THE EXPLANATION of Isaiah Chapter 55

(Note: Rev. Smithson's translation of the Isaiah text is appended below the explanation.)

1. Ho! everyone that thirsts, come you to the waters! and he who has no silver: come you, buy, and eat! yea, come, buy you without silver, and without price, wine and milk.

VERSE 1. That "wine" and "milk", which were to be bought without silver, are not here understood, but things spiritual, to which they correspond, must be obvious to every one; wherefore, by "wine" is signified spiritual Good, which in its essence is Truth, and by "milk" the Good of that Truth. That these are given gratis by the Lord to such as are in ignorance of Truth and of Good, but nevertheless are in the desire thereof, is understood by their being bid "to come, to buy and eat without silver"; to "buy" signifies to procure to themselves, and to "eat" is to appropriate, which is done by application as of themselves. That they who are in ignorance of Truth and of Good, but in the desire thereof, are here meant, is evident; from its being said, "Everyone that thirsts, come you to the waters!" To "thirst" signifying to desire, and "waters" Truths - in the present case the Word, where Truths are. Apocalypse Explained 376 Apocalypse Explained 376[1-40]. See also Arcana Coelestia 8568, 8976.

"He who has no silver", signifies those who "are in ignorance of Truth, and yet in the Good of charity, as is the case with many in the church, and also with many Gentiles out of the church. Arcana Coelestia 1551.

Verses 1, 2. That to "eat" here signifies to appropriate to one's self from the Lord, is evident, for, it is said "Everyone who thirsts, come you to the waters! and he who has no silver; come you, buy, and eat"; by which is understood that everyone who desires Truth, and who had not Truth before, may procure and appropriate it to himself from the Lord. To "thirst" signifies to desire, "water" Truth, and "silver" the Truth of Good; wherefore, by "him who has no silver", is signified him who before had no Truth of Good; to "come" denotes to come to the Lord; to "buy" is to procure for himself; and to "eat" denotes to appropriate. "Come, buy you without silver, and without price, wine and milk", signifies to procure Divine Truth spiritual and Divine Truth natural without self-derived intelligence; "wine" denoting Divine Truth spiritual, and "milk" Divine Truth spiritual-natural. "Wherefore do you weigh out silver for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which will not satisfy?" signifies that it is in vain to endeavour, from the proprium to procure the Good of love, and that which nourishes the soul; "silver" here denoting Truth from the proprium, or self-derived intelligence, and, in like manner, "labour"; by "bread" is understood the Good of love; and "that which satisfies" denotes that which nourishes the soul, - in the present case, that which does not nourish. "Hearken diligently unto Me", signifies that those things are from the Lord alone; and "eat you that which is good, and your soul shall delight itself in fatness", signifies that they may appropriate to themselves celestial Good, from which is all delight of life; to "delight in fatness" denoting to be delighted from Good, and the "soul" signifying life. Apocalypse Explained 617.

That to "buy" and "sell" signifies to procure knowledges and to teach them, see Chapter 24:2; also Isaiah 52:3, the Exposition.

Verses 1-4. That to "drink" and to "eat"; is here to be informed concerning the Lord; and that "waters", "wine", "milk"; "bread", and "fatness", signify the things which are of the Truth and Good of Faith from Him; is evident. Arcana Coelestia 9412.

2. Wherefore do you weigh out silver for that which is no bread? and your labour for that which will not satisfy? hearken diligently unto Me, and eat you that which is good; and your soul shall delight itself in fatness.

Verse 2. Hearken diligently unto Me, and eat you that which is good; and your soul shall delight itself in fatness. - By "eating Good" is signified to appropriate Good to themselves; whence, by "delighting in fatness", is signified to be in a state of satisfaction and blessedness. Apocalypse Explained 1159.

3. Incline your ear, and come unto Me; hearken, that your soul may live: and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, even the sure mercies of David.

