Introduction: Before Entering the Book
We begin Sefer Yeshayahu, and before delving into the verses, it is fitting to provide a brief introduction to the prophet and his book: his place in the order of the Prophets, the time period of his prophecy, his stature, the divisions of the book, and the teachings of Chazal concerning him.
חֲזוֹן יְשַׁעְיָהוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ אֲשֶׁר חָזָה עַל־יְהוּדָה וִירוּשָׁלִָֹם בִּימֵי עֻזִּיָּהוּ יוֹתָם אָחָז יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ מַלְכֵי יְהוּדָה׃ - The vision of Yeshayahu the son of Amotz, which he saw concerning Yehudah and Yerushalayim in the days of Uzziyahu, Yotam, Achaz, and Yechizkiyahu, kings of Yehudah.
The Order of the Prophets - Why Yeshayahu Appears Later in the Order of the Canon
Chazal state: The order of the Prophets is Yirmeyahu, Yechezkel, Yeshayahu, and Trei Asar (the Twelve Minor Prophets). This means that naturally, following Sefer Melachim, we would learn Yirmeyahu, followed by Yechezkel, and then Yeshayahu. However, one must recognize that chronologically, Yeshayahu preceded both Yirmeyahu and Yechezkel; this sequence is merely the order of their placement in the canon.
Why, then, was he not placed first? Because Sefer Melachim concludes with tragedy and exile. Yirmeyahu is a book that is entirely calamity - he is the prophet of wrath regarding the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash. Yechezkel is mixed: its beginning is calamity, and its conclusion is consolation. Yeshayahu is predominantly consolation, with relatively few prophecies of retribution. Therefore, our Sages juxtaposed calamity with calamity: after Melachim, which ends with calamity, comes Yirmeyahu, which is entirely calamity; followed by Yechezkel, which begins with calamity and ends with consolation; and juxtaposed to the concluding consolation of Yechezkel comes Yeshayahu, which is filled with consolation.
In these books, there are prophecies of rebuke and consolation for Israel, as well as prophecies of retribution against the nations of the world for everything they did to us - the burden of Bavel, the burden of Edom, and others. These were recorded to show us what the Holy One, Blessed is He, prophesied concerning those nations, and how Hashem ultimately exacts retribution from them for what they inflicted upon the Jewish people.
When His Prophecy Began
The book opens with "The vision of Yeshayahu," but one should know that his prophecy began in the year of King Uzziyahu's death - where it is written that when Uzziyahu was stricken with tzara'at, Yeshayahu was dispatched to him. The Radak, in his introduction, is uncertain about this matter: one could say that he had already begun prophesying at the beginning of Uzziyahu's reign and was only sent specifically to him in the year of his death, or one could say that the prophecy itself began in the year of King Uzziyahu's death, which was when he experienced his first prophetic vision.
Why do commentators hold that his first mission occurred in the year of Uzziyahu's death? Because it is stated there: "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" and Yeshayahu replied: "Here I am, send me" - implying that his prophetic mission began at that point. The Radak still maintains his doubt, since one could explain: "Here I am" - for I have already prophesied until now; "send me" - to continue the mission from now on. Nevertheless, many commentators, among them Rashi, accept that Yeshayahu's mission began from that moment of "Here I am, send me."
Why Yeshayahu Preceded Yirmeyahu in Sephardic Codices
The Radak writes that in Sephardic manuscripts, Yeshayahu is placed adjacent to Sefer Melachim, with Yirmeyahu following it, even though according to Chazal the sequence is Yirmeyahu followed by Yeshayahu. The Abarbanel offers several reasons for this: First, Yeshayahu was earlier chronologically. Second, Yeshayahu came from royal lineage - his father Amotz and King Amatzyahu were brothers - and out of honor for his belonging to the tribe of Yehudah, the royal tribe, they placed him first. Third, the level of his prophecy was superior: Yeshayahu spoke through vision (chazon), in a clear sight rather than a dream, which is why it is called "The vision of Yeshayahu" - and chazon is the highest level among prophetic degrees. Fourth, Yeshayahu is replete with consolations, and out of a desire to impart words of comfort, they gave precedence to the consolation of Israel.
The Three Parts of the Book According to the Ramban
The Ramban writes in Sefer HaGeulah that the Book of Yeshayahu is divided into three parts. The first part, from the beginning of the book until the downfall of Sancheriv - most of the prophecies there concern the oppressor Sancheriv and his downfall. The second part begins after the miracle took place, and in it he prophesies about their redemption from Babylon - "Comfort, comfort My people"; there he no longer mentions Ephraim, but only Yehudah, because Ephraim had already been exiled, and none remained except Yehudah. The third part begins with "I, even I, am He Who comforts you" - that is, comforting you from the third exile just as I comforted you from the second exile, when they were exiled to Babylon.
