Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
The Jews refer these things to the restoration of Jerusalem, and of the Jewish kingdom, under their Messiah, whom they vainly await. St. Thomas and Hugo refer these things to the return of the Jews from the Babylonian captivity, and through that they think the joy and glory of the nations liberated by Christ from the slavery of sin and the devil is foreshadowed. But the Fathers generally, whom I will cite at verse 1, and the Interpreters, understand these things in themselves and properly of the golden age of the Gospel, and of the calling and glory of the nations. Note here: The Prophet is accustomed to append joyful things to sorrowful ones. Because therefore in the preceding chapter he described the sorrowful destruction of Idumaea, and under it the destruction of the world and the wicked at the end of the world; hence he passes here to the time of the Gospel, and to a joyful prophecy about the Church to be gloriously spread among the nations; whence he opposes many good things in this chapter by antithesis to the evils he threatened against the world in the preceding chapter. First, therefore, he teaches that the nations formerly deserted, to be cultivated by Christ, will be fruitful like Lebanon, Sharon, and Carmel. Secondly, at verse 5, he teaches that in the time of the Gospel the blind, deaf, lame, and mute will be healed, and that there will be among them no dragons and evil beasts, nor unclean persons. Then, at verse 10, he says they will go to Sion to eternal joys.
Vulgate Text: Isaiah 35:1-10
1. The desert and the pathless place shall be glad, and the wilderness shall rejoice, and shall blossom like the lily. 2. Budding it shall bud, and shall rejoice with joy and praise: the glory of Lebanon is given to it, the beauty of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the beauty of our God. 3. Strengthen the feeble hands, and make firm the weak knees. 4. Say to the fainthearted: Be strengthened, and fear not: behold, your God will bring the vengeance of recompense: God Himself will come, and will save you. 5. Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6. Then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute shall be opened: for waters are broken out in the desert, and torrents in the wilderness. 7. And that which was dry shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water. In the dens where dragons formerly dwelt, there shall spring up the green of reed and rush. 8. And there shall be a path and a way, and it shall be called the holy way: the unclean shall not pass through it, and this shall be the straight way for you, so that fools shall not err in it. 9. No lion shall be there, nor shall any evil beast go up through it, nor be found there: and those who have been set free shall walk in it. 10. And the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and shall come to Sion with praise: and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Verse 1: The desert shall be glad. — In Hebrew it is ששום iescusum, that is, they shall rejoice ...
1. The desert shall be glad. — In Hebrew it is ששום iescusum, that is, they shall rejoice in them, namely in the nations and the Idumaeans whom, in the preceding chapter, he said would be destroyed by God, that is to say: Among the unfaithful nations and Idumaeans to be destroyed, and therefore lamenting, the inhabitants of the desert who are to be converted to Christ will rejoice, namely the faithful Gentiles and Christians. Whence the Hebrew may be clearly translated as to sense thus: The desert and the wilderness shall be glad, and the dry land also shall exult, as Vatablus translates; he calls the Gentile world and the regions of the nations the desert, wilderness, and dry land, that is to say: The Gentile world, hitherto deserted by God, by salvation, justice, true religion, and the worship of God, will become a partaker of these, and heir to the holiness, graces, and joy which are in the Holy Spirit, through Christ. Whence the glory of Lebanon will be given to it, that is, it will succeed to the glory of the Synagogue and the Jews, so that it may be the faithful people and the Church beloved by God. So St. Jerome, Cyril, Theodoret, Eusebius, book VI of the Demonstration, chapter 21; Hilary on Psalm 65; Justin, Apology 2; Gregory of Nazianzus, oration 1 against Julian. Indeed Eusebius, Theodoret, Cyril, and Hilary think this oracle was fulfilled when Jesus came from Galilee to the desert of the Jordan, to be baptized by John. Add St. Hilary and Justin above, Prosper, Part III of the Predictions, chapter 13; Athanasius, book I On the Incarnation of the Word, who teach that Christ referred to this passage, when He was asked by the disciples of St. John: "Are You He who is to come, or do we look for another?" Matthew 11:3. For Christ answered them saying: "Go and tell John what you have heard and seen: The blind see, the lame walk," etc. Which things, here at verses 5 and 6, the Prophet predicts will happen under Christ and through Christ.
Rufinus and Palladius refer these things literally to Egypt in the time of St. Anthony, and afterward, abounding and as it were flourishing with the faithful and monks. Hear them; for citing this passage of Isaiah and explaining it, they say: "Although these things were said of the Church, yet in the deserts of Egypt they were fulfilled also in historical narrative; where as great multitudes come to salvation through the cities as the deserts of Egypt have produced; as great populations are found in the cities, so nearly as great multitudes of monks are found in the deserts, so that where sin (of idolatry) abounded, there grace may also abound," say Rufinus, book II of the Lives of the Fathers, chapter 7, and Palladius in the Lausiac History, chapter 52.