Verse 3. "David" signifies the Lord; the "everlasting covenant" is conjunction with Him; the "sure mercies of David" are the things which are of the Lord; and the procuring of which is understood by "going to Him", and by "hearkening that their soul may live." A "covenant" in this; and in many other passages, as in Isaiah 42:6; 49:8 (see the Exposition), signifies the Lord's conjunction with the human race by His Divine Human. That the Lord, as to His Divine Human, is the Mediator, and that no one can come to the Divine Itself, which is in the Lord; and which is called the "Father", except by the "Son", : that is, by the Divine Human, is known in the church; thus it is the Lord, as to His Divine Human, who is the Conjunction [or the Covenant]. Who can comprehend the Divine Itself by any thought? and, if not by any thought, who can be conjoined with Him in love? But everyone can comprehend the Divine Human in thought, and be conjoined with Him in love. Arcana Coelestia 6804.

4. Behold, for a Witness to the peoples I have given Him; a Prince and a Lawgiver to the nations.

5. Behold; the nation whom You knew not You shalt call; and the nations who knew not You shall run unto You, for the sake of Jehovah Your God; and for the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified You.

Verse 4. A Prince and a Lawgiver to the nations. - What is meant by these words, when applied to the Lord, see above, Chapter 33:22, the Exposition.

Verses 4, 5. A Witness to the peoples; - Behold, the nation whom You knew not You shalt call; and the nations who knew not You shall run unto You, etc. - These words treat of the Lord's kingdom, "Peoples" are those who are in Truths, and "'nations" those who are in Goods. Arcana Coelestia 1259.

6. Seek you Jehovah, while He may be found; call you upon Him, while He is near.

7. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the man of iniquity his thoughts: and let him return unto Jehovah, for He will have mercy upon him; and unto our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

8. For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says Jehovah.

9. For as the heavens are higher than the earth; so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.

Verses 6-8. As these words treat of turning to the Lord, and of repentance, we will here adduce the Doctrine of Repentance.

He who would be saved must confess his sins, and do the work of repentance. To "confess sins" is to know evils, to perceive them in one's own heart, to charge one's self with their guilt, and to condemn one's self on account of them. When this is done in the presence of God, it constitutes the confession of sins. To "perform the work of repentance" is to abstain from sins after they have been confessed, and supplication has been made for their remission, from humility of heart; and to live in newness of life, according to the precepts of charity and faith. The man who makes only a general acknowledgement that he is a sinner, charging himself as guilty of all evils, and yet does not explore himself, that is, does not really see his own sins, may, indeed, make confession, but not the confession of repentance; for such a person, because he does not know his own evils, lives in the practice of them afterwards, just as he had done before.

Repentance which consists merely in words, and does not affect the life, is not repentance; neither are sins remitted by such repentance, but only by repentance of life. Sins are, indeed, continually remitted to man by the Lord, for the Lord is Mercy itself; but still they adhere to man, however he may think they are remitted; nor are they removed from him but by a life according to the precepts of true faith. So far as a man lives according to those precepts, so far his sins are removed, and so far as they are removed, so far they are remitted. The New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine 159-162, 165. See also the Exposition of Isaiah 34.

10. For as the rain descends, and the snow, from the heavens, and returns not thither, but waters the earth, and makes it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater;

11. So shall My Word be which goes forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto Me void; but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in that] for which I have sent it.

Verses 1011. Here "the Word which goes forth out of the mouth of God" is compared to the "rain" and "snow" from heaven, because by the "Word" is meant the Divine Truth proceeding from the Lord, which flows in with us by the Word; in like manner, also, by "as the rain descends, and the snow, from the heavens." By the "rain" is signified spiritual Truth, which is appropriated to man; and by "snow", natural Truth, which is as snow when it is only in the memory, but becomes spiritual by love, as snow becomes rain-water by heat.

By "watering the earth, that it may bring forth and bud", is signified to vivify the church, that it may produce the Truth of doctrine and of faith, and the Good of love and of charity; the Truth of doctrine and of faith is understood by "the seed which it giveth to the sower", and the Good of love and of charity by "the bread which it giveth to the eater." "It shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please [or have willed]", signifies that it shall be received, and that man shall be led by it to look to the Lord. Apocalypse Explained 644.

