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To: "Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup"<heb_roots_chr@geocities.com>
Date: Fri, 9 May 1997 01:42:14 +0000
Subject: The Prophet Isaiah
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To: prophecy at INTERNET
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Subject: JUICE Prophecy 11
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WZO Student and Academic Department
Jewish University In CyberspacE (JUICE)
juice@wzo.org.il birnbaum@wzo.org.il
http://www.wzo.org.il
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Course: Of Prophecy and Prophets
Lecture: 11/12
Lecturer: Ruth Walfish
email: walfish@shani.net
Four prohets spoke in the same time period: Hosea, Amos, Micah and Isaiah. The first two primarily
addressed the northern kingdom; the latter two emphasized primarily the southern kingdom. In this
lecture, we will study the prophet Isaiah, concentrating on several oracles in the first quarter
of the book of Isaiah.
Let's begin our study with a look at Isaiah`s consecration as prophet. In chapter 6, we read that
Isaiah has a vision, in which he sees the Lord sitting on a high throne, apparently above the Temple,
surrounded by angels. The latter call out "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts; The whole earth is full of
His glory," whereupon the doorposts shake, and the house fills with smoke. Seeing this, Isaiah responds
with dismay, for he feels that he is unclean, and so are the people. One of the angels then touches his
lips with a glowing stone from the altar, informing him that he is now cleansed of sin. God then ponders
who will accept the divine commission, and Isaiah volunteers. Thereupon the Lord warns him that his task
will be to prevent the people from repenting, so that they may be punished. A tenth of them will ultimately
survive, who will be the holy remnant.
It is our contention that the consecration oracle is a key to Isaiah's future prophecies and activities.
Therefore, we will begin with an analysis of its components, which are: first a vision, then a reaction
by Isaiah, next a purification of the prophet, and finally his commissioning. Let us note that these
components, or some of them, appear in other consecration oracles, such as those of Moses,
Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. In the case of Moses, for example, he saw the vision of the burning bush, was
quite astonished by the vision, and fearful of it, and then was told by God what his mission would be.
Isaiah's vision takes place in or above the Temple. The Temple doors shake, and the building fills with
smoke. These are ominous signs, hinting at some future disaster regarding the Temple. Isaiah is awed
by the vision and sounds of the angels, who sing God's praise, and especially emphasize His holiness. God
surrounded by the angels conjures up the association of the Heavenly court sitting in judgment and
determining the course of human history (see II Kings 22; Job 1), and Isaiah realizes that he is about to
take an active part in that history. Unlike all other prophets, he volunteers to undertake the task
thrusted upon him, while conscious of its gravity. Emotionally, however, he reacts to the vision with
despair; he is only too aware of the gap between the moral and spiritual level of the heavenly body, and
that of its counterpart on earth. Interestingly, Isaiah speaks in terms of the uncleanness of his lips,
hinting at the perception that he will be called upon to use those lips for some future task. And it is his
lips that are purified, a metonymy for Isaiah himself. Though purification of lips makes sense as a
preparation for the task of prophecy in general, the sages suggested that Isaiah is being cleansed of a
particular sin, namely, of slandering the children of Israel. For Isaiah had not only called attention to
his own shortcoming, but had also declared, "And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips."
Surely as a prophet, say the rabbis, he must emphasize the positive aspects of bnei yisrael, and not draw
attention to their failings. Therefore, he is punished immediately, by the glowing stone which burns his
lips. In any event, Isaiah undergoes a procedure that is meant to prepare him for his future functions.
What is to be the content of Isaiah's prophecy? For one thing, it would seem to be connected to the
Temple. All is not well there, and Isaiah must make the people cognizant of that. In addition, he is to
stress to the nation that their spiritual and moral level falls far below the divine expectation of them.
The phrase "the Holy One of Israel" as a term for Hashem is more prevalent in the prophecies of Isaiah
than in any other book of the Bible, intimating that the people are to sanctify the Lord, and to grapple
with their own lack of holiness. But most unusual is God's forthright directive to "make the heart of the
people fat, make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes" so that they will not understand and be healed.
