Isaiah 9:3

Thou hast multiplied the nation,.... With light, knowledge, honour, and glory, even Galilee of the nations before mentioned, the land of darkness, and of the shadow of death, where the people dwelt;

Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

Thou hast multiplied the nation; thou hast made good thy promise to Abraham concerning the multiplication of his seed, 22:17, by adding his spiritual seed unto the carnal, by gathering in the Gentiles to the Jews, and making them both one people in Christ, , &c. For in Scripture account the believing Gentiles are the seed of Abraham as well as the Jews; of which see . Or, thou hast magnified the nation; honoured them with peculiar privileges above all other nations, and especially with this transcendent privilege, that the Messiah and Saviour of the world should be born of them, and live among them; of which he speaks more fully ,7. And not increased the joy; or, yet not increased their joy; which might very truly and fitly be said of the Jewish nation upon this occasion, partly because they did not rejoice in the conversion of the Gentiles, as they should have done, but murmured, and grieved, and stumbled at it; and partly because, through their perverseness and unbelief, that would be unto them an occasion of their utter ruin, the conversion of the Gentiles being attended with the rejection of the Jews. But because this translation seems not to agree with the following words, which ascribe great joy to them, some render the words otherwise; either thus, and wilt thou not increase their joy? to which question the next words give an affirmative answer. So the Hebrew particle lo is put interrogatively for halo, as it is in many other places, which I have formerly observed. Or thus, and hast increased to it, or him, or them (to that nation) their joy. For though the Hebrew lo be written like an adverb, yet it may be read like a pronoun, as it is both by Jewish and Christian interpreters acknowledged to be in many places; of which see more in my Latin Synopsis. They joy before thee; in thy presence, and in the place of thy worship; not with a carnal and worldly, but with a spiritual and religious joy, giving thee the praise and glory of all thy favours afforded to them. According to the joy in harvest; when men receive with great joy that for which they have laboured much and long waited. See ,6. When they divide the spoil; when, after a bloody fight, and a glorious victory, they come to take the spoil.

Isaiah 9:3 Thou hast multiplied the nation, [and] not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, [and] as [men] rejoice when they divide the spoil.Ver. 3. Thou hast multiplied the nation.] Or, "Never since thou multipliedst this people, didst thou give them such joy" - i.e., such matter of joy as now thou intendest to do. Or thus, "Thou wilt multiply this nation, thou wilt increase their joy"; especially by sending thy Son, who is called "the gift," "the benefit," such as wherein all discontents are soon swallowed up. Everlasting joy shall be upon the heads of the Lord’ s ransomed ones, they "shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." They joy before thee.] Pleasure there must be in the ways of God, because therein men let out their souls into God, the fountain of all good. Christ’ s chariot is paved with love. According to the joy in harvest.] And a great deal more. They do "over abound exceedingly with joy." Joys they have "unspeakable, and full of glory." And as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.] Wherein the pleasure is usually more than the profit, and yet the profit oft very great too, and as at the sack of Constantinople, at the wealth whereof the Turks themselves wondered, and derided their folly that possessing so much they would bestow so little in the defence of themselves and their country. Turkish History, fol. 345.

(3) Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy . . .—Better, following the marginal reading of the Hebrew: Thou hast increased its joy. The picture is one of unmingled brightness; the return as of a golden age, the population growing to an extent never attained before (comp. Isaiah 26:15; Jeremiah 31:27; Ezekiel 36:11), and scarcely admits of the dark shadow introduced by the reading of the text, unless, with some critics (Kay), we see in the words a contrast between the outward prosperity of the days of Solomon and Uzziah, in which there was no permanent joy, and the abundancy of joyfulness under the ideal king. They joy before thee according to the joy in harvest . . .—The words “before thee” are significant. The gladness of the people is that of worshippers at a sacrificial feast (Isaiah 25:6; Deuteronomy 12:7; Deuteronomy 12:12; Deuteronomy 12:18), who find the secret spring of blessing in their consciousness of the presence of Jehovah. So the New Testament writers speak of “rejoicing in the Lord” (Philippians 3:1), of “joy in the Holy Ghost” (Romans 14:17). This “joy of harvest” represents the peaceful side of that gladness, thought of as the gift of God (Acts 14:17). But it had another aspect. It was the rejoicing after a conflict, historically with foes like the Assyrians, spiritually with all powers hostile to the true kingdom of God (Matthew 12:29). The joy of the conquerors on the battle-field, like that of harvest, had become proverbial (Psalms 119:162).

Verse 3. And not increased the joy - "Thou hast increased their joy"] Eleven MSS. of Kennicott's and six of De Rossi's, two ancient, read לו lo, it, according to the Masoretical correction, instead of לא lo, not. To the same purpose the Targum and Syriac. The joy in harvest] כשמחת בקציר kesimchath bakkatsir. For bakkatsir one MS. of Kennicott's and one of De Rossi's have קציר katsir, and another הקציר hakkatsir, "the harvest;" one of which seems to be the true, reading, as the noun preceding is in regimine.

3. and not increased the joy] Lit., “unto it thou hast increased the joy.” Lτ’, “not” and lτ, “to it,” being pronounced alike, are sometimes confused in the text of the O.T. There is no reason for assuming such a confusion here, and R.V. (“thou hast increased their joy”) rightly adheres to the Massoretic text. But it is still better to adopt a very simple emendation, approved by many expositors (δπιμδ for δπειμΰ) and translate: Thou hast multiplied the exultation; thou hast increased the joy. before thee] as at the festivals in the sanctuary, a phrase often used in Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 12:7, Isaiah 14:26, &c.). the joy in harvest] Psalms 4:8; Psalms 126:5-6. as men rejoice when they divide the spoil] cf. ch. Isaiah 33:23; Judges 5:30; Psalms 119:162. For “rejoice” read exult.

Thou hast multiplied the nation - Thou hast rendered the nation strong, powerful, mighty.

3. Hast multiplied the nation — What nation? The true spiritual Israel — all adherents to Messiah — who come in place of the old Israel, undoubtedly come now into the prophet’s foreground.