John Wesley (NT Notes)

“Together - Yea, and when I reckon with them, I will punish them, not only for their personal sins, but for the sins of their parents, which they have made their own, by imitation. Their former - I will not only punish the late sins that they have committed, bu…”

“His threatening should be made good upon the generality of this people. Blessing - But yet, as in a vineyard, which is generally unfruitful, there may be some vine that brings forth fruit, and has the hopes of new wine in the cluster, and as to such, the garde…”

“Judah - God farther promises to bring out of Judah, an inheritor of his mountains which refers to the Jews return out of the captivity of Babylon to Jerusalem, to worship God in his temple, upon Mount Zion. Mine elect - My chosen ones. The term signifies such …”

“A fold - Sharon was a place of great fruitfulness for pastures. It was become like a wilderness, God here promises that it should again be a place for the flocks.”

“Forget - To forget God's holy mountains, signifies not to regard the true worship of God. God calls Zion his holy mountain. That troop - The idols of the ten tribes, and of the Assyrians, were a troop, where as the God of Israel was one God.”

“Bow down - As you have bowed down to idols. I called - By my prophets, you did not answer by doing the things which I enjoined. Chuse - You sinned deliberately chusing sinful courses, the things which I hated.”

“A curse - They shall use your names as examples, of the eminent wrath of God upon sinners. Another name - He will not suffer his own people to be called by a name by which idolaters are known.”

“God of truth - Because they shall see what God promised is fulfilled. Are hid - That is, they are at an end.”

“I create - I am about wholly to change the state not only of my people, but to bring a new face upon the world, which shall abide until a new heavens and earth appear, in which shall dwell nothing but righteousness. Not be remembered - That state of things sha…”

“Before they call - God promised, chap. lviii, 9, to answer them, when they called: here he promises to answer the words, as soon as they should be formed in their hearts before they could get them out of their lips.”

“And dust - God promises a time of tranquility to his church under the metaphor of serpents eating the dust, their proper meat, Gen. iii, 14, instead of flying upon men: it signifies such a time, when wicked men shall no more eat up the people of God.”

“He that, &c. - Solomon, Prov. xv, 8, gives a full commentary on the whole verse; The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord. As if - From hence it is plain, that the prophet is not here reflecting upon idolatrous worship, but formal worship: upo…”

“A voice - The expression of a prophetical extasy, as if he said, I hear a sad and affrighting noise; it comes not from the city only, but from the temple, wherein these formalists have so much gloried. There is a noise of soldiers slaying, and of the poor peop…”

“Before - The whole verse is expressive of a great and sudden salvation, which God would work for his church, like the delivery of a woman, and that of a man-child, before her travail, and without pain. Doubtless it refers to the coming of Christ, and the sudde…”

“For - As soon as the voice of the gospel put the church of the Jews into her travail, in Christ's and the Apostles time, it presently brought forth.”

“Shall I - I, that in the ordinary course of my providence use to give a birth to women, to whom I have given a power to conceive, shall I not give a birth to my people, whom by my promises I have made to conceive such expectations?”

“Consolations - The gospel doctrine was their breasts of consolation. Her glory - Christ was the glory of the people of Israel, though he was also a light to the Gentiles.”

“Like a river - It is plain this prophecy relates to a farther conversion of the Jews than hath been yet seen. Her sides - The Gentiles were born upon the sides of Jerusalem and dandled upon her knees, as first hearing from the Apostles (who were members of the…”

“Rejoice - The peace of the church and the propagation of the kingdom of Christ, is always the cause of an heart rejoicing to such as fear God, so that they flourish like an herb in the spring.”

“With fire - With terrible judgments, or with fire in a proper sense, understanding it of the fire with which enemies use to consume places brought under their power. Whirlwind - With a sudden sweeping judgment. Fury - That is, with fervour; for fury properly t…”

“Plead - God at first pleads with sinners by words, but if he cannot so prevail, he will plead with them in a way by which he will overcome; by fire, pestilence and blood.”

“Gardens - In which they worshipped idols. In the midst - Behind one of the trees, or one by one behind the trees. The abominations - All those beasts forbidden the Jews for meat.”

“Come - It shall come to pass that I will cast them off, and then l will gather all nations, &c. My glory - My oracles, my ordinances, which hitherto have been locked up in the church of the Jews, and been their glory, shall be published to the Gentiles.”

“Afar off - To all the quarters of the world. They shall - This was eminently made good after the destruction of Jerusalem, when the believers among the Jews, as well as the apostles went about publishing the gospel to all people, which was declaring the Lord's…”

“Your brethren -- those who are the children of Abraham, not considered as the father of the Jewish nation only, but considered as the father of many nations, and as the father of the faithful, and so are your brethren, shall be brought out of all nations for a…”