Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins
Isaiah 40:1-2
It has been suggested that the Book of Isaiah may be divided into two main divisions. Like the Old Testament, the first 39 chapters emphasise judgement and condemnation, while the following 27 chapters focus on comfort and grace. Well, once we delve into the book’s content, we will quickly realise that this way of dividing the book is not as neat as we may like, for we find elements of both comfort and condemnation in both divisions. Nevertheless, it is a helpful way of looking at the book that provides us with a rough idea of what the prophecy of Isaiah is about.
With this structure in mind, we see that the first division concludes with a prophecy of Judah’s destruction and exile by the Babylonians in chapter 39. Like the New Testament, however, chapter 40 onwards contains mainly prophecies of restoration and comfort.
Thus, our text, Isaiah 40:1-2, is the threshold of Isaiah’s message of comfort. Notice how it is a call to comfort covering (1) the subjects to be comforted, (2) the manner of comforting, and (3) the reason to comfort?
1. Whom Does the LORD Want to Comfort?
“1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,…”
Clearly, a message of comfort is called for. But who is this message of comfort to be directed to? God, speaking through Isaiah, calls them “my people” (v. 1) and “Jerusalem” (v. 2). Who exactly are these?
Some commentators say that they refer to the people in exile. But there are two problems with this interpretation. First, it would be another 80-100 years before the people were sent into exile. Hezekiah died in 686 BC, the first exile occurred in 606 BC, and the temple would be destroyed in 586 BC. So if the message of comfort were for the people towards the end of the period of exile, God could not be calling upon Isaiah and the prophets who would minister for the next 150 years to that ministry!
Secondly, if the message was for the exiles, why would they be addressed as Jerusalem when the city would be lying in ruin at that time? As EJ Young puts it succinctly: “Why… would the prophet so designate these exiles when the actual city was in ruins… and no longer the centre of the theocracy.”
I believe that Calvin and many others are right that God is addressing the Church, the elect of God. When God addresses them as “my people” and speaks of Himself as “your God,” He is using the language of covenant love. He is speaking to those who are truly united to Him by the covenant of grace.
The message is a timeless one. It was not only for the elect in exile, but for those who lived before and after the exile. Some of them were amongst the Jews in Isaiah’s days. The message was for them and not merely for those who would live a century from them.
It was not for every one of the Jews because most were hardened in unbelief. But it was for the elect of God in their midst. And not only for them, but it was for all the elect down the generations. And insofar as the majority of the elect will live in these last days, we may say that the message is particularly for us who live under the gospel age.
But how do you know if this message is for you when you may not know if you are an elect of God? Well, do you consider yourself a member of God’s people? Do you confess Christ Jesus as your Saviour and Lord? Do you love Him? If so, this message is for you. The secret things belong unto God, but the things that are revealed belong to you and your children.
2. How Does the LORD Intend to Comfort?
“2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, …”
Clearly, God intends His people to be comforted through the preaching of the word. He does not call His servants merely to offer some platitudes and lame assurances. Isaiah and all who follow in his shoes are called to preach to comfort God’s people. Preaching is the sceptre of Christ, says Calvin. The voice of Christ as the Shepherd and Comforter-in-Chief is heard when His heralds preach faithfully. But what are they to preach?
The LORD says, verse 2:
“Her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’s hand double for all her sins.”
What does this mean? Well, there are two possible interpretations.
The first interpretation is that Judah has been punished sufficiently for her sin through the Babylonian conquest and exile. The phrase she had “received of the LORD’s hand double” could refer to double blessings or double punishment. Most commentators agree that ‘double of punishment’ rather than ‘double of blessings’ is meant. But we must not think of it in terms of mathematical precision. Instead, what is meant is that the punishment has been more than sufficient.
Those who believe that God has in mind the Jews who were in exile believe that God is declaring that they had been punished more than sufficiently through the Babylonian conquest.
But the problem with this interpretation is that it would then seem to be possible for God’s people to atone for their sin by suffering temporal punishments in this life. But how can this be when they had sinned against an infinite God who has shown them such great love? How could they possibly have been punished sufficiently in this life?
Those who hold to this view say that God is speaking about chastisement for His people as a whole, not for individual believers. They also say that by suggesting that the subjects have been punished double, God could be referring to the two captivities or exiles they experienced. These are the Babylonian captivity and the Roman exile. I am not sure this makes sense because God was speaking to Isaiah even before the Babylonian Captivity. I will say no more, as it becomes too complicated to justify or defend the position.
The second interpretation, on the other hand, is based on the idea that God’s people refer to believers united to Christ. In this case, God is saying that their sin has indeed been punished more than sufficiently in the Messiah.
This is so for their sin were imputed to their covenant head, the Messiah. On the Cross, He won the war by crushing the head of the serpent. The warfare of the Church is accomplished. Her iniquity is pardoned. She had received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.
