Isaiah 46:13

I bring near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry: and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

46:5-13 Here the folly of those who made idols, and then prayed to them, is exposed. How does the profuseness of idolaters shame the stubbornness of many who call themselves God's servants, but are for a religion which costs them nothing! The service of sin always costs a great deal. God puts it to them what senseless, helpless things idols are. Let, then, the Jews show themselves men, avoiding such abominations. Many Scripture prophecies, delivered long ago, are not yet fulfilled; but the fulfilling of some is an earnest that the rest will come to pass. Nothing can help more to make us easy, than to be assured that God will do all his pleasure. Even those who know not and mind not God's revealed will, are called and used to fulfil the counsels of his secret will. Heaven and earth shall pass away, sooner than one tittle of the word of God. Obstinate sinners are addressed. Such were far from acceptance, but they were summoned to hearken to the word of the Lord. The salvation of a sinner begins with a humble and contrite heart, that trembles at God's word, with godly sorrow working true repentance, and faith in his mercy, through the obedience unto death of our Divine Surety. Christ, as the Divine righteousness and salvation to his people, would come in the appointed time. His salvation abides in his church for all believers.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

I bring near my righteousness - The word 'righteousness' here evidently denotes his truth; the fulfillment of his promises. His righteous and true character would be manifested to them so plainly and clearly that they would be able no longer to doubt. It would not be remote in time, or in place, but it would be so near that they could see it, and so plain that they could no longer doubt or misunderstand it.

And my salvation shall not tarry - The people shall be delivered from their bondage at the exact time which has been predicted.

I will place salvation in Zion - Zion or Jerusalem shall be rebuilt, and salvation shall emanate from that as from a center to the whole world.

Israel my glory - The people whom he had chosen, and who reflected his glory. God's honor and glory on earth are seen in, and by the church, and he designs that the church shall be the means of making his glory known among people. Or it may mean I will give my glory to Israel. I will show to them my perfections, and will make their nation the place of the manifestations of my glorious attributes.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

13. near—antithetical to "far" (Isa 46:12; Isa 51:5; 56:1; 61:10, 11; Ro 10:6-8).

righteousness—answering to "salvation" in the parallel clause; therefore it means here, "my righteous deliverance"; righteous, because proving the truth of God's promises, and so contrived as to not compromise, but vindicate, His righteousness (Isa 42:21; Ro 3:26).

Zion … my glory—rather, "I will give salvation in Zion; to Israel (I will give) my glory" [Horsley]. (Isa 63:11; Ps 14:7; Lu 2:32).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

I bring near my righteousness: though you are most unrighteous persons, and have given me just cause to make you to know my breach of promise, as I threatened in the like case, Numbers 14:34; yet I will show myself to be a righteous and faithful God, making good my promise of delivering you out of Babylon after seventy years; and though you think the time long, and are apt to distrust the thing itself, yet it shall come, and that speedily, I will bring it near, or cause it to approach or come unto you, and, as it follows, it shall not tarry beyond the appointed time. It shall not be far off; my work of saving you from the Babylonish captivity.

I will place salvation in Zion; I will bring my people from Babylon to Zion, and there I will save them from all their enemies.

For Israel my glory; in whom I will once again glory as my people, and the illustrious monuments of my glorious wisdom, and power, and truth, and goodness; whom I will make a great and glorious people, though now they are mean and contemptible, and in whom I will once more settle my glorious presence and ordinances.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

I bring near my righteousness, it shall not be far off,.... Meaning either the faithfulness of God, in fulfilling his promises; or the justice of God displayed, in redemption by Christ; or Christ himself, God's righteous One, and the Lord our righteousness; or rather the righteousness of Christ itself, which Jehovah the Father may call his, because he sent his Son to work it out, approved of it, accepted it, and imputes it to his people, and justifies them by it; and which was near to be wrought out by Christ, and revealed in the Gospel; and which is brought near and applied by the Spirit of God to a sensible sinner, to a sinner convinced of the insufficiency of his own righteousness, and of the suitableness and excellency of Christ's, and of his need of it; and which is near in Christ, and in the Gospel, for faith to come at, at any time; nor is it ever far off from the believer, to whom it is imputed, and on whom it is put:

