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1 Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion, put on thy beautifull garments, O Ierusalem the holy citie: for hencefoorth there shall no more come into thee the vncircumcised, and the vncleane.
2 Shake thy selfe from the dust: arise, and sit downe, O Ierusalem: loose thy selfe from the bandes of thy necke, O captiue daughter of Zion.
3 For thus sayth the Lord, Yee haue solde your selues for nought: and ye shall be redeemed without money.
4 For thus saith the Lord God, My people went downe aforetime into Egypt to soiourne there, and the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.
5 Now therefore, what haue I here, sayth the Lord, that my people is taken away for nought? they that rule ouer them, make them to howle, sayth the Lord, and my Name continually euery day is blasphemed.
6 Therefore my people shall know my Name: therefore they shall know in that day, that I am he that doth speake. Behold, it is I.
7 ¶ How beautifull vpon the mountaines are the feete of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth saluation, that sayth vnto Zion, Thy God reigneth?
8 Thy watchmen shall lift vp the voice, with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye when the Lord shall bring againe Zion.
9 ¶ Breake foorth into ioy, sing together, yee waste places of Ierusalem: for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Ierusalem.
10 The Lord hath made bare his holy arme in the eyes of all the nations, and all the endes of the earth shall see the saluation of our God.
11 ¶ Depart ye, depart ye, goe ye out from thence, touch no vncleane thing; goe ye out of the middest of her; be yee cleane, that beare the vessels of the Lord.
12 For ye shall not go out with haste, nor goe by flight: for the Lord will goe before you: and the God of Israel will be your rereward.
13 ¶ Behold, my seruant shal deale prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.
14 As many were astonied at thee (his visage was so marred more then any man, and his forme more then the sonnes of men:)
15 So shall hee sprinckle many nations, the kings shall shut their mouthes at him: for that which had not beene told them, shall they see, and that which they had not heard, shall they consider.
The welcome news of Christ's kingdom. (1-12) The humiliation of the Messiah. (13-15)1-12 The gospel proclaims liberty to those bound with fears. Let those weary and heavy laden under the burden of sin, find relief in Christ, shake themselves from the dust of their doubts and fears, and loose themselves from those bands. The price paid by the Redeemer for our salvation, was not silver or gold, or corruptible things, but his own precious blood. Considering the freeness of this salvation, and how hurtful to temporal comfort sins are, we shall more value the redemption which is in Christ. Do we seek victory over every sin, recollecting that the glory of God requires holiness in every follower of Christ? The good news is, that the Lord Jesus reigns. Christ himself brought these tidings first. His ministers proclaim these good tidings: keeping themselves clean from the pollutions of the world, they are beautiful to those to whom they are sent. Zion's watchmen could scarcely discern any thing of God's favour through the dark cloud of their afflictions; but now the cloud is scattered, they shall plainly see the performance. Zion's waste places shall then rejoice; all the world will have the benefit. This is applied to our salvation by Christ. Babylon is no place for Israelites. And it is a call to all in the bondage of sin and Satan, to use the liberty Christ has proclaimed. They were to go with diligent haste, not to lose time nor linger; but they were not to go with distrustful haste. Those in the way of duty, are under God's special protection; and he that believes this, will not hasten for fear.
13-15 Here begins that wonderful, minute, and faithful description of the office, character, and glory of the Messiah, which has struck conviction to many of the most hardened unbelievers. Christ is Wisdom itself; in the work of our redemption there appeared the wisdom of God in a mystery. Those that saw him, said, Surely never man looked so miserable: never was sorrow like unto his sorrow. But God highly exalted him. That shall be discovered by the gospel of Christ, which could never be told in any other way. And Christ having once shed his blood for sinners, its power still continues. May all opposers see the wisdom of ceasing from their opposition, and be made partakers of the blood of sprinkling, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost; obeying him, and praising his salvation.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.