Isaiah 41

15. God will make Israel to destroy their enemies as the Eastern corn-drag ( Isaiah 28:27 Isaiah 28:28 ) bruises out the grain with its teeth, and gives the chaff to the winds to scatter.
teeth--serrated, so as to cut up the straw for fodder and separate the grain from the chaff.
mountains . . . hills--kingdoms more or less powerful that were hostile to Israel ( Isaiah 2:14 ).

16. fan--winnowed (compare Matthew 3:12 ).
whirlwind . . . scatter them--( Job 27:21 , 30:22 ).

17. poor and needy--primarily, the exiles in Babylon.
water--figuratively, refreshment, prosperity after their affliction. The language is so constructed as only very partially to apply to the local and temporary event of the restoration from Babylon; but fully to be realized in the waters of life and of the Spirit, under the Gospel ( Isaiah 30:25 , 44:3 , John 7:37-39 , 4:14 ). God wrought no miracles that we read of, in any wilderness, during the return from Babylon.
faileth--rather, "is rigid" or parched [HORSLEY].

18. Alluding to the waters with which Israel was miraculously supplied in the desert after having come out of Egypt.
high places--bare of trees, barren, and unwatered ( Jeremiah 4:11 , 14:6 ). "High places . . . valleys" spiritually express that in all circumstances, whether elevated or depressed, God's people will have refreshment for their souls, however little to be expected it might seem.

19. ( Isaiah 32:15 , 55:13 ).
shittah--rather, the "acacia," or Egyptian thorn, from which the gum Arabic is obtained [LOWTH].
oil tree--the olive.
fir tree--rather, the "cypress": grateful by its shade.
pine--GESENIUS translates, "the holm."
box tree--not the shrub used for bordering flower beds, but [GESENIUS] a kind of cedar, remarkable for the smallness of its cones, and the upward direction of its branches.

20. consider--literally, "lay it (to hear)"; turn (their attention) to it. "They" refers to all lands ( Isaiah 41:1 , Psalms 64:9 , 40:3 ). The effect on the Gentiles .of God's open interposition hereafter in behalf of Israel shall be, they shall seek Israel's God ( Isaiah 2:3 , Zechariah 8:21-23 ).

21. A new challenge to the idolaters (see Isaiah 41:1 Isaiah 41:7 ) to say, can their idols predict future events as Jehovah can ( Isaiah 41:22-25 , &c.)?
your strong reasons--the reasons for idol-worship which you think especially strong.

22. what shall happen--"Let them bring near and declare future contingencies" [HORSLEY].
former things . . . the latter end of them--show what former predictions the idols have given, that we may compare the event ("latter end") with them; or give new prophecies ("declare things to come") ( Isaiah 42:9 ), [MAURER]. BARNES explains it more reconditely, "Let them foretell the entire series of events, showing, in their order, the things which shall first occur, as well as those which shall finally happen"; the false prophets tried to predict isolated events, having no mutual dependency; not a long series of events mutually and orderly connected, and stretching far into futurity. They did not even try to do this. None but God can do it ( Isaiah 46:10 , Isaiah 44:7 Isaiah 44:8 ). "Or . . . things to come" will, in this view, mean, Let them, if they cannot predict the series, even predict plainly any detached events.

23. do good . . . evil--give any proof at all of your power, either to reward your friends or punish your enemies ( Psalms 115:2-8 ).
that we may be dismayed, and behold it together--MAURER translates, "That we (Jehovah and the idols) may look one another in the face (that is, encounter one another, 2 Kings 14:8 2 Kings 14:11 ), and see" our respective powers by a trial. HORSLEY translates, "Then the moment we behold, we shall be dismayed." "We" thus, and in English Version, refers to Jehovah and His worshippers.

25. raised up--in purpose: not fulfilled till a hundred fifty years afterwards.
north--In Isaiah 41:2 , "from the East"; both are true: see the note there.
call . . . my name--acknowledge Me as God, and attribute his success to Me; this he did in the proclamation ( Ezra 1:2 ). This does not necessarily imply that Cyrus renounced idolatry, but hearing of Isaiah's prophecy given a hundred fifty years before, so fully realized in his own acts, he recognized God as the true God, but retained his idol (so Naaman, 2 Kings 5:1-27 ; compare 2 Kings 17:33 2 Kings 17:41 , Daniel 3:28 , Daniel 4:1-3 Daniel 4:34-37 ).
princes--the Babylonian satraps or governors of provinces.
mortar--"mire"; He shall tread them under foot as dirt ( Isaiah 10:6 ).

26. Who--of the idolatrous soothsayers? When this prophecy shall be fulfilled, all shall see that God foretold as to Cyrus, which none of the soothsayers have.
beforetime--before the event occurred.
He is righteous--rather, "It is true"; it was a true prophecy, as the event shows. "He is righteous," in English Version, must be interpreted, The fulfilment of the idol's words proves that he is faithful.
showeth, &c.--rather, "there was none (of the soothsayers) that showed . . . declared--no one has heard your words" foretelling the event.

27. Rather, "I first will give to Zion and to Jerusalem the messenger of good tidings, Behold, behold them!" The clause, "Behold . . . them" (the wished-for event is now present) is inserted in the middle of the sentence as a detached exclamation, by an elegant transposition, the language being framed abruptly, as one would speak in putting vividly as it were, before the eyes of others, some joyous event which he had just learned [LUDOVICUS DE DIEU] (compare Isaiah 40:9 ). None of the idols had foretold these events. Jehovah was the "first" to do so (see Isaiah 41:4 ).

28. no counsellor--no one of the idolatrous soothsayers who could inform ( Numbers 24:14 ) those who consulted them what would take place. Compare "counsel of His messenger" ( Isaiah 44:26 ).
when I asked--that is, challenged them, in this chapter.

29. confusion--"emptiness" [BARNES].