Commentaria in Isaiam
Moreover, who can explain how glorious are the sepulchres of the Saints Peter and Paul? One may see three fountains springing from the severed head of St. Paul, celebrating his glory in all ages. One may see the basilicas built by Constantine in their honour, and a marvel of the world, finished and completed. One may see Prelates and Princes prostrate at their sepulchres, kissing the dust of the pavement, making vows, and so on. This is their fame after death, this is the glory of all his Saints, these the crowns, these the triumphs. No sepulchres now remain of Pompey, Scipio, Augustus, Nero, Trajan; their memory has perished with a sound: but the sepulchres of the Apostles, Martyrs and Virgins gleam with marble, gold and gems, are celebrated and adored: because they await the blessed resurrection in the glory which their souls already enjoy. This is the laurel of virtue.
When the Emperor Constantine had died, his son Constantine did not dare to bury him within the basilica of the Holy Apostles, but in its porch. Which in the homily on the Second Epistle to the Corinthians is explained thus: “Here too (at Constantinople) the son thought he would honour Constantine the Great with great honour only if he laid him in the Fisherman’s vestibule; and what doorkeepers are in the courts of emperors, that in the sepulchre are the emperors to fishermen. And they, as lords, hold the inner parts of the place, but these, as dwellers and neighbours, thought it well with them if the door of the vestibule were assigned to them.” The emperors, therefore, are the doorkeepers of the holy Apostles.
Verse 11. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand the second time to possess the remnant of his people. What is this second possession of the people by God? First, St. Jerome thinks the first possession of God was the Gentiles, who were first converted to Christ; the second, the Jews, who after the Gentiles are to believe.
Second, St. Thomas, Haymo, Dionysius and Lyranus answer that the first possession was the faithful, whom Christ by his own preaching converted, and the second those whom the Apostles converted after Christ’s ascension.
Third, others think the first possession was at the first coming of Christ, and the second will be at the second; for then the remnant of the Jews will be saved.
Fourth, Sanchez says that the first possession was Ezechias and the Jews, whom God snatched from the hands of Sennacherib and claimed for himself; the second was the Jews who were sent back by Cyrus from Babylon to Judea. But the Prophet indeed alludes to the return from Babylon, and touches on it in passing as a type, but under it he understands another, more noble. Fifth, and best: the first calling and possession of the people by God was when God called out the Jews through Moses, and led them out of the Egyptian slavery, and bound them to himself on Sinai by the law. The second was that by which he freed the Christians through Christ from the slavery of the devil, and bound them to himself on Sion by the Gospel: for that former was the type and figure of the latter, as is plain from the last verse. The sense, therefore, is this: As God saved his people out of Egypt, and gave them the first law on tables of stone, and so made them his people and his own possession, Exodus 19:5; so Christ by his coming will free the faithful from sin and eternal death, and will give a new law, by which he will add certain things to the old law, whereby it is made more perfect, and by preaching, faith and his grace he will possess the hearts of believers, and the whole Church for ever.
Which shall be left from the Assyrians, and from Egypt, and so on. He lists the various provinces through which, on account of wars and diverse disasters, the Israelites were scattered, to be gathered by the Apostles, that they may be possessed by Christ and the Church: for first, they were led away to the Assyrians by Salmanasar.
Second, many were carried off into Egypt with king Joachaz by Pharao Nechao, 4 Kings 23:33.
Third, they fled “into Phetros,” that is, into Arabia Petraea, whose capital was the city of Petra; or to the Parthians, or rather into Phaturae, which is a city of Egypt: for the Jews flying from the Chaldeans betook themselves to it, as is plain from Jeremias 44:1. For “Phetros” and “Phatures” are written in Hebrew with the same letters, and are distinguished only by the points. So Sanchez.
