143 53, 58, 97 54 71 70 70 27, 70, 71, 75, 77, 81, 109, 151 70 63 71, 85– 87, 94 70–72, 77, 82, 85, 95, 112 85 71 56, 72, 82, 85, 86, 165 73

194

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

Isaiah (cont.) 42:3 57, 72, 85 42:4 71, 80, 85 42:5–9 71 42:5–8 76 42:5–7 27 42:6–7 52, 86, 111 42:6 72, 74, 75, 85, 86, 103, 125 42:7 71, 72, 87, 154 42:8 71, 86 42:9–10 71 42:9 57, 134 42:10–17 71 42:10–16 163 42:10–13 76 42:10–12 88, 97 42:10 71 42:11 154 42:12 71 42:13–17 71 42:13–16 74 42:13 72, 74 42:14–17 47 42:14–16 73 42:15–16 14, 73 42:15 52, 72, 73, 96 42:16–19 154 42:16 44, 45, 52, 71– 73, 125, 130 42:17 53, 71 42:18–20 71 42:18–19 53 42:20 53 42:21 80 42:24 44

43:1–7 43:1 43:2 43:3 43:4 43:5–7 43:5–6 43:5 43:7 43:8 43:11–12 43:14–21 43:14 43:16–20 43:16 43:17–20 43:19–20 43:19

43:20 43:22–28 44–45 44 44:1–5 44:1–2 44:2–5 44:2 44:3 44:4 44:5 44:18 44:22 44:23 44:24–45:13 44:24 44:26–28 44:26 44:27–28

47, 54, 55, 57 75, 154 54, 55 55, 154 78 93 55, 87, 126, 128 74, 154 75 52, 154 154 29, 48, 154 11 55, 57 44 56 103 44, 45, 56, 57, 134 87 53 109 82 29, 48, 154 57 154 66 56–58, 80 57 57, 111 53, 154 82, 99 88, 97, 101 74, 81 84 77 58, 76, 78 81

44:27 44:28–45:1 44:28

45:1

45:2 45:3 45:4 45:5 45:8 45:11–13 45:11 45:12–13 45:12 45:13

45:14 45:15–22 45:18 45:19 45:22–23 45:22 45:23 46–48 46:8–11 46:10 46:11 46:13 48

48:1–2 48:10 48:12–22 48:12–16 48:12–15 48:12–13 48:12 48:14

48 27 11, 27, 75, 76, 109 11, 27, 75, 109, 124 76, 162 27, 75 56, 75 27 76, 84, 154 76 27 27 84 44, 74, 76–78, 109, 162 78, 156 154 27, 84 78 27 120 78 78 84 75 74, 78 169 26, 78, 82, 85, 86, 94 86 55 78 84 27 78 78 11, 75, 78, 95

Index of References 48:15 48:16–22 48:16 48:17–19 48:17 48:18 48:20–22 48:20–21

48:20

48:21–22 48:21 48:22

49–55 49–53 49–52 49 49:1–52:12 49:1–52:10 49:1–12 49:1–6 49:1 49:2 49:3 49:5–13 49:5–6 49:6 49:7–12 49:7 49:8–12 49:8 49:9–11

44, 75, 78 80 79, 85, 86 79, 80 44, 78 79 92, 97 29, 48, 80, 92, 154 11, 87, 97, 124, 125, 128 80 58, 80, 87 97, 99, 102, 120, 124 77 85, 94 28, 85– 88 26, 85– 87 85, 86 28 85, 112 95, 111 76 86 86 82 86, 99 75, 125, 168, 169 29, 86, 87 75, 88, 156 48 86, 98 86

49:9 49:11

49:12–13 49:12 49:13

49:14 49:17 49:18 49:19 49:22 49:23 49:25–26 50–51 50:2 50:4–9 50:6 50:10–11 51 51:1–52:12 51:1–3 51:2 51:3

