Introduction: The Prophecy of a Renewed World
In this part of the chapter, the prophecy transitions from rebuke to great consolation: a description of the reality that will be in the Future to Come. The prophet paints a portrait of a world where good is no longer measured against evil, where man lives long days, where prayer is answered before it is even uttered, and where even the nature of predatory beasts changes. We will proceed verse by verse and see how Rashi, Radak, and especially the Malbim explain them.
New Heavens and a New Earth - Renewal or Creation?
כִּי הִנְנִי בוֹרֵא שָׁמַיִם חֲדָשִׁים וָאָרֶץ חֲדָשָׁה, וְלֹא תִזָּכַרְנָה הָרִאשֹׁנוֹת וְלֹא תַעֲלֶינָה עַל לֵב׃ - For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered, nor shall they come to mind.
Rashi cites those who say this refers to literally new heavens, and that this is the primary view, as proven by the verse: "For as the new heavens and the new earth." Radak explains differently: because of the sheer abundance of good that will prevail, it will be as though the entire world has become new heavens and a new earth. As the verse states, "and the former things shall not be remembered" - everything, as it were, is renewed, including the heavens.
Radak further cites Ibn Ezra's explanation that "new heavens" refers to the atmosphere: the Holy One, blessed be He, will renew wholesome air, so that people will be healthy and live for many years, as we will see later in the chapter. He will likewise impart greater potency to the earth, so that it will not be as it is today, but will yield its full strength, and this is the aspect of "a new earth." In simple terms: not literally brand new, but an overall overhaul - the heavens and the earth will undergo renewal.
And what do we gain by this understanding? For it is stated that heaven and earth will never cease from before Him all the days, and it is said, "If these laws depart... then the seed of Israel also shall cease," and "If My covenant be not day and night, if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth" - meaning the covenant with Israel is compared to the immutable laws of heaven and earth. Therefore, it does not mean that heaven and earth will cease to exist, but rather that they will be renewed, and God will renew wholesome air. However, Radak raises a difficulty with this explanation: if so, this benefit would apply to all nations, whereas the verse states, "For as the days of a tree shall be the days of My people" - implying that this is specifically for the people of Israel. Could there be one set of skies here and another elsewhere?
The Malbim explains profoundly: the heavens and earth that exist now were created through the laws of nature, and it is impossible for them to possess perpetual good without evil. Why? Because physical reality consists of matter that sheds one form and takes on another, and there can be no generation without privation. Every material existence is finite. Nothing remains permanently fixed; nothing escapes rust; no living creature escapes aging; no stone escapes erosion - there is no physical reality that is not subject to transience and change. Regarding this, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: I will create new heavens, a physical reality free from negative changes and decay, a reality of pure good. To the extent that "the former things shall not be remembered, nor shall they come to mind" - no one will even remember that death once existed, that evil once existed, or that there was a reality of loss and destruction. In the new nature, there will be no such thing at all, and people will not even recall that a reality existed different from the new heavens we will see in the future.
Rejoice and Exult Forever - Gil, Simchah, and Masos
כִּי אִם שִׂישׂוּ וְגִילוּ עֲדֵי עַד אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי בוֹרֵא, כִּי הִנְנִי בוֹרֵא אֶת יְרוּשָׁלִַם גִּילָה וְעַמָּהּ מָשׂוֹשׂ׃ - But be glad and exult forever in that which I create, for behold, I create Jerusalem for exultation, and her people for joy.
Let us analyze the terms carefully. Seisah and masos denote joy that finds external expression, whereas gilah is in the heart: one can say "his heart was filled with gilah" even if no outward sign is visible, and he himself knows and attests to it. But one cannot say "he rejoiced (sas)" without something being visible, for seisah always expresses itself in external actions.
And what is the difference between gil and simchah, given that both reside in the heart? The Malbim explains: gil denotes sudden joy - when you are suddenly told good news, and you are overcome with emotion. Simchah, on the other hand, is continuous. If so, "exult forever (gilu adei ad)" - perpetual gilah - would seem to contradict the very meaning of the word, since gilah is something sudden, an experience of a single moment. Incidentally, this may also be the etymological root of the word: when a person discovers (megaleh) something, when something is suddenly revealed, he experiences gilah.
