The chapter before us is one of Isaiah's great chapters of consolation. In this section, the prophet deals with the watchmen whom the Holy One, blessed be He, has appointed over the walls of Jerusalem, the oath sworn by the Holy One, blessed be He, that the fruit of our labor will no longer be given to our enemies, and the call to clear and pave the way for the ingathering of the exiles. We will follow the order of the verses, cite the explanations of Rashi, the Targum, Radak, and the Malbim, and see how each commentary opens another perspective.
עַל־חוֹמֹתַיִךְ יְרוּשָׁלַ͏ִם הִפְקַדְתִּי שֹׁמְרִים כׇּל־הַיּוֹם וְכׇל־הַלַּיְלָה תָּמִיד לֹא יֶחֱשׁוּ הַמַּזְכִּרִים אֶת־יְהֹוָה אַל־דֳּמִי לָכֶם׃ - Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; all day and all night, continually, they shall never be silent. You who remind Hashem, take no rest!
Rashi cites the midrashic exposition of Chazal according to its literal sense: these watchmen are angels. They are angels who continually remind the Holy One, blessed be He, to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem and renew our days as of old. And what do they say? "You will arise and have compassion on Zion," and "For Hashem has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation." Their role is to continually remind Him so that Jerusalem does not remain in its ruin and desolation.
Targum Yonatan interprets differently: "your walls" refers to the early Patriarchs. Who is our fortified wall? The holy Avot. And over their merit, the Holy One, blessed be He, appointed watchmen, meaning scribes of a book of remembrance, so that the merit of the Avot will not be forgotten before Him. "Watchmen" (shomrim) here has the connotation of remembering, as in "and his father kept (shamar) the matter in mind" - he remembered the matter. "I have appointed watchmen" means: I have appointed those who will constantly remind Me of the merit of the Avot, in whose merit I will return and redeem the Jewish people. Therefore, the verse continues: "continually, they shall never be silent... take no rest" - do not be silent from constantly reminding the Holy One, blessed be He, of the merit of the Avot, so that He will return and redeem us.
Some explain that the watchmen are the mourners of Zion: those who pray for Jerusalem day and night, who recite Tikkun Chatzot, who grieve over its destruction - they are the watchmen. Here too, "watchmen" (shomrim) can be understood in the sense of anticipation, as in "more than watchmen wait for morning" (shomrim laboker) - those who watch and wait eagerly for the morning to dawn. So too, "I have appointed watchmen" refers to those who eagerly await the coming of the redemption, and they are the ones who bring the destruction of Jerusalem to mind before the Holy One, blessed be He, so that He will return and redeem it and His people.
Radak adds that this can also be interpreted as referring to Klal Yisrael throughout their exile: their eyes, too, gaze outward, waiting for when they will merit redemption, and they too are in the category of watchmen and lookouts who invoke the rebuilding of Jerusalem day and night. And this is the meaning of "continually, they shall never be silent" - in every single prayer we mention the rebuilding of Jerusalem.
It is written in the holy sefarim: even if a person does not remember the destruction of Jerusalem all day long - which in itself reflects our lowliness - at the very least three times a day, when he mentions "May the offspring of David Your servant flourish speedily" and when he mentions the rebuilding of Jerusalem, he should be awakened to plead for redemption and for the rebuilding of Jerusalem to emerge from its desolation in the blessing instituted for us. Concerning them it is said, "all day and all night" - Shacharit and Arvit, "continually, they shall never be silent" - always voicing the longing for Jerusalem's rebuilding. So too in Birkat Hamazon, "Blessed are You, Hashem, Who rebuilds Jerusalem," one must also have in mind that we are waiting and yearning for its rebuilding.
Radak offers another explanation: the Holy One, blessed be He, is speaking here of what will take place after the redemption. After "For as a young man marries a maiden, so shall your children marry you," once salvation has already arrived, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: "Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen" - do not worry that the walls will collapse again; do not fear another exile. These watchmen will be alert day and night.
And why does the verse emphasize "continually, they shall never be silent"? Radak explains: ordinary watchmen are awake at night, and while they are awake, they are not silent. A person on watch duty can easily fall asleep, so what keeps him awake? They talk to one another while guarding, and thus one stirs the other and they do not fall asleep. At times there is danger in this, lest they become absorbed in conversation and fail to notice what is happening outside, but generally, conversation is what maintains alertness. Normal watchmen stay awake and talk at night, and during the day they go to sleep; but the future watchmen of Jerusalem's walls will stand guard all day and all night, and "continually, they shall never be silent" - they will always converse and remain in perpetual alertness.