12. For with joy shall you go forth, and you shall be led out with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into song; and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

Verse 12. The mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into song; and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. - And in David:

"Praise Jehovah, you mountains and hills; fruit-trees, and all cedars", (Psalm 148:9)

In these words is described the joy of heart originating in the Good of love and charity; and "mountains", "hills", "trees", and "cedars" are said to "break forth in to singing", to "clap their hands", and to "praise", because thereby are signified the Goods and Truths which cause joys in man; for man does not rejoice from himself, but from the Goods and Truths which are in him; these are the things which rejoice, because they are the ground of man's rejoicing. Apocalypse Explained 644.

Because "mountains" and "hills" signified such things in the ancient church, divine worship was performed on mountains and hills; and afterwards the Hebrew nation placed altars upon mountains and hills, and there offered sacrifices and incense; and where there were no hills, they made high places; and as this worship became idolatrous, because they considered the "mountains" and the "hills" themselves holy, and thought nothing at all of the holy things which they signified, therefore. that worship was prohibited to the Israelitish and Jewish people, because that people was more prone than any other to idolatrous worship. In order, however, that this representative, which had been in ancient times, might be retained, "Mount Zion" was chosen, and by it, in the supreme sense, is represented the Divine Good of the Divine Love of the Lord, and in a respective sense, the Divine-Celestial and the Divine-Spiritual [principle] of His kingdom. Arcana Coelestia 6135.

13. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree; and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle: and it shall be unto Jehovah for a name, for an everlasting sign which shall not be cut off.

Verse 13. That "thorns" and "briers" signify evils and falsities, see Chapter 5:6; 7:23, 24, 25, the Exposition; and as to the signification of the "myrtle" and the "fir-tree", see Chapter 41:19, the Exposition.

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Isaiah Chapter 55.

1. Ho! everyone that thirsts, come you to the waters! and he who has no silver: come you, buy, and eat! yea, come, buy you without silver, and without price, wine and milk.

2. Wherefore do you weigh out silver for that which is no bread? and your labour for that which will not satisfy? hearken diligently unto Me, and eat you that which is good; and your soul shall delight itself in fatness.

3. Incline your ear, and come unto Me; hearken, that your soul may live: and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, even the sure mercies of David.

4. Behold, for a Witness to the peoples I have given Him; a Prince and a Lawgiver to the nations.

5. Behold; the nation whom You knew not You shalt call; and the nations who knew not You shall run unto You, for the sake of Jehovah Your God; and for the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified You.

6. Seek you Jehovah, while He may be found; call you upon Him, while He is near.

7. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the man of iniquity his thoughts: and let him return unto Jehovah, for He will have mercy upon him; and unto our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

8. For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says Jehovah.

9. For as the heavens are higher than the earth; so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.

10. For as the rain descends, and the snow, from the heavens, and returns not thither, but waters the earth, and makes it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater;

11. So shall My Word be which goes forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto Me void; but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in that] for which I have sent it.

12. For with joy shall you go forth, and you shall be led out with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into song; and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree; and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle: and it shall be unto Jehovah for a name, for an everlasting sign which shall not be cut off.

6804. 'And God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob' means on account of being joined to the Church through the Lord's Divine Human. This is clear from the meaning of 'the covenant' as a joining together, dealt with below; and from the representation of 'Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob', with whom a covenant had been made, as the Lord's Divine Human. 'Abraham' represents the Lord in respect of the Divine itself, 'Isaac' in respect of the Divine Rational, and 'Jacob' in respect of the Divine Natural, see 1893, 2011, 2066, 2072, 2083, 2630, 3194, 3210, 3245, 3251, 3305 (end), 3439, 4538, 4570, 4615, 6098, 6185, 6276, 6425. When Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are mentioned in the Word those patriarchs are not meant in the spiritual sense, as may be recognized from the consideration that names never pass through into heaven. Only what is really meant by the people who are referred to - real things, the essential nature of real things, and the states of real things, that is to say, aspects of the Church, of the Lord's kingdom, and of the Lord Himself - passes through.

