Isaiah

How to define a prophet? The Bible offers us just one explanation, "he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer" (Samuel 1, 9:9), which begs the question, how to define a seer? The best definition I've seen is that a seer is one who sees and a prophet is one who speaks. As such, prophets can be seen as intermediaries between the realm of God (or gods) and the world of men, in other words those who have the ability to express their visions in poems and oracles. 

Isaiah is among the major prophets who are introduced earlier in the Old Testament (as an advisor to King Hezekiah of Judah in Kings 2, chapter 20). The Book of Isaiah returns us to that historical period in 8th century BC Jerusalem, when the kingdom of Judah was under threat from the neighbouring empires of Assyria and Babylonia. However, the events of the book cover a much longer time span, including the Babylonian captivity and the later return from exile, and this has led most scholars to agree that no single person wrote it.

As well as the constant shifts in historical time, the Book of Isaiah – like most of the Bible's prophetic books – is full of symbolism, apocalyptic visions and allegory, making easy interpretation difficult. This puts a heavy burden on the reader, who has to construct their own sense of narrative and order out of the assorted oracles, poems and historical details. For instance, even among scholars, there are competing views about whether the structure of the Book of Isaiah is best viewed as composed of two or three parts. I find the latter view more helpful when trying to understand the book's events – specifically First Isaiah (chapters 1-39), Second Isaiah (40-55) and Third Isaiah (56-66) – even if scholars question whether such a neat framework is entirely applicable.

Within First Isaiah are oracles concerning events at home (Judah) and abroad, as well as visions of the apocalypse (24-27) and Zion (34-35) and stories and poems from Isaiah's later life. One of the most famous poetic passages is known as the “parable of the vineyard” (5:1-7), in which God is the vineyard owner and Judah the failing vineyard. As is often the case, Isaiah is expressing nostalgia for "golden age" Jerusalem in the era of King David, and sadness at its current demise:

And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry (5:5-7)

First Isaiah also contains perhaps the most famous of the scriptural prophecies, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel" (7:14). Some scholars now dispute this translation – they contend that the Hebrew Bible refers to a “young woman”, not a "virgin". They believe that when the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek, “young woman” (Hebrew alma; there is a different Hebrew word for “virgin”) came to be rendered by the Greek word for “virgin” (parthenos), and it was that version that Matthew read before writing his gospel. As a result, those scholars believe Isaiah is prophesying about an event in his own time, not the coming Messiah, thereby undermining Matthew's doctrine of the virgin birth. Personally, I'm not sure what to believe.

In chapter 9, we get the description of a future ideal king, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (9:6), which reinforces the sense of a coming Messiah. In this new perfect kingdom, we're told that "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them" (11:6), a sign of a new harmonious future.

The Prophet Isaiah, by Michelangelo

In chapters 13-23, the tone is much darker, as Isaiah foretells of the destruction of various foreign powers, in Moab, Damascus, Ethiopia – where we're told that an "ensign on the mountains" (18:3) will be displayed when the time comes (which reminds me of Batman and the bat signal) – Egypt, the desert of the sea (21), the valley of vision (22) and Tyre. Things then turn apocalyptic, as we're told of a world that God has now turned "upside down" (24:1), and that his "strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea". Chapter 28 also contains a couple of references to hell, just to lighten the mood. By the time we get to the end of Isaiah's oracles from later life, the picture of desolation is complete, "the highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man" (33:8). 

And thorns shall come up in her palaces, 
nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: 

and it shall be an habitation of dragons, 

and a court for owls (34:13)

Second Isaiah (40-55) offers a message of consolation; because Babylonian exile was predicted, the promise of a return from exile should also be believed: “A voice cries, ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God’” (40:3). In a reference to the original covenant with God, this return will be a new Exodus (43) led by the true believers – "Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears" (43:8) – and their resurgence will cause the Babylonian gods to go into captivity and ensure Babylon is destroyed (46-48). These passages also contain the Bible's first clear statement of monotheism: "I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god" (44:6).

Isaiah tells us that God appointed Cyrus of Persia to defeat Babylon and permit those in exile to return home. This is an historical event confirmed by the Cyrus Cylinder, and dated to 528 BC – "That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid" (44:28). Under the leadership of Cyrus, the nation of Israel will be reborn:

 “I will give you as a light to the nations, 

that my salvation will reach to the end of the earth” (49:1)

Cyrus the Great

The enigmatic "Servant Songs" (52:13-53:12) are often viewed by Christians as an anticipation of the life and suffering of Jesus – many Jewish commentators believe the "servant" is the nation of Israel, but it seems to me the text is referring to a specific individual not a metaphoric country – while the closing passages of Second Isaiah are infused with a sense of positivity and promise, of spiritual revival, "For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands" (55:12).

However, Third Isaiah (56-66) reveals that this promised new Jerusalem turns out to be a disappointment – “Zion has become a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation; O holy and beautiful house where our fathers praised you have been burned by fire, and all our pleasant places have become ruins” (64:10-12). By the end of the Book of Isaiah, we get the sense of a bewildered God:

The heaven is my throne, 

and the earth is my footstool: 

where is the house that ye build unto me? 

and where is the place of my rest? (66:1)