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And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: but it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. The word rendered "clear" is in the margin "precious," and is in the plural. The word "dark" here is in the margin rendered "thickness." The following translation by Dr. Henderson gives, I think, the meaning: "And it shall be in that day, that there shall not be the light of the precious orbs, but condensed darkness. But there shall be one day, it is known to Jehovah, when it shall not be day and night; for at the time of the evening there shall be light." We have here two distinct periods - one of unmitigated distress, the other of uninterrupted prosperity.

I. HERE IS A PERIOD OF UNMITIGATED DISTRESS. "Shall not be clear nor dark," or, as it is rendered, "condensed darkness." Dr. Keil gives the same idea as Dr. Henderson, "And it will come to pass on that day, there will not be light, the glorious ones will melt away." This period of unmitigated calamity primarily refers, we have no doubt, to those long centuries of oppression, cruelty, mockery, and scorn, to which the Jewish people have been subjected ever since the destruction of Jerusalem. In the predictions of Joel (Joel 2:31; Joel 3:15) referring to the destruction of the holy city and the breaking up of the Jewish commonwealth, the period is referred to as a period when "the sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood." The history of the Jews, indeed, for eighteen centuries has been the history of one long starless night. Two remarks are suggested concerning this dark day.

1. Such a day is the hard destiny of some men. It is so with individuals. There are hundreds and thousands of men in every age and country who pass through life from its beginning to its close with scarcely a ray of hope or a beam of joy. Their life is a day of darkness. It is so with some nations. The history of some nations and tribes is little less than a history of crushing oppression, bloody revolutions, and untold cruelties and sufferings. The precious orbs are seldom if ever seen in their political heavens.

2. Such a day is deserved by most men. All men are sinners, and deserve this blackness of darkness forever. The very tendency of sin, in fact, is to quench every light in the firmament of the soul. Thank God, Christ has come a Light to the world, and into that light during our stay here we may all enter.

II. HERE IS A PERIOD OF UNINTERRUPTED JOY. "But it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, nor night, but it shall come to pass that at evening time it shall be light." This is indeed a unique day. Even when evening might be anticipated, "it shall be light."

1. Such a day as this is destined to dawn on every good man. Heaven is a scene of light. No clouds of ignorance or suffering obstruct the rays, nor will the sun ever go down: "the Lord God is the Light thereof."

2. Such a day as this is destined to dawn on the world in the future. Some expositors consider that the millennium is here pointed to - that long bright period when "all shall know the Lord from the least to the greatest." This period is promised, and it must come; for "heaven and earth shall pass away, but not one jot or tittle of his word shall fail to be accomplished." When will it come? It is far off, I know. "It shall be known to the Lord;" "It is not for you to know the times and the seasons," etc.

CONCLUSION. Are there not dark and bright days in every good man's life? There are days when he walks in darkness, when neither sun nor star appears; and there are days too when all is cloudless and bright. He needs the dark day to prepare him for the full appreciation and enjoyment of the light. As the earth requires the dark cold days of winter as well as the bright and genial days of summer, in order to prepare it to yield the fruits that man and beast require, so doth the human soul require periods of gloom and tempest as well as periods of brightness and calm. - D.T.

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KJV: And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:

WEB: It will happen in that day, that there will not be light, cold, or frost.