And what is the significance of these watchmen? Radak explains that this is a metaphor. It does not mean that literal watchmen will stand upon the walls of Jerusalem, but rather that Divine providence will rest there, in the spirit of "the eyes of Hashem your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year." If today we find ourselves, as it were, in a state of concealment of the Divine face and without manifest continuous providence, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: when Jerusalem is rebuilt - "I have appointed watchmen," My eyes will be upon it constantly, all day and all night, hashgachah pratit (individual Divine providence) of the highest order.
"You who remind Hashem, take no rest" - here he addresses the people of the exile: you must remind Hashem, do not fall silent; constantly remind Him and pray before Him, until He establishes and builds Jerusalem. Though today Jerusalem is an object of reproach and derision, do not cease until He makes her a praise in the earth.
Radak notes a grammatical difficulty here: "I have posted watchmen" - who is speaking? The Holy One, blessed be He, in the first person. If so, it should have said, "you who remind Me"; why does it say, "you who remind Hashem" in the third person? Radak answers that this is not surprising, for many verses speak this way, opening in the first person and shifting to the third person. Similarly, "And to Moshe He said: Ascend to Hashem" - who said it? The Holy One, blessed be He, and He could have said, "Ascend to Me," yet it says "to Hashem." Radak brings another explanation: "You who remind Hashem" are the words of the prophet to Israel. Since the Holy One, blessed be He, made all these promises to you, therefore remind Hashem and pour out your hearts before Him, until He returns and makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
Malbim connects this verse to the opening of the chapter. After the Holy One, blessed be He, says, "For Zion's sake I will not keep silent" - meaning, I Myself will not be silent until I save them - He adds: aside from that, I have also posted watchmen who await the designated day. What is a "watchman"? One who reminds you, and this is also the halachic concept of a shomer: a person who has not yet prayed and wishes to eat must appoint a shomer, meaning someone who will remind him.
And do not think that until the designated time they remain silent and only remind Him when the time arrives. Therefore it says, "all day and all night" - even in the intervening period, they constantly remind and arouse the Holy One, blessed be He, to redeem Israel. And the Holy One, blessed be He, says: I have already charged them, "You who remind Hashem, take no rest." "They shall never be silent" means do not sit idly by, and "take no rest (al domi lachem)" is an added refinement: not even for a single moment. For the root dom implies a pause after speaking; thus, the intention is that there should never be a situation where after speaking you take a break, but rather you must continually, without interruption, plead for Jerusalem.
With this, we can understand the Chazal's teaching on "And Aharon was silent (vayidom Aharon)." The Midrash asks: What did he have to say? And seemingly, how does the Midrash know that he had something to say? Rather, it is deduced from the precise phrasing "vayidom." Had it said "Aharon kept silent (hechshah)," it would imply that he was silent from the outset and had nothing to say. But "vayidom" teaches that he was about to speak and had words to say, but immediately ceased and fell silent - for the word nadam always denotes the interruption of an action that had already begun.
וְאַל־תִּתְּנוּ דֳמִי לוֹ עַד־יְכוֹנֵן וְעַד־יָשִׂים אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלַ͏ִם תְּהִלָּה בָּאָרֶץ׃ - And give Him no rest, until He establishes and until He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
This seems difficult: we are the ones who speak and plead, so it should have said, "give yourselves no rest"; why does it say "to Him"? Radak explains something wondrous: when a person speaks and someone is listening, he occupies the listener - capturing his thought, attention, and focus. Thus, when I fall silent, he too falls silent - he ceases listening and rests. But as long as you speak, he remains in constant listening. This is the meaning of "give Him no rest" - do not allow Him to cease His attentive listening; for if you give yourselves no rest and plead continuously, Heaven, as it were, is continually listening and attending to your prayers.
Malbim explains differently: "Give Him no rest" - do not let Him cease, and do not be silent yourselves, until He completes the rebuilding and makes Jerusalem a praise and renown. That is to say, this refers to a stage where the Holy One, blessed be He, has already begun the rebuilding and redemption, and has already taken action. Concerning this, the prophet says: do not let Him stop the process midway; do not say, "the matter has already begun," and let up. Rather, "until He establishes and until He makes" - continue beseeching until the absolute completion of the redemption.
נִשְׁבַּע יְהֹוָה בִּימִינוֹ וּבִזְרוֹעַ עֻזּוֹ אִם־אֶתֵּן אֶת־דְּגָנֵךְ עוֹד מַאֲכָל לְאֹיְבַיִךְ וְאִם־יִשְׁתּוּ בְנֵי־נֵכָר תִּירוֹשֵׁךְ אֲשֶׁר יָגַעַתְּ בּוֹ׃ - Hashem has sworn by His right hand and by the arm of His strength: I will never again give your grain as food for your enemies, nor shall foreigners drink your wine for which you have toiled.