Therefore, in the third part we do not find Babylon mentioned, but rather Edom, for it speaks of the exile in which we currently find ourselves - the exile of Edom and also the exile of Yishmael. Anyone who has heard the lessons on Daniel will see that our exile is referred to by both names, because we are subjugated to both: to Edom - to the point where we cannot build a porch here without Uncle Sam's approval; and to Yishmael - the Arab nations surrounding us, who press upon us and torment us. It is about this era that Yeshayahu prophesies in the third part, heralding that we are destined to emerge from it.
How Many Years He Prophesied
According to the view that he began prophesying at the beginning of the reign of Uziyahu, it turns out that he prophesied for approximately one hundred and thirteen years - from the beginning of the reign of Uziyahu until after the reign of Chizkiyahu, as Menashe the son of Chizkiyahu was the one who killed him. And if we say that he began only at the end of Uziyahu's days, when he said "Here I am, send me," it turns out that he prophesied for sixty-one years. Some say that he lived for one hundred and twenty years.
The Greatest of the Prophets
Chazal say regarding his book: One who sees Yeshayahu in a dream should anticipate comfort, because the Book of Yeshayahu consists mostly of consolations. Chazal also said that Yeshayahu was the greatest of the prophets. Two prophets prophesied using this expression, the term chazon (vision): Yeshayahu and Ovadiah. Furthermore, he was a prophet the son of a prophet - for whenever a prophet's name and his father's name are mentioned in Tanach, his father was also a prophet; therefore, from what is stated, "Yeshayahu the son of Amotz," we learn that Amotz was also a prophet. And four prophets prophesied in one era, that is, during the same period: Hoshea, who was the first of them, Yeshayahu, Amos, and Michah.
Accepting His Mission with Love
On the verse, "You loved righteousness and hated wickedness, therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows," Rabbi Azaryah in the name of Rabbi Yehudah bar Simon applied the verse to Yeshayahu. Yeshayahu said: I was walking in my house of study, and I heard the voice of the Holy One, blessed be He, saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" I sent Michayahu - and they struck him on the cheek; I sent Amos - and they called him a stutterer, heavy of speech; so now, whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Immediately I said, "Here I am, send me" - Master of the Universe, I am ready for Your mission.
The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: My son Yeshayahu, My children are troublesome, they are recalcitrant. If you accept upon yourself to be humiliated and beaten by My children - go on My mission, and if not - you shall not go on My mission. That is: Do you know what kind of sickbed you are getting yourself into? Are you truly prepared? He answered Him: On this condition. "I gave my back to those who smite, and my cheeks to those who pluck out hair; I did not hide my face from humiliation and spitting" - and still, I am not worthy to go on a mission to Your children; it is a great privilege for me, and I feel unworthy.
The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Yeshayahu, "You loved righteousness" - that you loved to justify My children, "and hated wickedness" - that you hated to find them guilty, for you do not utter slander or derogatory words against them, "therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows." And what is "above your fellows"? By your life, all the prophets received prophecy one prophet from another prophet, whereas you receive directly from the mouth of the Holy One, blessed be He, as it says, "The spirit of Hashem spoke through me." Furthermore: By your life, all the prophets prophesied single prophecies, while you prophesied double consolations - "Awake, awake," "Rouse yourself, rouse yourself," "I will greatly rejoice," "I, even I, am He Who comforts you," "Comfort, comfort My people" - all his prophecies came in double phrasing.
How Yeshayahu Merited All the Consolations
It is related in Tanna Dvei Eliyahu: Once I was sitting in the Great Study Hall in Jerusalem, and a student came and asked: "Rebbi, how is Yeshayahu ben Amotz different from all the other prophets, in that he prophesies all the good things and all the consolations for Israel more than all the other prophets who prophesied harsh things concerning the Jewish people?" I said to him: "My son, because he accepted upon himself the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven with joy more than all the other prophets, as it is stated, 'And I heard the voice of Hashem saying: Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? And I said: Here I am, send me' - he accepted the yoke of His sovereignty with joy."
Three Prophesied with the Expression "Eichah"
Chazal say: Three prophesied using the expression "Eichah" (how) - Moshe, Yeshayahu, and Yirmeyahu. Moshe saw them in their honor and tranquility and said, "How can I bear alone your bother, your burden, and your strife?" Yeshayahu saw them in their recklessness and wantonness, and said:
אֵיכָה הָיְתָה לְזוֹנָה קִרְיָה נֶאֱמָנָה מְלֵאֲתִי מִשְׁפָּט צֶדֶק יָלִין בָּהּ וְעַתָּה מְרַצְּחִים׃ - How has she become a harlot, the faithful city, filled with justice, where righteousness once lodged, but now murderers!
And Yirmeyahu saw them in their degradation, after they had already received their punishment for everything they had done, and said, "How does the city sit solitary, she that was full of people!"
