And the Lord will create... — The verb “create” has all the solemn force with which we find it in Genesis 1:1. It is one of Isaiah’s favourite words. The word for “dwelling-place” is almost invariably used for the tabernacle or temple, and would seem to have that meaning here. This determines the character of the “assemblies.” They are not the meetings of the people for counsel or debate, as in a Greek ecclesia, but their “gatherings,” their “solemn assemblies,” in the courts of the temple. The thoughts of the prophet travel back to the history of the Exodus, when the presence of Jehovah was manifested as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night (Exodus 13:21; Numbers 9:15; Numbers 10:34; Numbers 14:14). In that Presence there would be safety and peace. The image is a favourite one with Isaiah, possibly as connected with the vision of Isaiah 6:4, for God’s protection of His people.
Upon all the glory shall be a defence. — The phrase is almost startlingly abrupt. The thought seems to be that over the “glory” of the new Jerusalem, as just described, there shall be stretched the overarching canopy of the Divine Love. The word for “defence” occurs in this sense in Psalms 19:5; Joel 2:16, and is still used by Jews of the “canopy” held over bride and bridegroom at a wedding. The “baldacchino” over the altar of an Italian church probably represents the image that was present to Isaiah’s mind.