[2] But in addition to this the angels in heaven never fix their thoughts on specific persons; that would restrict their thoughts and remove them from that all-inclusive perception of real things that lies behind angelic speech. This explains why the things that the angels in heaven say are indescribable, far surpassing human thought, whose range does not extend to seeing things in their totality but is restricted to particular aspects. When one reads therefore in Matthew 8:11 that many will come from the east and the west and recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, the angels perceive the Lord's presence and the way people make the truth and goodness emanating from His Divine Human their own. Also when one reads in Luke 16:22 that Lazarus was carried into Abraham's bosom, the angels perceive that he was carried into heaven, where the Lord is present. This too goes to show that 'a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob' means in the internal sense being joined through the Lord's Divine Human.

[3] The fact that the Divine Human is 'a covenant', that is, the actual joining together, may be seen from many places in the Word, as in Isaiah,

I will give You as a covenant of the people', a light of the nations. Isaiah 42:6.

In the same prophet,

I have given You as a covenant of the people, ¹ to restore the land, to share out the devastated inheritances. Isaiah 49:8.

In the same prophet,

Incline your ear and come to Me; hear, and let your soul live. So will I make with you an eternal covenant, even the sure mercies of David. Lo, I have given Him as a witness to the peoples, a prince and lawgiver to the peoples. ² Isaiah 55:3-4.

In Malachi,

Suddenly there comes to His temple the Lord whom you seek, and the angel of the covenant in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming. Malachi 3:1

In the second Book of Samuel,

He has established an eternal covenant for Me, to be set in order for all and to be kept safe. 2 Samuel 23:5.

[4] These places plainly refer to the Lord and to the joining of the human race to the Lord's Divine Being itself through His Divine Human. In respect of His Divine Human the Lord is the Mediator, and no one can come to the Divine Being itself within the Lord, called the Father, except through the Son, that is, the Divine Human, as is well known in the Church. Thus the Lord in respect of His Divine Human is the actual joining together. Can anyone in his thought begin to comprehend the Divine Being itself? And if he cannot do this in thought how can he be joined to the Divine itself in love? But the Divine Human anyone can comprehend in thought and be joined to in love.

[5] The meaning of 'a covenant' as a joining together may be seen in the fact that covenants between countries join them together. They are bargains made by both parties which must be kept if their alliance is to remain intact. These bargains or agreements are also called a covenant. On man's side the bargains or agreements that are called 'a covenant' in the Word are in a restricted sense the ten commandments or the Decalogue. In a wider sense they are all the statutes, orders, laws, testimonies, and commandments that the Lord decreed from Mount Sinai through Moses; and in an even wider sense they are the Books of Moses. The contents of these books were what the children of Israel were required on their side to carry out. On the Lord's side it is mercy and election.

[6] The ten commandments or the Decalogue are a covenant.

This is clear from the following places: In Moses,

Jehovah declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, the ten words which He wrote on two tablets of stone. Deuteronomy 4:13, 23.

And since the two tablets of stone on which the ten commandments had been written were placed in the ark, Exodus 25:16, 21, 22, 31:18; 32:15, 16, 19; 40:20, the ark was called the ark of the covenant, Deuteronomy 31:9, 24-26; Joshua 3:3, 6, 14; 4:7; Judges 20:27; 2 Samuel 15:24; 1 Kings 8:21. In the last of these references Solomon says,

I have made a place there for the ark, where there is the covenant of Jehovah which He made with our fathers.

And in John,

The temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. Revelation 11:19.

[7] All the judgements and statutes which the Lord commanded the people of Israel through Moses are called a covenant; so too are the actual Books of Moses. In Moses,

According to the tenor ³ of these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel. Exodus 34:27.

What are called a covenant here were many regulations regarding sacrifices, feasts, and unleavened bread. In the same author,

Moses took the book of the covenant, and read it in the ears of the people, who said, All that Jehovah has spoken we will do and hear. Exodus 24:7-8.

In the second Book of Kings,

Josiah the king of Judah read before them all in the house of Jehovah the words of the book of the covenant which had been found in the house of Jehovah. And he made a covenant before Jehovah, to establish the words of the covenant that were written in that book. And all the people took a stand on the covenant. The king commanded all the people to keep the Passover to Jehovah their God, in accordance with what was written in the book of the covenant. 2 Kings 23:2-3, 21.

