Isaiah 33:19Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

When they perceived the Son sent from God and the Father, they remarked, “This is the heir: come, let us kill him, and we will keep his possessions for ourselves” (Matthew 21:38). In fact, their intent was clear in their attempts to condemn Christ; they put Him to death, despite the gates of hell not being able to hold Him back, inciting the crowds under their control to cry out to Pilate, “Take Him away, crucify Him!” (John 19:15). For these reasons, their extreme wickedness and the weight of their sin of slaying the Lord led them to lose the hope found in Christ and the closeness of God, plunging them into unavoidable disaster. Thus, he inquires, “Where are the scribes?” rather than “What calamities have they endured?” He designates them as scribes. Where are the deliberators? Who comprises them? These are the ones assigned the priestly duties, of whom the Law of Moses states: “For the mouth of the priests shall keep the judgment, and the law shall be called out of his mouth” (Malachi 2:7). It is the people under their guidance who rely on the priests' instruction. Where then are the deliberators? Where is the evaluator of the small and great populace who are gathered? Once again, he refers to the scribes and priests, or Pharisees, who rallied the crowd against Christ. They assembled men of all statuses who surrounded Pilate’s residence, demanding the release of Barabbas the murderer while insisting that Christ, who bore no guilt, should be crucified because He committed no sin (1 Peter 2:22). This account is noted by the blessed Evangelists Matthew and Mark. When Pilate suggested that they should instead release Jesus, who had done no wrong, the chief priests and elders, as Matthew narrates, influenced the people to ask for Barabbas and to destroy Jesus (Matthew 27:20). Mark reiterates this quite clearly (Mark 15:11). Where then is he who assesses the gathered small and great, and who like them has not been consulted, nor heard the profound voice of the one who speaks deeply, since men cannot perceive ruin? Those who can hear cannot comprehend the essence. The linguistic construction of this statement is complex, and its implications are troubling. I will clarify as much as I can. He asks, where are the small and great assembled, and what population was overlooked? It seems that the majority were unaware that the Christ against whom they cried out was truly the Son of God, influenced by those who knew, namely the leaders, who did not guide them to belief in Him. It is said that the people did not discern the profound voice of Him who has a depth of wisdom—referring to Christ. He is called one with a deep voice because His truths are concealed, presented in parables. He is introduced through the Psalmist, who declares: “I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter hidden things from of old” (Psalm 77:2; Matthew 13:35). Thus, He conveyed His messages to the Jews in parabolic form. They failed in their duty to counsel the people, he notes, but were instead led astray by the profound voice leading them to ruin. They did not offer guidance because they disregarded the plight of the perishing; had they listened, the afflicted crowd would have known better. On the contrary, blessed are those who recognize the Redeemer. Yet, he remarks, there was no discernment for those who listened; and in their ignorance, the Jews failed to scrutinize the words of their leaders, unable to distinguish whether their advice was beneficial or harmful.