Radak notes that an oath is unconditional: once the Holy One, blessed be He, swears, the matter is certain to come to pass. Here too, Radak makes the same grammatical observation mentioned earlier: "The Lord has sworn" is in the third person, followed immediately by "I will not give" in the first person. This is resolved by the same principle: it is the style of Scripture to open in one phrasing and continue in another. Furthermore, a human being may take an oath but lack the power to carry it out, whereas the Holy One, blessed be He, swore "by His right hand and by the arm of His strength" - He possesses the right hand and the arm, and He possesses the power to bring His oaths to fruition.
Malbim adds another dimension here: the Holy One, blessed be He, bound Himself to everything stated above with an oath. What is the meaning of the double expression "His right hand" and "the arm of His strength"? The right hand signifies divine providence of great power and might that comes in our merit - through the merit of the righteous and the deeds of Israel, a miraculous providence drawn down through our own strength. "The arm," by contrast, signifies a miraculous providence that does not depend on our strength at all, but stems entirely from the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself, by virtue of the pledge He made to redeem us. Thus: "The Lord has sworn by His right hand" - if we have the merit, if we are worthy and righteous; and if not, the redemption will still surely come, but it will arrive "by the arm of His strength." This parallels the verses "Awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord" and "His arm brought salvation unto Him" - "unto Him," meaning for the Holy One, blessed be He, from His side alone, and not by force of our merits.
Regarding this, Chazal taught: "By His right hand" refers to Torah; "by the arm of His strength" refers to tefillin. How beautifully this fits our framework: if we possess merit, it is Torah, for we study Torah and observe the mitzvot (and "Torah" here does not denote study alone, but Torah and mitzvot together). If we do not merit it, it will come through tefillin. One might ask: are not tefillin our own deeds as well? Rather, this refers to the tefillin of the Holy One, blessed be He, in whose scrolls it is written, as the Gemara states, "Who is like Your people Israel, a unique nation on earth?" - that is, the promise and obligation the Holy One, blessed be He, took upon Himself to redeem us under any circumstances, celebrating the greatness of Israel. By virtue of this, the Holy One, blessed be He, is bound to redeem us; this is not "in our merit," but by virtue of that solemn commitment. This is the difference: "His right hand" represents our merits, while "the arm of His strength" represents an awakening from Above (isaruta de'le'eila), even without our having personal merits in the matter.
"I will no longer give your grain as food to your enemies" - until now, the enemies dwelled here and consumed our grain; we labored and toiled, and they came and ate. From now on, He will not give your grain as food to your enemies, nor will foreigners drink your wine for which you have labored. And who are these "foreigners" (bnei nechar)? Malbim has already explained several times that this refers to foreigners and strangers who are not from here and do not belong to the land. Why is "your enemies" used regarding grain, while "foreigners" is used regarding wine? Because wine is transported far away for commerce and can be preserved for years; therefore, it is specifically regarding wine that distant foreigners might transport it and drink it abroad. The verse does not mean there will be no export whatsoever, but rather that our produce will not be plundered from us, as occurred in the era of the Judges, when Israel would plow and sow, and Midian would raid and seize everything.
כִּי מְאַסְפָיו יֹאכְלֻהוּ וְהִלְלוּ אֶת־יְהֹוָה וּמְקַבְּצָיו יִשְׁתֻּהוּ בְּחַצְרוֹת קׇדְשִׁי׃ - "For those who gather it shall eat it and praise the Lord, and those who assemble it shall drink it in the courtyards of My Sanctuary."
Radak explains that the verse speaks of Ma'aser Sheni (the Second Tithe) and Neta Revai (produce of the fourth year). "Those who gather it shall eat it" - the owners themselves will eat it; "and praise the Lord" - because fourth-year produce is called "holy, for giving praise to the Lord," and over the Second Tithe one would make the tithe confession and praise Hashem. And where? "In the courtyards of My Sanctuary" - for Ma'aser Sheni and Neta Revai are eaten in Jerusalem within the walls, as it is written, "Before the Lord your God you shall eat it." The entire city is considered "before the Lord your God," and the entire city is called "the courtyards of My Sanctuary," since even the courtyards of private homes are included within the courtyards of Jerusalem. In other words: you will merit to harvest the grain and the wine, to bring up the fourth-year produce and the Second Tithe, to eat them in the courtyards of My Sanctuary, and to praise Hashem there.
