entering upon
His vocation as the Saviour of the Gentiles. Those who understood the
people by the Servant of the Lord refer [Hebrew: lwibb] to Jehovah, and
consider it as a Gerund. [Pg 240] _reducendo_, or _qui reducit ad se
Jacobum_. In the same way they explain also the Infinit. with [Hebrew:
l] in the following verse, as also in chap. li. 16. But although the
Infinit. with [Hebrew: l] is sometimes, indeed, used for the Gerund.,
yet this is neither the original nor the ordinary use; and nowhere does
it occur in such accumulation. Moreover, by this explanation, this
verse, as well as the following ones, are altogether broken up, and the
words [Hebrew: lwvbb ieqb aliv] must indicate the destination for which
He was formed. And it is not possible that Jehovah's bringing Jacob
back to himself should be a display of Israel's being formed from the
womb to be the Servant, inasmuch as the bringing back would not, like
the formation, belong to the first stage of the existence of the
people.--"_And Israel, which is not gathered._" Before [Hebrew: awr],
[Hebrew: la] must be supplied. According to the parallel words: "To
bring Jacob again to Him," the not gathering of Israel is to be
referred to its having wandered away from the Lord. It was appropriate
that this should be expressly mentioned, and not merely supposed, as is
the case in: "To bring Jacob again to Him." The image which lies at the
foundation, is that of a scattered flock; comp. Mic. ii. 12. Parallel
is Isaiah liii. 6: "All we _like sheep_ have gone astray, we have
turned every one to his own way."--To the words under consideration the
Lord alludes in Matt. xxiii. 37: [Greek: hIerousalem ... posakis
ethelesa epi sunagagein ta tekna sou hon tropon episunagei ornis ta
nossia heautes hupo tas pterugas kai ouk ethelesate]; comp. also Matt.
ix. 36: [Greek: idon de tous ochlous esplanchnisthe peri auton hoti
esan eskulmenoi kai erhrimmenoi hosei probata me echonta poimena.] On
account of chap. xi. 12, it will not do to take [Hebrew: asP] in the
signification of "to snatch away," "to carry off," as is done by
_Hitzig_. Moreover [Hebrew: nasP] means, indeed, "to be gathered," but
never "to be carried off" The Mazoreths would read [Hebrew: la] for
[Hebrew: lv]: "And that Israel might be gathered to _Him_." Thus it is
rendered, among the ancient translators, by _Aquila_ and the Chaldee;
while _Symmachus_, _Theodoret_, and the Vulgate express the negation.
Most of the modern int