Isa. 43 Promises to protect and enlarge the church, Isa. 43:1–7. God appealeth to them as witnesses of his power and knowledge, Isa. 43:8–13. He foretelleth them the destruction of Babylon, and a new deliverance of his people, Isa. 43:14–21; whose sins, Isa.

But now thus saith the Lord; but notwithstanding thy gross insensibleness under former judgments, for which I might justly send far heavier ones upon thee, yet I will deal mercifully with thee.

Though I will chastise thee for thy sins, yet I will not suffer thine enemies utterly to destroy thee: compare Jer. 30:11.

I gave Egypt for thy ransom: this was fulfilled either, 1. When God smote the Egyptians, both first-born and others, in Egypt, and drowned Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea, for the safety and benefit of his people; or, 2.

Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: so the sense is, From that time that I chose time for my precious and peculiar treasure and people, I have had a great esteem and affection for thee.

Although the Jews shall for their sins be carried captives out of their own land northward and eastward into Babylon and the adjacent countries, and others of them shall flee southward and westward, and shall there pine away in their iniquities, as I threatened; yet their posterity I will bring…

Give up; thou who hast so long had and held my people in bondage, resign them to me, and permit them to return to their own land. He speaks either to the countries themselves by a prosopopoeia, or to the inhabitants of them. Bring my sons; do not only permit, but assist and further, their return.

Even every one that is called by my name: They are called by my name; I own them for my people and children; and therefore what kindness or cruelty you exercise to them I take it as done to myself.

The sense is either, 1. Bring out of captivity my people who were blind and deaf, but now have their eyes and cars opened by my grace. So this verse relates to the foregoing passages. Or rather, 2.

Let the people be assembled, to plead the cause of their idols with me. Who among them can declare this? this wonderful work of mine in bringing my people out of captivity, which I have already foretold, and shall further declare; and that so exactly, that I shall name the person by whom this work…

Ye are my witnesses; they can produce no witnesses for themselves, but you my people are able to witness for me, that I have given you many plain demonstrations of my certain foreknowledge of future events, by my predictions and promises delivered to you from time to time.

That can and doth save his worshippers: whereby he implies that the false gods were not only weak, and unable to save their people, but also were the destroyers of their people, as being the great cause of their ruin.

I have declared, and have saved; I first foretold your deliverance, and then effected it. I have showed; I foretold it. This branch he repeated, because this is the principal argument used here, and Isa. 41:0, to determine this controversy between God and idols.

Before the day was; before all time; or, which is all one, from all eternity: or, since the day was; since the beginning of time and things, in all ages since the creation of the world. I am he; I am God, and I have proved myself to be so.

I have sent to Babylon; I have sent Cyrus, and the Medes and Persians with him, to war against Babylon, to this very end and purpose, that he might deliver you out of captivity, and restore you to your land according to promise.

Your Holy One; the Holy One of Israel, as he frequently styleth himself, who sanctify and glorify myself in this and such other glorious works, with respect to you, or for your benefit.

Who as he formerly made a pathway for his people through the Red Sea, so he will in no less wonderful manner remove all impediments or difficulties out of the way of his people, when they return from Babylon.

Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power; or rather, Who brought forth the chariots, &c., i.e. Pharaoh, and his chariots, and homes, and army; as may be gathered from the next verse, where the things here mentioned are called former things, and things of old.

But although your former deliverance out of Egypt was in itself a most glorious work, which you ought always to remember and consider; yet this other work of your deliverance out of Babylon by Cyrus, and those blessings which shall follow upon it, and particularly that inestimable mercy of sending…

A new thing; such a work as was never yet done in the world, even the redemption of the world by the Messiah. Now; shortly, although it was not to be done till after some hundreds of years. For so the Scripture oft speaketh of things at a great distance of time as if they were now at hand, as Hag.

The beast of the field shall honour me; shall have cause, if they had abilities, to honour and praise me for their share in this mercy. Possibly the beast of the field may mystically signify the Gentiles, whom the Jews reputed as beasts, and who were as destitute of all saving knowledge as the…

This people; my people, as he now called them, Isa. 43:20; consisting in part of the Jews, but especially of the Gentiles; have I formed for myself; they shall show forth my praise; I have created as it were out of nothing, I have called them into my church, that I might have glory and praise from…

But; or, for, as this conjunction is oft used. So this may be added as a reason why God called the Gentiles to be his people, because the Jews forsook him. Thou hast not called upon me; thou hast grossly neglected or very slightly performed the duties of my worship.

Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings; either, 1. Because thou didst not offer thy sacrifices to me, but to idols. Or rather, 2.

Thou hast bought me no sweet cane; or, calamus, as this word is rendered, Ex. 30:23, which was used in the making of that precious ointment, Ex. 30:34, and as a perfume, or for the incense, Ex. 30:7, Jer. 6:20.

I, even I; I whom thou hast thus despised, and wearied, and provoked to destroy thee. That blotteth out thy transgressions out of my book, in which they were all written, and to be lead unto thee and charged upon thee another day. See Jer. 17:1, Rev. 20:12. Sins are oft compared to debts, Matt.

Put me in remembrance: I remember nothing by which thou hast deserved my favour and the pardon of thy sins; if thou knowest any such thing, bring it to my mind, I allow thee free liberty to plead with me, as it follows; and if thou hast right on thy side, I will justify thee.

Thy first father; either, 1. Adam, from whom the guilt and filth of sin is propagated to thee; or rather, 2. Abraham, who might well be called the first father of the Israelites, because they all descended from him, had all their right and title to God’s ordinances and promises, and other special…

I have profaned; as they have made themselves profane, so I have dealt with them as such, without any regard to the sacredness and dignity of their functions. I have exposed them to contempt and destruction.