Moreover, says the Malbim, even continuous joy (simchah) is difficult to sustain. We know human nature: you rejoiced in the new car you bought - how long did that last? Until it got older and you started eyeing newer or more advanced models. It is enough to discover that you have one model while your neighbor has a more upgraded model, with some cruise control feature you do not even understand, and your balloon is instantly deflated. Material joy does not last long; a person gets used to good things very quickly and no longer rejoices in them. And if this is true of simchah, how much more so regarding gilah - which is an instantaneous burst of excitement.
This also explains what is cited in the name of the Vilna Gaon (the Gra): why is it written, "He who has found (matza) a wife has found good" in the past tense, whereas "And I find (umotzei) more bitter than death the woman" is in the present tense? Because to bad things, we never grow accustomed. A person complains about the bad all the time, whether it is the weather or anything else. In contrast, one gets used to the good quickly, and immediately seeks the next good thing. Therefore, "He has found a wife" - when she is good, that was thirty years ago, he has already gotten used to it, it is in the past. But when it is bitter as death - "I find," every single day anew he experiences it. Not merely because she invents new techniques, but because the bad itself always feels fresh, whereas the good no longer thrills. Thus, continuous gilah seems virtually impossible.
The Malbim raises an additional point: when does a person rejoice? Over something of which he previously suffered a lack (he'eder). Without lack, there is no joy. We all know the story of the man who came to the rabbi complaining of terrible overcrowding - six souls in two rooms, it is impossible to live like this! The rabbi told him: "I have a remedy (segulah): bring a goat into the house, and come back to me in a week." He brought in a goat - the noise, the smell, an absolute nightmare. He ran back to the rabbi: "Help!" The rabbi told him: "Now take the goat out." A week later, the rabbi asked him: "Nu, how are things?" He replied: "Baruch Hashem, it is an entirely different life! A clean house, no noise, no goat wandering around." To feel good, one unfortunately must first feel not good. Who among us says right now, "Thank You, Master of the Universe, that I don't have a stomachache"? But after two days of cramps, when it finally subsides - "Thank You, Master of the Universe!" And during those two days - "Master of the Universe, make it stop!" Good is recognizable only out of lack, and light is recognizable only out of darkness.
If so, asks the Malbim, in the Future to Come we would face a problem: there will be no evil at all, so how will the good be felt? I enjoy food only when I am hungry, and I enjoy light only after I have been in darkness. To this, the Holy One, blessed be He, promises continuous gilah, and the emphasis is on the word "creates" (borei): not a joy stemming from the standard laws of creation, but a brand-new joy created by Hashem. Today, your gilah comes in the wake of lack - you lacked something, and then you receive the good news that a child was born, what great joy! But in the Future to Come, the Holy One, blessed be He, creates a joy that requires no preceding lack whatsoever, a joy you will experience even without having lacked it beforehand.
This is the meaning of "Behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing (gilah)" - Jerusalem itself will exist in perpetual rejoicing, on account of the light of the Shechinah dwelling within it permanently. And the outward expressions of this rejoicing will be manifest in the people: "and her people a delight (masos)" - when seeing the people's success and their upright path, a person will be constantly joyful, and it will be visible just how much he delights in his divine service. The outward expression will be a people dressed in Yom Tov garments, with joy overflowing outwardly, until the immense joy that the Holy One, blessed be He, bestows upon us will be obvious to all.
"And I will rejoice in Jerusalem" - An End to Weeping and Crying Out
וְגַלְתִּי בִירוּשָׁלִַם וְשַׂשְׂתִּי בְעַמִּי, וְלֹא יִשָּׁמַע בָּהּ עוֹד קוֹל בְּכִי וְקוֹל זְעָקָה׃ - And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and delight in My people; and the voice of weeping shall no more be heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
Radak explains: "And I will rejoice in Jerusalem" - because it will contain rejoicing, and I will rejoice in it, for in this place they will always fulfill My will, unlike today when they defy My word. "And delight in My people" - for they will be My people, My chosen ones, doers of My will. And why will the voice of weeping and the voice of crying not be heard? Because today people weep over those who die prematurely in the city, over those slain by the sword, over those taken captive - whereas then, no such reality will exist at all. There will be no evil in the world, neither sword nor war, and even natural death will not occur, but rather people will live for hundreds of years, as stated in the following verse.