51:4–52:6 51:4–5 51:4 51:5 51:7 51:9–52:12 51:9–11

51:9–10

44, 45, 87 9, 11, 44, 45, 87, 154 53 26, 86, 87, 126 76, 87, 88, 97, 112, 119 130 89 126 58, 88, 108 126–28 156 154 26 48, 79 95 164 30, 113 155 58 29, 154 58 58, 88, 101, 108, 112, 119, 154, 155 82 27 80 59, 95, 154 80, 154 88 14, 29, 89, 91, 106, 154 48, 58– 60

195 51:9

51:10–11 51:10

51:11

51:12 51:19 52 52:1–12 52:1–2 52:1 52:2 52:3–6 52:7–10

52:7 52:8 52:9–12 52:9

52:10 52:11–12

52:11 52:12 52:13–66:24 52:13–66:2 52:13–55:13

59, 88, 89, 95, 155 88 44, 46, 59, 91, 155 54, 99, 112, 155, 156 88, 91, 119 88, 119 32, 88– 90, 155 88, 93, 95 91 89, 90, 110, 155 112 91 88, 90– 92, 96, 97 63 92 88 88, 91, 101, 106, 108, 112, 119, 154 88, 92, 95, 99 14, 28, 29, 48, 91–93, 97 90, 92, 97, 124 106, 110, 142 27, 43 95 28

196

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

Isaiah (cont.) 52:13–53:12 26, 85, 95 52:13 122, 164 52:15 75, 164 53–66 26 53–55 48 53 122, 166 53:1 95 53:5 122 53:6 44, 120, 164 53:8–9 164 53:8 164 53:10 75, 122 53:12–66:24 26 53:12 164 54–66 26 54:1–17 95 54:4 154 54:6–7 130 54:8 118 54:11 119 54:12 124 54:14 154 54:17 113 55–66 174 55 26, 32, 35, 96, 97, 100– 102 55:1 98, 100 55:3–5 28 55:3 161 55:6–13 96, 97, 99, 100 55:6–9 24 55:6–7 99 55:6 98, 99 55:7–11 99 55:7–9 98 55:7 43, 44, 96, 97, 99 55:8 44, 96, 99

55:9 55:10–11 55:11

55:12–13

55:12

56–66

56–59 56–57 56 56:1–8 56:1 56:3–7 56:3–5 56:3 56:5 56:6–7 56:7 56:9–58:14 56:9–57:13 56:11 56:66 57 57:3–13 57:9 57:10

44, 96, 99 77, 78, 96, 99 51, 52, 78, 97, 101, 105 29, 48, 96, 97, 100, 101, 103, 154 54, 96, 97, 101, 102 2, 3, 6, 9, 17, 19, 20, 24, 30–34, 36, 102, 104, 110, 114, 115, 166, 173, 174 31, 119, 120 121, 122 26, 35, 121 31, 119 119 111 169, 174 13, 101 33 13, 111 166, 167 31 115 44, 120 67 118 117, 118, 121 65 44

57:13 57:14–21

57:14–15 57:14

57:15

57:16–17 57:16 57:17–18 57:17 57:18 57:20–21 57:21 58:2 58:8 58:12 58:13 59:1–15 59:7 59:8 59:10 59:15–20 59:15 59:16–18 60–62

60

13, 119, 121 7, 10, 32, 66, 114, 115, 120–22 121, 122 4–6, 8, 12, 13, 15, 44, 45, 114– 17, 119– 23, 129, 153, 165, 172 116, 117, 119, 121, 122, 129, 130 118 118 120 44, 117, 118 6, 44, 119 120 120 44 142 108 43, 44 31 9, 45 43, 44, 119 118 133 31 60 31–34, 110, 114, 123–26, 128–30, 155, 156 31, 125

Index of References 60:1–2 60:1 60:2 60:3–9 60:3 60:11 60:13 60:14 60:15 60:17–22 60:18 60:19 61 61:1–3 61:1–2 61:1 61:4 61:6 61:8 62 62:1–63:6 62:2 62:4 62:6–11 62:6 62:10–12

