Isaiah 66:1,2 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Thus saith the Lord, &c.— God here makes use of a sublime discourse, suitable to his Majesty, to reach the genuine sense whereof we must consider it as directed to the hypocrites, who supposed the care of the temple and sacrifice to be the principal and most acceptable part of worship in the sight of God. The words may be thus paraphrased: "Why, ye hypocrites, do ye build and adorn my temple upon earth with so much labour? If I regarded a visible temple as the place of manifesting my glory, I have one of the highest excellence and splendor in the heavens, which I have prepared for my glory and for the use of the celestial hosts. In which view the whole earth, and whatever is made of earth and terrestrial matter, (as is every temple, however splendid) ought to be considered as my footstool." (See chap. Isaiah 57:15.) Further, "whatever is your boast, from building me a house, all this is vain; for my hand hath formed all these things, and they have all existed by my power and will; so that you can confer upon God nothing but what is his own." See Psalms 50:12. Though therefore God, for the reasons of his providence toward his church, permitted, for he did not command, David or Solomon to build him a material temple; yet he would not have it esteemed as his true house, or seem on this account to be indebted to the builders. He only, according to his wisdom, was willing to indulge the Israelites, that in the time of the infancy of the church, they might substitute a figurative in the room of the true house of the Lord. The discourse rises; "Nay," saith the Lord, "not even the celestial house is acceptable to me: I have another, more noble, pure, and agreeable to my nature, the true place of my rest; namely, men formed and prepared by grace to receive the influx of the Divine Spirit;" which is thus expressed, To this man will I look, to him who is poor and contrite in spirit, and who trembleth at my word. See ch. Isaiah 57:15.Matthew 5:3.Psalms 138:6. Vitringa is of opinion, that this discourse is directed to the hypocrites, who, despising the Gospel of the Son of God, after they had made the temple a den of thieves, were yet zealous to repair and adorn that temple: they did not consider that, a new oeconomy being established, no earthly and material temple could be acceptable to the God whose throne was in heaven, and who every where found the place of his rest in the humble and contrite heart.