The Malbim adds: "And I will rejoice in Jerusalem" - I will experience a newly created joy through Jerusalem, where they will continually see anew the signs and wonders of the Holy One, blessed be He, and this will generate constant joy, renewed enthusiasm and longing. "And delight in My people" - masos is the outward expression of joy, and many nations will behold these signs of joy through My people. And "the voice of weeping shall no more be heard in her, nor the voice of crying": weeping is over a trouble that has already occurred, while crying out is a plea for salvation regarding the future. There will be no grief over the past nor crying out over the future, but only rejoicing and delight.
"The Youth Shall Die a Hundred Years Old" - Longevity
לֹא יִהְיֶה מִשָּׁם עוֹד עוּל יָמִים וְזָקֵן אֲשֶׁר לֹא יְמַלֵּא אֶת יָמָיו, כִּי הַנַּעַר בֶּן מֵאָה שָׁנָה יָמוּת וְהַחוֹטֵא בֶּן מֵאָה שָׁנָה יְקֻלָּל׃ - There shall no more be thence an infant of days, nor an old man who has not filled his days; for the youth shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed.
An ul yamim is like an oleil, a young child. The prophet says that there will no longer be anyone who does not live out his full span of days. "For the youth shall die a hundred years old" - according to the Midrash cited by Rashi, at age one hundred a person will first become subject to divine punishment, so as to incur the death penalty for a sin he committed. "And the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed" - one who commits a sin that warrants excommunication (nidui), this will be the age at which he is excommunicated.
Radak explains "There shall no longer be from there" - from Jerusalem, about which it was said, "And I will rejoice in Jerusalem." Yet this does not refer strictly to Jerusalem; the same applies to all of Eretz Yisrael, only that Jerusalem is primary. Its meaning is: they will not lead out from there a funeral procession for an infant of days or for an elder who has not fulfilled his days. And what is the age of elderhood? "At sixty, one reaches elderhood" (Avot 5:21). Thus, a person can be called an elder and still not have fulfilled his days until reaching seventy. Today, when a person passes away at age seventy, people say he passed away early; even though at sixty one is already considered an elder, we nevertheless say he died before his time. All of this applies in our era. In the future, however, they will not say of an elder that he fulfilled his days until he reaches three hundred or five hundred, and only then will they say: Behold, this one has reached old age. Reality will return to the early generations from the beginning of Creation, when people lived long lives. And of someone who dies at the age of one hundred, people will say he was a "youth" - what a pity, he was just a child, merely one hundred years old! And "the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed" - one upon whom the curse of God rests will die at age one hundred, whereas one who is not cursed will live much longer.
The Malbim shows that this verse explains the previous one: "The voice of weeping shall no more be heard in her" - weeping over what? Over a person dying before his time. Today, even an elderly person might not have fulfilled his days. How so? A person who dies today of old age dies due to the depletion of the radical moisture and natural vital energy - the body dries out. In truth, however, this is not an inherent cause of death, for at the time of Creation people died at age nine hundred. If a person dies today at eighty, it is because this moisture and vitality have run out, which implies that naturally, had they not diminished, an "elder" would be measured at nine hundred or a thousand years old, just as we see from the ages at which the early generations passed away.
We have elaborated on this in the past, and it is also found in the Kuzari, that dying of old age is not a natural phenomenon at all, for by nature man was never supposed to die. The reason is simple: every ten years or so, between ten and twenty years, all the cells in the body regenerate. If so, "Your youth is renewed like the eagle's" (Tehillim 103:5), and there is no reason for a person to depart from the world, since there is no mechanism causing wear and tear. The wearing out of a table, a car, or any appliance stems from the fact that it is physical and lacks regeneration; hence it gradually wears out. But something that constantly renews itself should never wear out. Why, then, does man age? The Ramban writes that aging is not inherent to nature, for by nature man renews himself and should keep living; rather, it is a heavenly decree that man should age and pass away. Indeed, researchers today have identified a specific gene responsible for aging that causes the body to deteriorate, and they are working to isolate it. When they succeed in isolating it, we will arrive at "the youth shall die at a hundred years old" - anyone dying at age one hundred will be considered to have died in his youth. When will they succeed? The Holy One, blessed be He, knows, and perhaps He Himself will do so in the end. Either way, this reality will only come to pass in the future, as we are not yet worthy of it. The main point is not to mistakenly assume this will be a miracle or a subversion of nature; on the contrary, the true natural state is for man to live on endlessly, as he is continually renewing himself.