and my salvation shall not tarry; either Christ, who is God's salvation, provided and appointed by him, who was to come as a Saviour, and should not tarry; nor did he tarry beyond the appointed time, Habakkuk 2:3 or the salvation itself wrought out by him; this work is done by Christ, and is published in the Gospel, and is brought nigh and applied by the Spirit of God in conversion, in due and proper time, and shortly will be fully enjoyed in heaven:

and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory: the Saviour himself was to come to Zion; near to Zion was salvation wrought out; here the Gospel of salvation was first published, and out of it the word of it was sent into all the world; and in Zion, the church of God, Christ the Saviour is to be met with; and his salvation is the safety of it, it is placed about it instead of walls and bulwarks; and all this is for the Israel of God, the spiritual Israel, chosen, redeemed, and called, and who shall be saved with an everlasting salvation; and who are the glory of God, have the glory of God, the grace of God in them, and the righteousness of God upon them, by which they are glorious; who enjoy the presence of the glorious God, and who is glorified in them, and by them; whose glory, even the glory of all his perfections, wisdom, grace, mercy, justice, holiness, truth, and faithfulness, is great in their salvation. So Kimchi gives the sense of the words,

"the salvation I will give to them shall be glory to me,''

Or Israel may be called his glory, because he gives glory to them; not only grace here, but glory hereafter, when their salvation wilt be complete, that is, completely enjoyed.

Geneva Study Bible

I bring {m} near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not delay: and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory.

(m) He shows that man's incredulity cannot abolish the promise of God, Ro 3:3.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

13. for Israel my glory] Cf. Isaiah 49:3. But another possible translation is “I will give … my glory unto Israel” (R.V. marg.).

The two verses express a paradox which enters deeply into the thought of the prophet. While salvation is near in point of time, yet Israel is spiritually far from it. Hence the work of salvation or righteousness has two aspects; along with the providential deliverance of which the agent is Cyrus, there is an inward and spiritual salvation which consists in bringing the nation to right thoughts about itself and God. And in this spiritual transformation the instrument is the Servant of Jehovah.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 13. - I bring near my righteousness; i.e. "my righteous judgment is approaching - that judgment which involves vengeance on my enemies, mercy and deliverance to my people." This latter is the salvation that shall not tarry. In Zion. The headquarters of the "salvation" shall once more be Mount Zion, or Jerusalem, where God's people shall once more take up their abode, and which shall be "the centre of the renovated nation" (Delitzsch).



Isaiah 46:13

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

A third admonition is addressed to the forts esprits in Isaiah 46:12, Isaiah 46:13. "Hearken to me, ye strong-hearted, that are far from righteousness! I have brought my righteousness near; it is not far off, and my salvation tarrieth not: and I give salvation in Zion, my glory to Israel." All that is called in Hellenic and Hellenistic νοῦς λόγος συνείδησις θυμός, is comprehended in καρδία; and everything by which bâsâr and nephesh are affected comes into the light of consciousness in the heart (Psychol. p. 251). According to this biblico-psychological idea, לב אבּיתי may signify either the courageous (Psalm 76:6), or, as in this instance, the strong-minded; but as a synonym of לב סהזקי (Ezekiel 2:4) and לב קשׁי (Ezekiel 3:7), viz., in the sense of those who resist the impressions of the work and grace of God in their consciousness of mental superiority to anything of the kind, and not in the sense of those who have great mental endowments. These are "far from righteousness" (tsedâqâh), that is to say, they have despaired of the true, loving fidelity of Jehovah, and have no wish for any further knowledge of it. Therefore they shall hear, and possibly not without impression, that this loving fidelity is about to manifest itself, and salvation is about to be realized. Jehovah has given salvation in Zion, that is to say, is giving it even now, so that it will become once more the centre of the renovated nation, and impart its glory to this, so that it may shine in the splendour bestowed upon it by its God. We have here the side of light and love, turned towards us by the two-faced tsedâqâh, as a parallel word to theshū‛âh, or salvation. With this admonition to the indifferent and careless, to whom the salvation of which they have given up all hope is proclaimed as at the door, this prophecy is brought to a close. In three distinct stages, commencing with "hearken," "remember," "hearken," it has unfolded the spiritual influences which the fact declared in Isaiah 46:1, Isaiah 46:2 ought to have upon Israel, and resembles a pastoral sermon in its tone.