Isa 44:2
44:2 Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed {a} thee
     from the womb, [who] will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my
     servant; and thou, Jesurun, {b} whom I have chosen.

     (a) He treated and chose you from the beginning of his own
         mercy, and before you could merit anything.
     (b) Whom God accepts as righteous: or who had opportunity
         to it because of the law, and your holy calling.

Isa 44:3
44:3 For I will pour water upon him that is {c} thirsty, and
     floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy
     seed, and my blessing upon thy offspring:

     (c) Because man of himself is as the dry and barren land,
         he promises to moisten him with the waters of his Holy
         Spirit, Joel 2:28, Joh 7:38, Ac 2:17.

Isa 44:4
44:4 And they {d} shall spring up [as] among the grass, as
     willows by the water courses.

     (d) That is, your children and posterity will increase
         wonderfully after their deliverance from Babylon.

Isa 44:5
44:5 One shall say, I [am] the LORD'S; and another {e} shall
     call [himself] by the name of Jacob; and another shall
     write [with] his hand to the LORD, and surname [himself] by
     the name of Israel.

     (e) By this diversity of speech he means one thing, that
         is, that the people will be holy, and receive the true
         religion from God, as in Ps 87:5.

Isa 44:6
44:6 Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer
     the LORD of hosts; {f} I [am] the first, and I [am] the
     last; and besides me [there is] no God.

     (f) I am always like myself, that is, merciful toward my
         Church, and most able to maintain it, as in
         Isa 41:4,48:12, Re 1:17,22:13.

Isa 44:7
44:7 And who, as I, shall {g} call, and shall declare it, and
     set {h} it in order for me, since I appointed the {i}
     ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall
     come, let {k} them show to them.

     (g) And appoint them that will deliver the Church.
     (h) That is, tell me how I should proceed in this.
     (i) God calls the Israelites ancient, because he preferred
         them to all others in his eternal election.
     (k) Meaning, their idols.

Isa 44:8
44:8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from
     that time, and have declared [it]? {l} ye [are] even my
     witnesses. Is there a God besides me? verily, [there is] no
     God; I know not [any].

     (l) Read Isa 43:10.

Isa 44:9
44:9 They that make a graven image [are] all of them vanity; and
     {m} their delectable things shall not profit; and they
     [are] their own witnesses; {n} they see not, nor know; that
     they may be ashamed.

     (m) Whatever they bestow on their idols, to make them seem
         glorious.
     (n) That is, the idolaters seeing that their idols are
         blind, are witnesses of their own blindness, and
         feeling that they are not able to help them, must
         confess that they have no power.

Isa 44:10
44:10 Who hath formed a {o} god, or cast a graven image [that]
      is {p} profitable for nothing?

      (o) Meaning that whatever is made by the hand of man, if
          it is valued as a god, is most detestable.
      (p) By which appears their blasphemy, who call images the
          books of the laity, seeing that they are not only here
          called unprofitable, but in Isa 41:24
          abominable. Jeremiah calls them the work of errors,
          Jer 10:15, Habakkuk, a lying teacher
          Hab 2:18.

Isa 44:11
44:11 Behold, all his {q} fellows shall be ashamed: and the
      workmen, they [are] of men: let them all be gathered
      together, let them {r} stand up; [yet] they shall fear,
      [and] they shall be ashamed together.

      (q) That is, who in any way consent either to the making
          or worshipping.
      (r) Signifying, that the multitude will not then save the
          idolaters, when God will take vengeance, although they
          excuse themselves by it among men.

Isa 44:12
44:12 The smith with the tongs both worketh in the coals, and
      fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with the
      strength of his arms: yea, he is {s} hungry, and his
      strength faileth: he drinketh no water, and is faint.

      (s) He describes the raging affection of the idolaters,
          who forget their own necessities to set forth their
          devotion toward their idols.

Isa 44:13
44:13 The carpenter stretcheth out [his] rule; he marketh it out
      with a line; he fitteth it with planes, and he marketh it
      out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a
      man, according to the beauty of a man; that it may remain
      in {t} the house.

      (t) To place it in some Temple.

Isa 44:15
44:15 Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take of
      it, and {u} warm himself; indeed, he kindleth [it], and
      baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth [it];
      he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down to it.

      (u) He sets forth the obstinacy and malice of the
          idolaters who though they see by daily experience that
          their idols are no better than the rest of the matter
          of which they are made, yet they refuse the one part,
          and make a god of the other, as the papists make their
          cake god, and the rest of their idols.

Isa 44:16
44:16 He burneth part of it in the fire; with part of it he {x}
      eateth flesh; he roasteth meat, and is satisfied: yea, he
      warmeth [himself], and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen
      the fire:

      (x) That is, he either makes a table or trenchers.

Isa 44:18
44:18 They have not known nor understood: {y} for he hath shut
      their eyes, that they cannot see; [and] their hearts, that
      they cannot understand.

      (y) The prophet gives here an answer to all them who
          wonder how it is possible that any would be so blind
          as to commit such abomination, saying that God has
          blinded their eyes, and hardened their hearts.

Isa 44:20
44:20 He feedeth {z} on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him
      aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, [Is
      there] not a lie in my right hand?

      (z) He is abused as one that would eat ashes, thinking to
          satisfy his hunger.

Isa 44:21
44:21 {a} Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou [art] my
      servant: I have formed thee; thou [art] my servant: O
      Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten by me.

      (a) Showing that man's heart is most inclined to idolatry,
          and therefore he warns his people by these examples,
          that they should not cleave to any but to the living
          God, when they should be among the idolaters.

Isa 44:23
44:23 {b} Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done [it]:
      shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into
      singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree in it: for
      the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in
      Israel.

      (b) He shows that the work of the Lord toward his people
          will be so great, that the insensible creatures will
          be moved with it.

Isa 44:25
44:25 That frustrateth the {c} tokens of the liars, and maketh
      diviners mad; that turneth wise [men] backward, and maketh
      their knowledge foolish;

      (c) He arms them against the soothsayers of Babylon, who
          would have said that they knew by the stars that God
          would not deliver Israel, and that Babylon would
          stand.

Isa 44:26
44:26 That confirmeth the word of his {d} servant, and
      performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to
      Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of
      Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up her decayed
      places:

      (d) Of Isaiah and the rest of his prophets, who assured
          the Church of God's favour and deliverance.

Isa 44:27
44:27 That saith to the {e} deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy
      rivers:

      (e) He shows that God's work would be no less notable in
          this their deliverance, than when he brought them out
          of Egypt, through the sea.

Isa 44:28
44:28 That saith of {f} Cyrus, [He is] my shepherd, and he shall
      perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou
      shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be
      laid.

      (f) To assure them of their deliverance he names the
          person by whom it would be, more than a hundred years
          before he was born.