So much so that some remark that after fifteen or twenty years a man ought to betroth his wife anew, for you are no longer you and she is no longer she - and not just in terms of temperament, but physically it is not even the same physical mass that stood under the chuppah, as all the cells are completely new! From this we see that kiddushin takes place between souls, not between kilograms; it is a spiritual bond, and the soul does not change at all, even over decades, centuries, or millennia.
Returning to our subject: the Malbim says that even in our times, of a person who dies an old man of one hundred, it is still said that he did not complete his days, for the true completion of days is as it was at first - a thousand years. It follows that if one dies here at age one hundred, the cause is the depletion of the innate moisture and natural vitality - an external factor that caused him to dry out - and he did not fulfill his days in terms of true old age. And one who dies an infant of days without fulfilling his days does so for one of two reasons: either due to illness, may Hashem protect us, or on account of sin. Regarding this, the prophet says: in the future, there will not be found an infant of days who has not fulfilled his days, nor an elder who has not fulfilled his days. Today, an infant of days who has not fulfilled his days is someone who dies at twenty, and an elder who has not fulfilled his days is one who dies at one hundred. In the future, however, even a youth who dies in his youth will be at least one hundred years old, and an elder will be nine hundred. And why will a youth not die under the age of one hundred? Because under the age of one hundred, one will not yet be subject to heavenly punishment, as in the Midrash cited by Rashi, and it would not be fitting, as it were, to punish him before his time.
"They Shall Build Houses and Inhabit Them" - The Durability of Their Handiwork
וּבָנוּ בָתִּים וְיָשָׁבוּ, וְנָטְעוּ כְרָמִים וְאָכְלוּ פִּרְיָם׃ - "They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit."
They will build houses and inhabit them for as long as the house stands and even longer, and they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit for as long as they yield fruit. For as the Malbim notes, very often a person passes away long before his house falls into ruin. Houses in our era stand for hundreds of years (unless missiles are fired from there, in which case the house lasts two days), and normally a house endures for many years. Similarly, a person plants a vineyard and passes away while the vineyard continues to flourish. In the future, this will not be so, but rather: "They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit."
Let us not be confused: the prophets prophesied solely concerning the Messianic era. We are not speaking here of life in the World to Come, which even the prophets did not behold: "No eye has seen, O God, beside You, what You will do for him who waits for You" (Yeshayahu 64:3). And there is no difference between our current era and the Messianic era except the subjugation to foreign kingdoms alone (Berachot 34b). In other words, this refers to a reality within this physical world, during the Messianic era, when there will be an abundance of blessing and goodness - not the life of the World to Come, which is the world of souls, an exalted spiritual reality where we have no grasp at all of the immense delight, abundance, and closeness to God, which even the prophets could not perceive.
לֹא יִבְנוּ וְאַחֵר יֵשֵׁב, לֹא יִטְּעוּ וְאַחֵר יֹאכֵל, כִּי כִימֵי הָעֵץ יְמֵי עַמִּי וּמַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵיהֶם יְבַלּוּ בְחִירָי׃ - "They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree shall be the days of My people, and My chosen ones shall outlive the work of their hands."
The Malbim explains: today, a reality exists where a person builds, and an heir comes or strangers arrive and seize the fruit of his toil. And why was planting mentioned after building? Because in their time, plantings endured longer than buildings (although even today there are trees hundreds of years old, while standard construction typically outlasts an average tree - unless one builds with substandard Pal-Kal methods - but in ancient times trees lasted longer than buildings). Therefore the verse adds: not only will they not build and another inhabit, but they will not even plant and another eat, even though plantings last longer.