Yeshayahu Preceded and Healed
Chazal state: For all the harsh prophecies that Yirmeyahu prophesied regarding Israel, Yeshayahu preceded and brought healing. That is to say, even beforehand, he uttered words of healing to counter those very calamities. Yirmeyahu said, "The adversary has spread his hand," while Yeshayahu had already said, "Hashem shall set His hand again a second time" - even though the foe spread his hand over us, Hashem will set His hand a second time and restore His Shechinah among us once again. Moreover, we find that Yeshayahu prophesied more prophecies than all other prophets, and he even prophesied about all the nations of the world - the burden of Arabia, the burden of Moav, the burden of Dumah.
The Death of Yeshayahu
The Gemara relates that Ben Azzai found a genealogical scroll in Jerusalem, and this was written in it - and note that this does not appear explicitly in the verses of the Prophets, but only in that concealed scroll: Menashe killed Yeshayahu. Rava said: Menashe placed him on trial to put him to death, challenging him with contradictions - "Behold, Moshe your master said this, and you said that," and this is not the place to elaborate, as it is a well-known Gemara. Yeshayahu said: "If I answer him, I will make him a deliberate sinner; it is better that he remain an unwitting sinner rather than a deliberate one." He uttered a Divine Name and was swallowed inside a cedar tree. They brought the cedar, and Menashe commanded that it be sawn through. When the saw reached Yeshayahu's mouth, his soul departed - because he had said, "And in the midst of a people of impure lips do I dwell." Thus, it emerges that he did not live only until the days of Chizkiyahu, but continued to live during the reign of Menashe his son as well.
And in the Pesikta it is written that when Yeshayahu prophesied that Nevuchadnezzar would destroy the Beit HaMikdash, Menashe became enraged with him and said, "Seize him!" Whereupon a carob tree opened itself up and swallowed him. A carob is a tree; thus, although the genealogical scroll mentions a cedar, elsewhere it says a carob tree.
Who Wrote the Book
The Book of Yeshayahu was written by Chizkiyahu and his colleagues. And why not Yeshayahu himself? Because he did not manage to record his book, as he died while still in the midst of delivering his prophecies; therefore, Chizkiyahu and his colleagues were the ones who wrote it.
He Based Them on Six and on Two
Chazal say: Yeshayahu came and based them - the foundations of Judaism - upon six, and later came and based them upon two: "So said Hashem, keep justice and do righteousness."
Yeshayahu and Chizkiyahu
Yeshayahu married his daughter to King Chizkiyahu, in the long and famous episode where death was decreed upon Chizkiyahu and he said to the prophet, 'Give me your daughter,' and ultimately life was decreed upon Chizkiyahu, as we have learned in its proper place.
And Chazal say: At the time Sancheriv marched upon Yerushalayim, Yeshayahu and Chizkiyahu were sitting in the Beit Midrash, and a fire came forth from between the two of them and consumed him and his legions. Note - not only did an angel of Hashem go out and smite Sancheriv, but by virtue of what did that angel come? By virtue of the Torah study of Yeshayahu and Chizkiyahu, who sat in the Beit Midrash and learned. That is how enemies are defeated. And when Chizkiyahu fell ill, Yeshayahu established a yeshivah at his doorway.
Yeshayahu and Yechezkel
Chazal say: Everything that Yechezkel saw, Yeshayahu saw. To what is Yechezkel comparable? To a villager who saw the king - which is why he details at great length the entire Vision of the Chariot. And Yeshayahu is comparable to a city dweller who saw the king. A villager who sees the king is awestruck by everything: what clothing he wore, what chariot, what wheels, what horse. But a city dweller is not so awestruck, for he is familiar and knows. Therefore Yechezkel offers wondrous descriptions - "And I saw as the color of chashmal," the appearance of lightning flashes, and the description of Hashem sitting, and so forth - and all this was because his level was lower than that of Yeshayahu, and so he was awestruck and described it in meticulous detail. But know that Yeshayahu also saw all those same things, and the reason he did not describe them is because, due to the immense magnitude of his prophecy, he was not awestruck by all those visions.
His Burial Place
Let us conclude with his burial place: It is written in Seder HaDorot that Yeshayahu is buried in Kfar Bar'am, and over him is a broom tree, and beside it a spring of living water. And some say that the prophet Ovadiah is buried in this place.
In summary: Yeshayahu ben Amotz, a prophet and the son of a prophet, from the royal lineage, is the greatest of the prophets: his prophecy was received in vision, he accepted his mission with love and joy and a readiness to be disgraced and endure hardship, he loved to advocate for Israel and hated to find fault with them - and therefore merited double consolations from the mouth of the Holy One, Blessed is He. His book, transcribed by Chizkiyahu and his colleagues, is divided into three parts: the downfall of Sancheriv, the consolation for the Babylonian exile, and the consolation for the final exile in which we currently find ourselves. He preemptively healed the harsh prophecies of Yirmeyahu, prophesied more than all the prophets and even concerning all the nations of the world, and gave his life, ultimately being killed by Menashe. May it be Hashem's will that we merit to follow in his path, to understand his words thoroughly, and that all his prophecies of consolation be fulfilled through us, Amen and Amen.