POURING OUT OF THE SPIRIT AND THE NEW LIFE This chapter is considered a continuation of the previous one, in which God proclaims the realization of our salvation, through pouring His Holy Spirit on His Church. It is for the sake of her continuous renewal, setting in her witnesses to His work in them; fulfilling, sanctifying and forgiving their sins, in place of the inner void they used to suffer during their idol worship. The salvation that God presents to His people carries two sides: a confirmation that our satisfaction is in God, and that separating ourselves from Him is ridicule and deceit of heart. 1. Pouring out of the Spirit 1-5. 2. You are My witnesses 6-8. 3. Idolatry and the void 9-20. 4. You are Mine 21-26. 5. A prophecy about Cyrus 27-28. 1. POURING OUT OF THE SPIRIT God realizes His call and choice of the new Israel through pouring out His Holy Spirit on the believers, to establish the Church of the New Testament, saying, “Yet hear now, O Jacob, My servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen. Thus says the Lord who made you, and formed you from the womb, who will help you: ‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant; and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on him, who is thirsty, and flood on the dry ground. I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring. They will spring up among the grass like willows by the water courses.’ One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s;’ another will call himself by the name of Jacob; another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and name himself by the name of Israel.” (Is. 44: 1-5) In this great gift, it is to be noticed: a. God yearns to grant man, not only His outer blessings and gifts, but also His own self: “I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants and My blessings on your offspring.” He grants the Grantor of gifts and blessings, as a gift. Whoever gets washed for salvation, will receive the water and the Holy Spirit. Origen1 The baptized, will get the Holy Spirit in him, and will actually carry the name “the Temple of God2.” St. Cyril the Great O, Lord, who gave us His Spirit in Baptism, give me the words, by which I praise You with love. The Only-Begotten Son has descended, hauled you up from garbage, granted you His Spirit by Baptism, and made you His brother. In the water we were naturalized with His Deity, to become truly children; and since then, we gained the right to call God “Our Father.” This Hidden One who gave us His spirit through baptism. 1 In Zek. Hom 6:5. 2 In Joan 5:2. Mar Jacob El-Serougi3 God considers this gift the greatest of all, as He, with His love, created us, and from the womb helped us. Now, He requests from us not to be afraid because He has chosen us, and to realize that choice, He granted us this gift. b. He calls His Church “Jeshurun,” a name that came four times in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 32: 15; 33: 5, 6), meaning ‘straight,’ after ‘Jasher;’ as though He is calling His Church, that included the sinners, ‘straight,’ through the work of His Holy Spirit. He is encouraging His people to respond to the gift of His Holy Spirit, forsake their deviations and rebellions, and to praise God for His splendor and spiritual beauty. In the book of the Song of Songs, while the Church is admitting that temptations have tanned her (Songs 1: 6), yet God, the true Groom, did not ever hint to any blame in her. “Behold, you are fair, My love! Behold, you are fair! You have dove’s eyes.” (Songs 1: 15) “You are all fair, my love, and there is no spot in you.” (Songs 4: 7) The Lord Christ sees in His Church absolute beauty, whose mystery lies in the ‘dove’s eyes;’ the Holy Spirit who descended on her, and appeared in the likeness of a dove, granted her spiritual enlightenment. Origen says, [Her eyes are compared to two doves, as it became now capable of understanding the Holy Scripture according to the Spirit and not to the letter. She can comprehend the spiritual mysteries in the Holy Bibles, as the dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. When we understand the Law and prophets according to the Spirit, we acquire dove eyes. That is why, in the Book of Psalms, her soul longed to have the wings of a dove (Psalm 68: 14), with the hope that it can fly up to the understanding of spiritual mysteries, and settle in the dwelling places of wisdom4.] St. Gregory of Nyssa believes that the mystery of the Church’s beauty lies in her dove’s eyes, in whose purity the image of the Holy Spirit appears, for the bride to concentrate her eyes permanently on Him, thus His image will be printed on them. St. Jerome believes that the mystery of the Church’s beauty is her union with the Only-Begotten Son of God, to carry His glory in her, saying, [what is more beautiful than the soul, called the daughter of God (Psalm 45: 10), who does not seek the outward beauty (1 Peter 3: 3)? She believes in Christ; and granted His Spirit. She walks, with great hope, her way toward Him, who is her Groom and Lord at the same time5.] c. He is granting us the gift of His Holy Spirit, who works in us according to our need. To him who is thirsty, He gives water to quench his thirst. But on him who is like a dry land, He will pour flood, to turn his dryness into a paradise. He is generous in His giving, granting us according to our needs, and to our response to Him. “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.” (Psalm 81: 10) The flame introduced by the Holy Spirit in us, we can, if we wish, make it flare more and more. While if we do not, we shall lose it altogether, through our negligence and poor response6. St. John Chrysostom Whoever gets the Holy Spirit, enjoys Him according to his capacity, and not to the میمر عن المعمودیة. 