What sense can we make of this? Isn't it a prophet's job to do the very opposite? These baffling
instructions have generated much exegesis. It has generally been accepted by modern scholars that God is
speaking ironically: no matter what you do, Isaiah, you will in effect be hardening their hearts, for
their perceptions are all wrong, and nothing will change them.
It is interesting to compare this message to those given to other prophets in their consecration oracles.
On the one hand, one is reminded, for example, of God's statement to Moses that He will harden Pharoah's
heart. However, God promises that ultimately, the Egyptians will actually chase bnei yisrael out of
Egypt, which is a very different message from the kind that Isaiah receives. What we might infer from this
discrepancy in approach is that since all of the other prophets try to escape from the task foisted on them,
God responds by promising to be with them, and help them perform their duties. Isaiah, on the other hand,
willingly embraces his new task, and therefore it would seem that God wishes to cool his ardor, by
painting in bleak colors the situation that he is to face. He must be prepared for the worst possible
scenario. Nevertheless, there is a promise of salvation: there will be a "holy" remnant (note the
use of "holy," consonant with the initiation oracle; the nation of unclean lips will evolve into a holy
remnant). Even as God communicates a pessimistic message, He still holds out hope for the survival, both
physical and spiritual, of the nation.
Isaiah, not surprisingly, does not try to blind the eyes of the nation, but rather appeals to their
hearts and minds. This strengthens our contention that God did not mean for Isaiah to take His words
literally, but to internalize the seriousness of the situation, and to incorporate the themes of the oracle
into his speeches to the people. Let's look at how the Temple, a central image in Isaiah's first vision,
figures in chapters one and two.
The words Temple or house are not mentioned explicitly in chapter one, but it is abundantly clear that this
is what Isaiah is talking about in 1, 11-15. He berates the people for bringing sacrifices of all
kinds, for assembling on the Sabbath and on the holidays, even for praying, in the Temple. These acts
are abominations in God's eyes, for "Your hands are full of blood." He continues the metaphor by telling
the people to "Wash... make you clean." The way to cleanse themselves is by seeking justice: "Judge the
fatherless, plead for the widow." Isaiah is adopting a position that is similar to that of Amos, though the
latter does not relate directly to the Temple in Jerusalem (see Amos 5, 21-25). Both prophets declare
that the ritual ceremonies of sacrifice are meaningless, for they are not preceded or accompanied
by acts of justice and concern for the downtrodden. The Temple is also the seat of the high court (see
Deuteronomy 17, 8-11); it would be inappropriate for one wing of the Temple to fail in its mission, while
the other proceeds as if all is well. Isaiah then expands his diatribe to include all of Jerusalem (vrs.
21-27). Zion has become a city of "harlotry," and only the reinstitution of justice will restore it to its
previous glory. What we have seen, then, is the centrality of the Temple and Jerusalem, and how they
symbolize the level of degradation to which the people have fallen. Perhaps the smoke that filled the house
in Isaiah's vision in chapter 6 is the smoke of the sacrifices, or, alternately, the smoky fires that
will burn in Jerusalem if the people do not mend their ways (cf. 1, 31).
Chapter 2 contains one of the most famous of Isaiah's oracles, that of the "end of days," at which time,
"the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established as the top of the mountains," and the nations of the
world will go up to the house, "For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from
Jerusalem. And He shall judge between the nations .. And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and
their spears into pruning-hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war
any more." The house of the Lord in Jerusalem will be a magnet for the nations, who wish to learn the ways
of God. Interestingly, the house is a seat of justice; no mention is made of ritual or ceremony. Instead of
individuals, nations as a whole are judged before God.
What is the connection between chapters 1 and 2? It would seem that before the nations come up for
judgment in Zion, the nation of Israel must repair its own judicial inequities. It must cleanse itself of
sin. If the people do so, the prophet promises them that they "shall eat the good of the land" (1, 19).
