Isaiah 62:6

Watchmen stationed upon the walls of Zion (says the third strophe) do not forsake Jehovah till He has fulfilled all His promise. "Upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, have I stationed watchmen; all the day and all the night continually they are not silent. O ye who remember Jehovah, leave yourselves no rest! And give Him no rest, till He raise up, and till He set Jerusalem for a praise in the earth." As the phrase hiphqı̄d ‛al signifies to make a person an overseer (president) over anything, it seems as though we ought to render the sentence before us, "I have set watchmen over thy walls." But hiphqı̄d by itself may also mean "to appoint" (Kg2 25:23), and therefore עלח־ומתיך may indicate the place of appointment (lxx ἐπὶ τῶν τειχέων σου, upon thy walls: ̔Ιερουσαλήμ κατέστησα φύλακας). Those who are stationed upon the walls are no doubt keepers of the walls; not, however, as persons whose exclusive duty it is to keep the walls, but as those who have committed to them the guarding of the city both within and without (Sol 5:7). The appointment of such watchmen presupposes the existence of the city, which is thus to be watched from the walls. It is therefore inadmissible to think of the walls of Jerusalem as still lying in ruins, as the majority of commentators have done, and to understand by the watchmen pious Israelites, who pray for their restoration, or (according to b. Menachoth 87a; cf., Zac 1:12) angelic intercessors. The walls intended are those of the city, which, though once destroyed, is actually imperishable (Isa 49:16) and has now been raised up again. And who else could the watchmen stationed upon the walls really be, but prophets who are called tsōphı̄m (e.g., Isa 52:8), and whose calling, according to Ezek 33, is that of watchmen? And if prophets are meant,…

Two things are here promised to Jerusalem: - I. Plenty of the means of grace - abundance of good preaching and good praying (Isa 62:6, Isa 62:7), and this shows the method God takes when he designs mercy for a people; he first brings them to their duty and pours out a spirit of prayer upon them, and then brings salvation to them. Provision is made, 1. That ministers may do their duty as watchmen. It is here spoken of as a token for good, as a step towards further mercy and an earnest of it, that, in order to what he designed for them, he would set watchmen on their walls who should never hold their peace. Note, (1.) Ministers are watchmen on the church's walls, for it is as a city besieged, whose concern it is to have sentinels on the walls, to take notice and give notice of the motions of the enemy. It is necessary that, as watchmen, they be wakeful, and faithful, and willing to endure hardness. (2.) They are concerned to stand upon their guard day and night; they must never be off their watch as long as those for whose souls they watch are not out of danger. (3.) They must never hold their peace; they must take all opportunities to give warning to sinners, in season, out of season, and must never betray the cause of Christ by a treacherous or cowardly silence. They must never hold their peace at the throne of grace; they must pray, and not faint, as Moses lifted up his hands and kept them steady, till Israel had obtained the victory over Amalek, Exo 17:10, Exo 17:12. 2. That people may do their duty. As those that make mention of the Lord, let not them keep silence neither, let not them think it enough that their watchmen pray for them, but let them pray for themselves; all will be little enough to meet the approaching mercy with due solemnity. Note, (1.) It is the ch…

62:6-7 The watchmen probably represent the prophets. • they will pray day and night: They will continually seek the full restoration and blessing of Zion, unlike the destructive watchmen of 56:10.