3 4 Comm. On Cant. 3:1. 5 Ep. To Furia 54. 6 In Matt. PG. 57:99,80.. Spirit’s capability7. St. Basil the Great You will be provided with battle gears to use against the power of the enemy (the devil)... The weapon is ready: “the sword of the Spirit.” (Ephesians 6: 17) It is fitting for you to stretch your right hand properly to hold it, to fight the battle of the Lord, to overcome the adversary forces, and to become a (fortress), fortified against the heretics. Do not despise the grace because it is free, but receive and treasure it with piety. St. Cyril of Jerusalem8 d. What does He mean by: “spring up like grass... like willows by the watercourses”? He probably means, that whoever enjoys the gift of the Holy Spirit, will spring up like a huge tree amid perishable grass. e. Whoever enjoys the Spirit writes on his hand “I belong to the Lord;” as it was the old custom for man to have the name of his God or master tattooed on his hand. That custom was however prohibited by God, because in case someone happens to inscribe the name of an idol on his hand, if he chooses to forsake it, it would be difficult to have it removed. “And called by the name of Israel;” as the Church of the New Testament, who enjoyed the gift of the Holy Spirit, carried the title “the New Israel.” She inherits from the Old Israel the Holy Scripture with the divine law, the commandments, the prophecies, the covenants, and the promises; understanding all that according to the Spirit, and not to the letter, comprehending divine mysteries, and enjoying exalted things. 2. YOU ARE MYWITNESSES The Speaker here is the Lord Christ, the “rock” that flooded water on the people (I Corinthians 10: 4). That is why He says, “I will pour water on the thirsty” (Is 44: 3); and calls Himself, “King of Israel” and “Redeemer” (Is. 44: 6). He previously stated before Pilate that He is a King. Here He calls Himself, “The Lord of hosts;” “I am the First; and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God.” (Is. 44: 6) In the Book of Revelations, the Lord Christ says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega” (Revelations 1: 8). “I am the First and the Last; the Beginning and the End.” (Revelations 1: 17; 22: 13) It is obvious that the Redeemer, the Lord Almighty, and the only God, is Himself the Lord Christ the Savior. This is the testimony of those who enjoy His salvation: “You are My witnesses. Is there a God besides Me?” (Is. 44: 8) What we enjoy in the New Testament is an extension of the continuous work of God; God who worked with the ancient people (Is. 44: 7); who had proclaimed the future to them, namely what He planned for the New Testament (Is. 44: 7). He probably presented Himself as “The First and the Last,” to proclaim that He, who had worked in the Old Testament, is Himself who is still working in the New Testament. God the Savior is the First and the Last, preceding His flock to lead them, and following behind to attend to any sheep, slow or weak. He embraces all and compassionate to all. He is also the First, being the Head of the Church, and the Last having become a Servant to all. He is the First and Last in our life, fulfilling all our needs. 7 On the Holy Spirit 9:22. 8 Cat. Lect: Pref., 1:4. 3. IDOLATRY AND THE VOID Having spoken about the gift of the great Spirit that presented us, as witnesses to the Truth, He proclaims our enjoyment of God our Savior, as the Lord of hosts; the Leader of the spiritual battle; the fulfiller of all, being the First and the Last; and the support of people of the Old Testament, as well as the believers of the New Testament. He is now comparing between the testimony of believers and that of the idol worshippers: a. Testimony to the Savior provides satisfaction, quenching to thirst and fruitfulness. “For I will pour on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground… They will spring up among the grass like willows by the watercourses.”