62:10–11 62:10

62:11–12 62:11 62:12

63, 162 125 125 125 125 124, 125, 129 63, 155, 156 156 130 126, 128 124 126 31, 123 31 168 168 108 63 63 31, 123, 156 133 63 130 11 123 7, 8, 66, 114, 122–24, 126, 128–30 128 8–10, 13, 14, 44, 45, 114, 116, 120, 122–30, 153, 165, 172 124 125, 128, 130, 141 13, 110, 130

62:17–22 63–66 63

66:18–19 66:20 66:23

128 31, 32 133, 150, 157 31, 32, 60, 123, 148–51 165 31 44, 169 33 44 33 130 31 44 56 56 126, 128 156 56 128 121, 170 33 44 63 31 126, 128, 129 63 128 156

Jeremiah 1:14 4:6 4:23 5:4–5 6:21 15:17 20:7 20:10 23:5–6 25:11–14 25:11–12 29:10–14

70 70 152 67 117 96 96 96 161 109 109 98, 109

63:1–6

63:7–64:12 63:7–64:11 63:17 63:18 64:4 64:10 65–66 65:1–16 65:2 65:9 65:15 65:17–25 65:19 65:22 65:25 66:1–2 66:1 66:3 66:11–12 66:18–24 66:18–22

197 29:10 29:12–14 31 31:1–14 31:1 31:2 31:3 31:4 31:5 31:6 31:7 31:8 31:9 31:10 31:11 31:12 31:13 31:14 31:16 31:21 49:7–22 50:34 51 51:1

109 98 108 29, 30 29 29 29 29 29 29 29 29 29, 44, 82, 108 29 29 29 29 29 63 82 149, 150 63 109 109

Ezekiel 3:20 7:19 14:3 14:4 14:7 18:30 21:20 25:12–17 29:18–20 31 34 37 37:5 37:11 44:12

117 117 117 117 117 117 117 149, 150 63 145 63 57 57 57 117

Daniel 7–12 10–11

37 74

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

198 Hosea 2:3 12:4–7 13:5

54 66 11

Amos 3:1–2 5:4–15 5:14 5:24

11 98 98, 100 79

Micah 4:2

140

Nahum 2:1

89

Habakkuk 2:1–5 2:2–3 3:3–15 3:3–6 3:3

22 22 72 62, 72, 150 72

Zechariah 4:7

65

Malachi 3:1

14, 44, 66, 159, 160, 165

APOCRYPHA/DEUTEROCANONICAL BOOKS 1 Maccabees 2:22 142 NEW TESTAMENT Matthew 2:2–5 125 3:3 2, 6 3:8–10 160

Mark 1:1–15 1:1 1:2–3 1:3 1:6–8:26 1:10 1:11 1:14 1:16–26 3:14 8:22–10:52 8:22–10:45 8:27–10:45 8:34 10:32–34 10:45 10:46–16:8 10:52 11:1–11 11:12–25 11:17 11:26–12:12 12:14 12:36–37 14–16 Luke 1:17 1:76–79 1:78 2:25 2:30–31 2:30 3:3–6 3:4–6 3:4 3:5 3:6 3:18 4:16–30 8–14

163, 165 163, 165 2, 14, 66, 160, 164 6 166 165 165 165 166 164 163 166 166 164 163 166 166 160, 164 166 166 167 166 160 164 164

160, 167 160 162 160 160 167, 171 160 161, 167, 171 2, 6 160 171 160 168 160

9:31 9:52 10:1 24:44–49

161 160 160 168

John 1:23

2, 6

Acts 1:8 2 8:4–24 9:2 10:35:38 12:20–23 13:10 13:23–26 13:46–47 17:16–34 18:25 18:26 19:9 19:23 22:3–21 22:4 24:14 24:22 28:26–28 28:26–27 28:28