And it shall blossom like the lily. — For the lily blooms with wondrous beauty. In the lily are noted the purity of life and chastity of the Saints in the Church.
Verse 2: It shall bud. — The Church will produce new and abundant foliage, flowers, and fruits, ...
2. It shall bud. — The Church will produce new and abundant foliage, flowers, and fruits, both of new faithful, men as well as peoples; and of new virtues: for it will produce swarms of virgins, martyrs, monks, etc. But who will do these things? Who will bring about such a joyful metamorphosis in the desert? Surely the same One,
Who weaves the painted gardens with flowers, And Who commands the lilies to whiten the ruddy fields, And Who adorns the earth with violets and grass.
The glory of Lebanon is given to it. — Lebanon, although it was occupied by Gentiles, nevertheless belonged to the Jews, as is clear from Joshua chapter 13:6; and from Lebanon they brought frankincense, cedars, pines, and whatever was rare and excellent to Jerusalem. Lebanon therefore signifies the Jews and the Synagogue, as does Sharon, the most pleasant and fruitful field of Judaea, and Carmel, its most fertile mountain, that is to say: All the ornaments, riches, and sacred and spiritual delights of the Synagogue and the Jews will be transferred to the Church and the Gentiles. Whence Symmachus translates Sharon as "plains," says St. Jerome.
They shall see the glory of the Lord — namely the glorious miracles, the glorious Apostles, the glorious charisms of the Holy Spirit, the glorious Sacraments, ceremonies, and worship of sacred things.
Verse 3: Strengthen the feeble hands. — It is an apostrophe to the Apostles, that they should ro...
3. Strengthen the feeble hands. — It is an apostrophe to the Apostles, that they should rouse and encourage through the Gospel the nations, cast down, idle, and timid, to the pursuit of faith, salvation, and good works.
Make firm the weak knees. — For in the fainthearted, when they are struck with fear or heavy dread, the knees give way and as it were become dislocated, so that they stand astonished and cannot advance, but totter and waver. The cause is that fear in itself, and through the accompanying sorrow, contracts the heart; which, afflicted, to help itself, calls the vital spirits to itself: whence in the outer members, especially those more remote from the heart, such as the hands, knees, etc., cold, trembling, and sometimes pallor, stammering of the tongue, inability to act, and sometimes thirst will follow. So teach Aristotle in the Problems, section 27, Question 6; Macrobius, book VII, chapter 11; Gellius, book XIX, chapter 6, and Hieronymus Fracastorius, book I On Sympathy, chapters 15 and 19.
Verse 4: Say to the fainthearted — that is to say: Say, O Apostles, to the nations: Do not be fa...
4. Say to the fainthearted — that is to say: Say, O Apostles, to the nations: Do not be fainthearted, do not despair of belonging to the children of Abraham: God is able from stones to raise up children of Abraham: if you believe and obey Christ, you will be children of Abraham, even though you are children of idolaters, and have yourselves been idolaters up to now, without God, without faith, without conscience, fornicators, perjurers, blasphemers, etc., all these things baptism will wash away, and make you new men, indeed angels of God. This therefore you will be to God, what Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were. To this St. Paul alludes in Hebrews 12:12. See what was said there.
Behold, your God will bring the vengeance of recompense — by which namely Christ God, to whom the Father has given all judgment, John chapter 5, will expel the tyrant devil who has oppressed you until now, and will set you free in the liberty of the children of God. He says "of recompense," because God repays the devil in kind: for just as he tyrannically ruled over the nations, so now Christ and Christians rule over him severely and strictly. A similar passage is Psalm 71:4. So St. Jerome and others to be cited presently.
God Himself will come, and will save you. — Hence it is clear that God truly came into the world and our flesh, and consequently that Christ is truly God. For to Christ belong the following: "Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened," etc., as is clear from Matthew chapter 11:5 and Matthew chapter 15:30. So teach St. Jerome, Cyril here, Irenaeus, book III, chapter 22; Cyprian, book II Against the Jews, chapter 7; Eusebius, book VI of the Demonstration, chapter 21; Athanasius, in the book On the Humanity of the Word, past the middle; Augustine, in the book On Five Heresies, chapter 6. A similar passage is below, at chapter 52:6.
