Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.
Ver. 1. Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops] Here the virgin, the daughter of Zion, despiseth her adversaries of Assyria and Babylon, and laughs them to scorn; "the daughter of Jerusalem shaketh her head at them," Isaiah 37:22; and bearing herself bold upon the foregoing promise, Micah 4:13, that she should beat in pieces many people, she taketh liberty to taunt the Assyrian monarch with all his troops beleaguering her, and basely abusing her judges, telling him, that the babe of Bethlehem would shortly take an order with him. And although she were but a virgin, yet, having such a champion as Christ, who is in love with her, that will take her part and fight her quarrel, she doubteth not to say, "Now gather thyself in troops," &c. Nunc turmatim coito, o turmaria, Increase thine army and come forth. "Gather yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand; for God is with us," Isaiah 8:9,10; Jehovah is our judge, Jehovah is our champion, Jehovah is our king; he will save us, Isaiah 33:22. Lo, this is the Church's confident boasting in Christ, this is the triumph of her trust in him. The thought of his birth swalloweth up all her fears and discontents; and compasseth her about with songs of deliverance, Psalms 32:7 .
He hath laid siege against us] And already devoured us in his hopes; but if we do but turn us to Christ, and say, Behold, she whom thou lovest is distressed the Assyrian as a strong river is come up over all his channels, and reacheth even to the neck; yea, the stretching out of his wings filleth the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel, Isaiah 8:7,8, he will soon bestir himself, he will besiege our besiegers, he will smite them upon the cheek bone, and break the teeth of those ungodly, Psalms 3:7, that smote the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek, for a reproach to the whole people. Hugo by this judge of Israel understandeth Christ, who was indeed at his passion contumeliously buffeted (ερραπισαν Bacillis ceciderunt. Beza), and smitten with rods upon the cheek, Matthew 26:6,7. But this, though it be true, yet cannot be the sense of this text.