162, 168 169 170 2, 159, 168 168 170 168 167 168 170 2, 160 2 2, 159 2, 159 168 2, 159 2, 159 2, 159 171 169, 174 167

Hebrews 1:5

39

Revelation 21–22

174

QUMRAN 1QS IX 19–20 VIII 13–16 VIII 14

1 159 1

INDEX OF AUTHORS Ackroyd, P. R. 50, 90, 113 Aitken, K. T. 145 Albertz, R. 26, 28, 90, 111, 113 Alexander, J. A. 8 Allen Jr., O. W. 170 Anderson, B. W. 2, 40, 47, 48 Auerbach, E. 39, 105 Averbeck, R. E. 41 Axelsson, L. E. 72 Baltzer, D. 62 Baltzer, K. 13, 51, 57, 66, 74, 76, 82, 100, 112, 113, 158 Barstad, H. M. 74 Bartelmus, R. 57 Barth, C. 117 Barton, J. 35, 37, 133 Batto, B. F. 59 Ben Zvi, E. 20, 46 Berges, U. 29 Beuken, W. A. M. 30, 54, 69, 71, 125, 138, 141–45, 148, 152 Blenkinsopp, J. 2, 7, 19, 23, 28, 31, 49, 66, 71, 74, 77, 91, 109, 111, 114, 118, 122, 123, 125, 127, 128, 133, 142, 158 Brooke, G. J. 1, 2 Brownlee, W. H. 135 Broyles, C. C. 81, 158 Brueggemann, W. 24 Burrows, M. 159 Caird, G. B. 41 Carroll, R. P. 102, 103 Childs, B. S. 14, 23, 28, 32, 33, 50, 56, 60, 64, 96, 104, 105, 107, 116, 122, 125, 126, 129, 158 Clements, R. E. 25, 32, 125, 138–40 Clifford, R. J. 41, 60, 61, 72, 102, 150, 169 Clines, D. J. A. 111

Cody, A. 66 Collins, T. 21 Conrad, E. 23 Cross Jr., F. M. 49, 59, 97 Davies, P. R. 21, 85 Davis, C. J. 162 Delitzsch, F. 8, 68 Dicou, B. 135, 149 Dille, S. J. 55 Dorsey, D. A. 45, 61, 115 Doty, W. G. 41 Dozeman, T. B. 59 Dreschler, D. M. 7 Duhm, B. 4, 36, 89, 100, 116 Eissfeldt, O. 9 Elliger, K. 26 Eng, M. 28 Evans, C. A. 134, 158 Fischer, J. 2, 47, 48 Fishbane, M. 12, 39, 42, 172 Floyd, M. H. 21, 22 Flynn, S. W. 121 Fohrer, G. 89 Fried, L. S. 28, 85 Garrett, S. R. 170 Goldingay, J. 39, 67, 69, 71, 73, 110, 113 Grätz, H. 132 Grifths, P. J. 38 Guelich, R. A. 163 Hanson, P. D. 30, 32, 42, 107, 125 Haran, M. 30 Hayes, K. M. 143 Hermisson, H.-J. 29, 83 Hoffner, H. A. 101 Holladay, W. L. 30

200

The “Way of the LORD” in the Book of Isaiah

Hollander, J. 35 Hugenberger, G. P. 81 Hutton, J. M. 60 Ingrafa, B. D. 38

Miscall, P. D. 47, 146, 147 Moor, J. C. de 69 Motyer, J. A. 10 Muilenburg, J. 2, 6, 33, 91, 100, 123, 158 Myers, C. 84