Note: For "God" the Hebrew has Elohim, that is, God who governs, provides, rules, and judges the world. Christ therefore came into the world to govern, care for, and save it as Elohim, to protect those oppressed by the devil and set them free. Again, for "will save us" the Hebrew has ישעכם iosaachem (that is, He will save you); whence the name Jesus, that is, Savior, that is to say: Elohim will come in the flesh, to be our Jesus. If with different vowel points you read ישעכם iissachem, it will mean He will delight, He will gladden you. For Jesus is the joy and jubilation of our heart.
Verse 5: Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened — that is, the nations formerly blind in the...
5. Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened — that is, the nations formerly blind in the eyes of the mind, and living in the darkness of unbelief, will be illuminated by the light and splendor of the Gospel. The same are said to have been deaf, to receiving the words and law of God, but now to hear it and obey it. As a symbol of this, Christ bodily illuminated and healed many blind, deaf, lame, etc., and at the same time restored to them the spiritual light of the mind, hearing, and the ability to walk, and, having purged them of sins, endowed them with His grace, as St. Augustine teaches. Whence St. Hilary and others, as I said at verse 1, think Christ alluded to this passage in Matthew 11, when He says: "The blind see, the lame walk," etc., on which see again chapter 61:1.
Verse 6: Then shall the lame man leap like a deer. — That is, the Gentiles who were limping, tha...
6. Then shall the lame man leap like a deer. — That is, the Gentiles who were limping, that is, straying from the way of virtue with a doubtful and wavering step, being strengthened and directed by Christ, will walk straight, indeed they will leap through it into heaven.
And the tongue of the mute shall be opened. — The same, who were eloquent in earthly and worldly matters, but speechless and mute in divine matters, will become articulate, and will discourse with great wisdom and spirit about grace, virtue, Christ, God and the Most Holy Trinity, blessedness, eternity, etc.
For waters are broken out in the desert. — The word "for" gives the cause of the preceding things, and shows that they are to be understood not corporally but spiritually, that is to say: Therefore shall the eyes of the blind be opened, etc., "for in the desert," that is, in the Gentile world, "are broken out," in Hebrew, will break forth, that is, waters will burst forth abundantly and spread themselves, that is, spiritual charisms: "and the thirsty," that is, the same barren Gentile world, will become "springs of waters," that is, it will have springs of waters (that is, of graces) leaping up to eternal life. So St. Cyril and Theodoret.
Secondly and more aptly, Sanchez thinks the word "for" here does not give the cause, but joins the extremes, and is the same as "and," that is to say: The lame shall leap, the mute shall speak, and waters shall break forth in the desert: for the cause is not fittingly given here, nor is it said: "The lame shall leap, because waters have broken forth:" for what do waters have to do with leaping?
Verse 7: In the dens where dragons formerly dwelt, there shall spring up the green of reed and r...
7. In the dens where dragons formerly dwelt, there shall spring up the green of reed and rush. — He said in the preceding chapter that in devastated and deserted Idumaea onocentaurs, hairy ones, and lamias, that is, dragons, would dwell: here conversely he says that in the deserted Gentile world, where dragons dwelt (for being dry creatures they love arid places), reed and rush will spring up, which grow only in a moist place, and therefore no longer desert but fertile, that is to say: In the cities and souls of the Gentiles, which were the dens, that is, the proper dwelling places, of dragons, that is, of demons and vices, the green of grace and virtues will spring up, so that they may become temples of the Holy Spirit.
It was the opinion of the Chaldeans that beasts dwell in the heart of a wicked man. For unbridled appetites, which reason does not restrain from wandering far and wide to their own and others' destruction, are called beasts. Hence flowed that apophthegm of theirs: "Beasts of the earth inhabit the vessel of the wicked." Wherefore the Egyptians, by a deer drawing serpents from their caves, signified a judge punishing the wicked. This is what Pythagoras meant when he said the souls of the wicked migrate into brute beasts, that is, they are made brutish because of their brutish morals. Hence arose the fable of Circe, transforming men into various beasts. Whence Theocritus: "Those," he says, "whom virtue and wisdom have looked upon, will not be able to be corrupted by the cups of Circe."
Was not St. Mary Magdalene, on whose feast day I write this, a den of dragons, when she was possessed both in body and mind by seven demons? But when these were cast out by Christ, Luke 7, how great were the waters of penance and tears that came forth from this desert! How great the green of charity, of prayer, of contemplation, and of all the virtues!