In David,

If your sons keep My covenant and My testimony which I have taught them, their sons also will sit even forever on your throne. Psalms 132:12.

[8] A covenant is a joining together through love and faith.

In Jeremiah,

Behold, the days are coming, said Jehovah, in which I will make with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah a new covenant, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers, for they made My covenant invalid. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days: I will put My law in the midst of them, and will write it on their heart, and I will be their God, and they will be My people. Jeremiah 31:31-33.

'Putting the law in their midst, and writing it on their heart' is endowing with faith and charity, faith and charity being the means by which the joining together described by 'I will be their God, and they will be My people' is effected. In the same prophet,

I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not any more turn away from them, and I will do good to them. But I will put My fear into their heart so that they do not depart from Me. Jeremiah 32:40.

A joining together through love, which is a covenant, is meant by 'I will put My fear into their heart so that they do not depart from Me'.

[9] In Ezekiel,

I will make with them a covenant of peace; it will be an eternal covenant with them. And I will bless ⁴ them and will multiply them, and I will set a sanctuary in their midst, and it will be My dwelling-place among them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. Ezekiel 37:26-27.

Here a joining together through love and faith, which are a covenant, is described by 'a sanctuary in their midst' and 'dwelling-place among them', and by 'I will be their God, and they will be My people'. In the same prophet,

When I passed by you and saw you, behold, it was your time, the time of love; ⁵ and I entered into a covenant with you, so that you would be Mine. Ezekiel 16:8.

This refers to Jerusalem, by which the Ancient Church is meant, 'entering into a covenant, so that you would be Mine' plainly being a marriage or spiritual joining together. Since 'a covenant' means a joining together a wife is also called in Malachi 2:14 the wife of a covenant, while a joining together that exists among brothers is called in Amos 1:9 a covenant of brothers. 'A covenant' is also used in David to mean a joining together,

I have made a covenant with My chosen one, I have sworn to David My servant. Psalms 89:3.

[10] The agreement in a covenant on the Lord's side is mercy and election. This is clear in David,

All the ways of Jehovah are mercy and truth to those keeping His covenant and His testimonies. Psalms 25:10.

In Isaiah,

The mountains will depart and the hills be removed, but My mercy will not depart from you, nor the covenant of My peace be removed, said Jehovah, who has mercy on you. Isaiah 54:10.

In Moses,

Jehovah your God, He is God, the faithful God keeping covenant and mercy with those who love Him and keep His commandments, to the thousandth generation. Deuteronomy 7:9, 11.

In the same author,

If you keep My covenant, you will be to Me a peculiar treasure from among all peoples. Exodus 19:5.

In the same author,

I will have regard for you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and confirm My covenant with you. Leviticus 26:9.

'Having regard for them' is viewing with mercy. 'Making them fruitful and multiplying them' is endowing with charity and faith, and those endowed with them are called 'the elect'. Thus the words used here have to do with election and so do those which say that they will be 'a peculiar treasure'.

[11] In the representative Church they also had signs of the covenant. These served to remind people of the joining together. Circumcision was one such sign, Genesis 17:11; for circumcision was a sign meaning purification from filthy loves. After these loves are removed, heavenly love is introduced, through which a joining together is effected. The sabbath too is called an eternal covenant, Exodus 31:16; and of the loaves of the presence it is said that to the children of Israel they should be for an eternal covenant, Leviticus 24:8-9. Blood in particular was a sign, as is clear in Moses,

Moses took the book of the covenant, and read it in the ears of the people, who said, All that Jehovah has spoken we will do and hear. Then Moses took the blood of the sacrifice of a peace-offering and sprinkled it over the people, and said, Behold, the blood of the covenant which Jehovah has made with you, upon all these words. Exodus 24:7-8.

In Zechariah,

Through the blood of your covenant I will let out the bound ones from the pit in which there is no water. Zechariah 9:11.

'The blood' was the covenant or sign of the covenant because it meant a joining together through spiritual love, that is, through charity towards the neighbour. This was why, when the Lord instituted the Holy Supper, He called His blood 'the blood of the new covenant', Matthew 26:28. From all this one may now see what 'the covenant' is used to mean in the internal sense of the Word.

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