But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.
But with righteousness shall he judge the poor - He will see that impartial justice is done them. And reprove - decide. But Lowth, 'work conviction in.' "Judge" may mean here 'rule over,' as in Psalms 67:4, "Thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth."
With equity for the meek of the earth - (cf. Matthew 5:5, and Revelation 11:15.)
And he shall smite the earth - its ungodly inhabitants: answering to "the wicked" in the parallel, and in antithesis to the "poor" and "meek" - namely, in spirit-the humble pious (Matthew 5:3). It is implied that "the earth" will be extraordinarily wicked when He shall come to judge and reign. The apostasy will be of world-wide extent. His reign shall therefore be ushered in with judgments on the apostates (Psalms 2:9-12; Luke 18:8; Revelation 2:27).
With the rod of his mouth - with condemning sentences which proceed from His mouth against the wicked (Revelation 1:16; Revelation 2:16; Revelation 19:15; Revelation 19:21).
With the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked - the Chaldaic Targum. Jonathan paraphrases, 'With the utterance of His lips will He kill the wicked Armillus' [i:e., ereemolaos], the desolater of the people. Paul alludes to this passage in 2 Thessalonians 2:8, "that Wicked ... whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth;" His judicial decisions (Isaiah 30:28; Job 15:30; Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:9-12). He, as the Word of God (Revelation 19:13-15), comes to strike that blow which shall decide His claim to the kingdom previously usurped by Satan, and "the beast" to whom Satan delegates his power. It will be a day of judgment to the Gentile dispensation, as the first coming was to the Jews. Compare a type of the "rod" - namely, Aaron's rod 'before the testimony, kept for a token against the rebels' (Numbers 17:2-10).