Fourth, under the name “Elam” there were formerly comprised Persians, Medes, Sogdianians and Bactrians: afterwards, however, the region of the Elamites was contracted, and the part which lies above the river Eulaeus was called Elamitic; the part below was called Susiana. In this way St. Jerome is to be reconciled, who with Daniel, chapter 8, places Susa in Elamitis, with the Gentile writers, who hold that Susa was a part of Persia, namely their royal city, and that it gave its name to the province of Susiana. See Pererius on Daniel chapter 8, book 9, question 4. The city “Elam” gave its name to the region, which Benjamin in the Itinerary wrongly confuses with the city of Susa.
Fifth, “Sennaar” is Babylonia. “Emath” looks toward Libanus, not far from Damascus, from which to the brook, or torrent, of Egypt the length of the land of promise is described in Sacred Scripture.
Sixth, “the islands of the sea” are called Greece, Italy, Spain, and the whole western region, which is, as it were, enclosed by the circuit of the Ocean, far narrower than that vast Asia and Africa. So St. Jerome and Cyril. The sense now is this: wherever in places and nations the remnants of the Jews have been scattered, from there they will be called out by God, and converted to Christ, as I said in the preceding chapter, verse 21. So St. Jerome, Basil, Cyril and Procopius.
Verse 12. And he shall set up a standard unto the nations. As a general raises a standard and with it calls together his soldiers who are scattered or have fled into other regions, so Christ will raise the standard of the cross, and the cross of Christ will be preached and set up among all nations, which, converted to Christ, will flow together to this his standard, as will also the remnants of the Jews and Israelites: this was begun by the Apostles, but will be completed at the end of the world.
Verse 13. And the envy of Ephraim shall be taken away, and the enemies of Juda shall perish. Sanchez takes by envy the zeal of vengeance, with which God, by punishing, pursued the enemies of Ephraim, that is, the Samaritans and Jews.
But St. Jerome, Basil, Cyril, Vatablus and others take by envy the rivalries and hatreds which were very great between the kingdom of Ephraim, that is, of the ten tribes, and the kingdom of Juda. Hence the Prophet, explaining, adds: “Ephraim shall not envy Juda,” and so on; as if to say: the schism, rivalry and wars which the ten tribes have continually waged against the two will then cease: “and the enemies of Juda shall perish,” that is, shall cease to be; because both will return together and gather into the one fold of Christ. This began to be fulfilled in the Apostles, some of whom were sprung from the ten tribes, others from the two, says Eusebius, and is more fulfilled day by day; but most fully will it be done at the end of the world. Ezechiel foretold the same, chapter 37, verse 17, saying that the two sticks should be joined together.
Oecolampadius gathers from this passage that heretics bring forth various doctrines and are divided among themselves, while true Christians think alike and agree among themselves. Well said, rascal; you never said anything truer. But did you not cherish in many things a doctrine contrary to Luther? and in the mystery of the Eucharist, dissenting from him, did you not side with the Zwinglians? Therefore, by your own judgment, you and your Luther were heretics: Catholics, who have always thought the same in all the dogmas of the faith, and agree among themselves, have been, are and will be true and orthodox Christians.
Verse 14. And they shall fly. A learned interpreter refers these things to the time of the Machabees, who, avenging former injuries, subdued Philistia to themselves. Moreover, to fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines, he says, is nothing other than to have them subject for the weight of burdens, and for performing all the duties of servants.
But we, with the Fathers, understand these things of the people of Gaza, Ascalon and the other Philistines converted to Christ. How the Church flourished among them in the time of St. Athanasius and Chrysostom may be seen in Adrichomius and Baronius; for these things, like the preceding, look to the times and triumphs of Christ; as if to say: The remnant of the Jews, that is, the Apostles and others of them who believed, will most eagerly set out against the Philistines, Syrians, and other nations, Eastern and Western, both by land and by sea in ships, to snatch them from the yoke of the devil and subject them to Christ. So Thomas preyed upon India, Bartholomew Armenia, Matthew Ethiopia. So St. Jerome, Basil, Cyril. Moreover, to fly upon the shoulders or necks of enemies belongs to most fierce soldiers who breathe nothing but war, so that they fly and leap even upon the shoulders and necks of giants. So Jacob, Genesis 49, says to Juda: “Thy hands shall be on the necks of thy enemies.”