I believe this is the correct interpretation. Isaiah himself might not have fully understood this, but remember that the Scriptures are all pointing to Christ, and all the promises of God are “yea and amen” in Christ!
But it would be another 700 years before Christ would die. Why then is the prophecy written in the past tense rather than the future tense? The simple reason is that it would certainly be accomplished, and the benefits were already being enjoyed by God’s people even before it happened.
Commentators refer to this type of past tense as “preterita prophetica.” It suggests that the prophecy is as good as accomplished. This is why, for example, Christ is said to be “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev 13:8).
In any case, God wants Isaiah and all preachers to comfort His people united to Christ with a message of forgiveness for all their sins.
3. Why Do They Need Comfort?
This is quite obvious when you think about it. The message of comfort is the message of the gospel, or the good news.
This is the message that God’s people throughout the ages and throughout the world need to hear. This is how God’s people, who have been ravaged by sin and its effects, can find peace and comfort.
This is the message that the world desperately needs. The message to God’s people in exile, that their captivity was coming to an end, is no comfort compared to this message that their sins have been paid for and their iniquities pardoned.
All the good news that the world and providence can offer can bring no comfort and joy compared to the message of the gospel! The end of a pandemic will bring relief; the end of a war or a severe storm may bring a cheer; the acquisition of a property may bring a smile; the offer of a job, recovery from severe illness, the arrival of a child, the ‘yes’ to a marriage or courtship proposal: all these make us happy.
But none of them can bring lasting comfort and joy. If anyone has any true and everlasting comfort, it must come through the assurance that his sin has been paid for, more than sufficiently and that his iniquities are pardoned by the most High God.
We are all made in the image of God in such a way that we cannot find complete satisfaction in life apart from enjoying and glorifying God. The Fall of man, as it were, necrotised a massive hole in our hearts from which putrid disquiet oozes. This hole can only be filled through the forgiveness of God and, therefore, the enjoyment of Him.
Do you have this comfort, beloved brethren and children? If not, do you at least understand the message of comfort that Isaiah and all preachers of Christ are called to convey? If you do, you cannot remain neutral and passive to the message, for it provokes a response of faith and peace in Christ!
Conclusion
This is the introductory word to one of the most comforting chapters in the Bible. It is a call to comfort.
But the question you need to ask yourself is: “Do I really need comfort?” I think if we are honest with ourselves, many of us will confess to being quite comfortable and self-assured. Why do we need comfort when life seems to be smooth sailing enough already?
But if you have read Isaiah and the other prophets carefully, you will realise that this is precisely the problem with the Jews that God was seeking to address through the calamities He sent to their lives.
- Isa 32:9-10a— “Rise up, ye women that are at ease; hear my voice, ye careless daughters; give ear unto my speech. …”
- Amos 6:1— “Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria,…”
The fact is that fallen man can so easily be misled into thinking that all is well when it is not. How can man be well when he is living in estrangement from God? A man who is at ease but walking in sin is at ease only because he has stuffed filthy rags into that putrid cesspool in his heart.
Thus, it is out of love that the LORD chastises His people. He wants them to see the danger and poverty that sin has brought into their lives.
This is why James calls us to rejoice in the face of various trials. This is why the apostle to the Hebrews reminds us that God chastises us out of love. It is through chastisement that we come to see our absolute need for God’s pardon.
Thus, the call to comfort is not simply a call to preach God’s promises to all and sundry. God has no promise for the wicked except that they will face His judgment. The call of comfort, instead, is a call to preach the gospel that God’s people may have real and everlasting comfort. Indeed, the gospel of forgiveness in Christ is the only reason in the world that we can have real comfort.
The world is a miserable place. It did not use to be so. It used to be paradise. But man fell into sin. Today, sorrow and sighing, tears and frustration, are everywhere and at every moment. The misery we experience today is only relatively more tolerable compared to that of the saints in the Old Covenant who were facing conquest by the Babylonians.
And that is not the end. For when this life ends for the wicked, what awaits is an eternity of suffering and torment. That is the bad news!
But there is good news. The good news is that God’s people have had their sins paid for. We have suffered sufficiently for our sin.
No, no; we did not suffer ourselves, for we would perish under God’s infinite wrath, or we would have to suffer for eternity if we were to bear our sin ourselves.
No, instead, we suffered in Christ our covenant head. All the elect of Christ have had their sins paid for in Him. All the elect of Christ will hear the voice of Christ and believe Him. Therefore, all the elect of Christ can have a real comfort amid all the changing scenes of this life.
Beloved brethren and children, do you believe Him? If you do, then blessed are you! You need not fear what the wicked one will do to you. You need not worry about today or tomorrow, for your sins have been paid for. You are more than conquerors in Christ. You can rest assured that all that happens in your life is designed for your ultimate good. Nothing and no one can separate you from the love of Christ! Nothing can rob you of real and everlasting comfort and joy! Nothing can rob you of the comfort that Christ has purchased for you. Amen.
—JJ Lim