Malbim explains that the halves of the verse are parallel: corresponding to "your grain," it says "those who gather it shall eat it," as grain is gathered (asifah); and corresponding to "your wine," it says "those who assemble it shall drink it," as grapes are assembled and collected (kibbutz). Proof for these distinct terms is found in: "Much seed shall you take out to the field, but little shall you gather (te'esof)" - using the term asifah for grain; and "You shall plant vineyards... but you shall not gather (ta'agor)" - using the term kibbutz and gathering for grapes.
Malbim notes with precision: regarding "those who gather it shall eat it," the phrase "in the courtyards of My Sanctuary" is not used; it appears only regarding the wine: "and those who assemble it shall drink it in the courtyards of My Sanctuary." Although Radak interpreted the end of the verse as applying to both halves, the matter actually hinges on another point: the Gemara cites a dispute as to whether the law of Neta Revai applies only to vineyards or to other fruit trees as well, but it certainly does not apply to grain. Therefore, "those who gather it shall eat it" means the grain may be eaten anywhere in the land, whereas "those who assemble it shall drink it," which pertains to the fourth-year vineyard, must be eaten specifically "in the courtyards of My Sanctuary." According to Malbim, the verse does not deal with Ma'aser Sheni at all, but with ordinary produce, and the grain is eaten at home.
If so, what is the meaning of "and praise the Lord" according to Malbim? This refers to Birkat HaMazon, the Grace after Meals: "You shall eat and be satisfied and bless" - over grain one recites Birkat HaMazon, and that is the praise. This praise is mentioned specifically regarding grain because Birkat HaMazon is not recited over grapes; therefore, regarding wine it says only that "those who assemble it shall drink it in the courtyards of My Sanctuary."
עִבְרוּ עִבְרוּ בַּשְּׁעָרִים פַּנּוּ דֶּרֶךְ הָעָם סֹלּוּ סֹלּוּ הַמְסִלָּה סַקְּלוּ מֵאֶבֶן הָרִימוּ נֵס עַל־הָעַמִּים׃ - "Pass through, pass through the gates! Clear the way of the people! Pave, pave the highway, clear it of stones, lift up a banner over the peoples!"
"Pass through, pass through the gates" - similar to "pass through from gate to gate in the camp." "Pave, pave the highway" - prepare and level the road. "Clear it of stones" - Rashi explains: remove the stones that pose an obstacle and cast them aside, and "clear it of stones" (me'even) means that not a single stone should remain there. This expresses the repairing of the roads in anticipation of the return of the exiles: when the exiles arrive here, the roads will need to be prepared so that they can ascend to the Land.
"Raise a banner over the nations" - Rashi explains that nes (banner) is related to kelunas (a pole), and other commentators add: a pole upon which a cloth is hung, that is, a staff on which a flag is mounted. It was their custom to raise a large pole so that everyone would follow it and know where to go, and this is the sign that all the nations will follow. This is also the meaning of "raise a banner toward Zion" - lift up the banner behind which all the exiles will stream to Zion.
Radak explains that "clear the way of the people," "pave the highway," and "clear it of stones" mean preparing for Israel's arrival, while "raise a banner over the nations" is intended to herald the news to them wherever they are in exile. However, in his view, these words are spoken metaphorically, whereas according to Rashi, the intention is entirely literal and practical - to physically clear and prepare the roads. The metaphor is readily understood: when an important dignitary arrives, people call out, "Clear the way, so-and-so has arrived!" The intention is not literally to clear physical debris from the path, but rather to show honor. So too, when the redemption arrives, the nations will say of Israel: "Behold, return to your land; clear the way, the people of Israel are returning to their land!" Then the salvation will be apparent before all, and the preeminence of Israel will be revealed before the eyes of all the nations.
In these verses, the prophet teaches us that the Holy One, blessed be He, not only refuses to remain silent Himself, but has even appointed watchmen - angels, the merit of the Patriarchs, the mourners of Zion, and the collective people of Israel in their exile - whose task is to remind Him and beseech Him without pause, "take no rest" and "give Him no rest," until the rebuilding is complete. Concerning this, an oath was taken by His right hand and by the arm of His strength: if we merit it, it will come through our own merit, and if not, through the power of His divine commitment; and enemies will no longer consume the fruit of our toil, but rather those who gather it will eat it and praise Hashem, and those who harvest it will drink it in My holy courtyards. And finally comes the call to pave, to clear away the stones, and to raise a banner - to prepare the way for Israel's return to their land, until their supreme stature is revealed before the eyes of all nations.