Isaiah 33:18Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Upon recognizing the Son sent by God, they proclaimed, "This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and we will keep his inheritance" (Matthew 21:38). Ultimately, in their plot against Christ, they succeeded in killing Him, even though death could not hold Him, inciting the people under their influence to cry out to Pilate, "Crucify Him!" (John 19:15). As a consequence of their egregious sin and the burden of slaying the Lord, they found themselves estranged from the hope found in Christ, distanced from God, and plunged into unavoidable tribulations. Thus, he questions, “Where are the scribes?” rather than “What sufferings have they encountered?” He refers to them as scribes, inquiring about those who are meant to deliberate. These individuals were designated for sacred duties, as indicated by the law of Moses: "For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth" (Malachi 2:7). It is the congregation under their influence that is guided by the priests' counsel. Therefore, he asks, where are those who deliberate? Where are the assessors of the common people? This again relates to the scribes, priests, or Pharisees who congregated the masses against Christ. They rallied both the simple and the influential, demanding that Barabbas, a murderer, be freed while unjustly calling for the crucifixion of Christ, who had committed no sin (1 Peter 2:22). This account is affirmed by the blessed Evangelists, Matthew and Mark. When Pilate suggested releasing Jesus, who was innocent, the chief priests and elders influenced the crowd to ask for Barabbas's release and the destruction of Jesus (Matthew 27:20; Mark 15:11). Where then is the one who is supposed to account for those gathered, and why is there no inquiry made about those who have not listened to the profound words of the one who speaks with authority, since individuals are often blind to their own ruin, and those who perceive remain oblivious to the deeper meanings? The intricacy of this statement is substantial, and its implications troubling. He queries the whereabouts of the gathered masses and notes the absence of input from the greater part of the people, who seemed unaware that the one they condemned was indeed the Son of God. This ignorance stemmed from the failure of their leaders to direct them toward faith in Him. The people lacked awareness of the profound authority of Christ, referred to as having a deep voice, which signifies the hidden meanings within His teachings, often delivered in parables. In the Psalms, it is expressed: "I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world" (Psalm 77:2; Matthew 13:35). Christ communicated with the Jews through parables, and thus they failed to guide the people, allowing the profound messages to lead them astray. Their inability to provide wise counsel was rooted in their refusal to listen to those who were suffering, for had they done so, those in effective meekness would not have been forsaken. Rather, blessed are those who acknowledge the Redeemer. However, he notes that there was no wisdom in those who listened; for the Jews, in their ignorance, did not scrutinize the words of their leaders to discern if they were leading them toward good or the contrary.