Yeshayah 33:17

17 Thine eynayim shall see Melech in His yafeh (beauty); they shall behold eretz that is very far off.

Yeshayah 33:17 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 33:17

Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty
Not merely Hezekiah in his royal robes, and with a cheerful countenance, having put off his sackcloth and his sadness, upon the breaking up of the siege; but a greater than he, even the King Messiah, in the glory of his person and office, especially as a King reigning gloriously before his ancients in Jerusalem: the apostles saw him in his glory, in the days of his flesh, corporeally and spiritually; believers now see him by faith, crowded with glory and honour, as well as see his beauty, fulness, and suitableness, as a Saviour; and, before long, their eyes shall see him personally in his own and his Father's glory. This is to be understood of the eyes of good men, before described. The Targum is,

``thine eyes shall see the glory of the Majesty of the King of worlds in his praise;''
and Jarchi interprets it of the glory of the Majesty of God; so, according to both, a divine Person is meant, and indeed no other than Christ: they shall behold the land that is very far off;
not the land of hell, as the Targum, which paraphrases it thus;
``thou shalt behold and see those that go down into the land of hell;''
but rather the heavenly country, the better one, the land of uprightness, typified by the land of Canaan; and may be said to be "a land afar off", with respect to the earth on which the saints now are, and with regard to the present sight of it, which is a distant one, and will be always afar off to wicked men; this now the saints have at times a view of by faith, which is very delightful, and greatly supports them under their present trials: though it may be that an enlargement of Christ's kingdom all over the world, to the distant parts of it, may be here meant; which may be called, as the words may be rendered, "a land of distances", or "of far distances" F4; that reaches far and near, from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth; which will be the case when the kingdoms of this world shall become Christ's, and the kingdom, and the greatness of it under the whole heaven, shall be given to the saints of the most High; a glorious sight this will be. And this sense agrees with the context, and declares what will be after the destruction of antichrist.
FOOTNOTES:

F4 (Myqxrm Ura) "terram distantiarum", Vatablus, Montanus, Gataker.

Yeshayah 33:17 In-Context

15 He that walketh in tzedakot, and speaketh meisharim (right things), he that despiseth the gain of extortions, that guards his palms from accepting shochad (bribe[s]), that stoppeth his ozen from hearing of dahm, and shutteth his eynayim from seeing rah;
16 He shall dwell on high; his metzadot shall be the rocky fortress; his lechem shall be given him; his mayim shall be unfailing.
17 Thine eynayim shall see Melech in His yafeh (beauty); they shall behold eretz that is very far off.
18 Thine lev shall ponder terror. Where is the sofer (scribe)? Where is he who weighs [for Assyrian tax collection]? Where is he that counts the migdalim (towers)?
19 Thou shalt no longer see a fierce people, a people of unfathomable language that is incomprehensible, of a stammering lashon, that thou canst not understand.
The Orthodox Jewish Bible fourth edition, OJB. Copyright 2002,2003,2008,2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International. All rights reserved.