Isaiah 31:6

6. Revertimini ut profundam fecistis defectionem, filii Israel. 7. For in that day every man shall cast away his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which your own hands have made unto you for a sin. 7. Quoniam in die illa abjicit homo idola argenti sui, et idola auri sui, quae fecerunt vobis manus vestrae peccatum. 8. Then shall the Assyrians fall with the sword, not of a mighty man; and the sword, not of a mean man, shall devour him: but he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall be discomfited. 8. Tum cadet Assur per gladium, non viri; et gladius non hominis devorabit eum; et fuga sibi consulet a facie gladii, et juvens ejus in liquefactionem erunt.

31:6-9 They have been backsliding children, yet children; let them return, and their backslidings shall be healed, though they have sunk deep into misery, and cannot easily recover. Many make an idol of their silver and gold, and by the love of that are drawn from God; but those who turn to God, will be ready to part with it. Then, when they have cast away their idols, shall the Assyrian fall by the sword of an angel, who strikes more strongly than a mighty man, yet more secretly than a mean man. God can make the stoutest heart to tremble. But if we keep up the fire of holy love and devotion in our hearts and houses, we may depend upon God to protect us and them.

Turn ye unto him,.... From the Egyptians, to whom they sought for help, unto the Lord, they had neglected; from evil ways and practices, idolatry and impiety, by repentance and reformation; to the true worship of God, to his word and ordinances, statutes and commands. The Targum is, "turn to the law;'' which they had rejected and broken. These are the words of the prophet, a call of his to the people to repentance, to which they might be induced by the gracious declaration of the Lord unto them, in the preceding verses, promising them preservation and safety: from whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted: or, "made deep a revolt" (u); had gone very far back from God, and deep into sin and ruin, that their recovery was difficult; and yet their return was absolutely necessary, which ought to be done both speedily and heartily. Some think reference is had to the deep schemes they had laid, those political ones, at least, which they thought were such, in applying to Egypt for help, when they, as it is said, Isaiah 29:15 sought "deep to hide their counsel front the Lord"; in doing which they deeply departed from him, and are here called to return to him.

This is said not of the ten tribes, that were gone into captivity, but of the Jews, who were the posterity of Israel also; which is mentioned, to put them in mind of their descent, as an aggravation of their sin, and as an argument for their return. (u) Heb. "profundam fecerunt recessionem", Piscator; "profundaverunt defevtionem", Montanus.

Isaiah 31:6-7 . Turn ye unto him, &c. — Let the consideration of this gracious promise engage you to repent of all your sins, and among the rest, of your carnal policies in seeking and trusting to Egypt for help, and sincerely to return to God. From whom the children of Israel — From whom not only the Israelites, strictly so called, those of the ten tribes, but from whom you of the two tribes, you Jews, who are also the children of Israel, and therefore are under very great obligations to God, have deeply revolted — In your hearts and lives, your affections being alienated from him, and set upon your sins and idols, and your actions a scene of disobedience to his laws. For in that day — When the Assyrian shall invade your land; every man shall cast away his idols — You shall find the vanity of those idols to which you have trusted; and therefore shall cast them away with indignation, and be forced to seek to Jehovah for help; which your hands have made unto you for sin — That is, as instruments of your sin of idolatry, and of many other sins connected therewith.

Turn ye unto him; let the consideration of this gracious promise engage you to repent of your carnal policies, in seeking and trusting to Egypt for help, and sincerely to return to God. The children of Israel; either, 1. The Israelites, strictly so called, who are now utterly destroyed for their apostacy; and therefore take heed that you do not follow their example. Or, 2. You Jews, who are the children of Israel; which title he here gives them, partly to admonish them of their great and many obligations to God, and partly to aggravate the sin of their apostacy. Have deeply revolted, in neglecting and forsaking him, and seeking to Egypt for help; which he calls a deep revolt , partly because it was a heinous sin, being contrary to God’s express command, and highly dishonourable to God; and partly because it was carried on with deep dissimulation, and with a public profession of cleaving to God, and with a design of seeking deep to hide this their counsel from the Lord , wherewith he charged this people, Isaiah 29:15 .

6. The power and love of Jehovah, just mentioned, are the strongest incentives for returning to Him (Eze 16:62, 63; Ho 6:1). ye … Israel—The change of person marks that when they return to the Lord, He will address them in more direct terms of communion in the second person; so long as they were revolters, God speaks of them, as more at a distance, in the third person, rather than to them.

Verse 6. - Turn ye unto him . Then, at any rate, if not before, turn to him who will have delivered you from so great a peril. "Turn to him, O children of Israel, from whom men have so deeply revolted." The third person is used instead of the second, out of tenderness, not to hurt their feelings by mingling with promise an open rebuke. Isaiah 31:6

On the ground of this half terrible, half comforting picture of the future, the call to repentance is now addressed to the people of the prophet's own time. "Then turn, O sons of Israel, to Him from whom men have so deeply departed." Strictly speaking, "to Him with regard to whom (אשׁר) ye are deeply fallen away" (he‛ĕmı̄q, as in Hosea 9:9 , and sârâh, that which is alienated, alienation, as in Isaiah 1:5 ); the transition to the third person is like the reverse in Isaiah 1:29 . This call to repentance the prophet strengthens by two powerful motives drawn from the future.