"For as the days of a tree shall be the days of My people" - they will live as long as the days of a tree, and therefore "My chosen ones shall outlive the work of their hands." If a person plants a tree, he will not die while the tree still stands; rather, we will wear out the work of our hands. We will see the work of our hands wear out, rather than the reverse - our handiwork witnessing man wearing away. It turns out, then, that man will live an exceptionally long life. In truth, we have come somewhat close to this as we approach the coming of Mashiach, though not in a praiseworthy manner: in the past, an item lasted forty years, whereas today a washing machine barely lasts a year or two, and a cell phone breaks down precisely when the warranty expires. Everything is made to such a poor standard that we witness the work of our hands wearing out before our eyes! But that is not what the verse means. Rather, man himself will be elevated and live a long life, and no matter how good products are, man will outlive them all.
Let us note the words of the Radak, lest we mistakenly think that only nature is changing here: the promised longevity will occur miraculously, and not for the other nations, but for the Jewish people alone. And "like the days of a tree", according to Targum Yonatan and as Rashi explains, alludes to the Tree of Life. It is very possible that this is what Chazal meant when they said that the Tree of Life is a journey of five hundred years, says the Radak: that the walk up to the Tree of Life is a journey of five hundred years - meaning, they will live for hundreds of years and more.
They Shall Not Labor in Vain, Nor Bear Children for Terror
לֹא יִיגְעוּ לָרִיק וְלֹא יֵלְדוּ לַבֶּהָלָה, כִּי זֶרַע בְּרוּכֵי ה' הֵמָּה וְצֶאֱצָאֵיהֶם אִתָּם׃ - They shall not labor in vain, nor shall they bear children for terror, for they are the seed blessed by the Lord, and their offspring with them.
The Radak explains that this is the exact opposite of the curse, "You shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies will eat it." Here, He promises them that they will not toil for nothing; rather, all their labor will be blessed: no enemy will come to consume the fruit of their labor, nor will blight, mildew, or any plague strike down their crops.
And the Malbim notes with precision: "They shall not labor in vain" - laboring in vain is when a person plants and another consumes it. "Nor shall they bear children for terror" - when the children born to them die prematurely. Terror is something that shocks and terrifies a person's heart, and when someone is informed, Heaven forbid, of the passing of relatives, and all the more so of the passing of his children, he suffers an awful, overwhelming terror, which may Hashem bring only upon our enemies. He promises that a person will not father a child only to subsequently receive heart-wrenching, terrifying news; rather, their children will endure. And corresponding to "They shall not labor in vain," it says, "for they are the seed blessed by the Lord" - that they will live long lives and outlast the work of their hands, enjoying blessing in everything they do. And corresponding to "nor shall they bear children for terror," it says, "and their offspring with them" - whatever they bring into the world will remain with them, alive and enduring.
Up to this point, says the Malbim, we have explained what was stated above, "The sound of weeping shall no longer be heard in her" - weeping over one who died before his time or, Heaven forbid, over the death of children. Regarding this, He promised that they will live long lives, reaching an old age of hundreds of years, and will not bear children for terror. But it also stated there, "nor the sound of an outcry," which is a cry for salvation - and the following verses address this.
Before They Call, I Will Answer
וְהָיָה טֶרֶם יִקְרָאוּ וַאֲנִי אֶעֱנֶה, עוֹד הֵם מְדַבְּרִים וַאֲנִי אֶשְׁמָע׃ - And it shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; while they are still speaking, I will hear.
The reality in exile, says the Radak, is that "You have screened Yourself with a cloud so prayer cannot pass through" - an iron wall separates Israel from their Father in Heaven, which Chazal likened to an obscuring cloud preventing prayer from ascending. Yet here there is a difficulty: first it says, "Before they call, I will answer" - meaning even before they call out, and then "while they are still speaking, I will hear" - meaning they have already begun to call, only they have not yet finished. Isn't this a regression, whereas the way of Scripture is to progressively add praise? Therefore, the Radak explains: sometimes before they call, and sometimes while they are still speaking - meaning even the least favorable scenario will be that while they are still speaking, I will hear. Even if you are not at the highest spiritual level, know that in the very midst of the words, I will already hear.
