Isaiah 45:21Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

But I am different; I embody both justice and salvation. A just ruling does not hinder My ability to save; My longing to redeem the guilty does not compromise a just decree. Righteous punishment can lead to great deliverance for the guilty, just as healing an injury restores the entire body. To illustrate this, consider what is truly good: punishing according to righteousness or unrighteousness? I do not assert this; I go so far as to argue the opposite, for the one who rescues the righteous does not withhold punishment but brings sin to an end. Was not Paul guilty of blasphemy when he stated, I give thanks to Him who strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, for He deemed me faithful, appointing me to His service, despite my past as a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man? Yet I received mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief; nevertheless, the grace of our Lord was abundantly revealed in me through faith and love in Christ Jesus. This saying is trustworthy and deserving of universal acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. For this reason, I was shown mercy, so that in me, as the first, Jesus Christ might display all His patience (1 Tim. 1:12-16).

Now, what does this mean? Do you see how the righteous God exercises restraint? He continuously checks Himself, lest the judge should find fault in Him. It appears that God has not spoken or rebuked in this manner but wishes for the sinner to self-correct. A person's sins are not made known unless they first acknowledge their own transgressions. Has He redeemed him, or has He not? I did not come to judge the world but to save it (John 12:47). Was this not the experience of the thief? Yet the Just One and Savior granted him freedom. Whom did He not redeem? The righteous under the law who did not seek it. He declares the same sentence upon both the righteous and the unrighteous, stating, ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’ (Rom. 3:23), revealing that even the righteous fall short in relation to the righteousness of God. However, salvation occurs not only in this life but even more significantly after death, when complete salvation becomes essential.

‘He declares, I am the first, and I am the first in regard to these matters; and He adds, there is none other besides Me, and there is no God apart from Me.’ Observe how He emphasizes that His essence is unique and unrelated to any other nature outside of Him.

Consequently, in every region and city, there have arisen soothsayers, false prophets, omens, and a host of deceivers, speaking from their hearts in accordance with what is written, engaging in necromancy, seeking sounds from the earth, displaying ventriloquism, and predicting fortunes—creating a space filled with charlatans and deceivers. They possess no genuine knowledge of the future, only fabrications, deceit, cunning, and trickery. Thus, the God of all humanity declares: If they are able to proclaim, let them draw near and gather together, for if they claim they can forecast, let them come together to see if, united, they can prophesy anything specific; for they are equipped with oracles in many locations. Yet, many have been misled and have honored those who speak falsehoods, likening them to unclean spirits. If they can truly predict the future, let them congregate and learn something new. Who among the superstitious or the prophets among them has ever foreseen and proclaimed that at a designated moment, Christ would shine upon the world, banishing the darkness of ignorance and illuminating the earth as a spiritual dawn, as true light, as the sun of righteousness? Yet, neither the demons, pretending to possess foresight, nor the ministers of deceit proclaimed this first. None of the poets or prose writers of Greece conceived of such momentous events. Therefore, whosoever has been the first to hear these truths shall have it revealed to them, that is to say, the initial revelation belongs to me—who knows all things and foretold them prior to their fulfillment; for I conveyed these truths to you through Moses and by the holy prophets, who shared my words. Thus, I declare: I am God, and there is no one else beside me—righteous and savior. The demons are unjust, evil, destroyers, lovers of blood, and they lead the dwellers of the earth into ruin; while the God of all righteousness and savior aids the oppressed, liberates the bound from their sinful chains, illuminates those in darkness, strengthens the weak, raises up the fallen, and guides the misled. Therefore, He calls out: Turn to me, and you shall find salvation, even from the farthest reaches of the earth.

Meanwhile, the unrighteous, who focus solely on God's justice, should strive for the reward of mercy, even if they find it elusive in their current lives, lest they become hardened in sin and reject the forgiveness offered to them, continuing indefinitely in their transgressions.

Have they forgotten the all-powerful Being, who encompasses the whole earth, who cradles the globe in His hands, and who views humanity from above as tiny creatures, comparable to swarms of locusts? The heavens stretch above like a canopy, serving as His throne, intricately arranged like a tent for habitation, and He can easily shift them, just as one might relocate a tent from one site to another.