But if they refuse, and rebel, they will be "devoured by the sword" (1, 20). Once Jerusalem is "redeemed
with justice," the way is made clear for all the nations to benefit from divine justice. No longer will
the sword determine who is to gain and who is to lose. Just as bnei yisrael will be free of the threat of war
and famine, so will the world at large enjoy the fruits of its labors, and desist from fighting. The
instruments of destruction will be turned into means of production. It would seem that in Isaiah's vision,
the nation of Israel is a kind of catalyst for the rest of the world. The latter will observe the process
that the nation of Israel has undergone, and will wish to take part in that process, absorbing the principles
and values of the Jewish people. This is not to say that Isaiah predicts, or even desires, mass conversion
to Judaism. What he does desire is that there be a universal appreciation of the contribution that
Judaism can make to the world, and a perception of Jerusalem as the seat of wisdom, justice, and peace.
Isaiah is not a prophet who speaks only in ideal, universalistic, terms. He is very much aware of the
geopolitical situation of his time. We find several oracles in which he addresses those pressing issues.
Assyria poses a grave military threat to Judea, and both kings, Ahaz and Hezekiah respectively, are
confounded as to how to act. In chapters 7 and 8, Isaiah warns Ahaz to desist from taking any action:
"Keep calm and be quiet" (7, 4). Ahaz should not fear the imminent attack of Aram and Ephraim, who have
forged an alliance against him, for they will not succeed in defeating Judea. Alternately, he should not
join them in their rebellion against Assyria, nor should he make a treaty with Assyria against them. He
should sit tight, and the Lord will aid him. Admittedly, Assyria will wage a campaign against
Judea, but ultimately, they will retreat without having conquered Jerusalem. Isaiah reiterates the
prophecy of the remnant, in which he predicts that the land will become covered with briers and thorns, but
there will be enough sustenance for the populace to survive.
Was Isaiah's approach a realistic one? Can a leader sit idly by, while political events of such magnitude
are taking place? Is Isaiah relating only to moral and religious issues? Prof. Binyamin Uffenheimer suggests
that Isaiah was quite realistic. He realized that Israel ("Ephraim") and Aram were on the wane, and
therefore posed no real security threat to Judea. There certainly was no point in joining up with them
against Assyria. However, contracting a treaty with Assyria could mean total subservience to them, both
politically and morally. This, in turn, could involve Judea, as a vassal state, in wars against foreign
entities, that were not in their best interests. What Isaiah is probably saying is that when there are no
good alternatives, the wisest course of action is to remain calm, and demonstrate self-confidence and cool
judgment. On a religious level, of course, the message is to maintain faith in God. This faith will
strengthen the resolve of the people, and prevent rash and foolhardy actions. As Isaiah put it, "If you will
not have faith, surely you will not be established" (7, 9).
Isaiah gives similar counsel in chapter 30, chastising the powers that be, among them King Hezekiah, for
relying on Epgyt as a bulwark against the Assyrian foe. He repeats his earlier message: ""For thus said
the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In sitting still and rest shall you be saved, in quietness and in
confidence shall be your strength; and you would not" (30, 15). The prophet promises in the name of Hashem
that Jerusalem will be saved from the Assyrian assault. Indeed, in the year 701 B.C.E., Sennacherib,
king of Assyria, who intended to conquer Jerusalem, inexplicably retreated and left the city intact. This
was his only failure in an otherwise successful campaign against Judea. Historians have no rational
explanation for this event. Thus, Isaiah's promise regarding Jerusalem was miraculously fulfilled.
Clearly, it is impossible to touch upon all the themes in the prophecies of Isaiah. We have had to restrict
ourselves to the following topics: Isaiah's initiatory revelation, its structure and contents; the themes of
that revelation that are enlarged upon in other prophecies, particularly, the theme of Jerusalem; the
connection between the particularistic oracle to Israel, and the universalistic oracle to the nations
at large; and the attitude of Isaiah to current, pressing political and security issues. Isaiah saw in
the events of his day the hand of God, who used the nations of the world to carry out his plan.
Ultimately, however, there will come a time of universal recognition of the ways of the God of Jacob.
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