The Malbim explains differently: "Before they call, I will answer" - they will not need to cry out at all, and therefore no sound of an outcry will be heard, since before they even call, I will answer. Not only that, but even earlier - while they are still speaking among themselves about their needs - "I will hear" and fulfill their heart's desire, without even waiting for a formal call. According to this, the second part indeed adds to the first: "Before they call" - we discussed among ourselves what we need and decided to organize a prayer to ask for it, and Hashem granted it even before the prayer. And there is an even higher state: not after you finished discussing what to ask for, but while you are still talking among yourselves about what to request and what is needed - "I will hear," and consequently pour down abundance upon them. Thus, there is an escalation beyond what was said before. Furthermore, a cry of distress is usually heard when there are destructive forces in the world, and concerning this, the next verse comes to say that destructive forces will not exist either.
The Wolf and the Lamb Shall Graze Together
זְאֵב וְטָלֶה יִרְעוּ כְאֶחָד וְאַרְיֵה כַּבָּקָר יֹאכַל תֶּבֶן וְנָחָשׁ עָפָר לַחְמוֹ, לֹא יָרֵעוּ וְלֹא יַשְׁחִיתוּ בְּכָל הַר קָדְשִׁי אָמַר ה'׃ - The wolf and the lamb shall graze together, and the lion shall eat straw like cattle, and the serpent, dust shall be its food; they shall not harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, said the Lord.
There is a story told about a zoo director who decided to create an exhibit of "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb," placing a wolf and a lamb in the same enclosure. A visitor asked him: "How do you manage this? After all, this is a prophecy for the future to come!" He replied: "Very simple - every day we replace the lamb." But in the prophecy it says, "The wolf and the lamb shall feed together" - they will graze together, and there will be no need to replace the lamb; it will remain right there.
Rashi explains: "And the lion shall eat straw like the ox" - the lion will no longer need to prey on beasts and cast its terror, but will instead eat straw like gentle domestic animals. "And dust shall be the serpent's food" - is this not already the case today? Rather, the meaning is that dust will be constantly and endlessly available to it, and consequently it will be satisfied with this and will not need to cause harm. Rashi also cites a Midrash Aggadah on "and the lion shall eat straw like the ox," since we find that Esau falls into the hands of the descendants of Joseph, as it says, "and the house of Esau shall be stubble." And the serpent will no longer eat us or bite us, for the serpent seeks dust, and we will no longer be considered dust.
The Malbim explains: "The wolf and the lamb shall feed together" - the wolf will not harm the lamb, and the very nature of predators will be transformed, so that the lion will eat straw rather than meat. Regarding the wolf and the lion, which would harm only for their own needs - for a wolf and a lion cause harm only out of hunger, and a satiated lion does not touch a person or a deer passing before it, preying only when hungry - it is said, "They shall not do evil," since the lion will eat straw. In contrast, the snake does not hunt to feed, but acts out of pure malice - "He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." The snake derives no benefit from its bite; often it bites and moves on. Sometimes it bites and eats, but often it merely bites and walks away, which is wanton destruction. Regarding this it is said, "And dust shall be the serpent's food... they shall not destroy in all My holy mountain." Until now it destroyed without reason, but since dust will be its food and prey, it will destroy no longer, and there will never be a situation where a snake bites human beings without reason.
In summary:
In our chapter, the prophet depicts a renewed world: a heaven and earth renewed to such an extent that the evil of the past will no longer even be remembered; a constant rejoicing created anew by the Holy One, Blessed be He, which does not require prior absence or suffering to be celebrated; a Jerusalem that is entirely rejoicing, and a people whose joy is visibly apparent to all; an end to weeping over premature death and cries for salvation, as man will once again live long lives like the earliest generations, eating from the labor of his hands and watching the work of his hands wear out before him; prayer answered before it is even uttered; and a natural world where none harm and none destroy. All of these will occur in the Messianic era, within the reality of this physical world, an existence of continuous and ever-renewing goodness, when nothing separates our current days from the Messianic era except subjugation to foreign kingdoms.