"I found him whom my soul loves: I held him; nor will I let him go. Stay me with flowers, compass me about with apples; for I languish with love. Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, jealousy is hard as hell: its lamps are lamps of fire and flames." Indeed she herself, set ablaze by this divine fire, clung continually to Christ, and sitting at His feet she assiduously attended to His words: she followed and accompanied Christ teaching and preaching everywhere, through the Scribes and Pharisees, even to the cross and death: she herself fearlessly stood by the cross, she herself anointed the dead Christ with spices, she could not be torn from His sepulcher: whence she was the first to deserve to see Him rising. Then sent into exile by the Jews, by God's direction she arrived in Gaul, and there disseminated the faith of Christ: and at last, drunk with love for her beloved, she withdrew to a mountain near Marseilles, and set herself up as a model of penance for all ages. For there for 30 years, without food or drink, in sweet tears of love, and in constant meditation and contemplation of her beloved, she lived a life not human but angelic: whence, carried up to heaven seven times daily by Angels, O Blessed one!
To hear the angelic choirs singing alternate Songs — from the prison of the body you were worthy.
Verse 8: And there shall be a path and a way — namely narrow, straight, and holy, which leads to...
8. And there shall be a path and a way — namely narrow, straight, and holy, which leads to heaven, that is to say: This former desert, namely the Church, will not be pathless or inaccessible, as wildernesses are wont to be, as well as swamps in which reeds and rushes grow; but there will be a narrow and straight way and path, namely of faith and penance, which will lead those willing to go there, and it will be called holy: because it leads to the Church which is holy, and from there to heaven and the company of the Saints who are in it. The Septuagint translates: there will be the joy of citizens, namely of holy souls, who by mind and a wondrous harmony of virtues call others to heaven. So St. Jerome and Cyril.
The unclean shall not pass through it. — That is to say: The way to the Church will be holy, that is, pure and clean: because no unclean person who might defile it will pass through it. He calls the Gentile and the sinner persisting in their unbelief or crimes unclean: for to these the way to the Church is not open; but only to the penitent, who, when they wish to come to their senses and be converted, even though they are unclean, are cleansed of all pollution and filth on this way through the washing of baptism; whence they now approach it not as unclean but as cleansed. He alludes to the temple of Jerusalem, from whose entrance the unclean and impure were barred: for this holy temple was a type of the holy Church.
Now this straight way is the doctrine of the Gospel, which whoever enters and follows must repent, change their life for the better, and live holily. For this doctrine requires, and as far as it can, produces minds that love integrity and holiness, that tend toward it, and make progress in it: but it turns away from and repels those who wallow and persist in their vices. In the same manner in which the way to the Church is called holy, the Church itself is also called holy, because namely it is called to holiness, supplies all the means for holiness, and demands and makes holy those who obey it. So St. Cyril and Jerome, and this is clear from what follows.
Foolishly therefore do heretics conclude from this passage that there are no unclean persons and sinners in the Church, but only the just and holy, indeed only the predestined and elect; for the Prophet does not say that through the Church, but that through the way which leads straight to the Church, the unclean will not pass.
Verse 9: No evil beast shall go up through it. — In desolated Idumaea, in the preceding chapter,...
9. No evil beast shall go up through it. — In desolated Idumaea, in the preceding chapter, he said there would be onocentaurs and evil beasts: to this he opposes the Church, from which God will expel and keep them away, that is to say: The demons and their machinations, snares, and assaults, and all things harmful as well as terrifying, Christ will remove from the Church. So St. Jerome, Cyril, and Theodoret. Leo Castrius refers these things to the exorcisms of baptism, by which the demon is put to flight from the one being baptized.
And the redeemed of the Lord shall return — from their former worship and impiety to the chaste and pious sacred rites of Christ.
And they shall come to Sion — that is, to the Church both militant and rather triumphant and heavenly: for to this the liberated and redeemed are heading, not to the militant, for they are already in it: and the way already mentioned, which leads to the Church militant, leads also through it to the triumphant. So St. Jerome and St. Augustine, sermon 27 on the Feast of All Saints, volume 10, and Tertullian, in the book On the Resurrection of the Flesh, and this is clear from what follows; for he says:
And everlasting joy upon their heads — that is, upon those elect and blessed redeemed by Christ: for "head" is put for the person, the part for the whole by synecdoche. Or properly upon the head itself: for he alludes to the bridal crown, which used to be placed upon the head of the bride, with which, amid singing and jubilation, she was led from the fields into Sion, that is to say: Christ will lead His faithful and holy ones into the heavenly Sion in the manner in which a bridegroom is accustomed to lead his uniquely beloved bride into Sion with nuptial applause, with the wedding crown, with joy so great and so full that all sorrow and sighing is driven far away. So Sanchez. This is what Esdras expressly and beautifully says, book IV, chapter 2:34, and is cited in the Ecclesiastical Office during Eastertide: "Wait, O nations, for your shepherd; He will give you the rest of eternity: be prepared for the rewards of the kingdom, for perpetual light will shine upon you through the eternity of time: flee the shadow of this world, receive the pleasantness of your glory: be glad, giving thanks to Him who has called you to the heavenly kingdom: rise and stand and see the number of those sealed (to these sealed ones John alludes, Revelation 7:9) at the banquet of the Lord: those who have passed from the shadow of this world, splendid
received garments from the Lord;" and a little further on:
"I, Esdras, saw on Mount Sion a great multitude which I could not number, and they were all praising the Lord with songs. And in their midst was a young man of lofty stature, taller than all of them, and upon each of their heads he placed crowns. Then I asked the Angel, and said: Who are these, Lord? And he answering said to me: These are they who have put off the mortal garment and put on the immortal, and have confessed the name of God: now they are crowned, and they receive palms. And I said to the Angel: That young man, who is he who places crowns upon them, and puts palms in their hands? And he answering said to me: He is the Son of God, whom they confessed in the world. And I began to glorify those who stood bravely for the name of God."