(Is. 44: 3, 4) Testimony to idols, on the other hand, provides nothing but vanity, void, hunger, blindness and ignorance. “Those who make graven image, all of them are useless, and their precious things shall not profit. They are their own witnesses. They neither see nor know” (Is. 44: 9) Our Christ is a fulfiller of the depths. Those who experienced Him did not need a thing, while outside Him, there would be a loss of every inner satisfaction, and a denial of fellowship with God, the source of life and satisfaction. b. Testimony to the Savior grants peace: “Do not fear, nor be afraid.” (Is. 44: 2, 8) While outside Him, there would be fear and trembling. “Let them be all gathered together, let them stand up. Yet they shall fear, they shall be ashamed together.” (Is. 44: 11) All forces came together against Christ: high priests, scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, Roman governors etc. Yet they harbored terror and fear, even in the time of crucifying and mocking Him! Terrified by their inner evil, and lack of divine grace in their hearts. Nature itself rebelled against them: the sun and moon eclipsed, the earth quaked, the rocks split, the graves were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. c. Witnesses to the Lord enjoy dignity, and are counted as “the New Israel,” and inscribe the name of the Savior on their inner hands, as though they do nothing except in His name (Is. 44: 5), while witnesses to others, outside of Him, carry shame and infamy (Is. 44). He presents to us a demonstrative portrait of the corruption of pagan worship, revealing that idols together with their makers and worshippers all carry shame and emptiness. The Blacksmiths take their work (of idols) very seriously, not caring for any sensation of hunger, thirst or weariness (Is. 44: 12), for the sake of forging hammers and plates of iron to make statues. The carpenters, likewise, do the same to shape wooden forms. They all labor nonstop to create mute metal and wooden statues, incapable of giving salvation, while the children of God are negligent in their spiritual strife, despite their enjoyment of divine possibilities for eternal salvation. Those laboring in vain are actually judging the negligent children of God. And as said by Jesus the Lord of Glory, “The sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.” (Luke 16: 8) Finally, what does idol worshipping (or separation from God) offer? a. Insight blindness and inner darkness (Is. 44: 18), while Christ is the sun of righteousness (Malachi 4: 2). b. Ignorance and lack of knowledge (Is. 44: 19), while Christ is our righteousness. c. Because of hunger, man feeds on ashes (Is. 44: 20), while Christ is the heavenly bread. d. Misleading and deceit (Is. 44: 20), while Christ is the Way and the Truth. In other words, we find in our Christ inner enlightenment, knowledge, satisfaction, truth, and all our needs, while outside of Him there is nothing but inner void, feeling of isolation and loss of inner insight. 4. YOU ARE MINE He demonstrated the vanity of idol worshipping, or separation from God, not just for the sake of mere intellectual criticism, but to move the soul, and to motivate it to receive the divine work of salvation, that concentrates on the following: a. Setting a people of God: “Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for you are My servant.” (Is. 44: 21) We became the new Israel, worshipping God. b. Referred to God: “You are Mine.” (Is. 44: 21) We are not only His creation and people, but God finds pleasure in us as His children, attributed to Him. c. Not forgotten by Him (Is. 44: 21). d. Enjoying forgiveness of sins, regardless of their extent: “I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions... Return to Me for I have redeemed you” (Is. 44: 22) e. He grants the soul (heavens) a praise, the flesh (earth) a shout of joy, and the energy (mountains) burst of songs; all what is inside us become like trees glorifying God (Is. 44: 23). 5. A PROPHECY ABOUT CYRUS What would be accomplished by the hand of the pagan king Cyrus for the sake of rebuilding Jerusalem and the temple God proclaimed about 220 years beforehand. “Who says to Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all my pleasure,’ even saying to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be built,’ and to the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.” (Is. 44: 28) Here, for the first time, He mentions the name Cyrus, meaning ‘sun’ in Persia, and ‘shepherd’ in Aramite; The name ‘shepherd’ is considered by some, as a title of kings of the Middle East in those days9. The Jewish Historian Josephus says that when Cyrus read his name in the book of Isaiah, 220 years before his time, he decided to realize what was written about him (see Ezra 1: 1, 2; 2 Chronicles 36: 23). What Does He mean by saying, “Who says to the deep, ‘Be dry, and I will dry up your rivers’?” (Is. 44: 27) a. He is portraying Jerusalem as a watery deep, and a stream, over which, according to human mind, the temple could not be rebuilt. Although the Jews have completely lost hope after so long in captivity the Almighty and caring God will dry up the waters and streams to realize His promises to us. b. He is probably referring here to the crossing of the Red Sea and the River Jordan to confirm that He is capable of letting His people cross from captivity back to their land of promise. c. Or He is probably referring to Cyrus who crossed the River Euphrates to invade Babylon. 9 R.N. Whybray: The New Century Bible Comm., Isaiah 40-46, p. 104.
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