Jones, G. H. 81 Kaufmann, Y. 30, 36 Kee, M. S. 49, 51 Keil, C. F. 8, 68 Kiesow, K. 2, 28, 47, 48, 86, 100 Kilian, R. 62 King Jr., M. L. 1 Kloos, C. 60 Koch, K. 67, 79, 106, 107 Koenen, K. 116, 119, 123 Koole, J. L. 13, 30, 46, 57, 64, 66, 69, 101, 116, 119, 124 Korpel, M. C. A. 69 Kratz, R. G. 28 Kraus, H.-J. 98 Kuan, J. K. 134 Kuenen, A. 26 Laato, A. 18, 19, 36, 69, 71, 74, 75, 81, 82 Levy, R. 66 Lincoln, B. 40 Lindblom, J. 21 Litwak, K. D. 171 Lohmeyere, E. 163 Maass, F. 30 Marcus, J. 2, 162–64 Martens, E. A. 126 Mathews, C. R. 56, 57, 146, 150, 151, 154 Mathews McGinnis, C. 158 Mauser, U. 163 McCasland, S. V. 1, 159, 160 McConville, J. G. 107, 108, 110 McKenzie, J. L. 132 Melugin, R. F. 46, 88, 89, 91, 115 Merendino, R. P. 62 Merrill, E. H. 143 Miller Jr., P. D. 49, 59

Neusner, J. 70 Niditch, S. 97, 116 Niehaus, J. J. 61 Nissinen, M. 25 North, C. R. 79, 95, 96 Nurmela, R. 26 Odeberg, H. 34 Ogden, G. S. 81 Olmstead, A. T. 132 Oswalt, J. N. 9, 10 Pao, D. W. 2, 167–70, 173 Payne, D. F. 67, 69, 71, 73, 110, 113 Peels, H. G. L. 147–49 Petersen, D. L. 50 Pickett, T. E. 38 Preuss, H. D. 80 Repo, E. 160 Reventlow, H. G. 96 Ricoeur, P. 38, 105 Rogerson, J. W. 41 Sawyer, J. F. A. 158 Schilbrack, K. 41 Schoors, A. 84 Schramm, B. 11, 30, 33, 34, 111 Schultz, R. 34, 35, 81, 115 Scott, R. B. Y. 132, 154 Seitz, C. R. 15, 24, 26, 27, 33, 37, 52, 70, 96, 105, 123, 134, 136 Shipp, M. R. 40 Skinner, J. 4 Smart, J. D. 12, 27, 30, 132 Smith, D. L. 90, 113, 114 Smith, M. S. 29 Smith, P. A. 30, 32, 115, 123 Snaith, N. H. 2 Snodgrass, K. R. 160, 161

Index of Authors Sommer, B. D. 26, 30, 35, 56 Soskice, J. M. 38 Sparks, K. L. 41, 110–12 Spykerboer, H. C. 100 Stansell, G. 139 Steck, O. H. 3, 20, 24, 32, 33, 104, 123, 128, 132, 137 Strauss, M. L. 161 Stuhlmueller, C. 47, 48, 51 Sweeney, M. A. 30, 32, 127, 134, 135, 140 Tidwell, N. L. 45, 115 Tiemeyer, L.-S. 117 Toorn, K. van der 22 Torrey, C. C. 11, 27, 30, 132 Tov, E. 76 Tull, P. K. 158 Vanhoozer, K. J. 38, 105 Vermeylen, J. 32, 123, 133, 135 Volz, P. 4, 6, 34, 158 Von Rad, G. 103

201

Wagner, S. 97, 98 Watts, J. D. W. 13, 14, 71, 85, 144 Watts, R. E. 2, 77, 161, 165–67 Westermann, C. 2, 6, 31, 51, 55, 58, 78, 80, 89, 90, 100, 115, 123, 125 Whitelam, K. 84 Whybray, R. N. 49, 96, 99, 103, 117, 118 Widengren, G. 127 Wildberger, H. 141, 148 Williamson, H. G. M. 25, 27, 109, 111, 114 Wilson, R. R. 49 Wyatt, N. 89 Young, E. J. 7, 9 Zehnder, M. P. 43, 82, 122 Zimmerli, W. 2, 4, 5, 34, 36, 37, 47, 89, 103, 104, 124, 172