But we are all as an unclean thing
Or "we have been" F20; so all men are in a state of
nature: man was made pure and holy, but by sinning became impure;
and this impurity is propagated by natural generation, and
belongs to all, none are free from it; and there is no cleansing
from it but by the grace of God and blood of Christ: all are not
sensible of it; some are, as the church here was, and owns it,
and the universality of it, and compares herself and members to
an "unclean thing", on account of it; so men, defiled with sin,
are compared to unclean creatures, dogs, and swine, and to
unclean persons; to such as are covered with loathsome diseases,
and particularly to leprous persons, and who may be chiefly
intended here; they being defiled and defiling, loathsome and
abominable, their disease spreading and continuing, and incurable
by physicians; hence they were separated from the company of men;
and the words may be rendered, "as an unclean person" F21, as
such were by the law: or we are, in our own sense and
apprehension of things; and this may respect not only the
impurity of nature, but a general corruption in doctrine and
manners among the professors of religion; such as was in the
Jewish church about the time of Christ's coming. And all
our righteousnesses are as filthy rags;
which is to be understood not of the righteousness of some
persons in the church, which lay in outward rites, ceremonies,
and sacrifices, which were no righteousness before God, and could
not take away sin; and were indeed on many accounts, as they were
performed, loathsome and abominable; see ( Isaiah
1:11-14 ) , or of others that lay in outward legal duties and
works of the law, which were not done from right principles, as
well as not perfect; and so, because of the impurity,
imperfection, pride, and vanity, that appeared in them, were
abominable to the Lord: but of the righteousnesses of the church
herself; not of the righteousness of Christ, which was made hers
by imputation; for this is not rags, but a robe, the best robe,
and wedding garment; much less filthy, but pure and spotless,
beautiful and glorious, as well as a proper covering; but then,
though this is the church's, and all true believers', by gift, by
imputation and application, yet its is properly Christ's and is
in him, and is opposed to their own righteousness; which is what
is intended here, even the best of it; such works of
righteousness as are done by them in the best manner; they are
"rags", not whole, but imperfect, not fit to appear in before
God, and by which they cannot be justified in his sight; they are
"filthy" ones, being attended with imperfection and sin; and
these conversation garments need continual washing in the blood
of Jesus; this is the language not of a natural man, or of a
Pharisee, but of a sensible sinner, a truly gracious soul. The
words may be rendered, "as a menstruous cloth" F23, as
some; or "as a garment of spoil or prey" F24, as
Aben Ezra, rolled in blood, either in war, or by a beast of prey;
or as a foul plaster or cloth taken off a sore, with purulent
matter on it F25, as others; or any other impure and
nauseous thing. Hottinger F26 thinks the word has some
affinity with the Arabic (dde) , which signifies "running water", such as the
water of a fountain or well; so that the sense may be, that the
church's righteousness was like a cloth, so polluted and spotted
that it could not be washed out clean but with clear and running
water; and, in every sense in which it may be taken, it serves to
set forth the impurity and imperfection of the best righteousness
of men, and to show that their works are not the cause of
salvation, the church had an assurance of in the preceding verse:
and we all do fade as a leaf;
or "fall" F1 as one; as leaves in autumn: this is
to be understood of a great part, and perhaps of the greater
part, of the visible members of the church; not of true believers
and real members, for these are rooted in the love of God, and in
Christ, and have the root of the matter in them, the true grace
of God; and therefore, though they meet with many blustering
storms, yet do not cast their leaf of profession; indeed there
may be, as there often are, decays and declensions in them; but
rather this is to be interpreted of carnal professors, with
which, at this time, the church abounded, who had no true grace
in them; and so dropped their profession, and became like trees
whose fruit withered, were without fruit; or like trees, in the
fall of the year, which are without fruit, and shed their leaves,
( Jude 1:12 ) :
and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us
away;
as a leaf falling from the tree is carried away with the wind,
which it is not able to withstand; so formal and carnal
professors are carried away, through their sins, with the wind of
persecution, and apostatize: or rather for their sins the Jews
were carried captive, as before, to Babylon; so now by the Romans
into various countries, where they are dispersed at this day; to
which this passage may have some respect. "Iniquities" are put
for the punishment of them; so the Targum,
``and, because of our sins, as the wind we are taken away.''