And Tobit, chapter 13, verse 21: "The gates of Jerusalem," he says, "shall be built of sapphire and emerald, and all the circuit of its walls of precious stone. All its streets shall be paved with white and clean stone, and through its lanes alleluia shall be sung. Blessed be the Lord, who has exalted it, and may His kingdom be over it for ages upon ages."
And Boethius, book III of the Consolation, prose 2: "Eternity," he says, "is the whole, simultaneous, and perfect possession of boundless life." Eternity therefore is, first, without end; second, it is vital and ever-living; third, it is all at once; fourth, it is the perfect possession of life and of every good. In the goods of this life nothing is perfect, much is lacking: you have riches, honor is lacking; you have honor, health is lacking; you have health, knowledge is lacking; you have knowledge, eloquence and charm are lacking. And at a sumptuous banquet, as soon as you have eaten you are sated, appetite is lacking, pleasure is lacking: you are weighed down by food, vigor and alertness of spirit are lacking, peace of mind is lacking, often the place and honor you seek are lacking. In eternal life the Blessed enjoy all goods simultaneously: for they possess the riches of God, the knowledge of God, the delights of God, the strength of God, of Paradise, of the Angels, and of all the Saints: and they have all these things simultaneously, and will have them present for all eternity. Will they not therefore obtain everlasting joy upon their heads, gladness and exultation?
What then is blessed eternity? Let us ask those who have entered it and enjoy it. Tell us, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John, what is blessed eternity? We are not able fully and distinctly to conceive, explain, and express it. How long have you been in it? Fifteen hundred years. How far have you progressed in it? We have scarcely even begun it! Have fifteen hundred elapsed years plucked anything from your eternity? Not an hour, not a single moment, not even a jot — it is exactly as if we were just now beginning it: equally new, equally pleasant, equally long does it seem to us, and eternal delight remains. What then is your eternity, so happy, so blessed? It is an abyss of joys, it is an abyss of times, it is an abyss of ages: our times, our joys, our ages have no bottom, have no end; their limit and goal, however wise and clear-sighted we may be, we cannot perceive; we cannot measure and gauge our eternity; there is no measure that matches it: of our kingdom, of our happiness, of our glory and joy, there shall be no end, never an end, never a limit. Tell, O St. Catherine, St. Lucy, St. Agnes, who fought for chastity even to death, who conquered fires, racks, and beasts, what and how great is your eternity! Tell, O St. Jerome, St. Macarius, Anthony, St. Romuald, St. Elijah, Elisha, who for 50, 60, 100 years renounced all the pleasures of the world, led an austere life, went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, destitute, afflicted, tormented — of whom the world was not worthy! What have you received for such great labors? What is your everlasting joy? Tell, O St. Stephen, St. Lawrence, St. Vincent! Tell, O St. Clement of Ancyra and Agathangelos, who for 28 continuous years bravely and nobly endured racks, fires, scaffolds, scourging, continual and long martyrdom! What is your joy, what and how great the crown of your eternity? We had a moment of anguish; it has long since passed and vanished: we now have an eternal delight that will never pass; but it will always be today, always present to us. Now we follow the Lamb, and we sing: "You have made us a kingdom and priests to our God; and we shall reign for ages upon ages. Your kingdom, O Lord, is a kingdom of all ages, and Your dominion is in every generation and generation." Think of ages upon ages, think of all descendants and generations, think of all times present, past, future, and possible; you will not yet equal our eternity: through all these times, through all these generations, through all these ages upon ages, we shall reign, delight, triumph with Christ and all the Saints in every pleasure and joy forever.